Bhati
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Bhatti (Hindi: भाटी, Urdu: بھٹی) is a Rajput clan and is one of the largest tribes among Rajputs. It is also a prominent Jat, Gurjar and Tarkhan gotra. They are found in Northern India and Pakistan.
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[edit] Origins
Bhattis,brave and daring warriors.The most common legend about the origin of the Bhattis states that in very early times, they were driven out of their lands, but returned and drove their kins, the Johiya/Joiyas and the Langahs across the Sutlej.
According to another legend, the Bhatis were initially Yadavas. When the inhabitants of Brij, Ghazni, Herat and Punjab were driven away from these lands, they came to the Thar desert area of Jangladesh. Jangladesh was infertile and there was a constant scarcity of water throughout this region. The people had to wander from from one place to another in search of water and food. These people were known as the Bhati. The word "Bhati" is derived from the Hindi word, 'Bhatakna' ("to wander").
According to another legend, which has been accepted by James Todd and Alexander Cunningham, Mamnenez, the king of Khorasan, drove out King Shal Bahan from Ghazni. He then established his capital at Sialkot. One of his sons was Rao Bhati and his descendants came to be called Bhatis.
However, the last non-Muslim ruler of Ghazni is named as Subhag Sen.
One can conclude from the above legend that the ancestors of the Bhati Rajputs, on being driven of Ghazni, came and settled down in the Punjab region and their descendants came to be known as Bhatis.
Almost all the legends connect the Bhati Rajputs to Bhatnair or Bhatner (present-day Hanumangarh in northern Rajasthan). Bhatner was historically important as it was situated on the route of invaders from Central Asia to India. The Bhatis gave their name to places in the Punjab region such as Bhattiana, Bhatinda, Pind Bhatian, and Bhatiore. Whether the Bhati Rajputs initially spread from Bhatner and Bhattiana or these were their final abodes is unclear. It might be the case that the drying up of the Ghaggar forced them to migrate from the Punjab region to Ghazni from where they were again pushed back to Bhatner and Bhattiana by the invading Indo-Scythians armies.
Rawal Jaisal was a descendant of the Yaduvanshi clan and was a Bhati Rajput. Rawal Jaisal founded the city of Jaisalmer in 1156 AD. The new fort that he built was on a hill called Trikuta.
Bhati Rajputs were great camel riders and brave warriors. Their reign spread to the Punjab and beyond, to Afghanistan. In Lahore, a monument exists to this day, which is called the Bhati gate, named so probably because it opens in the direction of the "Sandal Bar", an area ruled by the Bhati Rajputs.
The state of Jaisalmer was positioned right on the route from Afghanistan to Delhi. Taking advantage of this strategic position, the Bhatis levied taxes on the passing carvans. They were said to be great marksmen.
With the waning of Buddhist influence and the re-emergence of Hinduism, the Bhattis split into Rajputs and Jats. Later, with the advent of Islam, many Bhatis became Muslims. The fort of Bhatner was ruled by Muslim Bhatti Rajputs until the 19th Century.
The ruling Sikh families of Patiala, Jind, Faridkot & Nabha in the Punjab, which after Independence, shortly came together as the Patiala and East Punjab States Union(PEPSU), were Sidhu-Brar Jats who traced their origin to the Bhatis/Bhattis. Kiwha was a descendant of Rawal Jasial. Kiwha's son Sidhu is considered to be the ancestor of the Sidhu Jats. Brar was the tenth descendant of Sidhu and is considered to be the ancestor of the Brar Jats. The heads of these families are said to have received baptism and initiation into the Khalsa fold from Guru Gobind Singh himself during his stay at Muktsar and areas in the vicinity.
The Bhattis of Jaisalmer also claim descent from Raja Salivahan who refounded Sialkot. Raja Salivahan's sons were: Raja Rasalu & Puran Bhagat.
[edit] Geographical distribution
In India, Bhattis reside mainly in the states of Punjab (India), Haryana and Rajasthan. In Punjab and Haryana, the erstwhile PEPSU has a large concentration of Bhatis. In Rajasthan, they are found in the Jaisalmer region, the border villages of Bikaner and some tehsils of Jodhpur (Osian and Shergarh) and Udaipur (Mohi). In Pakistan, Bhati Rajputs are found in Jhang, Lahore, Faisalabad, Sialkot, Sahiwal, Sargodha, Hafizabad, Narowal, Bahawalpur and Bahawalnagar districts of Punjab (Pakistan).
[edit] Religion
Most Bhati Rajputs are Hindus along with significant Sikh and Muslim populations. The Muslim population of Bhatis is predominantly in Pakistan.District Rawalpindi is known by Rajas (Rajputs) especially Rajput Bhattis the very majority of Rawalpindi is Rajput Bhatti please also see Rajabazar in Rawalpindi.Rajabazar is in the city of Rawalpindi but also in New Delhi , Kolkata India and Dhaka in Bangladesh. With Regards Raja Nadeem Bhatti
[edit] Sub-clans
There are about forty sub branches of the Bhatis. Many Rajput and Jat tribes trace their origin to the Bhati Rajputs. Some of these tribes include Rajputs of the Bajju clan as well as Jats of the Sidhu, Brar, Ghuman and Mane clans.
The Bhatias of Northwestern India and Pakistan are also supposed to be descended from the Bhati Rajputs. The present-day Thattai, Shikarpuri and Gujarati Bhatias are said to be descendants of the Rajputs of Raja Jaiswal and Rani Padmini's rein.
[edit] See also
- Rajput
- Mair Rajputs of Punjab
- Mair - Mair-Minhas, see Minhas, the Rajput tribe of Chakwal in the Punjab Province of Pakistan, named after Raja Mair (whose name before conversion to Islam in 1190 was Raja Bhagir Dev), the ancestor of Minhas Rajputs in Punjab (mair means brave in Sanskrit)
- Minhas
- Dulla Bhatti
- Jaspal Bhatti
[edit] References
- Thakur Deshraj: Jat Itihas (Hindi), Maharaja Suraj Mal Smarak Shiksha Sansthan, Delhi, 1934.
- Ram Swaroop Joon: History of Jats, India
