Brahmin dynasty of Sindh

The Brahmin dynasty of Sindh (c. 632– 712),[4] also known as the Chacha dynasty,[5] was the ruling dynasty of the Sindh, succeeding the Rai dynasty. Most of the information about its existence comes from the Chach Nama, a historical account of the Chach-Brahmin dynasty.[6]

Brahmin dynasty of Sindh
"Chacha dynasty"
Territory of the Chachas and neighbouring polities circa 600-650 CE.[2]
CapitalAror
Common languagesSanskrit, Sindhi
Religion
Hinduism[3]
GovernmentMonarchy
Maharaja 
• 632–671
Chach
• 671–679
Chandar
• 695–712
Dahir
History 
• Chach founds the empire
632 CE
• Annexed by the Umayyad Caliphate
724
Preceded by		Succeeded by
Rai Kingdom
Caliphal province of Sind
Today part ofPakistan

India

Muhammad ibn Qasim's Campaigns in Sindh.
  Desert areas (Registan Desert and Thar Desert)
  Zunbils
  Kingdom of Sindh (c. 632– 712 CE)
  Maitraka Kingdom (c.475–c.776 CE)

The members of the dynasty continued to administer parts of Sindh under the Umayyad Caliphate's Caliphal province of Sind after it fell in 712.[4] These rulers include Hullishāh and Shishah.[4]

History
Main article: Umayyad conquest of Sindh

The dynasty was founded by a Sindhi Hindu Brahmin named Chach of Aror after he married the widow of Rai Sahasi II and usurped the Buddhist Rai dynasty. His claim was further secured by the killing of Rai Sahasi II's brother.[4][7]

The casus belli for the Ummayad invasion was Sindhi pirates seizing tribute sent from the king of Serendib to the Ummayad Caliph. For the campaign Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan granted a large army to the governor Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf, but no attempt was made to annex Sindh due to the caliph's death. Under his son and successor Al-Walid I, the general Muhammad bin Qasim led the Islamic invasion of Sindh in 712.

Chinese traveller, Hieun Tsang, who had visited the Sindh region during the start of the Chacha rule, described in his work that Buddhism had declined in the region and Brahminical Hinduism had once again gained the majority dominance.[8][9]

Hinduism was the predominant religion in Sindh under the Chacha empire, prior to the arrival of Islam with the Arab invasions, although a significant minority of the Sindhi population adhered to Buddhism as well.[3] Hindus made up almost two-thirds of the ethnic Sindhi population before the arrival of Islam in the region.[10] At the time of the invasions, Sindhi Hindus were a rural pastoral population, majority of whom lived in upper Sindh, a region that was entirely Hindu;[11] whereas Buddhists were a mercantile population, almost entirely concentrated in the urban areas between lower Sindh and Makran, a region that was equally divided in population between Buddhists and Hindus.[11]

The primary sources describe that Buddhists in Sindh collaborated[12][13] and sided[14] with the Arabs, before the invasion even began.[15] The Islamic Arab invasion of Sindh were only made successful, because leaders of the Buddhist community despised and opposed the local Brahmin ruler, hence sympathizing with the Arab invaders and even helping them in times.[16]

On the other hand, Sindhi Hindu resistance against the Arabs continued for much longer, both in upper Sindh and Multan.[17]

During the conflict, the western Buddhist Jats aligned with the invading Arab army led by Muhammad bin Qasim against the local Hindu ruler Raja Dahir, whereas the eastern Hindu Jats supported Dahir, against the invaders.[18]

Having settled the question of the freedom of religion and the social status of the Brahmans, Muhammad bin al-Qasim turned his attention to the Jats and Lohanas. Chronicles such as the Chach Nama, Zainul-Akhbar and Tarikh-I-Baihaqi have recorded battles between Hindu Jats and forces of Muhammad ibn Qasim.[18]

