Arrian writes that Darius sent Sisines, a trusted Persian courtier, to the coast under the pretense of visiting Atizyes, the viceroy of Phrygia. In reality, Sisines was sent to communicate with Alexander and offer him a deal: if he would kill King Alexander, Darius would make him the king of Macedonia and grant him an additional 1,000 talents of gold. However, Sisines was captured by Parmenio, who learned of the true purpose of his mission. Parmenio immediately sent Sisines under guard to the king, who received the same information from him. The king then gathered his advisors to deliberate on how to handle this situation with Alexander.
Ram Swarup Joon writes about Chhonkar and Sansanwal: This is the gotra (clan) of the Bharatpur ruling dynasty. Their original gotra is Yadu. As they settled in a village called Sansani, they became known as Sansanwal. They opposed the atrocities of Aurangzeb, protected Hindu Dharma, and established a new capital. An ancestor from this gotra, named Brij Raj, ruled over a territory called Brij, which was named after him. This gotra’s ancestors had returned from Dwarka, and their capital was Mathura, during the 64th generation of King Brij Raj.
Hukum Singh Panwar writes that the Bharatpur rulers of the Sinsinwar gotra originated from Shini in the lineage of Krishna.
Hukum Singh Panwar provides the genealogy of the Bharatpur rulers starting from Yadu. Shini is listed at No. 38 and Krishna at No. 43 as follows:
- Yadu → 34. Andhaka → 35. Bhajmana → 36. Viduratha → 37. Shura → 38. Shini → 39. Bhoja → 40. Hardika → 41. Devamidha → 42. Vasudeva → 43. Krishna → 44. Pradyumna
This gotra of Jats is found in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh in India. The Sinsinwars were rulers of the princely state of Bharatpur. Before the formation of Bharatpur state, their capital was Sinsini. This was also the gotra of Maharaja Suraj Mal of Bharatpur. Many Sinsinwars use Faujdar as their surname. The city of Karauli was founded by the Sinsinwars.
Sinsini was formerly known as ‘Shoorsaini,’ and its inhabitants were called Saursen. The influence of the Saursen people is evident from the fact that the dialect of northern India was once known as ‘Saursaini.’
The Saursen people were Chandravanshi. Lord Krishna was also born in the Vrishni branch of Chandravansh. A group of Yadavas in Sindh followed Shiva and Vedic gods. Some inscriptions and coins from these people have been found in Mohenjo Daro, with inscriptions mentioning ‘Shiv Shani Sevi.’ The Yajur Veda mentions ‘Shinay Swah,’ and ‘Sini Isar’ was found on a gold coin. The Atharva Veda mentions ‘Sinwali’ for Sini God.
The Yadavas who came back from Sindh to the Brij area settled in Bayana in the Bharatpur district. After some struggle, the ‘Balai’ inhabitants were forced out of Brij land by the Shodeo and Saini rulers, leading to their occupation of large areas. ‘Saur Saini’ evolved into ‘ShinShoor’ or ‘Sinsini’ after their god ‘Shin.’ The people of Sinsini became known as Sinsinwar. One group of them moved to Sugrivgarh and were known as ‘Sugrivgadhia’ or ‘Sogdians.’
Faujdar was a title awarded by Muslim rulers to individuals responsible for protecting territories. Jat gotras like Sogarwar, Chahar, Sinsinwar, Kuntal, etc., use this title.
Villages founded by the Sinsinwar clan include:
- Sinsini: A village in Deeg tehsil, Bharatpur district, Rajasthan.
- Bharatpur: Founded by Maharaja Surajmal (Sinsinwar) in 1733.
- Badanpura: A village in Amber tehsil, Jaipur district, Rajasthan, founded by Raja Badan Singh of Bharatpur.
- Deeg: The initial capital of the Jat state of Bharatpur, with a strong fortress built by Maharaja Suraj Mal in 1730. It became the second capital after Suraj Mal moved to Bharatpur.
- Garoli (Garauli): A village in Deeg tehsil, Bharatpur district, Rajasthan, originating from Paijoo thok of Sinsini.
- Jatpura: A village in Weir tehsil, Bharatpur district, Rajasthan.
- Astawan: A village in Kumher tehsil, Bharatpur district, Rajasthan.
- Jatoli Thoon: A village in Deeg tehsil, Bharatpur district, Rajasthan.
- Kumher: Founded by Jat chieftain Kumbh; it was one of the four best forts of the Jats.
- Pahua: A village in Kumher tehsil, Bharatpur district, Rajasthan, founded by two sons of Fateh Singh Sinsinwar.
- Ajau: Founded by the second wife of Fateh Singh Sinsinwar.
- Nagla Ajau: Founded by the third wife of Fateh Singh Sinsinwar.
- Sihi: Founded by the fourth wife of Fateh Singh Sinsinwar.
- Sarsaina: Founded by the sons of the fifth wife of Fateh Singh Sinsinwar.
- Thoon: A village in Tehsil Nagar, Bharatpur district, Rajasthan.
- Weir: A town in Bharatpur district, founded by Badan Singh.
Villages named after Sini:
- Sini: A village in the Tantanagar block, West Singhbhum district, Jharkhand.
- Sini Sidma: A village in the Seraikela-Kharsawan district, Jharkhand.
Mention in Indian epics: In the Shalya Parva of the Mahabharata (Book IX, Chapter 44, Shloka 12), various deities and divine figures are mentioned, including Siniwali.
Bhagavata Purana: According to the Bhagavata Purana, Sini was the son of Bhojamata, and his son was Bhoja. Hukum Singh Panwar states that Shini was born in the 38th generation of Yadu, indicating that the Sinsinwar gotra originated from Shini.
Jat clans linked with the Kushans: Dr. Dharmchand Vidyalankar writes that the Kushan Empire extended from Kashgar-Khotan in Central Asia to regions in Russia, including Tashkent and Samarkand-Bukhara, and stretched to Kapisa, Kamboja, and other regions in India. During this time, Mathura’s Kushan Kshatrapa was Hagmaash. His descendants, known as Haga or Agre Jats, migrated from the banks of the Hoangho River in China to Mathura and Hathras districts, where they still live.
Jats from Braj with Kushan or Yuchi ancestry, such as Haga (Agre), Chahar, Sinsinwar, Kuntal, Gandhare (Gandhar), and Sikarwar, are still present today. The author of Mathura Memoirs, Mr. Cook, mentioned that some Jats from Mathura claimed their origin from Garh-Gazni or Rawalpindi. The dense Jat population in the Kushan Empire’s regions supports their Kushan ancestry.
Sinsinwar: Thakur Deshraj mentions that the Yadu lineage includes branches like Vrishni, Andhaka, Hala, Shivaskande-Saukande, Dagur-Digaran, Khirwar-Khare, Balhara, Saran, Sinsinwal, Chhonkar, Sogarwar, Hanga, Ghanihaar, and Bhoj.
Thakur Deshraj also writes that there is a misconception about the Sinsinwars’ origin, which has led to incorrect claims about their Rajput lineage. He clarifies that their name is derived from the deity Shina, who was worshipped in Sinsini. The village name and gotra are linked to this deity, and the name Sinsini evolved from Shina or Sin.