The Hara is the most important of the twenty-four Chauhan _sakha_, being descended from Anuraj, the son of Manik Rae, king of Ajmer, who in S. 741 (A.D. 685) sustained the first shock of the Islamite arms.[10.1.1] =The Origin of the Chauhāns.=—We have already sketched the pedigree of the Chauhans,[10.1.2] one of the most illustrious of the ‘Thirty-six Royal Races’ of India.[10.1.3] We must, however, in this place, enter into it somewhat more fully; and in doing so, we must not discard even the fables of their origin, which will at least demonstrate that the human understanding has been similarly constructed in all ages and countries, before the thick veil of ignorance and superstition was withdrawn from it. So scanty are the remote records of the Chauhans, that it would savour of affectation to attempt a division of the periods of their history, or the improbable, the probable, and the certain. Of the first two, a separation would be impracticable, and we cannot trace the latter beyond the seventh century. “When the impieties of the kings of the warrior race drew upon them the vengeance of Parasurama, who twenty-one times extirpated that race, some, in order to save their lives, called themselves bards; others assumed the guise of women; and thus the _singh_ (horn) of the Rajputs was preserved, when dominion was assigned to the Brahmans. The impious avarice of Sahasra Arjuna, of the Haihaya race, king of Maheswar[10.1.4] on the Nerbudda, provoked the last war, having slain the father of Parasurama [440].