IN FOUR VOLU}r:[E8.
VOL. II .
CALCUTTA: --OFFICE OF THE SUPERINTENDENT or GOVER!\MENT PRINTING, INDIA.
1896.
CALcutTA:
S, l[A.BtUiQIl 11~'£l/.T.
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SA ~'·JG A LORE
NORTH-vVESTERN PROVINCES AND OUDH.
• Bhar.l-A ca.ste of apparently Dravidian origin found ill the
eastern }lal'ts of the United Provinces. They are also known as Rajbhar, Bharat, ?tnd Bhal'patwa. The
word Bhar is derived by the Pandits from the Sanskrit root bhri, to nourish, but this is improbable, and it is mote likely to be of non-Aryan origin. Dr. OIJpert 2 indulges in some curious speculations on the subject. He suggests their connection with the Bal'rhai of Ptolemy CVII-2-20), and with the Bharatas, a mountain
tribe mentioned in connection with the Saba.l'as and with the Bal'bara, ,r arval'a, or Barbarian. The deri\ration of large numbers of local names in U PI)el' India from the same source, such as Biha.r, Bahraich, Bal'abanki, Bareilly; Barhaj, Barhar, and even Varanasi
or B~nal'cs, etc., must be accepted with the greatest caution. 2. This tribe has given rise ~o much wild sl)eculation. In
Gorakhpur they claim to be the descendants Traditions. }"
of, and named fl'om, an (;ar1y Kshatl'iya Raja named Bharadwftja, whose sons strayed from the ancient way of life and took to the use of meat and ,vine. Their descendant Surha settled in the village ot SUl'auli, and wishing to marry a high cat;te Rajput girl, was murdered by her relations, and became an evil spiritj who does much damage still if he is not du1y propitiat­ ed. That they claim to have been once a dOmllUtnt race in the eastern pa.rt of Qudh and the N orth-'Vest ern Provinces is certain. Thus Sir C. Elliott writes :-(' The scene before us in Oudh at the fall of the h;storic curtain is an uninhabited forest country and a
1 Based on information collected a.t Mirza-pur and notee 'received through Mr. H. E. L. P. Dnpernex J C. S., Azamgarh, and from Munsbi Chhedi Lal,Deputy Inspector of Schools, GOl'akhpur.
~ Origina.i Inhabitants oj Bkarafavar,a, 37, 'qq.' VOL. II.
BHAB. 2
large colony of S~rajbansis occupying Ajudhya as their capital. When the curtain l'ises again ,,~e find Ajudhya destroyed, the Surajbansis utterly banished, and a large extent of country ruled over by aboriginesJ cal1ed Cheros in the Far East, Bhal't-! in the Centre, and Rajpasis in the 'Vest. This gL'eat revolution seems to be
satisfactorily explained by the conjectul'e that the Bbal's, Cheros, etc.,
were the aborigines whom the Alyans had driven to the hills, and
who, swarming down from thence not long after the beginning of our el'a, ovcl'whelmed the Alyan civilisation even in Ajudhya itself, drove the Surajbansis under Kanaksen to emigrate into distant Gujarat, and spread over all the plain l)etween the H inu~layas and that spur of the Vindhya range which passes through the
south of Mirzapur." 1 Again we l'ead that the pl'imitive inhabit­ ants of Sultanpul' are said to have been Bhars. "Their charactel'
is painted in the most sombre colours. They are }'epresented to have been dark-complex.ioned, ill-favoured, and of mean stature, intemperate in their habits) and not only devoid of any religious
belief themselves, but addicted to the pel'secution of those who ventured to profess any. They are said to have possessed a few scattered and detached fortresses to serve as ralJying points; but
to have been otherwise of nomadic and predatol'Y habits, while their
numbers are said to have barely sufficed to furnish a scanty popula­ tion to the tract they occupied. " 2 In support of these pretensions to have h.een a ruljng race in the eastern part of the Province, numerous: old stone forts, embaJ?kments, well s, and subtel'raneous
caverns .. are a.ttributed to. then;. Thus the Chiraiyakot fort, in
Ghazipur, is said to have been their work.s The same is the case
with numerous luins in the Basti and Ghazipur Districts.4 The present town of Bahrc1ith is said to take its name from them and to have been theil' oldest abode, from. which they spl'eaJ southward into Faizabful and Sultanpul'. Similar1y they al'e said to have left
theil' name in the Bhadohi and Barhar parganas of Mirzapur.b
Two other fortr~ses of the Ehars are said to have been Zahul'abad
and Lakhnesar: in Ghazil)ur.o In Gorakhpur they arc said to have been ousted by the Kausik Rajputs. Mr. Sherring considel"s
1 Cl.,onide, oj 17nao, 27. : SeltL~"K'1lt Report J 87. sq. • CD.DDingbam, Af'thamlagicuL Survey, XXI!., 107, 4 Uucbanan. Ea~CI'11. Indw.u, II., 379; Oldham, MemoiT, 1.1 15-26. , Elli6tt, Cllranic!('.o;' of Unao, 26. • Oldham, Memoir. I., i6.
