Adam's Peak

Adam's Peak, the name given by Mohammedans, and after them by Europeans, to a mountain summit in the south of Ceylon, 7420 feet high (not, however, the highest of the group). The native name is Samanella. The cone forming the summit is a naked mass of granite, terminating in a narrow platform, in the middle of which is a hollow, five feet long, having a resemblance (increased by human agency) to a human footstep. Mohammedan tradition makes this the scene of Adam's penitence, after his expulsion from Paradise; he stood 1000 years on one foot, and hence the mark. To the Buddhists, the impression is the Sri-pada, or sacred footmark, left by Buddha on his departure from Ceylon; and the Hindus recognise Buddha as an avatar of Vishnu. Multitudes of devotees, Buddhist, Hindu, and Mohammedan, visit the mountain.