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The place is mentioned by Kalhana as an Agrahāra founded by Tuñjina I., and contains some old remains built into its chief Ziarat.1

Part of Advin lies on an alluvial plateau. The northernmost portion of this Uḍar seems to have been formed into a separate Pargana after Zainu-l-'abidin had constructed there extensive irrigation channels. From the small town of Jainapuri founded by him the new subdivision took the name of Zain por or JAINAPURA. of the Zain pōr Uḍar lies the village of Vachi (map on the authority of an old gloss may be identified Vaścika), an Agrahāra founded by Gopaditya.3

At the east foot Woochi') which with VAŚCIKĀ (or

The Pargana which joins on to Aḍ vin in the north-east, is now known as Bōt (map Batoo'). Its ancient name is unknown. The only old locality I can trace in it is the village of Sidau, 74° 51′ long. 33° 41′ lat., the ancient SIDDHAPATHA. It has given its name to the route previously mentioned which leads to the Budil and Kōnsar Nāg Passes.

It is curious that we find no old mention whatever of Supiyan, a considerable town, which is now the trade emporium for the Pir Pantsāl route. In this character Supiyan has replaced the ancient Sarapura or Hürapōr, but the change must be a comparatively recent one.

SURAPURA which we have already noticed as the Kasmir terminus of the Pir Pantsal route, lies some seven miles Śūrapura. higher up on the Rembyāra. It received its name from the minister Suravarman who built it in the time of Avantivarman and transferred to it the watch-station or Dranga' of the route. The position of the latter is marked by a spot known as Ilāhī Darwaza, a short distance above Hürpōr.6 Surapura must have been a place of considerable extent as ruins of old habitations can be traced on the river banks for over two miles below the present Hürapōr. It evidently retained its importance down to Akbar's time. For it is regularly mentioned by all the later Chronicles in connection with marches and traffic by the Pir Pantsal route. The ancient remains of the place have been described by me in my notes on the latter.7

Our previous account of the old localities on the way to the Pir

1 Compare Rajat. ii. 55 note.

2 See Jonar. (Bo. ed.) 1144 sq.; Srīv. iii. 194; Fourth Chron. 360, 383.

3 Compare Rajat. i. 343 note.

See Rajat. viii. 557.

5 Regarding Surapura and its old sites, compare Rajat. Note D (iii. 227); v. 39 note; also J. A. S. B., 1895, pp. 381 sqq.

6 See above, § 42.

7 See J. A. 8. B., 1895, p. 385.

J. 1. 24

Pantsāl Pass makes it unnecessary for us to proceed now further in this direction. Descending, then, by the Rembyāra we come on its left bank to the village of Dēgām situated about one and a half miles to the west of Supiyan. It is the DEGRĀMA of the Rājatarangiņi and the site of the Kapalamocana Tirtha. At the spring of the latter Siva is supposed to have cleaned himself from the sin attaching to him after the cutting-off of Brahman's head (kapāla). The Tirtha is old, because There are but few ancient

the Haracaritacintāmaņi mentions it twice. remains at the sacred site, and the extant Mahatmya is evidently not of old date. It calls the village by the name of Dvigrāma and knows the modern Supiyan by the name of Surpayana.

117. The villages which lie at the foot of the pine-clad spurs descending into the valley west and north-west of Supiyan, formed until recent times a small distinct Pargana known as Sūparsṛmün. Abū-lFazl mentions it (Sōparsāman), but I am not able to trace it in our older texts.

To the north of this tract and of Bot extends the Pargana of Sukru. Its old name is unknown. Here at the foot Kalyāṇapura. of the hills, we have the ancient KALYANAPURA, represented by the present village of Kalampor, situated 74° 54' long. 33° 48′ lat. It was founded by Kalyāṇadevi, a queen of Jayāpiḍa. Being on the high road from the Pir Pantsal Pass to Srinagar, it was repeatedly the scene of battles fought with invaders from that direction.1

At Kalyāṇapura there was in Kalhana's time the splendid countryseat of a powerful Damara. The large village of Drabagām, some three miles north of Kalampor, is mentioned as DRABHAGRAMA by Srivara, along with Kalyanapura, in the description of a battle which was fought between the two places.6

High up in the valley of the Birnai stream which debouches at
Drābagām from the south-west, is the site of

