Gorakhnath and the Kanphata Yogis c10: Chapter Six: Sacred Places (Concluded)
Gorakhnāth and the Kānphaṭa Yogīs c10
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Chapter Six: Sacred Places (Concluded)
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Turning now to the north-west, the temple of AMARNĀTH, in Kashmīr, is to be noted. Yogīs visit the shrine of their master which is situated in a cave. Formerly all danced before Śiva, here, naked. Women now wear a single garment. Śiva is here represented by a liṅga which is a block of ice.
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Besides the important monastery at Gorakh Ṭilla, there are a good many places in the Panjab connected with the Gorakhnāthīs. GORAKHṢETRA, or Gorkhaṭri, in Peshāwar was once a haunt of Kānphaṭa Yogīs and is mentioned by Bāber and Abūl Fazal. Traditionally this is the place where Gorakhnāth lived in the *Satya Yuga*.¹ In the north-west the chief saint of the Kānphaṭas is Ratannāth of Peshāwar. These Yogīs do not wear the rings in their ears because they claim to wear them in their hearts.
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¹ Martin, vol. II, p. 484; *BHCS*, p. 403.
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There are Yogī shrines at Kohāt, Jalālābād and Kābul.
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SIĀLKOT is famous as the home of Puran Bhagat, the well-known disciple of Gorakhnāth. The well where Puran was found by that Yogī is situated two miles north of the Cantonment.² A legend connected with the place relates how a Khatrānī woman, while bathing in the Āik river, was wooed by Bāsak Nāg (the King of Serpents), and bore a son, Śālavahan, who rose to be a man of great power and wealth, and who, through the assistance of the serpent (Nāg) became a king. To Śālavahan were born two sons who became Yogīs, the older of whom was Puran Bhagat, on whose account the well is still famous. The well is noted for its very cold water and its healing qualities. Hindu women go there to bathe, in order to be cured of barrenness; especially on Sunday and on the new moon, do they come from all parts of the Panjab for this purpose.¹
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² See *Sialkot Gazetteer*, 1904. Also *Archæological Report*, vol. II, pp. 21, 22; vol. XIV, pp. 44-47. The whole story is given in chap. nine.
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¹ Based on a report by A. H. Daula (June 22, 1925) which he made after hearing Ganga Ram Parshad, B.A., LL.B., President of the Ārya Samāj of Siālkot, read from an account in Hindī. Forwarded to the author by Dr. H. D. Griswold.
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In Gūgā’s temple at SULTĀNPUR, which belongs to the Chamārs, Gūgā and his wazīr are mounted on horses, Gogrī on a mare, but Narsimh, Kāila Bīr and Gorakhnāth are on foot.²
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² RTCP, vol. I, p. 183.
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At BATRA there is a comparatively new shrine to Gūgā, erected by one who had obtained a son in his old age. Beside it is a shrine to Gorakhnāth, facing east.
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There is a shrine of Birāg Lok near PALAMPUR with a legend connected with Gorakhnāth. The founder of the shrine, when a boy, once, while herding cattle, met a gosāin (said to be Gorakhnāth himself) who told him never to disclose the fact of their friendship, else he would no longer remain in his palace. Keeping the secret, however, made him ill, and so, at last he told his parents about the gosāin. They gave him sattu for the holy man. But, when about to cook it, the boy complained that he had no water, whereupon the gosāin touched the ground with his gaja (iron staff) and a spring appeared, which still exists. The gosāin did not eat the food, saying that his hunger was satisfied by its savour. The boy then caught the holy man by the arm, upon which the latter struck him with his hand and turned him into stone. A few days later a Bhaṭ Brāhman became possessed and saw all that had occurred. Then a temple was erected and the spot called Birāg (Gosāin) Lok (corrupted from ‘ālop,’ ‘disappearance’) As Birāg Lok had been a herdsman, he became peculiarly the guru of cattle and now fulfils vows made regarding cattle. A fair is held at the shrine on Har the third. He-goats and corn are offered. An image of Gorakhnāth was placed in the temple in Sikh times.³ This is a Siddh temple. There are in it three images—of Gūgā, of Gorgī and of Guru Gorakhnāth—each about three feet high and mounted.¹
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³ IA, 1903, p. 378 and note; RTCP, vol. I, p. 246.
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¹ RTCP, vol. I, p. 188.
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The Āi-panth monastery at the Takṣala Gate in Lahore is a rambling place. It contains a few samādhs and a temple to Śiva. In front of this temple is a large, rounded slab of stone painted black, which contains an image of Kāl Bhāiroṁ, painted black, with a large trident. The mahant of this place is the pūjārī of the temple. He was the only Yogī present at the time of the author’s visit (December 10, 1924). The compound of the monastery is used as a sort of sārāī (caravanserai). The Yogī’s ear-rings were of crystal.
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At Amritsar, at the temple of Bhāiroṁ, at Durgiāna, there is an image of Bhāiroṁ and a large cubical platform, about five feet high, painted red, with a cloth over it, in which is a niche and a lamp. Beside this there is a temple of Śiva. It is a place of meeting for the group known as the twelve Panths. It was here that the author had his audience with the pīr of Ṭilla.
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Near Lādwa, in the Ambāla district, there are places where two shrines are found close by each other, the one on the right and the other on the left of that of Gūgā, the one on the left being dedicated to Gorakhnāth. The explanation of this is that Gūgā was the disciple² of Gorakhnāth.³
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² See chap. nine.
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³ IA, vol. XXVI (1897), p. 84, referring to Ibbetson’s Karnāl Settlement Report.
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At Bohar, in Rohtak, there is a fine block of buildings which belongs to Yogīs who follow Mastnāth.⁴ An annual fair of a disreputable character is held there.⁵ In the Tārīkh-i-Sher Shāhī (date about 1579) there is mention of Bālnāth of the Yogīs near the fort of Rohtas.
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⁴ Elliot, History of India, etc., vol. IV, p. 301.
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⁵ Census Report, Panjab, 1891, p. 116.
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There is, at Kirāna, a famous monastery with a large landed endowment. The residents are Āughars, and their chief is called pīr. They wear an ochre-coloured turban over which is placed a network of black thread covered with gold. The pīr, when once elected, may never again descend the hill on which the establishment is situated.¹ This monastery was moved from Ṭilla under circumstances related below.