3 ]~H.!R.
their capital in Mirzapur to have been Pampapul'a near Binc1hachal, where extensive ruins and a curious series of bearded . stone fi gUl'es
are attributed to tbem.l In fact, throughout Oudh and the eastern
part of the North .. West Provinces every town the name of which
does not end in PUT, dbdd, or mau is assigned to them.s
3. An attempt has been made to support these traditions by historical evidence. On the evidence of two
Historica.l evidenco. inscriptions from Ajaygarh and Ka1injar, in
Bandelkhand, and a passage_ from Faribhta, Mr. \V. C. BenettS
argues "that a man \vhose name is not given, but lvho is described as the foundel' of his family, possessed himself of the fort of
Ajaygarh. One of his descendants was Malika, \vhose brother, Dalki, on the overthrow of the last Kanauj King, conquered the
whole of the Duab; and Farishta l"econls the utter defeat and
destruction of D~dki and l\falki, who had roya.l forts at Kalilljar and
Kal'ra and he1d the whole country as far as lIalwa in their posses­
sionJ by Nasir-ud-din Muhammad, the King of Delhi, in 1246 A. D. The universal tradition of Southern Ouuh proves that these princes
wel'e really EharsJ and that the whole of the south of the province
as far as the Ghagra was included in their dominions.'" This theory, however, has failed to stand further investigation, and the Princes Dalki and l\lalki are identified by General Cunningham
with the 'Baghel Rajas Dalakeswal' and Malakeswar. 4 It is pro­
bable that out of the same legend has arisen the worship of Raja Bal, who is special1y venerated by Bhars and Ahll's. His worship
is connected with protection from snake-bite. He is said to have been one of t\VO Dbar brothers who ruled at Dalmau and· Rae BarcH, and were slain by the Muhammadans in the time of Ibrahim Shal'qi of J aunl)ur. In their memory, it is said that the Bharau­
tiya section of Ahirs in time of mourning abstain from wearing anklets. Bal Raja is chiefly worshi11ped in Rae Bareli, Basti, and Eastern Oudb. He has 76J 395 foljowcrs. The evidence, then, for an extensive DbaI' kingdom in the eastel'n part of the Province
rests almost entirely on the so-called Bhar dins or ancieut mounds
J Hindu. Tribes and Castes, 1.,359, sqq. ~ Chronicles of Unao, 26 J' Lucknow Settlement Report, 62, 116. For other in­
stances see Sherring, Zoe, cit. I., 357, Sf)fj.
3 ()udh G(lzetteer, Int}'oduction, XXXV., sq.; lnclio,n Antiquary, 1., 265, st].; C~ans of Rae Ba1'eli, 2 ..
