महाराणा सांगा: द हिन्दूपत (हरविलास सारदा - मेवाड़ साम्राज्य एवं खानवा महायुद्ध इतिहास)

Maharana Sāngā. band of five hundred cavaliers, and, accompanied by his bride, the fair Tara, who insisted on partaking of his glory and his danger, he reached Toda at the moment the tazzia or bier containing the martyr-brothers was placed in the centre of the "chauk" or square. The prince, Tara Bai, and the faithful Senger Chief, the inseparable companion of Prithviraj, left their cavalcade and joined the procession as it passed under the balcony of the place in which the Afghan was putting on his dress preparatory to descending. Just as he had asked who the strange horsemen were that had joined the throng, the lance of Prithviraj and an arrow from the bow of his Amazon bride stretched him on the floor.¹ Before the crowd recovered from the panic, the three had reached the gate of the town, where their exit was obstructed ¹ The following old couplet extant in Rajputana sums up the popular view of the incident:— भाग लल्ला प्रथिराज आयो सिहं कै सांथरे स्वाल आयो । Run away, Lalla, Prithviraj has arrived. A jackal has been born in a lion’s den (it cannot stay there). 27

Maharana Sāngā. by an elephant. Tara Bai with her scimitar divided his trunk, and the animal fleeing, they joined their cavalcade, which was close at hand. “The Afghans were encountered, and could not stand the attack. Those who did not flee were cut to pieces ; and the gallant Prithviraj inducted the father of his bride into his inheritance.¹ A brother of the Afghan, in his attempt to recover it, lost his life. “Nawab Malloo Khan, then holding Ajmer, determined to oppose the Sesodia prince in person ; who, resolved upon being the assailant, advanced to Ajmer, encoun- tered his foe in the camp at day-break, and after great slaughter entered Garh Beetli, the citadel, with the fugitives. ‘By these acts,’ says the chronicle, ‘his fame in- creased in Rajwara : one thousand Rajputs, animated by the same love of glory and devotion, gathered round the nakarras of ¹ द्रड चढे प्राथिमल्ल भाजे टोडो लल्ला तणैं घर घारे लोह । Prithviraj arms himself against Lalla and heading an army breaks Toda. 28

Maharana Sāngā. Prithviraj. Their swords shone in the heavens, and were dreaded on the earth; but they aided the defenceless.' " ¹ Another instance of Prithviraj's high spirit, energy and enterprise is, says Colonel Tod, "recorded and confirmed by Muham- madan writers as to the result, though they are ignorant of the impulse which prompted the act. Prithviraj on one occasion found the Rana conversing familiarly with an ahdy" (a military officer) of the Malwa King, and feel- ing offended at the condescension, expressed himself with warmth. The Rana ironically replied: 'You are a mighty seizer of kings, but for me I desire to retain my land.' Prithviraj abruptly retired, collected his band, made for Neemuch, where he soon gathered five thousand horse, and reaching Depalpur, plundered it, and slew the governor. The King of Malwa on hearing of the irruption, left Mandu at the head of what troops he could collect. The Rajput prince, instead of retreating, rapidly ad- vanced and attacked the camp while ¹ Tod's Rajasthan, Vol. I, p. 674. 29

Maharana Sāngā. refreshing after the march. Singling out the royal tent occupied by eunuchs and females, Prithviraj made Mahmud captive, and plac- ing him on an express camel beside himself he warned the pursuers to follow peaceably or he would put his Majesty to death, adding that he intended him no harm, but that after having made him ‘touch his father’s feet,’ he would restore him to liberty. Hav- ing carried him direct to Chitor and to his father’s presence, he turned to him saying, ‘Send for your friend the ahdy,’ and ‘ask him who this is.’ The Malwa king was detained a month within the walls of Chitor, and having paid his ransom in horses, was set at liberty with every demonstration of honour. Prithviraj returned to Kumbhal- garh, his residence, and passed his life in exploits like these from the age of fourteen till death, the admiration of the country and the theme of the bard.” ¹ The amazing rapidity with which Prithviraj moved from one place to another and the lightning-like speed with ¹ Tod’s Rajasthan, Vol. I, p. 675. 30

