Shivaji and Aurangzeb, a mighty clash of Titans

[El Sidd]

On 12 May 1666, the Maratha hero Shivaji came face to face with his nemesis, Aurangzeb. Mughal armies had for generations been embroiled in the Deccan, and what Akbar launched, his great-grandson was determined to bring to a conclusion. But such turmoil also opened avenues for new political ideas—something Shivaji, for instance, described as his swarajya. Battles were fought between the Mughals and the Marathas, each party celebrating victories and suffering defeat, though compromise and diplomacy remained in play. Where the Marathas embarrassed the emperor by attacking his uncle in his own camp in 1663, for instance, by 1665 the tables had turned—the Mughals cornered Shivaji, forcing him to the negotiating table.

So it was that Shivaji arrived in Agra the next summer to pay homage to the emperor. While the Marathas would become Aurangzeb’s most formidable challenge, the two sides did not at this time meet as equals. For the Mughals, Shivaji was one of numerous political representatives present—indeed, as Audrey Truschke suggests, in a long-established and ceremonious court where well-ensconced Rajputs painted Marathas as upstarts, it is hardly surprising that Shivaji was not treated with exceptional regard. As the Deccan’s foremost power, however, he took umbrage at this, added to which may have been awkwardness in an unfamiliar environment. Some say he stormed out, while others claim his protests provoked the emperor to expel him. Either way, Mughal efforts to co-opt the Marathas came to naught, and Shivaji was imprisoned.

In hindsight, and in the romance that often weaves its way through history’s tales, it is tempting to view the conflict between Aurangzeb and Shivaji as merely a clash of titans. But each side estimated the other differently, deploying contempt as well as grudging awe, depending on the context. For Aurangzeb, the Maratha warrior was a “mountain rat"—a parvenu creating chaos and lacking legitimacy.

Indeed, in 1666, after the events at the durbar, several were the voices that advised a swift, murderous solution to the Maratha headache. The emperor, however, prevaricated, and Shivaji escaped. The war resumed and cost life and money both, but it would be decades before the Marathas were acknowledged by the Mughals as worthy of serious respect.

For Shivaji, however, with absorption into the Mughal system having failed, there was no way ahead but to dig in his heels. By the 1670s, as he retrieved territories seized by the emperor’s men, the Maratha champion also grew keen on legitimacy. This was intended to address Mughal contempt as well as local disdain.

After all, among Marathas too, many denied Shivaji’s claims of primacy and his project to found a new state and identity. Early on, as scholar Prachi Deshpande shows, the Mores of Jawali questioned his ambition and highlighted their superiority, invoking a deity as well as service under a local sultanate. The Ghorpades of Mudhol too cast Shivaji in their chronicles as an adventurer upsetting all that was established. At best, the young Maratha was an equal—why should they rally behind his cause and declare him their leader?

Shivaji’s response to this crisis of legitimacy was twofold. To triumph over local discord and cement his position, he summoned the power of Sanskrit texts and ideals of Kshatriya dharma. Against ritual odds and objections, he had himself crowned with grand old ceremonies in 1674, acquiring a superior caste as well as a sacred thread. Then he commissioned an elaborate Sanskrit epic, eulogizing his deeds but also articulating his vision—the Sivabharata elevates the new king beyond provincial feuds, transforming him into dharma’s sword against adharma. He is Vishnu reborn to rid the world of mleccha i.e. Islamic rule, justifying his efforts to claim leadership of the Marathas. “Even a single ant," it is declared, “can kill an elephant, by crawling into its trunk."

If anyone thought Shivaji insignificant, it was at their own peril.

As it happened, after his death the state descended into chaos, Shivaji’s heirs struggling with internecine rivalries and trying to hold on to tenuous loyalties. Here again, though, texts were deployed alongside efforts on the ground. In the 1690s, when his son Rajaram was exiled in the south and hounded by the Mughals, the SabhasadBakhar (a chronicle by Sabhasad) was composed, lending moral force to the Maratha struggle. Shivaji’s deeds were recalled, and his valour celebrated.

Indeed, at a time when imperial attacks were at their worst and the state confronted an existential crisis, history was married to song to shore up urgently needed confidence and sustain hard-won validity for this troubled enterprise. As the imperial court shrewdly flirted with assorted Maratha warlords, an emotional reminder of a once-shining goal could help prevent utter disintegration.

