"7 November – ... At length the Ambassador being dress'd came forth with the rest, and receiv'd the Visit of Vitulà Sinay, and another great Person sent by the King to accompany him; he was a Moor by Sect, but of Indian Race, very black, and Captain General in these parts of Banghel, from which charge he was lately return'd, and his Name was Musè Baì. With these came also a Son of his, a Youth of the same colour, but of a handsome Face, and cloth'd odly after the Indian Fashion, that is, naked from the girdle upwards, having onely a very thin and variously painted cloth cast cross one Shoulder, and another of the same sort girt about him, and hanging down loose; he had a little Bonnet upon his Head, like those of our Gally-slaves, but wrought with divers colours; his Hands, Arms, Neck, and Nose, were adorn'd with many ornaments of Gold, and he had a guilt Po∣nyard at his girdle, which shew'd very well. His Father was cloth'd all in white, after the manner of India, to wit, of such as wear Clothes, and go not naked from the Waste upwards; upon his white vestment he had a shorter sur-coat of Velvet, guarded with Gold at the bottom, loose and open before, which is the custom onely in solemnities. He had no Sword, but onely a Ponyard on the right side, the hilt and cheap guilded, and, as I believe, of Silver; upon his Head he had a little Cap of the same form, made of Cloth of Gold; for in these Countries 'tis the fashion for Men to cover their Heads either with such Caps, or with white Turbants, little and almost square. Vitulà Sinay and some other personages who came with them to accompany the Ambassador, were all cloth'd with white garments of very fine Silk, and other rich Silken sur-coats upon the same, to honor the solemnity; and upon these they had such colour'd clothes as in Persia they call Scial, and use for girdles, but the Indians wear them cross the shoulders cover'd with a piece of very fine white Silk, so that the colour underneath appears; or else wear white Silk alone. As soon as we came forth of doors, Musè Baì presented to the Ambassador one of these colour'd Skarfs inclos'd in white Silk to wear about his Neck; and the Ambassador gave him a piece of I know not what Cloth, and in the mean time a publick Dancing-Woman whom they had hir'd, danc'd in the presence of us all."

"In the town of Keladi in the Kannada country there was a person named Basava, who had married a woman of the same name and who was a devotee of Siva. The couple had four sons. After the death of Basava and two of his sons, his wife was bringing up the two other sons who were named Chauda and Bhadra, and in due course had their marriages performed. Once when Chauda was attending to the ploughing of his land his ploughshare is said to have come across a large amount of buried treasure. With the aid of the treasure he managed to become a Gramadhipa (headman of a village). He then collected a small company of soldiers. The king of the country, on hearing of this, sent for Chaudappa. Much pleased with him on hearing his story, the king made him governor of Pulladesa with the title Keladi Chaudappa Nayaka. Then Chauda returned to Keladi and, constructing the temple of Ramesvara there, made to it large endowments. He had two sons who were named Sadasiva and Bhadra. Having taught both of them the several sastras and arts, he nominated Sadasiva Nayaka as his successor and died soon after."

"6 November – Two hours before noon we went from Ahinalà, and having travell'd through a Country like the former, but plain, about noon we came to the Town Badra; where, according as Vitulà Sinay had writ to us, we thought to lodge that night, and accordingly had lay'd down our baggage, and withdrawn to a place to rest; but after two hours being there, we found our selves surrounded by abundance of people, (for 'tis a large Town, and they go almost all arm'd) who out of curiosity came to see us; whereupon the Ambassador, either having receiv'd an Answer from Vitulà Sinay, or not caring for a pompous entrance, rais'd us all again; and after a small journey further we arriv'd at Ikkerì, which is the Royal City of Venk-tapà Naieka where he holds his Court; having travell'd since morning from Ahinalà to Ikkerì but two Leagues. This City is seated in a goodly Plain, and, as we enter'd, we pass'd through three Gates with Forts and Ditches, but small, and consequently, three Inclosures; the two first of which were not Walls, but made of very high Indian Canes, very thick and close planted in stead of a Wall, and are strong against Foot and Horse in any, hard to cut, and not in danger of fire; besides, that the Herbs which creep upon them, together with themselves, make a fair and great verdure, and much shadow. The other Inclosure is a Wall, but weak and inconsiderable: But having pass'd these three, we pass'd all. Some say, there are others within, belonging to the Citadel or Fort where the Palace is; for Ikkerì is of good largeness, but the Houses stand thin and are ill built, espe∣cially without the third Inclosure; and most of the situation is taken up in great and long streets, some of them shadow'd with high and very goodly Trees growing in Lakes of Water, of which, there are many large ones, besides Fields set full of Trees, like Groves, so that it seems to consist of a City, Lakes, Fields, and Woods mingled together, and makes a very delightful sight."

