Hindu Achievements | By an Indian King of the 19th Century

Below is an excerpt from a book named A short history of Aryan Medical Science. The writer is HH Sir Bhagwat Singh Jee [M.D, D.C.L, LL.D, F.R.C.P.E], Thakore Saheb of Gondal (Gujarat). The book was published in 1896 AD.

From the credentials of the writer, it is clear that he was a product of the English education system, a medical doctor, knighted by the British Crown, who existed more than 120 years ago. Yet, the below article will make it clear that how the Indian mind was back then, and will give us a chance to ponder upon how much we have become indoctrinated.

The history of Aryan Medicine forms an inseparable chapter of the history of Aryan civilisation. The word 'Aryan' is here used in what the Hindoos believe to be the original and only proper sense (Arya - Noble). It has been customary of late years to give it a much wider meaning, so as to make it denote the supposed original people, from whom, according to the Western Ethnologists, Celts and Teutons, Italians and Greeks, Persians and Hindoos, are all descended. The similarities which modern science has discovered between such outlying members of a supposed original stock as the Celts and the Hindoos, have led certain scholars to believe that the ancestors of these nations were first living together in the Caucasus, but afterwards separated, the Hindoos migrating into India, where they settled with their families after conquering the aboriginal tribes. This theory is European in its conception, and is not accepted by the Indians in general, who call themselves autochthonous. The Indian Savants (Sages) adduce internal and external evidence to show that, far from being outsiders, it was possible for the early Hindoos to have sent colonies beyond the frontiers. It is no part of our present purpose to attempt to compose this controversy. It is enough to note at starting that throughout these pages the term ' Aryan ' is used to designate the 'Hindoos,' to whom alone it is applied both in common parlance and in their sacred books. 

The Hindoos call their country 'Aryavarta' or the abode of the Aryans. Manu, the ancient law-giver, applies the name to the tract of land between the Himalaya and the Vindhya ranges (the land below was called as the Dravida desha), from the eastern to the western sea ; and teaches that the Brahmans born within that tract are suitable teachers of the several usages of men. Latterly the whole country from the Himalayas to Cape Comorin, and from the Irawaddy and the Bay of Bengal to the Indus and the Western sea, came to be recognised as Aryavarta. It is a beautiful country with natural boundaries. It enjoys the six seasons of the year, and the position of its mountains and its seas gives it a variety of climate, inasmuch as it possesses the hottest, coolest, and the most temperate places of resort. The country was a cradle of learning for the whole world, and history bears witness to the fact that many a nation that now walks with its head erect would have been nowhere had it not borrowed considerably from the intellectual storehouse of the ancient Hindoos. This country was at the pinnacle of glory when other nations were either not in existence or were wallowing in crass ignorance. Most of the sciences, which the present century boasts of so much, were not unknown to the ancient Hindoos ; and one has but to look into their writings to see whether the truths propounded by them some thousands of years ago do not still endure in their natural freshness. 

The Hindoos were the first to cultivate Astronomical Science (Jyotisha). All modern astronomers admit the great antiquity of their observations. Cassini, Bailly, and Playfair have stated that observations taken by Hindoo Astronomers upwards of 3000 years before Christ are still extant, and prove a considerable degree of progress already made at that period. The ancient Hindoos fixed the Calendar, observed and predicted the eclipses, and were acquainted with the phases of the moon and the motions of the several planets. According to Mr.Colebrooke, they were more correct than Ptolemy in their notions regarding the precession of the equinoxes. 

In Mathematics (Ganita) the Hindoos had attained a high degree of proficiency. They invented the decimal system, the differential, integral and infinitesimal calculi. The world owes to them the invention of numerical symbols. They also discovered Geometry (Bhoomiti) and Trigonometry (Triconamiti), in both which sciences they made great advances. Most of the credit given to Pythagoras for the discovery of mathematical truths properly belongs to the ancient Hindoos. 

Their knowledge of Chemistry was not meagre. They were familiar with the preparation of sulphuric, nitric, and muriatic acids ; the oxides of copper, iron, lead, tin, and zinc ; as well as many chlorides, nitrates, sulphates, and carbonates. 