So while, in reality, Aurangzeb viewed the Marathas with disdain, in the Bakhar, words of awe are ascribed to him. After hearing, for instance, of the Marathas’ attack on his uncle, we have the emperor express uncharacteristic horror. Even when Shivaji is about to attend the Mughal durbar, the emperor cries: “He isn’t an ordinary man." After all, he vanquished great generals, and if “just like that he flies on to my throne and betrays me, what will I do then?" In the Bakhar, the Mughals remain redoubtable foes and the emperor very powerful, but there is respect for Shivaji.

In fact, in the end Aurangzeb declares: “I sent lakhs and lakhs of horsemen; all returned subdued and harassed...I might just gird up my loins and go myself, but….While Shivaji is alive, (it is) better not to leave Delhi."

These words were composed when the Maratha effort was desperate to stay afloat and the imperial army was at its most aggressive. But recalling Shivaji—and borrowing from his own techniques of wedding textual projection to lived action—the idea behind swarajya retained a vitality. The result was that, in the end, the Maratha kingdom survived, even as Aurangzeb went to the grave with regrets. “The greatest pillar of a government," he ruminated, “is the keeping of information about everything…while even a minute’s negligence results in shame for long years. See how the flight of that wretch Shiva, which was due to carelessness, has involved me in all these distracting campaigns to the end of my days."

Medium Rare is a column on society, politics and history. Manu S. Pillai is the author of The Ivory Throne (2015)and Rebel Sultans (2018).

your country recently changed the names of cities brought to the face of earth by aurengzeb alamgir.

it has made it a national policy of rewiring indian history without muslims and Islam.

it is unusual to have this thread opened specially in fog of genocide

 

[TNT]

Tbis comparison is like comparing apples with oranges. Aurangzaib a great kind while shivaji a rebel leader of small area. How RSS hindus want to rewrite history lolz.

 

[SIPRA]

Tbis comparison is like comparing apples with oranges. Aurangzaib a great kind while shivaji a rebel leader of small area. How RSS hindus want to rewrite history lolz.

"Kahan Raja Bhoj, Kahan Gangu Taili"

 

[TheGreatMaratha]

For all Pakistanis comparing Aurangzeb with Shivaji, it's clearly written in the article that when Aurangzeb met Shivaji, they didn't meet each other as equals. Auragzeb had a much larger army and area under his disposal while Shivaji was a comparatively smaller kingdom. Shivaji hadn't even formally been king at that time.

But you guys fail to understand the impact of Shivaji and Maratha empire on the whole of India. Shivaji died, not at the hands of Aurangzeb even though Aurangzeb had sent many of his generals to present day Maharashtra. His ideas of having a 'Hindavi Swarajya' ('Self-Rule')were ahead of his times. These ideas were later used by Congress freedom fighters against British. He noticed that the kings at the time were all outsiders whereas local people were serving under them. He thus decided to fight for his local people. He created a kingdom from scratch without any support. Even the local Maratha chieftains were initially against him. But he inspired the local people with his thoughts to gain some support. He was known for beating much larger forces of Mughals, Adil Shahs, Nizam Shahs with very small forces because of his employment of 'Ganimi Kava' (Guerilla Warfare. He was one the most brilliant tacticians at that time. Marathas were very successful in hit-and-run tactics. Attacking an enemy from the North, then retreating, then another batch of troops attacking from West, then retreating, another batch of troops attacking from East then retreating, etc. He knew that he had smaller army and couldn't afford to take Mughal/Adil Shah/Nizam Shah army head on. Unlike the Rajputs, who believed on winning or dying on the same day, he believed on retreating and fighting another day. Rajputs had a suicide mentality where they felt that there was no honour in retreating. Shivaji didn't believe in that nonsense. If he had employed Rajput tactics, Maratha empire would have finished in the 17th century itself. Also, he had brilliant knowledge of the mountains and terrain in present day Maharashtra and made good use of it. That's why Aurangzeb called him 'mountain rat' as it was difficult to catch him.

Now if you look at his personality, he was extremely ambitious. At the age of 16, he took an oath to fight against Mughal rule. He started convincing local people to fight for the cause. He gained extremely loyal people who were willing to give their life for him. He didn't discriminate between Hindus and Muslims. He particularly instructed his troops to not harm women of opposing army. Even though Mughals or Nizam Shah when they used to attack, had a policy of destroying temples, he didn't destroy mosques. He had Muslims in army as well. One of his personal bodyguards was Muslim.

I don't think I need to talk about Aurangzeb. Everyone knows he was a religious bigot. But still people supporting here shows their mentality. I know the reason and that's just because he was Muslim. I don't have any problem if you support him though. But it reinforces my thought that Pakistanis can't think beyond religious lens.

