Sindh: It is a southeastern state of Pakistan with its capital in Karachi. The name Sindh drives from the Sanskrit word Sindhu which is a river crossing both countries Pakistan and India. The state got its name because of being in the proximity of the Sindhu river.
Hind: This name also comes from the Sanskrit word Sindhu.
Sindh which is currently the province of Pakistan is a piece of land adjacent to Indus River and the Thar Desert. In past times, it was intertwined with the Indian subcontinent and located at the center of Indus valley civilization which is one of the world’s greatest pre-classical civilizations. But before being a part of Pakistan and being invaded by Mohammad bin Qasim, it had its own historical significance. In fact, the Hindu religion was the most prominent in this area and was practiced in a peaceful manner. Let’s find out more about the history of Hindu culture in Sindh.
Sindh during the pre-historic period
The very first mention of Sindh was found in the Mahabharata where the Aryan king of Sind Jayadratha fought against Lord Krishna. Then came the time of Indus valley civilization whose central location was Sindh province. The place at that time boasted of highly cultured Hindu people that had high standards of art and craftsmanship as well as a well-developed form of quasi-pictographic writing which still remains in the undeciphered state.
Very little is known about the religion of Indus valley civilization and the one practiced in Sindh but there has been an excavation of many seals with scripts inscribed on them. Some of them have been deciphered quite successfully and show that Mohenjo-Daro was a beautifully planned city of Sindh. It has the presence of public baths, brick buildings, and well-planned drainage system shows that the community lived in a very happy and organized manner. Hinduism was majorly practiced in Mohenjo-Daro as well as Sindh which seems clear from the temple rituals and ritualistic bathing is done in the great bath. This is the reason major Hindu temples are characterized by a bathing pond close to them. The great bath in Mohenjo-Daro is thus a proof of the fact. Other than this, excavations in the region have also found evidence of animal sacrifice, terracotta figurines depicting goddess images and a seal of Lord Shiva (a seated person surrounded by animals) confirms that Hinduism was practiced highly in Sindh during Indus valley civilization. Other than this, there are many scared symbols n Hindu literature such as the swastika, Om etc. which have found widespread usage in the Harappa scriptures.
The early authentic history of Sindh
One of the most authentic histories of Sindh can be recorded from the time when Alexander the Great conquered Sindh in 325BC. At this time as well, Sindh was ruled by a Hindu ruler being Raja Sahasi whose race governed Sindh for over 2000 years. Hinduism was majorly practiced in Sindh during this time but with the entry of Chandragupta Maurya in 313 BC there was an entry of Buddhism as well. The Buddhist city of Siraj-Ji-Takri is still located in the upper part of Sindh. It has visible ruins in the form of small mounds and other architectural remains that depict the presence of Buddha culture. However, there was a revival of Hindu religion during the Gupta period which then became dominated culture in Sindh. It flourished well all over India, especially in the Sindh region. There was a building of many temples and shrines throughout the region. In fact, the Gupta Empire made Hinduism so popular in Sindh that it was regarded as a unifying religion and as a means to attain personal salvation. But Buddhism also remained a popular religion and both of them were practiced peacefully. In all religious freedom was practiced by the Guts in Sindh. For example, the Brahmins continued with the job of tax collection while Buddhist monk still focused on taking care of their monasteries. Before the invasion of Mohammed bin Qasim, Hinduism was the most prominent religion in Sindh that constituted about 64 percent of percent of the total population. The last ruler before the invasion of Mohammed bin Qasim in Sindh was Raja Dahir who was a Hindu Brahmin. He has a big role in opposing the invasion.
Hinduism flourished in Sindh with the greatest Hindu civilisations in the world governing Sindh through awe-inspiring technological advances and unity
The current state of Sindh is very disturbing. Long before Kashmiri Pandits massacre happened in Kashmir, Hindu Sindhis in the North Western region of Indian sub-continent were killed, and temples were destroyed.
Libraries were burnt, the knowledge and the history completely slaughtered.
I am thankful to India for accepting Hindu refugees from Sindh and I take pride in being a Hindu-Sindhi living in India. Every single Sindhi Hindu living in India lost their dear ones during partition and I criticize those two lawyers of Indian history for the same.
I hope we are able to bring back our lost Hindu-Sindhi history and culture that was destroyed by invasions. I am currently working on a book that will act as an encyclopedia for the future generation, and I really hope to see Sindh return back to India.
Why?
Sindh and Hind cannot be separated.
Jai Jhulelal!
Jai Hind!
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