































190 Report of the Archeological Survey. [No. 3, 
inscription, dated in A. D. 1375, in the reign of Firuz. Now, as nearly 
one-half of this period was occupied by the reigns of the cruel despot 
Ala-ud-din Khilji and the ferocious madman Muhammad Tughlak, it 
seems only reasonable to conclude that the people were deterred from 
making their usual pilgrimages by the persecution of their Muham- 
madan rulers. The next record is dated in A. D. 1429, and from that 
time down to 1511 there are 16 dated inscriptions ; but as no less 
than 13 of this number belong to the reign of Bahlol Lodi, I infer that 
the rule of the Syad dynasty was not favourable to Hindu pilgrimages. 
I infer also that the temple must have been destroyed during the reign 
of the intolerant Sikandar Lodi, because the series of inscriptions closes 
with A. D. 1511, or just six years before the end of his reign. Had 
the temple existed during the happy century when the sceptre of India 
was swayed by the tolerant Akbar, the indifferent Jehangir, and the 
politic Shah Jahan, it is almost certain that some records of the pilgrims’ 
visits would have been inscribed on the pillars of the temple. For 
this reason I feel satisfied that the destruction of the great temple of 
Soron must be assigned to an earlier period than that of the bigoted — 
Aurang Shah. 
VIII.—ATRANJI-KHERA, OR PI-LO-SHAN-NA. 
230. The great mound of ruins called Atranji-Khera is situated on 
the right, or west, bank of the Kali Nadi, four miles to the south of 
Karsdna, and eight miles to the north of Hyta, on the Grand Trunk 
Road. It is also 15 miles to the south of Soron, and 43 miles to the 
north-west of Sankisa in a direct line, the road distance being not less 
than 48 or 50 miles. In the Ayin Akbari Atranji is recorded as one — 
of the Parganahs of Kanoj, under the name of Sikandar-pur Atrejt. 
Stkandarpur, which is now called Sikandrabad, is a village on the left 
bank of the Kdlv Nadi opposite Atranji. From this it would appear 
that Atranji was still occupied in the reign of Akbar. The Parganah 
was afterwards called Karscna, but it is known by the name of Sahd- 
war Karséna, or of Sahdéwar only. The name given by the Chinese 
pilgrim is P2-lo-shan-na, for which M. Julien proposes to read Virasa- 
na. So far back as 1848 I pointed out that, as both pil and kar are 
Sanskrit names for an elephant, it was probable that Pclosana might 
be the same as Karsdna, the large village which I have already men~ 
