Dabhi
Encyclopedia
The Dabhi are a Rajput
clan found in the state of Gujarat in India
. They are a clan of the Jadaun
Rajput
s, and as such are Chandravanshi. The Dabhi are found mainly in Saurashtra.
carried him to Ghazni
for safe custody another Dabshilim, a relative whose pretensions the newly made king dreaded, and detained him until king Dabshilim was securely seated on his throne, when he sent him back to Gujarat at the king's request. When the prisoner approached Anhilvara the king, according to custom, went forth to meet him, and, arriving at the appointed spot before him, passed the time in hunting. At length, overpowered by the heat and by fatigue, he lay down under a tree to rest, covering his face with a red handkerchief. A bird of prey, taking the handkerchief for a piece of flesh, swooped down upon it and, driving his talons into the king's eyes, destroyed his sight. One so injured was disqualified from reigning, and the prisoner Dabshilim, arriving at that moment, was acclaimed by the popular voice as king, while the blinded man was confined in the dungeon under the throne-room which he had destined for his relative.
Dabshilim is well known in Muslim literature as the king to whom the Brahman, Pilpay, related the fables of the jackals Kalila and Dimna, which have been translated into Arabic and Turkish, and twice into Persian, but the name is unknown in Indian history and it is difficult to connect it with any Indian king. It has been suggested that Mahmud, after the flight of Bhim I, appointed his uncle, Durlabha, to the government, and that the two Dabshilims represent Durlabha and his son, but Lt.-Colonel Tod's explanation appears to be more probable. He says that the Dabhis were a well known tribe, said by some to be a branch of the Chawaras, who had preceded the Solankis on the throne of Gujarat, and suggests that the name is a compound of Dabi Chawara.
Rajput
A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...
clan found in the state of Gujarat in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. They are a clan of the Jadaun
Jadaun
The Jadaun are a clan of Chandravanshi Rajputs found in North India and Pakistan.-Origins:...
Rajput
Rajput
A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...
s, and as such are Chandravanshi. The Dabhi are found mainly in Saurashtra.
Origin
The Dabhi claim descent from an ascetic named Dabshilim, who had a claim to the throne. At his request Mahmud of GhazniMahmud of Ghazni
Mahmud of Ghazni , actually ', was the most prominent ruler of the Ghaznavid dynasty who ruled from 997 until his death in 1030 in the eastern Iranian lands. Mahmud turned the former provincial city of Ghazni into the wealthy capital of an extensive empire which covered most of today's Iran,...
carried him to Ghazni
Ghazni
For the Province of Ghazni see Ghazni ProvinceGhazni is a city in central-east Afghanistan with a population of about 141,000 people...
for safe custody another Dabshilim, a relative whose pretensions the newly made king dreaded, and detained him until king Dabshilim was securely seated on his throne, when he sent him back to Gujarat at the king's request. When the prisoner approached Anhilvara the king, according to custom, went forth to meet him, and, arriving at the appointed spot before him, passed the time in hunting. At length, overpowered by the heat and by fatigue, he lay down under a tree to rest, covering his face with a red handkerchief. A bird of prey, taking the handkerchief for a piece of flesh, swooped down upon it and, driving his talons into the king's eyes, destroyed his sight. One so injured was disqualified from reigning, and the prisoner Dabshilim, arriving at that moment, was acclaimed by the popular voice as king, while the blinded man was confined in the dungeon under the throne-room which he had destined for his relative.
Dabshilim is well known in Muslim literature as the king to whom the Brahman, Pilpay, related the fables of the jackals Kalila and Dimna, which have been translated into Arabic and Turkish, and twice into Persian, but the name is unknown in Indian history and it is difficult to connect it with any Indian king. It has been suggested that Mahmud, after the flight of Bhim I, appointed his uncle, Durlabha, to the government, and that the two Dabshilims represent Durlabha and his son, but Lt.-Colonel Tod's explanation appears to be more probable. He says that the Dabhis were a well known tribe, said by some to be a branch of the Chawaras, who had preceded the Solankis on the throne of Gujarat, and suggests that the name is a compound of Dabi Chawara.