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¹ Census Report, Panjab, 1891, p. 116.
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The most famous establishment of the Kānphaṭas in the Panjab, and in fact in all India, is at GORAKH ṬILLA.²
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² A good picture of Ṭilla is to be found in OMAS, opposite p. 266. On Ṭilla see Census Report, Panjab, 1891, pp. 115 ff; OMAS, pp. 264 ff.
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Ṭilla, or Gorakh Ṭilla,³ is situated about twenty-five miles north-west of Jhelum, on the highest point of an isolated line of hills in the Salt Range, at an elevation of 3,242 feet. The hill is rugged and difficult to ascend. There is a steep, almost perpendicular, cliff on one side of it. This is accounted for by the following legend. Lakṣmannāth, the Jogī of Ṭilla, was once visited by Siddhvacārnāth (Bhartṛhari), and was unable at the moment to provide food for his guest. So Bhartṛhari carried off part of the hill to Kirāna Bar, threw it down, and founded a new monastery. This explains the steep ascent at Ṭilla.⁴ The view from the monastery is a very fine one. In ordinary weather the snows of the Himālayas make a splendid sight. Nearby and below are the remains of decaying hills; and the course of the Jhelum is plainly seen.
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³ Also known as Jogī Ṭilla, Ṭilla Gorakhnāth.
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⁴ Census Report, Panjab, 1891, p. 117.
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The old buildings at Ṭilla were destroyed by Shah Durrani in 1748, and the establishment was rebuilt by Rāja Mān (of Jodhpur?)
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Ṭilla is one of the oldest religious sites in northern India,⁵ and its use for religious purposes antedates by millenniums the coming of Gorakhnāth.⁶ Tradition affirms that Gorakhnāth settled there in the Tretā Yuga, after Rāmcandra, and adopted Bālnāth as his disciple.⁷ The place was once known as Ṭilla Bālnāth, a name derived from a temple on the summit dedicated to the sun as Bālnāth.⁸ It was here that Bālnāth underwent his penance, and it was from him that Bhartṛhari learned the practice of austerities. The samādh of Bhartṛhari is at Ṭilla¹ and the cave there is named after him. The monastery is now in charge of the Lakṣman, or Daryā, or Hethnāth panth of the sect, and they have disciples beyond the Afghan frontier.
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⁵ Jhelum District Gazetteer, 1904, p. 34.
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⁶ Census Report, Panjab, 1891, p. 117.
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⁷ RTCP, vol. I, p. 389.
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⁸ Ain-i-Akbari, vol. II, p. 315, note 1. Cunningham (Ancient Geography of India, p. 164) considered this name, Bālnāth, older than the time of Alexander; but this may be doubted.
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¹ Jhelum Gazetteer, 1904, p. 35.
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It is undoubtedly true that Gorakh Ṭilla, or Jogī Ṭilla, was one of the first centres of the Kānphaṭa Yogīs. Panjab legends make repeated reference to the place as one of the stations to which Gorakhnāth often retired.² In the story of the marriage of Vālmīk’s daughter reference is made to Ṭilla. ‘In the pond where a Brāhman at the Kumbh Mela was cured of leprosy, Gorakhnāth will bathe, who will make his temple on Ṭilla.’³ From a remote period all other centres of the Kānphaṭas in the Panjab have been under Ṭilla. At Gorakhpur, Yogīs stated that Ṭilla is now the chief seat of the sect. The pīr of Ṭilla is the head of all the Gorakhnāthīs. (But the committee of the Twelve Panths seem to have some superior supervisory power. See chapter two.)
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² E.g., Temple, Nos. 13, 20; vol. II, pp. 275, 375, 429, 549, 551, 554, 555, 557, 559, 566; Synn, p. 51.
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³ IA, 1907, pp. 23, 24.
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The establishment is situated on the top of the hill and is enclosed by a wall. One of the principal temples in the main enclosure is to Hanumān. The elevated portion to the west, within the enclosed wall, contains samādhs in three corners and a temple of Śiva to the east of the centre of the platform. In front of this and at the north is the caran of Lakṣman. By itself, in the platform, north-west of the temple, is a large trident. North of the temple is a small shrine of Bhāirom, and just to the east of this is an old tree under which is a niche marking the place where Gorakhnāth used to sit. They say that Ṭillā will stand as long as this tree lives. On the lower level to the east, within the walls, are the storerooms and the residence of the mahant and some other Yogīs. Attached to the main enclosure is a cow shed, and to the south-west of it are a large tank and some very old samādhs, mostly in ruins. There is a great number of samādhs about. A stone slab at this place marks the spot where Rāñjha used to sit and where he was initiated after he was driven away from the home of Hīr. Gorakhnāth pierced his ears. Thirty or forty Yogīs are usually in residence. At the time of the author’s visit to Ṭilla (December, 1924) the mahant and many of the Yogīs were at Amritsar in the interests of the monastery at that place. For there had been a serious disturbance in the city and a number of Yogīs were under arrest. The mahant had gone to effect a settlement.
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A special mela is held at Ṭilla in March.
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The monastery is in possession of a deed granted by Akbār confirming earlier grants.¹ The endowments are now reduced to one village, owing to serious charges brought some time ago against one of the mahants.² The Āughars of Kirāna are more wealthy.
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¹ See Jhelum District Gazetteer, 1904, p. 35.
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² Census Report, Panjab, 1891, p. 117.
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At Sargoda, about four miles distant, there is a branch of the Ṭilla monastery.
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Several places in Sindh, and one shrine beyond the western boundary of India, are of interest in the study of the Yogīs, although they do not belong to the Kānphaṭas. These are Nagar Ṭhaṭha, Pīr Arr,³ Koteśwar and Hiṅg Lāj.
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³ A note on this place will be found under the description of Dhinodar. See p. 118, below.