With my knowledge and additional knowledge gained on south Asian history etc. by working for 2 decades in Gulf with Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi friends. I have discussed many things with them.
Shivaji was a big headache for Aurangzeb alongwith few other South Indian Muslim ruler in Maharashtra, Karnataka, hyderabad region. Even Aurangzeb had to shift to Aurangabad to take care of the event in southern region.
So Shivaji has become a legend specially among Marathi speakers and castes. He was a secular rulers with local Muslims (and even Pathans) every department of his Army, Navy and other govt entities. As per my friends the current fascist in India like current govt which is part of RSS fascist organization are wrongly using his name as enemy of Muslims to spread their agenda. Instead Maratha Hindus and local Muslims are generally living in harmony despite the spread of communal poison. Though Aurangzeb fought with them as with other Indian rulers incl. Muslim rulers as he wanted to control whole of India but basically Brahmins were his enemies as they can't see a lower caste person as a ruler. They even boycotted his coronation and he had to hire another pundit from Banaras for his coronation who though did the rituals but applied the tilak on forehead of Shivaji with his foot thumb. Even Shivaji's father n uncle names were close to Muslim names Shahji and Shariefji and they served in the army of Adil Shah. Brahmins even killed Shivaji's son Sambhaji even though Aurangzed has forgiven him. The crime, he became a scholar of Sanskrit and religious book though it was monopoly of upper caste Brahmins who divide humans in 4-5 categories and thousands of cstes n sub-castes saying it is from God. The crime was such a horrible act that he ws cut into pieces.

Brahmins didn't kill Sambhaji. It was Aurangzeb who killed Sambhaji, Shivaji's son. Yes the way Aurangzeb killed him was a horrible act. That only inspired Marathas to fight against Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb came to present day Maharashtra after Shivaji died and spent 27 years in present day Maharashtra. But he couldn't subdue the Marathas. In fact, when Aurangzeb died, Maratha empire became stronger than Mughal empire.

Tbis comparison is like comparing apples with oranges. Aurangzaib a great kind while shivaji a rebel leader of small area. How RSS hindus want to rewrite history lolz.

Forget Aurangzeb or Shivaji, Tell me about a Punjabi-speaking Punjabi ruler who owed allegiance to current Pakistani land. I mean, do you even have self-respect?

 

[KhanBaba2]

your country recently changed the names of cities brought to the face of earth by aurengzeb alamgir.

Which cities are you talking about.

For all Pakistanis comparing Aurangzeb with Shivaji, it's clearly written in the article that when Aurangzeb met Shivaji, they didn't meet each other as equals. Auragzeb had a much larger army and area under his disposal while Shivaji was a comparatively smaller kingdom. Shivaji hadn't even formally been king at that time.

The title should not be Titans. Shivaji was not a titan when the meeting took place. He was maybe never a titan, but he laid the foundation for the Maratha kingdom to become great.

 

[TheGreatMaratha]

Which cities are you talking about.



The title should not be Titans. Shivaji was not a titan when the meeting took place. He was maybe never a titan, but he laid the foundation for the Maratha kingdom to become great.

He was a Titan as he defeated Mughals/Nizam Shah/Adil Shah in many battles with much smaller resources. Unlike Aurangzeb who had everything at his disposal. If he was not a Titan, the Maratha empire would have finished in the 17th century itself.

 

[The_Showstopper]

Even though Mughals or Nizam Shah when they used to attack, had a policy of destroying temples, he didn't destroy mosques. He had Muslims in army as well. One of his personal bodyguards was Muslim.

Mughals had a policy of destroying temples?? Do you a have piece of credible evidence which shows that they had any such policy? If that was the case, I dont think you would have had many temples in this country going by the below map..

Brahmins didn't kill Sambhaji. It was Aurangzeb who killed Sambhaji, Shivaji's son. Yes the way Aurangzeb killed him was a horrible act. That only inspired Marathas to fight against Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb came to present day Maharashtra after Shivaji died and spent 27 years in present day Maharashtra. But he couldn't subdue the Marathas. In fact, when Aurangzeb died, Maratha empire became stronger than Mughal empire.

Sambaji was killed for his atrocities and brutalities against muslim populace and destruction of many mosques. Dont make a hero out of a bigoted tyrant. He got what he deserved.

 

[TNT]

Forget Aurangzeb or Shivaji, Tell me about a Punjabi-speaking Punjabi ruler who owed allegiance to current Pakistani land. I mean, do you even have self-respect?

How do u owe allegiance to the land? Or do u mean owe allegiance to those controlling the land? Which ur whole ancestory did since beginning of time.
Pakistan is not punjab. From northern areas to KPK and tribal areas to balochistan, they all fought the british. Leave the british, theese people fought mughals too. Have some self respect n dnt embarrass urself.

