The legends of the Panjâb

No. XI.
THE STORY OF RAJA MAHI PARKASH OF
SARMOR,
AS TOLD BY TWO INHABITANTS* OF JUNGA, THE SEAT
OF THE BAJA OP KYONTHAL.
[Kyonthal is the Hill State whose territories lie about Simla, and this song
relates the story of a well-remembered fight between the B&n& of Kyonthal
and the R§jd of the neighbouring Hill State of Sarmor, more commonly
known as N^han. The geogi'aphy of the song is strictly local,
most of the places mentioned lying in the limited Territories of the fl^jd
of Sarmor, and the remainder within those of the (now) K&jd of Kyonthal.
Its history is, of course, strictly local, and excepting the chief heroes, it is»
in the present condition of our historical knowledge regarding the Hill
States of the Simla District, quite hopeless to ascertain who the many
minor personages, that figure in it, were.]
[The song is called the ."story of Mahi (or M^i) Parkfish, Eajd of Sarmor."
This must be meant for Raj& Malhi Parkdsh, the fourth of the SArajbansi
(RAjpiit) line of the Rdjas of Sarmor, who, according to a manuscript
epitomised history tha.t 1 have in UldA of the Sarmor State, reigned in
Samvat (Vikramaditya) 1165—1174, or a.d. 1118 to 1127. The territories
along the R. Jamu4 in its mountain course, known as Sarmor, were conquered
by one Sobhd Rawdl, a, Surajbansi BSjput, a son of Raw^l (not
Efiwal) Ugar Sen of Jaysalmir (founded according to Tod, EajastMn, II.,
187, in Samvat 1212, or A. D. 1158, by Bhatti Rajputs), who established himself
in the Rijbau forests of the Khyarda Dtln in Samvat. 1152, A. d. 1095,
and called himself Svehabans Parkfish. He reigned from 1095 to 1099
A. D., and was succeeded by R&j4 SalbShan ParkSsh, 1099-1102; Edj4
BAlakchand Park^sh, 1102-1108; RSja Malhi Parkish, 1108-1117. Parkash
is the peculiar designation of the Sarmor E^jSs, the present ESj4
being Shamsher ParkSsh, the 45th of the line. I'he name Nihan for the
title of these R^j^s is comparatively new, as that town was not occupied
and repopulated till the time of the 31st E^jS, Karam Parkash, who reigned
1616-1630 A. D. The discrepancy between Tod's date for the foundation
of Jaysalmir and the local historical date for the foundation of Sarmor
by a Jaysalmir prince is a slight one compared to those that follow.]
[In the song Malhi (Mahi or M4i) ParkSsh fights AnAp (or Nup) Sen, RSnA
of Kyonthal. According to the manasoript UrdA history cf these chiefs,
R4na Anup Sen was 67th of his line, (the present chief R^jd [by British
* Kolis, a oaate who are weavers and singers by profession.