Tank

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Taank Kingdom in 565 AD

Tank (टांक)/ Tak (टक)[1] Taank (टांक)[2] [3] Tānk (टांक)[4] [5]Tak (टाक)[6] Tāk (टाक) is a Gotra of Jat. James Tod places it in the list of Thirty Six Royal Races.[7]

Origin

Jat Gotras Namesake

  • Takka (Jat clan) = Takari (टकारी). Takari (टकारी) village is mentioned in Amoda Plate (First Set) Of Prithvideva II - (Kalachuri) Year 900 (=1149 AD). Takari is the village from where the father of donee migrated, which is probably identical with Takkârikâ, Takkarika, Takkâri or Tarkâri, mentioned in several grants as the original home of Brâhmana donees. In one of them it is said to be situated in the Madhyadesha. There is a village of that name, 16 m north-west of Gayâ.[10] [11] Dr Naval Viyogi[12] mentions that in mediaeval period there was Bhatt village named Takkarika in the central province. Chandarvardai poet and bard of Rajputana and Muslim historians have given description of their royal family.

Tankocha village

Genealogy of Taka

Ram Sarup Joon[13] provides the Genealogy of Taka:

(Recognised by the Tartars as their ancestors)
	     Tak 
____________________________
|			|
Harjanda		Wansat
|			|
Bhajan		      Balam
|			|
Dorativa		Kapotram
||			| 
			|
Sura		      Anu
|                                                
Salni			Andhak
			Dhantry
|			|
Bhoj		     VirDatt
|			|
Rawak			Punvarsu
|			|
Devsidha		Kok
|			|
Vasdev		      Ugarsen
| 			|
Shri Krishna Devki and Kans

Association with present Jat gotras

Ram Sarup Joon[14] writes ... Many names in the Genealogical tables of Yayati are associated with present Jat gotras. Some examples are Ushinar, Shishu Bhadra, Tak or Takshak, Satoti, Krishan or Kushana from the Yadhu branch; Dushyanta, Bharat, Bhardwaja, Hasti, Ajmirh, Kaushik, Gadh and Vishwamitra of Puru branch; Seth, Arh, Gandhi, Gaindhu and Gandhar of the Ardas branch.

History

Ram Swarup Joon[15] writes about Lalla, Saroha or Sirohi, Gathwala and Malik (branch of Madraka): Malak, Gathwala, Tank, Bura and Sagroha are the gotras of the same dynasty. According to the Bards of the Gathwala, the latter on being ousted from Ghazni, moved towards Multan and Satluj River. They were accompanied by their Bards, some of who became Doms and Barbers. The Malak and Gathwala (Kath) republics existed in the Punjab at the time of Alexander's invasion. They also lived in Jhang and Bahawalpur State later. They ruled over Dipalpur near Hansi. Kutubuddin Aibak defeated them and drove them out of their capital. Later on, they spread out to Rohtak and Muzaffarnagar districts. They continued to struggle against Panwar and Midhan Rajputs. They have 35 villages in Rohtak district. Chaudhary Bacha Ram is regarded the leader of a big Khap (republic) of 160 villages besides 10 villages in Jind State, in district Hissar, 2 in Meerut, 52 in Muzaffarnagar and some in Himachal Pradesh.

Buras and Sirohis are at present found in Rajasthan, Karmach, Burhakhera, Jind and Karnal, and 12 other villages like Khosra, Bhador, and Girana. In addition they have six villages in Patiala, one village Saidpur, and 8 other villages in Bulandshahr District of UP. Sagroha is a derivative of the word 'Saroha" and exists as a separate gotra.


Ram Swarup Joon[16] writes about Tank or Tak: These people are said to have originated from Shergarh in Multan. They plundered the richly laden


History of the Jats, End of Page-104


camels of the army of Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni for which Mahmud invaded them two years later and almost annihilated them.

Then they made Rath village their capital. That dynasty is included among 36 royal dynasties, according to Todd's Rajasthan the names of some of the rulers were Ratapat, Bahurpal, Sahajpal and Madanpal. They have 12 villages near Sonepat.

Dr. Kashi Prashad Jaiswal has mentioned, in his book India of the Dark Age that this gotra is branch of Bharshiva Nag. Their capital was Padmavati. They were called Tank.

