Purswani
Encyclopedia
The Purswani family is a branch of the Bhambrai Bradri grouping of families, which is the largest grouping among the Khudabadi Sonara community. In the present day, the majority of them live in Jaipur
, India.
.
) together with some of Shavi Aryas to Aror (present day Sukkur
), in Sindh. They settled near the banks of the Sindhu River and lived there till 962 AD.
From Vedic times till 710 AD, all residents of Sindh were Hindus and Sindh was ruled by the Hindus. In the year 711, Hujjaj Bin Yusif, the Umayyad
Governor of Iraq (appointed by Khalifa Walid) sent the Arab forces under Muhammad Bin Qasim
to conquer Sindh, in the process of freeing the kidnapped women. The first town he attacked was Debal
, and upon the orders of Al-Hajjaj he looted its residents or priests and destroyed its temple . He then settled a garrison of four thousand colonists in one quarter of Debal, building a mosque over the remains of the original temple.
From Debal, Muhammad Bin Qasim attacked Nayrun Kot (present day Hyderabad) and the locals, equipped mostly with farming implements, surrendered. King Nayrun was dethroned. The army of Muhammad Bin Qasim looted the trade goods and took over the Hindu worship sites atop the Ganjo Takker ridge, building mosques to replace them. The Nayrun Kot was destroyed. After that, he captured Sadusan (Sehwan). Again, the main temples were razed and mosques were built to replace them, often using their components; additionally one-fifth of the booty including slaves was dispatched to Hajjaj and the Caliph. At Ar-rur (Nawabshah), he defeated Raja Dahir
's forces and the eastern Jats in the battle. About 6000 Sindhi warriors were put to death. Dahir's wife Ladi committed suttee to escape from the hands of the Muslims. Aror was the capital of Sindh which was ruled by Raja Dahir. Muhammad bin Qasim won over Raja Dahir and took control of Sindh. His conquest for the Umayyads brought Sindh into the orbit of the Muslim world.
From Qasim on, extracting jizya
(a tax on non-Muslims) was a political and religious duty exacted "with vigour and punctuality, and frequently with insult. The native population had to feed every Muslim traveller for three days and nights and had to submit too many other humiliations which are mentioned by Muslim historians." The period of Qasim's rule has been called by U.T. Thakkur "the darkest period in Sindh history", with the records speaking of massive forced conversions, temple destruction, massacres and genocides.
Khudabadi Sonara and some other Hindu Sindhis who refused to convert to Islam yet remained in Sindh were heavily oppressed. According to Sindhi legend, the Sonaras gathered at temple of the goddess Durga for three days and nights continuously without eating food and drinking water. On fourth day, a miracle occurred: all the men present felt janau (sacred thread) on their bodies and they realised the blessings of Durga Mata. Thereafter, these Khudabadi Sonara became known as Janjogal (janau-wearing) Sonara. These Hindus continued to fight the naib
s of the Khalifa and in due course of time they managed to recover a large part of Sindh and ruled over that.
(Bhambore is famously known as Bhambra among Khudabadi Sindhi Swarankar Community). During the ensuing prolonged period of lasting peace after 711 AD when, the families of Bhambrai Bradri as a part of Sindhi Lohana/Khudabadi Sonara could not be supported by the armies and could not find any work as warriors, they turned to peacetime occupations and became cloth merchants as the means of their livelihood in Bhambore.
About the 10th century Bhambore was the capital of a chief Bhambo Raja and was named Bhambore after him. Bhambore was the ruins of the ancient port city of Debal, located near modern Karachi
at the base of the Indus River, approximately 60 km between Dhabeji and Gharo. Its population was mainly Hindus with a Buddhist minority. It is largely known for the ruins of a castle destroyed by Muhammad bin Qasim during the invasion of Sindh. According to modern archaeologists Debal was founded in the 1st century AD, and soon became the most important trading city in Sindh. The city was home to thousands of Sindhi Sailors including the Bawarij (a Muslim Sindhi community). Ibn Hawqal mentions the dry arid land surrounding the city that supported little agriculture, he mentions how efficiently the inhabitants of the city maintained fishing vessels and trade.
