The Doctrine of the Jainas, Described after the Old Sources c9.73

c9.73

§115. The mountains in Mahāvideha are called *vak-khāra-pabbaya*. They are grouped round the Mandara mountain which forms the centre point of the Jambuddīva. This mountain which, apart from 14 other names (Samav. 31b),¹ bears the name of Meru—preferred by later authors—reaches below the earth surface by 1,000 *joy.* and rises above it by 99,000; at its visible foot in measures 10,000 and on its top 1,000 *joy.* in diametre. On its slopes we have four forest districts (*vaṇa*). On the earth surface there is the Bhaddasāla forest extending over a distance of 22,000 *joy.* from east to west, but of not more than 250 *joy.* from south to north, with eight directive summits (*disāhatthi-kūḍa*) rising from it up to a height of 500 *joy.* (Thāṇ. 436a). On the side of Mt. Mandara, at a height of 500 *joy.* we have the flat terrace of the Nandaṇa forest, and at a height of 62,500 *joy.* that of the Somaṇasa forest, both measuring 500 *joy.* in width. The former has ninesummits (Thāṇ. 454a). At a height of 36,000 *joy.*² above the latter there follows the Paṇḍaga forest with four sacred places (*abhi-sega-silā*) for world-emperors (*cakkavaṭṭi*) (s.b.) and Titthagaras (Thāṇ. 224a). From its ring 494 *joy.* broad the headpiece (*cūliyā*) on the top level of the mountain measuring 12 *joy.* in diametre juts up. It is 40 *joy.* high and 4 *joy.* wide at its top. From the Mandara four mountain ranges stretch in the intermediate directions to the Nisaha and Nilavanta, their height decreasing on their course from 500 down to 400 *joy.*, whilst their width increases from a minimum up to 500 *joy.* They embrace the countries of Devakurā in the south and of Uttarakurā in the north. Either country has five lakes with 20 mountains of gold each, i.e. 200 mountains of gold (*kañcaṇaga-pabbaya*) in all; in Devakurā we have, furthermore, the mountains of Citta- and Vicittakūḍa corresponding to the two twin mountains (*Jamaga-p.*) in Uttarakura. In their western, resp., eastern part we have the world trees referred to above. Moreover, there are four times 4 parallel mountain chains;¹ stretching from the world mountains by which Mahāvideha is bounded, they hit the two rivers a right angles, and it is here that they have their maximum height in correspondence with the case mentioned before. Between every two of them there flow the 12 tributaries quoted above following their course. As in all other world continents, the mountains consist of one kind of noble metal each or either of precious stones. Merely the nethermost 1,000 *joy.* of the Mandara, hidden in the earth, consist of common rock.