Maharana Sāngā. which he marched and fell on his enemy earned for him the title of Udnā Prithvi- raj, the “winged Prithviraj.” ¹ One of the earliest exploits of Prithvi- raj, which made him famous in Rajputana, was his daring raid on Girnār in the heart of Gujrat. Maharana Rai Mal's sister— Maharana Kumbha's daughter—Ramā Bai, had been married to Raja Mandlik Jādava (Yadava) of Surashtra (Girnār).² ¹ Mehta Nainsi says that Prithviraj attacked Toda and Jalor—two places separated by 200 miles from each other—on one and the same day, and that thenceforth he was called “Udnā Prithviraj.” ² Mehta Nainsi in his Chronicles says that King Mandlik was a powerful ruler and commanded an army of twenty thousand Rajputs, and used to construct new tanks every year. He used to bathe every day with Ganges water and drink no water but that of the Ganges. The reason of his fall, according to Nainsi, was his uncontrolled passion for the wife of a Charan. Akho, son of Surtan, was a Charan attached to the principal gate of his fortress. His wife Nagdevi, was possessed of supernatural powers. Nagdevi's son had married a Padmini, whose son, Nagarjuna, went to Sultan Mahmud Begara and won his favour and obtained from him two mares named Labah and Lakshmi. From them, Nagarjuna had two horses, Uchasaro and Amolak, which became famous. Raja Mandlik hearing of their fame sent for them. The Charan refusing to give them up, the Raja himself went to Nagarjuna for them, but was no more successful than his men. After some time, a barber of the Raja happened to go to Nagdevi, who asked him 31

Maharana Sāngā. Owing to some disagreement between the husband and the wife, Mandlik began to illtreat his Queen. Prithviraj heard of this, and with a chosen band of his veterans started to punish King Mandlik. Traversing the long distance by rapid marches, Prithviraj surprised Mandlik in his palace. In his helplessness, he appealed to Prithviraj's clemency. Prith- viraj spared his life, but as a mark of punishment cut a little piece off his right ear and returned with his aunt Ramā Bai, to to pare the nails of her daughter-in-law, the Padmini. Struck by her surpassing beauty, he repaired to Mandlik and spoke to him about her. Mandlik resolved to go and see her. His queen, Ramā Bai, expostulated with him and tried her best to dissuade him. Mandlik persisted in his nefarious design and went to the village where Nagdevi lived. Nagdevi supplied the entire following of the Raja with provisions from a small kotri (cell) of hers. Surprised at this supernatural feat, the king's attendants told him that she was a goddess and nothing should be done to displease her. The king, mad with desire, did not listen to them. The bar tree under which he sat began to shoot jets of blood, but the king did not take the warning. He asked Nagdevi to show him the Padmini. The Devi brought her out properly decked, but her feet did not touch the ground. Mandlik thrust forward his hand to catch hold of her. She, however, assumed the form of a goddess and pro- nounced a curse upon him, that he would lose his fortress, 32

Maharana Sāngā. Mewar. The Maharana gave the parganah of Jāwar for maintenance to Ramā Bai, who, with her savings, built the temple of Rama- swami and the lake Ramkund at Jāwar (Yogini Pattan), the inauguration ceremony of which took place on Chaitra Sukla 7th (Sunday) S. 1554¹ (A. D. 1497). She also built the Damodar temple to Vishnu at Kumbhalgarh and a tank to the south of Kundeshwar. become insane, throw dust on his head and become a slave of the Turks (Mussalmans.) Mandlik returned home and Padmini went to Kedar in the Himalayas, and like the Pandavas gave herself up to the eternal snows. Nagdevi repaired to Sultan Mahmud Begara and told him that she had bestowed Girnār on him. The Sultan, who had not been able to take the stronghold of Girnār owing to its great strength, asked for some sign of assurance of his success. The Devi said that on waking up the next morning he would find coloured rice in his turban. Finding the prophecy come true, the Sultan started to attack Girnār and laid siege to the fortress. Mandlik became mad and came and handed over the keys of the fort to the Sultan and embraced Islam. The fortress was not taken, however, till a thousand Rajputs who defended it bravely were all slain. This story shows that Mandlik by his misconduct displeased a Charan, with whose assistance, Mahmud Begara took Girnār, and that Ramā Bai left Girnār when she found that Mandlik was not behaving himself. ¹ Inscription on Ramkund at Jawar of Chaitra Sud 7th, S. 1554. Jawar is situated 5 miles from Tidi, in the Magra Zillah of Mewar. 33

