In an earlier article ² I have tried to show that there is some reason to believe that the Apostle Thomas sailed from Alexandria with Habban, the Merchant of King Gudnaphar, to the Indus and reached the king's Indian capital, Taxila, probably about 48 or 49 a.d. In this paper we ask the question, Is there any evidence to show that the Apostle left the Punjaub and went to South India?

I. The Acts of Judas Thomas definitely says that he left Gudnaphar's kingdom, and went to another, which was also in India, that he preached and won converts there, but finally was put to death by order of the king. The writer does not tell us the name of this kingdom, nor does he indicate in what part of India it was situated. This is probably merely another instance of his carelessness as to matters of geography, a characteristic already noted in our former article: ³ it is likely that he could have learnt the name of Thomas's second field of labour, had he cared to make enquiry in Edessa. Of one thing, however, we may be absolutely certain, that in stating that Thomas met his death in an Indian kingdom other than Gudnaphar's, he gives us one of the fixed points of the Edessene tradition. In a matter of such crucial importance, he would not depart from the settled belief of the Church. This we shall then hold as certain, that the leaders of the Edessene Church believed that Thomas had preached in two distinct sections of India and that he lost his life in the second of the two.

But there is another point of which we may be absolutely certain: the reason given in the Acts for his abandonment of the Punjaub is quite unhistorical. After serious deliberation he had decided to leave Egypt, in order that he might evangelize the people of Gudnaphar's Indian kingdom. He arrived in Taxila with the king's merchant, was received by the king and had every opportunity to do the work of an Apostle in a great province containing millions of people of varied race and religion. Yet, if we are to believe The Acts, he abandoned the splendid project, because he had been invited to go to another kingdom to heal two sick women! ⁴

But if The Acts offers us only a silly story, history is able to tell us the real reason for his departure. At some date round about 50 a.d., the Kushans ( a people who had come westwards from China to the Oxus, and had then settled and prospered in Bactria) broke over the Hindu Kush, conquered the Cabul valley and the whole province as far east as the Indus: and then, marching south, seized the provinces of Arachosia and Gedrosia, thus stripping the Scytho-Parthian empire of the Western half of its territory. ⁵ Thereafter, rallying their forces, they crossed the Indus and seized the Punjaub with its capital and the whole valley of the great river.⁶ The Scytho-Parthian Empire was thus completely destroyed.

The precise dates of these happenings are not known as yet. One inscription proves that Gudnaphar was still reigning in 45 a.d.; while another, which is dated 64 a.d., proves that the Kushan king was then supreme. Scholars are inclined to think that the great attack was made at some date near 50 a.d. The finding of a fresh inscription or a fresh coin may any day supply more precise information.⁷

As soon as the danger to the eastern half of the empire became serious, the population of Taxila and of the whole western section of the Panjaub must have begun to break up. Preaching and teaching must have become altogether impossible. Habban, who was responsible for having brought the Apostle to India would be most anxious to send him away to a place of safety, and would urge him to leave. Thomas would be eager to continue his work even under the direst difficulties, and would be quite ready to die for Christ, if necessary; but his master's words, "when they persecute you in one city, flee ye to another,"⁸ had taught him that it was better to escape and preach elsewhere than to stay where preaching was impossible and perish. He would therefore agree to leave, if he could find his way to another part of India which would provide him with a hopeful field of work.

Habban points out that no part of the Scytho-Parthian empire is possible: the enemy holds already almost half of it; and the whole of the rest of the territory is in commotion, all able-bodied men being used for the army or other government necessities, most women and children being sent into safety. "Unless the enemy can be defeated, he will overwhelm the whole of the Punjaub and will seize the Indus valley." Thomas must therefore leave at once and sail down the river, before the Kushans seize Pattala.

Thus the Kushan war was the reason why Thomas abandoned his chosen field of work. Every one will recognize in that great upheaval sufficient reason for the change.

II. We had better at this point introduce the tradition, preserved in the Syrian Church of Travancore, about the Apostle's arrival in South India and his work there, as it throws light on the question with which we have been dealing and will be wanted in the sequel at many points. It runs as follows:-

In the year 52 a.d., the Apostle Thomas arrived in Muziris by sea, from the island Socotra. He preached to the people; made many converts; organised seven churches; and ordained two presbyters. He next went to the east coast and preached there with success, the king as well as considerable numbers of the people accepting baptism. Thereafter he paid a visit to china, and won many for Christ. But when he returned to the east coast of India, he had so much success in his work that the Brahmans of the district were filled with envy and anger; and, in a sudden riot, one of them pierced him with a lance, and he won a martyr's crown. The date of his death is given as 72 a.d.

Such is the Travancore tradition. But there are two points on which there is no unanimity. Instead of 52 a.d., 50 or 51 is occasionally given as the date of his arrival; and in some versions the island of Socotra is not mentioned. ⁹

III. It will be at once apparent how well the tradition agrees with our suggestion that it was the Kushan war that drove the Apostle out of the Panjaub: the date fits perfectly.— But why should Thomas go from the extreme north to the extreme south of India? Was there no promising field within narrower range?

There need be no doubt that the new field was selected for Thomas by Habban. He, naturally, knew India better than most men, certainly far better than Thomas. Now Alexandria, where, as it seems, Thomas had laboured, was the greatest port of the ancient world; and he had probably found a more fruitful seed-plot for the Gospel in the international commercial community than in any other in that city. Certainly, Habban and his companions belonged to trade. Thomas, like Paul, was thus at home among business and sea-faring men, and knew how to deal with them.

Now Habban was Gudnaphar's "royal merchant." We may therefore be fairly well assured that he did not neglect the great trade which went on continuously between North India and the chief harbours of the South. ¹⁰ Three kingdoms in the first century divided the far south between them. The peak of the pear was called the Pandya realm and contained one of the greatest ports, Nelcynda;¹¹ while the territory immediately to the north was bisected, the western half, called Kerala, containing a famous port called Muziris, ¹² the eastern half, called the Chola kingdom, having three notable ports, Kaviripattanam, Poduca, Supattanam. ¹³ Our ancient authorities tell us of the great wealth which..................