A Forgotten Empire: Vijayanagar by Robert Sewell (short story to read TXT) 📕

At the entrance of this courtyard on the right hand we mounted four or five steps and entered some beautiful houses made in the way I have already told you — for their houses are single-storeyed houses with flat roofs on top, although on top there may be other houses; the plan is good, and they are like terraces. There is a building there built on many pillars, which are of stone-work, and so also is all the work of the roof, with all the rest of wood (MANERIA), and all the pillars (with all the other work) are gilded so that they seem as if covered with gold.

Then at the entrance of this building in the middle nave, there is, standing on four pillars, a canopy covered with many figures of dancing-women, besides other small figures460 which are placed in the stone-work. All this is also gilded, and has some red colour on the under-sides of the leaves which stand out from the sculpture. You must know that they make no use of this building because it belongs to their idol and to the temple. At the end of this is a little closed door where the idol is. Whenever they celebrate any festival of this idol, they carry it on a golden throne and put it underneath that canopy which is made for that purpose; and then come the Brahmans to perform their ceremonies there, and the dancing-girls come to dance.

Descending from this building, we passed on the left side of the courtyard, and we entered a corridor which runs the whole length of it, in which we saw some things. On entering the corridor was a cot suspended in the air by silver chains; the cot had feet made of bars of gold, so well made that they could not be better, and the cross-bars of the cot were covered with gold. In front of this cot was a chamber where was another cot suspended in the air by chains of gold; this cot had feet of gold with much setting of precious stones, and the cross-bars were covered with gold. Above this chamber was another, smaller, and with nothing in it save only that it was gilt and painted. Passing this chamber, along the same corridor in front was a chamber which this king, commanded to be made; on the outside were figures of women with bows and arrows like amazons. They had begun to paint this chamber, and they told us that it had to be finer than the others, and that it was to be all plated with gold, as well the ground below as all the rest. Passing this corridor and mounting up into another which is higher, we saw at one end three caldrons of gold, so large that in each one they could cook half a cow, and with them were others, very large ones, of silver, and also little pots of gold and some large ones. Thence we went up by a little staircase, and entered by a little door into a building which is in this manner. This hall is where the king sends his women to be taught to dance. It is a long hall and not very wide, all of stone sculpture on pillars, which are at a distance of quite an arm’s length from the wall; between one and another is an arm’s length and a half, perhaps a little more. These pillars stand in that manner all around the building; they are half-pillars (?)[461] made with other hollows (?) all gilt.[462] In the supports (or pedestals) on the top463 are many great beasts like elephants, and of other shapes; it is open so that the interior is seen, and there are on the inner side of these beasts other images, each placed according to its character; there are also figures of men turned back to back, and other beasts of different sorts. In each case from pillar to pillar is a cross-bar (the architrave) which is like a panel, and from pillar to pillar are many such panels; there are images of old men, too, gilded and of the size of a cubit. Each of the panels has one placed in this way. These images are over all the building. And on the pillars are other images, smaller, with other images yet more subordinate, and other figures again, in such a way that I saw this work gradually diminishing in size on these pillars with their designs, from pillar to pillar, and each time smaller by the size of a span as it went on, becoming lost; so it went dwindling gradually away till there remained of all the sculptured work only the dome, the most beautiful I ever saw. Between these images and pillars runs a design of foliage, like plates (A MANEYRA DE LAMINES), all gilt, with the reverses of the leaves in red and blue, the images that are on the pillars are stags and other animals, they are painted in colours with the pink on their faces; but the other images seated on the elephants, as well as those on the panels, are all dancing women having tattle drums (tom-toms).

The designs of these panels show the positions at the ends of dances in such a way that on each panel there is a dancer in the proper position at the end of the dance; this is to teach the women, so that if they forget the position in which they have to remain when the dance is done, they may look at one of the panels where is the end of that dance. By that they keep in mind what they have to do.

At the end of this house on the left hand is a painted recess where the women cling on with their hands in order better to stretch and loosen their bodies and legs; there they teach them to make the whole body supple, in order to make their dancing more graceful. At the other end, on the right, in the place where the king places himself to watch them dancing, all the floors and walls where he sits are covered with gold, and in the middle of the wall is a golden image of a woman of the size of a girl of twelve years, with her arms in the position which she occupies in the end of a dance.

