Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaja’s Letter To Mirza Raje Jai Singh

Before the Purandar’s treaty, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj wrote a very famous letter to Mirza Raje Jai Singh. Both great warriors had mutual respect for each other.

Note for the readers:

• Consider the times when this letter was written
• Some of the words may not be politically correct ‘today’
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was a Hindu warrior so naturally opposed Muslim rulers who tried to impose Islam.

One can see the straightforwardness, boldness of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj while reading this letter. Also, it is very much apparent from this letter that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was not only a staunch Hindu, but also was ready to protect Hindus at any cost.

Hindu unity was in his mind. He was ready to fight against mighty invaders as well as Mirza Raje Jai Singh if it comes down to it. But at the same time he did not forget to admire Dara Shikoh who was a better ruler and a gentleman. One can also see the excellent statesmanship qualities, unparalleled tactical and political planning. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was truly a Maharaja!

Following is the English translation of that letter, reproduced from the Shivaji Souvenir 3-5-1927. pages 172 to 178, written by Mr. G. S. Sardesai.

O Sardar of Sardars, King of Kings, Manager of the mango-trees of the garden of Bharat.

O piece of the heart and consciousness of Ramchandra, the Rajputs hold up their heads owing to thee.

The grandeur of the Empire of Babar’s dynasty is rendered all the more powerful owing to thee and it is its good fortune to receive thy help.

O Jay Shah, whose fortune is ever young and whose intellect ever old, be pleased to accept the salutations and blessings of Shiva.

May the Creator of the world protect thee. May He show thee the path of Religion which is Justice.

I have heard that thou hast come to make battle upon me and to subjugate the Deccan.

Thou desirest in this world to make thy face glow with blood drawn from the hearts and the eyes of the Hindus.

But thou knowest not that thy face is painted in black, because owing to it, this country and religion are in danger.

If thou considerest for a moment or givest thought to thy hands and thy strength,

Then thou whilst discover whose blood lends the glow and what will be the colour of the glow in this world and the next.

Further, if thou hadst come of thy own accord to conquer the Deccan, my eyes and my head could have been laid on earth for thee to tread upon.

I would have marched with my whole force at the stirrup of thy horse and would have yielded up to thee the country from one end to the other.

But thou hast in fact come to conquer at the instance of Aurangzeb and under the instigation of those who desire to destroy the Hindus.

I do not know how I shall deal with thee. If I join thee, there is no manliness in it.

For, brave men are not time servers. The lion pursues not the policy of the fox.

Or, if I lift up the sword and the axe, then the Hindus on both sides will suffer.

The greater sorrow is that my sword, which thirsts for the blood of the Mussalmans, should be drawn from the scabbard for some other purpose.

If the Turks had come to fight this battle, then indeed the prey would have come to the lion in its lair,

For, they are Rakshasas in the guise of men devoid of justice ang religion, and sinful.

When supremacy could not be secured hy Afzul Khan, and Shaista Khan proved no better,

Thou art engaged to fight me because he (Aurangzeb) himself is not fit to bear battle with me.

He desires that no strong persons should be left surviving among the Hindus in this world,

That lions may fight among themselves and disabled, so that the fox may rule the forest.

How is it that his secret policy is not transparent to thy brain? It is clear that thou art under the influence of his magic spell.

Thou hast seen much good and evil in this world; thou hast reaped both flowers and thorns in the garden of life.

Is it not meet that thou shouldest fight us-people and bring the heads of Hindus to death?

After having attained ripe wisdom in action, do not then exhibit (the folly of) youth, but remember the saying of Saadi:

“The horse cannot be ridden on all the roads; sometimes discretion is the better part of valour”. (Lit. sometimes it is more fitting to throw down the shield and fly).

Tigers attack the deer and other animals They do not indulge in a fratricidal war with lions.

Or, if thy cutting sword has true water, if thy prancing horse has true spirit,

Then do thou attack those who are the enemies of religion and abolish Islam root and branch.

Had Dara Shekoh been King of the country, he would have treated his people with kindness and favours.

But thou deceivedst Jaswant Singh; thou didst not first consider the high and the low in thy heart.

Thou art not satisfied with having played the fox and hast come to fight the battle with the lions.

What dost thou get from this running about and labouring under the Sun? Thy desires head thee to a mirage.

Thou art even as a mean creature who exerts his utmost and captures a beautiful damsel,

But, instead of tasting the fruit of that garden of beauty himself, delivers it into the hands of his rival.

How canst thou feel proud at the mercy of that mean man? Dost thou know how the services of Johar Singh were rewarded?

Dost thou know by what means he desired to bring calamities to Prince Chhatra Sal?

