Do you know Donyi Polo is the major traditional religion of Arunachal Pradesh?

Shams Ur Rehman Alavi

Arunachal Pradesh is a big state--just a bit smaller than West Bengal and more than twice the size of Kerala.

Still, how little we know about this state that borders China. How many among us are aware that the main traditional religion of Arunachal Pradesh (AP) is Donyi Polo.

Have you heard of that? In the last couple of decades, followers of Hinduism, Christianity, Islam and Buddhism have grown at the expense of Donyi Polo.

It is commonly referred to as the 'faith of the Sun and the Moon'. Interestingly, here Sun is regarded as Mother while Moon is father.

But still, the religion remains one of the most dominant faiths in the state. As converts to other faiths still carry the traditional beliefs.

Whenever Arunachal is described, its religious composition is shown in terms of Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, Muslim and OTHERS.

And it is these others who form almost 30% of the population of the state, and are carelessly termed as followers of tribal religion or simply as Animist. The Donyi Polo religion also has over 3.3 lakh followers. Donyi Poloism is the religion that believes in supernatural. 

They have their own rites and rituals apart from sacrifices to appease deity. There are legends, myths and practices dating back to centuries. All the tribes of the state have faith in this belief. The Donyi Polo mission is active for several decades. Now there are people converting to this faith and also reverting back.

The Encyclopaedia of North East says:

The Donyi-Polo has emerged as a symbol of synthetic force. It represents almighty in its omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent form. Donyi-Polo is the source of light, generator life, sole protector of all creatures. It is the essence of truth, justice, beauty, morality, love and goodness.

The person having faith in Donyi-Polo will not continue in metaphysical dwarfism, he raises himself to high orders of spiritualism. Donyi-Polo is the set of eyes of Lord that observes all living beings from heaven, day or night, each creature is under surveillance.....

The uniqueness of culture of North Eastern states is often praised but rest of India still doesn't know much about the beautiful region, except, perhaps, Assam. Apart from names of states and their capitals, little effort is made by us to know more about Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, Sikkim, Meghalaya et al.

Religion is just an aspect. There are big and small states with indigenous population, that have varied customs and culture. There is enormous tourism potential also. However, for us North East remains a distant land.

While ending this post, just another addition. Arunachal is much bigger than Haryana, Jharkhand and Punjab and just a bit small than Bihar, but it is 28 times the size of Goa. This could perhaps give us an indication of how little we know about states in our own country. 

*This piece was written when Census 2011 report hadn't come out. The 2011 census figures appeared after 2015.

Community Concerned: Kayastha groups worried over fall in political representation in Parliament and Assemblies apart from decline in influence

Jyotsana Srivastava's victory from a constituency in Varanasi in the recently concluded Uttar Pradesh (UP) election may not seem significant to you unless you are a Kayastha.

After all, when results for the 403 member UP house were declared, she was among the few [three or four] Kayasthas who managed to win. Another contestant, Mukesh Srivastava won from Payagpur while one, Mr Nigam, got elected from Kalyanpur.

Now compare this to 1952, when 52 Kayasthas were elected to UP Assembly. And there were leaders like Rajendra Prasad [President of India], Sampurnanand [UP chief minister], Lal Bahadur Shastri [Prime Minister] among numerous other towering personalities of the community.

No wonder, there is a feeling of concern among Kayasthas, who are considered among the forward castes, over their steep decline in representation in Parliament and Assemblies. In Kayastha community's in-house magazines and programmes, there is growing expression of concern over the decline in their influence as also the clout in society.

As a website* of the Kayastha community mentions:

The participation of Kayasthas in Govt. Service was over 50% at the time of independence, which is now estimated reduced to less than 9%. There were as many as 75% Secretaries or Head of Departments in a particular state in 1977, which is now reduced to a few. There is only one MLA in M.P. Likewise first Bihar Assembly was having 52 Kayasatha MLAs, which is now reduced to only three.In Jharkhand Assembly, there is no Kayastha MLA... 

The site suggests that Kayasthas should also form alliances like other groups for electoral success. There is similar concern that is seen at different fora and one could understand the reasons for their worry.

Kayasthas are less numerous. But as the word 'Kayastha' literally means, 'writer', the community always stressed on learning. As worshippers of 'pen' and 'ink pot', they earned their living by keeping records and through administrative jobs.

Lord Chitragupta

Not just in Mughal era and British rule, even earlier wherever there was a Raja, he would keep a Kayastha to keep his office and records. Mughals, especially, relied on Kayasths, who also culturally got close to Muslims and even great Urdu scholars came from this community.

Nonetheless, due to their focus on education and their exposure, the Kayasthas, who mostly lived in cities and towns, remained vocal and active in all spheres. There were a host of Kayastha zamindars in pre-independence era in Northern India.

The Kayasthas also had a script of their own, Kaithi, which is forgotten now. Even most young generation Kayasthas aren't aware that once there was a much developed script which was used by their forefathers for a long period.

Comparatively, the Kayasthas are more in numbers in UP, Bihar and Bengal. However, the Bengali Kayastha doesn't seem affected as much. Or at least, not worried over this decline in representation and less concerned about his caste identity, unlike the UP-Bihar Kayastha.

                                                        Uttar Pradesh                                                                                                         

In 1952: 52 Kayasthas elected

In 2012: Less than 5

In judiciary and civil services, the percentage of Kayasthas remained quite high. Politically the decline had begun but after VP Singh implemented Mandal Commission report, the Kayasthas' strength in legislatures came down drastically.

With middle-level castes asserting themselves other than the backwards, Dalits and Tribals, Kayasthas were no longer getting favour from political parties. Even in urban centres, it was becoming difficult to claim a seat as a person gets ticket on the basis of the numerical presence of his/her caste group in the constituency.

Srivastava, Saxena, Mathur, Bhatnagar, Asthana and Nigam were getting replaced by Yadav, Meena, Dangi, Gujjar, Kushawah, Kori, Majhi, Maurya and Balmiki. The scenario is same across the country now, either in Assemblies or Parliaments.

In 1952, the first Lok Sabha had 47 Kayasthas. In 1999, the figure was just 5. The first Lok Sabha had 8.7% Kayasthas and in 1999 there were just 0.9%. The change came in a few decades. Though till 1977, their percentage, even after fluctuation, remained substantial, post-1989, their number fell steeply.

While the Mandal movement affected all the Upper Castes, none of the groups suffered such a sharp decline in its representation as Kayasthas.

The Brahmins, and even Thakurs (Rajput), in comparison, have still managed to retain their hold and numerical strength to a certain degree in politics.

For those who aren't aware of the caste system, Brahmins, Banias and Thakurs are the Upper castes. Kayasthas are also considered as an Upper caste.

The Kayasthas mainly worship Lord Chitragupta, their patron deity, who keeps a record of good and bad deeds of human beings on earth.

One of the most famous Indians, Amitabh Bachchan aka Amit Shrivastav, [son of Hindi poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan is also a Kayastha. And so was the great Vivekananda. Also, other famous Kayastha personalities include Urdu poet Firaq Gorakhpuri, Subhas Chandra Bose, Prem Chand & Jai Prakash Narayan [JP].

[*The website link]

[A caste in Maharashtra, Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu or CKP, to which Bal Thackeray belongs is also considered as Kayastha though there are reservations expressed from some sections regarding the group]

Great Indian Heroes: Do Muslims have a place in RSS' vision of India?

Sometime back I went to a friend's place and saw a calendar on the wall. The friend saw me looking at it and sheepishly said that someone in his family had brought it.

"You know I don't have a Sangh [RSS] link", he tried to explain. Of course, there was no need for him to explain or feel embarrassed over it.

But the calendar was interesting. It shows great Indian figures over the ages in a Saffron background.

In this map, there are many personalities about whom there can not be any dispute about their contribution to the country.

There are some exceptions though but the remaining ones are heroes for all of us, Indians, irrespective of our religious affiliations or caste & creed.

