Abstract

Long ago, the Gonds of central India organised themselves into small kingdoms. They have a glorious history of having built 52 forts and reigned over this land. Gond kings are called Rajgonds. As the heritage of the kings continued, those associated with the kith and kin of the rulers were identified as Rajgonds. Earlier, they used to live by hunting, animal rearing and farming. They did not forget their earlier occupations, even after they established kingdoms. They continued to practise their old tasks. These people were very intimate with the secrets of nature. They worshipped nature. They had deep knowledge about the medicinal values of herbs in nature. Later they emerged as native doctors or Ayurvedic curers. They became Ayurvedic doctors to the kings and royal families of Gonds and were called Raj-Vaidyas. When the kings lost their kingdom by the invasion of Muslims, these Raj-Vaidyas became obsolete. So they turned to common people for medicinal services. In the course of time these people were called Rajgonds.