"The priests of the temple of Govardhan founded by the Valabhacarya sought safety in flight. The idols were removed and the priests softly stole out in the night. Imperial territories offered no place of safe asylum either to the god or his votaries. After an adventurous journey, they at last reached Jodhpur. Maharaja Jaswant Singh was away on imperial errands. His subordinates in the state did not feel strong enough to house the god who might have soon excited the wrath of the Mughal emperor. Damodar Lai, the head of the priesthood in charge of the temple, sent Gopinath to Maharaja Raj Singh to beg for a place to be able to serve his religion in peace. The Sassodis prince exterided his welcome to Damodar Lai. The party left Ghampasani on 5 December, 1671, and was right royally received by MaharSna Raj Singh on the frontiers of his state. It was decided to house the god at Sihar and with due religious ceremony, the god was installed on 10 March, 1672. Mewar thus became the centre of Vaisnavism in India. The tiny village of Sihar has how grown into an important town which is named after the god, is now known as Nathadwara. At Kankroli (in Udaipur State) another Vaisnava idol of Krsna similarly brought down from Bindraban had been housed a little earlier. It forms pother, though less famous, shrine of Vaiinavism in India today. Thanks to Aurangzeb^s religious zeal, Udaipur state became a new Bindraban to the devotees of the Bhakti cult."

"When Aurangzeb proscribed Kaniya, and rendered his shrifies im- pure throughout Vrij, Uana Raj Sing “offered the heads one hundred thousand Rajpoots for his service," and the god was conducted by the route of Kotah and Rampura to Mewar. An omen decided the spot of his future residence. As he journeyed to gain the capital of the Seeso-dias, live chariot-wheel sunk deep into the earth and defied extrication ; upon which the Snokiini (augur) interpreted the pleasure of the god, that he desired to dwell there. 'This circumstance occurred at an inconsiderable village called Siarh, in the fief of Dailwara, one of the sixteen nobles of Mewar. Rejoiced at this decided manifestation of favour, the chief hastened to make a perpetual gift of the village and its lands, which was speedily confirmed by the patent of the Rana Nathji (the god) was removed from his car, and in due time a temple was erected for his reception, when the hamlet of Siarh became the town of Nathdwara, which now contains many thousand inhabitants of all denominations, who, re-posing under the especial protection of the god, are exempt from every mortal tribunal. The site is not uninteresting, nor devoid of the means of defence. To the east it is shut in by a cluster of hills, and to the westward flows the Bunas, which nearly bathes the extreme points of the hill. Within these bounds is the sanctuary (sirna) of Kaniya, where the criminal is free from pursuit ; nor dare the rod of justice appear on the mount, or the foot of the pursuer pass the stream ; neither within it can blood be spilt, for the pastoral Kaniya delights not in offerings of this kiml. The territory contains within its precincts abundant space for the town, the temple, and the establishments of the priests, as well as for the numerous resident worshippers, and the constant influx of votaries from the most distant regions, who find abundant shelter from the noontide blaze in the groves o£ tamarind, peepul, and semulf where they listen to the mystic hymns o£ Jayadeva. Here those whom ambition has cloyed, superstition unsettled, satiety disgusted, commerce ruined, or crime disquieted, may be found as ascetic attendants on the mildest of the gods of India."

