Hariyar village, in Tharpakar District, is noted for its many Hindu shrines which include those of Malhan Devi, Mauji or Rani Bhatiyani, Gogo Chauhan, Kesar Puri, Manbhan Varan and Hario Jago. The village is also known for the unique way of life of its residents in Tharparkar. It is located 22 km east of Mithi Town. The Jaga Rajputs, Meghwar Rajputs, Bhils, Sami, Gurera, Meghwars and Kumbhars (a Muslim community) are among the communities that reside in Hariyar.
The Jaga and Meghwar Rajputs worship Malhan Devi, who is believed to hold sway over everyday life. Both the Jagas and Meghwars have built separate shrines for Malhan Devi, an incarnation of Durga.
There are three shrines of Malhan Mata in Hariyar village. Two shrines are located in the village and the third, which is the main shrine, is located 2 km south of the village on the Mithi-Umarkot road. The shrine is locally called Malhan-jo-Khud where there are many memorials of the devotees who are also venerated by the Hindu community of the village. The interior of the shrine has four pillars which support the superstructure. The bases of all pillars have fixed stone tablets of jhujhars (heroes/warriors).
Shrine of Malhan Devi in the Meghawar cluster of Hariyar village
The devotees of Malhan Mata still follow the old tenets and women do not wear jewellery or ornaments that jingle. Their dwellings are made of wood and hay. They do not use burnt or unbaked bricks while building the house. Interestingly, not a single house in the village has a door.
Apart from the temples of Malhan, memorial stones also dot the landscape of the village. There are a number of memorial stones in Hariyar village that commemorate satis (widows who immolated themselves) and jhujhars (headless heroes). The memorial stones are located on a sand dune which belongs to the Sonara caste of Hindus. There are ten memorial stones, all of which are in a crumbling condition.
The memorial stones of Sonara Hindus were erected to commemorate their heroism. Legend has it that these Sonaras and a man from the Maganhar Muslim community were killed by Jaga Sodha Rajputs who attacked their wedding caravan. The wedding caravan of Umbo, the bridegroom, was heading towards Rupa Maari in Badin from Ratnaghar, Rajasthan. The name of Umbo’s fiancée was Son Bai. The animals were adorned with bells. As the caravan passed by village Hariyar, the sounds of the bells reached nearby village. Jagas, the devotees of Malhan Mata, claimed that Malhan had prohibited the wearing of elaborate jewellery – particularly small bells that jingle. Furthermore, Malhan had warned her devotees of the dangers of a luxurious life and the importance of simple living. Upon hearing the bells, the Jagas demanded that the women take off their precious jewellery. The women refused, infuriating the attackers. The Jaga Rajputs killed four Sonaras and one Maganhar. In the fight, bridegroom Umbo was also killed. When the news of his murder reached Rupa Maari, his in-laws took his body to Rupa Mari where her fiancée tied the wedding knot with his dead body and later became sati. All other women whose husbands were also killed in the fight immolated themselves with the dead bodies of their deceased husbands.
Later, the descendants of the Sonaras erected memorial stones on the same place where their ancestors and the Maganhar ally were killed. The descendants of Sonaras also erected stones for satis. There are five sati stones in Hariyar which belong to Son Bai, Shatra Devi, Chandi Devi, Chaund Devi and Vindi Devi.
All the sati-stones carry the similar image of the namaskar. The memorial stones are divided into two parts – the upper one containing the image either of the sati or the Jhujhar (headless hero) and the lower bearing the text that explains the probable cause of death of the sati or hero.
They also erected a memorial for their Maganhar ally, believing that he also died defending them.
The name of the Maganhar was Kesro, whose father Karo also served the Sonaras. Kesro belonged to the Bahudhar lineage of the Maganhars. The Bahudhars were famous musicians in Ratnaghar, Rajasthan. They served not only Sonaras but also the Rajputs.
Main shrine of Malhan Mata on Mithi-Umarkot road
The Maganhars are an ancient caste of Sindh who in the past survived on the patronage of rulers and wealthy merchants. Today they are still keepers of the family history of their former masters. When a child is born in the family of a Sodha Rajput the Maganhars sing songs wishing the child a long life, apart from praising all members of the child’s family on the auspicious occasion. They also sing the heroic deeds of the ancestors of the Sodha Rajputs. When the Samma Rajputs’ rule came to an end, some of the families of the Maganhars preferred to call themselves Sammas. Nowadays, these traditional musicians sing at the birth of a child, at marriage ceremonies and on certain other occasions. Usually, they play the dhol (drum). The Maganhar and Charan castes have preserved the oral history of Tharparkar in their chhands (folk-poetry).
Apart from the memorial stones located on the sand dune, there is the memorial stone of Hario Parmar Rajput situated below the sand dune. Hario, from whom sprang Haripota, migrated some centuries back from Janrro area near Jaisalmer and settled in Mithi where he founded the village by the name of Hariyar. He was a devotee of Malhan Devi. He demonstrated many parchas (miracles) of Hario Parmar Rajput. The villagers of Hariyar also worship Hario Parmar Rajput. It is the most popular Hindu shrine after that of Malhan Mata.
Apart from the shrine of Hario Jago, another Hindu shrine in the Mehar Rajput cluster of the village, locally called thaan (a small informal shrine in the form of an open platform containing the image of a deity) is that of Mauji, also called Rani Bhatiyani.
Mata Rani Bhatiyani’s real name is Swarup Kanwar and she was the daughter of Jogidas Bhatti, a Bhatti Rajput from Jaisalmer district. She was married to Kalyan Singh ji, a Mahecha Rathore chief from Jasol village. Toady her main temple is located in Jasol village in Barmer district in Rajasthan. There are many shrines of Rani Bhatiyani in Tharparkar. In the temple of Malhan Devi in Hariyar, one also finds wooden tablets of Rani Bhatiyani and Sawai Singh, the younger brother of her husband Kalyan Singh. Mauji / Rani Bhatiyani is worshiped by Mehar Rajputs in Hariyar village.
The shrine (marhi) of Kesar Puri, a Hindu ascetic, is another sacred space in Hariyar. It is believed that Kesar Puri took Jivat Samadhi – i.e. living Samadhi. In other words, it is believed that the ascetic buried himself alive.
The cult of the snake deity Gogaji is also popular amongst Rajput and non-Rajput castes of Tharparkar. He is worshipped in the form of a snake and in every thaan for him there is placed an image of a snake. Gogaji cures the patients of snake bites in Tharparkar.
The author is an anthropologist and has authored four books: ‘Symbols in Stone: The Rock Art of Sindh’, ‘Perspectives on the art and architecture of Sindh’, ‘Memorial Stones: Tharparkar’ and ‘Archaeology, Religion and Art in Sindh’. He may be contacted at: zulfi04@hotmail.com
