line. Deogarh is a famous place of pilgrimage.

183 m. from Calcutta, Madhupur junction station (R.) for the Giridih Line and the coalfield. The upland country at Simultala, Jasidih, Deogarh and Madhupur on this route is regarded by Bengalis as a sanatorium.

Expedition to GAYA (see p. 48).

57 m. from Bankipore.

The journey will chiefly repay the archæologist or the student of Buddhism. The district of Gaya, which was included within the ancient kingdom of Magadha, contains many places of great sanctity. The name Gaya is said to have been the name of an Asura, or giant demon, so holy that all who saw or touched him were admitted to heaven. The rocky hills which run out far into the plains of the Ganges Valley teem with associations, remains, sculptures, images and sites of the religion of Buddha, many of which have been diverted to new objects by modern superstition. There is a so-called Gaya black stone, of which ornaments, bowls, and figures of gods and animals, often purchased_by visitors, are carved.

The

Barábar Caves, 16 m. north of Gaya, are considered to be among the oldest Buddhist monuments in existence. At the present day the chief pilgrims to the temple and sacred tree at Buddh Gaya are Buddhists from Tibet, Burma, and Ceylon, and devout Hindus from all parts of India, who come to pray for the souls of their ancestors in purgatory, as part of the general course of pilgrimage of which Gaya is the centre. There is a lengthy legend to the effect that Vishnu

promised that the rock on which the old town now stands should be known as Gaya-kshettra, and that whoever offered funeral cakes and performed the funeral ceremonies there should be translated with their ancestors to the heaven of Brahma: hence the peculiar sanctity of the locality. The Hindu pilgrim, before leaving his home, must walk five times round his native village, calling upon the souls of his ancestors to accompany him on his journey. There are forty-five places within an area of 35 sq. m. at which the pilgrim should offer funeral cakes, but they usually visit only seven and often only three of the forty-five. Arrived at Gaya, he is forthwith placed in charge of a special Brahman guide, with whom he makes the pilgrimage of the place, and he has to bathe in the sacred streams of the Phalgu and the Punpun: nearly 90 per cent. of the population are Hindus.

Gaya, (D.B. about 1 m.; R. room at Station; few taxis available), 292 m. from Calcutta, is a city of 67,562 inhabitants. It is on the Grand Chord E.I.R. from Calcutta to Moghalsarai, and also connected with the main line E.I.R by the S. Bihar Ry. to Lakhisarai and the Patna-Gaya Ry. to Patna Jn. Motor service, 2 hrs., Gaya to Sherghati. Being an important centre of Hindu pilgrimage, Gaya is visited by about 300,000 pilgrims yearly. The temple of Vishnu Pad in the old portion of it is impossible to approach except on foot, owing to the extreme narrowness of the streets. Visitors must remove their shoes if they wish to enter the inner temple; but this is not necessary in the outer parts. The temple is an ugly octagonal building, about 100 ft. high, with many very clumsy mouldings: it faces E. with a very striking façade.

In

Buddh (Bodh) Gaya is 7 m. S. of Gaya. There is a good metalled road leading up to it. The origin of the Temple of Buddh Gaya is of great antiquity (543 B.C.), and is closely connected with events of the life of Buddha. It seems to be built in a hollow (the result of excavations it was built on the flat), which diminishes its apparent height, and is also shut in by small houses. The figure of Buddha, which, according to Hiuen Tsang, was of perfumed paste, was destroyed centuries Other figures of plaster were subsequently made and also destroyed. To the left is the place where the founder of the present College of Mahants, about 250 years ago, performed Tapasya that is, sat surrounded by four fires, with the sun overhead. The ashes were preserved in a hollow pillar.

ago.

Much of the stone railing, which was once supposed to be the work of King Asoka, but is now known to be of a date 100 years later, has been restored to the position which it is supposed to have occupied round the original structure. has four bars of stone, supported by pillars at intervals of 8 ft. top rail is ornamented with carv

It

The

1

ings of mermaids, or females with the tails of fish inserting their arms into the mouths of Makarasthat is, imaginary crocodiles with large ears like those of elephants and long hind legs. Below this top bar are three others, also of stone, ornamented with carvings of lotus flowers. The pillars are adorned with carvings of various groups such as a woman and child, a man with a woman who has the head of a horse, Centaurs, and so on. Several additional pillars have been lately recovered and erected in their places. Mr Fergusson 1 pronounces this to be" I the most ancient sculptured monument in India." The plinth of the temple is 26 ft. high, and at the top of it is a clear space 13 ft. broad, which allowed a passage round the tower. At each corner of the platform was a small temple, and outside the rail (erected during the Sunga period, 184-72 B.C.) were many subordinate temples. Behind the temple, on a raised platform, is the sacred Bo-tree (a pipal or Ficus religiosa) under which Buddha sat. The numerous figures and votive models of the temple and of stupas all round the shrine are of late date - i.e., 800-1000 A.D.

about

Mr J. C. Oman says: Defaced by time and the hand of man, transformed a good deal through well-meant restorations, the celebrated temple at Buddh Gaya, even in its modern disguised condition, with its 19th-century

stucco about it, and its brand-new gilt finial, is an imposing structure, about 180 ft. high and 50 ft. wide at its base. All things considered, it has certainly lasted remarkably well, the material of which it is constructed being only well-burnt brick cemented with mud. Stone has been used only in the door frames and flooring. The building is plastered with lime 1 Fergusson's Indian and Eastern Architecture, 1, 104.

