________________ VAISALI AND GREATER INDIA Dr. R. C. MAJUMDAR, M. A., Ph. D., P. R. S., F. R. A. S. B. It is quite in the fitness of things that there should be an organization to pay homage to, and thereby keep alive the memories of, the glorious city of Vaisali. The city played a distinguished part in the history of India and several writers have described in this volume its many-sided achievements. I would only like to add a few words to show that the name and fame of this ancient city lingered in the memory of Indians who had set up colonies in Burma. Vaigali was the name of a famous city in Arakan. According to the local chronicles it was built in 789 A.D. by a king of the Chandra dynasty, and henceforth became its capital. This tradition is fully supported by the coins and inscriptions of a long line of kings whose names ended in Chandra. For two centuries, if not more, Vaisaii retained its position as a capital city and a stronghold of Indian culture, specially of Buddhism. The palace of the city is now occupied by the village Wethali, which is only the local pronunciation of Vaisali. Thus the old name still survives in an insignificant village in the Akyab district. It is 8 miles to the southeast of Mrohaung or Myobaung, the well-known capital of Arakan in the 15th and 16th centuries A.D. Wethali or Vaigali is now a small village containing about 80 houses. But it is strewn all over with brickbats and there are still remains of
