1862.] Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. 305 



Giryek, Rajgir, Bargaon (or Kundilpur), Bihar, Ghosrawa, Titrawa, 

 Piinawa — the Barabar and Nagarjuni caves and Dharawat, all in 

 south Bihar. To the north of the Ganges I visited Besarh, (the 

 ancient Vaisali) Bakhra, Kesariya, Laoriya, Navandgarh, Parharaona, 

 Kasiya, Khukhundo, Kahaon, Hathiyada, Bhitari, and Sarnath 

 Benares. I closed work at Benares on the 1st of April. 



At Gaya I got numerous inscriptions including one dated in the 

 era of Buddha's Nirvan. At Giryek I opened Jarasandha's tower 

 and a small ruin close to it from which I obtained 83 lac seals with 

 impressions of topes and the Buddhist formula, Ye Dhdrmma, &o. 



At Rajgir (the ancient Rajagriha) I opened the central tope with- 

 out any result, excepting the discovery of a narrow passage showing- 

 that the monks had easy access to the relics, and must have removed 

 them when they were ejected from India. The cave called Son 

 Bhandar in the Baibhar hill, is beyond all doubt the celebrated cave 

 in front of which was held the first Buddhist synod. In two in- 

 scriptions it is called Subha Gulua, the auspicious cave. 



Bargaon or Kundilpur is the ancient Nalanda, I found two in- 

 scriptions giving the name of Nalanda. The ruined mounds are enor- 

 mous in size, and would perhaps repay excavation, one of them ought 

 certainly to be completely excavated, but the work would not occupy 

 less than six months. 



At Bihar I copied the two Gupta inscriptions on the stone pillar. 

 The lower one opens word for word the same as that on the Bhitari 

 pillar. 



At the Barabar caves I copied all the inscriptions. The oldest are 

 of Rajah Dasarath dated in the 1st, 12th, and 19th years of his 

 reign. 



At Besarh I found the ancient Vaisali. There is a ruined fortress 

 1,000 feet long, by 800 feet broad, with its ditch still in good order. 

 There is also a tope, covered with Musalman tombs, and the ground 

 to the south of the fort is strewn with large bricks. The building 

 of the fort is attributed to Rajah Bisdl. 



Two miles to the north of Besarh stands the Bukhra Lion Pillar, 

 and another ruined tope. Immediately to the south of the pillar 

 there is a tank which is certainly the celebrated 3£arkata hrada, or 

 Monkey Tank, on the bank of which formerly stood the Kutdgdra 

 Hall in which Buddha first made known his approaching Nirvan, 



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