Their ancestor was Raja Gaj Baktar.


B S Dahiya[17] writes: Tanks or Taks are mentioned by Col. Tod as one of the Thirty –six royal houses of Indian Kshatriyas, but he said about them that they have disappeared from history owing to their conversion to Islam in the Thirteenth Century. But this is not true because they have not disappeared completely as yet; it is true a large number of Tanks are now followers of Islam but there still exist many Tanks among the Hindu Jats also. [18]

A Tak kingdom is mentioned by Hiuen-Tsang (631-643 A.D.) It is mentioned by him as situated towards east of Gandhara. Hiuen-Tasng gives its name as Tekka, and the History of Sindh, Chach-Nama, mentions it as Tak. Its capital was Shekilo (Sakala, modern Sialkot) and formerly King Mihiragula was ruling from this place. In seventh century A.D. its people were not preeminently Buddhists, but worshiped the sun, too. Abhidhana Chintamani says that Takka is the name of Vahika country (Punjab). For what follows, we are indebted to Chandrashekhar Gupta for his article on Indian coins. [19] The Tanks must have come to India, Prior to fourth century A.D. i.e. with the Kushana. And with the Kushanas, they must have spread up to Bengal and Orissa, like the Manns and Kangs who spread into southern Maharashtra and the Deccan. In Orissa, the Tanks, had their rule in Orissa proper, Mayurbhanj, Singbhoom, Ganjam, and Balasore Districts. They are called by historians as “ Puri Kushans” or Kushanas of Puri (Orissa). Their coins have been found at Bhanjakia and Balasore (Chhota Nagpur) and these coins have the legend Tanka written in Brahmi script of the fourth century A.D. Allan suggested the reading Tanka as the name of a tribe “ [20] and others generally accepted the reading Tanka as correct. [21] Allan placed them in the third or early fourth century A.D., while V.A. Smith placed them in the fourth or fifth century A.D. ; R.D. Bannerji called them “ Puri Kushanas[22]

According to Dr Naval Viyogi, It seems from the aforesaid evidence of coins that some branch Tanka of Taka royal family owing to attack of Kushanas up to Magadha, reached Mayurbhanj, Singhbhumi, Ganjam and Balasore and established colonies there, where remains of their offshoot, the royal family of Dhavaldev is still existing at Dalbhumigarh near Kharagpur. [23]

The Dhauli hills located on the banks of the river Daya, 8 km south of Bhubaneswar in Orissa (India also supports this view. It gets name from Dhaulya clan of Jats. It is a hill with vast open space adjoining it, and has major Edicts of Ashoka engraved on a mass of rock, by the side of the road leading to the summit of the hill. Dhauli hill is presumed to be the area where Kalinga War was fought.

As for the proof that they were Jats, we invite attention to the fact that they still exist as such. Their association with the Kushanas (Kasvan Jats) further supports it. Their central Asian origin is proved by the fact that Niya Khrosthi documents from Central Asia refer to coin denomination as Tangumule. [24] Here the word Tanga is the same as Tanka, and Muli meant “Price” in Central Asia. [25]


Jain literature refers to the Tanks and the fact that they are termed “ Mlechhas” shows their foreign. The Jain works say that the Tanks were invincible (cf Chandragomin of Jats and Thucydies’ remarks for Gatae.) They were the inhabitants of Uttarapatha (N.W. India) and they traded with the Dakshinapatha (South Deccan) in valuable commodities like gold and ivory. [26]


To conclude, in the words of C.S. Gupta “ the legend Tanka has no other satisfactory explanation than this, viz. that these coins were struck by the tribe of the Tankana (Takka) in the name of their community like those of the Yaudheya and Malava. It appears that the name inscribed by these people on their coins, gradually came to denote the name of the coin [27] This is the origin of the Taka used even now for coins. The Coins of Mahmud Ghazni bears the Sanskrit legend : (अयं टंक महमूद पुरे घटे). Allaudin Khilji as well as Akbar, Later issued Takkas. The Rewa stone inscription of Malaya Simha, of 1193 A.D. shows that Khilji spent 1500 Takkas for constructing a water Tank, near Rewa. Rājatarangini says that king Ananta of Kashmir, issued Takkas. [28] Tank coins are mentioned in the South also [29] [30]

