The Ancient Geography of India/Kapila
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19. Kapila.
[p.414]:From Sravasti both of the Chinese pilgrims proceeded direct to Kapila, which was famous throughout India as the birth-place of Buddha. Hwen Thsang makes the distance 500 li, or 83 miles, to the south-east ;[1] but according to the earlier pilgrim Fa-Hian the distance was 13 yojanas, or 91 miles, in the same direction.[2] The difference oil yojana, or 7 miles, seems to be due to some confusion as to the relative positions of Kapila, and the birth-place of Krakuchanda, which were just one yojana apart. Fa-Hian reached the latter place first before visiting Kapila ; but Hwen Thsang went first to Kapila, and afterwards to the birth-place of Krakuchanda. As the site of this place may with great probability be identified with Kakua, 8 miles to the west of Nagar, which I propose to identify with Kapila-nagara, I am inclined to adopt the narrative of Fa-Hian. Now the distance between Sahet and Nagar is rather more than 81½ miles, as I found the road from Sahet to Asokpur 42½ miles, and from Asokpur to
- ↑ Julien's 'Hiouen Thsang,' ii. 309.
- ↑ Beal's 'Fah-Hian,' xxi-xxii.
[p.415]: Nagar the distance is 39 miles measured direct on the large map of the Indian Atlas. The actual distance by the winding roads of this part of the country cannot therefore be less than 85 miles, and is probably about 90 miles, as stated by Fa-Hian.
Hwen Thsang estimates the circuit of the district at 4000 li, or 667 miles, which agrees very well with the size of the tract lying between the Ghagra and the Gandak from Faizabad to the confluence of those rivers. The direct measurement is 550 miles, which would be upwards of 600 miles in road distance.[1]
No trace of the name of Kapila has yet been discovered ; but I believe that the position of the city can be fixed within very narrow limits by many concurring data. According to the Buddhist chronicles of Tibet, Kapilavastu or Kapilanagara was founded by some descendants of the solar hero Gotama,[2] on the bank of a lake near the river Rohini in Kosala. Now the town of Nagar, or Nagar-khas, that is " the city," is situated on the eastern bank of the Chando Tal, near a large stream named Kohana, a tributary of the Rapti, and in the northern division of Oudh beyond the Ghagra river, and therefore in Kosala. Its distance and bearing from Sravasti have already been noted as agreeing most precisely with those stated by the Chinese pilgrims. To the west a small stream named Sidh falls into the lake. This name, which means the "perfect or the holy one," is always applied to the sages of antiquity, and in the present instance I think that it may refer to the sage Kapila, whose hermitage was
[p.416]: also on the bank of the lake opposite the city. The Gautamas had at first established themselves near the sage's dwelling ; but, as the lowing of their kine had disturbed his meditations, they founded their new city of Kapilanagara at some distance, that is on the opposite or eastern end of the lake.
The position of the Rohini river is more precisely indicated by the Chinese pilgrims and Ceylonese chronicles. According to Fa-Hian[1] the royal garden, named Lun-ming, or Lumbini, in which Buddha was born, was situated at 50 li, or 8.33 miles, to the east of Kapila. Hwen Thsang[2] calls the garden La-fa-ni, and places it on the bank of a small stream flowing to the south-east which the people called the " River of Oil." According to the Ceylonese Chronicles,[3] the Rohini flowed between the cities of Kapila and Koli, the latter being the birth-place of Maya Devi, the mother of Buddha. It was also called Vyaghra-pura, or " Tiger-town. "[4] When Maya was near her confinement she went to pay a visit to her parents at Koli. " Between the two cities there was a garden of Sal trees called Lumbini, to which the inhabitants of both cities were accustomed to resort for recreation." There she rested and gave birth to the infant Buddha. In another place it is said that during a season of drought the inhabitants of Kapila and Koli quarrelled about the distribution of the waters of the Rohini for the irrigation of their rice-fields. [5] From all these details I infer that the Rohini was most probably the Kohana river of the present day, which flows in a south-easterly
[p.417]:
course about 6 miles to the eastward of Nagar. It is the Kooana and Quana of the maps, and the Koyane of Buchanan,[1] who describes it as " a fine little river, which, with its numerous branches, fertilizes all the south-eastern parts of the district." It therefore corresponds in all essential particulars with the Rohini of the Buddhist chronicles.
