Village Life

On Thursday we went on a village tour with a man who grew up in the villages of Jodhpur. It was so interesting! We learned so much about the people and how different their lives are in the villages. We went several places but our two favorites was the Muslim potter village and the Bishnoi village.

Beating the clay pots - while they're wet - to make them round.

You can't see it in this picture, but the round cement block is spinning while this potter forms the clay. Also, the pots behind him are drying in the sun before they are fired in a kiln. After they are completed they can be painted and sold.

Our next stop was a Bishnoi village. The Bishnoi people are Hindu, but they're founder, Guru Jambheshwar, gave them a list of 29 laws that they must follow. The name "Bishnoi" means 29 in the Marwar language. One of the most famous of their 29 laws is that they are to protect the wildlife and land, so trees and animals are sacred to the Bishnoi people.

History of the Bishnoi people:
On a Tuesday in 1730 A.D., Amrita Devi, a Bishnoi woman was at her home with her three daughters (Asu, Ratni and Bhagu bai) when she came to know that a number of people had descended on their otherwise sleepy village of Khejarli. The people were a party of men sent by Maharaja Abhay Singh, the ruler of the kingdom of Jodhpur in the Marwar region, who wanted to fell green Khejri trees to burn lime for the construction of the Maharaja's new palace. Since there was a lot of greenery in the Bishnoi villages even in the middle of the Thar Desert, the king ordered his men to get the wood by cutting the Khejri trees. Amrita Devi protested against the Maharaja's men who were attempting to cut green trees as it was prohibited according to Bishnoi principles. The malevolent feudal party told her that if she wanted the trees to be spared, she would have to give them money as bribe. She refused to acknowledge this demand and told them that she would consider it as an act of insult to her religious faith and would rather give away her life to save the green trees. It is at that stage she spoke these words: Sar santey rookh rahe to bhi sasto jaan (If a tree is saved even at the cost of one's head, it's worth it).Saying these words, she offered her head. The axes, which were brought to cut the trees, severed her head. The three young girls Asu, Ratni and Bhagu were not daunted, and offered their heads too. When the Maharaja heard of her devotion to the protection of these trees, he wrote a decree to protect the trees and wildlife in the Bishnoi villages that is still enforced today.
There is a famous Bollywood actor, Salman Khan, who shot a black buck in the Bishnoi villages and was prosecuted after being turned in by the Bishnoi people. (We got to see the exact place where he shot the deer and was apprehended by some local villagers.)

This is the Bishnoi family that we visited with. The Bishnoi men always wear white to symbolize peace and the women wear red to draw others to the Bishnoi people and their way of life, the color is also for good luck. The women wear those large nose rings from the time they get married until their husband dies...it's used to signify a long life for the husband.

This is the Bishnoi opium ceremony. Although their 29 laws require them to be hospitable to guests, they are not allowed to partake of it (opium) themselves. They crush up the opium and add water, then they filter it and offer it to their guests in the palm of their hands. It's a sign of hospitality toward the guest.

Here is the female nilgai that we saw in the Bishnoi villages. The females are brown, but the males are blue. They are the largest antelope found in Asia.
The Bishnoi are well known not only for their protection of trees but also animals (especially the black buck). The Bishnoi villages are full of cinkara (antelope), black buck and nilgai (blue bull); these animals can be seen wandering throughout the Bishnoi villages.