Where Are Our Travellers' Tales?

What ancient Indian literature tells us about the world beyond India By Ashwin Kumar Iyer Most of us met the foreign travellers long before we developed any real interest in history. Megasthenes

What ancient Indian literature tells us about the world beyond India By Ashwin Kumar Iyer Most of us met the foreign travellers long before we developed any real interest in history. Megasthenes arrived with the Mauryas in our school textbooks, Faxian, whom we knew as Fa-Hien, came in with the Guptas, Xuanzang, our Hiuen Tsang, walked beside Harṣa, and Al-Bīrūnī appeared somewhat later with his patient and probing questions about Indian learning and custom. We memorised their names for examinati