Bhambore was the trading link between Arab and South Asian nations of its times. It was most important fort because of trade communication and security. According to Berzin, Umayyad interest in the region stemmed from their desire to control the trade route down the Indus River valley to the seaports of Sindh, an important link in the ancient Silk Road. At that time, Sindh was the wild frontier region ruled by Raja Dahir who also wanted to control the Western Indian Ocean. Muslim sources insist that it was these persistent activities along increasingly important Indian trade routes by Debal pirates and others which forced the Arabs to subjugate the area, in order to control the seaports and maritime routes of which Sindh was the nucleus, as well as, the overland passage. In 711 AD Muhammad Bin Qasim entered Sindh by first assaulting and capturing Debal Fort, presently known as Bhambore.
Debal and the Manora Island were visited by Ottoman Admiral Sevdi Ali Reis and mentioned in his book Mirát ul Memalik in 1554. In 1568, Debal was attacked by the Portuguese Admiral Fernao Mendes Pinto in an attempt to capture or destroy the Ottoman vessels anchored there. Fernao Mendes Pinto also claims that Sindhi sailors joined the Ottoman admiral Kurtoglu Hizir Reis on his voyage to Aceh. Debal was also visited by the British travel writers such as Thomas Postans and Eliot, who is noted for his vivid account on the city of Thatta
.
around 1200 AD and continued with their occupation as cloth merchants. This is said to be due to the invasions of Mahmoud Ghaznavi.
& Nayrun Kot etc.), and some of them settled on a "empty land" on the banks of Sindhu River near Dadu
, in Sindh. Members of Khudabadi Sonara Community developed the empty land and called it "Khud-Abad" Later, due to Muslim domination, the Khud-Abad was renamed as Khudabad
, a Muslim name. Families of Bhambrai Bradri (the ancestors of Purswani Family) returned to their home town Bhambore around 1400 AD. They are called Bhambrai Bradri because they lived in Bhambore for many centuries (before migration to Lakhpat around 1200 AD and after returning from Lakhpat). Bhambore was later abandoned due to a change in the river's course. Evidence of earthquakes and regional invaders is also cited as an explanation for the population's movement away from the area and the crumbling of the castle. The former river delta is now a creek. And later, they shifted to Khudabad around 1700 AD. They changed their business from cloth merchants to jewelry and goldsmith
business while living in Khudabad. Khudabadi Sonara invented Khudabadi Script
for Sindhi Language around 1750 AD while living in Khudabad. It is called Khudabadi Script because it was invented in Khudabad. It was later known as Vaniki, Hatvaniki and Hatkai. Miya Noor Mohammed Kalhora, who became the ruler of Sindh (1720–1755), then, chose Khudabad as his capital. The Khudabad was capital of Sindh between 1720 and 1783.
The Bhambrai Bradri lived in Gidwani Ghitti in Hyderabad. At that time, the head of Bhambrai Bradri was Paripyomal Bhambrai, also known as "Bhai Sitaldas Bhambrai". He had a son, Jethmal Bhambrai, who was born around 1789 in Khudabad before they moved to Hyderabad.
Jethmal Bhambrai had friendly relations with Diwan Tarachand Sagharani, then Mukhi of Amil Panchayat in Hyderabad. The Battle of Miani
ended on 24 March 1843, where the last Talpur rulers, Mir Mohammad Naseers Khan Talpur of Hyderabad and Mir Sher Mohammad Talpur of Mirpur lost to the British General Sir Charles James Napier
and the cities of Hyderabad and Mirpur
came into the hands of the British East India Company
. Mukhi Tarachand Sagharani and other residents of Hyderabad feared reprisal and apprehended lootings from the hands of the British forces. Sagharani, along with Mukhi Chandumal of the Khudabadi Sonara, Jethmal Bhambrai (the ancestor of Purswani Family), and three other elders of Hyderabad City met Napier and pleaded with him to confine his forces to barracks and not to allow them to enter the city. The residents of Hyderabad undertook to provide them with food and other rations that the British forces needed and deliver it to them in their camp. Sir Charles conceded to their request, and the British forces remained outside the city. The residents of Hyderabad provided the rations and Amil Panchayat footed the bill.
Later, Sir Charles Napier met Mukhi Tarachand Sagharani and others in his camp at Gidu Bunder and thanked them for their farsightedness, and for the food that they had supplied. This information was disclosed to Diwan Bherumal Meharchand Advani by Mukhi Mangharam Gurdinomal and was on records in the India Office
, London. Diwan Bherumal Meharchand Advani further writes that it was learnt from records maintained by Pinda Badaldas Bulchand of Sindhi Dharamshala Haridwar
, that wife of Amil Mukhi Tarachand Sagharani expired in the year 1835 and Mukhi Assanand along with Jethmal Bhambrai served as kandi (pallbearer
), for his wife, carrying her ashes for performing the last rites at Haridwar. At that time Kumbh Mela
was in progress.