"On Mt. Abu, lifted four thousand feet above the desert, the Jains built many temples, of which two survivors, the temples of Vimala and Tejahpala, are the greatest achievement of this sect in the field of art. The dome of the Tejahpala shrine is one of those overwhelming experiences which doom all writing about art to impotence and futility. The Temple of Vimala, built entirely of white marble, is a maze of irregular pillars, joined with fanciful brackets to a more simple carved entablature; above is a marble dome too opulent in statuary, but carved into a stone lacework of moving magnificence, “finished,” says Fergusson, “with a delicacy of detail and appropriateness of ornament which is probably unsurpassed by any similar example to be found anywhere else. Those introduced by the Gothic architects in Henry VII’s Chapel at Westminster, or at Oxford, are coarse and clumsy in comparison.”"

"In June (2008), a large mob of approximately 5,000 Muslim fundamentalists, "comprised mostly of Bangladeshi infiltrators", attacked a major religious gathering of Hindus at one of their holiest sites at one of the pilgrimage points of Gangasagar in West Bengal. They outnumbered the pilgrims by 25 to one, and focused assaults on women and children... the West Bengal police... did not charge any of them. But in a move reminiscent of Nazi Germany, which would charge the Jewish community when they were attacked, the West Bengal government arrested 15 of the religious pilgrims "under several sections of the Indian Penal Code for inciting communal disharmony, while the perpetrators roam Scott free.""

"India chose her places of pilgrimages on the top of hills and mountains, by the side of the holy rivers, in the heart of forests and by the shores of the ocean, which along with the sky, is our nearest visible symbol of the vast, the boundless, the infinite and the sublime."

"[There are] a large number of occasional advantages for the minorities in everyday political practice, e.g. subsidies for the Muslims who perform the pilgrimage to Mecca, as contrasted with pilgrimage taxes to be paid by Hindus going to Amarnath and other Hindu places of pilgrimage."

"India is a vast network of sacred places. The entire country is a sacred land. The sacrality of the land of India, is what, still today, gives a sense of unity to this country of so many religions, cultures, races and factions."

"The Mahabharata carries a complete picture of this cultural unity in its tîrtha-yãtrã-parva, which is part of the larger Vana-parva. The Pandavas accompany their Purohita, Dhaumya, on a long pilgrimage to all parts of Bharatavarsha. They pay their homage to many mountains, rivers, saMgamas, lakes, tanks, forest groves and other sacred shrines which had become hallowed by association with Gods and Goddesses, rishis and munis, satees and sãdhvees, heroes and heroines. And they feel fulfilled as they never did before or after in their long lives. The same Pandavas made an imperial conquest of the whole country, not once but twice and performed a rãjasûya yajña at the end of each triumph. But the Pandava empire is a faint memory of the forgotten past. On the other hand, the sacred spots which the Pandavas visited during their one and only pilgrimage, draw millions of devotees in our own days as they did in the distant past, long before the Pandavas appeared on the scene. .... The Ramayana, the Puranas and the Dharmashastras paint the same portrait of an ancient land, every spot of which is sacred to some cultural memory or the other. The Jainagama and the Tripitaka speak again and again of sixteen Mahajanapadas, which spanned the spread of Bharatavarsha in the life-time of Bhagvan Mahavira and the Buddha. Even a dry compendium on grammar, the Ashtadhyayi of Panini, provides a near complete count of all the Janapadas in ancient India-Gandhara and Kamboja, Sindhu and Sauvira, Kashmir and Kekaya, Madra and Trigarta, Kuru and Panchala, Kaushala and Kashi, Magadha and Videha, Anga and Vanga, Kirata and Kamarupa, Suhma and Udra, Vatsa and Matsya, Abhira and Avanti, Nishadha and Vidarbha, Dandakaranya and Andhra, Karnataka and Kerala, Chola and Pandya. The epic poetry poured out by Kalidasa, Magha, Bharavi and Sriharsha continues the same tradition of talking endlessly about Bharatavarsha as a single and indivisible geographical entity, as a karmabhûmi for Gods and Goddesses, Brahmarshis and Rajarshis, and as higher than heaven for all those who have had the good fortune of being born in it."