The sage Panini was the first to teach the formative principles of words, and his system of Grammar, called Ashtadhyayi — the first in the world — is the admiration of Western and Eastern scholars. Lexicography was known to the Aryans long before its acquaintance was made by any other nation in the world. In the Vedic Literature it is treated under the head of Nighantu. 

Music appears to have been cultivated to the highest pitch of perfection by the Aryans, who were the first to invent the Gamut. Their music is systematic and refined. 

India is the home of architectural beauty. Domes, cupolas, minarets, and many ingenious works of architecture which have stood the tempest of time, testify to this fact in silent eloquence ; and the ancient Greeks, who are praised for their skill in this particular art, owed not a little to the Hindoos. Dr W. W. Hunter supposes that Alexander the Great left artists in India to copy the Indian style of architecture, who imported it into their mother country. 

Dhanur-Veda is an old science which treats of the art of war, and mentions different kinds of weapons classified under four heads : 

(1) Mukta (missive), as the discus, etc. 

(2) Amukta (non-missive), as the sword, etc. 

(3) Muktamukta (both missive and non-missive), as the javelin, etc.

(4) Yantra-mukta (machine- projectile), as the arrow, etc. 

The army consisted of infantry, cavalry, car-fighters and warriors fighting on elephants. They were known by the name of Padati, Ashvarudha, Ratharudha, and Gajarudha respectively. The Hindoos have had from a primeval period a fighting class called the Kshatriyas. 

Hindoo Law is as old as their religion. Manu is the oldest of Hindoo writers on Law ; and his book of Institutes still forms the basis of the Hindoo social fabric. It is an important record of Hindoo society at least three thousand years old. Other writers on Law, like Yajnavalkya, Parashara, etc., are also held in great reverence, and are still quoted as high authorities in deciding subtle points of dispute. 

India out-distances all the countries in the world in the domain of Philosophy. There are six systems of Indian Philosophy, called Darshanas, or 'Mirrors of Knowledge.' These are Nyaya or logical, Sankhya or discriminative, Vaisheshika or atomic, Yoga or contemplative, Mimansa or ritual, and Vedanta or the end of knowledge. The aim and object of these schools is to solve the problem of Creation. The Hindoos have a passion for philosophy, and have given their best energies to the better understanding of the subject. They were the first nation to distinguish between matter and spirit. While the world at large has been busy confining its attention to dead matter and its properties, the Hindoo from the very dawn of history has devoted himself staunchly to the study of the spirit. Professor Max Midler justly observes that the Indian Aryan lives this life with a full consciousness of his being a temporary sojourner, who has no permanent interest whatever in the things of this world. Being given to spiritual pursuits rather than to earthly comforts, he is by nature better fitted to solve the problem of existence which puzzles many a thinker and metaphysician of our age. 

All these branches of learning take their origin from the book of religion called the Veda (Knowledge), from Sanskrit vid (Latin, videre), to know. This the Indians believe to be the Knowledge of the Universal Spirit, as distinguished from the knowledge of an individual mortal. The Aryans believe that the creation has a maker, who is eternal and is without a cause, and who, as He has evolved the Universe out of His inner consciousness, is a Knowing Being, and, being Knowing and Eternal, is all Happiness which knows no diminution. The Veda is supposed to be His revealed knowledge. Knowledge, they believe, is acquired and not created. If knowledge could be created, instruction, they argue, would, as a rule, become futile. From time immemorial it is being handed down from father to son, from preceptor to disciple. The Indians therefore trace all knowledge under the Sun from the Supreme High, who is the fountain-head of learning, Ishanas sarvavidyanam (Yajur Ved), i.e., Lord of all kinds of knowledge, the source from which all knowledge flows. So they will never accept a statement unless it is supported by the testimony of what has been revealed to them in their Scriptures, or by the testimony of bygone ages. Their line of investigation thus essentially differs from that followed by the modern investigators, who are solely guided by their intelligence in establishing a truth, which must remain under trial until Science in its progressive course has reached its goal. 

