Lahaina noon in Sribhuja

. . . aux environs du pays de Kalah et de Sribuza, on trouve des mines d’or et d’argent . . .

Al-Mas‘udi (943) Muruj al-Dhahab wa Ma‘adin al-Jauhar
translated by C. B. de Meynard and A. P. de Courteille (1861)
Les prairies d'or et de mines de pierres précieuses, Volume 1

. . . I have already mentioned Sarira, which is situated at the end of Lamuri Island, 120 zam from Kala. God knows best!

Buzurg ibn Shahriyar (c. 10th century)
The book of the wonders of India : mainland, sea, and islands,
edited and translated by G. S. P. Freeman-Grenville (1980)

Lahaina¹ noon or zero-shadow moment is a twice-yearly phenomenon in the tropics when the sun passes directly overhead at local solar noon, causing vertical objects to cast no shadow. It occurs because the solar rays strike the ground at right angle, and it is only observable in places between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. The exact dates shift according to the latitude of a given location.

In this article we demonstrate, through numerical analysis, that the Malay Buddhist state of Sribhuja 室利佛逝 described by Yi Jing 義浄 was located north of the equator, contrary to the proposed solution of Takakusu² (1896) and Cœdès³ (1918), who placed it to the south. A more plausible location for Yi Jing's Sribhuja lies near the midpoint of the Patani–Kedah transpeninsular portage, between Ulu Sungai Muda and Ulu Sungai Patani.

THE INDIC-SINIC CIPHER OF STANISLAS JULIEN

The simplest method for constructing a cipher that links two languages is to follow a Rosetta-style strategy (1822). A useful model is the large sutra-translation enterprises that worked under a single technical lead. From these projects, we can extract established pairs of Indic terms and their Sinic phonems. By isolating the Chinese glyphs used to approximate those Indic syllables, we can then recombine these elements as independent units to emulate the structure of the original Indian sounds. With this approach, Julien (1861) was able to map 室利佛逝 to Çrîbhôdja in his seminal work on the transcription of Indic names with Chinese glyphs.

Julien's index	Chinese glyph	Indic name
169	室利	Çrī
299	佛	bhô
219	逝	dja

Although's Julien's mapping⁵ is sound, both theoretically and practically, it was ridiculed by Cœdès (1918), who favored Çrīvijaya over Çrîbhôdja. Cœdès, for reasons known only to himself, argued that Julien’s proposal never fully convinced either Indian scholars or sinologists, but his objections are not compelling. First, the word bhoja भोज is by no means meaningless; it is a valid entry in Monier-Williams (1899), meaning “bestowing enjoyment,” “bountiful,” or “possessing exceptional qualities”, all perfectly suitable and auspicious for a toponym or the name of a king. In Odia, the term ଶ୍ରୀଭୁଜ (Sribhuja) is often a reference to the invisible hands of Lord Jagannatha ଜଗନ୍ନାଥ (Lord of the Universe).

Second, Cœdès cited Schlegel (1901) to criticize Julien’s assignment of the Mandarin pronunciation fo to 佛 (No. 298/299, p. 103). This complaint is trivial, as Julien was simply using the Mandarin reading to index his entries, and his mapping of bhô with 佛 (as in Çrîbhôdja 室利佛逝) and bou with 佛 (as in Bouddha 佛) are both phonetically accurate. Cœdès’s objection to Julien’s use of 逝 to render the ja sound is even less convincing, since it neatly accounts for the ja phonem in both Srivijaya and Sribhôja. By contrast, the three-syllable reading vi-ja-ya cannot be reconciled with 佛-逝-◍ (versus the straightforward mapping of 佛-逝). To make 佛 fit a vi/bi sound, Cœdès had to invoke an unusual labialization and compress ja-ya into jay/jai just to make it match 逝. Cœdès’s arguments reveal little more than his limited grasp of Chinese phonology, both in Old and Middle Chinese as well as in modern Mandarin.

In Odisha (Kalinga), devotees are seen carrying Sribhuja and Sripayara, the sacred limbs of the Lord of the Universe. From a contemporary perspective, one might liken Sribhuja to the Infinity Gauntlet of the Marvel Universe, a divine source of immense, cosmic power in the hands of the faithful.

