History of Jind

JIND, a district headquarter of Haryana, is situated in the north-west of Delhi at a distance of 128 km from Delhi on Delhi-Firozpur Railway Line. JIND, though not very famous on the national level at present, has nevertheless, historical, cultural and mythological importance. Archaeological remains found here reveal that Lord Vishnu in the incarnation of varah at this place made the mother-earth a beautiful, virtuous and worth-living place. The presiding deity of Jind is Lord Shiva and the relics of a temple dedicated to Him are still available in the Mohalla Aprahi. The Shivling found here was not installed and consecrated by human hands. It is thought to be divine appearance which even today baffles human wisdom and imagination.

How the City Jind came to be known as such has not been established beyond doubt even today. Mythologically speaking, the son of Lord Inder, Jayant named the City after his name. As per another mythological story, the city derives its name from Jainti, the goddess of victory, in whose dedication a temple was erected by the Pandavas. They offered prayers to the goddess to seek her blessing for success before launching the Battle of Mahabharata. The authenticity of the fact can be ascertained from the Mahabharata and the Padam Purana, Jind forms part of the Kurukshetra Bhumi i.e. divine land of 48 Kosa. That is why, unlike in other cities, the mortal remains of those who die in Jind are not taken to Haridwar for immersion in the Holy Ganges but are immersed in Jind itself in some holy pond or canal.

The other religious places of interest in Jind city include The Bhuteshwar temple, Somnath Mahadev temple, Mansa Devi temple, Bankhandi Mahadev, Jwalmaleshwar Mahadev etc. Jind is flanked by a number of religious places or tirthas in its close vicinity. Prominent among them are Ramharid teerth, Ramrai; Pind-TarakTeerth, Pandu-Pindara; Chayavan Teerth in the village Assan; Dhundu Teerth in the village Ikkas etc. At Ramrai, Maharishi Parshuram, the fifth incarnation of Lord Vishnu, waged a war against the cruelty and injustice of the Kshatriyas, killed them en masse and filled five ponds with their blood, which after the intervention of his ancestors, were converted into water ponds. It is believed that a person who takes a bath here and makes offerings to his ancestors gets his cherished desires fulfilled. At Pandu-Pindara, 5 Kilometers from Jind, the Pandavs made offerings and ablutions i.e. performed 'Pind-dana' to their forefathers who had lost their lives in the battle of Mahabharata. Today, people from far & wide come here on Amavasya and pay obeisance and make offerings. It is also believed that at Pandu-Pindara, Parjapati Daksha cursed his son-in-law, the god Moon, with the terrible disease, tuberculosis, because of his partial behaviour towards his other wives. Rohini, one of the daughters of Daksha, was the most beloved to Chandradeva because of her incomparable beauty. It is believed that the god Moon had a bath in the Som Teerth at Pindara & got cured of his tuberculosis. It is also believed that any person who takes a holy dip in the pond dedicated to Rishi Chayanvan at the village Assan is rewarded with beauty and grace. The Dhundu Teerth dedicated to Bhima is situated in the village Ikkas. According to a legend, Duryodhan, running away from Bhima hide himself in a pond here. However, Bhima found out him and out and and killed him.

Jind has not only mythological importance,a but historical also. The antiquity of the district is established on the basis of the discovery of the Pre-Harappan, the Harappan, the late Harappan relics such as the painted grey ware pottery at various places from the district. A mention of its teerthas in the 'Puranas' corroborates it.

The excavations made at Anta, Morkhi, Beri Khera, Pahlwan, Barsana, Pauli, Karsola etc reveal the lineage of Jind with the pre-Harappan, the Harappan and the late Harappan, periods about 1000 B. C. With the advent of the Aryans, the region came to be known as Holy land of Kurukshetra and Jind formed its southern boundary. From a Mahajanpada in the kingdom of the Kurus in the 6th Century B. C., Jind also formed a part of the Maurayan Empire, the Yaudeys dynasty, the Kushanas, the Guptas, the Hunas, the Pushabhutis of Thanesar in the 7th Century A. D.00 In 1192, the defeat of Prithivraj in the battle of Torain at the hands of Mohammad Gauri gave a definite turn to the political fortunes of the region. From Qutbuddin Aibak, the district passed in to the hands of Killjis. Their inhuman exploitation of the people of this area steeled their nerves and they faced the fierce attack of Timur bravely. He couldn't dare enter the city and touched only the outskirts of the district. The district fell in the kingdom of Lodhis who ruled from 1451 A. D. to 1526 A. D., when Babur, the founder of Mughal Empire in India, snatched it from the weak hands of the last of their rulers, Ibrahim Lodi.

The history of Jind as a separate state as given in the imperial Gazette dates back to 1763. The Raja of Jind, Gajpat Singh descends from Sukhchain, a grandson of Phul, the ancestor of all the Phulkian families, who had previously been a mere rural notable. Gajpat's kingdom included Jind, Safidon, Panipat, Karnal. In 1766, Gajpat's Singh made Jind town his capital Nevertheless he remained a vassal of the Delhi Empire and continued to pay tribute, obtaining in return, in 1772, an imperial farman which gave him the title of Raja. In 1774, he defeated the Raja of Nabha and included Sangrur in Jind. He was succeeded on his death by his son. Bhag Singh in 1789. His son Fateh Singh succeeded to the throne in 1819 and died in 1822. The next ruler Sangat Singh died childless in 1834; his second cousin, Sarup Singh was coronated as the ruler of the state in 1837 who ruled till his death in 1864. He was succeeded by his son, Raghubir Singh, who ruled upto 1887. His grandson, Ranbir Singh, a boy of only 8 years succeeded him. Since he was a minor, a council or Regency was appointed to carry on the administration until he attained maturity. Full powers were given to him in November 1899. He was still ruling the state when India became free in 1947. On 5th May, 1948 Jind was made a part of PEPSU and became part of Sangrur district. Jind got the district status.

- Prof. M.R. Sethi