Maharana Sāngā. Soon after Jai Mal's death, Maharana Rai Mal conferred the parganah of Bhains- ror of the annual rental of Rs. 50,000 on Rawat Suraj Mal (Rana Mokal's grand- son) as jagir. When the news of this grant reached Prithviraj in Godwar, he recol- lected the prophecy of the Charanidevi and the duel he had with Suraj Mal, and sent a letter to the Maharana protesting against the grant. The Maharana replied that he on his part had made the grant and that Prithviraj was at liberty to take it back if he could. As soon as this reply reached Prithviraj, he started to attack Bhainsror with two thousand horsemen. Putting Suraj Mal and Sarangdeva, a grandson of Rana Lakha, to flight, he took possession of the castle and turned the families of the two chieftains out of the fort. Suraj Mal, whose vaunting ambition had persuaded him that the crown was his destiny, plunged deep into treason to obtain it. Winning over Sarangdeva to his cause, they both repaired to Sultan Nāsiruddin Khilji of Malwa. The Sultan 34

Maharana Sāṅgā. welcomed the opportunity these internal dissensions in Mewar gave him to inflict a blow on Chitor, and thus avenge the defeats the successive Maharanas had inflicted on his ancestors. He sent a large army against Mewar. Thus aided, the two trai- tors assailed the southern frontier of their fatherland and rapidly possessed themselves of Sadri, Batarda and a wide tract extending from Nye to Neemuch, attempting even Chitor. With the few troops that were in the fort, the Maharana started to punish the rebels, who met the attack on the river Gambhiri. The Maharana, fighting like a common soldier, had received two and twenty wounds and was nearly falling through faintness when Prithviraj, who had heard of the invasion, with lightning speed arrived with one thousand fresh horse from Kumbhalgarh and averted a disaster. Looking out for his uncle Suraj Mal, he soon sighted him. Cutting his way up to him, he covered him with wounds. Both sides lost many brave men but neither would yield. When night fell they retired from the field and bivouacked in sight of each other. 35

Maharana Sāngā. Soon after nightfall, Prithviraj paid a visit to his uncle Suraj Mal, and the meet- ing between the rival uncle and the nephew is described by Colonel Tod as “unique in the details of strife, perhaps since the origin of man.” Prithviraj found his uncle in a small tent reclining on a pallet, having just had the barber (surgeon) to sew up his wounds. He rose and met his nephew and heir to the throne of Mewar with the customary respect, as if nothing unusual had occurred ; but the exertion caused some of the wounds to open afresh, when the following dia- logue ensued :— “ PRITHVIRAJ. ‘ Well, uncle, how are your wounds ? ’ SURAJ MAL. ‘ Quite healed, my child, since I have the pleasure of seeing you.’ PRITHVIRAJ. ‘ But, uncle (kaka), I have not yet seen the Dewanji.¹ I first ran to see you, and I am very hungry ; have you anything to eat ? ’ ” ¹ The Maharana is called Diwanji, owing to his being the chief priest of the famous temple of Eklingji. 36

Maharana Sāngā. Dinner was soon served, and the extra- ordinary pair sat down, and 'ate off the same platter (tháli);' nor did Prithviraj hesitate to eat the 'pān'¹ presented on his taking leave. "PRITHVIRAJ. 'You and I will end our battle in the morning, uncle.' SURAJ MAL. 'Very well, child; `come early!'" They met: but Sarangdeva bore the brunt of the conflict, receiving thirty-five wounds. During four ghurries, swords and lances were plied, and every tribe of Rajput lost numbers that day. At last the rebels were defeated and fled towards Sadri, and Prithviraj returned in triumph, though with seven wounds, to Chitor. Suraj Mal took up his abode at Sadri and Sarangdeva at Batarda. The Maharana did not wish to trouble them any further, but Prithviraj was relentless in his efforts to drive them out of Mewar. Many personal encounters took place between the uncle and the ¹ Pān has frequently been a medium for administer- ing poison. 37

