The Hindu Shahis (also known as Odi Shahis, Uḍi Śāhis, or Brahman Shahis, 822–1026 CE) were a dynasty that held sway over the Kabulistan, Gandhara and western Punjab during the early medieval period in the Indian subcontinent.
The Hindu Shahi is known to be the last Hindu king of Afghanistan and was famous for their war against the Ghaznavids in which they found support of Rajputs and Punjabi Hindus, but were finally defeated.
Notable people
Atma Ram – Afghan Minister and Author. Celina Jaitley – Indian Bollywood actress born to an Indian father, Colonel V. K. Jaitly and an Afghan Hindu mother, Meeta Jaitly, who was also from Kabul and was a nurse in the Indian Army.
Kabul was the capital of the great Hindu Shahi kings. Afghanistan was a great center of Vedic culture. There were many Hindu temples in Afghanistan. Some temples in Kabul have survived the recent turmoil.
Once home to a thriving and ancient population of Hindus (and later Sikhs) dating back to the Indus Valley Civilization more than 3,000 years ago, Afghanistan is now 99.7% Muslim.
Before the arrival of Islam in the 7th century, there were a number of religions practiced in modern day Afghanistan, including Zoroastrianism, Ancient Iranian religions, Buddhism and Hinduism. The Kafiristan (present-day Nuristan) region, in the Hindu Kush mountain range, was not converted until the 19th century.
Brahmans are located throughout India and there are influential Brahmans among all the major language groups. Brahmans tend to be a higher percentage in the north Indian language groups than they are among the south Indian language groups.
Prithviraj Chauhan is mentioned in history textbooks today mainly because he lost a major battle in 1192 against Shihab al-Din Muhammad Ghuri, based in Afghanistan.
Bahlul Lodi was the founder of the first Afgan rule in India. In 1451 after defeating Sayyid ruler Alauddin Alam Shah Sayyid, he founded Lodi dynasty.
Kabul became the initial capital of the Mughal dynasty in 1504, when occupied by the emperor Bābur, who invested in public buildings and gardens. By his own account, it was Kabul's climate and its fruit that caused Bābur to fall in love with the city.
Conquest by Tamerlane (Timur) and Mughal Empire
From 1383 to 1385, the Afghanistan area was conquered from the north by Timur, leader of neighboring Transoxiana (roughly modern-day Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and adjacent areas), and became a part of the Timurid Empire.
Last Hindu priest of Kabul, Pandit Rajesh Kumar of Rattan Nath Temple refuses to flee.
Islam is the official religion of Afghanistan and the majority of the population is Muslim (approximately 99.7%). There are some very small residual communities of other faiths, including Christians, Sikhs, Hindus and Baha'i.
By the early decades of the 19th century, the Sikh empire under Maharaja Ranjit Singh had annexed large parts of the Durrani empire under the Afghans.
Some early Khatri Sikhs established and maintained colonies in Afghanistan for trading purposes. Later, conflicts between the Sikh misls and empire against the Afghan-based Durrani Empire led to tension. Sikhs also served in the British Empire's military during several operations in Afghanistan in the 19th century.
afghan sikh: Only 100 Hindu Sikhs left in Afghanistan, we thank GoI for airlifting us: Afghan Sikh leader - The Economic Times Video | ET Now.
Many of the inhabitants of northern Afghanistan accepted Islam through Umayyad missionary efforts, particularly under the reign of Caliph Hisham and Umar ibn AbdulAziz.
Genghis Khan took over the territory in the 13th century, but it wasn't until the 1700s that the area was united as a single country. By 1870, after the area had been invaded by various Arab conquerors, Islam had taken root.
Mughals are Turkic-speaking people who come from the erstwhile Soviet Union. They spoke completely unrecognizable languages like Uzbek. Afghans are part of the Pathan ethnic group. They are essentially Iranians who have been somewhat Indianized and speak a language which blends Farsi and Urdu.
Hari Singh Nalwa was one of the most trustworthy commanders in Maharaja Ranjit Singh's army. He was the Governor of Kashmir, Hazara and Peshawar. Nalwa shot to fame after defeating the Afghans and establishing control over various regions along the boundary of Afghanistan.
Campaigns of Zaman Shah
Zaman Shah lead multiple campaigns of Punjab against the Sikhs. His first campaign was in November 1796. Zaman Shah's campaign of Punjab in 1796 against the Sikhs, led to capture of Lahore in January 1797, without any opposition as the Sikh chiefs retired to Amritsar to protect the holy city.
In modern times, the Chauhan king has been referred to as 'the last Hindu emperor', because Muslim rule prevailed for centuries following his defeat. Despite being overthrown, however, his name and story have evolved over time into a historical symbol of India's martial valor.
The majority of Afghan Sikhs belong to Arora and Khatri castes. Few are from Bhatia, Bhatra and Rajvanshi background. All are well known to an average Sikh except for the last one which are in majority among the Afghan Sikhs present in Afghanistan.
The population of the country consists of numerous ethnolinguistic groups: Pashtun, Tajik, Hazara, Uzbek, Aimaq, Turkmen, Baloch, Pashai, Nuristani, Kurds, Gujjar, Arab, Brahui, Qizilbash, Pamiri, Kyrgyz, Sadat and others. Altogether they make up the Afghan people.
The ancient geographical origins of Brahmins-a prominent ethnic group in the Indian subcontinent-have remained controversial for a long time.