Part 39

BHAU DAJI (RAMKRISHNA VITHAL) (1822-1874), Hindu physician of Bombay, Sanskrit scholar and antiquary, was born in 1822 at the village of Manjare, in the native state of Sawantwari, of humble parents dealing in clay dolls. Dr Bhau's career is a striking instance of great results arising from small accidents. An Englishman noticing his cleverness at chess induced his father to give the boy an English education. Accordingly Bhau was brought to Bombay and was educated at the Elphinstone Institution. He relieved his father of the cost of his education by winning many prizes and scholarships, and on his father's death two years later he cheerfully undertook the burden of supporting his mother and a brother (Narayen), who also in after-life became a distinguished physician and surgeon. About this time he gained a prize for an essay on infanticide, and was appointed a teacher in the Elphinstone Institution. He began to devote his time to the study of Indian antiquities, deciphering inscriptions and ascertaining the dates and history of ancient Sanskrit authors. He then studied at the Grant Medical College, and was one of the first batch who graduated there in 1850. In 1851 he set up as a medical practitioner in Bombay, where his success was so great that he soon made a fortune. He studied the Sanskrit literature of medicine, and also tested the value of drugs to which the ancient Hindus ascribed marvellous powers, among other pathological subjects of historical interest investigating that of leprosy. Being an ardent promoter of education, he was appointed a member of the board of education, and was one of the original fellows of the university of Bombay. As the first native president of the students' literary and scientific society, and the champion of the cause of female education, a girls' school was founded in his name, for which an endowment was provided by his friends and admirers. In the political progress of India he took a great and active interest, and the Bombay Association and the Bombay branch of the East Indian Association owe their existence to his ability and exertions. He was twice chosen sheriff of Bombay, in 1869 and 1871. Various scientific societies in England, France, Germany and America conferred on him their membership. He contributed numerous papers to the journal of the Bombay branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. He found time to make a large collection of rare ancient Sanskrit manuscripts at great cost and trouble. He died in May 1874. His brother, Dr Narayen Daji (who helped him to set up the charitable dispensary in Bombay), did not long survive him. Dr Bhau was a man of the most simple and amiable character and manners; his kindness and sympathy towards the poor and distressed were unbounded, and endeared his memory among the Hindus of Bombay. (N. B. W.)

BHAUNAGAR, or BHAVNAGAR, a native state of India in the Kathiawar agency, Bombay. Its area covers 2860 sq. m. In 1901 the population was 412,664, showing a decrease of 12% in the decade; the estimated revenue is L255,800, and the tribute L10,300. The chief, whose title is thakor sahib, is head of the famous clan of the Gohel Rajputs of Kathiawar. The enlightened system of administration formed during the rule of the thakor sahib maharaja Sir Takhtsinghji Jaswatsinghji, G.C.S.I., was continued with admirable results under the personal supervision of his son, the maharaja Bhausinghji, K.C.S.I. (b. 1875), and forms a model for other native states. The Gohel Rajputs are said to have settled in the district about 1260. Bhaunagar suffered terribly from the famine of 1899-1900. About 60 m. of the Bhaunagar-Gondal railway run through the state, with its terminus at the town of Bhaunagar, which is the principal port. The town of Bhaunagar is situated on the west coast of the gulf of Cambay. The population in 1901 was 56,442. It is the chief port in Kathiawar, though only admitting vessels of small burden. It was founded in 1723 by the thakor sahib Bhausinghji, after whom it is named, in place of his former capital, Sihor, which was considered too exposed to the Mahratta power.

BHEESTY (from the Persian _bihisti_, paradise), the Hindustani name for a water carrier, the native who supplies water from a pigskin or goat-skin bag.

BHERA, a town of British India, in the Shahpur district of the Punjab, situated on the river Jhelum. Pop. (1901) 18,680. It is the terminus of a branch of the North-Western railway. It is an important centre of trade, with manufactures of cotton goods, metal-work, carving, &c. Bhera was founded about 1540 on its present site, but it took the place of a city on the opposite bank of the river, of far greater antiquity, which was destroyed at this period.

