The appellation ‘Kashmiri Pandit’ was coined by Emperor Mohammad Shah, on a representation sometimes in the first quarter of the eighteenth century by one Pandit Jia Ram Bhan to distinguish the Kashmiri Brahmins from their counterparts in other parts of the country. Prior to that Kashmiri Pandits were known in the country as Kashmiri Brahmins and in the Valley were popularly known as ‘bhattas’- an appellation still being used for them by the muslims there. The present day Kashmiri Pandits are the descendants of ther eleven families of their ancestory, which held on to the Valley as also to their religion, despite the tyranny of the Muslim rulers. Anand Kaul Bamzie writes in his book, ‘The Kashmir Pandit’ “in the time of Sultan Shahab-ul-Din (1359-78 AD), Mir Syed Ali came here from Hamdan (Persia) and engaged himself in proselytizing. The Brahmins were firm in strictly keeping their caste. Death’s dark veil had absolutely no terror for them. They remained only eleven families, all others either having been converted or fled the country”. Contrary to the popular impression, the population of the Valley was not entirely Brahmin prior to the advent of Islam in the fourteenth century. P.N.K.Bamzie writes in his book, ‘A history of Kashmir’, “we find the names of several sects, namely, Nishads, Khashas, Dards, Bhauttas, Bhikshas, Damaras, Tautrins etc. who constantly gave trouble not only to the rulers of the country but also to the Brahmins”. The Brahmins were subjected to tyranny and terrorism in the later parts of the Hindi rile also. Anand Kaul Bamzie thus gives an account of the situation in the following words “ in the long reign of Rajdeva (1216-40), the Brahmins of Kashmir were subjected to tyranny and terrorism. They were dissatisfied with the King’s rule and broke forth into a cry against him. Thereupon , he descended upon them and sent them, so much so that they cry ‘Na Bhatto ham’ went forth”. Islam made its way into Kashmir in the beginning of the fourteenth century and it was characterized by fighting, military expeditions, conquests and so forth. The last Hindu King was Sahadeva (1305-24). In his time, came three outsiders to Kashmir. One was Shah Mir of Swat, who was the grandson of Fur Shah, a famous hermit, and, therefore, was trusted by Sahadeva with due respect and was granted a village as Jagir. The second was Renchen Shah, a Tibetan prince, who had been defeated by his uncle and had come as a fugitive. He was given protection and granted a subsidy. The third was Lankar Chak, a ruler of Dardistan, who, having been vanquished in a battle by his enemies, came to Kashmir and was given protection and subsidy. Devoid of sagacity, Sahadeva little knew that these outsiders, whom he was harbouring in his kingdom with such kindness, would soon overthrow the Hindu rule in Kashmir. The advent of Islam in Kashmir is marked by the conversioin of Renchen Shah to Islam. Earlier, though requested, the Brahmins of Kashmir did not admit him to their caste. Even before him, in 1322, A.D. Zulqadr Khan @ Duluch, a descendant of Changez Khan who came from Turkistan to invade Kashmir, forcibly converted the local people to Islam during his short stay of eight months in the Valley. On his way back home, he took twenty thousand Brahmins as slaves but all of them together with the troops of Duluch perished in a snow-storm, while crossing the Devsar pass. AS regards the origin of the Kashmiri Brahmins, it is certain that they formed part of Aryan immigrants from central Asia (see Rajtarangini I, 34). Their features and fair complexion speak of their inner Aryan race. Thomson writes in his “History of India’ “The Aryans were a long headed race of tall stature, with narrow noses and fair complexion. Their purest representatives are found today mainly in India”. Sir Monier Monier Williams says in his book “Modern India and the Indians’ (page 151) – “ The Kashmiri Pandits are among the finest types of Aryan race.”. George Campbell saya in his book ‘Ethnology of India’ – “The Kashmiri Brahmins are quite high Aryans in the type of their features – very fair and handsome with high chiselled features, and no trace of intermixture of the blood of any lower race. It may be partly race, and partly occupation, but they have certainly a greater refinement and regularity of feature than the Afghans and others of a rougher type, with, however, a less manly looking physique and a colourless ruddy and more inclining to a somewhat sallow fairness”. Pocock says that there are traces of the settlements of Kashmiris in Greece and from this he infers that the Kashmiri Pandits were originally Greek or Persian settlers in the Valley who were Brahmanised. It is by no means improbable that some Kashmiris went to Persia and Greece in the time of Darius Hystapse’s invasion of the Punjab and Alexsander’s conquest of India (331 B.C.) and settled in Kashmir in ancient times. The tribe Mlecchas which existed here in the time of Ashoka is assumed to have been Greeks (see Rajtarangini I footnote 10 ). These were driven out of the country by his son Jaluka. But Mlecchas were quite a distinct race from the Kashmiri Brahmins. The Kashmiri Brahmins are divided into 199 exogamous sections (gotras), the members of which profess to be descendants of the Rishis or inspired saints, whose name the gotra bears. Among these sub-divisions, social precedence was governed by the spiritual greatness or the inferiority of the respective Rishis. Koul being considered the highest of all the sub-divisions. However, the social position came to be determined later by the nature of occupation followed, rather than by the gotras. Those who had been employed in superior state service sine two or three generations held their heads high above others. Originally there existed only six gotras, including Dhattatreya, Bhardawaja, Paladeva, By inter-marriage and inter-mixture, the number of gotras multiplied to 199. According to some authorities there were only three principal divisions, viz., Bhat, Pandit and Razdan, from which are derived the distinctive appellations of Koul, Sopori, Pandit and Raina. From these three families, as each took a particular occupation, or by adoption or inter-marriage with other gotras, other gotras came into existence. Nancy Bhushan Dhar
KP Society