The position of Koli is doubtful ; but it may perhaps be referred to the village of Am Kohil, which is exactly 11 miles to the east of Nagar and rather less than 3 miles from the nearest point of the Kohana river. The road from Nagar to Kohil crosses the Kohana opposite the small town of Mokson, which may probably be the site of the once famous Lumbini garden, as it was also called paradi-moksha,[2] or "supreme beatitude." In later times this appellation would have been shortened to Moksha or Mokshan, to which I would refer the possible origin of Hwen Thsang's name of the " River of Oil," as mrakshan is the Sanskrit term for oil. Abul Fazl calls the place of Buddha's birth Mokta,[3] which is perhaps only a misreading of Moksa.
Another strong point in favour of the identification of Nagar with the ancient Kapila is the fact that the present chief of Nagar is a Gautama Rajput, and the districts of Nagar and Amorha are the head-quarters of the clan, as well as of the Gautamiya Rajputs, who are an inferior branch of the Gautamas. Now the Sakyas of Kapilavastu were also Gautama Rajputs, and Sakya Muni himself is still known amongst the people
[p.418]: of Barma as Gautama Buddha, or simply Gautama. In the Vansalata[1] the Gautamas are said to be descendants of Arkabandhu, which is one of the names of Buddha given in the Amara Kosha of the famous Amara Sinha, who was himself a Buddhist.
I have not visited Nagar myself, but I am informed that it possesses a khera, or mound of brick ruins, and that there are numerous remains of brick buildings in the neighbourhood. As Fa-Hian describes Kapila in the beginning of the fifth century as " literally a vast solitude, in which there was neither king nor people," but only a few monks and some ten or twenty houses, it is scarcely possible that there would be any conspicuous traces of the city which has lain desolate for upwards of twelve centuries. In the middle of the seventh century Hwen Thsang found the place so utterly ruined that it was impossible to ascertain its original size, I am therefore quite satisfied that the absence of any cxtensive ruins at the present day cannot overthrow the very strong claims which Nagar certainly possesses to be identified with the ancient city of Kapila. But this identification is still further strengthened by the names of several places in the vicinity, which would appear to represent some of the more holy spots that were famous in the early history of Buddhism. I allude more especially to the birth- places of the two previous Buddhas, Krakuchanda and Kanaka-muni, and the Sara-kupa, or "arrow-fountain," which sprang into existence at the stroke of Buddha's arrow. Fa-Hian names Na-pi-kia as the birthplace of Krakuchanda ;
- ↑ Buchanan, ' Eastern India,' ii. 458.
[p.419]: but in the Buddhist chronicles [1] the city is called Kshemavati and Khemavati.[2] In the books of Ceylon, however,[3] Krakuchanda is said to have been the Purohit, or family priest, of Raja Kshema, of Mekhala. According to Fa-Hian, the city was about 1 yojana, or 7 miles, to the west-north-west of Kapila ; but according to Hwen Thsang it was 50 li, or 8.3 miles, to the south of Kapila. In the absence of other data, it is difficult to say which of these statements may be correct ; but as I find a town named Kakua, exactly 8 miles to the west of Nagar, I am strongly inclined to adopt the account of Fa-Hian, as Kaku is the Pali form of Kraku. According to Hwen Thsang's bearing, the city should be looked for in the neighbourhood of Kalwari Khas, which is 7 miles to the south of Nagar.
A similar discrepancy is found in the position of the birthplace of Kanaka-muni, which, according to Fa-Hian, was to the south of Krakuchanda's birthplace, but to the north-east of it according to Hwen Thsang. They agree exactly as to the distance, which the latter makes 30 li, or just 5 miles, while the former calls it somewhat less than 1 yojana, that is about 5 or 6 miles. In the Ceylonese chronicles the town is named Sobhavati-nagara, [4] which may possibly be represented by the village of Subhay-Pursa, at 6½ miles to the south-east of Kakua, and the same distance to the south-west of Nagar.