Annamma's Ghee Chronicles

Between 1960 to 1985, we had a hotel in Girgaon named Central Health Home. Each day, a huge quantity (50l during days of high demand) high fat milk was being brought in the hotel, for preparing tea, coffee and other items. The cream collected from the milk was sent daily to our home in Babulnath Temple. Imagine the quantity of cream. Once someone had asked if this was the batter to prepare wadas!

Smt. Narayanibai Hariappa Shenoy
(AI Enhanced)

My Grandmother a.k.a Anamma, Smt. Narayanibai Shenoy, used to ferment the cream and prepare butter from it the next day. 

The resultant buttermilk was distributed to all families needing it in Babulnath. Gujarati families would take it for making sweet kadhi.

This butter was cooked to form desi ghee which was the primary cooking medium at home. Anamma used to make a lot of Churmundos using wheat flour roasted in lots of ghee and bound into laddos/undos after mixing with powdered sugar and cardamon powder.

The favorite recipe at home was the GSB Konkani dish known as Batate Saunga - fiery, sweet and sour thick gravy dish, finished with a tempering of onions fried in ghee. Potato was the most favorite vegetable among my father and his siblings. Even the Daalitoy or GSB daal was tempered using ghee. 

Such was the regal diet of the family of KHM Shenoy - simple in appearance, highly refined with ghee:)

GSB Swamiji's Photos - AI Enhanced

 

Kavale, Partagali and Kashi Math Swamijis. 1967 at Kavale, Goa

Srimad Bhuvanendra Tirtha Swamiji using AI | A reconstruction of a rare image

 There are two images of Srimad Bhuvanendra Tirtha of Kashi Math Sansthana which i had never seen before.

The below image seems to be a painting or an old photo of swamiji

This was possibly reworked by someone as a painting. Here swamiji looks slightly older but detailing is better.

Below is the AI reconstruction using both the images. The details are very clear and Swamiji looks really good. One issue is with the naamam and one with the right paduka being interpreted as a deepam. But overall it is good.

The Myth of “Angola Doongar”: Re-examining the Origins of Mumbai’s Raj Bhavan Land

There are numerous posts on Instagram and social media about this legend on how the land for Raj Bhawan, Mumbai was donated by a Parsi. This does not even find reference on the official Raj Bhavan website (Lok Bhavan Mumbai | Lok Bhavan Maharashtra | India), but people are in the habit of passing off anything as genuine history, which agrees with their version.

This matters to me because the location of Raj Bhawan was the original spot of Walkeshwar Temple, a Shilahara period place of pilgrimage for my ancestors and ancestors for the original inhabitants of Mumbai. This post was created with the help of Chat GPT, after doing manual research as well as taking its assistance in corroborating my findings.

Introduction: When Repetition Masquerades as History

Over the past few years, several online articles have confidently claimed that the land on which Mumbai’s Raj Bhavan stands was gifted to the colonial government by a Parsi individual, often named Sorabji Cawasji, and that this land was known as “Angola Doongar.”

These accounts are usually presented as settled fact. However, they are uniformly unsourced, late, and internally inconsistent. Having examined 18th– and 19th-century printed records and maps, this post argues that the donation narrative — and the very place-name on which it depends — lacks archival support and should be treated with caution.

This is not an argument against tradition; it is an argument for evidence.

---

1. The Central Claim — and Its Evidentiary Problem

The core assertions made by these articles are:

1. A tract of land at Malabar Point was privately owned

2. This land was called Angola Doongar

3. It was donated or gifted to the Bombay Government by Sorabji Cawasji (or a similarly named individual)

4. This donation enabled the establishment of Government House (later Raj Bhavan)

Each of these claims would normally leave a substantial paper trail.

None has been demonstrated.

---

2. The Silence of the Bombay Gazetteers

The Bombay Presidency Gazetteers (late 19th and early 20th century) remain among the most detailed administrative and historical records of colonial Bombay. They meticulously document:

• Land ownership

• Public buildings

• Government acquisitions

• Charitable gifts and donors

Yet:

• No Gazetteer records a donation of Malabar Point land

• No Gazetteer mentions Sorabji Cawasji in connection with Government House

• No Gazetteer lists any place called Angola Doongar

This silence is not incidental. When land was gifted to the colonial state, it was usually acknowledged explicitly.

