Page:The Imperial Gazetteer of India - Volume 2 (2nd edition).pdf/358

 ;

BHAGALPUR.

348

— Near

Antiquities.

Muhammadan

town of Bhdgalpur are two interesting and in the western suburb the Jain sect

the

shrines,

The only other have two curious places of worship. special interest in Bhagalpur are the Karndgarh Hill or Plateau, which formerly contained the lines of the Hill Rangers (embodied by Mr. Cleveland, the Collector, about 1780), but now occupied by a Native regiment ; and the monument erected to Colgong that gentleman by the Directors of the E. I. Company. (Kahalgaon) was, until quite recently, a place of commercial of Oswals

of

objects

importance, being on the main stream of the Ganges

has since receded, and a large number of traders have

Mahmud

consequence.



left

but the river the place in

Shah, the last independent king of Bengal,

Umarpur, Khandauli,

and Sultanganj are considersituated on the bank of the Ganges, and is conspicuous for two large rocks of granite, on the top of one of which is a Muhammadan mosque, while the other is crowned by

died here.

Balud.,

able trading villages; the last mentioned

a

Hindu

is

The

temple, dedicated to Siva.

of Singheswar-

little village

But the most interesting place in the District is Mandargiri, the sacred hill, which is fabled to cover the body of the giant who attempted to destroy Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva. Vishnu struck off the monster’s head, and in order to than

is

the scene of a frequented elephant

fair.

prevent the headless trunk from rising and shaking off the weight it, the god keeps his foot ever on the hill, which is, in It consequence, a spot of the greatest sanctity in Hindu mythology. is a huge mass of granite, 700 feet high, and bare, save near the

which covers

summit and on one ing round the

hill,

side,

where

it is

overgrown with low jungle.

Coil-

the figure of a great serpent has been cut in relief

one of the legends connected with Mandar being that it was the hill used by the gods and Asurs to churn the ocean. Besides being a

Mandar

favourite place of pilgrimage,

the antiquary,

artificial curiosities.

Statistical

Hill possesses great interest for

and abounds with remarkable

A

ruins,

and natural and

detailed account of these will be found in the

Account of Bengal,

and of temples dating back

95-102. Ruins of old forts, Buddhist times, are found in various

vol. xiv. pp.

to

parts of the District.

Agriculture.

—The

principal crop

staple does not bear the

most other August



The bhadai

the

aghan'i

December and January.

the District

in

relative

Districts of Bengal.

part exported. in

same

The

importance rice

or early crop

rice

is

Among

also

is

sown

in

produced sown in in

rice, but this Bhagalpur as in

is

is

for the

May and

May, but reaped

and

Indian corn forms the staple food of the poor of Bhagalpur sown in April or May, and ripens in August. When grown on

indigo. is

in

the other crops grown in the District

are wheat, Indian corn, several kinds of millet, peas, oil-seeds,

it

most

reaped