At that time, there were further splits in families; the descendants of Purswani family such as Lalchand, Narumal, Fatumal separated whereas Jeumal and Bhojraj remained together (the wives of Jeumal and Bhojraj were sisters), in the year 1910. By this time, the members of Motwani family and Hasrajani family moved out from the joint residence in Gidwani Ghitti but the members of Purswani family continued to occupy the ancestor´s residence in Gidhwani Ghitti. Most of the male members of these families continued with their ancestor’s occupation (goldsmithing) in Hyderabad, but before Partition
at least one person from each home of the family was working overseas. The members of one or two families went for higher education. Some of them became medical practitioners and teachers whereas some went into government services but most of them now, have gone back to their original occupation as Textile Merchants equipped with modern technology. In the past, some members of Purswani Family were practicing Bhakti Yoga and some were involved in community work whereas, some took part in Indian Freedom Movement and Indian National Army.
or Sindhi ways of lifestyle.
Jaipur
Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million....
, India.
Etymology
The surname Purswani is derived from the name of their ancestor Pursumal, son of Nebhraj Jethmal Bhambrai; the family can be traced back seven generations. The Purswani family falls under the Bhambrai Bradri Nukh Dandi Proll. The words “Dandi Proll” are derived from DandakaranyaDandakaranya
Dandakaranya is a spiritually significant region in India. It is roughly equivalent to the Bastar District in the central east part of India...
.
From Lahore to Aror
The ancestors of the families of Bhambrai Bradri were Lohana, as part of Sindhi Hindu community. Around 1200 BC, this group migrated from Luvana (near modern LahoreLahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
) together with some of Shavi Aryas to Aror (present day Sukkur
Sukkur
Sukkur, or Sakharu , formerly Aror and Bakar, is the third largest city of Sindh province, situated on the west bank of Indus River in Pakistan in Sukkur District. However, the word Sakharu in Sindhi means "superior", which the spelling of the city's name in Sindhi suggests is the origin of the...
), in Sindh. They settled near the banks of the Sindhu River and lived there till 962 AD.
From Vedic times till 710 AD, all residents of Sindh were Hindus and Sindh was ruled by the Hindus. In the year 711, Hujjaj Bin Yusif, the Umayyad
Umayyad
The Umayyad Caliphate was the second of the four major Arab caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. It was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty, whose name derives from Umayya ibn Abd Shams, the great-grandfather of the first Umayyad caliph. Although the Umayyad family originally came from the...
Governor of Iraq (appointed by Khalifa Walid) sent the Arab forces under Muhammad Bin Qasim
Muhammad bin Qasim
Muhammad bin Qasim Al-Thaqafi was a Umayyad general who, at the age of 17, began the conquest of the Sindh and Punjab regions along the Indus River for the Umayyad Caliphate. He was born in the city of Taif...
to conquer Sindh, in the process of freeing the kidnapped women. The first town he attacked was Debal
Debal
-Introduction:Debal was an ancient port located near modern Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. In Arabic, it was usually called Daybul it is adjacent to the nearby Manora Island and was administered by Mansura, and later Thatta....
, and upon the orders of Al-Hajjaj he looted its residents or priests and destroyed its temple . He then settled a garrison of four thousand colonists in one quarter of Debal, building a mosque over the remains of the original temple.
From Debal, Muhammad Bin Qasim attacked Nayrun Kot (present day Hyderabad) and the locals, equipped mostly with farming implements, surrendered. King Nayrun was dethroned. The army of Muhammad Bin Qasim looted the trade goods and took over the Hindu worship sites atop the Ganjo Takker ridge, building mosques to replace them. The Nayrun Kot was destroyed. After that, he captured Sadusan (Sehwan). Again, the main temples were razed and mosques were built to replace them, often using their components; additionally one-fifth of the booty including slaves was dispatched to Hajjaj and the Caliph. At Ar-rur (Nawabshah), he defeated Raja Dahir
Raja Dahir
Raja Dahir , born 661 AD — died 712 AD, was the last Hindu ruler situated in Sindh and parts of Punjab in modern day Pakistan. During the beginning of the Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinent his kingdom was conquered by Muhammad bin Qasim, an Arab general, for the Umayyad Caliphate.- Reign...