LATITUDE DATA IN THE NEW BOOK OF TANG

The latitude of Kalingga 訶陵, $\varphi_{\rm kalingga}$, was first given by Takakusu (1896) using the summer solstice solar altitude data found in the New Book of Tang 新唐書 and a simple trigonometric relation

$$\tan^{-1}\frac{u}{g} = \varepsilon - \varphi $$

where $g$ is the gnomon height, $u$ is the shadow length, $\varepsilon$ is the earth axial tilt and $\varphi$ is the latitude of the locale. For $g = 8$, $u_{\rm kalingga} = 2.4$⁶, and $\epsilon = 23.44^\circ$, $\varphi_{\rm kalingga}$, can be calculated as $\varphi_h = 6.74^\circ$. With similar approach ($u_{\rm sribhoja} = 2.5\pm 0.1$)⁷, the latitude of Sribhuja 室利佛逝, $\varphi_{\rm sribhoja}$, can also be obtained, its value is $\varphi_{\rm sribhoja} = 6.09^\circ \pm 0.65 ^\circ$.

YI JING'S SUBSOLAR POINT

In Chapter 30 of A record of Sangha practices relayed from the South Sea 南海寄帰内法伝, the Tang monk Yijing 義浄 (b. 635, d. 713) discusses⁸ the principle of pradakṣiṇa प्रदक्षिण (clockwise circumambulation) in devotional practice and explains the method used to determine the correct local time.

. . . however, in Jambudvīpa (India), the sun’s shadows are often irregular, varying with geographic location. For instance, at the Shadowless Terrace in Luoyang (Henan), no shadow appears at noon during the summer solstice. Such subsolar phenomena vary calendrically according to the latitude of the observation site. In Sribhuja, by the middle of the eighth moon, measuring with a gnomon shows that shadows neither shrink nor extend; when people stand at noon, they cast no shadow, and it is the same in spring, the sun passes directly overhead twice a year. If the sun moves southward, then on the northern side the shadow is two or three feet long; if the sun is to the north, the southern shadow is the same. In China, the situation varies again between the southern seas and the northern regions. At the northern gate facing the sun, this is constant. Moreover, in Haidong (eastern sea), the sun is at noon while in Guanxi (west port) it is not yet midday. According to principle, although the matter is difficult to fix precisely, hence the law says, ‘take noon at the local place’ as the standard . . .

It is reasonable to assume that Yi Jing first encountered the phenomenon of a true shadowless noon while in India, and that the experience left a strong impression on him (the shadowless gnomon in Luoyang 洛州無影 is technically not a true zero-shadow phenomenon because the shadow is concealed by a carefully engineered trapezoidal base). Later, during his stay in Sribhuja, he noted the occurrence again, recording that a zero-shadow event took place in the middle of the eighth lunar month, though he did not specify the year. He further remarked that the same phenomenon also occurs during the spring season.

We can employ the latitude data from the New Book of Tang to estimate subsolar point described by Yi Jing with the following equation:

$$ \tfrac{n_{\rm subsolar} + \tfrac{1}{2} + 10}{365} \times 360^\circ = \cos^{-1}- \frac{\varphi}{\varepsilon}$$

It produces two values for $n_{\rm subsolar}$, 94 and 249, which correspond to April 5 and September 7 in Gregorian calendar. Since the year of observation is not known, the following table lists all the possible lunisolar values between 686 and 693. Only one of them, i.e. 7 September 689, is matching the lunisolar time point given by the Chinese pilgrim (i.e. middle of 8th moon)

Proleptic Gregorian date	Chinese lunisolar date
7 September 686	垂拱 2 年丙戌 8 月 11 日
7 September 687	垂拱 3 年丁亥 7 月 22 日
7 September 688	垂拱 4 年戊子 8 月 4 日
7 September 689	永昌 1 年己丑 8 月 15 日
7 September 690	永昌 2 年庚寅 7 月 26 日
25 September 690	永昌 2 年庚寅 8 月 15 日
7 September 691	永昌 3 年辛卯 8 月 7 日
15 September 691	永昌 3 年辛卯 8 月 15 日
7 September 692	永昌 4 年壬辰 7 月 17 日
7 September 693	永昌 5 年癸巳 7 月 29 日

ZHAO RUKUA'S DATA SHOWS THAT SRIBHUJA CAN BE LOCATED ABOVE THE EQUATOR

Zhao’s entry on Sribhuja 三佛齊 lays out a long roster of its vassal states⁹, they include Grahi 加羅希 (Chaiya, Surat Thani, $\varphi = 9.4^\circ$) on the mainland, and both Jambi¹⁰ 監篦 ($\varphi = -1.6^\circ$) and Palembang¹¹ 巴林馮 ($\varphi = -3^\circ$) in southern Sumatra. The list makes it clear that Sribhuja was once a wealthy polity commanding an impressively wide stretch of territory across both sides of the equator.