One positive thing was that the list had Sikh, Buddhist, Jain* and [even] Parsi heroes. The Hindutva brotherhood has in the last couple of decades tried to co-opt Sikhs and Buddhists, but they still remain wary of Christians and Muslims.

There was no Muslim featured though. Isn't that strange! If Mughal kings like Akbar, who had even started a new religion Din-e-Ilahi is not secular enough or Shah Jehan for building the monument that is pride of the country, there is still no dearth of Muslim heroes.

Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled and his sons executed by British. Tipu Sultan was the king who fought the British and was ditched by both Muslim and Hindu powers--Marathas and Nizam, else the imperialists may not have succeeded in India.

In 20th century, we have had great freedom fighters, poets, writers and apart from them, the Muslim musicians--from Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan to Ustad Bismillah Khan who kept the legacy of classical Hindustani music alive in this country.

Ashfaqullah, Abdul Hamid, Kalam don't qualify?

If Ashfaqullah Khan is forgotten, there is a name that can never be contested by RSS also. Havildar Abdul Hamid, the army man who showed exemplary courage in the 1965 war against Pakistan, blowing up Patton tanks, and laying down his life in the line of duty.

If Abdul Hamid or martyrs like Brigadier Usman, whose bravery ensured that Kashmir, in the troubled times, remained an Indian territory, are not fit enough, then who is? APJ Abdul Kalam, a thinker, scientist, people's president and the father of Indian missile programme, isn't he worthy enough?

Still, its good to see the Akhand Bharat vision getting more inclusive. There have been great generals and superb soldiers but the selection of, Field Marshal late Sam Manekshaw, that represents the Zoroastrians, is indeed interesting.

Is it that you could do great service to the nation but if you are a Muslim or Christian, you can't be considered a 'hero'. Of course, everybody has the right to select their heroes. But the calendar represents the inherent apathy towards the two major religious minorities.

Why not Gandhi?

The Heroes in the Calendar 'Parakrami Bharat; Vijayi Bharat'

Among the ancient personalities whose photographs and names are shown in the calendar, are kings like Vikramaditya, Chandragupta Maurya, Rajaraja Chola,  Maharana Pratap, Harshwardhan and even Ashoka, who had embraced Buddhism after Kalinga war.

Of course, an important personality that has been ignored is Dr BR Ambedkar. It couldn't be oversight. After all, the personalities representing different eras, and different regions, have been selected after quite an exercise.


Among freedom fighters the names of Rani Laxmi Bai, Chandrashekhar Azad, Tatya Tope, Bal Gangadhar Tilak. Remaining figures include Maharaja Ranjeet Singh, the great Sikh ruler, apart from Shivaji, Hemachandra, Prithvi Raj Chauhan, Shyamji Krishna Verma, Subhas Chandra Bose, Ahilya Bai Holkar, Krishnadev Rai, Harihar Bukka [founders of the Vijayanagar empire], VD Sawarkar, Pulkesi, Sardar Patel et al.

Subhas Chandra Bose was not a Hindu Hero alone,  he was a hero for all Indians. Whenever Jhansi queen Laxmi Bai's name is taken, her close confidante Ghouse's name is also remembered. He hadn't hesitated to turn canons to target mosque when British took refuge there.

Yes, Sankaracharya, Chanakya, the staunch communist Bhagat Singh, who had rejected religion, figures in the list of great Indians. But can someone complain? After all, perhaps, the most well-known Hindu of all times, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, doesn't figure in this list either.

[*Lala Lajpat Rai had a Jain lineage though it is not mentioned generally] 

Real-life fairy tale story: Indian boy goes missing, gets adopted in Australia, returns a millionaire after 25 years

It is one of the most amazing real life stories. The story of five-year-old 'Sheru', who had got lost after his elder brother's death, ended in an orphanage in Kolkata, from where he got adopted by an Australian couple.

Sheru, a Muslim boy, who had become Saroo, by then, had forgotten a lot but had certain faint memories about his childhood, the slum in Khandwa [Madhya Pradesh], where he lived, about his mother Fatima alias Kamla, and his brother.
 
Educated, ready to take on his father's business, he tried to keep the memories of the distant land of his birth alive, so that he could one day meet his parents and real family.