The last Hindu king of Sindh, Raja Dahir was killed during the battle of Aror and Sindh was annexed into the Ummayad Caliphate as a province.[19] After Dahir had been killed, the queen (Ladi) coordinated the defense of the capital for several months. As the food supplies ran out, she and the women of the capital refused to surrender, lit pyres and committed Jauhar[20] to avoid rape, enslavement and sexual slavery at the hands of Muslim invaders.[20] The remaining men of the ruling family walked out to their deaths at the hands of the invading army.[20]

Rulers

The known rulers of the Brahmin dynasty are:[4]

  • Chach (r. c. 632 – c. 671– )
  • Chandar (r. c. 671 – c. 679– )
  • Dāhir (r. c. 679 – c. 712–  from Alor)

Under the Umayyad Caliphate:

  • Dahirsiya (r. c. 679 – c. 709–  from Brahmanabad)
  • Hullishāh (r. c. 712 – c. 724– )
  • Shishah (r. 724– )
  • Sindh. Chach of Alor. Pracandendra. Circa 632-671 CE. AR Damma (11mm, 0.64 g, 2h). Obverse: Crowned head right; swastika to right. Reverse: Large trident
    Sindh. Chach of Alor. Pracandendra. Circa 632-671 CE. AR Damma (11mm, 0.64 g, 2h). Obverse: Crowned head right; swastika to right. Reverse: Large trident
  • Sindh. Multan. ‘Śri Tapana’. Circa 675-700 CE. AR Damma (12mm, 0.62 g, 8h) Head right; śri in Brahmi on forehead Stylized fire altar surmounted by three pellets; tapan and rja in Brahmi around
    Sindh. Multan. ‘Śri Tapana’. Circa 675-700 CE. AR Damma (12mm, 0.62 g, 8h) Head right; śri in Brahmi on forehead Stylized fire altar surmounted by three pellets; tapan and rja in Brahmi around

See also

References
  1. Schwartzberg, Joseph E. (1978). A Historical Atlas of South Asia. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 146, map XIV.2 (b). ISBN 0226742210.
  2. Schwartzberg, Joseph E. (1978). A Historical Atlas of South Asia. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 146, map XIV.2 (b). ISBN 0226742210.
  3. Malik, Jamal (October 31, 2008). Islam in South Asia: A Short History. E.J. Brill. p. 40. ISBN 9789047441816. Retrieved October 22, 2023. Sind's majority population followed Hindu traditions but a substantial minority was Buddhist.
  4. Wink, André (1991). Al- Hind: The Slave Kings and the Islamic Conquest. Brill. pp. 152–153. ISBN 9004095098.
  5. Rao, B. S. L. Hanumantha; Rao, K. Basaveswara (1958). Indian History and Culture. Commercial Literature Company. p. 337.
  6. Keay, John (1999). India: A History. London: HarperCollins. pp. 182–183. ISBN 978-0-00-255717-7.
  7. MacLean, Derryl N. (1989). Religion and Society in Arab Sind. Brill. ISBN 9004085513.
  8. Omvedt, Gail (August 18, 2003). Buddhism in India: Challenging Brahmanism and Caste. SAGE Publications. p. 160. ISBN 9780761996644. Archived from the original on October 9, 2023. Retrieved October 22, 2023. It appears that at the time of Hsuan Tsang, after a millennia-long historical con- flict, Brahmanism had emerged dominant. Buddhism was declining and it would, within centuries, vanish from the land of its origin.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  9. Mumtaz, Khawar; Mitha, Yameena; Tahira, Bilquis (2003). Pakistan: Tradition and Change. Oxfam. p. 12. ISBN 9780855984960. Retrieved October 22, 2023. By the seventh century AD, Buddhism declined completely and Hinduism became the dominant religion. Around this time the Arabs, who had trade and commerce links going back for centuries, came for the first time as conquerors (712 AD). By 724 AD they had established direct rule in Sindh.
  10. Chandwani, Nikhil (March 13, 2019). "History of Hinduism in Sindh from ancient times and why Sindh belongs to India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved October 22, 2023. Hinduism was majorly practiced in Sindh during this time but with the entry of Chandragupta Maurya in 313 BC there was an entry of Buddhism as well. .... However, there was a revival of Hindu religion during the Gupta period which then became dominated culture in Sindh. It flourished well all over India, especially in the Sindh region. .... Before the invasion of Mohammed bin Qasim, Hinduism was the most prominent religion in Sindh that constituted about 64 percent of percent of the total population.
  11. MacLean, Derryl N. (1989). Religion and Society in Arab Sind. E.J. Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-08551-0. Archived from the original on January 21, 2023. Retrieved October 22, 2023. As a result, it is possible to conclude that Buddhism, while important in Sindh, was not the only or even the majority religion. Hindus were definitely in the vast majority in upper Sind (where, as noted, there were few if any Buddhists), but probably at least equal in numbers to the Buddhists in Lower Sindh and Mukrân. (page 52) ..... Nevertheless, the data indicate, in a general way, the relative balance between the two religions in Lower Sind and the predominance of Hinduism in Upper Sind. (page 72)
  12. Avari, Burjor (2013). Islamic Civilization in South Asia: A History of Muslim Power and Presence in the Indian Subcontinent. Routledge. p. 22. ISBN 9780415580618. Retrieved October 22, 2023. It is quite likely therefore that some form of Buddhist collaboration with the Arabs may have begun even before the Arab invasion.
  13. Sarao, K.T.S. (October 2017). "Buddhist-Muslim Encounter in Sind During the Eighth Century". Bulletin of the Deccan College Post-Graduate and Research Institute. JSTOR. 77: 77. JSTOR 26609161. Retrieved October 22, 2023. The primary sources indicate that the Buddhists tended to collaborate with the invading Arabs at an early date
  14. Siddiqi, Iqtidar Husain (2010). Indo-Persian Historiography Up to the Thirteenth Century. Primus Books. p. 34. ISBN 9788190891806. Retrieved October 22, 2023. At the time of the Arab invasion, the Buddhists repudiated their allegiance to Dahir and decided to cooperate with his enemy.
  15. Maclean, Derryl N. (December 1, 1989). Religion And Society In Arab Sind. E.J. Brill. p. 121-122. ISBN 9789004085510. Archived from the original on March 2, 2017. Retrieved October 22, 2023. Buddhists tended to collaborate to a significantly greater extent and at an earlier date than did Hindus.... Where the primary sources refer to religious affiliation, Buddhist conmunities (as opposed to individuals) are always (there is no exception) mentioned in terms of collaboration.... Furthermore, Buddhists generally collaborated early in the campaign before the major conquest of Sind had been achieved and even before the conquest of towns in which they were resident and which were held by strong garrisons.
  16. Gankovsky, Yu. V.; Gavrilov, Igor (1973). "The Peoples of Pakistan: An Ethnic History". Nauka Publishing House. p. 116-117. Retrieved October 22, 2023. ....the invasion of Sind was all the easier because the leaders of the Buddhist community were in opposition to the Hindu rulers and sympathized with the Arabic [sic] invaders and sometimes even helped them.
  17. Hiltebeitel, Alf (May 1999). Rethinking India's Oral and Classical Epics: Draupadi Among Rajputs, Muslims, and Dalits. University of Chicago Press. p. 281. ISBN 9780226340500. Retrieved October 22, 2023. While the results of Buddhist collaboration in Sind were short-lived, the history of Hinduism there continued in multiple forms, first with Brahman-led resistance continuing in upper Sind around Multan...
  18. Vijaya Ramaswamy, ed. (2017). Migrations in Medieval and Early Colonial India. Routledge. ISBN 9781351558242. Retrieved October 22, 2023.
  19. Burton, Richard (1851). Sindh and the Races that Inhabit the Valley of the Indus. Asian Educational Services. pp. 14–15. ISBN 9788120607583.
  20. Chatterjee, Partha (2010). Empire and Nation: Selected Essays. Columbia University Press. pp. 84–85. ISBN 978-0-231-52650-0. Retrieved October 22, 2023.


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