In the north, Grahi defined the upper perimeter of Sribhuja and bordered the Khmer polity¹². In the south, Zhao notes that the sea voyage from Lamri ($\varphi = 4.7^\circ$) to Jambi ($\Delta\varphi_{\rm Ilamuridesam/Jambi} \approx 6^\circ$) took five days, but the journey from Jambi to Sribhuja required about half a month. This discrepancy undermines Cœdès’s identification of Palembang as Sribhuja (or the capital of Sribhuja, $\Delta \varphi_{\rm Palembang/Jambi} \approx 1.5^\circ$). The travel data indicate that the distance between Jambi and Sribhuja was roughly three times that of the Jambi–Ilamuridesam leg, making it unlikely that Palembang served as the capital, especially since, as noted earlier, it was listed as one of Sribhuja’s vassal states during the Song period. The geopolitical distinction between the two is further corroborated by Wang Dayuan 汪大渊, who, in his catalogue of southern native states during the Yuan period, treated Old Port 舊港 (Palembang) and Sribhuja as separate entities, despite Sribhuja’s considerable decline in power by that time.

According to the New Book of Tang 新唐書, Sribhuja was renowned for its abundant production of gold, cinnabar 汞砂 (mercury sulfide), and camphor. The fact that gold and cinnabar are mentioned together by Ouyang Xiu 歐陽修 is no coincidence. Cinnabar 赤土¹³ is particularly significant because mercury can be used to extract gold from ore through a process called amalgamation. In this method, mercury binds with tiny particles of gold to form an amalgam, effectively separating the gold from the surrounding rock and other minerals. The amalgam is then heated to vaporize the mercury, leaving behind pure gold. This process requires careful handling due to the extreme toxicity of mercury vapor. The natural coexistence of gold and cinnabar in an ore makes it possible, in principle, to exploit the mercury in the cinnabar to facilitate gold extraction, a practice that has historically shaped both mining techniques and settlement patterns in mineral-rich regions such as Sribhuja. When read together, the New Book of Tang and the Book of Sui 隋書 appear to suggest that Chi Tu 赤土 is a part of Sribhuja, probably an old reference to a gold mining town in Sribhuja.

Another key detail Zhao provides appears in his description of the sea route from Java to Guangzhou: sailing northwest for fifteen days brings one to Borneo 渤泥國; ten more days to Sribhuja 三佛齊國; then seven days to Kauthara 古邏國; another seven to Yirudingam 柴曆亭, followed by Annam 交趾, and finally Guangzhou 廣州. This sequence strongly suggests that Zhao’s Sribhuja could not have been located at the southern tip of Sumatra. This return trip is also very similar to the outward trip employed by Zheng He's last voyage: 12 January 1432 (Wuhumen, $\varphi=26^\circ$), 27 January 1432 (Champa, $\varphi=16^\circ$), 7 March 1432 (Surabaya, $\varphi = -7.3^\circ$). When these dates are examined together with Maokun map 茅坤圖, it is clearly that the marine convoy from Champa must have sailed through Kalimata island ($\varphi = -1.6^\circ$) and Karimun Jawa ($\varphi = -5.8^\circ$) before reaching Java.

Dong et al. (1939) gives the latitude of the Gnomon of the Duke of Zhou 周公測景臺 as 34°26'N. The longitude, on the other hand, is 113°2'E.

The name “Lahaina” originates from the Hawaiian language: lā means sun, and haina means cruel, merciless, or destructive. This destructive sun casts no shadow, in contrast to the ordinary constructive sun, which produces an umbra.
Takakusu Junjiro (1896) A record of the buddhist religion as practised in India and the Malay Archipelago (AD 671 - 695), Clarendon Press, Oxford. See p. xlvii.