BHILS, or BHEELS ("bowmen," from Dravidian _bil_, a bow), a Dravidian people of central India, probably aborigines of Marwar. They live scattered over a great part of India. They are found as far north as the Aravalli Hills, in Sind and Rajputana, as well as Khandesh and Ahmedabad. They are mentioned in Sanskrit works, and it is thought that Ptolemy (vii. I. 66) refers to them as [Greek: Phullitai] ("leaf wearers"), though this word might equally apply to the Gonds. Expelled by the Aryans from the richer lowlands, they are found to-day in greatest numbers on the hills of central India. In many Rajput states the princes on succession have their foreheads marked with blood from the thumb or toe of a Bhil. The Rajputs declare this a mark of Bhil allegiance, but it is more probably a relic of days when the Bhils were a power in India. The Bhils eagerly keep the practice alive, and the right of giving the blood is hereditary in certain families. The popular legend of the Bhil origin assigns them a semi-divine birth, Mahadeva (Siva) having wedded an earth maiden who bore him children, the ugliest of whom killed his father's bull and was banished to the mountains. The Bhils of to-day claim to be his descendants. Under the Moguls the Bhils were submissive, but they rebelled against the Mahrattas, who, being unable to subdue them, treated them with the utmost cruelty. The race became outlaws, and they have lived their present wild life ever since. Their nomad habits and skill with their bows helped them to maintain successfully the fight with their oppressors. An unsuccessful attempt was made in 1818 by the British to conquer them. Milder measures were then tried, and the Bhil Agency was formed in 1825. The Bhil corps was then organized with a view to utilizing the excellent fighting qualities of the tribesmen. This corps has done good service in gradually reducing their more lawless countrymen to habits of order, and many Bhils are now settled in regular industries.

The pure Bhil is to-day much what he has always been, a savage forest dweller. The Bhils are a stunted race, but well built, active and strong, of a black colour, with high cheek-bones, wide nostrils, broad noses and coarse features. Like all Dravidians the hair is long and wavy. The lowland Bhils are not now easily distinguished from the low-caste Hindus. Surgeon-major T.H. Hendley writes:--"The Bhil is an excellent woodman, knows the shortest cuts over the hills; can walk the roughest paths and climb the steepest crags without slipping or feeling distressed. Though robbers, and timorous owing to ages of ill-treatment, the men are brave when trusted, and very faithful. History proves them always to have been faithful to their nominal Rajput sovereigns, especially in their adversity. The Bhil is a merry soul, loving a jest." The hill Bhils wear nothing but a loin-cloth, their women a coarse robe; lowland Bhils wear turban, coat and waist-cloth. The Bhils have oaths none of them will break. The most sacred is that sworn by a dog, the Bhil praying that the curse of a dog may fall on him if he breaks his word. Their chief divinity is Hanuman, the monkey-god. Offerings are made to the much-feared goddess of small-pox. Stone worship is found among them, and some lowland Bhils are Moslems, while many have adopted Hinduism.

The Bhils of pure blood number upwards of a million, and there are some 200,000 Bhils of mixed descent.

See Gustav Oppert, _The Original Inhabitants of India_ (1893); T.H. Hendley, "Account of Marwar Bhils," in _Bengal Asiatic Journal_, vol. 44; W.I. Sinclair in _Indian Antiquary_, vol. iv. pp. 336-338; Col. W. Kincaid, "On the Bheel Tribes of the Vindhyan Range," _Jour. Anthrop. Institute_, vol. ix.

BHIMA (Sanskrit, "The Terrible"), in Hindu mythology, a hero, one of the Pandava princes who figure in the _Mahabharata_. He was distinguished by his huge body, strength and voracity.

BHIWANI, a town of British India, in the Hissar district of the Punjab, 38 m. S.E. of Hissar town by rail. Pop. (1901) 35,917. It is an important centre of trade with Rajputana, and has factories for ginning and pressing cotton, and metal manufactures. Its rise dates from 1817, when it was made a free market.

BHOPAL, a native state of India, in the central India agency. Its area is 6902 sq. m., and its population in 1901 was 665,961, showing a decrease of 30% in the decade. This seems to be in part due to a difference in numeration, but the state suffered heavily from famine in 1896-1897 and 1899-1900. Bhopal is the principal Mussulman state in central India, ranking next to Hyderabad among the Mahommedan states of India. The surface of the country is uneven, being traversed by the Vindhya ranges, a peak of which near Raysen is upwards of 2500 ft. above sea-level. The general inclination of the country is towards the north, in which direction most of the streams of the state flow, while others, passing through the Vindhya ranges, flow to the Nerbudda.

