lotus-like division of the old continent into seven 'dwipas' or climates centred on Mount Meru, from whence four rivers flowed to the cardinal points of the earth. Moving in a north-westerly direction from Jambu (India), the six dwipas were as follows: Cusa (the country between the Persian Gulf, the Caspian Sea, and the Western boundary of India); Placsha (Asia Minor, Armenia, etc.); Salmali (Eastern Europe, bounded on the west by the Baltic and Adriatic Seas); Crauncha (Germany, France, and the northern parts of Italy); Sacam - alternatively Swetam, the White Islands (The British Isles, surrounded by the 'sea of milk'); Pushcara (Iceland)