KOLITA NATURAL TUNNEL
28.500000,95.000000
Description
A seemingly fabulous natural tunnel is said to connect to the inaccessible country of the legendary Kolitas or Kultas, a fabulous people, who are supposed to live in the upper reaches of the Disang river (the upper reaches of Brahmaputra) north of Sadiya (note 1). KOLITA 1828: »the country to the eastward of Bhot [Bhutan, Tibet] and the northward of Sadiya extending on the plain beyond the mountains is said to be possessed by the powerful nation called Kolitas or Kultas, who are described as having attained a high degree of advancement and civilisation … To this country are attributed the implements of husbandry and domestic life washed down by the flood of the Dihong [note 2]. Of their peculiar habits and religion nothing is known though they are considered to be Hindus … There is said to be an entrance to this country from Upper Asam [Assam], by a natural tunnel under the mountains, but such is obviously fabulous, at least to the assumed extent …« (Captain NEUFVILLE, J B 1828: 344-345).KOTA 1844: »… at the village of Tuppang, I and my party put up at the house of the Gam, and as the Lama people were staying at a house not far distant, during the afternoon I had an interview with them … I should however imagine, that the country they inhabit is not very rugged, as on all the cattle brought from thence I observed the marks of the plough distinctly visible on the neck [note 3]« (ROWLATT, E A 1846: 485).
NOTE 1: Sadiya (27°50'N: 95°40'E) on AMS sheet NG46-04 Dibrugarh (U502 series, 1957 edition) and in the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 31 E1) in Tinsukia district. NOTE 2: Dihong (NEUFVILLE 1828), Dihang or Siang (India Road Atlas, Eicher Goodearth 2006: 14 D5), the downstream section of the Tibetan Tsangpo, joins near 27°48'N: 95°30'E (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) the Brahmaputra on AMS sheet NG46-04 Dibrugarh (U502 series, 1957 edition). The flood was presumably caused by the outburst of a glacier lake: »In the reign of Rajeswara Sinha (1751-1769) an overwhelming flood poured from the Dihong [Dihang, Siang] … [and] continued for about fifteen days, during which time agricultural and household implements, elephant trapping and several articles belonging to a race, evidently social and civilised, of pastoral and agricultural habits, were washed down in the stream« (NEUFVILLE 1828: 335-336). NOTE 3: »This agrees with a report current in Upper Assam, that during an excessive inundation of the Burhampooter, a great number of ploughs and other agricultural implements were brought down by the floods. The Assamese suppose the country they come from to be inhabited by Kotas; of which are the Assamese themselves, as the great body of the Assamese population« (Major F. Jenkins »F.J.« in: ROWLATT, E A 1846: 485 footnote †).
Cavités proche
| Distance (km) | Nom | Longueur (m) | Profondeur (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.4 | KILLING LE TUNG | ||
| 43.4 | PADMASAMBHAVA PHUG, Dewakota | ||
| 131.6 | SHINGJE CHOGYE PHUG | ||
| 137.4 | PEMAKÖCHUNG NATURAL TUNNEL | ||
| 214.3 | PUGO CAVE | ||
| 553.5 | Tieren (Grotte de) | ||
| 570.3 | Rje kun 'gro | ||
| 816.0 | TSAGHAN USSE GROTTO | ||
| 1229.0 | Maijishan Grottoes [Wheat Stack Hill Caves] [Grottes du mont Maiji] [麦积山石窟] |