National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

as the wind tore off the moistened paper, as soon as it was laid on the rock. He and
his companions caught us up at Baltal on the other side of the pass, and the Nāsik
paper impressions which he brought along with him, were excellent.

On the road between Dras and Pandras, on the Tibetan side of the pass, there is a
boulder, on which a much worn inscription Oṁ maṇi padme hūṁ can be distinguished.
This is the only inscription of that kind which I have been able to trace in the now Mu-
hammadan territory between Shargola and Kashmir. As is the case with all ancient
examples of the Oṁ maṇi padme hūṁ formula, the Pandras inscription also has the d
and m written separately, while all the more modern inscriptions show d and m com-
bined into one compound character.

The Zo-ji Pass is called Du-zhi-la by the Tibetans after a goddess Du-zhi-lha-mo
(probably Dus-bzhi-lha-mo, "goddess of the four seasons"). The following tale is told
of that deity. Du-zhi-lha-mo was the wife of Naropa. When the latter went to Ladakh,
he wished to leave her behind, on account of her Kashmiri smell (Che-ri, in full Kha-
che-dri). She was displeased at that, and turned her back towards Ladakh, and her face
towards Kashmir. This caused Ladakh to dry up, and Kashmir to become fertile.
People say : "I wish he had taken her to Ladskh, then it would be as green as Kash-
mir." And the sudden appearance of the luxuriant vegetation on the Kashmir side
of the Zo-ji Pass is really an ever fresh and pleasant surprise to the traveller from Ladakh.
Although during the last two or three days a few scattered trees have made their ap-
pearance on the roadside, a beautifully wooded mountain slope is more than he would ex-
pect to rise before his vision, and yet it is so; for on turning a corner of the excellent
new road across the pass, green wooded Kashmir suddenly makes its appearance, and
desert Ladakh remains behind.

The first typical Kashmiri village on the south side of the Zo-ji Pass, is Sonamarg
(Golden Meadow). A short distance above the village, there are remains of ancient ram-
parts which were built across the valley. The Tibetans call them La-dwags-rgyal-poi-
mchibs-ra, "the king of Ladakh's horse-enclosure." They believe that their ancient
kings had their horses on this side of the pass. The Kashmiri inhabitants of Sonamarg,
however, believe that these ramparts are the remains of a Qila' (fort) of a certain Ibrā-
hīm Khān of Kābul. I may add that the Tibetans call the resthouse of Baltal Shing-
khang, and the village of Sonamarg, bSod-nams-ma-lig.

About a mile above the village of Gund, on the old road, is a rock covered with
several ancient and crude carvings of human figures which are believed by the Tibetans
to represent King Kesar. They remind one of those put up in commemoration of the
dead in Manchad and Lahul. How these carvings of human beings (about eight), came
to be connected with King Kesar, I do not know. On the same rock we found also sun
symbols, for instance, wheels with eight spikes.

In Śrīnagar, the capital of Kashmīr, I was particularly interested in all those places
which are connected with Riñchan Bhoṭi, the Tibetan (Ladakhi) king of Kashmir (circa
1319—1323 A.D.). As is stated by Sir Walter Lawrence in his book on Kashmir,¹