 

[xeuss]

He was a Titan as he defeated Mughals/Nizam Shah/Adil Shah in many battles with much smaller resources. Unlike Aurangzeb who had everything at his disposal. If he was not a Titan, the Maratha empire would have finished in the 17th century itself.

When you have time, can you explain why Marathas view Peshwas as usurpers of their legacy? Is it as simple as a caste equation coming into play or is there more to this?

 

[TNT]

This guy is a maratha fan and thus glorifying them. You forgot ahmad shah baba i guess, how he annihilated marathas. His only mistake or maybe his wish that he disnt rule india and went back to Afghanistan. Had he not gone back and established an empire, i doubt if the brits could've taken over.

 

[Maarkhoor]

On 12 May 1666, the Maratha hero Shivaji came face to face with his nemesis, Aurangzeb. Mughal armies had for generations been embroiled in the Deccan, and what Akbar launched, his great-grandson was determined to bring to a conclusion. But such turmoil also opened avenues for new political ideas—something Shivaji, for instance, described as his swarajya. Battles were fought between the Mughals and the Marathas, each party celebrating victories and suffering defeat, though compromise and diplomacy remained in play. Where the Marathas embarrassed the emperor by attacking his uncle in his own camp in 1663, for instance, by 1665 the tables had turned—the Mughals cornered Shivaji, forcing him to the negotiating table.

So it was that Shivaji arrived in Agra the next summer to pay homage to the emperor. While the Marathas would become Aurangzeb’s most formidable challenge, the two sides did not at this time meet as equals. For the Mughals, Shivaji was one of numerous political representatives present—indeed, as Audrey Truschke suggests, in a long-established and ceremonious court where well-ensconced Rajputs painted Marathas as upstarts, it is hardly surprising that Shivaji was not treated with exceptional regard. As the Deccan’s foremost power, however, he took umbrage at this, added to which may have been awkwardness in an unfamiliar environment. Some say he stormed out, while others claim his protests provoked the emperor to expel him. Either way, Mughal efforts to co-opt the Marathas came to naught, and Shivaji was imprisoned.

In hindsight, and in the romance that often weaves its way through history’s tales, it is tempting to view the conflict between Aurangzeb and Shivaji as merely a clash of titans. But each side estimated the other differently, deploying contempt as well as grudging awe, depending on the context. For Aurangzeb, the Maratha warrior was a “mountain rat"—a parvenu creating chaos and lacking legitimacy.

Indeed, in 1666, after the events at the durbar, several were the voices that advised a swift, murderous solution to the Maratha headache. The emperor, however, prevaricated, and Shivaji escaped. The war resumed and cost life and money both, but it would be decades before the Marathas were acknowledged by the Mughals as worthy of serious respect.

For Shivaji, however, with absorption into the Mughal system having failed, there was no way ahead but to dig in his heels. By the 1670s, as he retrieved territories seized by the emperor’s men, the Maratha champion also grew keen on legitimacy. This was intended to address Mughal contempt as well as local disdain.

After all, among Marathas too, many denied Shivaji’s claims of primacy and his project to found a new state and identity. Early on, as scholar Prachi Deshpande shows, the Mores of Jawali questioned his ambition and highlighted their superiority, invoking a deity as well as service under a local sultanate. The Ghorpades of Mudhol too cast Shivaji in their chronicles as an adventurer upsetting all that was established. At best, the young Maratha was an equal—why should they rally behind his cause and declare him their leader?

Shivaji’s response to this crisis of legitimacy was twofold. To triumph over local discord and cement his position, he summoned the power of Sanskrit texts and ideals of Kshatriya dharma. Against ritual odds and objections, he had himself crowned with grand old ceremonies in 1674, acquiring a superior caste as well as a sacred thread. Then he commissioned an elaborate Sanskrit epic, eulogizing his deeds but also articulating his vision—the Sivabharata elevates the new king beyond provincial feuds, transforming him into dharma’s sword against adharma. He is Vishnu reborn to rid the world of mleccha i.e. Islamic rule, justifying his efforts to claim leadership of the Marathas. “Even a single ant," it is declared, “can kill an elephant, by crawling into its trunk."

If anyone thought Shivaji insignificant, it was at their own peril.

As it happened, after his death the state descended into chaos, Shivaji’s heirs struggling with internecine rivalries and trying to hold on to tenuous loyalties. Here again, though, texts were deployed alongside efforts on the ground. In the 1690s, when his son Rajaram was exiled in the south and hounded by the Mughals, the SabhasadBakhar (a chronicle by Sabhasad) was composed, lending moral force to the Maratha struggle. Shivaji’s deeds were recalled, and his valour celebrated.

