Are you a Human or a Mahesar!

Tracing
Origin of Tribal Sufism
Sufi (Ghulam) Hussain

There is a proverbial saying common in Sindh, that” Maarhoon Aan Yaa Mahesar Aan”, that literally
means, “Are you a man, or a Mahesar”. Friends often invoke out of surprise that idiom when any
Mahesar utters or does something different, peculiar or extra-ordinary. In reality, it Mahesar
(Urdu: ‫مہیسر‬, Hindi महे सर, Sindhi:‫ )مه ي سر‬may have two interpretations depending on which historical
traditions one relies. From the Hindu mythological perspective, it connotes both negative and
positive meanings, as Maheshwari (Mahesar) Khashtrias were those that disturbed the Aryan
Yagnis (worshippers) while they were meditating near the river Narbada in India. It could be taken as
positive in the sense that later on, after penance, they (maheshwaris/mahesars) became Yogis
(Faqirs) themselves independent of worldly desires, and hence different and peculiar from the rest of
people.

From the viewpoint of Islamic interpretation of present Sindhi Mahesars, Mahesar have been
inherently bestowed with esoteric and mystical qualities and hence closely attached to the religion of
Islam and its mystic practices. They narrate a story that Mahesar mystics used to meditate in
seclusion near the banks of river Indus. So, there was such a mystic once, who used to mediate
there. He had to pass near the river bank where usually womenfolk used to bathe, wash and fetch
water. So, whenever any person would pass from there, someone amongst women, would notice it
and ask each other. Look who is there, “Maarho aa, Yaa Mahesar Aaa”.

Mahesar is a Muslim caste of Sindh and is spread throughout India and the middle East. It has
descended from the Dravidian race. Initially it were one of warrior tribes and after the invasion of
Aryans were socially classified as Khashtriya or Warrior tribe. Following that line, Mahesar were
believed to have spread from Rajhistan, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand regions of India into other
regions of the world.

There are striking similarities between Maheswari and mahesar way of tracing their mythical
ancestral origins. Sindhi dictionaries deinfine ‘ mahesar’ as descendents of Arab tribe Banu
Maesra’. Mahesar trace their origins to Maesro, the impotent yet pious servant of the Prophet, who
was later on, with the blessings of Prophet became potent and thus Mahesar got reproduced.
Mahesar then came as warriors accompanying Muhammad Bin Qasim and got settled in Sindh and
adopted Sindhi culture.
According to Hindu ,mythology Raja Khadgalsen of Khandela, Rajhistan was an impotent King
because he was cursed due to his killing of animals and innocent people. After worshipping Shiv-ling
for several years, he was blessed with a son.

One day King Sujansen went into the forest to hunt with his seventy-two soldiers as part of his
routine. There they sensed an aroma, as if someone was cooking good food, and they followed this
aroma and reached a place where six rishis were performing yagna for Lord Shiva. Due to extreme
hunger, the king and soldiers started eating prasad, drinking water from the nearby pond that was
reserved for the puja, and also started washing their stained bows and arrows in it. This broke the
rishis' concentration, and they cursed king and his seventy-two soldiers to turn into stones.
Back in the kingdom, the queen and other 72 wives of soldiers were waiting for their husbands to
return for months, and finally Queen Chandravati went to see Maharishi Jabali. The Rishi Jabali
explained the situation in its entirety and suggested that she and all other 72 wives of soldiers should
go to the temple near the pond and worship Lord Shiva for their husbands' life.
In the end, Lord Shiva brought king and other seventy-two soldiers back to life, and told king
Sujansen "Because you have performed sinful activities, taking away lives of God's creatures, and
have misused your power, you have suffered from this incident. From now on, since I am giving all of
you a second life, you will be known after my name as "Mahesh-waris". You will also stop your role
of Kshatriya (warriors ) and play a new role of Vaishya (merchants and traders), Vaishya Dharama,
which is a role of non-violence. Sujansen to compensate for your violent tendency, from now on you
will make living through donations from your other seventy-two Vaishaya brothers and you will
perform the task of documenting their family trees".