Dost thou know what calamities that sinful man has left inflicted on other Hindus also?

I believe that thou hast attached thyself to him and hast laid down for him the self-respect of thy family.

But what is the value of this net in which thou art caught for the sake of the Rakshasa? This bond that binds thee is not stronger than the cord of the paijama that you wear.

In order to attain his ends, he hesitates not to shed the blood of his brother, or to take the life of his father.

Or, if thou appealest to loyalty, remember thou also thy conduct in reference to Shah Jahan.

Fate has endowed thee with any intellect or if thou seekest to pride thyself on thy manhood or manliness,

Then do thou heat thy sword at the fire of distress of the land thou wast born in, and wipe off the tears of the unhappy ones who suffer from tyranny.

This is not the time for fighting between ourselves since a grave danger faces the Hindus.

Our children, our country, our wealth, our God, our temples and our holy worshippers,

Are all in danger of existence owing to his machinations and the utmost limit of suffering, that can be borne, has been reached.

If the work goes on like this for some time, there will not remain a vestige of ourselves on the earth.

It is a matter of supreme wonder that a handful of Mussalmans should establish supremacy over this vast country.

This supremacy is not due to any valour on their part. See, if thou hast eyes to see.

See, what policy of duplicity he plays with us, how differently he colours his face from time-to time.

He claps our own chains to our feet; & cuts our heads with our own swords.

The most strenuous efforts should be made at this time to protect Hindus, Hindusthan find the Hindu Religion.

I desire to make an effort and bring about stability and strive my utmost for the sake of the country.

Polish thy sword and thy intellect and prove thyself a Turk to the Turks.

If thou joinest hands with Jaswant Singh and divestest thy heart of the layers of trickery,

And if thou bringest about’ unity with the Raj Rana (of Mewar), then indeed there is hope for great things.

Do you all rush and fight from all sides; tramp down that serpent under the rock;

So that he may for some time occupy himself with ruminating on the consequences of his own actions; and may not further entangle the Deccan in his meshes;

And I may in the meantime with the aid of these and other land bearing heroes make away with the other two Sultans (of Bijapur and Golkonda);

So that I may rain the shower of swords from the thundering clouds of my army on the Mussalmans;

So that, from one end of the Deccan to the other, I may wipe out the name and very vestige of Mahomedanism;

Thereafter, with the assistance of wise statesmen and the army, like the river swirling and foaming as it emerges from the mountains of the Deccan, I may come out into the plains;

And forthwith present myself for service with you, and then after that hear you render your accounts.

And then we – four – may again inaugurate a grim war and devote the battlefield to it;

And then the tide of our armies may be made to reach the crumbling walls of Delhi,

So that nothing may be left of the Aurang (throne) or the Zeb (lust), so that nothing may remain of the sword of his tyranny or the net of his policy of duplicity or dissimulation;

So that we may flow a river full of pure blood, and with that we may satisfy the souls of our ancestors; and

With the grace of God, the Just and the Giver of life, we shall entomb him (Aurangzeb) in the bowels of the earth.

If two hearts combine, they can burst a mountain, they can dispel and scatter the whole armies.

This is not a very difficult task, we only want good hearts, good eyes, and good hands. These are the really necessary things.

I have much to tell thee in regard to this matter which cannot in sooth be put on paper.

I am desirous of having a talk with thee so that no unnecessary pain or labour may be involved.

If such is thy desire, I shall come to thee and hear what thou hast to say.

Thy maiden of speech may open her mouth in privacy, and I may take guard against the words being divulged;

So that we put our hands to the plough of effort and practise some incantation on that mad Rakshasa.

I swear by my sword, by my horse, by my country, and by my religion, that no harm shall befall thee in this.

Or, we may find out some other way to attain our object and make our names in this world and the next.

Be not suspicious owing to the incident of Afzul Khan—the report spoke not truly.

He had secretly kept twelve hundred warlike Habsee cavalry to accomplish my death.

Had I not raised my arm against him first, who would have written this letter to you?

But I do not believe any such thing of you; there is no inherent enmity between us.

Or, if I receive the desired reply from thee, I shall present myself before thee alone at night,

And I will show thee the secret letters which I cleverly extracted from Shaista Khan,

So that I may remove all doubts from thy mind and rouse thee from thy sweet sleep;

I may show thee the true result of thy dreams and then receive any answer;

Or, if this letter does not appeal to thee, then indeed I am ready with my sword to deal with thy army.

Tomorrow, the moment the sun shall conceal his face behind the evening cloud, the crescent moon of my sword shall flash forth. That is all. God be with thee.