Tanisha R at 16:30, 4 April 2026

2026-04-04T16:30:10Z

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{{Short description|Founder of Bishnoi Vaishnava tradition}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2022}}
{{Infobox religious biography
| name = Jambhes‌hwar‌
| image = Jambheshwar painting, Jambheshwar photo.jpg
| caption = Depiction of Guru Jambheshwar (Jambhoji)
| religion = [[Sanatan Dharm]]‌ ([[Hinduism]])
| denomination = [[Vaishnavism]]
| sect =
| alias = Jambhoji‌
| birth_name =
| birth_date = 1451
| birth_place = [[Pipasar]], [[Nagaur District]], [[Rajasthan]], India
| death_date = 1536
| death_place = Mukam, [[Bikaner district]], Rajasthan, India
| resting_place = [[Mukti Dham Mukam]], [[Mukam, Rajasthan | Mukam]], [[Nokha, Bikaner|Nokha tehsil]], [[Bikaner district]], [[Rajasthan]]
| nationality =
| parents = Lohat Panwar (father)<br/>
Hansa Devi (mother)
| known_for = Founding the [[Bishnoi Panth]]‌
| honorific prefix = [[Guru]]‌
| honorific suffix =
| native_name = [[:hi:गुरु जम्भेश्वर|गुरु‌ जम्भेश्वर]]‌
| native_name_lang = hi
| region = [[Thar Desert]]‌
| movement = [[Bhakti Movement]]‌
}}
'''Guru Jambheshwar''', also known as '''Guru Jambhoji''', (1451–1536) was a [[Sādhaka|sadhak]], [[yogi]], [[saint]] and the founder of the [[Bishnoi|Bishnoi Panth]],<ref>Read Jambhsagar Page 1</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Datta |first=Amaresh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zB4n3MVozbUC&q=Jambhojifalse |title=Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature: Devraj to Jyoti |date=1988 |publisher=Sahitya Akademi |isbn=978-81-260-1194-0 |language=en}}</ref> a [[Vaishnavism|Vaishnavite]] sect noted for its devotion to [[Vishnu]], emphasis on non-violence, and ethos of environmental conservation in the arid regions of [[Rajasthan]], [[India]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bhargava |first=Gopal Ed |url=http://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.150310 |title=Encyclopaedia Of Art And Culture In India Vol. 9 |date=2003 |pages=336-337}}</ref> In 1485, inspired by a severe drought, he laid down 29 guiding principles—spanning personal conduct, devotional practice, and ecological stewardship—and composed 120 verses (Shabadwani), through which he shaped a faith centered on compassion for all living beings.

==Biography==
‌Jambheshwar was born into a [[Panwar]] [[Rajput]]<ref>{{Cite book |last=Datta |first=Amaresh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zB4n3MVozbUC&q=Jambhoji |title=Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature: Devraj to Jyoti |date=1988 |publisher=Sahitya Akademi |isbn=978-81-260-1194-0 |pages=1794 |language=en |quote=He was a Panwar Rajput. His father's name was Lohat and mother's Hamsa alias Kesar.}}</ref> family in the village of Pipasar in [[Nagaur]] in 1451.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HAC5AAAAIAAJ&q=Guru%20Jambheshwar| title=Guru Jambheshwar VividhAayaam | date=18 August 1996 | publisher=B.R. Publishing Corporation| isbn=9788170189015 }}{{Vn|date=October 2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wBA0-NPwY1UC&q=Jambhoji+ |title=Cultural Forum |date=1968 |publisher=India (Republic) Ministry of Scientific Research and Cultural Affairs. |pages=59 |language=en |quote=This sect was started by Jambhoji in Samvat 1542. He was a Panvar Rajput of the village Pipasar in Nagaur Pargana.}}</ref> He was the only child of Lohat Panwar and Hansa Devi.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jambheshwar: Founder of Bishnoi caste, Environmental inspiration |url=https://www.bishnoi.co.in/2012/05/about-shri-guru-jambeshwar-bhagwan.html |access-date=2025-05-22 |website=Bishnoi - Encyclopedia of Bishnoi Caste and Bishnoi Movement |language=en |quote=He was only child to his parents, Lohatji Panwar and Hansa Devi}}</ref> For the first seven years of his life, Guru Jambeshwar was considered silent and introverted. He spent 27 years of his life as a [[Herder|cow herder]].<ref>Jambhsagar Page 9-13</ref>

