On Yuan Chwang's Travels in India, 629–645 A.D. v1.c14.s2.4

v1.c14.s2.4

In the corresponding passage of the Life we are informed that the pilgrim left Ayudha in a boat along with a party and proceeded east down the Ganges towards Ayamukha. When about 100 *li* on the way, in a wood of asoka trees, the boat was attacked by Thugs who robbed the party. When these Thugs saw that the Chinese pilgrim was an uncommonly fine-looking man they decided to sacrifice him to their cruel deity Durgā. From this terrible fate the pilgrim was preserved by a providential hurricane which put the wicked Thugs in fear, and made them release their doomed victim, treat him with awe and reverence, and under his teaching give up their wicked profession, and take the vows of lay-Buddhists. After recording this episode the Life goes on to state that the pilgrim "from this went above 300 *li* east and crossed to the north of the Ganges into the Ayamukha country". The "this" here may be taken to mean the place of the encounter with the Thugs, and the distance from Ayudha to Ayamukha would then be 400 *li*. But the words "from this" in the above extract from the Life should perhaps be treated, in accordance with the text of the Records, as indicating Ayudha city as the point of departure. The pilgrim apparently travelled by land eastwards from the place where the boat was seized by the Thugs, and he crossed to the north side of the river near Ayamukha city. This river cannot have been the Ganges and it may have been the Sai. We may even doubt whether the river in the Asoka wood on which the Thugs had their piratical boats was the Ganges proper.