The Kushwaha claim descent from the Suryavansh dyansty through Kusha, a son of the mythological Rama, an avatar of Vishnu, a myth of origin developed in the twentieth century. Prior to that time, the various branches that form the Kushwaha community - the Kachhis, Kachwahas, Koeris, and Muraos - favoured a connection with Shiva and Shakta. Ganga Prasad Gupta, a proponent of Kushwaha sanskritization, claimed in the 1920s that Kushwaha families worshiped Hanuman - described by Pinch as the embodiment of true devotion to Ram and Sita - during Kartika, a month in the Hindu lunar calendar.