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NAGAR ṬHAṬHA (Nangar Ṭaṭṭa)⁴ is situated about seventy miles from Karāchi, on a plateau in the Makli Hills, overlooking the Indus. The town, which covers a very large area, was the ancient capital of Sind. It is now a famous Musalmān burial ground. It was noted for its scarves and waist-cloths of mixed silk and cotton and of silk and gold, and for its famous educational institutions. The importance of the place for the Gorakhnāthīs is that beads which they greatly prize are obtained there. The plateau around Ṭhaṭha is strewn thick with pebbles and nodular lumps of hard, yellow limestone which are sometimes quite speckled with little nummulites. These become detached, and lie on the ground in such quantities that it has become a trade to collect and string them for sale to pilgrims on their way to Hiṅg Lāj. They are called *thumrā*.¹ The two rosaries of white beads which are made from these nummulites differ chiefly in the size of the ‘stones’ of which they are composed. That of the smaller beads is called Hiṅg Lāj ka *thumrā*; the other, made of slightly larger beads, *Āśāpūrī*.² The beads of the former are said to be petrified grains of the larger millet, the latter of the smaller millet, or of rice. The former rosary is more commonly worn, and is, evidently, the more prized. It consists of 500 or 1,000 beads. Like other pilgrims, Yogīs purchase these beads at Nagar Thaṭha, and, upon reaching Hiṅg Lāj offer them to the goddess. The *thumrā* is then put on. When the pilgrim reaches Āśāpūrī² Devī’s shrine at Nagar Thaṭha on his return journey, he offers the other rosary to her and then puts it on.
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⁴ See Imperial Gazetteer of India, vol. XXIII, pp. 254 ff.; Gazetteer of the Province of Sind, Karachi District, 1919; Burton, Scinde, or the Unhappy Valley (1851); Burton, Sind Revisited (1877); Hughes, A Gazetteer of the Province of Sind.
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¹ *Gazetteer of the Province of Sind, Karachi District.* See also chap. one.
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² Āśāpūrṇā, ‘She who fulfils desires.’
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The Yogīs explain the presence of the substance out of which the beads are made and their reason for prizing them by the following legends. Śiva and Pārvatī, on their way to Hiṅg Lāj, stopped in the jungles of Āśāpūrī. There Śiva asked his consort to prepare him a dish of *khichri*, cooked millet and rice, while he went away into the jungle. Śiva then drew around her and her cooking place a magic circle of ashes, explaining to her that a giant (*asura*) would in his absence come to molest her; but that she would be perfectly safe so long as she remained within the circle, since the demon would be burnt to ashes should he venture to cross the magic line. Śiva then left with her his trident and went into the jungle. While he was away, the giant came and Pārvatī slew him with the trident. The demon’s blood ran all about the place, defiling everything, including the fire place and the food which she was preparing. Soon afterwards Śiva returned. From his body the demon immediately appealed to Śiva for release, or *mukti*. Śiva granted the request and the demon’s spirit ascended to Kailās, Śiva’s heaven. The giant’s body became dust and this is still used as incense powder. Seeing how everything had been defiled by the giant’s blood, Śiva ordered Pārvatī to throw the food away. The grains of the khichri turned into the ‘stones’ out of which the beads for the famous rosaries are made.
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These nummulites are also thought of as petrified grain which the creator left on earth to remind him of his creation.¹
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¹ Barnes, *Travels in Bokhara*, vol. I, p. 29.
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The efficacy of the ṭhumrā is attested by the following tale. During their fourteen years’ exile, Rāma and Sītā wandered into the neighbourhood of Āśāpūrī. There Sītā begged Rāma to go to Śiva and beg for a ṭhumrā. Rāma’s sin of having killed a Brāhman (Rāvaṇa) was forgiven when he offered the rosary to Hiṅg Lāj Devī.
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The sacredness of Āśāpūrī is due to the fact that Rāmcandra, on his way to Hiṅg Lāj, left his staff at her shrine.
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Another legend records that formerly at Nagar Ṭhaṭha Musalmān faqīrs in large numbers persecuted the followers of the Hindu faith. One day the Devī appeared to the Hindus riding on a lion and slew the faqīrs. She then went on to Hiṅg Lāj and made that place her abode. For this reason Yogīs visit both Nagar Ṭhaṭha and Hiṅg Lāj.
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In these legends well-known elements of the Śiva-Pārvatī mythology are united with the pilgrimage of the divine Yogī, Śiva, to ancient shrines. It is noteworthy that Vaiṣṇavite elements mingle freely in these stories.
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Hiṅg Lāj,² the last holy place of the Hindus towards the west, is visited by Gorakhnāthīs. They consider that a pilgrimage to this place is necessary for all who wish to perfect themselves and to become adepts in Yoga.³
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² See *RTCP*, vol. II, p. 398; Barnes, *Travels in Bokhara*, 1834, vol. III; Masson, *Narrative of Various Journeys in Baluchistan, Afghanistan, the Panjab and Kohat*, 1844.
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³ *RTCP*, vol. II, p. 398.
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Hiṅg Lāj is situated on the Makrān coast, about eighty miles from the mouth of the Indus, and some twelve miles from the sea. The shrine stands below a peak of the same name, on the banks of the Hingol River, in the Las Bela State.¹ The river breaks through the mountains in a gorge, about two hundred yards wide between cliffs, about a thousand feet high. Above the gorge the country is rich and wild. Below the gorge the river is called Aghor.² Masson reported, in 1844, that he saw figures of the sun and moon hewn on the rocks in an inaccessible place.³
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¹ Eighty miles, *Imperial Gazetteer of India*, vol. XIII, p. 143; 150 miles, *Postan’s India*.
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² Hart, *An Account of a Journey from Karāchī to Hing Lāj*, etc., 1840.
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³ *Narrative*, vol. IV, p. 391.
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Hing Lāj is one of the fifty-one pīṭhas,⁴ or places celebrated as spots where the dissevered limbs of Sati were scattered. Here the crown⁵ of her head fell. The shrine is dedicated to the terrific Agni Devī, of Hing Lāj,⁶ known also as the Hinj Lāj Devī, Hinguda Devī, and the Red Goddess. She is known as Bībī Nānī by Musalmāns and as Pārvatī, Kālī or Mātā by Hindus.⁷ Bībī Nānī is celebrated from the Ganges to the Euphrates and is probably the Chaldean Nāna who was very old, dating perhaps a ‘thousand years before Abraham.’⁸ She is probably Nanaia of the Persians and Bactrians.⁹ Hing Lāj is the best known place of pilgrimage in Baluchistan. The Devī is the family goddess of many tribes in western India. Even in Mirzapur, in the United Provinces, she is worshipped by Kharwārs.¹⁰ She is known and revered throughout India.