"It was this feeling of being at home everywhere in the country which took the Adi Shankaracharya from the southernmost tip to the farthest corners of Bharatavarsha in North and East and West and helped him found (or revive) the four foremost dhãmas at Badrinath, Dvaraka, Rameshvaram and Puri. There is no count of sadhus and sannyasins and house-holders who have travelled ever since on the trail blazed by that great acharya. Six and a half centuries later, Guru Nanak Dev followed in the footsteps of the Pandavas and the Shankaracharya in search of spiritual company."

"The Mahâbhârata in its Tirthayâtra section of the Vanaparva, gives details of the pilgrimage undertaken by the Pândavas to numerous sacred mountains, rivers, lakes and shrines all over India."

"The pilgrimage cycles (e.g. that of the twelve Shaiva jyotirlingas) cover every corner of India.31 Talageri: “These Hindu pilgrim-centres range from Kailash and Mansarovar in the north to Rameshwaram in the south; and from Hinglaj in the west (in Sindh) to Parsuram Kund (in Arunachal Pradesh) in the east. The ‘seven holy cities’ of Hinduism include Kanchipuram in the south, Dwarka in the west and Ujjain in central India. … This concept of India as a holy land has persisted … down the ages. More than a thousand years ago, Adi Shankaracharya, who was born in Kerala, established his four mathas in Badrinath in the north (U.P.), Puri in the east (Orissa), Dwarka in the west (Gujarat), and Shringeri in the south (Karnataka).”...“Jainism originated in the north-east (in Bihar), but the majority of its followers are found in western states (Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra), and the most famous statues of Gomateshawara are found in the south. Guru Nanak was born in Punjab, but throughout his writings, he speaks of Hindustan, not of Punjab. Guru Govind Singh appointed five disciples, calling them panj pyaras, and entrusting them with the task of ensuring that Hindu Dharma prevailed everywhere. These disciples were, respectively, from Punjab and Delhi in the north, Gujarat in the west, Orissa in the east, and Karnataka in the south. The four Takhts of Sikhism are at Nankana Sahib (Punjab now in Pakistan), Amritsar (Punjab), Patna (Bihar) and Nanded (Maharashtra).”"

"“Another meritorious Act of the Pagans is the visiting their celebrated Pagodes and other holy Places (like the Pilgrimages of the Romanists) as the famous Pagode Rammanakojel, the Adams Mountain in Ceylon, and divers other Places Suratte, Davarca, Mottera, Casi, Bengale, and Ayotia, 12 Leagues from Casi; for which reason it is, that the rich erect Pagodes, Jans (call’d Ammalams) and Cisterns for the Convenience of the travelling Men and Beasts. (p. 896)"

"The king seizes the Brahmanas, pollutes their caste and even takes their lives. If a conch-shell is heard to blow in any house, its owner is made to forfeit his wealth, caste and even life. The king plunders the houses of those who wear sacred threads on the shoulder and put scared marks on the forehead, and then binds them. He breaks the temples and uproots tulsi plants… The bathing in Ganga is prohibited and hundreds of scared asvattha and jack trees have been cut down."

"Ayodhya, Mathura, Haridwar, Kasi, Kanchi, Avantika and Dwaraka are the seven holy places."

"All of them (temples at Hardwar and Ayodhya) are thronged with worshippers, even those that are destroyed are still venerated by the Hindus and visited by the offering of alms."

