Bhathiji also called Bhathiji Maharaj (as an honorific) is a folk deity of

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

. He is an eminent warrior-hero of the region.

Legend

As per the folklore, Bhathi was the second son of Thakore Takhatsinghji of fagvel born in

Rathod The Rathore is a Rajputs, Rajput clan found in Northern India. Subclans Jodhana, Vadhel, Jaitawat, Kumpawat, Champawat, Meratiya, Udawat, Karamsot etc. are the branches or subclans of Rathore Rajputs. Coverage This article discusses the ...

branch of

Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

clan. While he was marrying Kankubaa and was completing the fourth of the seventh fera, he came to know that Muslim king of Kapadvanj, receiving a complaint against him had impounded the mother Gaus (Cow) of the village. Bhathiji immediately left riding a horse with his sword, leaving the marriage incomplete. He released the cow and defeated the army, but his head was severed from his body. He died as martyr but was able to free the cattle. There are folk songs of how Bhatihiji's headless body continued to fight the Muslim raiders till all of them were wiped out.

Legacy

Bhathiji is ever since worshipped as a folk deity as a protector of cow and followers believe, those who worship Bhathiji are protected also from bites of snakes, cobras and scorpions. The

s of Saurashtra worship his as

kuladevata A kuladevatā (), also known as a kuladaivaṃ, is an ancestral tutelary deity in Hinduism and Jainism. Such a deity is often the object of one's devotion (''bhakti''), and is coaxed to watch over one's clan (''kula''), gotra, family, and chil ...

Further, most of the Bhuas - irrespective of castes that they belong to, worship Bhathiji Maharaj. Bhuas, whose main job is to save people from the effects of and woo away the spirits, believe, they are bestowed upon mystical powers by good spirits like Bhathiji Maharaj and so worship him. Bhathiji is worshiped by Hindus to cure ill livestock and family members. Bhuva, the priest of is approached for diagnosis and curing of disease among men and animals. When a family member, a cow, a buffalo etc. falls ill or dies, it is believed that the spirit of an ancestor had been annoyed because of neglect of timely worship, lack of offering ritual food and respect. When someone is harassed by an evil spirit, the Bhuva of is consulted. If the evil spirit tries to evade the commands of Vachhada Dada, the bhuva threatens to punish the spirit by inciting against it the wrath of this powerful deity. The iconography of Bhatihiji is of a male warrior that rides a horse wielding a sword in his right hand. In Davda village of

Kheda district Kheda District is one of the thirty-three districts of Gujarat state in western India. Its central city, Kheda, is the administrative headquarters of the district. History Formerly known as Kaira district, it was divided in two with the sou ...

of Gujarat, reds of worshippers of Bhathiji, Hindus as well as Muslims, line up there every Friday to seek the blessings of the deity and the priest, and take a vow to renounce liquor. There are five other fairs dedicated to Bhathiji are organised; at Davda village in Nadiad taluka on 5 December; at Mahmedpura in Nadiad taluka, Fagvel in Kapadvanj taluka, Kanij in Mahemadabad taluka and Valasan in Anand taluka on 2nd day of

shukla paksha Paksha (also known as ''pakṣa''; sa, पक्ष, Nepal Bhasa: ''thwa'' and ''gа̄''; ) refers to a fortnight or a lunar phase in a month of the Hindu lunar calendar. Literally meaning "side", a paksha is the period either side of the F ...

of Hindu calendar month of Kartik. In 2002,

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from ...

, then the Gujarat chief Minister, flagged off his ''Gaurav Yatra'' from Bhathiji Temeple at Phagvel. There also exists, an organisation of the Kshatriya followers of Bhathiji called Bhathiji Sena. A film about him was directed by

Shantilal Soni Shantilal Soni also referred as S. L. Soni (28 November 1930 – 2004) was a noted film director, producer and writer from Bombay. He was a Gujarati by birth. He has directed more than 22 films, starting his career in 1960 with ('' Sinhal Dweep Ki ...

and released in 1980 named ''Bhathiji na Mandire'' in 1980 and ''Bhathiji Maharaj'' in 1990, both in

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...

. Also there are musical albums of

bhajan Bhajan refers to any devotional song with a religious theme or spiritual ideas, specifically among Indian religions, in any language. The term bhajanam (Sanskrit: भजनम्) means ''reverence'' and originates from the root word ''bhaj'' ...

s and songs in his reverence available sung by local as well as known artists like

Alka Yagnik Alka, AlkA or ALKA may refer to: People * Alka Ajith (born c. 1997), Indian multilingual playback singer * Alka Amin (active from 2011), Indian television actress * Alka Balram Kshatriya, Indian politician, Member of the Parliament of India repr ...

References

{{Reflist Regional Hindu gods Hindu folk deities

Legend

Legacy

See also

References