In popular Parlance, the Tank Sarohas are mentioned together (Like the Dahiya-Dabas and Siddhu - Brar combination) The Cities of Tonk, Sirohi are named after them. At one time, the entire Punjab was called Tank Desa. The reports of The Chinese pilgrims confirm this fact. Originally they were worshippers of the Snake-Garlanded form of Shiva. Hence they were called Nagas also. [31] [32]

H.A. Rose[33] writes that The Hindu Chhimbās are divided into two sub-castes, Tank and Rhilla. The following legend explains the origin of these two sub-castes :— At Pindlapur in the Deccan lived one Bamdeo, who one night entertained Krishna and Udhoji, but, as the latter was a leper, the villagers ejected them. They were in māyavi form, and at midnight both of them vanished, leaving Bāmdeo and his wife asleep. Udhoji hid in a shell (sipi), and when Bāmdeo went to wash clothes he found the shell and placed it in the sun. It produced the child Nāmdeo who was fostered by Bāmdeo's wife. Nāmdeo taught his son Tank, and Rhilla, his daughter's son, the arts of dyeing, printing and washing clothes. Mention of Tak - James Tod writes that This incidental mention of the race of Tak in Annals of Jaisalmer, and of its being in great consideration on the settlement of the Yadus in the Punjab, is very important. I have given a sketch of this tribe (Vol. I, p. 93), but since I wrote it, I have discovered the capital of the Tak, and on the very spot where I should have expected the site of Taxila, the capital of Taxiles, the friend of Alexander. In that sketch I hesitated not to say, that the name was not personal, but arose from his being the head of the Takshac or Naga tribe, which is confirmed. It is to Babar, or rather to his translator, that I am indebted for this discovery. In describing the limits of Banu, Babar thus mentions it : "And on the west is Desht, which is also called Bazar and Tak ;" to which the erudite translator adds, "Tak is said long to have been the capital of Damān." In Mr. Elphinstone's map, Bazar, which Baber makes identical with Tak, is a few miles north of the city of Attoc. There is no question that both the river and city were named after the race of Tak or Takshac, the Nagas, Nagavansi, or 'snake race', who spread over India. Indeed, I would assume that the name of Omphis, which young Taxiles had on his father's death, is Ophis, the Greek version of Tak, the 'serpent' The Taks appear to have been established in the same region at the earliest period. The Mahabharata describes the wars between Janamejaya and the Takshacs, to revenge on their king the death of his father Parikshita, emperor of Indraprastha, or Dehli.[34]


Rajatarangini[35] mentions that Bhagika, Sharadbhasi, Mummuni, Mungata, Kalasha and other men of the king's party harassed the enemies. Kamalaya, son of Lavaraja king of Takka, took the king's side in this war in 1121 AD. (VIII,p.93)


Rajatarangini[36] writes .... on death of Avantivarman all the members of the family of Utpala aspired to the throne. But Ratnavardhana the Royal guard raised Shankaravarmma, son of the late king, to the throne. The minister Karnapavinnāpa became envious, and raises Sukhavarmma the son of Suravarmma to the dignity of heir-apparent and so the king and the heir-apparent became enemies to each other, and consequently the kingdom was frequently disturbed by their quarrels. Shivashakti and other warriors refused offers of wealth, honor, &c, from the opposite party, and remained faithful to their master, and died for him. Honorable men never desert their party. After much trouble the king prevailed at last. He defeated Samaravarmma and others, on several occasions, and acquired great fame.

Having thus beaten and subjugated his own relatives,he made preparations for foreign conquests. Though the country was weak in population, he was able to set out with nine hundred thousand foot, three hundred elephants, and one hundred thousand horse. He, whose command had been ill obeyed in his own kingdom a short while before, now began to pass orders on kings.


