# Biographical letter from a Hindu villager

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-21 — 1 clipping.*

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Daya Ram Malviya, Biographical letter from a Hindu villager, bahai-library.com.
> ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
> 
> Biographical letter from a Hindu villager
> 
> Daya Ram Malviya
> 
> William Garlington, translator
> 
> 1974
> 
> Below is a translation of a letter I received while I was in India in 1974 from Daya Ram Malviya, one of the early villagers in Malwa to "declare" himself a Bahá'í and who in the mid to late 60s became a leading "traveling teacher." I thought his own story, limited in length and somewhat disjointed though it is, might be of interest, especially as reads his own form of istikharih. -W.G.
> 
> A number of important Bahá'ís came to my home in Harsodan(1) including the
> Holy Lotus Feet of Hand of the Cause Amutul- Baha, Ruhiyyih Khanum, Hand
> of the Cause Dr. Muhajir and several others whose names escape me. Earlier,
> during her trip to India, Dorothy Baker came to Harsodan and gave me her
> blessing.
> 
> At one time a famous Hindu pandit lived in Harsodan. He had composed a
> famous discourse about Satya-Narayan(2) which is still recited throughout the
> region today. His sons have accepted the Bahá'í Faith.
> 
> My father was fairly prosperous, but because of his jati(3) the wealthy and
> powerful jatis(4) became upset. One day these people came prepared to attack us
> and divide up our land amongst themselves. At this time I was 15 or 16 years old.
> But my father saw them coming with their sticks and guns and became terribly
> angry. He grabbed a sharp sword from the house and went out to meet them.
> When they saw him in this rage they quickly fled. I was also with my father. For
> some time we were fearful of our enemies, and on occasions they brought harm
> to us. Today, however, there are Rajputs and Kulmis who are Bahá'ís.(5)
> 
> I first heard the message of the Bahá'í Faith in 1941 when Mr. Boman(6) Shirin
> Mummy(7) and Dr. Munje(8) came from Bombay (via Ujjain) for the first visit
> to Harsodan. My father immediately accepted the Faith and with him two or
> three other members of his jati. I also accepted. I was twenty-one or twenty-two at
> the time. In 1944 my father became seriously ill with tuberculosis and could not
> be saved. At this time although I had accepted the Bahá'í Faith I was not aware of
> its complete truth or the depth of its teachings. I only knew that the path of all
> religions is the same, but this truth was not apparent to me from observing the
> followers of different religions. They said the words and they called Ishvar's
> name(9) but they often deceived others in various ways. Having seen all of these
> things I became very sad and wondered why Bhagavan(10) had created people
> who for their own gain and benefit cheated and deceived others.
> 
> After seeing this type of deception I slowly began to think how I might become
> more wealthy and make myself more comfortable in life. And as a result I began
> to think of some evil things. I was tested. It happened in this way. I had gone to
> the home of Kishan Lal Malviya(11) in Shajapur (the Malwa villager who had
> first come to Harsodan with Mr.Boman and Shirin Mummy) where we were
> discussing different ways and means of making money. In the process I thought
> of some not-so-proper ways. Then I thought of making separate pieces of paper
> with the name of a different occupation on each and in the name of Bhagavan,
> without looking, I would draw one piece of paper, and whichever one I picked,
> that would be my life's career. Among these were: thief, bandit (dacoit), pimp and
> other thugi-like(12) occupations. On other pieces I worte more respectable
> occupations such as hotel owner, shop keeper, farmer etc. And on one piece of
> paper I wrote: "Service to the Bahá'í Faith." In this fashion, having recited
> Bhagavan's name, I picked out one of the papers and opened it. And this is what
> I saw: "Service to the Bahá'í Faith." When I saw this I became anxiety free. A year
> later Shirin Mummy and Dr. Muhajir made me a traveling teacher. Then I had
> the opportunity of reading the holy books and came to understand the depth of
> truth within them.
> 
> But now the chance of my serving God's religion has been stopped. Therefore I
> pray that Bahá'u'lláh might again give me the power of serving Him.(13)
> 
> Notes
> 
> The village of Harsodan is located approximately 15 miles from Ujjain in the
> central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. The region in which it is located is
> commonly referred to as Malwa.
> 
> Satya-Narayana is a form of the Hindu deity Narayana. During the medieval
> period under Muslim influence the god Narayana became known as Satyapir
> (satya = true + pir = saint). This deity was a syncretic fusion of Rahim and Rama.
> At a later date he was calle d Satya-Narayan.
> 
> The family were Balais who in Malwa are classified as "unclean" They are
> one ranking above "untouchable" but are considered a "scheduled" caste because
> they are on the government list for special compensations = something like af
> firmitive action (at least this was the case in the mid 70s) Their low status derives
> from their traditonal occupation (weaving) which brought them into close
> contact with leather.
> 
> Rajputs and Kulmis
> 
> When I was in Malwa 4 Rajputs and 5 K ulmis were said to be Bahá'ís in
> Harsodan. There were 65 Balai declarants.
> 
> Mr. Boman was Shrin Boman Meherabani's husband. He died in the mid 60s
> in a jeep accident while teaching the Faith in the Gwalior area.
> 
> Shirin Boman was known throughout Malwa as "Mummy"
> 
> Dr. Munje and his wife came to Ujjain from Bombay at the same time as the
> Bomans. He later moved to Varanasi where he practiced homeopathic
> medicine.
> 
> Ishvar(Who is able) is a *generic* Hindu title for the personal aspect of
> God
> 
> A name for the Supreme Being, often related to both Vishnu and
> Krishna.
> 
> Kishan Lal Malviya was a scheduled caste leader from Shajapur district. He
> became very significant during the mass teaching era, as it was at his village of
> Sangimanda that the now famous Bahá'í Conference was held in 1961 (at which
> Dr. Muhajir was present) which really initiated the flood of declarations in
> Malwa over the next decade.
> 
> Originally the word "thug" in Hindi referred to a member of a secret fraternity
> of assassins who were associated with the goddess kali. In common usage it has
> come to refer to a "tough guy" as it has in English.
> 
> I was never quite sure about what happened, but apparently Daya Ram
> Malviya lost his position (and perhaps his voting rights?) This was not
> uncommon apparently, as a number of village teachers were felt to have either
> abused their positions financially or otherwise.
> 
> METADATA
> 
> Views13738 views since posted 2001; last edit 2025-03-06 07:21 UTC;
> 
> previous at archive.org.../garlington_malviya_letter;
> URLs changed in 2010, see archive.org.../bahai-library.org
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> Shortlink: bahai-library.com/663
> Citation: ris/663
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> — *Biographical letter from a Hindu villager (Used by permission of the curator)*