---

3. Revenue, Survey, and PWD Records: What They Actually Say

Revenue and Land Alienation Records

A genuine land gift would require documentation under:

• Alienation of land

• Transfer without consideration

• Crown grants or resumptions

Such records are highly formulaic and precise. To date, no identified revenue proceeding records a private donation of the Raj Bhavan site.

Public Works Department Files

PWD documents related to the construction and improvement of the Governor’s residence consistently refer to the site as:

“land already in possession of Government”
or
“Crown land at Malabar Point”

Notably absent is any reference to a recent gift or benefactor — an omission that would be unusual, given its financial and administrative implications.

---

4. The Problem of “Angola Doongar”

Perhaps the most revealing weakness in the narrative is the place-name itself.

“Doongar / Dongar”

In Marathi and related regional usage, dongar simply means hill. British records use the term descriptively, not proprietarily.

“Angola”

“Angola” does not appear as:

• A Marathi, Gujarati, Portuguese, or English toponym for Malabar Hill

• A named hill, estate, or survey unit in colonial records

• A label on any known 18th– or 19th-century map of Bombay

No authoritative source anchors “Angola Doongar” to a fixed, legally recognised parcel of land.

A land donation cannot occur without a legally identifiable land unit. In this case, the land unit itself is unattested.

---

5. Parsi Archival Records — Another Absence

Parsi community documentation from the 19th century — including trust deeds, wills, Panchayat records, and commemorative texts — is unusually well preserved.

If a Parsi individual had donated a prime coastal hill to the government for its highest official residence, one would reasonably expect:

• Community acknowledgement

• Family records

• Memorial references

No such corroboration has surfaced.

---

6. How Such Narratives Likely Form

A more plausible explanation is gradual narrative construction:

1. Private individuals occupied or leased bungalows on Malabar Hill

2. Surrounding land was resumed or consolidated by the colonial government

3. A personal name survived in oral memory

4. Descriptive terrain (“dongar”) became a supposed estate

5. Later writers retrofitted a philanthropic “gift” narrative

Through repetition, conjecture hardened into “fact.”

---

7. A Historically Defensible Conclusion

Based on currently available evidence, the most responsible conclusion is this:

There is no contemporaneous documentary evidence that the land housing Mumbai’s Raj Bhavan was gifted by Sorabji Cawasji or any private individual, nor that it was historically known as “Angola Doongar.” The land appears in 19th-century records as Crown or Company-controlled property, and the donation narrative emerges only in late, unsourced secondary accounts.

This does not preclude future discoveries — but history cannot be written on absence plus repetition.

---

Closing Note: Why This Matters

Urban history is especially vulnerable to myth-making, particularly when prestige sites are involved. Challenging such narratives is not iconoclasm; it is maintenance of historical standards.

If the claim is true, the archive will eventually prove it.
Until then, the story remains — at best — unverified.

---

Walkeshwar's Trimurti | From Archives

While exploring details for original remnants from the Walkeshwar Temple ruins located at Malabar point, i came across a foot note in the Bombay City Gazeteer. The text is as below;

Moore, the author of the Hindu Pantheon, (1800-1810) speaks of the remains of a rather elegant temple near the Shrigundi or Lucky Rock at Malabar Point. Fragments of well-hewn stone were still to be seen over and around its site, having a variety of images sculptured on their surface. Many of the most useful stones had been taken to help the erection in the neighbouring Brahman villages of a fine tank and temples. Moore had the site cleared. Some feet under ground he found in a state of mutilation the same triform head which forms the central sculpture in Elephanta. This sculpture, which is pictured at plate 81 of Moore's Pantheon, was carried to the India House Museum and is now believed to be in the South Kensington Museum.

