Vansh : Suryavanshi

Valla  / Balla  /Ghalot (Ghelot/Guhilot)

24 saca or branches. Solar. The raja of Udaipur is a Grahilot.

Sub divisions: Sisodia, Gohil, Chundawat, Ranawat, Shaktawat, Sarangdevot, Sangawat, Chandrawat, Kshemawat, Suhawat, Ahariya

Gahlot / Sisodia (Sisodia, Sesodia)

This is the story of the integration of Sisodia Rajputs with Mer community, it goes back some time in 1344 when Bheemsingh Rana of Rajasthan was ruling at Chitorgarh, He had two queens. The first had a son Khuman while the second one had six sons. The names of these six sons were Manji, Hathiasinghji, Khatvoji, Godhoji, Sinhroji and Vachdoji. The last two of the six sons were minor, while the former had become budding youths in course of time. All these four sons were in charge of his protection as watch and ward officers of Bheemsingh, because he was most impressed by their loyalty. On one night, the four sons heard talk between the king and the step-mother queen telling her husband that “you should not trust these four sons of yours”. The greed for power of ruling is bound to change their mind and they may become disloyal at any time. The King rejected the doubts of the queen and told her not to worry about it. All the four sons were extremely surprised at the suspicion and decided to prove that there was no threat to their regal father. After some days it so happened, that in the middle of the night, there was a cry of wolf from outskirts nearby. The son Katvoji who had the powers to understand the language of the beasts and birds became alert and tried to understand the meaning of the wolf-cry. He told other three brothers that the prediction was that Rana the king would be no more next day morning. Having doubts about his prediction, the other two brothers asked as to how can any one enter the palace when we are here on the guard. Katvoji said that it will be the snake bite that would put an end to the life of the king.

After a lot of deliberations, the four sons decided to rescue the life of the king-father and decided to enter the palace room stealthily. They climbed the wall and slowly entered the bedroom of the king. They found that a snake was lying there with the garland of flowers. One of them immediately took out the sword and cut the snake in two parts. However, it so happened that the poison dropped from the mouth of the snake, and one drop fell on the lips of the queen who was sleeping beside the king. This was bound to kill he queen instead of the king. They decided to wipe out the poison with the help of a piece of cloth tied on the tip of the sword. The queen immediately got up and shouted for help. The king became extremely angry to see his four sons standing there. The king got highly enraged and forth ordered them to get away from his kingdom. The sons went out the palace and made all the arrangement to quit the kingdom. When the king saw the dead snake and garland cut into two parts, he realised the mistake and decided to call them back. When the messenger of Maharana reached the brothers they had already prepared to leave the place. The eldest brother replied that “since it was the command of Maharana to leave this land, they would not return except after making pilgrim to the temple of Dwarika as token of fulfilment of the royal order.”

All the six brothers first reached the place called Khambhalia near Jamnagar in Surashtra where a Kathi king was ruling. All the Sisodia brothers has put on saffron cloths of Sadhus, and told the local king that they had come there for a pilgrimage. The king was surprised to find that one of the six brothers resembled his own son who dies some time ago. He learnt that all these six brothers were the princes of Bheemsingh Rana of Mewad and banished from Chitod and were on the way to pilgrimage. The Kathi King was impressed with their nobility and promised one of them to be taken as successor of his kingdom. The descendants of Manji Sisodia were later known as Jogia Khuman Kathi.

The remaining five brothers later went to Mount Girnar for pilgrimage and came across the place called Malia of Hati Rulers. The ruler had very strange habit of going at night with the cover of the skin of wild animals, in the garden. The gardener found every morning that a lot of damage was done to the fruit and flower plants but could not find out the perpetrator. The gardener one night went in the hide-out and when the so called beast entered, he stabbed and killed the same. But it was the king himself who died with the painful outcry. When all the courtiers were informed of the mishap they were in great misery. As Hati King had no one  to inherit the throne, it was decided with the consultation of a learned Brahmin, that whoever enters the fort gate next day morning, he would be appointed as the king. Hathisinghji, one of the five Sisodia brothers entered the gate along with his brothers. He was chosen as the king. The red Tilak mark of being enthroned on the Malia Kingdom was ritually put on his forehead. Hathisingh thus became the king of Hati community and lived there ever after.

The remaining four brothers Katvoji, Godhoji, Singhroji and Vachhdoji left ahead for Dwarka. On the way they, they had to pass through the capital Ghumli of the Jethwa King. At that time Bhan Jethwa was ruling. The king and the public were greatly frightened by a man-eating lioness residing in the thick forest of Abhapara hills of Barda. The lioness did not touch buffalo or cow for the prey, her appetite was flesh of a man only. She suddenly used to come to the capital town at night and lift a man and devoured in the darkness of thick forest. Some people believed that an Aghori Sadhu had taken the form of a lioness and was committing the dreadful acts. The king had announced that if anybody was able to kill this wild animal, he would present the land of 12 villages as a token of gift. Many people tried to take up his challenge but none was able to succeed.

When the four Sisodia brothers reached Ghumli they took shelter at the compound of a potter man. When they were sitting in the saffron clothes of Sadhu, they heard this challenge being spoken by some people. It was also retorted that there was no Rajput worthy of the name to accept this challenge. One of the brothers Godhoji was very much moved by the panic and terror let loose by the beast and decided to take up the challenge. Two brothers went to court of Jethwa Rana and gave their introduction as the sons of Rana Bheemsingh of Mewad. They also have him the promise that they would try to get rid of the menace of man-eating lioness.

At night they got hidden in darkness in the main square of the town of Ghumli and kept a bundle of grass on a cot covered it up with a piece of cloth. When the lioness approached the place, she pounced upon the cot in the impression that there was a man to be taken as its prey. When she found cheated, she shouted fiercely and went on jumping here and there. Katvoji immediately shouted at lioness and invited her to attack. He had wrapped his hand with a turban which he directed into the mouth of the angry lioness and pushed a dagger into her stomach. Without wasting any time Godhoji immediately came on the spot wielded the sword to put and end to the animal. Both of them cut the ears, nails and tail of the lioness and took with them at the resting place. They set up dead animal in the centre of the square of the town to show as if she was alive.

In the morning people found that the lioness was in the centre of the square and immediately sent a message to the king. The King challenged that if anyone was real Rajput why don’t he go and kill the lioness. Some of the people, who were full of excitement to see the dead animal, took the carcass to the king as a proof that they had killed the lioness. The king asked that he would like to know the person who was the first to attack the animal. In the mean time, the Sisodia brothers went to the king and told him they had killed the wild animal. As proof they presented to him the ears, nails and tail of the dead lioness.