Poring over Google Earth for years, he finally reached the railway station near which his family lived. The name 'Khandwa' rang the bell.

Years later, he returned home, and hugged his mother though she couldn't understand his language now, and he had forgotten his Hindustani [Hindi, Urdu]. He got to know that his elder brother was no more.

This real slumdog millionaire story has caught the imagination of innumerable people in the Central Indian state and whoever saw or heard of the reunion got affected by the saga. All these years his mother had been hoping that someday her lost son would return. At the Patthar Wale Baba's mazaar [shrine] in Burhanpur, she had made numerous trips.

She also went to Hindu saints and other Muslim fakirs. God answered her prayers. Albeit 25 years later. But the son was now back, a foreign babu. Once he stepped out of the railway platform a quarter century later, the past flashed into his mind. He straight walked to the area where his home was located.

Local residents, neighbours and denizens of Khandwa turned emotional when they saw the reunion. Saroo has left for Austrailia but will be back soon again. Family members say that he intends to learn the language also and would be visiting his family on a regular basis.

The Mercury reports: "I kept in my head the images of the town I grew up in, the streets I used to wander and the faces of my family, I treasured those memories," he said. The memories helped him track down his family. For the past 10 years, Mr Brierley has scrolled the internet for clues.

The mother-son reunion after 25 long years

"Using Google Earth, I spent so many hours zooming in and out looking for something I recognised," he said.

He created a Facebook group about the locality in the town & interacted with people to get an idea and to ascertain if it was exactly the place he belonged to.

The quest ended finally. The boy had discovered his roots. He took the ticket, permission from his parents [the Australian couple who had adopted him] and headed back to India, to meet his family.

Sheru was third among four siblings viz. Salim, Guddu, Sheru and Shakila. The boys came from poor family but had self-respect.

As Fatima's husband had left her and married another woman, she had a hard time raising the four children. Instead of working as rag-pickers, the elder boy would sell 'datun' [twig used to clean teeth in rural India] and Sheru would sweep compartments in the train and would get money in return from passengers.

What An Amazing Saga

One day in October 1987, the brothers didn't return in the evening. After a long search, the body of Guddu was found near the track. There was no news about Sheru. The family searched for him up to Mumbai in the West, up to Delhi in the North and as far as Nagpur & Hyderabad in the South but to no avail.

On February 12, 2012 Saroo Brierley from Tasmania, who had taken a flight from Australia, arrived in Delhi. He took next flight to Indore [in Madhya Pradesh] and then reached Ganesh Talai, the Muslim dominated locality in Khandwa. After reaching the main square, there was sudden brightness in his eyes.

Saroo saw the mosque and its 'kangure' [motifs]. Now he knew he was home. Someone else now lived in this house. The house owner couldn't understand English. But Ghaffar Miyan, an elder, caught the word 'mother', which Sheru was repeating again and again, asking 'I am looking for my mother and brother'.

Ghaffar Miyan immediately took him to the house where the family had shifted. Once Fatima heard about her son's arrival, she jumped off her bed and rushed towards the mosque. Sheru immediately recognised her. Later a youth who understood English was called and thus began the conversation that continued for hours.

THE AMAZING STORY OF SHERU IN HIS OWN WORDS

"I was sitting near the door of the compartment and fell asleep. When I woke up Guddu was not around. Id didn't know what to do then. I was crying. Train kept running and running and then reached a big station, the next day.

I got down but could not understand the language. A woman later took me to a place where there were many kids and was given food and taught", Saroo alias Sheru told the family now through the interpreter.

Then & Now: Once he could only peep in, today he flies back

"I don't know how much time I lived there. One day the teacher introduced me to a couple and said that they were my parents now. They gave me clean dress and took me along in an aeroplane. I was admitted in a school, and a teacher would come at home for my education. Later, I got admission in school and a driver was deputed for ferrying me".

"As I got older, my parents handed me the fisheries business. They told me about the organisation I was adopted from in Calcutta. When I expressed my intention to find out my roots, they encouraged me. My father John and mother Sui are great people".