Maharana Sāngā. nephew: the latter saying he would not let him retain "as much land of Mewar as would cover a needle's point": and Suraj Mal retorting, that "he would allow his nephew to redeem only as much as would suffice for him to lie upon." Driven from place to place, the rebels came to the wilds of Bāturro (Batarda), where they formed a stockaded retreat of the dho tree, which abounds in the forest; and one day while Suraj Mal and his companion Sarangdeva, were communing by the night fire on their desperate plight, their cogitations were checked by the rush and neigh of horses. Scarcely had the pretender exclaimed, "this must be my nephew!" when Prithviraj dashed his steed through the barricade and entered with his troops. All was confusion, and the sword showered its blows indiscriminately. The young prince reached his uncle and dealt him a blow which would have levelled him but for the support of Sarangdeva, who upbraided him, adding "a buffet now was more than a score of wounds in former days:" to which Suraj Mal 38

Maharana Sāngā. added, “only when dealt by my nephew’s hand.” Suraj Mal demanded a parley ; and calling on the prince to stop the combat, he continued : “If I am killed, it matters not— my children are Rajputs, they will run the country to find support ; but if you are slain, what will become of Chitor ? My face will be blackened and my name everlastingly reprobated. “The sword was sheathed, and as the uncle and nephew embraced, the latter asked the former, ‘What were you about uncle, when I came ?’—‘Only talking nonsense, child, after dinner.’—‘But with me over your head, uncle, as a foe, how could you be so negligent ?’—‘What could I do ? You had left me no resource, and I must have some place to rest my head.’ ” There was a small temple near the stockade, to which in the morning Prithvi- raj requested his uncle to accompany him to sacrifice to the mother (Kali), but the blow of the preceding night prevented him from going. Sarangdeva was his proxy, 39

Maharana Sāngā. Suraj Mal having left for Sadri. One buffalo had fallen and a goat was about to follow when the prince turned his sword on Sarangdeva. The combat was desperate, but Prithviraj was the victor, and the head of the traitor was placed as an offering on the altar of Time (Kali). The place was plundered and the town of Bāturro (Batarda) was recovered. Having done with Sarangdeva, Prithvi- raj started for Sadri to despatch Suraj Mal after Sarangdeva. Suraj Mal having reach- ed Sadri, stopped there only to fulfil his threat that "he would make over the lands to those stronger than the king." Among others he gave 12 villages of Debari, includ- ing Billano and Banslo to Brahmins and bards, and was about to abandon Mewar for ever when Prithviraj arrived. He was received in due form. Suraj Mal's wife placed poisoned food before the prince. Suraj Mal came to know of this, but not knowing which plate contained the poison, he was unable to remove it. He therefore sat down to join Prithviraj in the repast. 40

Maharana Sāngā. Instantly, his wife removed the plate contain- ing the poison. Like a flash of lightning, the incident revealed the truth to Prithvi- raj. Overwhelmed by the solicitude of his uncle for his safety, he got up and said : “Uncle, now the throne of Mewar is at your service.” Suraj Mal replied that the throne apart, he would not stay in Mewar even to drink water. Passing through the wilds of Kanthal, he had an omen which recalled the Charani's prediction: “a wolf endeavouring in vain to carry off a kid defended by maternal affec- tion.” This was interpreted as strong ground for a dwelling. He halted there and subdued the native tribes of the jungles and erected on the spot where the wolf was held at bay by the goat, the stronghold ¹ of Deolia. He became the lord of a thousand villages and founded the State, which under the name of Deolia Pratapgarh, is now one of the eighteen Ruling Chiefships of Rajputana. ¹ Mehta Nainsi in his Chronicles says that it was Suraj Mal's grandson, Bika, son of Bagh Singh, who took Deolia and severed his connection with Mewar. 41