Mahesar separated itself from Maheswari Hindus by not accepting the Aryan dominance and kept
their warrior spirit alive, yet adopted agriculture as a source of income, while practicing Jainism as a
religion. Whereas, Maheshwaris succumbed to the Aryan pressure and their warrior predilections to
adopt Vaishia or business and commerce field. After rebelling from Barhamanic hold they sought
refuge in the river basins, near lakes and ponds where they established their small villages and
subsisted on fishing. Mahesars intermarried with other Dravidian fishing communities, such as
(Machi, Mallah, Meerbahar) but kept their distinctive Sufi and syncretic religious and cultural identity
intact. Due to their close association with fishing communities and the water bodies their tribal
identity can be identified with all Dravidian fishing communities.

Mahesar, however, further got divided; one sub-caste remained attached to its mystic roots taking
further inspirations from later Buddhism and then Islam to finally become Sufi Muslims. Presently,
Mahesar is considered as the Sammat tribe this is of Dravidian origin ( unlike most of Sindhi
Sammat tribes that are Aryan in origin), and believed to be one of the original indigenous people that
built and sustained for centuries the Indus Valley Civilization from Mehargarh to Harappa and Moen-
jo-Daro. In Punjab, Mahesar are considered as belonging to the Jatt/Jutt tribe, due to their agrarian
and rustic way of life and economy.Mahesars living in Deh Khuda Bux Mahesar in Dera Ghazi Khan,
or living in its neighboring villages speak Siraiki language. Mahesars living in Lasbella, Jhal Magsi
and Sibbi areas of Baluchistan speak Sindhi and Sindhi-Balochi dialect, while those living in other
areas of Baluchistan speak Balochi.

In Indonesia there, perhaps, live about as many mahesars as half of those living in Sindh.
Indonesian mahesars are early migrants from India into Indonesia that migrated about 900 years
ago. The names and nomenclature as well as the body and facial features of Indonesian mahears
resemble more to other Indonesians and Chinese people than to Sindhi mahesars. Nevertheless
they use 'mahesar' word as their caste name.

o
As the word Mahesar is derived from Mahesh (Lord Shiva), it means Lord that serves
sacred wine. Hence, it also connotes in contemporary Sindhi, which is under the
influence of Islamic traditions, as meaning ‘Murshid’ or ‘Kamil’ and guiding soul.
Independent of which interpretation or explanation of the origin 'mahesar tribe, caste
or clan may be true, Mahesar can safely claim to be peaceful, peace-loving people
that do not believe in caste superiority or caste inferiority. In Sindh Mahesar tribe that
has now assumed the social status of a caste group is considered as the docile and
peaceful religious rural caste. Most of mahesars in Sindh are either Brailvi Muslims
or Sufitics my by faith.Mahesars of certain villages are famous for their typical
virtues. For instance, Mahesar of village Rafique Mahesar and Kamal Dero are
known for the religious scholarship and as Hafiz (learners by hearth) of Quaran,
Mahesars of Darbello are known for the liberal and enlightened vision and for their
love of education. Because of their love for education and white collar jobs their
youth easily succeed in getting lucrative jobs in government sector. Mahesars of
Pano Aaqil are known for their Mahesar patronage and for the representation of
Mahesar community at tribal-casteisl level. Mahesar Sardars have often belonged to
that region. Mahesars of Mehar hold the political legacy of Mahesars, Mahesars of
Kot Lal Baksh and Larkana are known for their bravery and peasant ethic, agri-
business and agri-industries. They have adapted themselves to survive with dignity
in a hostile anti-Sindhi and tribal belt of upper Sindh. Mahesar are the people who
have always believed in the principle of mutual coexistence, culture of tolerance and
inclusiveness.
 References and Notes

 Shah Jo Risalo by Kalyan Advani

 http://www.penmai.com/forums/festivals-traditions/92006-katha-
knowledge-2.html

 http://www.jatland.com/home/Mahesar

 https://sites.google.com/site/sadanifamily/origin-of-maheshwari-s

 http://archive.is/ROSo9
 A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province: L.-Z, Volume 3
Horace Arthur Rose Atlantic Publishers & Dist, 01-Jan-1997 - Caste - 532 pages.
https://books.google.com.pk/books?id=Th3Mu-
_RwjQC&pg=PA46&lpg=PA46&dq=Origin+of+mahesar&source=bl&ots=yVzwDLrCI5&sig=KAtLZ2Tk
CStZmTl855Bl1N62iwM&hl=en&sa=X&ei=TXujVe-
_A4TrUtiWt7gK&ved=0CEkQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=Origin%20of%20mahesar&f=false