"I didn't remember much about my childhood. But the images of carrying my sister Shakila on my shoulders, meandering in the lanes of Ganesh Talai, sweeping the train bogeys and face of my mother apart from my brother Kallu scolding me would come back to haunt me."

"For two years I sat for hours on internet and would trace all rail routes, looking at stations. My father, John, advised me to take my childhood photo along. I would learn Hindustani and would return soon so that I could talk to my mother to my heartfelt contentment".

Shakila, who was married a few years ago, came back to meet her lost brother. One of his childhood friend, Aleem, also met him. Sheru's brother Kallu says that prayers at Burhanpur's mazaar had to work. "We put hands on the four stones and they turned. We knew then only that he would return".

"Allah unko duniya ki badshaahat de", says Kallu, wishing his Australian brother more success in life. One only marvels at the luck of the family and the destiny of the boy. If only all the missing children would return to their parents, the world would have been so beautiful.

[Part of the report from inputs by local residents, newspapers and Dr Devendra Sahu, Dainik Jagran's correspondent]

The fascinating story has been reported in international press and in a few publications in India also. It is really an awesome real life incident that can bring tears to anybody. It can be inspiration for a Bollywood thriller [even a Hollywood] movie with all the necessary human emotions in abundance.

[Photo courtesy The Mercury]
[*Fatima alias Kamla. In poor families in certain parts, there is not much thought before naming a kid,'s  especially the girl. Hence, often the name, either first name or second name and even aliases could be of any of the communities]

The Muslim King who fought against Babar: Hasan Khan Mewati allied with Rana Sanga against Mughals [Glimpses of Indian History-1]

Babar, the founder of Mughal dynasty, had arrived in India in 1526, a period when Muslims were already settled in India for centuries [more than 700 years* before his arrival].

And the Sultanate in Delhi had seen umpteen rulers belonging to Slave, Khilji, Tughlak, Syed and Lodhi dynasties for almost 500 years when Babar came.

Still, owing to popular culture and the rhetoric during Ayodhya temple movement, Babar** is often seen more as ‘The invader’, on lines of Mahmud Ghaznavi and Mohammad Ghori.

The difference was that Babur didn’t plunder and leave. Babar [born 1483] made India his home, lived here and also died here [death 1530 AD].


His successors were thus Indians. Just to recall that Zahiruddin Muhammad Babar [also spelt as Babur] didn’t bring Muslim rule to India, which was well-established here from the era of Qutubuddin Aibak and even before his reign.

Either it was the attacks by Huns and Shaks or the medieval period when Turks and Mongols turned towards India, the invasions were not about religion. When Babar came to India, a Muslim king Ibrahim Lodhi was the Sultan, who ruled Hindustan from his capital, Delhi.

Babar’s army defeated him in Battle of Panipat in 1526. History can be interpreted in different ways but it can’t be erased. Babar was yet to establish himself as the supreme monarch as he faced strong opposition and the Lodis hadn’t given up as yet.

Mewat's challenge to Babar

The biggest challenge was the strong-headed Raja Hasan Khan Mewati, the Rajput chieftain whose ancestors had been ruling the region [Mewat] for long [almost two centuries] and who had declared himself as a sovereign King.

Hasan Khan Mewati was ready to take on Babar's might. He formed a grand alliance to take on the Mongol. Along with Rana Sanga, the ruler of Mewar, Hasan Khan Mewati allied with Chittaur's Sisodia Rajputs and got ready to take on the forces of the Mughals.

Besides, several other Rajput chieftains, Afghan chieftain and Ibrahim Lodi’s brother Mahmud Lodi was also supporting this confederation. In his memoirs Babar recounted later how he was troubled by Hasan Khan Mewati.

In Baburnama, he refers to Hasan Khan, who ruled from Alwar and around, as ‘the sole leader of all trouble and mischief’. He even termed him as ‘impious mannikin’. Hasan Khan’s ancestors had earlier given trouble to Bahlul Lodi also.