"O Yudhishthira, the spot where Ganga rusheth past, cleaving the foremost of mountains which is frequented by Gandharvas and Yakshas and Rakshasas and Apsaras, and inhabited by hunters, and Kinnaras, is called Gangadwara (Haridwar). O King, Sanatkumara regardeth that spot visited by Brahmarshis, as also the Tirtha Kanakhala (that is near to it), as sacred."

"The foundation of this shrine must have been laid in the solstice, as its front varies ten points from the meridian line; and as the Silpi, or architect, in these matters, acts under the priest, we may infer that the Surya Siddhanta was little known to the Goorgoocha Brahmins, the ministrants of their times, who took the heliacal rising of those days as the true east point; its breadth is, therefore, from N.N.W. to S.S.E. Contrary to custom, it has its back to the rising sun, and faces the west. Crishna is here adored under his form of Rinchor, when he was driven from his patrimony, Surasena, by the Budhist king of Magadha. A covered colonnaded piazza connects the cella of Crishna with a miniature temple dedicated to Deoki, his mother; and within the ample court are various other shrines, one of which, in the S.E. angle, contains the statue of Budha Tri-vicrama, or, as he is familiarly called, Tricam-Rae and Trimnat’h, which is always crowded with votaries. Opposite to this, or at the S.W. angle of the main temple, is a smaller one, dedicated to another form of Crishna, Madhu Rae, and between these is a passage leading by a flight of steps to the Goomtee, a small rivulet, whose embouchure with the ocean is especially sacred, though is would not wet the instep to cross it. From the grand temple to the sungum, or point of confluence, where there is a small temple to Sungum-Narayn, the course of the Goomtee is studded with the cenotaphs of those pilgrims who were fortunate enough to surrender life at this “dwara of the deity.” Amongst them are four of the five Pandu brothers, countenancing the tradition that the fifth proceeded across the Hemachil, where, being lost sight of, he is said to have perished in its snows, and whither he was accompanied by Baldeo, the Indian Hercules, whose statue is enshrined in the south-west corner of the great munduff, several step under ground. Baldeo is represented on his ascent from patal, or the infernal regions, after some monstrous combat."

"In the ancient cities of Varanasi and Mathura, Ujjain and Maheshwar, Jwalamukhi and Dwarka, not one temple survives whole and intact from the ancient times."

"“…When the Sultãn saw that the infidels had gone to that island, he ordered boats from the ports and proceeded to the island with his well-armed soldiers… The infidels did not stint in fighting with swords and guns. In the end the army of Islãm achieved victory. A majority of the infidels were slaughtered. The Musalmãns started giving calls to prayers after mounting on top of the temples. They started destroying the temples and desecrating the idols. The Sultãn offered namãz out of gratefulness of Allãh… He got a Jãmi‘ Masjid raised in that place…”"

"“This victory took place in the year 878, eight hundred and seventy-eight; the island of Sankhodar was never conquered in any age by any king of the past. It is related that the Sultan performed two genuflexions of namaz out of thanksgiving at the time of demolishing the temple and breaking the idols of Jagat. He grew eloquent in recitation of praise out of gratitude to God. The Muslims raised calls to namaz (azan) by loud voice from top of temples… He built a masjid there.”"

"The Mahabharata described how ‘the ocean…flooded Dvarka which still teemed with wealth of every kind’ and ‘the sea rushed into the city. It coursed through the streets and covered…the city. I saw beautiful buildings becoming submerged one by one. In a matter of a few moments it was all over…there was no trace of the city.’"

"In Ujjain (Ozene of Ptolemy’s geography) where there had been an astronomical laboratory and on the meridian of which town the ‘world summit’-originally an Indian conception-was supposed to lie."

"To describe all regions of the earth and to establish all local times would be tedious and unfeasible since, for innumerable times and for boundless regions, the meridians have been recorded with respect to Arin, in such a way that it would not be difficult to determine from this radix by geometrical and arithmetical rules the other places and times... if we are removed in longitude from this (place, namely Arin), then the distance between our place and the locality of Arin must be taken into account’ for calculating the mean positions of planets."

