Kasbo village lies about 11 km south of Nagarparkar town in Tharparkar District, which is noted for temples and memorial stones. It is a historic village in Nagarparkar Taluka in Tharparkar District. This village was founded when Old Kasbo village began to decline. Old Kasbo is located 3 km north of New Kasbo. Old Kasbo boasts several hero and sati stones of Rajput and Kolhi communities, which I will discuss in another article. Meghwar, Rabari, Kolhi, Kumbhar, Maganhar, and other castes inhabit New Kasbo. This village is also known for two temples dedicated to Lord Shiva and Rama Pir, respectively.
The temple of Rama Pir is one of the oldest temples in the village, believed to have been built in the 17th century. There are several temples of Rama Pir in Tharparkar now, but this temple in Kasbo village is one of the earliest. I first visited this temple and Kasbo village in 1999 and later in 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, and 2013 during my various research trips to Nagarparkar for my books on memorial stones (published in 2017) and folk deities (ongoing research) in Tharparkar.
The Temples of Kasbo
Apart from the temples, there are four memorial stones located in different parts of Kasbo. Rama Pir temple in Kasbo is believed to have been built in the 17th century. There used to be a thaan (enclosure). Later, in the 19th century, a building was constructed. The present temple building dates back to the 19th century. The bronze statue and the marble slab with footprints of Rama Pir are from the earlier thaan, which were later placed in this temple. This temple is also home to a large number of peacocks in Tharparkar.
The Shiva temple was believed to have been built by Mangal Bharti in 1934 with donations from different communities. It is a beautiful structure with a domed mandapa and a garbhagriha surmounted by a shikhara. Such village temples of Shiva are found throughout Tharparkar.
The Hero Stones of Kasbo
Apart from temples, Kasbo boasts memorial stones, many of which have now disappeared. Today, only four memorial stones are still extant, although three are in deplorable condition.
Several memorial stones fell victim to neglect until conservation work finally started following the publication of dedicated research on Tharparkar's funerary art
The first memorial stone is located on the agricultural land of Rais Ghani Khoso. This memorial stone belongs to a Brahman hero. It is divided into two sections: lower and upper. The lower section bears an inscription, and the upper features a carving of the deceased hero on a horse. The hero is shown holding a spear in one hand and a bow in the other. The shield is also depicted behind the figure of the hero. The Brahman hero is shown wearing a turban. The hero is depicted riding on a caparisoned horse. The uppermost section of the hero-stone represents peacocks with a plant, sunflower, and crescent. The frame of the image is decorated with a geometric scroll. The peacock is a symbol of beauty in Tharparkar.
The Peacock Motif in Tharparkar
The peacock is a recurring motif not only on the memorial stones of Tharparkar but also in the wall paintings that decorate village houses across the region. Its appearance in both domestic and funerary art reflects the continuity of a shared visual tradition sustained by local communities for generations. Stone carvers in Nagarparkar drew upon this familiar artistic tradition, incorporating the peacock into the iconography of hero stones. The bird is frequently depicted with stylised flowering plants, often as a pair feeding on them. This composition recurs on several memorial stones in Tharparkar.
Some of the finest examples of this motif are found at New Kasbo and Old Adhigam villages. Old Adhigam preserves a group of eight parihas (hero stones), two of which commemorate mounted heroes. In both examples, the uppermost section of the slab is occupied by a pair of peacocks flanking a stylised plant, while the sun and the moon are carved on either side of the composition. These celestial symbols, commonly associated with eternity and perpetual remembrance, reinforce the commemorative purpose of the monument. Both hero stones also bear inscriptions, combining text and imagery to memorialise the deceased. The repetition of this motif at different sites indicates that the peacock, together with the plant, sun, and moon, became a recurrent motif through which ideas of heroism, memory, and continuity were expressed in the funerary traditions of Tharparkar.
The Story of the Brahman Hero
The hero stone of the Brahman in Kasbo bears his date of death in 1857 Vikram Samvat, corresponding to circa 1800. According to Dr Shankar Lal D Motiani, a notable of Kasbo, the Brahman died fighting cattle rustlers. Jareja Thakurs from Kutch raided Kasbo village to steal cattle, including that of the Brahman. He resisted and fought with them and was killed. His descendants later erected his memorial stone in Kasbo. He belonged to the Manra lineage of Brahmans.
The second hero-stone is situated north of the village and south of the Rama Pir temple. The lower section of the hero-stone is half-buried, thus obliterating the inscription. The upper part depicts an armed warrior on a horse, holding a spear in one hand and a bow in the other. The local artisans commonly adopted this motif.
The third memorial stone lies in the village and is partially broken. Only the half-broken upper section of the memorial stone showing the deceased hero is extant. Several memorial stones fell victim to neglect until I started writing and drawing the attention of the concerned authorities. Conservation work on some of the memorial stones started after the publication of my book Memorial Stones: Tharparkar, which was published in 2017.
The Vanjara Trade Route and Pond Markers
The fourth memorial stone is located about 3 km south of Kasbo village at Senyato tank. This memorial stone depicts an image of a cow. Such memorial stones were installed at tanks and gauchars (communal pastures), which were boundary markers between two villages. Unlike most memorial stones in Nagarparkar, this monument was erected beside a pond that once served the Vanjara (Banjara) trading community.
For centuries, Vanjara caravans moved between Kutch and Nagarparkar, bringing spices from Kutch and returning with grain and other food commodities acquired from Nagarparkar and neighbouring parts of Tharparkar. In the semi-arid landscape of the region, such journeys depended on a network of ponds where traders halted to rest, replenish their water supplies, and allow their oxen to drink before continuing their journey.
A distinctive feature of these Vanjara ponds was a large, man-made earthen mound constructed along one side of the tank. Rising above the surrounding plain, the mound served as a prominent landmark that could be seen from a considerable distance, enabling caravans to identify their traditional halting places. My research shows that memorial stones were sometimes erected on these mounds, transforming them into both navigational markers and commemorative landmarks. Many of these monuments depict a cow, a motif that appears to have functioned as a visual identifier of a Vanjara pond while simultaneously evoking the pastoral economy upon which the trading community depended.
The Ranasar Monument
The remains of several such Vanjara ponds survive in Nagarparkar Taluka, providing valuable evidence of the region's historic trade routes and the mobility of pastoral trading communities. One of the finest examples is located at Ranasar, near Lakarkhadio village. Atop the earthen mound, locally known as Lakheto, stands an inscribed marble memorial stone. Its four faces are carved with the sun, the moon, a yoni, a linga, and a cow. The yoni and Shiva lingam point to the Shaivite affiliation of the patrons who commissioned the monument, while the cow reinforces its association with the Vanjara community and their pastoral way of life. The memorial stone is surmounted by a kalasha, a sacred finial symbolising auspiciousness and spiritual fulfilment. These motifs show that the memorial stone functioned not merely as a commemorative monument but also as a marker of a culturally significant landscape, where trade, religion, mobility, and memory intersected.
Like many other memorial stones in Nagarparkar, these hero stones at Kasbo village represent the region's rich funerary art tradition, commemorating and celebrating the courage and heroism of the village's fallen heroes. Through their finely carved imagery and inscriptions, they preserve both the memory of the deceased and the values of bravery, honour, and collective identity cherished by the community.