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History Rajasthan

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According to the Hindu Mythology, the Rajputs of Rajasthan were the
descendants of the Kshatriyas or warriors of Vedic India. The emergence
of the Rajput warrior clans was in the 6th and 7th centuries. Rajputs
ancestry can be divided into two: the "solar" or suryavanshi-those
descended from Rama, the hero of the epic Ramayana, and the "lunar"
or chandravanshi, who claimed descent from Krishana, the hero of the
epic Mahabharata. Later a third clan was added, the agnikula or fire-born,
said to have emerged from the flames of a sacrificial fire on Mt Abu.
It has been accepted that the Rajputs were divided into thirty-six
races and twenty-one kingdoms. The Rajput clans gave rise to dynasties
like Sisodias of Mewar (Udaipur), the Kachwahas of Amber (Jaipur),
the Rathors of Marwar (Jodhpur & Bikaner), the Hadas of Jhalwawar,
Kota & Bundi, the Bhattis of Jaisalmer, the Shekhawats of Shekhawati
and the Chauhans of Ajmer.
Early History
Rajasthan is the north-western region of India, and has remain independent
from the great empires. Buddhism failed to make substantial inroad
here; the Mauryan empire (321-184 BC), whose most renowned emperor,
Ashoka, Converted to Buddhism in 261 BC, had minimal impact in Rajasthan,
However, there are Buddhist caves and stupas (Buddhist Shrines) at
Jhalawar, in Southern Rajasthan.
Ancient Hindu scriptural epics make reference to sites in present-day
Rajasthan. The Holy Pilgrimage site of Pushkar is mentioned in both
the Mahabharata and Ramayana.
Emergence of the Rajputs
The fall of the Gupta Empire, which held dominance in northern India
for nearly 300 years until the early 5th Century, was followed by
a period of instability as various local chieftains sought to gain
supremacy. Power rose and fell in northern India. Stability was only
restored with the emergence of the Gurjara Partiharas, the earliest
of the Rajput (from 'Rajputra', or Sons of Princes) dynasties which
were later to hold the balance of power throughout Rajasthan.
Whatever their actual origins, the Rajputs have evolved a complex
mythological genealogy. This ancestry can be divided into two main
branches: the Suryavansa, or Race of the Sun (Solar Race), which claims
direct descent from Rama; and the Induvansa, or Race of the Moon (Lunar
race), which claims descent from Krishna, Later a third branch was
added, the Agnikula, or 'Fire Born'. These people claim they were
manifested from the flames of a sacrificial fire on Mt.Abu From these
three Principal races emerged the 36 Rajput clans.
The Rajput clans gave rise to dynasties such as the Chauhans, Sisodias,
Kachhwahas and Rathores. Chauhans of the Agnikula Race emerged in
the 12th century and were renowned for their valour. Their territories
included the Sapadalksha kingdom, which encompassed a vast area including
present- day Jaipur, Ranthambore, part of Mewar, the western portion
of Bundi district, Ajmer Kishangarh and even, at one time, Delhi.
Branches of the Chauhans also ruled territories know as Ananta (in
present-day Shekhawati) and Saptasatabhumi.
The Sisodias of the Suryavansa Race, Originally from Gujarat, migrated
to Rajasthan in the mid-7th Century and reigned over Mewar, which
encompassed Udaipur and Chittorgarh.
The Kachhwahas, originally from Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh, travelled
west in the 12th century. They built the massive fort at Amber, and
later shifted the capital to Jaipur. Like the Sisodias, they belonged
to the Suryavansa Race.
Also belonging to the Suryavansa Race, the Rathore (earlier known
as Rastrakutas) traveled from Kanauj, in Uttar Pradesh. Initially
they settled in Pali, south of present-day Jodhpur, but later moved
to Mandore in 1381 and ruled over Marwar (Jodhpur). Later they started
building the stunning Meherangarh (fort) at Jodhpur.
The Bhattis, who belong to the Induvansa Race, driven from their homeland
in the Punjab by the Turks, installed themselves at Jaisalmer in 1156.
They remained more of less entrenched in their desert Kingdom untill
they were integrated into the state of Rajasthan following Independence.
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