Indeed, at a time when imperial attacks were at their worst and the state confronted an existential crisis, history was married to song to shore up urgently needed confidence and sustain hard-won validity for this troubled enterprise. As the imperial court shrewdly flirted with assorted Maratha warlords, an emotional reminder of a once-shining goal could help prevent utter disintegration.

So while, in reality, Aurangzeb viewed the Marathas with disdain, in the Bakhar, words of awe are ascribed to him. After hearing, for instance, of the Marathas’ attack on his uncle, we have the emperor express uncharacteristic horror. Even when Shivaji is about to attend the Mughal durbar, the emperor cries: “He isn’t an ordinary man." After all, he vanquished great generals, and if “just like that he flies on to my throne and betrays me, what will I do then?" In the Bakhar, the Mughals remain redoubtable foes and the emperor very powerful, but there is respect for Shivaji.

In fact, in the end Aurangzeb declares: “I sent lakhs and lakhs of horsemen; all returned subdued and harassed...I might just gird up my loins and go myself, but….While Shivaji is alive, (it is) better not to leave Delhi."

These words were composed when the Maratha effort was desperate to stay afloat and the imperial army was at its most aggressive. But recalling Shivaji—and borrowing from his own techniques of wedding textual projection to lived action—the idea behind swarajya retained a vitality. The result was that, in the end, the Maratha kingdom survived, even as Aurangzeb went to the grave with regrets. “The greatest pillar of a government," he ruminated, “is the keeping of information about everything…while even a minute’s negligence results in shame for long years. See how the flight of that wretch Shiva, which was due to carelessness, has involved me in all these distracting campaigns to the end of my days."

Medium Rare is a column on society, politics and history. Manu S. Pillai is the author of The Ivory Throne (2015)and Rebel Sultans (2018).

Aurangzaib was a great king while Shivaji was a small time looter and plunder who return to caves after they attack and loot...That is why Aurangzaib labelled him mountain rat...

Don't spread lies or believe on Bollywood shit....

 

[Ahmad Sajjad Paracha]

This guy is a maratha fan and thus glorifying them. You forgot ahmad shah baba i guess, how he annihilated marathas. His only mistake or maybe his wish that he disnt rule india and went back to Afghanistan. Had he not gone back and established an empire, i doubt if the brits could've taken over.

Ahmad shah baba came to reinforce mughals in delhi which marathas were intending to take out not to capture delhi. Ahmad shah baba came after marathas overstated their power and attacked attock and peshawar. Ahmad shah baba held jirga with different pakhtun tribal leaders formed an army of pakhtuns kicked marathas out of peshawar and attock and crushed them at panipat reinstated mughals in delhi and afterwards ahmad shah abdali went to kabul and pakhtuns tribe went to their local areas. BTW there wasn't any pakistan or afghanistan at that time just durrani empire

 

[TNT]

Ahmad shah baba came to reinforce mughals in delhi which marathas were intending to take out not to capture delhi. Ahmad shah baba came after marathas overstated their power and attacked attock and peshawar. Ahmad shah baba held jirga with different pakhtun tribal leaders formed an army of pakhtuns kicked marathas out of peshawar and attock and crushed them at panipat reinstated mughals in delhi and afterwards ahmad shah abdali went to kabul and pakhtuns tribe went to their local areas. BTW there wasn't any pakistan or afghanistan at that time just durrani empire

He did go after marathas after their attacks on what was considered durrani empire territory. He was never there to help mughals. If you read about him u will know he was with king nader shah when he attacked delhi. Also the areas of Peshawar to lahore multan were taken by ahmad shah from mughals. The mughals had to cede the area or face an attack on delhi. Pashtuns have never been friends with mughals, they had occasional alliances here and there but always been mild adversaries. When he denied taking Delhi throne, it was left for mughals and destruction of marathas made mughals stronger.
Many scholars argue about his wish to refrain from going further east and taking the delhi seat. He even makes it evident in his poetry. Had he gone on to take over all of india, im sure brits might not have succeeded in taking india. The brits were absolutely scared of durrani empire and its might, its evident from reports of company officer notes. They referred to ahmad shah as the poet warrior.

 

[Ababeel]

Brahmins didn't kill Sambhaji. It was Aurangzeb who killed Sambhaji, Shivaji's son. Yes the way Aurangzeb killed him was a horrible act.

 

[Great Janjua]

Abdullah bhatti did greater things than this imaginary gangu would ever had done