Bhargava

Bhargava, also spelled Bhargav, is a community in India who believe themselves to be descended from the sage Bhrigu. Its members originate from the Dhosi Hill area and were originally known as Dhusars.

History

A view of ancient Dhosi Hill Temple of Chyvan Rishi, rebuilt by Bhargava Community in 1890s

The Bhargava community were originally known as Dhusars and were a trading caste (bania or vaishya). During the later part of the 19th century they successfully engineered a rise to the status of brahmin using a process sometimes termed sanskritisation. It was at this time that they took the name of Bhargava.[1] The oldest known inscription mentioning the Dhusar community is at the Sakrai Mata temple at Sakrari in Sikar district, Rajasthan. Dineshchandra Sircar dates this to 879 AD,[2] although it is dated by others to 642 A.D. They were merchants or traders at that time.[3]

Bhargav now believe themselves to be descended from the sage Bhrigu and his son Chyavana.[4]

Present status

The Bhargava have well-established community associations, the Bhargava Sabhas, that operate in various cities[5] under an umbrella organisation, the All-India Bhargava Sabha (AIBS) located at Gurgaon, Haryana. There are around 37 of these Bhargava Sabhas.[6]

AIBS has also held international conferences. These took place in Canada (2008), USA (2009) and Dubai (2012).

References

  1. ↑ Stark, Ulrike (2004). "Hindi Publishing in the Heart of an Indo-Persian Cultural Metropolis". In Blackburn, Stuart H.; Dalmia, Vasudha. India's Literary History: Essays on the Nineteenth Century. Orient Blackswan. pp. 268, 276. ISBN 978-8-17824-056-5.
  2. ↑ रतन लाल मिश्र:शेखावाटी का नवीन इतिहास, मंडावा, १९९८, पृ.३११-३१२
  3. ↑ Ray, Himanshu Prabha (2003). The Archaeology of Seafaring in Ancient South Asia. Cambridge University Press. p. 283. ISBN 978-0-52101-109-9.
  4. ↑ Bhargava, Puroshottam Lal (1989). Bhargava Jati Ka Itihas. p. 8.
  5. ↑ People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part One edited by A Hasan & J C Das pages 272 to 277 Manohar Publications
  6. ↑ Souvenir, "All India Bhargava Sabha' issued at Bikaner, 25-27 Dec 2011, page 57