"From his Guru the student might pass, about the age of sixteen, to one of the great universities that were the glory of ancient and medieval India: Benares, Taxila, Vidarbha, Ajanta, Ujjain, or Nalanda. .... Ujjain was held in high repute for astronomy..."

"Ujjain, which used to be called Avantipura in the Sanskrit tradition, is located on the banks of the Shipra River. The Shipra flows into the Chambal River, which goes on into the Yamuna which flows into the Ganges. The most popular part of the Shipra River in Ujjain is along Ram Ghat where there are more small temples and shrines, mostly to Shiva, and is where many thousands of people gather during the Kumbha Mela festival to bathe in the river which is especially purifying at that time. Bathing in it is said to give liberation. Ram Ghat is also said to be where Lord Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana did pinda, or the funeral rites for Lord Rama’s father, Dasaratha. Ujjain is sacred for Shaivites due to the Mahakal temple. It is sacred for Shaktas due to the Siddhi Devi temple, and it is special for Vaishnavas because Lord Krishna went to school here at the Sandipani Ashrama."

"Ujjain becomes the sight of the huge Kumbha Mela festival every 12 years, starting on the full moon day in Chaitra (May-June) and lasts for a month. During the festival as many as three million pilgrims, and as of 2004 possibly 30 million, come from all over India to associate with other holy men and to bathe in the holy waters at the most auspicious time for spiritual purification. Besides this, there are a number of temples in this town that are worth visiting. Most of them are dedicated to Lord Shiva."

"[He] took the city of Oojein, where he destroyed a magnificent temple dedicated to Mahakaly, formed upon the same plan with that of Somnat. This temple is said to have occupied three hundred years in building, and was surrounded by a wall one hundred cubits in height. The image of Vikramaditya, who had been formerly prince of this country, and so renowned, that the Hindoos have taken an era from his death..."

"“When he advanced from the capital of Karra, the Hindus, in alarm, descended into the earth like ants. He departed towards the garden of Behar to dye that soil with blood as red as tulip. He cleared the road to Ujjain of vile wretches, and created consternation in Bhilsan. When he effected his conquests in that country, he drew out of the river the idols which had been concealed in it.”66"

"“From thence he advanced to Ujjain-Nagari and destroyed the idol-temple of Mahakal Diw. The effigy of Bikramjit who was sovereign of Ujjain-Nagari, and from whose reign to the present time one thousand, three hundred, and sixteen years have elapsed, and from whose reign they date the Hindui era, together with other effigies besides his, which were formed of molten brass, together with the stone (idol) of Mahakal were carried away to Delhi, the capital.”"

"Among his “Victories and Conquests” is counted the “bringing away of the idol of Mahakal, which they have planted before the gateway of the Jami’ Masjid at the capital city of Delhi in order that all true believers might tread upon it.”"

"“In AH 631 he invaded Malwah, and after suppressing the rebels of that place, he destroyed that idol-temple which had existed there for the past three hundred years.... “Next he turned towards Ujjain and conquered it, and after demolishing the idol-temple of Mahakal, he uprooted the statue of Bikramajit together with all other statues and images which were placed on pedestals, and brought them to the capital where they were laid before the Jami‘ Masjid for being trodden under foot by the people.”"

"…[He] also captured the city of Ujjain, and having destroyed the idol-temple of Ujjain which had been built six hundred years previously, and was called Mahakal, he levelled it to its foundations, and threw down the image of Rai Vikrmajit from whom the Hindus reckon their era… and brought certain other images of cast molten brass and placed them on the ground in front of the door of the mosque of old Dihli and ordered the people to trample them under foot…"

"“After the reduction of Gualiar, the King marched his army towards Malwa, reduced the fort of Bhilsa, and took the city of Oojein, where he destroyed a magnificent temple dedicated to Mahakaly, formed upon the same plan with that of Somnat. This temple is said to have occupied three hundred years in building, and was surrounded by a wall one hundred cubits in height. The image of Vikramaditya, who had been formerly prince of this country, and so renowned, that the Hindoos have taken an era from his death, as also the image of Mahakaly, both of stone, with many other figures of brass, were found in the temple. These images the King caused to be conveyed to Dehly, and broken at the door of the great mosque.”"

