Chapter 3 - Country of She-lan-t’o-lo (Jalandhara)

Note: Jālaṅdhara is a well-known place in the Panjab and is as nearly as possible 50 miles north-east, place us on the right bank of the Biyās river, near the old town of Patti.^[1]

This kingdom is about 1000 li from east to west, and about 800 li from north to south. The capital is 12 or 13 li in circuit. The land is favourable for the cultivation of cereals, and it produces much rice. The forests are thick and umbrageous, fruits and flowers abundant. The climate is warm and moist, the people brave and impetuous, but their appearance is common and rustic. The houses are rich and well supplied. There are fifty convents, or so; about 2000 priests. They have students both of the Great and Little Vehicle. There are three temples of Devas and about 500 heretics, who all belong to the Pāśupatas (cinder-sprinkled).

A former king of this land showed great partiality for the heretics, but afterwards, having met with an Arhat and heard the law, he believed and understood it. Therefore the king of Mid-India, out of regard for his sincere faith, appointed him sole inspector of the affairs of religion (the three gems) throughout the five Indies. Making light of party distinctions (this or that), with no preference or dislike, he examined into the conduct of the priests, and probed their behaviour with wonderful sagacity. The virtuous and the well-reported of, he reverenced and openly rewarded; the disorderly he punished. Wherever there were traces of the holy one (or, ones), he built either stūpas or saṅghārāmas, and there was no place within the limits of India he did not visit and inspect.

Going north-east from this, skirting along some high mountain passes and traversing some deep valleys, following a dangerous road, and crossing many ravines, going 700 li or so, we come to the country of K'iu-lu-to (Kulūta).

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Jālaṅdhara, a well-known place in the Panjab (lat. 31°19' N., long. 75°28' E.) We may therefore safely reckon from it in testing Hiuen Tsiang's figures, From Sultānpur to Jālaṅdhara is as nearly as possible 50 miles north-east. Hiuen Tsiang gives 150 or 140 li in the same direction. Assuming the capital of Chīnapati to be 50 li north-west of Sultānpur, that distance and bearing would place us on the right bank of the Biyās river, near the old town of Patti. Reckoning back to śākala, the distance (Cunningham's Anc. Geog. ind., map vi.) is just 100 miles north of west. Hiuen Tsiang gives 500 li west. From this it seems that the computation of five li to the mile is, in this part of India at least, a safe one. For a full account of Jālaṅdhara and its importance, see Cunningham (op. cit., pp. 137 ff.) It is sometimes stated that the council under Kanishka was held in the Jālaṅdhara convent, that is, the Tāmasavana Saṅghārāma (V. de St. Martin, Mémoire, p. 333 n.) The fact that Kātyāyana lived and wrote in this establishment, and that the great work of the council was to write a commentary on his śāstra, would so far be in accord with the statement. Hiuen Tsiang on his return journey was accompanied to Jālaṅdhara by Udita, the king of North lndia, who made this his capital (Vie, p. 260). Shortly after this a Shaman, Yuan-chiu, from China stopped here four years, studying Sanskrit with the "Mung" king, perhaps the same Udita (J. R. A. S., N.S., vol. xiii. p. 563). The expression, the "Mung" king, is frequently used by I-tsing. Perhaps he is the same as the BalÁ-rÁi, or the Great King or Lord Paramount of the Muslims (vide Thomas, The Indian BalharÁ, p. 11). The way through Kapiśa was shortly after this time (664 A.D.) occupied by the Arabs (op. cit., p. 564).