Narayan H. Kulkarnee believes that "sati" came to be practiced in medieval Maharashtra initially by the Maratha nobility claiming Rajput descent. Then, according to Kulkarnee, the practice of "sati" may have increased across caste distinctions as an honour-saving custom in the face of Muslim advances into the territory. But the practice never gained the prevalence seen in Rajasthan or Bengal, and social customs of actively dissuading a widow from committing "sati" are well established. Apparently not a single instance of forced "sati" is attested for the 17th and 18th centuries CE.