4 A1'chawtogicaZ Survey, X XI., 105; Census Repo)'t, North· We~t Provill.res, 1891, p.220 ..
VOL. II. A2
BHAR. 4
and forts which abound all over the country, and on the so-called
Bhar ta.nks, which al'e distinguished from those of a later date by being SU1'ajbedi 01' longer from east to west, while modern tank!1
are Cbandrabedi 01' lie north and south. '"~ ho may ha.ve been
the buihlers of these monuments, OUI: ~xisting knowlctlge hardly entitles US to say with certainty. But 'that the ident,ification of
these nlonuments with the Bhars is not in every case to be trusted is proved by t.he fact that two buildings at Bihar, in Partabgarh,
which are confidently ascribed to the Bhal'S by a writer in the
Oudh Gazettee1',1 are pI'oved by General Cunningham to bo
genuine Buddhist stupas.2 Similar1y, the identification of the Ehal'S with the e~u'ly rulers of the country pl'('scnts many
features of difficu]ty. ~'heir identification with the lTOOrm of
Pliny and the Bal'l'hai of PtolemyS is little more than f"onjec­
tural. As Sir !-1. M. Elliot pointed out t :-" It is strange that
no trace of Bhal's is to be found in the PUl'anas, uwess we may considel' that there is an obscure indication of them in the Drahma
Purana, where, it is said, that among the descendants of J ayadlnvaja
are the Bharatas, who, it ]s added, ate not commonly ~l.ecified
on account of their great nun1bel', 01' they may perhaps be the Bhal'gas of the Maha,bharata subdued by Bhimseu on his Eastern
expedition." To this it has been replied by 1\11', Sherring6
that, first, Brahmanical writel's generally speak of the Dasyus
and Asuras with snperciliousness and contempt, and, secondly, the
abandonment of a considerable tl'act of country by the Ar~yalls was
dishonour able and not likely to be mentioned. It iS J
perha ps, possible that the Bbars, like -the Doms, may have established a fairly advanced civilisation prior to their downfall, But, as Dr. Tylor
remarks :-" Degenel'ation probably operates even more actively in the lower than the higher cultul'e,"o and ,ve must be cautious in identjfying the race of fort and tank builders with the existing
BharB mainly on the uncertain evidence of popular tradition.
WhQevel' these people were, they probably succumbed before the eastern emigration of the Rajput tribes contemporaneous \vith the
1 1.,,306. :: Anhlf'ologicaZ SU1''IH~Y, XI., 61. S .Mr. J. \'AJ. McCriudle, Indian Antiquary, VI., 339 ; XIII., 380, 4 Swpp1emental Gloss(lry, s. V.
Ii Journal Roya~ Asiatic Society, N. S., V., 376. On the Bharatas, see Oppert, Originallrthabitants of Bhal'atavarsha, 578., sqq.
6 Primitive Culture, Iq 46.
5 BRAR.
faU of Kanauj and the invasion of Shahabuddln Ghol'i. In Azam·
gal'h and Ghazipul' they were driven out by the Sengal' tribe, who
reckon fifteen generations since their immigration j in 1\1 irzapur and the adjoining part of Allahaha.d by the Gahal'war j in Bhadohi,
north or the Ganges) by the lVlonas, and further west, in AJlaha­
bad, by the Bais, Sonak, Tissyal) Bisen) and N anwak; in Faizabad and Eastern Oudh by the Bais; and in Gorakhpur by the Kausik.
" The overthrow of the Bhars was follo\veLl by the establishment, much as we find them now, of the principal elements of modern Oudh society. The countl'y~ was divided into a number of small
chieftainships, ruled over by clans who, \vhatevel' their real origin may have been, all professed themselves to Le of the I'uling caste of
Chhatl'is. ~Iany of these, such as the Kanhpuriyas of Pal'tabgarh, the Gaul's of Hardoi, and their offshoot the Amethiyas of Rae Bareli are probably descendants of men 01' tribes who flourished
under the low caste government ," 1 How far this process may
have gone on is one of the problems connected with the Rajpnt
Ethnology of the eastern part of the Province. Mt·, Carnegy was· of opinion that the more respectable and influential Rajput clans­
men may have fled before the the.n dominant rulers or the serpent
race or of the followers of Buddha; but that the mass or the Chhatris remained and were in fact none other than the Bhars, Cheros, and the like) and that the final overthl'oW of these degraded races after the fall of Delhi was neither more nor less than the restoration of Rajput influence in those parts where it had been dOI'mant, and the social reclamation of the Ehars.2 Mr. V. A.
