The Hero Behind

Early yesterday, my friend Shyama Patil, who lives in Kolhapur and is very proud of her Maharashtrian roots, reminded me that today was Shivaji Maharaj’s birth anniversary.  That reminder started a chain of thought. 

Who has not heard of Shivaji?   As school-going children in India, we have been brought up on tales of his bravery and heroism so much so that the very mention of his name, sends a thrill down one’s spine.  However today, as a mother and teacher, on being reminded of his birth anniversary, I caught myself reflecting on the people behind Shivaji and his glorious achievements.   Who were behind the making of Shivaji Maharaj, the legend?  How did they inspire him?  Is there anything that I can learn from them to create my own Shivajis?    

On the 19^th day of February, all of 389 years ago, in 1630 to be exact, was born to Jijabai and Shahaji Bhonsle, in the Shivneri fort of Maharashtra, a son, whom they named after the local diety, Shivai.  The world today honours him as Shivaji, the lion-hearted Maratha-warrior prince.   His father, Shahaji Bhonsle, was mostly away, being in the service of one or other of the Deccan sultanates in power at the time.  Young Shiva’s upbringing was left in the hands of his mother Jijabai and his guru, Samarth Ramdas.  In all the emphasis that is laid on his indomitable courage and valour, what most of us do not realise was that Shivaji was, first and foremost, and remained throughout his life, a man of spotless character and great personal integrity.  At the core of his greatness, his extremely soul-stirring charisma and heroism, is this devotion to a set of values instilled in him by both his mother and guru, no doubt from his very childhood.

Jijabai was not only a deeply religious and morally upright woman, but she was equally adept at managing and attending the day-to-day running of her husband’s small jagir around the Shivneri fort in Pune, where Shivaji was born.  If we reflect on this, we can already see how she might have been the role model for Shivaji, the very capable and balanced ruler of later years. His much-admired quality to cast aside all dilemmas and reach the heart of a problem as swiftly as his arrows, to take instant decisions that had far-reaching consequences was rooted in the ideals his mother set before him.  This was a quality that even his enemies both secretly admired and hated him for.   In fact, if there was any one quality of Shivaji which they ardently wished they had, it was this astuteness, this vision.  The more I read about him, the more I feel this was an attribute inculcated in him by his mother.   Quite clearly, she led him by example.  It is said that he consulted her all his life, and even when she was no more, he was guided no doubt, by her principles that were deeply ingrained in him.   

As a child, she kept her close to him throughout the day, as she went about her daily tasks of administrating the jagir, being sensitive to the needs of the people who lived there, being kind yet firm, allocating funds wisely and inventively, keeping them united in heart.  At bedtime, she would narrate to him stories of heroes from the Mahabharat and the Ramayana, who defended and upheld what was right with their very life and every breath.  Together with Guru Ramdas, she laid the foundation of obedience, of discipline, of valuing and cherishing true friends who stand by you through thick and thin and working on your strengths and weaknesses tirelessly.

Is it any wonder that in later years, when Lokmanya Tilak was looking to inspire Indians and unite them against the British, he revived the tradition of celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi and Shivaji Jayanti as a community festival. 

On his 379^th birth anniversary today, I feel as mothers and the first teachers of our children, we need to take a leaf out of Jijamata’s book, of leading by example and keeping our children close to ourselves.  Only then, can we can hope that Shivaji will live on, not just in textbooks, but in the hearts and minds of future generations of Indians.

(All images credited to Wikipedia: Commons)