"“…In the year AH 631, he invaded the country of Mãlwah and conquered the fort of Bhîlsã. He also took the city of Ujjain, and had the temple of Mahãkãl… completely demolished, destroying it from its foundations; and he carried away the effigy of Bikramãjît… and certain other statues which were fashioned in molten brass, and placed them in the ground in front of the Jãmi’ Masjid, so that they might he trampled upon by the people.”"

"News came from Malwa that Wazir Khan had sent Gada Beg, a slave, with 400 troopers, to destroy all temples around Ujjain' A Rawat of the place resisted and slew Gada Beg with 121 of his men (1670)."

"..They have a place called Ujjayn with a large idol representing (Maha-kal). They take before him their needs in this lower world and the world beyond and from him learn charms (aza‘im). They do wonderful things saying that they all are from (Maha-kal’s) teaching... Some people come to worship him while for several days they refrain from food and humble themselves asking him for their needs. Some take an iron lamp and shaping its bottom like a spear place it on their palm and press it: until it has pierced the palm and made a hole in it. Then they light the lamp and kneel down on both knees before the idol with lamentation saying: “accept from us our visit to this house”"

"He (Iltutmish) sent, in A.H. 632 (1234 A.D.), the army of Islam towards Malwa and took the fort and city of Bhilsa. There was a temple there which was three hunqired years in building. It was about one hundred and five gaz high. He demolished it. From thence he proceeded to Ujjain, where there was a temple of Maha-kal, which he destroyed as well as the image of Bikramajit, who was king of Ujjain, and reigned 1316 years before his time. The Hindu era dates from his reign. Some other images cast in copp@r were carried with the stone image of Maha-kal to Dehli."

"He (Iltutmish) also captured the city of Ujjain, and having destroyed the idol-temple of Ujjain which had been built six hundred years previously, and was callled Mahakal, he levelled it to its foundations, and threw down the image... from whom the Hindus reckon their era."

"The Mountaineers invariably reserved the beard, and, instead of bowing the head in salutation, as in Lower India, they embrace the party addressed, and, incline the head over his left shoulder. The growth of the beard is encouraged, perhaps, from a certain ferocity of disposition incident to their situation, and generally predominant in the disposition of Mountaineers, which prompts them, in different modes, to shew a disdain and contempt for the softer manners of the natives of the low country. The women have the olive complexion, are delicately shaped, and evince a freedom in their manner, which, without a tendency to immodesty, or connected with the habits of licentiousness, seems the result of the common confidence reposed in them by the men: I have seen a woman stop, though carrying a pot of water, and converse unreservedly with passengers, giving them an information of the road, or any other ordinary intelligence. Their dress consists of a petticoat, with a border, usually of different colours; a close jacket, covering half of the waist; and a loose stomacher to the fore part of it, which reaches to the girdle. Their hair, which they hold in as high an estimation as that beautiful appendage can be regarded by the gayest females of Europe, is plaited with black silk, or cotton strings, and falls down the back; over which they throw, in a graceful fashion, a veil which seldom touches, and never wholly conceals, the face."

"Kangra, 18 kilometers south of Dharamsala, is known for its famous Bajreshwari Devi temple. This is said to be where Sati’s breasts fell. Legend dates this place back 3500 years to Vedic times. This used to be a fabulously wealthy temple. Then in 1009 the notorious Mahmud of Ghazni stole a huge fortune in gold, silver, and jewels. Then Tughlag plundered it again in 1360. In fact, it was paved in plates of silver during Jehangir’s reign. But the earthquake of 1905 destroyed it, and it has been rebuilt as we see it today. After each time the temple has been destroyed, it has been restored by the faithful devotees."