The same unaccountable difference of bearing is found also in the position of the Sara-Kupa, or the
[p.420]: " Arrow Fountain," which Fa-Hian places at 30 li, or 5 miles, to the south-west of Kapila, while Hwen Thsang places it at the same distance to the south-east. In this instance also I believe that Fa-Hian is right, as Hwen Thsang makes the distance from the Sara-Kupa to the Lumbini garden from 80 to 90 li, or 13 to 15 miles, which, as I have already shown, was on the bank of the Rohini or Kohana river, to the east of Kapila. Now, if the Arrow Fountain was to the south-east of the capital, its distance from the Lumbini garden could not have been more than 6 or 7 miles, whereas if it was to the south-west, as stated by Fa-Hian, the distance would be about 12 or 13 miles. The probable position of the Sara-Kupa, or Arrow Fountain, may therefore be fixed near the village of Sarwanpur, which is exactly 5½ miles to the south-west of Nagar.
In proposing all these identifications, I have assumed that Nagar is the site of the ancient Kapila, but as I have not examined this part of the country myself, and as the information which I have been able to obtain is necessarily vague, I feel that the final settlement of this important inquiry can only be satisfactorily determined by an actual examination of Nagar itself and the surrounding localities. In the meantime I offer the results of the present disquisition as useful approximations until the true sites shall be determined by actual observation.
Ramagrama
From Kapilavastu both pilgrims proceeded to Lan-mo, which has been identified with the Ramagrama of the Buddhist chronicles of India. Fa-Hian makes the distance 5 yojanas, or 35 miles, to the east,[1] and Hwen
[p.421]: Thsang gives 200 li, or 33.33 miles, in the same direction.[1] But in spite of their agreement I believe that the distance is in excess of the truth. Their subsequent march to the bank of the Anoma river is said to be 3 yojanas or 21 miles by Fa-Hian, and 100 li or 16.66 miles by Hwen Thsang, thus making the total distance from Kapila to the Anoma river 8 yojanas, or 56 miles, according to the former, and 300 li, or 50 miles, according to the latter. But in the Indian Buddhist scriptures, this distance is said to be only 6 yojanas, or 42 miles, which I believe to be correct, as the Auyni river of the present day, which is most probably the Anoma river of the Buddhist books, is just 40 miles distant from Nagar in an easterly direction. The identification of the Anoma will be discussed presently.
According to the pilgrims' statements, the position of Ramagrama must be looked for at about two-thirds of the distance between Nagar and the Anoma river, that is at 4 yojanas, or 28 miles. In this position I find the village of Deokali,[2] with a mound of ruins, which was used as a station for the trigonometrical survey. In the ' Mahawanso ' it is stated that the stupa of Ramagama, which stood on the bank of the Ganges, was destroyed by the action of the current.[3] Mr. Laidlay has already pointed out that this river could not be the Ganges; but might be either the Ghagra, or some other large river in the north. But I am inclined to believe that the Ganges is a simple fabrication of the Ceylonese chronicler. All the Buddhist scriptures agree in stating that the relics of Buddha were divided
- ↑ Julien's ' Hiouen Thsang,' ii. 325.
- ↑ See Map No. XI
- ↑ ' Mahawanso,' c. xxxi. p. 185.
