Today I went to one program arranged by one of the Hindutva organisations, many Sadhus, Nagas and Aghoris were invited in that religious programme. Tantra Vidya has always attracted people; out of curiosity I asked one of the tantric “is there any female tantrik in this field? He said many women are successful practitioners of tantra but they live a very private and isolated life. While talking about the legacy of female tantric, he mentioned one name called Lona Chamari. Just as people believe in the power of God, in the same way there are many people who believe in Tantra Vidya or Tantric powers. There are people who believe in this all over the world including India. Tantra Vidya has been present on the earth not just today but for centuries. People claim to use it for many things. Like protection from evil eye, job, marriage and what not. We humans naturally get attracted to these tantra practices because it is made believe that these practices can get you whatever you wish for.
In tantra vidya there are many men known for their tantra awakenings, but Lona Chamari was one female who is known for awakening Shabar Mantra. According to learned authorities, there are many types of Lona Chamaris, one Lona Chamari was a resident of Chamar village of Amritsar city of Punjab. Some believe that she is called Chamarin (cobbler) because she belonged to that community. It is said that Lona Chamarin belonged to the Harijan caste. There is no written history about Lona Chamarin, but from folklore, folk literature and mantras we get to know another story that she belonged to Kamarupa, also known as Kamakhya. Kamakhya has been famous for Tantra Sadhana since ancient times. Another Lona Chamarin is mentioned as a woman living in Dadrewa, Rajasthan. She was the maid of Jaharveer’s mother Vashal. It is said that Jaharveer respected him like his mother, hence whenever Lona Chamarin is called for, Jaharveer himself comes and solves the problem.
From childhood, she became the disciple of Ismail Jogi. Ismail Jogi was a great Tantrik of Kamakhya. Lona Chamarin also learned Tantrik Vidya by staying with him. Later on, she became so adept in these practices and went deep in her practices. This is the reason even in today’s time her name is taken in many tantra vidyas. However, the fame of Lona Chamarin of Kamrup i.e., Kamakhya is much greater than all of them.
Lona Chamarin’s name appears in many Sabar chants. Sabar mantras are those in which Arabic, Persian and common spoken words are used. That is, such mantras which have been prepared in common spoken language. Mantras prepared in Sanskrit or other linguistic purity are difficult for the general public to understand. These special features of Sabar Mantras made them accessible to common people. People started using them in small matters everywhere. How much influence do they have? It is either a matter of belief or influence. However, the number of people who experiment and believe in it is not less.
The people who perform exorcism neither tell everyone about the spell nor talk about Lona Chamarin. But it is clear that Lona Chamarin must have been a very accomplished woman, due to which even the pundits invoke her name in the mantras to cast off witchcraft. Lona Chamarin’s name is mentioned at many places in Malik Muhammad Jayasi’s immortal work Padmavat. In one incident, a Brahmin who does yoga and totka, to prove her superiority, says, ‘Jas kamaru chamari lona. No one is educated or sorcery.
That is, just as who has not been stepped out by the tantra-mantra and sorcery of Lona Chamarin of Kamrup. Similarly, Lona Chamarin is mentioned at some other places in Padmavat. However, her name came up on such occasions where there was talk of witchcraft and tantra. It was clear from this that Lona Chamarin was an expert in such sciences. So, who was this Lona Chamarin, who is mentioned again and again in mantras, even in the classic epic like ‘Padmavat’?
During British rule, there used to be an officer of Bengal Civil Services, William Crook. One of his books, ‘The Popular Religion and Folklore of Northern India’, was published in 1896. In this he talks about Lona Chamarin. In ‘The Goldlings of Disease Chapter’ he mentions people who free someone from a shadow. In general terms they are called Tantrik or Ojha. He tells about one such person from Mirzapur that he was invoking devotee Hanuman in mantras.
He writes that apart from Hanuman, he has also heard about two more people, Lona Chamarin and Ismail Jogi. People appeal to Ismail Jogi and Lona Chamarin in their mantras to protect people from evil shadows or the wrath of any poisonous creature. He says that when hail started falling in Mirzapur, the people there would appeal to Ismail Jogi and Lona Chamarin to protect them. Those days we were living in a caste system and some cats were believed to be supreme and worship and tantras were considered to be their proficiency. This Dalit woman who accepted Muslim mantric as her guru and excelled on her path of spiritual divinity.
