The Desert Dwellers of Rajasthan
Bishnoi and Bhil people

continued (page 4 of 5)

The Bhil people are highly skilled desert hunters; the art of hunting has been in their blood for many centuries. Although the government now forbids hunting, the Bhils secretly preserve their culture by venturing out at night to kill birds, rabbits and lizards with their hunting sticks. Their favorite target is the bountiful antelope population, prized for its plentiful, high-quality meat. Among the poorest people in India, few Bhil people own rifles or those who do can’t afford the licenses or bullets. They fill rifles leftover from their mercenary work with black powder, stones and glass debris and hunt under cover of darkness.

Even more offensive to the Bishnoi than their stalking of antelopes is the Bhils’ attitude towards trees and vegetation. The Bhil flaunt Bishnoi taboos by cutting trees to fuel their fires, build their houses, and most importantly, to provide materials for basket making, especially the green wood of the precious arana tree.

Over the centuries, the Bhil have become semi-nomadic, offering their services to kings and maharajas as mercenaries and soldiers for hire. As the era of warring maharajas and kings came to a close in the early 20th century, the Bhil lost their only source of income and were forced to adopt a different way of life. Since then, they have settled in rural villages where they live from hunting and limited herding.

In recent decades, more and more Bhil people have settled next to Bishnoi communities, drawn to the few places with dependable sources of water and game. Unlike the Bishnoi, they have never farmed—their legacy for centuries has been their merit as fierce warriors on the field of combat.