The value obtained by Takakusu Junjiro 高楠順次郎 (b. 1866, d. 1945) was 6°8' since he was limited by the precision in his logarithmic table and an earlier value of axial tilt (23.5°) given by Ulugh Beg (b. 1394, d. 1449) instead of the modern value of 23.44°. The result obtained by the summer soltice gnomon data can mean both 6°8'N or 6°8'S. However, Takakusu confused himself by restricting himself only with solution in the northern hemisphere, since he was of the opinion that Holing should be in the southern hemisphere, thus he rejected his own calculation and claim that

. . . there is clearly a confusion in the statement, if a place in Java (6°8'S) be meant. I must leave the point unsettled, until I have examined all the parallel passages in the Chinese books . . .
See G. Cœdès (1918) Le royaume de Çrīvijaya, Bulletin de l'École française d'Extrême-Orient 18, pp. 1 - 36.
Stanislas Aignan Julien (b. 1797, d. 1873) was a French sinologist and the Chair of Chinese at the the Collège de France for many years.

See S. Julien (1861) Méthode pour déchiffrer et transcrire les noms sanscrits qui se rencontrent dans les livres chinois, à l'aide des règles, d'exercices et d'un répertoire de onze cents caractères chinois idéographiques, employés alphabétiquement, A l'Imprimerie Royale, Paris. See Çrîbhôdja in p. 103. Cœdès (1918) incorrectly quoted Glyph No. 297 in his paper (p. 23).
Mandala 曼荼罗, Camunda 遮文荼, Munda 文荼, Dravida 達羅維荼, Dabi (Jhapita) 荼毘, Kathina 羯絺那衣, Kasmira 羯濕彌羅, Kada 羯荼, Jetavana 逝多. See Julien (1861), No. 2116 and 2117, p. 219 for 荼 for da (as in Drâvida 達羅毗荼 in 法苑珠林) and 荼 for dhya (as in Madhya, also in 法苑珠林), No. 615, 616, 617, p. 125: 羯 for kar (as in Karma 羯磨), 羯 for ka (as in Karpoura), 羯 for gha (as in ghana), 羯 for kar (as in Karna 羯剌). Soothill (1937) equated Sribhuja 室利佛誓 with Malaya. We were told by Monier that bhoja means bestowing enjoyment, bountiful, liberal. Its meaning is consistent with the term bhojaniya 蒲膳 (proper food for monks and nuns, wheat, boiled rice, parched rice, fish, flesh, cakes, loaves, etc). and khadaniya 佉陀尼 (edible, but not included in regular meals).

See W. E. Soothill and L. Hodous (1937) A dictionary of Chinese Buddhist terms, Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co. Ltd, London. See p. 101 and p. 192. Takakuwa Komakichi 高桑駒吉 (b. 1869, d. 1927). And also G. Ferrand (1913) Relations de voyages et textes géographiques arabes, persans et turks relatifs à l'Extreme-Orient du 8e au 18e siècles; traduits, revus et annotés. We were told by Ferrand (p. 95) that سريرة (sarirah) should be corrected to سربزة (sribuza), the mistake is traceable to a misplaced diacritical mark. G. Schlegel (1901) The secret of the Chinese method of transcribing foreign sounds, T'oung-pao 1(1), pp. 1 - 32. G. Schlegel (1901) The secret of the Chinese method of transcribing foreign sounds (continued), T'oung-pao 1(2), pp. 93 - 124, p. 188. G. Schlegel (1901) The secret of the Chinese method of transcribing foreign sounds (continued), T'oung-pao 1(3), pp. 219 - 253.
Kalingga, also called Java, lies in the South Sea. To its east is Borneo; to its west is Dvaravati; to its south it faces the sea; to its north is Chenla . . . At the summer solstice, when an eight-feet ($g = 8$) gnomon is set upright, its umbra falls to the south, measuring two feet and four inches ($u = 2.4$). 诃陵，亦曰社婆，曰闍婆，在南海中。东距婆利，西堕婆登，南濒海，北真腊 . . . 夏至立八尺表，景在表南二尺四寸. Important cities in Central Java are Pekalongan 莆家龍 and Jepara. The latitude of Pekalongan is 6.8898°S. The latitude of Jepara is 6.5805°S
Sribhuja, lies 2,000 li beyond the Côn Đảo Island. Its territory extends 1,000 li east to west and 4,000 thousand li north to south. It has fourteen cities, administered under two jurisdictions. The western one is called Lam Barus. The land yields much gold, cinnabar, and camphor. At the summer solstice, when an eight-feet gnomon is set upright, its shadow falls to the south, measuring two feet and five inches ($u = 2.5$). 室利佛逝，一曰尸利佛誓。過軍徒弄山二千里，地東西千里，南北四千里而遠。有城十四，以二國分總。西曰郎婆露斯。多金、汞砂、龍腦。夏至立八尺表，影在表南二尺五寸。