Bhopal state was founded in 1723 by Dost Mahommed Khan, an Afghan adventurer. In 1778, when General Thomas Goddard made his bold march across India, the state of Bhopal was the only Indian power that showed itself friendly; and in 1809 when another British expedition under General Close appeared in the same parts, the nawab of Bhopal petitioned earnestly but in vain to be received under British protection. But in 1817, at the outbreak of the Pindari War, a treaty of dependence was concluded between the chief and the British government. Since then Bhopal has been steadily loyal to the British government, and during the Mutiny it rendered good services. The throne has descended in the female line since 1844, when Sikandar Begum became ruler. Succeeding begums have taken a great interest in the work of governing the state, which they carried on with marked success. The sultan Jahan Begum, succeeded on the death of her mother, Shah Jahan Begum, in June 1901, being the only female ruler in India.

The estimated revenue of the state is L250,000, and the state pays a subsidy of L13,000 for the Bhopal battalion. Besides the Bhopal battalion, a regiment of imperial service cavalry is maintained, under the name of the Victoria Lancers. There is a branch railway from Itarsi to Bhopal city, continued to Jhansi. The British currency has been introduced, and in 1897-1898, Rs. 71,00,000 of Bhopali coins were converted. The residence of the political agent and the headquarters of the Bhopal battalion are at Sehore, 20 m. west of Bhopal city. The city of Bhopal, a railway station, had a population in 1901 of 76,561. The palace, with its rock fortress, is called Fatehgarh. An excellent water-supply has been provided from two large artificial lakes. There are two hospitals. There is an export trade in opium.

BHOPAL AGENCY, an administrative section of central India, takes its name from the state of Bhopal, which is included in it. The Bhopal agency is administered by the agent to the governor-general in central India. Its area is 11,653 sq. m., and its population in 1901 was 1,157,697. It was created in 1818. In 1900 this district suffered severely from famine owing to the complete failure of the monsoon, and the cultivated area decreased by 50 or 60%; but, on the whole, trade has improved of late years owing to the new railways, which have stimulated commerce and created fresh centres of industry.

BHOPAWAR, an agency in central India. It consists of the Dhar and Barwani states, three minor states, Ali Rajpur, Jhabua and Jobat, and a number of districts and estates. Its total area is 7684 sq. m., and its population on this area in 1901 was 547,546. But in 1901 and 1904 certain districts were transferred from this agency to the Indore residency, created in 1899, and the area of Bhopawar was thus reduced by 3283 sq. m. The chief towns are Dhar (pop. 17,792), Barwani (6277) and Kukshi (5402).

BHOR, a native state of India, in the Poona political agency, Bombay, forming one of the Satara Jagirs; situated among the higher peaks of the Western Ghats. Its area covers 925 sq. m. The population in 1901 was 137,268, showing a decrease of 12% in the decade; the estimated gross revenue is L21,437; the tribute, L310. The chief, whose title is _pant sachiv_, is a Brahman by caste. The town of BHOR is 25 m. south of Poona. In 1901 the population was 4178. The Bhor Ghat, on the northern border of the state, has always been the main pass over the Western Ghats, or means of communication between the sea-coast and the Deccan. Since 1861 it has been traversed by the main line of the Great Indian Peninsula railway.

BHUJ, a town of India, the capital of the native state of Kach, in the Gujarat division of Bombay, situated at the base of a fortified hill. Pop. (1901) 26,362. It contains some interesting examples of architecture of the middle of the 16th century and later; it was a place sacred to the snake-god Bhujanga.

