On Yuan Chwang's Travels in India, 629–645 A.D. v2.c20.35

v2.c20.35

Our pilgrim's narrative next goes on to tell that three or four *li* north from the great mountain with Bimbisāra's road was an isolated hill on which the *rishi* Vyāsa once dwelt as a hermit. Four or five *li* north from this was a small isolated hill in the rocky side of which was a cave large enough to seat above 1000 men: at the south-west corner of it was the Asura's Palace. With reference to this the pilgrim tells a story of a "mischievous" (好事者) man (in Julien's rendering "un ami du merveilleux") who induced 13 friends to go with him into this cave. They all went forward about 30 or 40 *li* when they came to a city of gold, and silver, and lapis-lazuli. Two female servants told the party they must all, except their magician leader, take a bath before going in; when the thirteen men had bathed they found themselves in a rice-field about 30 *li* up the valley. Beside the cave ran the causeway made by king Bimbisāra to get to the Buddha. It was about four *li* long by ten paces wide, formed by cutting throught banks of rock and filling up valleys, piling up stones, boring through precipices, and making a succession of steps. From this going east across the mountain for above 60 *li* the pilgrim came to the Kusāgrapur city, "the city of the superior reed-grass", the centre of Magadha and its old capital. The city derived its name from the excellent fragrant reed-grass which abounded there. High hills formed its outer walls; on the west it had a narrow outlet: on the north was a passage through the mountain; it was above 150 *li* in circuit: *kanika* trees with fragrant bright golden blossoms were on all the paths, and these made the woods in late spring all golden coloured.