288 ON ORISSA PROPER 



All the native accounts concur in describing their last independent Raja 

 as a man of courage and abilities. He has been honored with a notice in 

 the work of the Jesuit Tieffenthaler, who extends our knowledge of his 

 character by informing us that "the last king of the Orissans was called 

 Mukund, who was very polite to strangers and had four hundred women." 

 The early part of his reign was employed chiefly in constructing monu- 

 ments of public utility or superstition, as temples, tanks, and brahmini- 

 cal sasans. Amongst other works of the kind, he founded a ghat and 

 temple at the sacred, spot called Tribeni, on the Hoogly, north of the town 

 of that name which formed the extreme verge of his dominions, and whilst 

 so occupied, frequent communications are said to have passed between 

 him and the king of Delhi, or rather the officers of the emperor. Soliman 

 Gurzani. the Afghan king or governor of Bengal, having assembled an 

 army to invade Orissa, the Raja built a strong fortress in some command- 

 ing situation, and for this time opposed his endeavours successfully. At 

 last however came Kala Pahar General of the Bengal forces, the destined 

 conqueror of Orissa, with his wonder-working kettle drum, at the sound 

 of which the ears and feet of the idols would drop off for many coss all 

 around. The Hindus say of this dreaded enemy of their images and su- 

 perstition, that he was originally a brahmin, but lost caste through a con- 

 trivance of the princess of Gaura, who was smitten with the manly beauty 

 of his person. He then married her, turned Musselman, and became a 

 relentless persecutor of the adherents of the faith from which he had apos- 

 tatized. Many dire omens preceded and announced his arrival in the 

 province ; amongst others a large stone fell from the summit of the great 

 tower of the temple at Puri, and when he entered the precincts of the 

 khetr, a general darkness overspread the four corners of the land. In 

 short, Kalapahar invaded Orissa on the part of the king or governor of 

 Bengal with an army of Afghan Cavalry, defeated and killed the Raja or 

 drove him from the country, and finally overthrew the independent sove- 

 reignty of Orissa, A. D. 1558. Two titular princes were set up after the 

 expulsion of Mukund Deo, who both fell into the hands of the conquerors 



