72 N. Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. [N.S., XIX, 
transforming her own person agreeably to whatever character it 
pleases Vishnu to assume,” (H. H. Wilson. “ Vishna Purana,” 
p. 80). 
e learn from the Imperial Gazetteer that the town of 
Chamba (the capital of a state which was in cld times depen- 
dent on Kashmir and connected closely with Jamma@) contains 
a temple of “ Lakshmi Narayan dating possibly from the 
tenth century’ (X, 134): see also Journal Punjab Historical 
Society, 1915, pp. 93 and 88). Kashtwar also. another of the 
Punjab hill states boasts of a Lakshmi-Nardin temple which is 
as old at least as the time of Shah Jahan, and is now the site 
of the Ziarat or tomb of a famous Muhammadan saint 
(Hutchison and Vogel, History of Kashtwar State in Journal 
Punjab Historical Society, Vol. IV, 1915, p. 42). 
In a word, it would appear that Lakshmi Narayan was 
one of the favourite deities of the Dogra Rajputs and this fact 
would go far towards explaining the allusion in the couplet. 
“S.—Mr. Brown’s rendering of the Bait inscribed on some 
rare rupees of Bandhii (No. 5) also leaves considerable room for 
improvement. The words themselves are: 
pst all Bn aby) 
pip seh kals Ls Sys 
and the translation offered is : 
‘‘ May the current coin of Akbar the Divine ae 
Be equal to (the name of) the fort of Bandhia. 
I venture to say that this cannot be accepted and that it 
is very far from representing the real meaning of the couplet 
which seems to be: 
**May the Coin [stamped with the words] ‘ Allahu 
Akbar’ 
Be current as long as the fortress of Bandhi.” 
Bandhii was one of the most formidable strongholds in 
Hindustan, and Abal Fazl devotes more than half a page to its 
description. It was taken only after a siege which lasted for 
more than eight months in the 42nd year of the reign, 1005 
A.H. (Akbarnama, Text, IIT, 72%), and the point of the lines 
lies in the prayer that the mintages of Akbar might continue 
to circulate among men as Jong as the fortress should stand 
upon earth, 
: PALA, 
10th Dee 1922. Ss. H. Hopiva 
241. Tar Mint Name Sivetr (SGrat). 
One of the most tantalizingly obscure of the problems 
connected with the study of the Mughal mint system is the 