See also W. R. Andhifani, H. Prihatmoko, A. Acri, A. Griffiths, M. Mechling, G. Sattler (2025) Maritime links between China, Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula, and Buddhist Monasteries in India (c. 11th–12th Centuries) in the light of two fragmentary inscribed strips of copper from Muara Jambi, Religions 16(6), p. 664, and R. Nicholl (1983) Brunei rediscoverd: A survey of early times, Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 14(1), pp. 32 - 45. Nicholl argued incorrectly that the Sribuza of the Arabic voyagers is a reference to the Borneo island.
然贍部洲中影多不定，隨其方處量有參差。即如洛州無影，與餘不同。又如室利佛逝國，至八月中以圭測影不縮不盈，日中人立並皆無影，春中亦爾，一年再度日過頭上。若日南行，則北畔影長二尺三尺；日向北邊，南影同爾。神州則南溟北朔更復不同，北戶向日是其恒矣。又海東日午、關西未中，准理既然事難執一，是故律云「遣取當處日中」以為定矣。

Yi Jing, Miyabayashi Shōgen (tr), Kato Eiji (tr), 義浄, 宮林昭彦, 加藤栄司 (2022) Modern Japanese translation of the record of the Sangha practices relayed from the South Sea 現代語訳南海寄帰内法伝, Hozokan 法蔵館, Tokyo. See also Yi Jing, Wang Bangwei (tr), 義浄, 王邦維 (1995) The annotated record of the Sangha practices relayed from the South Sea 南海寄歸內法傳校注，Zhonghua Shuju 中華書局. See also Zhong Zuobin, Liu Dunzhen, Gao Pingzi 董作賓, 劉敦楨, 高平子 (1939) Investigation Report on the Gnonom of the Duke of Zhou 周公測景臺調查報告, Academia Sinica 國立中央研究院. Since the gnomon is erected at a latitude of 34.4°, its shadow measures 1.55 units in length for a gnomon 8 units high at the summer solstice.
Pahang, Terengganu, Langkasuka, Kelantan, Phatthalung, Yirudingam, Qianmai(?), Batak(?), Tambralinga, Grahi, Palembang, Sunda, Jambi, Lamri, and Simhalam, all are vassal states of this kingdom. The kingdom first established contact with China during the Tianyou period (904 to 907) of the Tang dynasty. During the Jianlong period (960 to 963) of the Song dynasty, it sent tribute missions three times in total. In the third year of the Chunhua reign (992), it reported that it had been invaded by Java (under King Dharmawangsa) and Sri Cudamani Varma Deva 思離咮啰無尼佛麻調華 requested an imperial edict to instruct the kingdom; the request was granted. In the sixth year of the Xianping reign (1003), it reported that it had built a Buddhist temple to pray for the emperor’s longevity and requested a name and a bell as a gift. The emperor praised this intention, decreeing the temple’s name as “Chengtian Wanshou” (Receiving Heaven’s Ten-Thousand-Year Longevity) and granted a bell. Throughout the Jingde (1004 - 1008), Xiangfu (1008 - 1016), Tianxi (1017 - 1021), Yuanfeng (1078 - 1085) and Yuanyou (1086 - 1094) periods, tribute missions continued in succession, each receiving favorable edicts and rewards. To the east, the kingdom borders Rongyalu. 蓬豐、登牙儂、凌牙斯加、吉蘭丹、佛羅安、日羅亭、潛邁、拔沓、單馬令、加羅希、巴林馮、新拖、監篦、藍無里、細蘭，皆其屬國也。其國自唐天佑始通中國。皇朝建隆間，凡三遣貢。淳化三年，告為闍婆所侵，乞降詔諭本國；從之。咸平六年，上言本國建佛寺以祝聖壽，願賜名及鐘。上嘉其意，詔以「承天萬壽」為額，並以鐘賜焉。至景德、祥符、天禧、元祐、元豐，貢使絡繹，輒優詔獎慰之。其國東接戎牙路。

The dates given in Zhu Fan Zhi is punctured by the 1025 naval campaign of King Rajendra Cola. Sri Mara Vijayottungga Varman 思離麻羅皮 (r. 1008 - 1025), the son of Sri Cudamani Varma Deva, was the ruler of Sribhuja when the Buddhist state was sacked. A list of Sribhuja's vassals was given by Hultzsch (1891).

