ABSTRACT

Unfortunately we possess no contemporary record of the origin and history of the different Akharas before the line of Gosain Rajendra Giri, who became famous in the affairs of the Delhi Empire about 1750. A Hindi manuscript has been found in the possession of the hereditary bard (bhat) of the Nirvani Akhara, which professes to give the dates of the foundation of the different Akharas and some of the battles which they fought with the name of the horses. Moreover, it represents the tradition current among the bards of only one Akhara, namely the Nirvani, and therefore it can be argued that if any other Akhara had poets of their own, they might have told a different tale. The Atal Akhara has produced many heroes and fighters for the defence of the Hindu religion. "The Abahan Akhara produced many great heroes who were honoured by the Delhi Badshah and the Lucknow Nawab, such as Anup Giri and Umrao Giri".