Indian Antiquary Vol 02

SR No.: 032494
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Jas Burgess
Publisher: Swati Publications
Publication Year: 1984
Total Pages: 428
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 20 MB

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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
(SEPTEMBER, 1873.
been constructed for, and used as, a dwelling second cave, the old Baiga, who had come speplace.
cially to show the cave which he supposed I The second cave is only fome 30 or 40 yards wanted to see when I inquired about a second, off. The natives appeared to be unaware of led us through the tunnel, and out to the southits existence; they protested that there was only east corner of the spur, where he pointed out, one cave, and I made on my first visit no parti- high up on a face of sandstone, the entrance to cular search for a second. On referring to Col. a cave which he called Lakshman's Bangald. Dalton's paper I found that he most distinctly It is much less easily accessible than the others, mentioned two caves, containing each an in- and to get to it over the rocks one has to use scription : accordingly I returned to the Hathpor both hands and feet. It is simply a rectangular on the following evening, and had the pleasure chamber cut in the rock. The dimensions are of introducing the two Baigas to the second 9 feet 4 inches by 8 feet 5 inches by 3 feet cave, which they declared they had never seen 5 inches. or heard of before.
A portion only of the side of the entrance It is at about the same elevation as the other remains standing. I saw no trace of any incave, but to reach it you have to scramble up a scription near it. face of rock by means of some rudely cut steps. The local tradition regarding these caves is The interior shows little or no sign of artificial that they were the residence of Ramachandra excavation, and the sole point of interest is that for fourteen years previous to the expedition to it contains an inscription in much bolder and Lanka, and that it was from this place that larger character than the other (see No. 2). Sitá of Jánki was carried away.
Having completed my examination of this! The surrounding jungle is called Iran Ban.
INSCRIPTIONS AT THE AUDIENCE HALL OF PARAKRAMA BAHU.
PULASTIPURA, CEYLON
BY T. W. RHYS DAVIDS, C.C.S. Pulastipura,* the capital of Ceylon from the present 2 millions inhabiting Ceylon, about twomiddle of the 8th century to the beginning of thirds of a million are pure Siñhalese;-in former the 14th (A.D. 769-1314), was at the height of times the population round the ruined cities must ita prosperity during the long and glorious have been very greut, but the Siñhalese were proreign of Parakrama Bahu the great, whose con- bably even then greatly outnumbered by their quests extended over the whole of the Dravidian Tamil foes : slowly but surely they were driven portion of South India, and are even said to have southward; and the wave of battle constantly extended to the coast of the Bay of Bengal. receding and advancing laid waste the fairest
The stream of Aryan invasion, having been provinces of the island, until the whole country, stopped in South India, seems in the 6th century from near the Jaffna Peninsula southwards to the B.c. to have flowed over to Ceylon, for, accord. mountain fustnesses of Kandy, became an almost ing to the well-known tradition, Wijaya in 548 uninhabited and pathless jungle. And in this B. C. came over from the Sarkars (Siñihapura, jungle for some hundreds of years lay, forgotten then the capital of Kalinga), and conquered, or and unknown, the ruins of what must have been rather colonized, Ceylon. From that time to the the magnificent capital of Paråkrama BAhu. present the history of Ceylon has been chiefly The ruins, since their re-discovery in 1820, the cord of the struggle between the Tamils have been often described, more especially by advancing from South India, and the few Aryan Sir E. Tennant in 1847 (Ceylon, vol. II. p. 583 Sithalese driving back the Dravidian hordes, et seq.), and have been well photographed by and sometimes, as in Paråkrama Bahu's time, Lawton and Co. Kandy, in 1870, when they carrying the war into the enemy's country. were partially cleared by order of Government.
The census taken in 1871 shows that of the They stretch for about five miles along the band
Palastipurs, the ancient name of the city, was used by its founders, and its inhabitants, and recorded in all the inscriptions: the modern name is Top-Wews or Top&we, which is simply stupa wapi, the lako where the (ruined)
stapu are. Sir E. Tennent calls the place Pollannarus, corruption of Polonnarus, a name of uncertain derivataon applied to the place in the artificial language used in Elu books, but probably never wed in living speech,