I looked up the book on archive.org and discovered plate 81 from the book. The illustration of the Trimurti found is given below;

Pl. 81. Trimûrti, the Hindu Triad. From a bust in granite, about two feet high, dug from the ruins of a temple in the island of Bombay, and deposited by Major Moor in the Museum of the India House.

Looking at the illustration, one can see that it was in broken condition after the demolition done by the Portuguese. Reimagined it with the help of AI

Below is an article from the book Hindu Pantheon about Moore's discovery in his own words.

At the very extremity of a promontory on the island of Bombay, called Malabar Point, is a cleft rock, a fancied resemblance of the Yoni, to which numerous pilgrims and persons resort for the purpose of regeneration by the efficacy of a passage through this sacred type. This Yoni, or hole, is of considerable elevation, situated among rocks, of no easy access, and, in the stormy season, incessantly buffetted by the surf of the ocean. Near it are the ruins of a temple, that present appearances warrant us to conclude was formerly of rather an elegant description. It is said, with probability, to have been blown up by gunpowder, by the pious zeal of the idol-hating Portuguese, while Bombay was under their flag. Fragments of well-hewn stone are now seen scattered over and around its site, having a variety of images sculptured on their surface: many of those most useful in building have been carried away by the Hindus to help their erections in the neighbouring beautiful Brahman village, its fine tank, and temples.* With the view, neither pious nor sacrilegious, of discovering to whom this temple was dedicated, I have particularly examined its remains; and, with the help of my servants, succeeded in removing the stones and rubbish from the surface of the ground, and discovering what was buried beneath. The temple appears to have been sacred to the Hindu Trinity in Unity; for I found a stone, a good deal mutilated, some feet under ground and ruins, well carved into the triform head so stupendously sculptured in the cave at Ghari-puri, or Elephanta, of which Neibuhr gives a plate, and after him Maurice. And it appears also in the As. Res. but, in my humble estimation, ill executed in every instance; and I have examined the colossal bust with the copies in my hand. Of the stone that I thus found, a good representation is given in Plate 81. and it seems a fair model of its gigantic neighbour. The fragment is more than two feet high, nearly as broad, and about eighteen inches thick, and is of course very heavy. I brought this stone to England, and it is now deposited in the company’s museum at the India house. The front face is Brahma; on his right, Siva; to his left, Vishnu.

Footnote - The village here noticed (Banganga) is a pretty specimen of unsophisticated Hinduism; for, although situated on the populous island of Bombay, it enjoys a degree of tranquil repose that is rarely contemplated. It contains several temples, and is built round a fine tank, or piece of water, of considerable extent, with broad flights of steps down to the water at the north and south ends, having also steps at convenient situations at the sides. Brahmans are here found leading the life they love, although it would not, perhaps, be much relished by many Europeans: the ceremonies of religion comprise the business of their lives, and a literary and contemplative indolence form their negative pleasures: some of them, it is said, have lived here to an old age without once visiting the contiguous town of Bombay. Wealthy and devout persons pay occasional visits to these philosophers, and derive profit and consolation from their sage councils. At the distance of a mile to the northward from this village, and on the westernmost limit of the island, is situated. almost amidst the rocks, a pretty temple of Maha Lakshmi, much resorted to, especially at the annual Jatra, or fair, by pilgrims and pious persons, who have the additional benefit of the optional regeneration offered them in the passage through the venerated type under our notice, on the neighbouring promontory. The tombs of the Parsis, of which a particular description is given in my Narrative, contribute farther to the quiet and retirement of this most interesting part of the delightful island of Bombay.

Note - The highlighted text is a reference to the Dakhmas or the aerial burial grounds of the Parsis, known as Towers of Silence.