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⁴ See above, chap. five, under ‘Devī Pātan.’
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⁵ Sen, *Sati*, says ‘forehead.’
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⁶ Tod, vol. III, p. 1,511.
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⁷ *Imperial Gazetteer of India*, vol. XIII, p. 82.
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⁸ Holdich, *India*, p. 45; Holdich, *The Gates of India*, pp. 162-3. His account of the Mekrān is on pp. 295 ff.
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⁹ Masson, *Narrative*, vol. IV, p. 390. At Lagash there was a Goddess Nina and her daughter Ninmar c. 3000 B.C. Baikie, *The Life of the Ancient East*, p. 200.
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¹⁰ Crooke, *ERE*, vol. VI, p. 716.
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The shrine, which is of the vāmacāra or cakrapūja type, has long been in the hands of Musalmāns and formerly the woman in charge of the place made Muslims of all Hindu pilgrims who went there. The attendant who did this was Caṇḍāla Māī.¹ Her descendants claim to be so intimate with the goddess as to play chess with her.
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¹ This name, ‘Mother Caṇḍāla,’ is very interesting. A Caṇḍāla is the lowest of the outcaste Hindus.
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Pilgrims to the shrine follow the Karāchī-Miāni-Hiṅg Lāj road along the Makrān coast. The distance is one hundred and fifty miles, but the way is so difficult that the journey occupies twenty-four days. Pilgrims go from Karāchī in bands of from forty to fifty, each conducted by a Brāhman known as agua. At Karāchī he obtains a pass for the party. This is shown at Miāni where fees are collected by a bhārtī, or hereditary examiner, from all except devotees and unmarried girls. In all, on the journey, there are fifteen places where offerings are made, all of which go to the agua.
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Each pilgrim takes with him a stick of oleander, sometimes mounted with gold or silver; and each must choose a dharam bhāi, or ‘brother by duty or faith.’ This relationship is made binding at Kharinadī where each takes the other’s used took-stick. Upon reaching Hiṅg Lāj, they offer their beads to the goddess and then exchange them.
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Widows, and women with their children and husbands make this pilgrimage.²
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² The author has seen, e.g. at Almora, women belonging to the sect, both widows and married women, who had brought rosaries from Hiṅg Lāj and who had the brand-marks of Koteśwar on their arms. See chap. two.
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Goldsmid,³ who visited Hiṅg Lāj in 1861, while following the river, saw a place of sacrifice, a hollow in the hill, sacred to the goddess, smeared with the blood of animals offered to her; and rocks decorated with sectarian marks, in red. From this place up to the temple, about one-fourth of a mile, the stones under foot were smeared with blood.
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³ Crooke, ERE, vol. VI, p. 715.
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The shrine itself lies in a verdant valley surrounded by mountains. Far below is the abode of Nānī, a castellated, mud edifice with a rude wooden door. A flight of steps leads down a deep, semi-circular cleft through which pilgrims creep on all fours to reach the building. To enter this is a test of chastity, for the sin-laden cannot so enter. The shrine is a level, mud surface upon which a lamp is kept burning.
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There is here a dhūnī of Gorakhnāth, Gorakhjī kī dhūnī. Into a tank, Alāil Kuṇḍ, those who can swim jump from an overhanging rock. A cocoanut and a piece of red-cloth are offered. A cocoanut cast into the water will exhibit the nature of the pilgrim’s career. If, when the cocoanut is thrown into the tank, the water bubbles up, the pilgrim is assured that his life has been and will continue to be pure. If no bubbles appear, he will have to do penance to remove his sins.¹
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¹ Barnes, *Travels*, vol. III, p. 33.
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Close to the shrine is a well, said to be of unfathomable depth, from which pilgrims carry away water. Hājī Abdula Nabī describes the well as follows. The water ‘rises up at times with a bubbling noise, discoloured like a river fresh swollen after rain, and carrying mud in suspension. The Hindu pilgrims, when this takes place, throw in betel-nuts, cloves, cardamoms and cocoanuts. Should there be delay in the rising, pilgrims in the most abject manner will call on Mātā to give them a sight of herself, exhorting each other to reveal their sins and inwardly repent. When the water rises, they salaam with both hands joined, and throw in their offerings, which, after some time, on a second rise, are brought back again, where they are collected and formed into large cakes which they bake near the spot.’²
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² Crooke, *ERE*, vol. VI, p. 716.
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Near the village of Khajūrī is a pit, or hollow, where the brother of Hiṅg Lāj Devī, on being pressed by Gabars and Zoroastrians, sank into the ground. A spring gushed forth, caused by the brother, who is called Gāib Pīr (i.e. disappeared) by Musalmāns and Mahādeo by Hindus.
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There is a legend which deserves record at this juncture. While Śiva was at Āśāpūrī, Hiṅg Lāj Devī, in the form of a fly, settled in his hair. When he and Pārvatī, after wandering in search of Devī for twelve years, could not find her, Śiva, in rage, determined to disappear into the ground, to go to Pātāla. Thereupon the Devī came out of his hair, and, appearing in her proper form, said, ‘Why be angry? I am with you.’ The hollow in the ground marks the pit into which Śiva was about to disappear. Here a sound, ‘Bam, bam,’ is frequently heard. Those pilgrims who hear it are assured of being freed from sins; but those who do not hear it, are thought to be great sinners, and are urged by attendants and others to confess their sins, their companions even offering to share them. Then the sound comes again.¹
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¹ These accounts may involve some confusion concerning the well, the pit and the tank.
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Boons are often granted by the Devī. Ugra Prabhu, grandson of Nāin Pāl, who obtained the kingdom of Mārwār in A.D. 470, made a pilgrimage to Hiṅg Lāj. The goddess was so pleased with the severity of his penance that she caused to ascend from the foundation of the shrine the sword with which he conquered the southern countries.² Another, Rāna Hamīr, who had a leprous spot on his hand, made the pilgrimage to Hiṅg Lāj and obtained a cure.³
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² Tod, vol. II, p. 934.
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³ Tod, vol. III, p. 1,656.
