Synopsis of History of Lohanas - by R. T.Somaiya

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Rama was considered an Avatar or God-incarnate of Lord Vishnu, the protector of the Universe according to Vedic or Hindu mythology. Lord Rama divided his vast kingdom into eight parts, giving one each to his three brothers' eight children. Elder of Ram's two sons was Kush, who was given a land, called Kaushal, which was in the Gangetic basin. His younger son Luv was given the northeast region of his kingdom, which came to be, called Luvalka or Luv's land.

Luv is portrayed as a brave warrior. In one of the episodes of the Ramayana even though he is a mere boy in the hermitage, he brings the entire army of his father Lord Rama (under the command of his uncle Laxman) to a standstill by the prowess at archery (of course along with his older brother Kush). His descendants too were cast in the same mould, but they were not satisfied with Luvalka and pushed to the west and annexed today's Afghanistan and adjoining areas.

Around 580 BC., when king Bimbisara ruled over Bharat (India), the society came to be divided into different communities based on their occupation. One of their communities was called Kshatriyas and King Luv's descendants were classed with them and came to be known as Luvanam, which was also referred to as Luvana. The Luvanas from Loharghat became known as Loharana (masters of swords), which later became Lohana.

Chinese traveler Fa-hien, who visited India between 414 and 399 B.C., calls Lohanas a brave community ruling the northwest territory of India, in his diary. Another Chinese traveler, Kurmang who came in the eleventh century A.D. speaks of a Lohana kingdom as a mighty power. Historian Burton writes Lohanas were brave people and says they were spread over today's Baluchistan (Pakistan), Afghanistan and eastern fringes of Central Asia. Col. Todd, who delved into history of Rajasthan, describes Lohanas as the oldest Kshatriya community.