They did not show us more than this. The residence of the women no one may see except the eunuchs, of whom I have already told you. From here we returned by the way we had entered to the second gate, and there they again counted us.

Of the city of Bisnaga they say that there are more than a hundred thousand dwelling-houses in it, all one-storeyed and flat-roofed, to each of which there is a low surrounding wall, and in this city the king lives most of the time. On the north side are rocky hills; a river runs between them, and the wall runs along the top of them, and on the farther side is a city called Nagumdym; and it has only three gates, namely one by the river, which they cross in boats embarking just at this gate;[464] one on the other side which is to the north, this is a stronger gate; and one on the north-west side, a little gate between two very high ridges; and it is such a bad road that only one horseman can pass out a time.

And on the north-west side (of Bisnaga) is another city called Crisnapor465 connected with Bisnaga, in which are all their pagodas, those in which they most worship, and all the revenue of this city is granted to them, and they say that they have a revenue of a hundred thousand PARDAOS OF gold. The pagodas are high and have great buildings with many figures of men and women, all in lascivious attitudes.

On the south side is the other city called Nagalapor in a plain; in it the Ydalcao stopped with all his forces when he besieged Bisnaga, and he razed it to the ground; but already it is again rebuilt, and this is a league from Bisnaga.[466]

On the east side is another city called Ardegema,[467] which is the name of the principal wife of this king, and it is new, and he built it for love of her.

Chronicle of Fernao Nuniz

(Written, Probably, A.D. 1535 — 37)

CHAPTER 1

Copy and Summary of a Chronicle of the Kings of Bisnaga, who reigned (ORIG. were) from the era one thousand two hundred and thirty, which was after the general destruction of the kingdom of Bisnaga.[468]

In the year twelve hundred and thirty469 these parts of India were ruled by a greater monarch than had ever reigned. This was the King of Dili,[470] who by force of arms and soldiers made war on Cambaya for many years, taking and destroying in that period the land of Guzarate which belongs to Cambaya,[471] and in the end he became its lord.

And this taken, not being content with the victory which he had already gained, he made ready a large army of foot and horse, and determined to make war on the King of Bisnaga, leaving his captains in his lands and fortresses to defend themselves against his enemies, of whom there were many; for this King472 was at that time at war with Bemgalla, and with the Turkomans on the confines of the country of Sheikh Ismael.[473] These men are fair and large of body; in their lands are many horses with which this King of Delly made war on Cambaya and laid it waste; and after the country was taken and he lord of it, there still remained to him as many as eight hundred thousand horsemen with whom he passed on to Bisnaga; of the number of people on foot nothing is said here because no one counted them.

And, determining to make war on the King of Bisnaga and to reduce him under his rule, he passed out of the lands which he had newly gained, entering into those of the King of Bisnaga, which at that time were many; and quitting the kingdom of Cambaya, he began to invade and make war on the Ballagate,[474] whose lands now belong to the Idalcao,[475] taking and destroying many towns and places in such a way that the people of the country surrendered to him their persons and property, though he left to them their weapons which he could not prevent their carrying.

And after he had become lord of all the country of the Ballagate, he passed the river of Duree,[476] which forms the boundary of the territories of the Ballagate and of those of the King of Bisnaga, which river he passed in basket-boats without finding any one to oppose the passage. Up to that time, in all that was (afterwards) the kingdom of Bisnaga, no place was populated save only the city of Nagumdym,[477] in which the King of Bisnaga478 then was, awaiting his destruction, since it was strong, and because he possessed no other citadel but that, which was his Lisbon.

And from the river which that King of Delly passed in basket-boats,[479] to that city was twenty-five leagues, all being open country (CAMPOS); and in them it seemed good to him to pitch his camp, so that his people might drink of the water in the plain (CAMPOS) along the length of the river. At that time there was great drought by reason of the summer season, and the waters of the few little lakes that were in the plain would not suffice for ten days for his troops, horses, and elephants, without drying up; and for that reason he halted some days by the banks of that river,