国立情報学研究所 - ディジタル・シルクロード・プロジェクト
『東洋文庫所蔵』貴重書デジタルアーカイブ

THE KAILAS AND THE SURROUNDING LAKES.   19

shows that this northern highland, on account of its sacredness, was in fact the only country outside of India which was known to the old Indians. The pilgrims used to go to the holy lake from Badari on the sources of the Ganga; another road, from Kashmir, was also used, going over the mountain Çveta which was a pass on the high mountain Vatikakhanda and called the Gate of Månasa. Another gate was situated north of Videha. 1

E. T. Atkinson identifies the Bindu-sarovara of the Purånas with Rakas-tal. The Arunoda lake, which is said to lie east of Manasarovar, he suggests as being identical with Cho Konkyu or Gungyut-cho (Gunchu-tso), which he places »near the source of the Brahmaputra». The Çitoda lake, which is west of the Måna lake, he regards, most probably as identical with the Cho Moriri, the source of the western Satlaj». The Mahåbhadra lake he identifies with one of the lakes of the table-land. He finds a mingling of facts from different parts, so that, for instance, Meru in some cases clearly indicates the mountains north and west of Kashmir and in others those round the sacred lake. In its widest sense Meru embraces the whole of western Tibet between the Kailas and the Kara-korum, the Himalaya and Kwen-lun.

Regarding the great rivers Atkinson adheres to Wilson's identification of the Bhadrå as the Obi, the Sin as the Hwang-ho, the Alaknanda as the Ganges and the Chakshu as the Oxus. But the local traditions identify the Bhadrå with the Indus or »Lion river», that is the Sing-chin-kamba of the Tibetans; the Chakshu with the Brahmaputra or »Horse-river», Tamjyak-kamba; the Alaknandå with the ~atadru or Satlej or »Bull-river», the Lang-chin-kamba; the fourth river is the Karnali or Mapchu-kamba, the »Peacock river». »All these rivers take their rise in the Mana and Räkhas lakes or in the mountains near them known as Käilåsa by the Hindus.» 2

On a wall in the vestibule of Tugu-gompa I found a Tibetan inscription, which, amongst other things, contains the following words of the holy lake: 3 »Tsomavang is the holiest place in the world. In its centre dwells a god in human

I »Arjuna kam auf seinem Zuge vorn Westen her im Norden des Himalaja über den ÇvetaBerg zum Manasa-See. . . Der Manasa-See war ein sehr heiliges tirtha und das Baden in ihm gewährte dem, der es mit reinem und erleuchtetem Gemüthe that, die Erkenntniss der Wahrheit.» Indische Alterthumskunde, Leipzig 1867, I, p. 42, 57, 85, 1o12, etc.

2 In a note Atkinson has brought together the names of the four rivers as given by different authors. He mentions that on the great map prepared by order of Emperor Chien Lung the four corners or gates of the Mana lake are called the lion, elephant, horse and ox gates. And he quotes the names given by Moorcroft and the Pundits, by Gerard and J. D. Cunningham, and regards Strachey's names as the most correct. Finally he gives the translation of the 'Tibetan names, saying that lang is bull, not elephant; »elephant in Tibetan is great bull». Now, as the name of the Satlej is really Lang-chen, where chen means great, the river will still be that of the elephant. The Himälayan Districts of the North-Western Provinces of India. Allahabad 1882. Vol. II, p. 285, et seq. In Vol. III of his work Atkinson has an index of names from the region of the lakes. But nearly all geographical detail in it is taken from Henry Strachey.

3 »Trans-Himalaya», Vol. II, p. 154.

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