The Gujars of the Central Provinces have, however, entirely given up
the predatory habits of their brethren in northern India and have
developed into excellent cultivators and respectable law-abiding
citizens. In Hoshangabad they have three subcastes, Lekha, Mundle
and Jadam. The Mundle or 'Shaven' are so called because they take
off their turbans when they eat and expose their crowns bare of hair,
while the Lekha eat with their turbans on. The Mundle are also known as
Rewe, from the Rewa or Nerbudda, near which they reside. The Jadam are
probably an offshoot from the cultivating caste of Hoshangabad of that
name, Jadam being a corruption of Jadubansi, a tribe of Rajputs. The
Badgujars, who belong to Nimar, consider themselves the highest,
deriving their name from bara or 'great' Gujar. As already seen,
there is a Badgujar clan of Rajputs. The Nimar Badgujars, however,
were formerly engaged in the somewhat humble calling of clearing
cotton of its seeds, and on this account they are also known as
Ludhare, the word lodhna meaning to work the hand-ginning machine
(charkhi). It seems possible that the small caste of Lorhas of the
Hoshangabad District, whose special avocation is to grow san-hemp,
may be derived from these Ludhare Gujars. The Kekre or Kanwe subcaste
are the lowest and are of illegitimate descent. They are known as Kekre
or 'Crabs,' but prefer their other name. They will take food from the
other subcastes, but these do not return the compliment. Another group
in the Sohagpur Tahsil of Hoshangabad are the Lilorhia Gujars. They
say that their ancestors were grazing calves when some of them with
their herdsmen were stolen by Brahma. Then Krishna created fresh
cowherds and the Lilorhias were made from the sweat of his forehead
(lilat). Afterwards Brahma restored the original cowherds, who were
known as Murelia, because they were the first players on the murli
or flute. [126] The Badgujars or highest branch of the clan are
descendants of these Murelias. The caste have also a set of exogamous
groups, several of which bear the names of Rajput clans, while others
are called after villages, titles or nicknames or natural objects. A
man is not permitted to marry any one belonging either to his own
sept or that of his mother or grandmother.