6th JUNE 1674 RAJYABHISHEK

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj

Shivaji Maharaj History: Shivaji Maharaj Rajyabhishek (Coronation)

shivaji-maharaj-rajyabhishek-coronation-ceremony

Shivaji Maharaj Coronation Ceremony (Rajyabhishek)

Shivaji was crowned king of the Marathas in a lavish ceremony at Raigad on 6 June 1674. In the Hindu calendar it was on the 13th day (trayodashi) of the first fortnight of the month of Jyeshtha in the year 1596. Pandit Gaga Bhatt officiated, holding a gold vessel filled with the seven sacred waters of the rivers Yamuna, Indus, Ganges, Godavari, Krishna and Kaveri over Shivaji’s head, and chanted the coronation mantras. After the ablution, Shivaji bowed before Jijabai and touched her feet. Nearly fifty thousand people gathered at Raigad for the ceremonies. Shivaji was bestowed with the sacred thread jaanva, with the Vedas and was bathed in an abhisheka. Shivaji was entitled Shakakarta (“founder of an era”), and Kshatriya Kulavantas (“head of Kshatriyas”), and Chhatrapati (“paramount sovereign”).

His mother Jijabai died on 18 June 1674, within a few days of the coronation. Considering this a bad omen, a second coronation was carried out 24 September 1674

The state as Shivaji founded it was a Maratha kingdom comprising about 4.1% of the subcontinent at the time he died, but over time it was to increase in size and heterogeneity, and by the time of the Peshwas in the early 18th century the Marathas were dominant across the northern and central regions of the Indian subcontinent

Source:

Wikipedia

Shivaji Maharaj History: Education & Training

Shivaji Maharaj learned much from his father’s failed attempts at political independence, his exceptional military capabilities and achievements, his knowledge of Sanskrit, Hindu ethos, patronage of the arts, his war strategies and peacetime diplomacy. Jijabai also instilled in Shivaji a natural love for self-determination and an aversion to external political domination.

At the age of 12, Shivaji was taken to Bangalore where he and his elder brother Sambhaji and his stepbrother Ekoji were formally trained in supervision of Shahaji, and later on, at Pune, under the supervision of his mother. Tarikh-i-Shivaji which is nothing but translation of 91 kalami bakhar which is unreliable source states that Dadoji Konddev trained Shivaji personally, and also appointed an excellent teacher for him. In a short time, Shivaji became a skilled fighter and a good horse-rider. The military commanders Kanhoji Jedhe and Baji Pasalkar were appointed to train Shivaji in martial arts. Gomaji Naik Pansambal taught him swordmanship, and later served as his military advisor.

Historians have debated whether Shivaji was literate or not. The boy was a keen outdoorsman, but had little formal education, and was likely illiterate. Shivaji drew his earliest trusted comrades and a large number of his soldiers from the Maval region, including Yesaji Kank, Suryaji Kakade, Baji Pasalkar, Baji Prabhu Deshpande and Tanaji Malusare. In the company of his Maval comrades, Shivaji wandered over the hills and forests of the Sahyadri range, hardening himself and acquiring first-hand knowledge of the land, which was to later prove applicable to his military endeavours

Whether or not Shivaji was literate, it is well known that he had mastered the two great Hindu epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata, by listening to recitations and story-tellings. The noble examples mentioned in the epics greatly impressed his young mind. He was deeply interested in religious teachings, and sought the society of Hindu and Muslim saints wherever he went.