Smith 2 again believes them to have been J ains, and MI'. Millett
thinks them to be probably of Scythic origin, and that the termina­
tion of their influence was coeval with the first Aryan invasion.3
The most pl'obable supposition is that the Bhars were a Dravidian
race closely allied to the Kols, Cheros, and SeorisJ who at an ear]y date succumbed to the invading Aryans. This is borne out by theil· appearance and physique, which closely resemble that of the
undoubted non-Aryan aborigines of the ,Tindhyan Kaimur plateau. 4. fJ.'he 1a8t Census classes the Bhars under the main sub.,castes
Interna.l strncture. of Bharad waj, Kanaujiya, and Rajbhar • We find among the local1y more important sub-
I Oudlt Ga/"eUcef', Introduction, XXXV, :: Notes, 19. a Journal Asiatic Society of Bengal, 1877.
llHAR. 6
castes the Hela of Benares, the GOl'iya. of Jaunpur j in Ghazipur,
the Baltent, Dhelphor, Dhongiya, Khal',vara, Khutant, Kinwar, Kuntel
J l\Iaunag, Pataun, Sarpos j in Ballia, the Dhelphor 3n(1
Kulwant; in Faizabad, thc Bhagta, Gangoha, and RatkHis; and in
Eahraich, the Patolbans. The Bhars of Mirzal)ur name three
endoO'amons sub-divisions-Bhar Bhuinhar, Rajbhar, and Dusadha. t:::'I
The local Pasis represent tbe Bbars as mel'ely a sub--caste of their
tribe; but this is denied by the Bhars themselves. The Bbar
Bhulnha.r assel't that they al'e the remnant of the ruling race
among the Bbars. In support of this' they wear the sacred thread,
and have begun generally to call themselves Surajbansi Raj puts.
The other Bhars, they say, arc the descendants of a. single preg­
nant woman who escaped the general massacre of the tribe by the
Turks 01' ~Iuhammadans. The Dnsadha Bhars are not ~;CkllOW­ ledged by the Dusadhs themselves, but the Bhal's claim them as a
}'egular sub-caste. 5. Bhars have the usual rule of exogamy, tha.t is they wiU not
Exogamy. intermarry in their own family or in that of
their maternal uncle and father's sister until
£(\u1' or five generations have elapsed. They prefer to marry in
those famities with whom they have been accustomed for genera­
tions to eat and smoke. In Gorakhpul' the usual sevenfold divi­
sion is made up of the Bhar, Rajbhar, Mnsahar, Godiya, Chain,
Patiwan, a.nd Tiyar, in which we have sevel'al different, but possibly
originally cognate tribes mixed up. In Azamgarh 1 they name
several sub-castes-Bhar, Rajbhar, Biyar, Patiwan, Bind, and
J onkaha 01' "leech-finders." Of these the Bind and Biyar are
practically independent castes, and have here been accordingly
treated :separatdy. In Azamgarh the Bhars are reckoned outcasts,
but the Rajbhar are counted among Hind us. There the special title or the Rajbhars is Patait, and of the common Bhars Khuntait.
The latter rcar pigs, which the former do not, These divisions
intermarry, but the families who do not keep pigs will not marry
with those who do. Intercourse between the sexes is regulated by
no strict rule. If an unmarried girl intrigue with a clansman thcy
are married after a. fine is exacted from the gil-l's father by the
tribal council. A man may take a second wife in the lifetime of
the first, with her consent, which is generally giYen, as it relieves
I Settlement Report, 33.
