History of Mediaeval Hindu India (being a History of India from 600 to 1200 A.D.) v3.c35.s14.11

v3.c35.s14.11

Going on next to what is modern U. P. there must have been many feudatory princes in Oudh, Antarbed and Bundelkhand. But we have to mention two important Rajput families only which subsist to this day. The Gautamas are a well-known Rajput clan in U. P. From the Fatehpur Gazetteer we learn that they are an ancient clan with the Bhāradvāja gotra and a former Rāja of Argal had married a sister of Jaichand. Probably the fort of Asni where Jaichand’s treasure was kept was in their possession. The second Rajput clan of which we have even an inscription is the Sengar family. This clan is mentioned among the 36 royal clans. Its present chief principality is that of Jagmanpur in the Jalaun district and there is also a small principality in the Etawa district viz., that of Bhareh. The Sengars claim Rishyaśṛinga a Ṛishi and Śāntā daughter of Daśaratha and sister of Rāma as their ancestors. The tradition among them is that they originally ruled in Anga or Bihar where was born Chaturanga, the first Sengar, from Daśaratha’s daughter Śāntā. When the kingdom of Anga was given to Karṇa by Duryodhana they went to Dāhāla which comprises Central Provinces west and Central India east where they ruled for a long time and where their principalities still survive. They also claim to have ruled in the Deccan and in Gujarat and they state that some Sengars went eastwards also and founded a kingdom in Bardwan in Rādha country and it is believed that a prince from Bardwan went to Ceylon and founded a kingdom there. The name Sinhala is derived, it is believed, from Sinha-Bāhu the name of the father of this prince, as is evidenced by the Mahāvaṅso. A Sengar king Karṇa-Deva is said to have founded Karṇāvati or Kanār on the southern bank of the Jumna. This was the original seat of power of the Sengars of Jagamanpur and there are still ruins of an old fort there which is visited on the Dasera day by the Maharajas of Jagamanpur. They are also said to have ruled in Sironj in Malwa (where they came from Gujarat) so far late as the days of the Moguls.