It is native to arid portions of Western Asia and the Indian Subcontinent, including Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iran, India, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.

[4] Prosopis cineraria is also the state tree of Rajasthan (where it is known as khejri), Western Uttar Pradesh (where it is known as chhonkara) and Telangana (where it is known as jammi[5]) in India.

A large and well-known example of the species is the Tree of Life in Bahrain; it is approximately 400 years old and growing in a desert devoid of any obvious sources of water.

Amrita Devi and her three young daughters gave their lives in an attempt to protect some khejri trees which Maharaja Abhay Singh had ordered cut to make way for his new palace.

The tree is found in extremely arid conditions, with rainfall as low as 15 cm (5.9 in) annually; but is indicative of the presence of a deep water table.

Historically, among the Rajputs, the ranas – who were the high priest and the king – used to conduct the worship and then to liberate a jay which was the sacred bird of Lord Rama.

[9]: 29–30 [10] In the Deccan, as part of the tenth-day ritual of Dussahera, the marathas used to shoot arrows onto the crown of the tree and gather the falling leaves into their turbans.

[12] However, according to historical references, Prosopis cineraria is known as the Banni mara,[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20] and holds a special place in the Mysore Dasara, where its worshipped on the Vijay-dashami day.

[23][10][20][13][19][22][excessive citations] In Thar Desert the singhri or sangri pods growing on Prosopis cineraria are used in various types of bhaaji and kadhi.