Before doing so, it is best to dispose of those that I do not contest. Nos. 1 and 2 have not yet been found.
No. 6 is the Pippal cave discovered by General Cunningham during his last visit.
No. 5 is the cave discovered by General Cunningham, but strangely enough omitted from his report. During my visit to Râjgir the people told me that General Cunningham had seen it, and from the original manuscript map of Râjgir drawn by himself from his own surveys, which he kindly permitted me to use, and of which I have at this moment before me a tracing executed by myself, I see the position of the cave distinctly marked as a cave, so that I feel that, although he has omitted to notice it, this discovery is his by right. This cave is situated on the slope of Vipula, and is indeed marked in plate 41, 3rd volume reports, with the letter M, which on reference to the explanatory column attached is seen to be Devadatta’s house, but there is no allusion to it in the text. This cave is thus noticed by Fa-hian: "Leaving the old city and going north-east 3 li, we arrived at the stone cell of Devadatta, fifty paces from which there is a great square black stone". The cave is also noticed by Hwen Thsang. This cave, therefore, may be appropriately called Devadatta’s cave.
It now remains for me to discuss the identity of the three caves, Nos. 3, 4, and 7.
I must, however, show that our authorities prove the existence of three distinct caves; for this purpose I quote Fa-hian:—
"Entering the valley and skirting the mountains along their south-eastern slope for a distance of fifteen li, we arrive at the hill called Gridhra Kuta. Three li from the top is a stone cavern facing the south. Buddha used in this place to sit in profound meditation (dhyâna). Thirty paces to the north-west is another stone cell, in which Ananda practised meditation (dhyâna). The hall in which Buddha delivered the law has been overturned and destroyed; the foundations of the brick walls exist however.
"Returning towards the new city after passing through the old town, and going more than 300 paces to the north, on the west side of the road we arrive at the Kalanda Venouvana Vihara (the chapel in the bamboo garden of Kalanda). This chapel still exists, and a congregation of priests sweep and water it. Two or three li to the north of the chapel is the Shi-mo-she-na (Samasana), which signifies the field of tombs for laying the dead.
"Skirting the southern hill and proceeding westward 300 paces, there is a stone cell called the Pippal cave, where Buddha was accustomed to sit in deep meditation (dhyâna) after his midday meal. Going still in a