[p.116]: His army was joined by the forces of tributary kings, and increased as he went on. On his approach the king of Darvabhisara fled in terror and there was no fighting. The Kashmirian army caught several lions and confined them in a fort, a sort of abode in which they had never lived before. The king then marched for the conquest of Gurjjara. Prithivi-chandra the king of Trigarta hid himself, but his son Bhuvanachandra, on whom the king of Kashmira had bestowed wealth before, came to pay homage. But when he saw the large army of Kashmira, he became afraid of being captured, and accordingly turned and fled. The king of Kashmira, whom the historians describe as a very handsome man, was regarded by other kings as Death. Shankaravarmma easily defeated Alakhāna king of Gurjjara who ceded Takka a part of his kingdom to his conqueror. The king of the Thakkiyaka family took service as guard under the king of Kashmira. The latter caused the kingdom of the Thakkiya king which had been usurped by the king of Bhoja to be restored to him. The king of the country which lay between Darat and Turushka, (as the Aryavarta lies between Himalaya and Vindhya,) Lalliya Shahi by name, who was among kings even as the sun is among stars, and was also lord over Alakhāna, did not submit to the king of Kashmira, on which the latter drove him out of his country.

Notable persons

  • Manisha Tank - BBC business news reader
  • Jai Kishan Singh Taank - Retired as Associate Professor (Physics), Deshbandhu College, Kalkaji, New Delhi - 110019


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External links

References

  1. Jat History Dalip Singh Ahlawat/Parishisht-I, s.n. ट-2
  2. Jat History Dalip Singh Ahlawat/Parishisht-I, s.n. ट-2
  3. O.S.Tugania:Jat Samuday ke Pramukh Adhar Bindu,p.41,s.n. 974
  4. B S Dahiya:Jats the Ancient Rulers (A clan study), p.243, s.n.230
  5. Jat History Dalip Singh Ahlawat/Parishisht-I, s.n. ट-2
  6. O.S.Tugania:Jat Samuday ke Pramukh Adhar Bindu,p.41,s.n. 976
  7. James Todd, Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, Volume I,: Chapter 7 Catalogue of the Thirty Six Royal Races, pp. 123-127
  8. Mahendra Singh Arya et al.: Ādhunik Jat Itihas, p. 249
  9. Hukum Singh Panwar:The Jats:Their Origin, Antiquity and Migrations, p.323
  10. Ep Ind , Vol XXI, p. 263
  11. Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 474-478
  12. Nagas, the Ancient Rulers of India, their Origin and History, P-148
  13. History of the Jats/Chapter II,p. 22-28
  14. History of the Jats/Chapter II,p. 28
  15. Ram Swarup Joon: History of the Jats/Chapter V,p. 92
  16. Ram Swarup Joon: History of the Jats/Chapter V, p. 104-105
  17. B S Dahiya: Jats the Ancient Rulers (A clan study)/Jat Clan in India,p. 273-274
  18. Bhim Singh Dahiya, Jats the Ancient Rulers ( A clan study), p. 274
  19. Vishveshvaranand Indological Journal (Hoshiarpur, Pb.) Vol, XVI, pt. I. p.92 ff
  20. Ancient India, Plate XII, fig. 3
  21. Journal of Numismatic Society of India, 12, 1950 p.72
  22. Bhim Singh Dahiya, Jats the Ancient Rulers ( A clan study), p. 274
  23. Dr Naval Viyogi: Nagas – The Ancient Rulers of India,
  24. ibid., 16-1954 p. 220 f.n. 4
  25. Bhim Singh Dahiya, Jats the Ancient Rulers ( A clan study), p. 274
  26. Bhim Singh Dahiya, Jats the Ancient Rulers ( A clan study), p. 274
  27. Vishveshvaranand Indological Journal (Hoshiarpur, Pb.), Vol . XVI, pt. 1 p. 93
  28. Cunningham, Coins of Medieval India, p.34
  29. Journal of Numismatic Society of India, 30 , (1968) p.129
  30. Bhim Singh Dahiya, Jats the Ancient Rulers ( A clan study), p. 275
  31. Jayaswal’s views on Bhara-Sivas
  32. Bhim Singh Dahiya, Jats the Ancient Rulers ( A clan study), p. 275
  33. A glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province By H.A. Rose Vol II/B , p.166
  34. James Tod: Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, Volume II, Annals of Jaisalmer, p.203 fn-4
  35. Kashmira Vol 2 (Rajatarangini of Kalhana)/Book VIII,p.93
  36. Rajatarangini of Kalhana:Kings of Kashmira/Book V,pp. 115-116

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