[p.422]: into eight portions, of which one fell to the lot of the Kosalas of Ramagrama, over which they erected a stupa. Some years later seven portions of the relics were collected together by Ajatasatru, king of Magadha, and enshrined in a single stupa at Rajagriha ; but the eighth portion still remained at Ramagrama. According to the Ceylonese chronicler, the stupa of Ramagrama was washed away by the Ganges, and the relic casket, having been carried down the river to the ocean, was discovered by the Nagas, or water gods, and presented to their king, who built a stupa for its reception. During the reign of Dutthagamini of Ceylon, B.C. 161 to 137, the casket was miraculously obtained from the Naga king by the holy monk Sonuttaro, and enshrined in the Mahathupo, or " great stupa," in the land of Lanka.[1]
Now this story is completely at variance with the statements of the Chinese pilgrims, both of whom visited Ramagrama many centuries after Dutthagamini, when they found the relic stupa intact, but no river. Fa-Hian,[2] in the beginning of the fifth century, saw a tank beside the stupa, in which a dragon (Naga) lived, who continually watched the tower. In the middle of the seventh century, Hwen Thsang[3] saw the same stupa and the same tank of clear water inhabited by dragons (Nagas), who daily transformed themselves into men, and paid their devotions to the stupa.[4] Both pilgrims mention the attempt of Asoka to remove these relics to his own capital, which was abandoned on the expostulation of the Naga king. " If by thy oblations," said the Naga, " thou canst excel this, thou mayest
[p.423]:
destroy the tower, and I shall not prevent thee." Now according to the Ceylonese chronicler, this is the very same argument that was used by the Naga king to dissuade the priest Sonuttaro from removing the relics to Ceylon.[1] I infer, therefore, that the original "tank" of Ramagrama was adroitly changed into a river by the Ceylonese author, so that the relics which were in charge of the Nagas of the tank, might be conveyed to the ocean-palace of the Naga king, from whence they could as readily be transferred to Ceylon as to any other place. The river was thus a necessity in the Ceylonese legend, to convey the relics away from Ramagrama to the ocean. But the authority of a legend can have no weight against the united testimony of the two independent pilgrims, who many centuries later found the stupa still standing, but saw no river. I therefore dismiss the Ganges as a fabrication of the Ceylonese chroniclers, and accept in its stead the Naga tank of the Chinese pilgrims. Having thus got rid of the river, I can see no objection to the identification of Deokali with the Ramagrama of Buddhist history. The town was quite deserted at the time of Fa-Hian's visit, in the fifth century, who found only a small religious establishment ; this was still kept up in the middle of the seventh century, but it must have been very near its dissolution, as there was only a single sramanera, or monk, to conduct the affairs of the monastery.
- ↑ ' Mahawanso,' c. xxxi. p. 188.
River Anoma
To be added (p.423-429)
Pippalavana
[p.429]:From the Anoma river both of the Chinese pilgrims proceeded to visit the stupa that was erected at Pippalawano over the charcoal ashes of the funeral pile of Buddha. The Moriyas of this city, having applied too late for a share of the relics of the body, were obliged to be content with the ashes. Fa-Hian places the stupa at 4 yojanas, or 28 miles, to the east of the Anoma; but Hwen Thsang makes the distance 180 to 190 li, or from 30 to 32 miles, and the bearing south-east. Fa-Hian does not mention the name of the town, but in the Burmese[1] and Ceylonese chronicles[2] it is called Pippali-wano, or the "Pippal-forest;" and in the Tibetan Dulva[3] it is called the town of the Nyagrodha, or Banian-trees. Hwen Thsang also speaks of the " forest of Nyagrodha-trees, " as the site of the " charcoal stupa," and as he actually visited the place, we must accept his testimony in preference to that of the distant chroniclers of Ceylon. No place of this name is now known ; but in the south-east direction indicated by Hwen Thsang, there is a large forest which completely surrounds the ruins of an ancient city called Sahankat. This place is described at length by Buchanan,[4] who found several statues of Buddha amongst the ruins. It was therefore certainly
[p.430]: in existence during the flourishing period of Buddhism. It is 20 miles distant from the Chandaoli Ghat, on the Aumi, measured in a direct line on the map ; but by the road it is not less than 25 miles, owing to the numerous streams that intersect the route. The position therefore corresponds as nearly as possible with that assigned to the Charcoal Tower by Hwen Thsang, but I have no confirmatory evidence to offer, unless the name of the village of Srinagar Kolua may be connected with Koil or charcoal, which is not very probable. I may add, however, that the bearing of Kasia from Sahankat corresponds with the north-east direction of Kusinagara from the Charcoal Stupa which is recorded by Hwen Thsang.