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On the return journey from Hiṅg Lāj, pilgrims stop at a temple of Mahādeo (Śiva) at Koteśwar (‘Grove of Śiva’). This is a celebrated and ancient Tīrtha, which, at one time, lay on the borders of India. It is situated in Sind, not far from Karāchī, on the Lakpāt River, ten or twelve miles from its bar or entrance. At this place a peculiar stone, of the size of a shilling, resembling a worn down liṅga is found in vast numbers.⁴ Does this explain the meaning of ‘Koteśwar’? Here Gorakhnāthīs are branded on the upper part of the right fore-arm with the yoni-liṅga, emblem of Śiva-Śakti. The reason for this practice is that on this pilgrimage Yogis pass beyond the confines of India, and that the shrine at Hiṅg Lāj is in the keeping of Musalmāns. Hence pilgrims must be reconstituted Hindus when they return to India. In a legend explaining the practice it is related that there was formerly at Hiṅg Lāj a Musalmānī who was able to tell by magic when Yogis were among the pilgrims coming to the shrine, and that she could by the same means recognize them when they reached the place. She used to mark their foreheads with a ṭika, thus making them Musalmāns. Consequently, on the way back from the shrine, they stopped at Koṭeśwar and received there the brand mark of Mahādeva, as proof that he had remade them Hindus. The practice continues. The brandmark is as follows:
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⁴ See Capt. McMurdo, article, ‘Dissertation on the River Indus, JRAS, 1834, pp. 20–40. Koteśwar was the seaport of Lakpāt. See General G. Le Grand Jacob, C.B. in Transactions of the Bombay Geographical Society, 1862, article nine.
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The stories centring around Nagar Thaṭha, Hiṅg Lāj and Koṭeśwar show that Western India had its very ancient holy places, as old as those in the Himālayas and at Benares: and that early contacts were common between India and Western Asia, through some of them, notably Hiṅg Lāj. They also make it plain that Muslims in due time took possession of the holy places, but that pilgrimages continue as of old. Gorakhnāthīs lost Koṭeśwar to the Atīts in the sixteenth century.¹
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¹ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. V, p. 86.
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There are three sees of the Kānphaṭas in Kacch, in Vāgad, at Bhūj, and at Dhinodhar.² That at the latter place is the most important.
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² Bombay Gazetteer, vol. V, p. 85.
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The monastery of Kaṇṭhaḍnāth at MANPHARA, near Kaṇṭhkot, in Vāgad,³ traces its origin, says Khakhar⁴ to Kaṇṭhkot about A.D. 844. But the monastery is not old. Yogīs at this place call themselves Kaṇṭhaḍnāthīs. They are celibates and depraved. But some of their members are allowed to marry.⁴ Their power in Kacch was broken about three hundred years ago.⁵ Descendants of the Yogīs of this place became herdsmen. Kaṇṭhaḍnāthīs worship Gaṇeśa and Kaṇṭhaḍnāth, repeating the latter’s name in telling their beads. Kaṇṭhaḍnāth is worshipped twice a day. The arrangements at the monastery for charity are quite like those at Dhinodhar, but on a much reduced scale. A legend tells how Rāo Bharmiljī, with his army, was once entertained at this place, Udekāṇṭh, who later was made head of the monastery providing food for the host from one small dish.⁶ Another legend tells how the angry Kaṇṭhaḍnāth frustrated the plans of the Samma chiefs in their efforts to build a fortress (in A.D. 1300) on Kaṇṭhkot Hill. The ascetic was in possession of the hill and did not care to be dispossessed. As fast as the chiefs built the walls he threw them down, through the exercise of his powers of magic. He was pacified, eventually, and the fort was completed and named after him.¹
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³ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. V, pp. 87, 88.
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⁴ Khakhar, p. 12.
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⁵ IA, vol. VII, p. 53.
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⁶ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. V, p. 88.
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¹ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. V, p. 88; IA, vol. VII, p. 53.
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The Kānphaṭas of Śivarāmāṇḍap, in BHŪJ, who are now independent of Dhinodhar, were established, in 1749, by Rāo Desaljī, who gave land to a Yogī of Dhinodhar. These monks were later replaced by Sevanāth Śrīnagar, whose line still continues. They are of the sect of Śāntināth² and worshippers of Śakti.
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² Bombay Gazetteer, vol. V, p. 87.
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The monastery at DHINODHAR³ is one of the most important centres of the Kānphaṭas in Western India. Difficult of access, it is situated at the base of a lofty hill, surrounded by jungle, on the edge of the Rān, twenty-seven miles north-west of Bhūj. Some of the shrines belonging to the establishment are found upon the top of the hill.
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³ See JRAS, 1839, pp. 268-71; IA, 1878, pp. 47 ff; Khakhar Report on the Architectural, and Archaeological Remains in the Province of Kachh.
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Dhinodhar means ‘holder of patience’ and refers to the ability of the hill to bear the weight of the sin and penance of Dharamnāth.
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In approaching the place⁴ from Āral, a branch of the monastery, the first five miles of the journey to Dhinodhar are, for the most part, over fairly level sand, covered sparsely with thorn and cactus. The last mile, leading to the summit of the hill, is very steep. The hill has an elevation of 1,268 feet, and part of the ascent is upon its almost perpendicular side. Here there is a flight of 638 stone steps. The ascent is unshaded.
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⁴ The author visited the pīr of Dhinodhar at Āral, March 29, 1924. He was received in audience and was seated on the gaddi beside the pīr. All his questions were courteously answered, and the Yogīs were most friendly. A guide was sent with the author to Dhinodhar, and instructions were given to provide whatever the visitor should require. With him were the Reverend Musa Karshan of Ranpur in Kāṭhiāwār, and Mr. Faqir Chand Lallu Bai of Bhūj.
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The top of the hill presented (in 1924) quite a different appearance from that described by Khakhar (1879). There was then upon the hill a temple, about six feet high and five and three-fourths feet square, with a Musalmān dome, dedicated to Dharamnāth. The entrance was small and there was no door. The temple marked the spot where Dharamnāth performed his famous penance; and within it was found the stone, in the hollow of which he rested his head during the twelve years that he stood upon his head there. This stone was an object of worship and was covered with red lead and ghi. The temple contained also a marble statue of the saint, about three feet high, wearing the ear-rings of the sect. Besides, there were three small liṅgas and some brass and stone idols in the shrine. A light has been kept burning there since Dharamnāth’s time. The temple faced east. Close by was a dhūnī, or Yogī’s fire, which had been kept burning since the time of the saint.¹
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¹ Compare Bombay Gazetteer, vol. V, p. 86.