Maharana Sāngā. Prithviraj was all this time in blissful ignorance of the whereabouts of Sāngā and whether he was alive or dead. Sāngā’s marriage with the daughter of the Rao of Srinagar made known his retreat to Prithvi- raj, who determined to visit Rao Karam Chand with his vengeance for daring to give protection to Sāngā in defiance of his threats. The fates, however, willed otherwise, and this “Rolando of his age” was treacherously poisoned by his own brother-in-law, whose life he had spared. As Prithviraj was preparing for his ex- pedition against Karam Chand of Srinagar, he received a letter from his sister Ananda Bai, written in great grief, complaining of her ill-treatment by her lord, Rao Jug Mal of Sirohi, from whose tyranny she begged to be delivered and to be restored to her paternal roof. When Prithviraj read this letter, he was all afire with indignation and rage. Leaving aside for the present the projected attack on Srinagar, he instantly started for Sirohi, which he reached at midnight. Scal- ing the palace, he interrupted the slumbers 42

Maharana Sāngā. of Jug Mal by placing his poniard at his throat. His wife, forgetting her husband's cruelty, responded to his humiliating appeal for mercy, and begged her brother to spare his life, which was granted on condition of his standing as a suppliant with his wife's shoes on his head and touching her feet, the lowest mark of degradation. He obeyed, was forgiven and embraced by Prithviraj. The next morning, Jug Mal entertained his royal brother at a public entertainment. At Prithviraj's departure, Jug Mal¹ presented him with three pills of a confection for which he was celebrated. Prithviraj ate them as he came in sight of Kumbhalgarh, but on reaching the shrine of Mamadevi, he was unable to proceed further. He sent a mes- sage to the fair Tara to come and bid him farewell, but so subtle was the poison that death overtook him ere she descended from the fortress. Her resolution was soon taken; the pyre was erected, and with the mortal remains of the chivalrous Prithviraj in ¹ P. Gauri Shanker Ojha's History of Sirohi, p. 205. Jug Mal reigned from A.D. 1483 to A.D. 1523. 43

Maharana Sāngā. her embrace, she ascended "the regions of the sun." Such was the end of this hero of Mewar and the "Star" of Badnor. How the course of history would have run if Prithviraj had been spared to lead the fortunes of Mewar, and what fate the founder of the Turk (Moghal) dynasty in India would have met at the hands of Rajput chivalry, led by the reckless heroism and the impetuous energy of Prithviraj, instead of the cautious Sāngā, it is, as Colonel Tod says, futile to conjecture. One thing, however, is certain. If Bābur, after his early defeats had had Prithviraj instead of Sāngā as his opponent, the chances are overwhelming that he would have ended his days an unsuccessful adventurer, at Khanua, near Sikri, in February A.D. 1527, and the Indian soil have been once more cleared of the hordes from the North-west. 44

CHAPTER V. EARLY YEARS OF SĀNGĀ’S REIGN. THE shock of Prince Prithviraj's death shattered the constitution of Maharana Rai Mal, who grievously mourned the loss of his noble and heroic son, whose deeds were ringing throughout the country and whose fame had spread far and wide in the land. He fell ill, and, during his illness, news reached him that Sangram Singh was with Rao Karam Chand of Srinagar. A mes- senger was sent to Karam Chand, who presented himself with Prince Sangram Singh at Chitor. The Maharana was delighted to see his son again, and conferred on Karam Chand a suitable jagir as a reward for his services. His descendants still hold the village of Banberi and are amongst the thirty-two Sardars of Mewar. 45

Maharana Sāngā. Rai Mal did not long survive the death of the heroic Prithviraj. He died in Vicrama Sambat 1566 (A.D. 1508), and Sangram Singh ascended the throne of Mewar on (Jeth Sud 5th, S. 1566)¹ 4th May A.D. 1508, in the renowned fortress of Chitor. Sangram Singh was born on Baisakh Bad 9th, S. 1539 ² and was therefore 27 years old when he took his seat on the cushion of Bappa Rawal. ³ When Maharana Sāngā came to the throne, Rajputana as a whole was much stronger politically than it had been since the advent of the Afghan power in India. After the Chauhāns of Ajmer, the Guihlots of Mewar rose to great power. Even in Kumbha's time ( A.D. 1433-1468 ) the Guihlots were the only powerful Rajput Kingdom in Rajputana. The Hārās were the vassals of Mewar, and the Kachhwahas ¹ Mehta Nainsi's Chronicles. Mehta Nainsi says that Rai Mal had a son named Jassa, who was given to pleasure and sport, and the Sardars passed him over and placed Sangram Singh on the throne. ² Ibid. ³ Bābur had been four years king of Kabul when Sāngā became Maharana. 46