's forces and the eastern Jats in the battle. About 6000 Sindhi warriors were put to death. Dahir's wife Ladi committed suttee to escape from the hands of the Muslims. Aror was the capital of Sindh which was ruled by Raja Dahir. Muhammad bin Qasim won over Raja Dahir and took control of Sindh. His conquest for the Umayyads brought Sindh into the orbit of the Muslim world.
From Qasim on, extracting jizya
Jizya
Under Islamic law, jizya or jizyah is a per capita tax levied on a section of an Islamic state's non-Muslim citizens, who meet certain criteria...
(a tax on non-Muslims) was a political and religious duty exacted "with vigour and punctuality, and frequently with insult. The native population had to feed every Muslim traveller for three days and nights and had to submit too many other humiliations which are mentioned by Muslim historians." The period of Qasim's rule has been called by U.T. Thakkur "the darkest period in Sindh history", with the records speaking of massive forced conversions, temple destruction, massacres and genocides.
Khudabadi Sonara and some other Hindu Sindhis who refused to convert to Islam yet remained in Sindh were heavily oppressed. According to Sindhi legend, the Sonaras gathered at temple of the goddess Durga for three days and nights continuously without eating food and drinking water. On fourth day, a miracle occurred: all the men present felt janau (sacred thread) on their bodies and they realised the blessings of Durga Mata. Thereafter, these Khudabadi Sonara became known as Janjogal (janau-wearing) Sonara. These Hindus continued to fight the naib
Naib
Naib is an Arabic term for a local leader in some parts of the Ottoman Empire and eastern Caucasus.Naib or NAIB may also refer to:*National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball or National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics...
s of the Khalifa and in due course of time they managed to recover a large part of Sindh and ruled over that.
From Aror to Bhambore (Bhambra)
In the year 962 AD, an earthquake of high magnitude struck Sindh, destroying Sukkur and Bakhhar. The ancestors of the families of Bhambrai Bradri shifted their homes from Aror to BhamboreBhambore
Bhambore is the ruins of the ancient port city of Debal from the 7th century, located near modern Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan, at the base of the Indus River. The ruins are located approximately 60 km between Dhabeji and Gharo on the N-5 National Highway. Its population was mainly Hindu with a...
(Bhambore is famously known as Bhambra among Khudabadi Sindhi Swarankar Community). During the ensuing prolonged period of lasting peace after 711 AD when, the families of Bhambrai Bradri as a part of Sindhi Lohana/Khudabadi Sonara could not be supported by the armies and could not find any work as warriors, they turned to peacetime occupations and became cloth merchants as the means of their livelihood in Bhambore.
About the 10th century Bhambore was the capital of a chief Bhambo Raja and was named Bhambore after him. Bhambore was the ruins of the ancient port city of Debal, located near modern Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
at the base of the Indus River, approximately 60 km between Dhabeji and Gharo. Its population was mainly Hindus with a Buddhist minority. It is largely known for the ruins of a castle destroyed by Muhammad bin Qasim during the invasion of Sindh. According to modern archaeologists Debal was founded in the 1st century AD, and soon became the most important trading city in Sindh. The city was home to thousands of Sindhi Sailors including the Bawarij (a Muslim Sindhi community). Ibn Hawqal mentions the dry arid land surrounding the city that supported little agriculture, he mentions how efficiently the inhabitants of the city maintained fishing vessels and trade.
Bhambore was the trading link between Arab and South Asian nations of its times. It was most important fort because of trade communication and security. According to Berzin, Umayyad interest in the region stemmed from their desire to control the trade route down the Indus River valley to the seaports of Sindh, an important link in the ancient Silk Road. At that time, Sindh was the wild frontier region ruled by Raja Dahir who also wanted to control the Western Indian Ocean. Muslim sources insist that it was these persistent activities along increasingly important Indian trade routes by Debal pirates and others which forced the Arabs to subjugate the area, in order to control the seaports and maritime routes of which Sindh was the nucleus, as well as, the overland passage. In 711 AD Muhammad Bin Qasim entered Sindh by first assaulting and capturing Debal Fort, presently known as Bhambore.
