338 AN ESSAY OX THE 



faced, Skat as, parrot-faced, Parvatamamis or liill- 

 men, and Fidy ad' haras, and falls into the Maho- 

 dad hi, or great sea. 



The Pavani is probably the river of Pa or Bha, 

 and called Pa-chii or water of Pa before it enters 

 China, where it is called Kin-sha-kyang, and 

 Yangtse-kijang. The lake of Indrad'hyumna is 

 probably that, which covered once the province of 

 Yu-quang, and was drained up in great measure 

 by one of the Emperors of China ; some extensive 

 lakes in the lower grounds still remain. The epi- 

 thet of Namascdras is well adopted to the Chinese^ 

 from their polite and ceremonious behaviour, with 

 bowing, &c. 



The dzoipa of Indra, a very large island, appears 

 to be Japan: for it is described as the island of the 

 rising sun, which is the meaning of the words 

 Japan or Gepiicn. The Nalini, called Sind'hu, or 

 Bitrra-Atlock by pilgrims from India, is the Hoang- 

 ho or Cara-Moran. It is called the great Attack^ 

 or forbidden river, because strangers are seldom 

 j>ermitted to go beyond it. This forbidden river 

 is noticed by Plixy*, though he does not men- 

 tion its name. It was equally forbidden to those, 

 Avho came from the West, on the part of the Ro- 

 mans C negotiatores nostri), or to those who came 

 from India. For there were two roads frequented 

 by merchants, according to Ptolemy, from the me- 

 tropolis of China ; one leading to Bactra, and the 

 Western countries, and the other to Palibothra and 

 India. 



The learned in Napal consider the Brahmaputra 

 to be the Hlddini of their sacred books. There 



* Pliny 46"', C. 22 



