THE ORIGIN OF MECCA, &c. 397 



st' ban is called also Vabni-vyapta, from the immense 

 quantity of fire collected in that country. There are 

 many places of worship remaining throughout Iran % 

 still resorted to by devout pilgrims. The principal 



are B>Jk and the Pyraum, near Herat. Hingldz, or 

 Anclooje, near the sea, and about eighty miles from 

 the mouth of the Indus: it is now deserted ; but there 

 remain twenty-four temples of Bhava'ni. This 

 place, however, is seldom visited, on account of the 

 difficulties attending the journey to it. 



Ganga'wa'z, near Congo, on the Persian Gulph, 

 another place of pilgrimage, where are many caves, 

 with springs in the mountains. 



The sVhanoi Calya'n a-Ra'ya and Govinda- 

 Ra'ya, two incarnations of Vishnu, is in the cen- 

 tre of Bussora, on the banks of the Euphrates ; and 

 there are two statues carefully concealed from the 

 sight of the Mussulmans. 



A\a'ya'sa'-de'vi-st'ha'n has been already men- 

 tioned ; and the great Juala-muc'bi is the designation 

 of the springs of Naphtha, near Baku. 



There is also another Hindu place of worship 



at Baharein (El Katif) and another at Astracbau, 



where the few Hindus who live there worship the Vol- 



1 x 



ga, under the name of Su rya-mug'hi -Gangaj the 

 legends relating to this famous river are to be found 

 in the Purduds, and confirm the information of the 

 pilgrims who have visited these holy places. There 

 are still many Hindus dispersed through that immense 

 country ; they are unknown to the Mussulmans ; and 

 they pass for Guebris, as they call them here, or 



Parsis* 