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Since then the temple has been enlarged and a veranda has been built on the front. The roof is now bordered with a saw-toothed parapet. The main, large dome is over the temple proper. In front of this is a medium-sized dome, and in front of this, in a line across the veranda, are three small domes. The plinth of the temple with the veranda measures 13 ft. by 26½ ft. That of the veranda being 13 ft. square. The inside of the temple is 8 ft. square. In the centre of the floor is a square of white marble upon which is the caran of Dharamnāth. This square is bordered with black marble. At the left, in front of the caran, is an incense lamp. On the left of the marble square are five liṅgas, a Gāurī-Śankar image and the stone on which Dharamnāth rested his head. It is not covered with red lead and ghi. On the right of the caran are a bell, two drinking vessels of muslin pattern and a shell. Behind the caran are three fairly large conch shells. Over the caran in the ceiling, a curtain is stretched horizontally. Over the door of the temple and on the front pillars of the veranda large tridents are drawn in red lead.
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To the left of the temple is a low building in which a dhūnī is kept burning perpetually. This building, too, is decorated with tridents painted in red lead.
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Between the temple and the shed which contains the dhūnī is a small platform, 3 ft. 10 ins. by 3 ft. 7 ins. upon which, in yellow stone, is the caran of Jotnāth.
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In a line in front, and to the right of the temple, extend a series of small one-room temples, each square with a saw-tooth parapet on the top and surmounted with a domed roof with a cone-shaped ornament on the top. All these temples have large red tridents painted on them. In order, looking east, these temples are to Bāl Bhāiroṁ, Viṣṇu Bhāiroṁ, Kāl Bhāiroṁ, and Hiṅg Lāj Devī. Each contains a small slab set up at the back with the image of the appropriate god or goddess engraved upon it and painted red. Still further to the east stands a slightly larger temple to Śiva with a liṅga inside, painted red. This temple also has a domed roof.
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Further to the east, a little in front of the temple of Dharamnāth, but at a slightly lower level, a slab of stone is set up and painted red. It is for Bhāiroṁ.
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Directly in front of the temple of Dharamnāth, but at a lower level, is a dharamśāla, or rest house. This long, narrow building faces north. It is decorated with Vaiṣṇavite images of Kṛṣṇa, Rādha, the Gopis and others. In the middle of the front face of the dharamśāla, and above the level of the doors, is a head of Jogeśvar, with the large ear-rings, painted red.
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North-east of the dharamśāla is a cook house.
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All of the structures are in good repair and are substantial. They are said to have been built about thirty years ago. The older temple was built in 1821.¹ The buildings on the top of the hill were in the charge of an Aughar. The efficient was a native of Agra. He conducted worship at the temple twice a day, blowing a conch three times, and making simple offerings. Besides this, he attended to the dhūnī. For the greater part of the year he had to carry water for all purposes from Āral.
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¹ IA, vol. VII, p. 51.
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Just below the summit of the hill, and to the right, is a tank which is filled with water during the monsoon.
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The descent to the monastery leads down through a very narrow and precipitous gorge, full of rocks of all sizes, the course of a mad mountain stream during the rains. In places, the rocky sides of the ravine are covered with white spots which give point to the story that the hill became leprous when a portion of it broke away under the weight of Dharamnāth’s sins. The gorge separates the broken portion of the hill from that on which Dharamnāth finally performed his penance. This ravine and the white spots are pointed out as evidences of the truth of the legend concerning the saint.
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An hour’s descent leads to the level of the jungle. Then the monastery, which lies on the eastern side of the hill, comes into view. The path passes close to a temple of Hiṅg Lāj Devī, a place of pilgrimage for some who are not resolute enough to journey to her shrine on the Makrān coast.
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At the monastery, which marks the place where Dharamnāth lighted his dhūnī, when he came down from the hill after he had performed his penance, fewer changes have been made than at the top of the hill. The grounds of the monastery are enclosed by a wall, in some places in disrepair. Part of the wall is loopholed after the fashion of old Indian forts. Most of the buildings within the wall are in splendid repair and give evidence of the prosperity of the establishment.
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Besides dharamsālas and residential quarters, the chief places of interest are the temple, or shrine, of Dharamnāth, the samādhs and the kitchens.
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The temple of Dharamnāth is now quite a pretentious building, on an elevated platform, with a surrounding wall and an elaborate gateway from which a stairway leads to the shrine. The entrance was built in 1899. The temple proper is rectangular in shape, with slightly sloping walls, having a domed roof and a saw-toothed parapet, and facing east. It contains a small, marble statue of the saint, about 15 ins. high, wearing the large ear-rings. There are a few small liṅgas, some brass idols, a trident, a bell and a lamp in the shrine. The platform is of white marble bordered with black. The walls and floors are tiled in squares of black and white marble with small yellow blocks at the angles of the black and white squares. In one corner of the shrine is a fan of peacock feathers. In a niche in the wall is a large lamp bowl, which is fed with ghi, in which, it is claimed, a wick has been kept burning since the time of Dharamnāth. To the left of the image is a horse, the mount of Rāwa Pīr, and beside it another. In front of the image is a five-bowled lamp for worship and a box. Drums and bells are provided in the temple.
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There are sixteen samādhs, tombs of pīrs, in the enclosure. Some represent two, some four pīrs by as many yoni-liṅgas. These phallic symbols are painted red. The samādhs are rectangular in shape and have domed roofs.
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Among the most interesting features of the monastery are the kitchens, for the place is noted for its practice of charity, and all who come to the monastery are fed. One of the kitchens contains a dhūnī which has been burning since the days of Dharamnāth. On each side of this fire are four huge caldrons resting in stands. They are about five feet from the ground. They are named Gaṅgā, Jumnā, Sarasvatī and Bhāgīrathī. They are very old and it is said that they were brought to Dhinodhar by Dharamnāth. They are now used only once a year, for the cooking of the food to be given in charity at the annual mela on Nāurātri, in October.¹ The caldrons are objects of worship. In the kitchen opposite to this are two very large copper caldrons which are used on alternate days for cooking food at all other times. Adjoining this kitchen is the store room. It contains an image of Rāwa Pīr mounted on a horse. This image, which is painted red, is an object of worship. The room contains three large mills for grinding grain.
