1892.] H. Gf. Raverty— The MihrAn of Sind and its Tributaries. 465 
separates into two channels, the westernmost of which is the largest; 
and just twenty miles below Nowah Kot, the ancient channel before 
referred to, the Purano Dhoro of the people of Sind, but “ Pooran River” 
of one map, “ Phooran N. or R.” of another, “ Phurraun R.” of a third, 
“ Pnran R.” of a fourth, and “ Dhora Pooran” of a fifth, unites with it, 
and no further separation takes place until it enters the great ran , 
marsh, or morass of Kachqhh ; and at times, the waters therefrom, in 
periods of flood above, even now find their way into the sea by Lakhh 
Pat and the Kohra’i mouth referred to by the ’Arab writers. 
On the east bank of the channel of the Ra’in or Ra’ini, in which 
the Narah now flows, from near Aror downwards, the sand hills of the 
thal or tliar or sandy desert on the east, ran up close to the banks of the 
river, and continue to skirt the channel of the Hakra, after the Ra’in 
channel again unites with the main one, down as far as Amar Kot, 
which is situated on the high bank. The bed here is very broad and 
marshy, and here also is the Samarah lake, or great clhand running 
parallel to the old channel of the river. 634 It is some fifteen miles in 
length, and from four to five in breadth ; and on the west side of Amar 
Kot are other minor channels into which the river separated in its way 
to the ocean. Continuing downwards from near Amar Kot by Nowah 
Kot, eighteen miles below it, and four south of Wangah, or Wangah 
Bazar as it is also styled, the Puranah channel again joins the main one. 
Thus the united channel continues to run in the general direction of 
about south-south-west, until within six miles of Rana ke Bazar—the 
“ Raima ki Bazar ” of the maps — where it bends a little more south¬ 
wards, and enters the great ran or morass of Kachchh; and the overflow 
after his birth; and it was the Kh an-i- Kh anan, Mirza ’ Abd-ur-Rahfm, who annexed 
Sind, and he came by Multan and Bakhar. 
654 What may be the real origin of this name I am unaware, but ‘ samar ’ and 
‘ sumur ,’ in ’Arabic, mean ‘ a small lake,’ but this appears to have been a large one. 
See preceding note 530, page 461. 
This is doubtless the lake of Shakarah, or a part of it, referred to in the Chaoh 
Namah respecting the movements of Muhammad, son of Kasim, the ’Arab con¬ 
queror of Sind, and by the Balazari in his account of the naval action there between 
the ’Arabs and Jai Senha, son of Ra’e Dahir. 
The “ Report on the Eastern Narra,” states (page 40), that, “ Between Ding 
and Choondawah the sand-hills recede eastward to Omerkote, forming a kind of bay, 
across which the river takes a direct course via Trimmoo. * * * During high 
floods the whole country from Omerkote to Soomara, a distance of eighteen miles, 
is some times under water. 
“From Choondawah to Nowakote the Narra, or the “ Hakra,” as it is termed 
in this part of the country [and its correct name], skirts the foot of the Thurr' 
# # # Near Nowakote the channel is very large and deep.” 
H 3 