Debal and the Manora Island were visited by Ottoman Admiral Sevdi Ali Reis and mentioned in his book Mirát ul Memalik in 1554. In 1568, Debal was attacked by the Portuguese Admiral Fernao Mendes Pinto in an attempt to capture or destroy the Ottoman vessels anchored there. Fernao Mendes Pinto also claims that Sindhi sailors joined the Ottoman admiral Kurtoglu Hizir Reis on his voyage to Aceh. Debal was also visited by the British travel writers such as Thomas Postans and Eliot, who is noted for his vivid account on the city of Thatta
Thatta
Thatta is a historic town of 220,000 inhabitants in the Sindh province of Pakistan, near Lake Keenjhar, the largest freshwater lake in the country. Thatta's major monuments especially its necropolis at Makli are listed among the World Heritage Sites. The Shah Jahan Mosque is also listed...
.
From Bhambore (Bhambra) to Lakhpat (Kutch)
Members of Bhambrai Bradri (the ancestors of Purswani family) also left Bhambore and settled in LakhpatLakhpat
Lakhpat fort town is a small town in Kachchh district of Gujarat, India within the fort walls of the 18th-century Lakhpat fort. The literal meaning of Lakhpat is the city of millionaire, however today it is sparsely populated Ghost town, a city of ruins of buildings and a magnificent fort...
around 1200 AD and continued with their occupation as cloth merchants. This is said to be due to the invasions of Mahmoud Ghaznavi.
From Lakhpat (Kutch) to Bhambore (Bhambra) and Khudabad
The Sammas, a Rajput tribe, which was ruling Kutch, gained control of Thatta in the southern Sindh from the Soomras around 1351, and expanded their territory northward to Bhakkar and beyond. Around that time, the Khudabadi Sonara Community started returning to their home towns (Bhambore, TandoTando
Tando is a village in Botlikhsky District of the Republic of Dagestan, Russia.The village was seized by a Chechen guerilla unit led by Shamil Basayev in August 1999 in the course of the Invasion of Dagestan.-References:...
& Nayrun Kot etc.), and some of them settled on a "empty land" on the banks of Sindhu River near Dadu
Dadu
-Places:*Khanbaliq, capital city of the Yuan Dynasty, located in modern Beijing, People's Republic of China*Dadu District, a district in Sindh, Pakistan*Dadu, Pakistan, a town in Dadu District, Sindh, Pakistan-Rivers:...
, in Sindh. Members of Khudabadi Sonara Community developed the empty land and called it "Khud-Abad" Later, due to Muslim domination, the Khud-Abad was renamed as Khudabad
Khudabad
Khudabad is a city in Dadu District, Sindh, Pakistan. It is located at 26°39'0N 67°45'0E with an altitude of 31 metres and lies to the south of the district capital Dadu.-History:...
, a Muslim name. Families of Bhambrai Bradri (the ancestors of Purswani Family) returned to their home town Bhambore around 1400 AD. They are called Bhambrai Bradri because they lived in Bhambore for many centuries (before migration to Lakhpat around 1200 AD and after returning from Lakhpat). Bhambore was later abandoned due to a change in the river's course. Evidence of earthquakes and regional invaders is also cited as an explanation for the population's movement away from the area and the crumbling of the castle. The former river delta is now a creek. And later, they shifted to Khudabad around 1700 AD. They changed their business from cloth merchants to jewelry and goldsmith
Goldsmith
A goldsmith is a metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Since ancient times the techniques of a goldsmith have evolved very little in order to produce items of jewelry of quality standards. In modern times actual goldsmiths are rare...
business while living in Khudabad. Khudabadi Sonara invented Khudabadi Script
Khudabadi script
Khudabadi script is a script used for writing the Sindhi language.- History :The Khudabadi script was invented by the Khudabadi Sindhi Swarankar community...
for Sindhi Language around 1750 AD while living in Khudabad. It is called Khudabadi Script because it was invented in Khudabad. It was later known as Vaniki, Hatvaniki and Hatkai. Miya Noor Mohammed Kalhora, who became the ruler of Sindh (1720–1755), then, chose Khudabad as his capital. The Khudabad was capital of Sindh between 1720 and 1783.