The

A Burmese inscription records a restoration in 1306-1309. In 1877 permission was granted these Buddhists to restore the temple again, but Raja Rajendralala Mitra, deputed by the Local Government to inspect their work, stated that "the Burmese carried on demolitions and excavations which in a manner swept away most of the old landmarks." remains of the vaulted gateway in front of the temple were completely demolished, and the place cleared out and levelled. The stone pavilion over the Buddha Pad was dismantled, and its materials cast aside on a rubbish mound at a distance. The granite plinth beside it was removed. The drain-pipe and gargoyle which marked the level of the granite pavement were destroyed. The foundations of the old buildings noticed by Hiuen Tsang were excavated for bricks and filled with rubbish. The revetment wall round the sacred tree had been rebuilt on a different foundation on the W. The plaster ornaments on the interior facing of the sanctuary were knocked off, and the facing was covered with plain stucco, and an area of 213 ft. to 250 ft. was levelled and surrounded by a new wall.

For further description of the temple reference may be made to Rajendralala Mitra's Buddh Gaya, Calcutta, 1878; and Cunningham's Arch. Surv., vol. iii.; and Sir Edwin Arnold's delightful chapter in India Revisited, 1886, The Land of the Light of Asia." There is a R.H. for Buddhists opposite the

temple, but there are no Buddhist monks permanently residing. The Public Works Department maintain an officer at Buddh Gaya who is ready to show visitors round the temple.

To the N.W. is a small but very ancient temple, in which is a figure of Buddha standing. The doorway is finely carved. A remarkably beautiful image of Buddha, brought from Japan, is located in the Burmese monastery.

From Gaya the S. Bihar Railway runs E. to Lakhisarai (80 m.). The Grand Chord line, runs S.E. to Asansol and W. to Dehri (D.B.), where the river Son is spanned by a vast girder bridge with 93 spans of 100 ft. each, the total length being 10,052 ft. Above the bridge the Grand Trunk Road crosses the river over a stone causeway, and higher up are the headworks of the Son Canals, consisting of a reservoir dam 2 m. in length, with the main canals branching off on either side. The G.T. Road terminates on the E. bank at Barun (2 Insp. B.). Motor cars should cross by rail from the Son East Bank Station to Dehri-on-Son on the West Bank, as the causeway is not passable for cars. A light ry. runs from Dehri up the river to Rohtas station, 24 m., overlooking which is the ancient hill-fort of Rohtas (Inspn. Bung.) occupying a plateau 4 m. by 5 m. and 1500 ft. in height. The fort was impregnable, being surrounded for the greater part by sheer precipices 500 ft. to 1000 ft. in height, with the few comparatively vulnerable points protected by strong defensive works consisting of double and triple lines of ramparts and bastions. Its natural facilities admirably fitted it for a siege, the summit being wooded and capable of extensive cultivation, with a plentiful supply of water at all seasons, and excellent grazing for some thousands of cattle.

m.,

There are a magnificent Mughal Palace in an excellent state of preservation and two villages in the plateau. From Dehri the Grand Chord line runs W. to Sasaram (D.B., pop. 22,308), a distance of II where is the colossal domed mausoleum of the Afghan usurper Emperor of Delhi, Sher Shah (1540-1545), one of the most magnificent in all India (see Fergusson's Indian Architecture, 2, 218); it rises from a terrace in the midst of a tank 1000 ft. square. The height

from the floor to the apex of the dome is 10 ft., the total height above the water being over 150 ft.; the dome has a span of 72 ft. In the town is the slightly smaller mausoleum of his father Hasan Sur Shah, standing in an enclosed courtyard, and about a mile to the N.W. is the tomb of his son, Salim Shah, which was intended to be larger than his father's, but was never completed; it also stands in a tank. These buildings should be seen by all interested in Oriental architecture. In a small cave just below the summit of a hill rising above the town is an Asoka inscription dating back to 232 B.C. The railway then runs W. to Kudra (D.B.), 16 m. from Sasaram; the same distance to the S. is the hill-fort of Shergarh, on a small plateau about 800 ft. in height. It was fortified by Sher Shah, and a palace, still in a fair state of preservation, built on the summit. Eight miles farther into the hills are the caves of Gupteswar, several hundred feet in length, and a noted place of worship. From Kudra the distance is 14 m. by the railway to Bhabua Road (Inspn. Bung.); from there it is 10 m. S. to Bhabua (Inspn. Bung.) Five miles to the S.W. of Bhabua is the ancient Hindu temple of Mundeswari, on the summit of a hill 600 ft.in height; an inscription

