Jasma Odan


Jasma Odan is a legendary character and folk deity from medieval Gujarat in India.

Legend

Jasma was a wife of Rooda who was a pond digger. They belonged to the Od rajput tribe. They were at Anhilwad Patan to dig Sahastralinga Tank, a lake and thousand shrines with lingam. Siddharaj Jaysinh, a king of Chaulukya dynasty, was captivated by the beauty of Jasma and proposed marriage. He offered to make her queen of Gujarat but she refused. Jaysinh killed her husband. She committed sati, by jumping into the pyre, to protect her honour. Her curse made the tank of Sahasralinga Tank waterless and Siddharaj without an heir to his kingdom of Gujarat.
Jasmadevi temple dedicated to her was constructed by the Od rajput tribe in 12th century is situated near Sahasralinga Tank at Patan, Gujarat.

Popular culture

A Bhavai vesha, a folk theatre form, based on legend is performed since nineteenth century. It was recreated for stage performance titled Jasma Odan was by Shanta Gandhi in 1982. A Gujarati film titled Sati Jasma Odan was produced by Chandrakant Sanghani in 1976.