flight to heaven, carrying with him the people of his
city; in consequence of which it remained desolate
until repeopled by Vikramaditya, king of Oojein, half a
century before the Christian era, and by him
embellished with 360 temples. Not the smallest
traces of these temples, however, now remain; and
according to native tradition, they were demolished
by Aurungebe, who built a mosque on part of the site.
The falsehood of the tradition is, however, proved by
an inscription on the wall of the mosque, attributing
the work to the conqueror Baber, from whom
Aurungzebe was fifth in descent. The mosque is
embellished with fourteen columns of only five or six
feet in height, but of very elaborate and tasteful
workmanship, said to have been taken from the ruins
of the Hindoo fanes, to which they had been given by
the monkey-general Hanuman, who had brought
them from Lanka or Ceylon. Altogether, however, the
remains of antiquity in the vicinity of this renowned
capital must give very low idea of the state of arts
and civilization of the Hindoos at a remote period. A
quadrangular coffer of stone, whitewashed, five ells
long, four broad, and protruding five or six inches
above ground, is pointed out as the cradle in which
Rama was born, as the seventh avatar of Vishnu;
and is accordingly abundantly honoured by the
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