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¹ A special feast is given on Gokal Atham in August, but it is not certain that these caldrons are used at that time.
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The monastery, which has about sixty Yogīs and a few Āughars in residence,² is presided over by a pīr. The present incumbent (1924) has a special disciple, a boy of about nine years, for whom he shows great affection.
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² In 1838 twelve were reported in residence. Khakhar reported about fifty.
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Life at the monastery is for the most part regular and uneventful. The morning and evening worship; such study and teaching as may be, apparently not very much; and the daily giving in charity of food to all who come, make up the day.
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The Yogīs are strict celibates. Some of them are young. One boy of about seventeen (1924), a Kānphaṭa, was very restless, and they were contemplating letting him leave the place.
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The healthy appearance of the Yogīs, the good condition of the buildings and the general cleanliness of the place indicate a high state of prosperity. The monastery owns about twenty villages¹ and has an income of about one hundred thousand rupees a year, of which the Rāo of Kacch appropriates twenty-five per cent. Various members of the establishment spend fully eight months of the year in the villages looking after the revenues of the monastery.
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¹ Postans (1839) made a similar statement.
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There are branches of the monastery at Āral, at Maṭhal and at Baladhiya.²
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² *IA*, vol. VII, p. 51.
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Dharamnāthīs belong to the Satnāth sect of the Panjab and Nepāl.³ Their founder was a disciple of Gorakhnāth.
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³ See also *IA*, vol. VII, p. 50.
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The power of the Yogīs of this place was broken in the sixteenth century, when they lost Koṭeśwar and Ajāipal to the Atīts.
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The fame of Dhinodhar rests on the story of the penance of Dharamnāth. The legend is as follows:⁴ Dharamnāth came from Peshāwar to Kāṭhiāwār, and thence to Kacch, in search of a suitable place to perform penance. He had with him a friend, Śaranāth and a disciple, Garībnāth. He first lighted his dhūnī and set up his abode under a tree near the palace of a chief at Ryām. This palace was about two miles north of Māṇḍavi, in Southern Kacch, a place called Paṭṭan.⁵ He then sent Garībnāth out to beg. The people of the place were very hard-hearted, and no one, except an old woman of the carpenter caste, gave alms. Garībnāth did not report the short-comings of the people to his master, but sold wood in the town and bought grain. The old woman cooked for Dharamnāth. Thus twelve years were passed in penance. Then Dharamnāth discovered by accident how he had been treated by the people and how Garībnāth and the old woman had suffered for him. In hot anger he upset his alms-bowl and cursed the people, saying, ‘Be buried all the Paṭṭan cities.’ So all the cities in Kacch bearing this name were swallowed up, with their inhabitants. Only the old woman escaped.
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⁴ See *JRAS*, 1839, pp. 268-71; *IA*, vol. VII, pp. 48, 49. The account as given to the author in 1924 was substantially as reported by earlier visitors.
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⁵ Postans, *JRAS*, 1839, p. 268.
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On account of this rash deed Dharamnāth determined upon a second penance. So he sought a place that would bear the weight of his sins. He chose Dhinodhar, but a portion of the hill split off under his weight, and sides oft e fissure became leprous in spots. He finally decided that he could ascend Dhinodhar if he went up the hill with his back to it. In this way he reached the summit. He then stood on his head there for twelve years, resting on a conical ball of hard stone.¹ Garībnāth and the woman, Cāran Deval, served him. This penance so shook the seat of Indra that a council of the gods, Nāthas and Siddhas was held to determine what should be done. It was decided that they should go and ask Dharamnāth to bring his penance to an end. He told them that, when he stood upright, which ever way he should look first all things would be consumed by fire—cities and towns would become ruins and would be abandoned and cultivated lands would become barren and desolate. Garībnāth, after consultation, asked Dharamnāth to look first toward the north-west. He did so and the sea dried up leaving only the present Rān.
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¹ Or, on a *pan* leaf. *JRAS*, 1839, p. 268.
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The company, with Dharamnāth, then descended the hill. On the way down they decided to have *bhang*. As no water was to be found, Pir Pathāo struck his dagger into the hillside and a spring burst forth. At the foot of the hill, to the east, Dharamnāth lighted his dhūnī, and there a monastery was established. Dharamnāth then disappeared.
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There is a tradition which states that he was reborn from a blister on the hand of Cāran Deval. He was then known as Rāwal Pīr. Under this name he has a temple on the coast east of Māṇḍavī.
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But it seems that Dhinodhar was a famous place when Dharamnāth took up his abode there. He came to Kacch from Peshāwar about 1382.¹ Still earlier it was known to Pīr Pathāo whose death is said to have taken place in 1209. The story is connected with the manner in which Pīr Pathāo gained possession of the cave at Pīr Arr, in Sind. This he achieved with the assistance of Gorakhnāth. A sādhu, Dayanāth, lived in this cave. The account of the amazing things that this man did in the presence of Gorakhnāth, who came to the help of Pīr Pathāo, contains elements that appeared later in the story of Dharamnāth. When Gorakhnāth came to Pīr Arr, in Sind, Dayanāth learned of it by supernatural sight. He became very angry and threw the hill into the sky and set it on fire by a breath. Then he departed to Dhinodhar Hill in Kacch. Pīr Pathāo went to Gorakhnāth and reproached him, saying, ‘You are sitting here while Dayanāth has set the hill on fire and bolted.’ The guru looked and saw that a fire was indeed burning between heaven and earth. But, as he was *looking*, the fire was extinguished and the hill dropped and cracked in two. Guru Gorakhnāth then perceived that Dayanāth was praying on Dhinodhar Hill, standing on his head on a betel-nut, and knew that after twelve months of austerity in this position, he could by breathing thrice blast all Sind. Thereupon Gorakhnāth extended his hand, although no one could observe this action, and seizing Dayanāth by the ear, brought him back to Pīr Arr. He then said to Dayanāth, ‘Don’t trouble the people. I promise you this blessing, that you and your successors shall never lack good horses and white clothes.’ He then made him his disciple, split his ear, put an ivory ornament in it, and, placing a turban made of black thread on his head, sent him back to Dhinodhar.²
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¹ IA, vol VII, p. 50.