7 BHAR.
her of household work .. l In Azamgarh the tendency seems to be
towards monogamy, and a second marriage is allowed only when the first wife is barren, insane, or hopelessly diseased. When a second wife is taken she is usually a younger ~ister or close r~lation of the first. Concubinage is not pCl·mitted. They have a strong repre­ sentative counell (panchli!Jat), which is presided over by a chairman (e/J.a udkaf'i) , whose office is hereditary. The council deals ,vith offences in connection with marriage and caste usages. Illegiti­ mate children by women of other castes follow the caste of the
father, but are not allowed to eat, smoke, or intermarry with legiti­ mate Bhars. Widow mal'riage is permitted. Widows genel'a11y marry widowers. rrhe levirate is permitted but not enforced ..
6. In the marriage of a widow by sagiii the bridegroom, accom ... panied by his friends, goes to the house of
Rules of marriage. the widow, where he pays a nominal sum
as the. bride-price. They are all entertained on pork, boiled lice, and pu1se. The bride is dressed in ornaments and
clothes provided by her suitor. Next morning he brings her home and announces the union by feeding his clansmen. If he be
not a widower he has to perform a special ceremony. The bride and bridegroom sit opposite each other, and a silver ring is placed between them. The Pandit repeats some verses, during the recital of which the bri degroom marks the ring five times with red lead. He then puts on the l·jng, and never takes it off during his life. Girls are usually married at the age of five or seven. In Azamgarh marriages are reported to take place usually when the girl is nine
years of age. A girl above ten is known as rajaswdli, and it is a disgrace not to have her married. The bride"pl~ce payable by the friends of the bloidegroom is two-and-a-hal£ rupees and a sheet for the bride. In Azamgarh no bride-price is paid, and if the bride­ groom's family is poor his friends contribute something to the marriage expenses, which is known as tilak. Any serious physical defect appearing in either party after marriage is recognised a.s a valid ground for divorce. A wife cannot be divorced exoept for adultery with a stranger to the caste. The divorce must be with the leave of the triLal council, who will accept no evidence short of that of actual eye-witnesses. Marriage negotiations are carried 011
by the maternal uncle of the boy. When the match is settled the
I See instances of this in W€stel'Ula.rck, History oj Human Mania,ge, 496 ..
DHAK. s hriite' 6 father goes to the boy's house a.nd gives him a. rupee. Then on a fixed day he returns with some of his clansmen "to drink
water" (palll ptni lOt din). A square (cnauk) is formed in the court-yard, in which the boy and his future father-in-law sit oppo­ site each other. The bride's father mal'ks the boy's forehead with
rice and curds, and he and his party are entertained on rice, pork,
goat's flesh, and wine. On this day, with the appr(Jval of the
Pandit, the wedding day is fixed. The ritual is of the usua.l type. It beO'ins with the matrnongar, or collection of earth, as practised by
o allied ca.stes. Then the- pavilion (miinro) is set up at both houses,
in which a plough .. share and plantain stems are fixed, near which
the family l'ice-pounder and corn·mill are placed. That day the Pandit makes the boy wear an amulet to keep off evil spirits.
This contains some mango leaves, an iron ring, and some mus­ tard seed. Next follows the anointing (I4ht(]uni), and the sacrifice
of a young pig to Agwii,ll Deva, the- Panchonpir, and Phaln1ati Devi. At the last Census 25,069 l)eople recorded themselves as worshippers of Agwan De,Ya. According to ~Ir. Baillie the word
means" a Jeader and may be the priest (p1ddti) in ~ny temple.
One District note states that Agwan is a disease godling, the son of
Raja BeuJ and, therefore, brother to the seven small-pox. sisters."
'Yith many of the lower castes to the east of the province he seems
to be connected with the worship of fne (aglli) in the form of the
noma. The higher class Bhars sacrifice a goat insteatl of a pig to the
Panchonplr. As the procession starts the nsual incantation cere· mony (par ,ch h',1J) is done by the boy's mother. The rest of the
ritual is of the usual type, At the bride's door the Pandit worships Gaul'i and Ganesa, and the pair, with their clothes knotted together,
move five times I'ound the centre pole of the shed. Next follows
the ceremony in the retiring room (/Coh(Jbar), whel'e jokes are played
on the boy by the bride's father's sister, who will not…