Tīrtha of Bheḍā. an ancient Tirtha which though now completely forgotten must have ranked once amongst the most popular in Kasmir. In Kalhana's introduction there is named, along with Trisaṁdhya, Svayambhu, Sarada and other famous sites, "the hill of Bheda (Bhedagiri) sanctified by the Gangodbheda spring." There the goddess Sarasvati

1 Compare Rajat. vii. 266.

2 See Haracar. x. 249; xiv. 111.

3 See Rajat. iv. 483 note.

4 See Rajat. viii. 1261 sqq.; Srīv. iv. 466 sqq.

6 See Rajat. viii. 2348 sqq.

6 See Sriv. iv. 467. For a miniature temple extant at Drabagam, compare Bishop Cowie's note, J. A. S. B., 1866, p. 117.

was believed to have shown herself as a swan in a lake situated on the summit of the hill. This Tirtha has long ago ceased to be visited by pilgrims, and all recollection regarding its position has been lost to Pandit tradition. Fortunately the old Mahatmya of the sacred lake has survived in a single copy. With the help of some indications furnished by it and an opportune notice of Abū-l-Fazl, I was able to make a search for this ancient Tirtha which ultimately led to its discovery at the present Bud brar in the valley above indicated.

For the detailed evidence regarding this identification I must refer to my note on Kalhana's passage. Here a brief reference to the topographical peculiarity of the site will suffice. The Māhātmya describes the lake sacred to the goddess Sarasvati-Bheḍā as situated on the summit of a hill, and Gangodbheda as a spring flowing from it. At Buḍebrar, a small Gujar hamlet, which occupies the position marked by BHEDAGIRI on the map, I found an ancient stone-lined tank fed by a spring on the top of a small hillock. The latter rises about seventy feet above the level of the narrow valley in which it is situated. From the side of the hillock issues a spring which is the natural outflow of the tank and exactly corresponds to the description given of Gangodbheda. The name Budibrar is the direct derivative of Bheḍādevī, ‘the goddess Bheḍā,' the popular designation of the Tirtha found in the Māhātmya; -brṢr < Skr. bhaṭṭārikā is the equivalent of devi as in Sundabrar, Harabrar and other names.

The water of the spring which fills the tank, is said to keep warm in the winter. This accounts evidently for the story told in the Mahatmya that snow never lies on the ground around the sacred tank. Also Abu-l-Fazl's notice of the Tirtha mentions this particular feature: "Near Shukroh (Sukru) is a low hill on the summit of which is a fountain which flows throughout the year and is a place of pilgrimage for the devout. The snow does not fall on this spur."

Also Srivara helped to guide my search in the direction of Bud brar and to confirm the subsequent identification. He mentions the route through Bheḍāvana, 'the forest of Bheḍā,' as the line of retreat taken by the troops who after their defeat in the above-mentioned engagement near Drabagam were fleeing towards Rajauri.8 A glance. at the map shows that the thickly wooded valley of Bud brar is meant here. For a force beaten near Drābagām it affords the most direct and safest retreat to the Pir Pantsal Pass and hence to Rajauri. The route leading through the valley joins the 'Imperial Road' at Dubji and is shown on the map.

1 See Rajat. i. 35, Note A.

See Ain-i-Akb., ii. p. 362.

8 Compare Sriv. iv. 496 and the preceding narrative.

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Returning once more to the plain we have yet to notice two other old localities of Sukru. Bilau (map' Belloh ') about four miles northeast of Drabagam is probably the village of BILAVA' once mentioned by Kalhana. Within a mile of it lies the village Sun samil which we may safely identify with the SUVARNASANURA of the Rājatarangiṇī, in view of the resemblance of the names and the repeated mention of the latter place together with Kalyāṇapura.2

1

Districts of Śāvur and Chrāṭh.

118. East of Sukru towards the Vitastā stretches the Pargana of Savur (map 'Showra'). The earlier form of its name cannot be traced. Its northern part is formed by the alluvial plateau known as the Naunagar Udar. This latter is twice referred to as NAUNAGARA in Kalhana's Chronicle. The village of Payer which lies at the foot of the Uḍar at its north-western end contains a well-preserved little temple often described by European travellers. Nothing is known regarding the original name of the locality.

