The Amarnath cave is mentioned in works such as the Nilamata Purana, a text that describes the religious life of the people of Kashmir, the Bhrigu Samhita (“Compendium of Bhrigu”), and the Amarnath Mahatmya (“Glory of Amarnath”). The 12th-century chronicle Rajatarangini (Sanskrit: “River of Kings”), by the historian Kalhana, records that Sandimati, a ruler of Kashmir (34–17 bce), visited the ice lingam. Folklore from Kashmir also recounts that a shepherd named Buta Malik discovered the cave after receiving a sack of coal from a sage that turned into gold.