438 Birds in Sanskrit Literature कलहंस proper of Sanskrit literature. In accordance with the old belief that all Swans & Geese coming from the North had their breeding grounds about the मानस lake the latter is expressly said to be the birth place of the कलहंस: उत्पत्तिसदनं कलहंसयसां मानसं नाम दिव्यं सरः -बालरामायण, 10.34. If कलहंस is understood in the wider sense of Grey Gecse as in the Maha- bhārata genealogy, the above statement would include the कादम्ब or Bar- head Geese as well. 5. The Bar-headed Goose (30") is pale grey above with two black bars on a white head, brownon the neck with a white streak on each side, brown on the flanks and pale grey and white below. The bill and feet are yellow or orange. “It is a far more graceful bird both on land and water, than the Gray, our only other common Goose, walking more easily and sitting higher in the water" (F.Finn). It breeds nearer India, on the lakes of Leh, Ladakh and Tibet, which accounts for its occurrence throughout North India in flocks of various sizes and these, when on a sand bank or during flight, have a pretty grey-white effect. From its occurrence and movement in flocks it is the कादम्ब हंस of the Epics and the Puránas ("कदम्बे समूहे भवः, सपचारित्वात्"-अभि. चिन्तामणि) and राजहंस of classical literature. The term हंस in its original sense means a Swan but the Geese also because of their size, are ordinarily designated by that name, and, it is only when there is reason to specify a particular variety, e.g., from the point of voice colour or numbers, that the distinctive names, कलहंस and कादम्ब are used. Thus the नीलपृष्ठ हंस of the Rgveda is probably the Bar- head with its grey-brown upper parts which would certainly appear fairly dark as compared with the bright white of an adult Swan : सस्वचिद्धि तन्वः शुम्भमाना आ हंसासो नीलपृष्ठा अपप्तन् । —RV 7.59.7. Here the expression नीलपृष्ठ should have the same sense as in RV 3.7.3 where it is descriptive of the mantle of smoke of a grey-brown colour through which the fire is shooting forth. In the above verse the wind gods, मस्तः, are supposed to have bedecked themselves in secret and seated round the soma offering like a flock of Bar-head Geese (ornamented with orange- yellow bills and feet, black bars on their white heads, white stripes on their grey neck, etc.) on the sands, and like finely dressed young men sitting round a vedic sacrifice. It is perhaps after this Vedic name of नीलपृष्ठ हंस for the later कादम्ब हंस that मल्लिनाथ on रघुवंश 13.55 and शङ्कर on हर्षचरित, p. 12, have explained कादम्ब as नीलहस and कृष्णहंस respectively. The author of नैषधचरित also has pictured कादम्ब as a dark bird an embodiment of कलि in the garden of नल which, from a profusion of white flowers, competed in beauty with the full moon. The कादम्ब is a dark spot in the garden comparable with the छन in the moon rather hard on the beautiful Goose which most certainly adds to the charm of the inevitable lotus pool in a garden (See नैषध चरित, 17.220). Swans, Geest, Ducks and Mergansers 439 6. In the following examples the occurrence of the Bar-heads in flocks is clearly indicated :- हंसकादम्ब: सडकुलं (तटाकम् ) - रामायण, 3.11.6. कादम्बसारसकुलाकुलतीरदेशा:- ऋतुसंहार, 3.8. कादम्बकदम्बकैर्युतम्– bank of a river in स्कन्दपुराण, 2.8. ch. 9. कादम्बकदम्बकैरासेवितं (पम्पासरः ) कादम्बरी (पूर्वभाग), p. 44. कादम्बकदम्बकास्तडागा:- हरिविलास 3. 11 राजहंसकुलाकुला (गङ्गा) - स्कन्दपुराण, काशीखण्ड, 29.70 राजहंससमूह - on the Himalayas, महाभारत, 12.327.6. 7. The original distinction between the Grey Lag Goose and the Bar- headed Goose as कलहंस and कादम्ब respectively is fully borne out by the following evidence: हलायुध for instance names both of them separately :- पक्षैराधूसरैर्हंसाः कलहंसा इति स्मृताः कारण्डवकादम्बककराद्याः पक्षिजातयो ज्ञेयाः पालकाप्य mentions महाहंस (Swan), कलहंस and कादम्ब as different in हस्त्यायुर्वेद, ch. 13, while the following from भागवत and लोलिम्बराज distinguish between राजहंस (Bar-head) and कलहंस :- मोदमदमुदित राजहंसकलहंसजलकुक्कुटकारण्डव चक्रवाकादिभिः . उपकूजितेषु -भागवत, 5.17.13. श्रमनुत्सु सरःसु राजहंसाः कलहंसाच मनोरमा रमन्ते -हरिविलास, 3.9. In his discription of शरद् ऋतु (autumn) राजमेबर refers to कादम्ब, कलहंस and other birds arriving in the country in large numbers : कादम्बकारण्डव चक्रवाकससारसको चकुलानुयाता । उपानयन्ती कलहंसयूथमगस्त्यदृष्ट्या पुनती पयांसि ।। काव्यमीमांसा, Ch. 18 ( Baroda Edn. p. 101 ) Simlarly कलहंस and कादम्ब are mentioned separately in a single passage at pages 45, 144 and 145, of Kale's edition of कादम्बरी ( पूर्वभाग). The passage below from the हरिवंश, again, makes the position very clear. It names धार्तराष्ट्र (the Whooper), राजहंस (the Mute Swan), कादम्ब, कलहंस and other birds occurring on the Himalayan lakes:- सकान्तं धर्तिराष्ट्र व राजहंसेः सुरप्रियः । कादम्बैश्चक्रवार्कंश्च सारसैः कुररैरपि ॥ कलहंसोपगीतानि सारिकाभिरुतानि च - 3.41.61-62 The मदनविनोदनिषण्टु, on the other hand, defines कादम्ब as a kind of कलहंस with yellow legs and bill :-