Valukeshwar's Temple | K Raghunathji | Temples of Bombay

This is an article from Krishnanath Raghunathji's book named The Hindu Temples of Bombay (1894)

This temple of Valukeshwar or the Ishwar or Lord of Valuka or sand, or the Lord God of sand, is situated at the extremity of the Malabar Hill. It was rebuilt, it is said, about a hundred and fifty years ago by one Ramji Kamat, Shenvi by caste, as the original temple had been demolished by the Mlenchas, but who these Mlenchas were, whether Mahomedans or Portuguese, is not known. It is built of cut stone masonry, and has a tall dome with a patak or flag attached at the top. It is divided into a sanctuary and a Sabhamandap. The former is of square shape, being twenty-four feet by twenty-four feet, and has its floor paved with marble slabs; the latter is about fifty feet in length and about twenty-feet in width. Silver plates are fixed all over the shutters of the entrance door of the sanctuary. The door, as well as the marble flooring, is the gift of one Vasanji Devji Bhatya. The circumference of the space reserved for walking round, measures about seventy-five feet.

The Pindi or the Emblem of Mahadev is self-existing. It is the same which Lakshuman brought from Benares at the bidding of his brother Rama, the hero of the Ramayana. Valukeshwar is also called Lakshumaneshwar. The height of the Pindi is about three-fourths of a foot. Near it there is an image of Ganpati made of marble, and before it there is a square-shaped marble makhar in which an image of Parvati is set up. This image is four-handed, and is represented holding in one hand a lotus, and in another a conch shell or shankh, the remaining two hands being left hanging downwards. On its head there is a crown or mugut and a white robe forms its garment. Its height is of about a foot and three inches. The image of Ganpati alluded to above is about a foot and a half and has a mugut on its head. It is four-handed; one hand is represented as holding a parashu or battle-axe, another an ankush or trident, the third a rosary or mala, and the fourth a cup or vatí, containing modaks or sweet balls.

A Gujarat Brahman and a Shenvi Brahman are employed to perform the worship of the above images, and the worship is performed thrice a day. Daily early in the morning the Kakad-arti is performed. Worship is also performed in the morning, noon and evening, when the nagara drum is beaten and the bells rung. At mid-day mahanaivedya or cooked food is offered. Besides the two Brahmans there is also a Gurav or Bhopi, whose business in the temple is to watch the Pindi before worship, to keep the temple clean, to look after its furniture and to make lights therein when necessary. He is allowed to receive the whole income of the temple on condition to pay the owner so much a year and to keep the rest for himself for his trouble. The expenses of the temple are defrayed from what its owner receives from the Bhopi. A nandadip or a lamp is kept constantly burning near the Pindi.

During the hot season of the year a pitcher or galti is suspended above the Pindi, having a hole at the bottom through which water falls down either in a continuous line or drops, drop by drop, over the Pindi. The Pindi has a brass Kavach or covering on it, and is set up on the coiling of a stone serpent. A brass serpent is made and put round the Pindi. There is a stone Nandi in the sabhamandap facing the sanctuary door and about twenty-seven bells hung up in the temple.

The whole month of Shrawan is the Utchav month in this temple, when daily the Raghurudra abhishek is performed over the Pindi. The number of visitors then is abnormally large.

A Jatra or fair is held at Valukeshwar on the full moon of Kartik (October-November). It is also held on the Mahishivratra day. Shops of toys and sweetmeats are opened. Full light is made in the temple on this occasion, as also on that of the other Jatra day. On these occasions the Pálkhi procession takes place attended by all kinds of native music. The Pindi is decked with ornaments. These fairs are of long standing; no one is able to say who commenced them and when.

The number of visitors on each week-day, except Monday, is about a hundred. On Mondays it is larger. On the Shivratra, Vaikunth Chaturdashi and Kartiki Purnima days, it is between a thousand and a thousand and a half; and on the Jatra or fair days it is upwards of five thousand.