霞遲蘇勿吒蒲迷 Aji Suvarnabhumi. The fifth syllable in the name is probably a la, following 那吒俱伐羅 (नलकूब Nalakuvara). Nalakūvara was the son of Vaiśravaṇa 毘沙門天. Nezha 哪吒 in Chinese literature was fashioned after him.
Jambi lies at a river mouth, where many ships anchor. From Sribhuja, it takes half a month by sail to reach. It formerly belonged to Sribhuja, but later, due to conflicts, it became independent under its own king. Its local products include white tin, ivory, and pearls. The people are fond of bows and arrows; those who kill many carry tokens as a mark of honor and boast to one another. By water, it is five days’ journey to Ilamuridesam. 監篦國，其國當路口，舶船多泊此。從三佛齊國，風帆半月可到。舊屬三佛齊，後因爭戰，遂自立為王。土產白錫、象牙、真珠。國人好弓箭，殺人多者帶符標榜，互相誇詫。五日水路到藍無里國.
Java, also called Pekalongan, lies east of Quanzhou at the position of bing-si (southeast). Ships usually set sail in the winter month, taking advantage of the north wind; with favorable winds, they travel day and night and can arrive in a little over a month. To the east lies the sea, where the Land of Woman is located; further east is the submarine sinkhole, no longer part of the human world. Crossing the sea for half a month leads to Côn Đảo. To the south, three days’ sail brings one to the sea; five days’ voyage across the sea reaches the Arabian peninsula. To the west, forty-five days by sea; to the north, four days by sea. Sailing northwest across the sea for fifteen days reaches Borneo; another ten days reaches Sribhuja; seven more days reach Kauthara; another seven days reach Chailiting, then Annam, and finally Guangzhou. The kingdom has two temples, one called Shengfo (Holy Buddha) and the other Sheshen (Self-Sacrificing). There is a mountain producing parrots, called Parrot Mountain. 闍婆國，又名莆家龍，于泉州為丙巳方；率以冬月發船，蓋藉北風之便，順風晝夜行，月餘可到。東至海，水勢漸低，女人國在焉；愈東則尾閭之所洩，非復人世；泛海半月，至崑崙國。南至海三日程，泛海五日至大食國。西至海四十五日程，北至海四日程。西北泛海十五日，至渤泥國；又十日，至三佛齊國；又七日至古邏國；又七日至柴歷亭，抵交趾，達廣州。國有寺二，一名聖佛，一名舍身。有山出鸚鵡，名鸚鵡山.

See also Waruno Mahdi (2008) Yavadvipa and the Merapi Volcano in West Sumatra, Archipel 75, pp. 111 - 143.
Zhenla lies south of Champa, east to the sea, west to Pagan, and south to Grahi. From Quanzhou, traveling by boat with favorable winds, it can be reached in a little over a month. During the Wude period (617 to 626) of the Tang dynasty, Chenla first established contact with China. In the second year of the Xuanhe reign (1119 to 1125) of the Song dynasty, it sent envoys to offer tribute. To the south, the kingdom borders Grahi (Chaiya, Surat Thani), a vassal state of Sribhuja. 真臘，接占城之南，東至海，西至蒲甘，南至加羅希。自泉州舟行，順風月餘日可到 . . . 唐武德中，始通中國。國朝宣和二年，遣使入貢。其國南接三佛齊屬國之加羅希.
Murphy (2018) suggests that Chi Tu is a phonetic approximation of Kedah. His theory is flawed since he tried to read 羯荼 as Jie Tu and map the mandarin Chinese sound to Chi Tu 赤土 (which is red earth or mercury sulfide, sematically. See the entry in the Book of Sui 隋書: . . . 土色多赤，因以為號 . . . ).

Stephen Murphy (2018) Revisiting the Bujang Valley: A Southeast Asian entrepôt complex on the maritime trade route, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society 28(2), pp. 355 - 389. See also I. Sinclair (2021) Dharmakīrti of Kedah: His Life, Work and Troubled Times. Temasek Working Papers Series 2, pp. 1–35.

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