Though Delhi and Agra had been won, a decisive victory was needed to establish Babar’s suzerainty in North India. It was in 1527, when the historical battle of Khanwa took place, almost 50 km near Agra. It is wrongly dubbed as a Mughal king’s battle against [Hindu] Rajputs.

Rana Sanga and Hasan Khan Mewati alongside other Rajput kings and Mahmud Lodi, fought against Babar’s army that was also supported by several Hindu Rajput chiefs. Hasan Khan Mewati commanded an army of 12,000 soldiers. He fought bravely but died in this battle.

It was theartillery that gave Babar's army an edge. Though he was forgotten, years later the Mewati history termed him ‘a martyr’. Folklore and right-wing nationalism had termed it as Hindu India’s battle against an invader, Babur.

Mewat was for centuries a troubled area for the Sultanate. It was Rana Sanga who had sought Hasan Khan’s cooperation in taking on Babar. It is often not mentioned and remains mostly in history books that who had invited Babur to India.

Rana Sanga had also invited Babar to India

Apart from Daulat Khan, the Governor of Punjab, who was harassed by Ibrahim Lodi, and Lodi’s kin Alauddin Khan, Rana Sanga had also extended invitation to Babar. Rana offered military aid as well as financial support if he came from Kabul to take on Lodi.

However, it was later that the relations between them got strained. Historians suggest Rana didn’t expect Babur to settle in India and considered him a threat to his influence. Babar accused him of breach of trust, as after inviting him, Rana didn’t help in his conquest.

Hasan Khan built this fort in Alwar [Inset: another view]

Historian Satish Chandra, in his book 'Medieval Indian history: Sultanate to Mughals', surmises that Rana Sanga felt that the conflict between Babar and Lodi would stretch and this would give him the opportunity to target regions which he wanted to have control over.

Besides, he thought that Babar would return after the victory, just like Timur [Tamerlane]. The Hindus and Muslims, neither kings nor the subjects, in those days were as communal or bigoted as a section in both communities today is.

Neither Rana Sanga's fight was not against Islam nor Babur's against Hinduism [he in fact fought the last Lodhi king]. They were simply driven by political considerations, power and personal ambitions. Babar describes Hasan Khan as leader of the ‘Mewat country’.

Waqiat-e-Mushtaqi accuses Hasan Khan Mewati of creating a confederacy that was aimed at overthrowing Mughal power. It was after Hasan Khan Mewati’s death that the road to establishing the Mughal empire was cleared. Babur faced little resistance thenceforth. But Hasan Khan’s name had remained buried in voluminous texts or just mentioned in footnotes.

The Hero of Mewat

Mewat, located South of Delhi, is a region spread over Haryana, Rajasthan and also part of UP (Uttar Pradesh). Now there is a district ‘Mewat’ in Haryana also. Mews chiefly are Muslim but there customs are close to Hindus as well.

Mewat, a representative map 

The backward region remained off radar for decades except when Shuddhi-Tabligh movements had turned it into a flashpoint in pre-independence era but there is progress visible here.

For Mevs [or Meo] their brave leader’s memory lived on. Now he has been resurrected as a hero.Over the last couple of years, Indian historians are again focusing on him.

Eminent author Siddiq Ahmad Mev, who has written several books on the subject including the culture of Mewat, says that Hasan Khan was seventh ruler of the state founded by Bahadur Nahar. Hasan Khan ruled from his capital Alwar. He had built the Qila-e-Bala or fort at the top, which exists till today.

He died on March 15, 1527. Now every year, a grand function is organized in his memory. Top politicians, litterateurs, Members of parliament, activists and Mewati leaders representing different groups pay homage to Hasan Khan Mewati on this day.

[*Muslim traders had arrived in Southern India, particularly, Malabar region of Kerala from Arab in the seventh century itself. Besides, Muslims had reached Sindh almost at a similar period.]

[**Babar is neither a Muslim hero. He is not an absolute villain either. A historical figure and an important medieval king who founded one of the most important dynasties in the world.]

[History is another of my passion and I was thinking of starting a series on Indian history. This first post which focuses on medieval Indian era. The aim is to bring to fore lesser-known facts pertaining to our history through this blog--Indscribe]