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THE KOŚALAS
119 King Dilīpa II and his immediate descendants that the country acquired the name of Kośala.1
We may form some idea of the extent of the Kośala country in the Epic period from the story of the exile of Rāma. Therein we find that, after setting out from Ayodhyā (then the capital of Kośala), the young princes accompanied by Sītā proceeded in a chariot. Evidently, then, there were good roads in the Kosala country, as we may also gather from the Jātaka stories, where we read that merchants loading as many as 500 wagons with their merchandise went from Magadha and the Licchayi countries through Košala up to the western and north-western frontiers of India. Rāma made his first halt at the river Tamasā (the modern Tons). On the other side of the Tamasā, his chariot reached the Mahāmārga or the 'great road', which was evidently a trade-route. Following this, the party reached the river Srimati Mahānadi. After crossing the river Vedaśruti, Rāma turned his course towards the south. After proceeding a long distance, he crossed the Gomati and the Syandikā. Having crossed the Syandikā, Rāma pointed out to Sítā the wide plain given by Manu to Ikşvāku. This region was evidently considered by the people of Kośala as the cradle of their race, the country with which Ikşvāku began his career of conquest. This country was highly prosperous (sphītā) and populous (vāstravrtā). Proceeding through the extensive Kośalan plains, Rāma left behind him the country of the Kośalas, and reached the Ganges, up to which river the Kośala dominion evidently extended. Here he arrived at Srågaverapura which was the seat of the Nişāda king Guha. Sir Alexander Cunningham has identified Srågaverapura with the modern Singror or Singor on the left bank of the Ganges and 22 miles to the north-west of Prayāga or Allahabad.2
In the Adiparvan of the Mahābhārata 3 we read that Janamejaya, one of the earliest kings of the Paurava family, was the son of Puru and Kausalyā. Most probably this Kausalyā was the daughter of a king of Košala. When Yudhisthira was about to perform his Rājasūya sacrifice, setting himself up as paramount sovereign over the whole of N. India, and his brothers went out on their expeditions of conquest, it is said that Arjuna, Kršņa and Bhima started from the Kuru kingdom and reached Mithilā after crossing pūrva (eastern) Kosala. Afterwards, the second Pāņdava brother, Bhīmasena, conquered Bțhadbala, king of Kośala, and this Bịhad
1 Ancient Indian Historical Tradition, p. 275.
2 Arch. Survey Report, Vols. XI, 62 and XXI, II. For further geography of Rāma's exile, see Pargiter, J.R.A.S., 1894, pp. 231 et seq.
3 Chap. 95, p. 105. 4 Sabhāparvan, Chap. 25, p. 240.
5 Ibid., Chap. 30, PP. 241-2.