Б

*

To the north of Sukru we have the district of Chrāṭh (shown by name on the larger survey map). It extends from the hills above Rāmuh in a north-easterly direction to the left bank of the Vitastā. Its old name is restored in Pandit Sahibram's Tirthasaṁgraha as Srīrāṣṭra, but I do not know on what authority. Ramuh, first correctly identified by Prof. Bühler with Kalhana's RAMUSA, is a considerable village on the high road from Supiyan to Srinagar. It is first mentioned as an Agrahara, founded by a queen of Tunjina I. A small spring at the northern end of the village, called Dhananaga, is visited as a Tirtha and contains some fragments of ancient sculptures. The temple erected by the Brahman family of the Dars which now holds Rāmuh as a Jagir, does not seem to mark an old site.

A short distance to the north of Ramuh rises an alluvial plateau which is crossed by the road to Srinagar. It is known as Gūs Udar, from the village of Gus situated at its eastern foot, about two miles from Rāmuh. The place is mentioned as GUSIKA in Srivara's

1 See Rājat. vii. 1016.

2 See Rājat. vii. 1519 note; sung 'gold' is the regular Ks. derivative of Skr.

suvarna.

3 See Rajat. vii. 358.

♦ Compare, e.g., CUNNINGHAM, J. A. S. B., 1848, pp. 254 sqq. I am unable to explain why the place figures in all European accounts as Payech, Pa Yech, etc. VIGNE, ii. 41, first uses this form which is locally quite unknown, and does not fail to explain it by one of his naïve etymologies.

Rajat. ii. 55; Report, p. 7. Medial becomes in Ks. regularly h; comp. Katimusa > Kaimuh, Khonamuşa > Khunomoh, etc.

Chronicle which also knows the plateau by the name Gusikoḍḍāra.1 At the other end of Chrath towards the Vitasta lies the large village of Ratanpōr, 75° 1′ long. 33° 55′ lat., which in all probability represents the RATNAPURA of the Rajatarangiņi.2 The latter was founded in Kalhana's time by Queen Ratnadevi who also constructed there a fine Matha.

With Chrath may be mentioned two localities on the left bank of the Vitasta though in recent times they were counted with the riveraine Pargana of Sairu-l-Mawazi' Bālā. Gurpur, a small village opposite to the foot of Mount Vastarvan, is identified by an old gloss with GOPALAPURA which, according to Kalhana, was founded by Queen Sugandha (A.D. 904-6).8

Lower down on the river is the large village Kāk pōr which forms as it were the riverside station or port for Supiyan. A note from the hand of Pandit Rājānaka Ratnakantha who wrote about the middle of the 17th century the Codex Archetypus of the Rājatarangiņi, identifies UTPALAPURA with Kāk?pōr. Utpalapura was founded by Utpala, an uncle of King Cippaṭa-Jayāpiḍa, in the early part of the 9th century. If this identification is correct, one of the ruined temples extant at Kāk pōr and noticed already by Gen. Cunningham, may be the shrine of Visņu Utpalasvamin mentioned by Kalhana in connection with the foundation of Utpalapura. Jonarāja also knows the latter place and records a late restoration of its Vişņu temple."

119. North of Chrath we come to the district of Nāgām which is one of considerable extent. Its old name NAGRAMA is often mentioned in the later Chro

Districts of Nāgām

and Yech.

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nicles. The only old locality which I can trace in it, is the village of rigōm, situated 74° 45′ long. 33° 56′ lat. It is the HADIGRAMA of Kalhaṇa, mentioned as an Agrahāra of Gopaditya and as the scene of several fights in the Chronicler's own time.7

1 Srīv. iv. 532, 465, 592 sqq. ; -uḍḍāra is the Skr. original of the Kś. term uḍar, see Rajat. note viii. 1427.

2 See Rajat. viii. 2434.

8 See Rajat. v. 244 note.

• See Rajat. iv. 695 note. The learned copyist's note is in a copy of the Kṣetrupālapaddhati seen by me in 1895 in the possession of a Kasmir Brahman resident at Lahore.

5 See Jonar. (Bo. ed.) 111 sqq., 369, 1142.

6 Compare Jonar. (Bo. ed.) 661; Srīv. ii. 10; iii. 24, 430; iv. 349; Fourth Chron. 258, etc.

1 See Rajat. i. 340 note. The old glossator on this passage renders Hāḍigrāma correctly by Aḍegrām.

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