Parthajeet Das's blog: Jajabara Trips III (Of lust, pride and lost villages)

We started late, around 8.30 AM from the SAM sand dunes. A ride on Royal Enfield was the best tip for our host Dilavar Khan, a teenager who confessed that this was not his real name but something he had to attract tourists!
I had to persuade, coax and cajole TBK to drop the plan to ride to Tanod - pakistan border. That was some 100 kms away and all it promised was a barbed wire and temple of Tanod Mata. We rode back to Jaisalmer but TBK's sight was set on making some detour before we reach Jaisalmer. As it would turn out we would make two.

Kuldhara is a deserted village, 25 kms away from Jaisalmer. It is not haunted, as I earlier thought, but deserted. We were greeted by a mysterious elder man at the gate and there was no one yet inside. It added to the mystery, that we rode thorough the deserted lanes of what would have been a huge village once all by ourselves. It was spooky and silent. Bricks and wood were all that were left of this large human habitation of 206 villages. What was the reason? What could have happened?

A couple of cars joined us and thankfully a guide who told us the story and not for the last time in the day of LUST, PRIDE and DESERTED VILLAGES.

A military commander enchanted by the beauty of a village damsel, asked her hand in marriage. Normally, this should not have been a problem, Senapatis (commanders) were held in high regard and enjoyed king's favour. But, the commander was Bhatti (a caste) and the girl belonged to Paliwal Brahmins who inhabited the villages. The commander true to his style, fixed a date and hour for the marriage and asked the villagers to be ready to welcome him and his procession.
But, all of the 206 villages deserted their in the dark of night and went some where else, rather than hurt their pride by marrying off their girl outside their caste. Intriguing tale.

I started to wonder, where could have so many people gone in one night ! Do the generations of those families remember this tale. If yes, then how? What do they think of the girl, do they sing songs of her beauty? How can a village in the middle of desert land be 'desert'ed? Why did nomads not come here and settle down in the well-lived village? Did the commander chase/search for the girl and her family? Dis he destroy the villages in frustration and anger?
Such is the stuff of folklore.

(Watch video below to hear the story from the guide)

We came back to the entrance and had a chat with the elder and rode ahead to Khaba fort. This is one of the smallest forts we had seen and 'fossillii' (fossil) as pronounced by the elder were our main attraction to go for another detour to Khaba. There were many wood fossils and stones which were as old as the earth maybe. But atop the fort we saw remains of many more deserted villages. The story narrated by a French speaking guide was very similar.

This time the dividing factor was religion. Hindu brahmin girl -Muslim military commander.

The tales made me think the kind of people who deserted entire villages and left for unknown deserts just to protect their pride. The pride of a woman. A true test of a society is the way it treats its women, specifically, the pride of a woman!