== Founding Bishnoi Panth ==
Aged 34, Guru Jambheshwar founded the [[Bishnoi]] sub-sect of [[Vaishnavism]]<ref>Worshippers of Vishnu fall under the vaishnava sect of hinduism</ref> at Samrathal Dhora. His teachings were in the poetic form known as Shabadwani.<ref>{{cite book |title=Dharma and Ecology of Hindu Communities: Sustenance and Sustainability |first=Pankaj |last=Jain |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-40940-591-7 |publisher=Routledge |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VYcGDAAAQBAJ}}</ref>{{page needed|date=September 2017}} He preached for the next 51 years, travelling across the country, and produced 120 Shabads, or verses, of Shabadwani.{{citation needed|date=September 2017}} The sect was founded after the big draught in [[Rajasthan]] in 1485.<ref>Jambhsagar Page 24-26</ref> He had laid down 29 principles to be followed by the sect. Killing animals and felling trees were banned. The [[Prosopis cineraria|Khejri]] tree (''Prosopis cineraria''), is also considered to be sacred by the Bishnois.
[[File:Bishnoi_Temple_at_Samrathal_Dhora.jpg|thumb|Bishnoi Temple at Samrathal Dhora]]
Bishnoi panth revolves around 29 rules. Of these, eight prescribe to preserve [[biodiversity]] and encourage good [[animal husbandry]], seven provide directions for healthy social behaviour, and ten are directed towards personal hygiene and maintaining basic good health. The other four commandments provide guidelines for worshipping [[Vishnu]]<ref>6th Rule of [[Bishnoi]]s tells about worshipping Vishnu</ref> daily.

==Legacy and commemoration==
The Bishnoi have various temples, of which they consider the most holy to be "Mukti Dham mukam "in the village of [[Mukam, Rajasthan|Mukam]] in [[Nokha, Bikaner|Nokha]] [[tehsil]], [[Bikaner district]], Rajasthan. It is there where the most sacred Bishnoi temple is built over [[Samadhi (shrine)|samadhi]] of Guru Jambeshwar.<ref>{{cite book |title=Dharma and Ecology of Hindu Communities: Sustenance and Sustainability |first=Pankaj |last=Jain |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-40940-591-7 |publisher=Routledge |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VYcGDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA53 |page=53}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rajasthan.gov.in/StateProfile/RajasthanTourism/Pages/Major-Attractions.aspx |title=Major Attractions |accessdate=2014-07-27 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140806050818/http://www.rajasthan.gov.in/StateProfile/RajasthanTourism/Pages/Major-Attractions.aspx |archivedate=6 August 2014 }}{{Cn|date=October 2024}}</ref> [[Guru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology|Guru Jambeshwar University of Science and Technology]] at [[Hisar city|Hisar]] in the state of [[Haryana]] is named after him.

[[File:Mukti_Dham_Mukam_Temple.jpg|thumb|Bishnoi Temple in Mukam, Nokha.]]

==See also==
*[[Bhakti movement]]
*[[Chipko movement]]
*[[Khejarli massacre|Khejarli Massacre]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}12. about Guru Jambheshwar [https://news29.co/guru-jambheshwar/ News29.co] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221003221257/https://news29.co/guru-jambheshwar/ |date=3 October 2022 }}{{Authority control}}

{{Animal welfare}}
{{Vegetarianism}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jambeshwar Bhagwan (Preacher)}}
[[Category:Indian Hindu religious leaders]]
[[Category:Indian environmentalists]]
[[Category:Medieval Hindu religious leaders]]
[[Category:1451 births]]
[[Category:1536 deaths]]

{{India-reli-bio-stub}}

Guru Jambheshwar - Revision history

Tanisha R at 16:30, 4 April 2026