1 Sasaram=1000 toys. A certain Asura, or demon, is said to have lived here, who had 1000 arms, each holding a separate plaything.

dates it to 635 A.D. Eight miles S. of Bhabua are immense earthwork fortifications. They enclosed in a valley an ancient town, the only remains of which are broken bricks covering an area of about 2 sq. m.; the foundations of the houses are still below the soil. There is an Asoka inscription close by; another is at Jainpur, a couple of miles to the N.E. Six miles to the W. of Bhabua is Chainpur, once an extensive

town, now no more than a large village. A short distance to the W. is the mausoleum of Bakhtiyar Khan, a noble of the time of Sher Shah; it is a splendid domed structure similar to those in Sasaram, standing in an enclosed courtyard. There is a fort at Chainpur built by Raja Salivahan, whose descendants reside now at Bhagwanpur, 6 m. S. Bhabua. The fort is now a famous place of pilgrimage, owing to a Brahman priest having done

of

dharna, or fasted there till he died. Scattered over all this part of the country are the remains of old forts, attributed to the Suris, an aboriginal people. They consist of high mounds of earth, on which used to be situated the house of the local chief, the whole being surrounded by a deep moat. Fifteen miles N.W. of Bhabua Road station is Baidyanath (pop. ularly, Baijnath), containing traces of buildings supposed to be dating back to early and mediæval Brahmanism. It is reported to have been the centre of the Suri kingdom. Some fine images and pillars were once dug out: they illustrate some good specimens of very early Brahmanical architecture.

Trunk Road (203 m. from Calcutta), or by rail to Isri station (198 m. from Calcutta), on the E.I.R. Grand Chord. Isri is 2 m. from Dumri, where there is a D.B., with two servants. The distance from Isri to Madhuban, at the foot of the mountain Parasnath, is 13 m. N.E. by good motor road. The D.B. at summit has no provisions or servants, and permission to occupy must be obtained in advance from the Sub-Divisional Magte, at Giridih. (Rent, payable in advance, Rs.15 a week or part of a week.) The ascent from Madhuban occupies 2 hours, and can be made on foot, or by chair and bearers. The mountain can be reached equally well from the Nimiaghat station (193 m. from Calcutta). There is a D.B. on the Grand Trunk Road, close to the foot of the mountain, I m. from that station and about 3 m. from Isri. Information should be given beforehand to the SubInspector of Dumri Police Station, for coolies and supplies. The lover of mountain scenery will enjoy a visit to this far-famed mountain and place of pilgrimage. It is 4488 ft. above sea-level, and is the Eastern metropolis of Jain worship. According to tradition, Parasnath, who was the 23rd Tirthankar of the Jains, was born at Benares, lived 100 years, and was buried on this mountain. The numerous temples, though most picturesque, are of no great antiquity.

At Madhuban, 1230 ft., are the local headquarters of the Digambara and Swetambara sects of Jains. The principal representatives of the Jains met with in Bengal are the Marwaris, whose home of origin is in Rajputana.

The appearance of the snowwhite domes and bannerets of its temple, through the fine trees by which it is surrounded, is very beautiful." The ascent of the mountain is up a pathway worn by

To

the feet of innumerable pilgrims from all parts of India. Ten thousand still visit the place annually. The path leads through woods with large clumps of bamboo over slaty rocks or gneiss, much inclined and sloping away from the mountain. The view from a ridge 500 ft. above the village is superb. Ascending higher, the path traverses a thick forest of sal (Shorea robusta), and other trees spanned with cables of bauhinia stems. At 3000 ft. the vegetation becomes more luxuriant, and the conical hills of the white ants disappear. At 3500 ft. the vegetation again changes, the trees becoming gnarled and scattered. The traveller emerges from the forest at the foot of a great ridge of rocky peaks, stretching E. and W. for 3 or 4 m. The saddle of the crest (4230 ft.) is marked by a small temple, one of many which occupy various prominences of the ridge, with a beautiful view. the N. are ranges of low wooded hills, and the Barakar and Adjai Rivers. To the S. is a flatter country, with lower ranges and the Damodar River. The twenty-four Jain temples built commemorate the attainment of Nirvana (the cessation of individual existence) by twenty of the twenty-four deified saints recognised by the Jains. The situation of the principal temple is very fine, below the saddle in a hollow facing the S., surrounded by groves of plantain and Ficus Indica. It contains little but the sculptured feet of Parasnath and some marble cross-legged figures of Buddha, with crisp hair, and the Brahmanical cord. Many chapels and altars with such reliefs are dotted about the crest. A convalescent depôt for European soldiers was established in 1858, but was abandoned; the officers' quarters are now utilised as a D.B.