From Khudabad to Hyderabad (Sindh)
After the defeat of Kalhoras (Mian Abdul Nabi Kalhora), and extensive flooding of the River Sindh, Mir Fateh Ali Khan (Talpur) left his capital Khudabad and made Hyderabad his capital in 1789. Great celebrations were held in 1792 to mark his formal entry in Hyderabad fort. He made the Pako Qilo his residence, which was spread over thirty-six acres, and he held his courts there. The change of capital induced a large number of the population of Khudabad to migrate to Hyderabad, the new seat of royalty. The families of Bhambrai Bradri along with the other families of the Sonara community, Amils and Bhaibands, who had lived and worked in Khudabad, shifted to Hyderabad with the rulers, They retained the term Khudabadi in the names of their communities as an identifier of their origin and called themselves "Khudabadi Sonaras", "Khudabadi Amils" and "Khudabadi Bhaibands".The Bhambrai Bradri lived in Gidwani Ghitti in Hyderabad. At that time, the head of Bhambrai Bradri was Paripyomal Bhambrai, also known as "Bhai Sitaldas Bhambrai". He had a son, Jethmal Bhambrai, who was born around 1789 in Khudabad before they moved to Hyderabad.
Jethmal Bhambrai had friendly relations with Diwan Tarachand Sagharani, then Mukhi of Amil Panchayat in Hyderabad. The Battle of Miani
Battle of Miani
The Battle of Miani was a battle between British forces under Sir Charles Napier and the Talpur Amirs of Sindh, Pakistan.-Background:...
ended on 24 March 1843, where the last Talpur rulers, Mir Mohammad Naseers Khan Talpur of Hyderabad and Mir Sher Mohammad Talpur of Mirpur lost to the British General Sir Charles James Napier
Charles James Napier
General Sir Charles James Napier, GCB , was a general of the British Empire and the British Army's Commander-in-Chief in India, notable for conquering the Sindh Province in what is now Pakistan.- His genealogy :...
and the cities of Hyderabad and Mirpur
Mirpur
Mirpur is one of the seventh districts of Pakistani administered Azad Kashmir and was formerly part of the Kashmir and Jammu . Since Mirpur adjoins the northern plains of the Punjab, the climate is quite hot during the summer times. The city itself has gone through a process of modernization while...
came into the hands of the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
. Mukhi Tarachand Sagharani and other residents of Hyderabad feared reprisal and apprehended lootings from the hands of the British forces. Sagharani, along with Mukhi Chandumal of the Khudabadi Sonara, Jethmal Bhambrai (the ancestor of Purswani Family), and three other elders of Hyderabad City met Napier and pleaded with him to confine his forces to barracks and not to allow them to enter the city. The residents of Hyderabad undertook to provide them with food and other rations that the British forces needed and deliver it to them in their camp. Sir Charles conceded to their request, and the British forces remained outside the city. The residents of Hyderabad provided the rations and Amil Panchayat footed the bill.
Later, Sir Charles Napier met Mukhi Tarachand Sagharani and others in his camp at Gidu Bunder and thanked them for their farsightedness, and for the food that they had supplied. This information was disclosed to Diwan Bherumal Meharchand Advani by Mukhi Mangharam Gurdinomal and was on records in the India Office
India Office
The India Office was a British government department created in 1858 to oversee the colonial administration of India, i.e. the modern-day nations of Bangladesh, Burma, India, and Pakistan, as well as territories in South-east and Central Asia, the Middle East, and parts of the east coast of Africa...
, London. Diwan Bherumal Meharchand Advani further writes that it was learnt from records maintained by Pinda Badaldas Bulchand of Sindhi Dharamshala Haridwar
Haridwar
Haridwar is an important pilgrimage city and municipality in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, India...
, that wife of Amil Mukhi Tarachand Sagharani expired in the year 1835 and Mukhi Assanand along with Jethmal Bhambrai served as kandi (pallbearer
Pallbearer
A pall-bearer is one of several funeral participants who helps carry the casket of a deceased person from a religious or memorial service or viewing either directly to a cemetery or mausoleum, or to and from the hearse which carries the coffin....
), for his wife, carrying her ashes for performing the last rites at Haridwar. At that time Kumbh Mela
Kumbh Mela
Kumbh Mela is a mass Hindu pilgrimage in which Hindus gather at the Ganges river.The normal Kumbh Mela is celebrated every 3 years, the Ardh Kumbh Mela is celebrated every six years at Haridwar and Prayag, the Purna Kumbh takes place every twelve years, at four places Prayag, Haridwar, Ujjain,...
was in progress.