"[The temple at Nagarkot]... most richly set forth, both scaled and paved with plate of pure gold."

"The stone (idol) of Nagarkot, which had misled the (whole) world, was brought and handed over to butchers so that they might weigh meat with it."

"When I entered the valley on that side of the Siwalik, information was brought to me about the town (shahr) of Nagarkot, which is a large and important town of Hindustan and situated in these mountains. I instantly ordered Amir Jahan Shah, whom I had sent to the front with the forces of the left wing and the army of Khurasan, to attack the enemy. The amir, in obedience to my order, advanced and charged the enemy. At the very first charge the infidels were defeated and put to flight. The holy warriors, sword in hand, dashed among the fugitives, and made heaps of corpses. Great numbers were slain, and a vast booty in goods and valuables, and prisoners and cattle in countless numbers, fell into the hands of the victors who returned triumphant and loaded with spoil."

"Khawas Khan, who was the predecessor of Mian Bhua, having been ordered by the Sultan [Sikandar Lodi] to march towards Nagarkot, in order to bring the hill country under subjection, succeeded in conquering it, and having sacked the infidels temple of Debi Shankar, brought away the stone which they worshipped, together with a copper umbrella, which was placed over it, and on which a date was engraved in Hindu characters, representing it to be two thousand years old. When the stone was sent to the King, it was given over to the butchers to make weights out of it for the purpose of weighing their meat. From the copper of the umbrella, several pots were made, in which water might be warmed, and which were placed in the masjids and the Kings own palace, so that everyone might wash his hands, feet and face in them and perform" his purifications before prayers."

"The idol, Jwalamukhi, much worshipped by the infidels, was situated on the road to Nagarkot Some of the infidels have reported that Sultan Firoz went specially to see this idol and held a golden umbrella over it. But the author was informed by his respected father, who was in the Sultans retinue, that the infidels slandered the Sultan, who was a religious, God-fearing man, who, during the whole forty years of his reign, paid strict obedience to the law, and that such an action was impossible. The fact is, that when he went to see the idol, all the rais, ranas and zamindars who accompanied him were summoned into his presence, when he addressed them, saying, O fools and weak-minded, how can ye pray to and worship this stone, for our holy law tells us that those who oppose the decrees of our religion, will go to hell? The Sultan held the idol in the deepest detestation, but the infidels, in the blindness of their delusion, have made this false statement against him. Other infidels have said that Sultan Muhammad Shah bin Tughlik Shah held an umbrella over the same idol, but this is also a lie; and good Muhammadans should pay no heed to such statements. These two Sultans were sovereigns especially chosen by the Almighty from among the faithful, and in the whole course of their reigns, wherever they took an idol temple they broke and destroyed it; how, then, can such assertions be true? The infidels must certainly have lied!"

"From thence the King marched towards the mountains of Nagrakote, where he was overtaken by a storm of hail and snow. The Raja of Nagrakote, after sustaining some loss, submitted, but was restored to his dominions. The name of Nagrakote was, on this occasion, changed to that of Mahomedabad, in honour of the late king. Some historians state, that Feroze, on this occasion, broke the idols of Nagrakote, and mixing the fragments with pieces of cows flesh, filled bags with them, and caused them to be tied round the necks of Bramins, who were then paraded through the camp. It is said, also, that he sent the image of Nowshaba to Mecca, to be thrown on the road, that it might be trodden under foot by the pilgrims, and that he also remitted the sum of 100,000 tunkas, to be distributed among the devotees and servants of the temple (i.e. the Kaaba)."

"Still more horrible scenes were enacted by Firuz Shah Tughlaq at Nagarkot (Kangra) where he sacked the shrine of Jvalamukhi. Firishta records that the Sultan 'broke the idols of Jvalamukhi, mixed their fragments with the flesh of cows and hung them in nosebags round the necks of Brahmins. He sent the principal idol as trophy to Medina.'"