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² The whole legend is recorded in chap. nine.
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Near DHAMAḌKĀ there is a well which is named after the famous Yogī.¹
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¹ Khakhar, p. 4.
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There are several places in Kāṭhiāwār which are associated with the name of Gorakhnāth.
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Upon the sacred height at GIRMĀR there are many temples in ruins. The hill consists of five principal peaks, the highest of which, with an altitude of 3,666 feet, is associated with the name of Gorakhnāth.² Above the shrine of Ambā Mātā there is another, three feet square, dedicated to the great disciple of Matsyendranāth. It is said that Pārvatī, in search of Śiva, dwelt at Girnār, and that she continued to sing the praises of her Lord, until, at this spot, he finally showed himself to her.³ In the Sind legends Girnār is represented as a noted place of resort and a favourite haunt of Gorakhnāth.
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² Bombay Gazetteer, vol. VIII, p. 441; Rās Mālā, vol. I, pp. 7, 154. Tod’s Western India; JASBe, vol. VII, p. 865. Lieut. M. Kittoe, article, ‘Notes on a Journey to Girnar, etc.’
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³ Archæological Survey, 1879. Kāṭhiāwār and Kacch, pp. 155, 175.
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Nine miles east of Pātan and six miles west of Prāchikuṇḍ, is GORAKHMADHI, also named after the great saint. The place is situated on the Sārasvatī River and is one of the most important in the west. Here, in a cave, deep underground, are three images of Gorakhnāth and one of Matsyendranāth. Gorakhnāth (the guru of Rukmībāi, consort of Kṛṣṇa) is the deity of the monastery at this place. In 1884, there were about forty monks in residence.⁴ All were celibates, except the Bāwā, or pīr, who is allowed to marry to keep up the succession. If he has no son, he may adopt from among his flock. He was called Nāthjī. Here all things are held in common. Some of the monks follow secular callings, some are land owners, and the head of the establishment possesses large estates. Great licence in food, drink and women is allowed. Food is distributed twice a day. Monks eat with sannyāsīs and provide the food out of the revenues of the monastery. Many sannyāsīs make the pilgrimage to this place. Atīts, or Gosāins, are the officients at the Śiva and Devī temples.¹
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⁴ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. VIII, pp. 154–56, 446; Khakhar, p. 3.
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¹ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. V, p. 87.
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Traditionally, Gorakhnāth lived in the neighbourhood of Dwāraka in the Dvāpara Yuga and he is supposed to have lived somewhere in Kāṭhiāwār, ‘three months’ journey west of Gorakhpur in the Kali Yuga.²
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² Martin, vol. II, p. 484.
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There are several places in Western India where Gorakhnāth is revered. On the top of Turanmal Hill, a tableland long and narrow, with an elevation of from 3,300 to 4,000 feet, and having an area of about sixteen square miles, situated in the Sātpurā range of hills, in the Khandesh District of the Bombay Presidency, are a fine artificial lake and the remains of many temples locally ascribed to the saint, Gorakhnāth.³
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³ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. XXIV, p. 66.
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About three-quarters of a mile south-east of Shīrālā in the Sātāra District, is a grove called Gorakhnāth or more correctly Gorakṣanāth after the presiding deity. The grove consists chiefly of fine old tamarinds. The image of the presiding deity of the grove is a large stone, like a mill-stone, placed on the north side of a gigantic old tamarind of the species known as Gorakhamlī. The bark of this tree is scarred everywhere in every direction by natural lines and cracks. These are supposed to be characters written by the deity in an unknown tongue; and every Kānphaṭa devotee who comes to worship here gets his name written on the tree, whether he announces it or not. It is of interest to note that Gorakhnāth, the patron deity of the grove, is tending to rank as a manifestation of Śiva.⁴
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⁴ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. XIX, p. 587; also Religion and Folklore of Northern India (1926), p. 403. Imlī, the sour tamarind.
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There are hills north of Aḥmadābād, in the Deccan, called Gorakhnāth.⁵
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⁵ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. VII, p. 5.
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In Thāna, at Ganeśpuri, are several hot springs, in the bed of the river, one of which is called Gorakhmacchindar. The water is very hot.⁶ And two old hill forts in Thāna are called Gorakhgad and Macchindragad.¹ In the neighbouring caves are signs of ancient residences.
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⁶ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. XIII, p. 16.
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¹ Bombay Gazetteer, vol. XIV, p. 101.
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There is at TRIMBAK,² eighteen miles from Nāsik, a monastery of the Bāirāg panth of the Kānphaṭas. This establishment is situated at the foot of the hills and possesses some fields and considerable grass land. The resident monk claimed that the land was granted to the monastery by ‘the Peshwa.’ The building itself is roomy but unsubstantially built. On the large, stone platform, which faces the monastery, is a huge, three-sectioned stone, painted red and representing Bhāiroṁ. ‘Eyes’ of silver are inset in the figure. The place is decorated with trisules and flags. Red paint is everywhere. On three sides of the platform are samādhs one of which is said to have contained the body of Aurangzeb, the last great Moghul.³ At the time of the author’s visit,⁴ the establishment contained three or four Āughars, one Kānphaṭa, Narbadnāth, and a wandering Rāwal. One of the Āughars was a woman. High upon the hillside, in a cave, close to the source of the Godāvarī, is a stone image of Gorakhnāth, about fifteen inches high.⁵
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² ‘Three-eyed.’ See Imperial Gazetteer, 1908, vol. XXIV, p. 49.
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³ See p. 70.
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⁴ December 21, 1924.
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⁵ Bombay Presidency Gazetteer, Nāsik, 1883, vol. XVI, p. 654.
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Rose says that the chief seat of the Dharamnāthīs is on the Godāvarī.⁶ Morris (1876) said that the source of the Godāvarī was at Trimbak, on a hill approached by 690 stone steps flanked by a low stone wall. ‘At the top is a stone platform, built at the foot of the rock out of which, drop by drop, issues the water of the stream, and an image under a canopy has been so placed that the water trickles through its mouth into a reservoir.’ This is the source of the Ganges as well,⁷ the channel being underground. (But ‘Ganges’ is a name applied to many sacred streams.)
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