Surname change
Jethmal Bhambrai had two sons, naming Nebhraj (born around 1814 AD) and Aainomal. Nebhraj had four sons naming Pursumal, Motoomal, Hassrajmal and Assandas whereas, Aainomal had one son naming Mangatram. Respected Mangatram had two sons naming Gunomal and Udhanmal. The surname of whole family was Jethmalani. Around the year 1910, the descendants of Pursumal changed their surname to Purswani, those of Motoomal changed to Motwani, those of Hassrajmal changed to Hasrajani, those of Gunomal changed to Ganvani and those of Udhanmal changed to Udhani. Assandas had a daughter named Lalibai but no son as such there was no further extension of the family of Assandas. All these groups have been maintaining their respective surnames since then. At the same time, all the families have also retained “Bhambrai” as the name of their Bradri, signifying that their ancestors had lived in Bhambore many centuries ago.At that time, there were further splits in families; the descendants of Purswani family such as Lalchand, Narumal, Fatumal separated whereas Jeumal and Bhojraj remained together (the wives of Jeumal and Bhojraj were sisters), in the year 1910. By this time, the members of Motwani family and Hasrajani family moved out from the joint residence in Gidwani Ghitti but the members of Purswani family continued to occupy the ancestor´s residence in Gidhwani Ghitti. Most of the male members of these families continued with their ancestor’s occupation (goldsmithing) in Hyderabad, but before Partition
Partition of India
The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...
at least one person from each home of the family was working overseas. The members of one or two families went for higher education. Some of them became medical practitioners and teachers whereas some went into government services but most of them now, have gone back to their original occupation as Textile Merchants equipped with modern technology. In the past, some members of Purswani Family were practicing Bhakti Yoga and some were involved in community work whereas, some took part in Indian Freedom Movement and Indian National Army.
Religion and culture
Members of Purswani Family follow the religious customs of Bhambrai Bradri. Families of Bhambrai Bradri are Hindu by religion, and generally follow HinduHindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
or Sindhi ways of lifestyle.
Prominent Personalities of Purswani Family
Shri Jethmal Bhambrai, Shri Jeumal Bhambrai, Shri Lalachand Bhambrai, Shri Narumal Bhambrai, Dr. Gopaldas Narumal Purswani, Shri Jhamandas Fatumal Purswani, Shri Tikamdas Bhojraj Purswani, Shri Gobindram Jhamandas Purswani, Shri Watumal Jhamandas Purswani, Dr. Udharam Jhamandas Purswani, Dr. Gangaram Gopaldas Purswani, Dr. Kanyo Aildas Purswani, PHF Rtn.Gangaram Shamdas Purswani, Dr. Ashok Gangaram Purswani and Dr. Murli Udharam Purswani.See also
- KhudabadKhudabadKhudabad is a city in Dadu District, Sindh, Pakistan. It is located at 26°39'0N 67°45'0E with an altitude of 31 metres and lies to the south of the district capital Dadu.-History:...
- Khudabadi ScriptKhudabadi scriptKhudabadi script is a script used for writing the Sindhi language.- History :The Khudabadi script was invented by the Khudabadi Sindhi Swarankar community...
- Panchayati HallPanchayati HallPanchayati Hall is a Hindu temple devoted to the goddess Durga and Lord Shiva, located in Jaipur, India.-Post Partition:After Partition of India , most of the Khudabadi Sindhi Swarankar families migrated from Pakistan and settled in Jaipur, India. In early 1948, Shri Jhamandas F...
- BhaibandBhaibandBhaiband, meaning “brotherhood”, a Jāti designating the higher segment of the Kshatriya Lohana caste in the Hindus of Sindh & Balochistan who are of Rajput Suryavanshi lineage...
- Khudabadi Sindhi SwarankarKhudabadi Sindhi SwarankarThe Khudabadi Sindhi Swarankar is a Kshatriya Hindu cultural group of India, historically associated with the city of Khudabad as well as city of Hyderabad of Sindh region of modern Pakistan prior to the Partition of India...
Sources
- Hindu Genealogical Registers in Haridwar
- G. S. Purswani. "Amazing Purswani Family Tree”. Jaipur, India. -2010
- Watumal Purswani. "Biography of Shri Jhamandas F. Purswani" Jaipur, India, 18 Feb. 1962
- Diwan Bherumal Meharchand. "Amilan Jo Ahwal"- 24 March, 1919
- G. S. Purswani. Incredible Origin and History of Khudabadi Sindhi Swarankar Community . Jaipur, India. 5 November 2005
- News Paper "Jog Maya" published in Sept, 1975 from Baroda (Gujarat)-Editor Shri Naraindas Soni.