Today I am going to tell a brief incident in the life of Shivaji Bhosale. His many historical events made his life history so interesting. Among those here I am going to share the famous incident that happened at the bottom land of Pratapgarh.
On the day of 16 February, 1630, Shivaji Maharaj was born at Shivneri Fort situated near Junnar in the district of Pune. He was a member of the Bhosale clan who founded the Maratha empire.
The father of Shivaji, Shahaji Bhosale was the well known Maratha general in the court of Bijapur sultanate. He served alongside Malik Ambar who defended the Deccan region that was the first to be done by any Maratha against the Mughals. He always wanted to overthrow the Mughal Empire and free their Kingdom from the Sultanate of Bijapur by establishing a Swarajya in India. Jijabai, his mother of Shivaji Raje was a devoutly religious and farsighted lady.
She is considered to be the master behind the bravery of Shivaji Maharaj. He was extremely devoted to his mother Jijabai. The religious environment had a great influence on him.
He faithfully studied Ramayana and Mahabharata, the two great Hindu epics of India. The virtues, and spiritual directives of these epics left a great impression on him. Shivaji Maharaj managed to bring together a band of fiercely loyal Maratha men by the age of 16.
He started conquering nearby lands and capturing Torna fort under the influence of Bijapur kingdom which was their first Triumph. By 1647, Marathas had control of much of the southern Pune region due to the capture of Kondana and Rajgad Fort.
In a bid to contain Shivaji Maharaj Adil Shah sent Afzal Khan who was an experienced general of his army. He had provided 40,000 troops to destroy Shivaji Maharaj. Upon carefully weighing his options Shivaji Maharaj decided to have an information meeting with Afzall Khan at the base of the Pratapgarh Fort.
While the two were embracing each other, Afzal Khan stabbed Shivaji Maharaj in the back. Shivaji Maharaj was well prepared; he was wearing chainmail armor which protected him. He countered the attack with Tiger claws glove and teared stomach of the Khan.
The army of Afzal Khan had no idea that the leader had been slain. Shivaji Maharaj went out of the tent and after hearing the sound inside Krishnaji Bhaskar, the guard of Afzal Khan came inside and attacked Maharaj with Patta. Instantaneously the guard of Shivaj Raje, Jiva Mahale came and beared that attack on his body and countered his attack and killed the guard.
After a while, Maharaj reached inside the fort and gave a signal to his army. Maratha troops were hidden in the dense forest of Pratapgarh and on seeing the sudden attack their army surrendered.
The fort of Raigad became the center of power and growth of Shivaji Maharaj. Hence, it became his capital city, this fort resting on top of a hill that was split off from the Western Ghats.
It was Virtually in accessible from three sides. Prices were announced for those who tried innovative new methods to reach the top. Under the rule of Shivaji Maharaj untouchables were given true justice.They were also recruited in the army and promoted as well.
He gave great importance to Sanskrit. Shivaji Maharaj ensured that Sanskrit was never lost. He replaced many Persian words with Sanskrit once whereble possible. The people of his land loved him and truly worshiped him. He allowed their people to follow their choice of religion and convert back to being Hindu after having converted to Islam under Aurangzeb.
He ensured that Muslim places of worship and Muslim women were respected too. As a result, a large number of Muslim served in his army. All these qualities helped Shivaji Maharaj to inculcate the same passion for revolution against the Mughals in a people’s mind. But even today, if only remembered for his acts of bravery and kindness towards his people. His birthday is celebrated with great enthusiasm in Maharashtra amongst Maharashtrians.
Read More Here:
Brief Background of Maratha History