The legend regarding this sand-made god is as follows:—When Rama was on his way to Lanka by the sea-coast in quest of his wife Sita who had been carried away by Rawan with diabolical intentions, he halted at Bombay just on the spot where the temple now stands. The Brahmans who had been sitting there on the seashore for a long time making tapasc-harya happened to hear of Rama's arrival. Among them there was Gaotam Rishi. They therefore went to Rama to take his darshan. They, however, found him sitting in a disconsolate condition. The Rishis inquired of the cause of his distress. Rama told him the same, and asked him what he should do to regain his wife from such a powerful giant as Rawan. The Rishis advised him to perform the worship of Shri Shankar who alone would make his attempts successful. Rama begged to know how to perform that worship. Upon this the Rishis told him to get out from Benares the best sort of Shiva Ling and to perform its full or panchamriti puja. He then desired his brother Lakshuman to go to Benares to get a Lingam of the sort required, and he forthwith left for the place. Gaotam Rishi asked permission of Rama to depart, when Rama entreated him to stay until the Lingam was brought, for there was no one so qualified to assist him in the worship as himself. The Rishi replied that as Lakshuman might take a long time before he returned you had better make with your own hands a Lingam of good sand there. Rama accordingly did so and the Rishi and other Brahmans helped him in performing the pranpratista or the life-creating ceremony over the same sand-made Lingam. Upon this Shri Shankar actually appeared before Rama and pronounced upon him a benediction to the effect that he would soon gain the object he was in quest of. Not long after Lakshuman returned from Benares with the Lingam he was commissioned to bring from there. This Lingam is the one now seen and worshipped in the temple, whereas that made of sand by Rama jumped into the sea on the advent of the Portuguese into Bombay, lest it might be polluted by them. The place from where it left is not far from the Government House at Malabar Point. Certain fishermen know the exact spot. On the Máhishivratra day they go there and perform its worship according to their own way of doing it.

Before this temple there is a large deep tank built of cut stone with a flight of steps called Banganga from ban an arrow and ganga a sacred stream, produced by means of an arrow. The legend regarding this tank is as follows:—During his sojourn at Valukeshwar, while on his way to Lanka to recover his lost wife, Rama felt thirsty but could find no water to drink. He therefore darted an arrow. It went down deep into Patál the region underneath the earth. Through the hole created by the arrow the river Bhogavati running in Patal flew upwards. Hence Banganga is also called Patalganga. Rama drank of the water, and felt greatly refreshed. The tank is considered holy, and purifying rights and atonements—particularly the ceremony attendant on the shaving of the heads of women after their husband's death—are therefore performed by the side of it. Bathing in it is considered as bathing in the Bhagirthi itself. Hence both men and women resort to it for the purpose on the Somavati Amavasya day, Mahishivratra day, Eclipse days, Kartiki, and Ashadhi Ekadashi days and Pithori Amavasya day.

In support of this the Purans declare that bathing in the Banganga procures sanctification and regeneration of the souls. They cite an instance which is that there lived a man about this place who spent his whole life in wickedness. He had at one time an occasion to pass through a wilderness and while so passing he was killed by a tiger. Some portion of his flesh was picked up by a Kapot which flew into the air with it. A kite seeing this pursued the Kapot who, for the safety of its own life, dropped the flesh accidentally, which fell into the Banganga. Shri Shankar upon this directed his duts or messengers to send a vimán down on earth to fetch therein the soul of the man into Shiva's heaven or Kailas forthwith, lest the duts of Yama might carry him to the region of hell, for he added as the man’s flesh has been washed by the waters of the Banganga he must live in the Shivalok. He was accordingly carried in the vaman into Kailas.

Another account of the origin of this Banganga Tank is this:—Parashuram, the sixth incarnation of Vishnu, had at one time an occasion to shoot fourteen arrows from the top of the Sahyadri mountains, one of which fell on the spot where the tank stands and produced the sacred water there.

To the north-west of the Valukeshwar Temple there is another sacred tirtha or water called the Savitri tirtha, but as yet no one seems to have attempted to trace the same. That it is there the Purans assert with a degree of certainty.

Towards the seashore there is a rock with a cleft therein. Hindus look upon that cleft with a religious eye. They believe that if they pass through it they save their souls from perdition. Shivaji Maharaj is said to have passed through it.

Temple ruins worshipped as Shri Gundi today

Near this temple there is another, in which the images of Lakshumi and Narayan are set up. Lakshumi is about a foot and a quarter high and Narayan about a foot and a half high. Both these images are made of marble, and their consecration ceremony was performed by the Shenvi community. This temple is about seven feet in height and about twenty feet in width, and the space reserved for circumambulation purposes is about ten feet in circumference.