BHUTAN, an independent kingdom in the Eastern Himalayas, lying between the Brahmaputra and the southern face of the mountains. It is under various commercial and other arrangements with the government of India, from whom it receives an annual subsidy of L3333. It is bounded on the N. by Tibet; on the E. by a tract inhabited by various uncivilized independent mountain tribes; on the S. by the British province of Assam, and the district of Jalpaiguri; and on the W. by the independent native state of Sikkim. The whole of Bhutan presents a succession of lofty and rugged mountains abounding in picturesque and sublime scenery. This alpine region sends out numerous rivers in a southerly direction, which, forcing their passage through narrow defiles, and precipitated in cataracts over the precipices, eventually pour themselves into the Brahmaputra. Of the rivers traversing Bhutan, the most considerable is the Manas, flowing in its progress to the Brahmaputra under the walls of Tasgaon, below which it is unfordable. At the foot of Tasgaon Hill it is crossed by a suspension bridge. The other principal rivers are the Machu, Tchinchu, Torsha, Manchi and Dharla. Information respecting the country accumulates but slowly. In 1863 Captain Godwin Austen accompanied Sir Ashley Eden's mission to the court of the Deb raja, and made a survey of the route to Punakha. There has also been a certain amount of geographical sketching combined with trigonometrical observations; and there are the route surveys of native explorers. In 1887-1888 two native Indian explorers "R. N." and "P. A." traversed a part of Western Bhutan, but were forced to retire owing to the disturbed state of the districts. They re-entered the country on the east from Dewangiri. Here they explored the Kuru, or Lhobrak Chu, which proves to be the largest river in Bhutan. It drains the tract between the Yamdok Tso and Tigu Lakes, and is fed by the glaciers of the Kulha Kangri and other great ranges. The Lhobrak was finally identified with the Manas river, a geographical discovery of some importance. A previously unknown tribe, the Chingmis, were discovered in Eastern Bhutan, who are socially on a higher level than the Bhutias, and differ from them chiefly in the matter of wearing pigtails. Some excellent survey work was done in Bhutan by a native surveyor during the progress of the Tibetan Expedition in 1904. The Monla Kachung pass (17,500 ft.), by which "R. N." crossed into Tibet, is nearly on the meridian of Gualpara, and is one of the most important passes between Bhutan and Tibet. East of Bhutan, amongst the semi-independent hill states which sometimes own allegiance to Tibet and sometimes assert complete freedom from all authority, the geographical puzzle of the course of the Tsanpo, the great river of Tibet, has been solved by the researches of Captain Harman, and the explorations of the native surveyor "K. P." The Tsanpo has been definitely ascertained to be the same river as the Brahmaputra. The tracts inhabited by the aboriginal tribes entitled Lo Nakpo, Lo Karpo and Lo Tawa ("Lo" signifies "barbarous" in Tibetan), are described as a pleasant country; the lands on either side of the Tsanpo being well cultivated and planted with mangoes, plantains and oranges.

Nothing is known certainly about the area and population of Bhutan, the former being estimated at 16,800 sq. m. At the head of the Bhutan government there are nominally two supreme authorities, the Dharm raja, the spiritual head, and the Deb raja, the temporal ruler. Recently official correspondence has been written in the name of the Dharm raja, but it is not known whether this change really signifies anything. To aid these rajas in administering the country, there is a council of permanent ministers, called the Lenehen. Practically, however, there is no government at all. Subordinate officers and rapacious governors of forts wield all the power of the state, and tyranny, oppression and anarchy reign over the whole country. The Dharm raja succeeds as an incarnation of the deity. On the death of a Dharm raja a year or two elapses, and the new incarnation then reappears in the shape of a child who generally happens to be born in the family of a principal officer. The child establishes his identity by recognizing the cooking utensils, &c., of the late Dharm raja; he is then trained in a monastery, and on attaining his majority is recognized as raja, though he exercises no more real authority in his majority than he did in his infancy. The Deb raja is in theory elected by the council. In practice he is merely the nominee of whichever of the two governors of East and West Bhutan happens for the time to be the more powerful. The people are industrious, and devote themselves to agriculture, but from the geological structure of the country, and from the insecurity of property, regular husbandry is limited to comparatively few spots. The people are oppressed and poor. "Nothing that a Bhutia possesses is his own," wrote the British envoy in 1864; "he is at all times liable to lose it if it attracts the cupidity of any one more powerful than himself. The lower classes, whether villagers or public servants, are little better than the slaves of higher officials. In regard to them no rights of property are observed, and they have at once to surrender anything that is demanded of them. There never was, I fancy, a country in which the doctrine of 'might is right' formed more completely the whole and sole law and custom of the land than it does in Bhutan. No official receives a salary; he has certain districts made over to him, and he may get what he can out of them; a certain portion of his gains he is compelled to send to the durbar, and the more he extorts and the more he sends to his superior, the longer his tenure of office is likely to be."