Mythologies of the Kumhar Tribe

The Kumhars derive their name from the Sanskrit word Kumbhakar meaning earthen pot maker.
In Hindu mythology, the Kumhars are the descendants of Lord Prajapati. Therefore, they are also known as Prajapati. According to a Hindu mythology, the first Kumbh (earthen pot) was a gift from the Gods. When the gods and the demons were churning the ocean for nectar, there was no vessel to collect the ambrosia. Some other Kumhar myths claim this to be their first creation. Another mythological story says that when Lord Shiva was about to marry Parvati, he realised he had forgotten the water pot integral for the ceremony. Therefore, he gave a part of his skin for clay to Prajapati, the god of creativity, to make a pot. And Parvati gave her blood to decorate the pot. That is when the first kumbh (earthen pot) was created and Prajapati became the first Kumhar (potter).

Kumhar or Kumbhar (honorifically Prajapati)is a caste or community in India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. 'Kumhar' have historically been associated with art of pottery. The Kumhars derive their name from the Sanskrit word Kumbhakar meaning earthen-pot maker.Dravidian languages conform to the same meaning of the term Kumbhakar. The term Bhande, used to designate the Kumhar caste, also means pot. The potters of Amritsar are called Kulal or Kalal, the term used in Yajurveda to denote the potter class. Once Brahma divided sugarcane among his sons and each of them ate his share, but the Kumhara who was greatly absorbed in his work, forgot to eat. The piece which he had kept near his clay lump struck root and soon grew into a sugarcane plant. A few days later, when Brahma asked his sons for sugarcane, none of them could give it to him, excepting the Kumhara who offered a full plant. Brahma was pleased by the devotion of the potter to his work and awarded him the title Prajapati.

The Kumhar tribe of Pakistan is traditionally maker of terracotta pottery in Pakistan. They live a very basic life and spend their whole life making pottery from clay. Special alluvial mud is chosen and brought into the home and soaked in plain sweet water from the river or stream. Than they give an uneven shape to the mud and put it on their spindle where it is shaped round and the inside of the pot is kept hollow. While they use a special stone to further shape the pot. Bottom is made bigger by holding the wall of the pot with stone from inside and beaten with wooden plank from outside. The mud pots are commonly used in villages of Pakistan while in cities kids use picky banks made of terracotta. Since the times of Moen Jo Daro and even earlier Mehar Garh and Lakhan jo Daro times, the terracotta pottery was made and used in the Indus valley. In those days the pots were also glazed with fine clay to give them a shine and darker color.

Kumhar is a caste or community in India. Kumhar literally means potter in Indian languages. It is also known by the names Kumbhara, Kubhara, Kumar, Kumor, Kubar and Khubar. The Kumhar community is found throughout India and is found in both Hindu and Muslim religions. Depending upon the subgroup or region they are classified as both Other Backward Class and the Scheduled Caste. Additionally, there is a proposal under process in Indian Parliament that the caste Prajapati (Kumhar) be declared as Scheduled caste and as Scheduled tribe in the states of Bihar and Orissa respectively. Kumhars are found in Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur, Sholapur and Pune. They speak in Marathi among themselves but in Marathi as well as Hindi with outsiders. They use Devnagari script for communication.^[2] There are Kumbhars who do not belong to Maratha clan lives in Maharashtra and have occupation of making idols and pots.^[1] They are aware of the Hindu Varna hierarchy and consider themselves to be the Shudra, the lowest rank.

The word kumhar,is not a caste it is like a culture. From any caste a person who does Potter work! He may be a kumhar. So we can say that kumhar itself a caste. A story about Lord Brahma Prajapati that they had four sons on the planet Earth and one day they gave sugarcanes to their four sons. And after few months, they wanted that sugarcanes back but their sons ate the sugarcanes but one of his son couldn't eat because he was busy in his work of Pottery and planted that sugarcane in the sand and bring back it to the lord Brahma. They became very happy from his son whose name was kumhar or Sanatan, They gave the "Prajapati" title to him. So it is clear that Prajapati can be A Brahmin, A kshatriya, A vaishya but never become untouchable. Prajapati is the descipline of hindu diety,and all castes are from Prajapati.

"The Kumhars have almost shun their castly business (Soil work) but some have kept it alive. There are Kumhars in the Indian continent that export their items around world.The Kumhar traditional occupation remains pottery, but many are farmers also. The community are Vedantic & Hindus of the Shaivite sect. "Think Globally, Act Homely, Socially, Religiously, Spiritually for the betterment of Life i.e. The King of Happiness (within) (Self Realization). This is the Basis of Social, Religious & Spiritual Conductivity i.e. Eternal Way of Life." "According to a Hindu mythology, the first Kumbh (earthen pot) was a gift from the Gods. When the gods and the demons were churning the ocean for nectar, there was no vessel to collect the ambrosia. Some other Kumhar myths claim this to be their first creation. Another mythological story says that when Lord Shiva was about to marry Parvati, he realised he had forgotten the water pot integral for the ceremony. Therefore, he gave a part of his skin for clay to Prajapati, the god of creativity, to make a pot. And Parvati gave her blood to decorate the pot. That is when the first kumbh (earthen pot) was created and Prajapati became the first Kumhar (potter). In some temples in Rajasthan (such as Paner) & Himachal Pradesh, only a Kumhar can do the worship not the Brahmins.

Kumhar or Kumbhar (Punjabi: ਕੁਮਹਾਰ, Urdu: کتعہطد,Hindi: कु्म्हार); also known as Prajapati, is a caste or community of India, mainly belonging to the Hindu religion. The word "Kumhar" literally means "potter" in Indian languages, pottery being the traditional occupation of the Kumhars. In Hindu mythology, Kumhars are said to have descended from the Prajapati, the son of the Hindu god Brahma, and hence are referred to as Prajapatis. There are also other stories about them being called Prajapati. In Shiv Purana while Narad Ji listens Shiv Tatva from God Brahma, he calls God Brahmaji as Prajapati so Brahmaji himself is also a Prajapati. The Kumhar community is found throughout North India in the states of Punjab, Himachal, Western Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar. Traditionally, the Kumhars have been the followers of the Dharmic religions (especially Hinduism), but many of them adopted Islam after the Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinent.