Leadership Lessons from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj

Instead of inducting Chhatrasal Bundela as a Commander in his Army, Shivaji encouraged him - an 18 year old boy - to free his motherland from the Turks which led to a 40-year relentless asymmetric war against Aurangzeb

Chhatrasal Bundela’s father died fighting the most bigoted among the Turkic-Mongol (Mughal) rulers of India — Aurangzeb. He was 16–17 years old then. Bundelkhand came under Mughal rule and with it so did Chhatrasal.

Chhatrasal was inducted under Mirza Raje Jai Singh, who had become a vassal to the Mughal empire. Aurangzeb, tired of Shivaji raiding and occupying Mughal forts in the Deccan, asked his commanders Mirza Raje Jai Singh and Diler Khan to invade Shivaji and occupy the small empire he had already built by then.

The Mughal army was too much for Shivaji’s small and resources-strapped Maratha army. He lost his prized fort ‘Purandar’ and it seems the young Chhatrasal was one of the reason for the win. Mirza Raje Jai Singh brought up Chhatrasal’s valourous fight against the Marathas leading Aurangzeb to make him a leader of 250 horsemen. He was then sent with Diler Khan to attack another Maratha territory.

Chhatrasal’s Meeting with Shivaji

However, Chhatrasal’s conscience kept pricking him and eventually escaped to go meet Shivaji.

A poet Lal Kavi in his composition Chhatraprakash, writes about this exchange between Chhatrasal and Shivaji.

Chhatrasal says:

पिता हमारे सुबा दोडे I तुर्कन पर अजमेय खांडे I
तिन चम्पती के नंद हम, ससि नववाई काहि I
हम भूले सियो वृथा, हितु जानी कै वाहि I
एड एक शिवराज निबाही I करे अपने चित कि चाही I
आठ पातशाही झुक झोरे, सुबनी बांधी डआंड ले छओरे I
ऐसे गुण सिवराज के I बसे चित में आई I
मिलिवोई मन में धन्यो I मनसी मत जो बनाई

A loose translation is:

“My father died fighting the Turks. What kind of a son am I who bows to the same Turks? And there is Shivaji who is fighting against (Aurangzeb) the Emperor. I will be blessed if I could meet (and join) Shivaji. I am very inspired by the deeds of Shiva and will do what he asks of me.”

“I am not different than you”

Here’s how Shivaji responded, once again captured as poetry by Lal Kavi in

सिवा किसा सुनि कैकही तुमि छत्री सिरताज I
जीत अपनी भूम को, करो देश को राज I
करो देश को राज छतोरे, हम तुमतै कबहुं नाही न्यारे I
दैरी देस मुगलानको मारो, दबटी दिली के दल संहारौ I
तुरकन की परतीत न मानो I तुम केहार तुरकन गज जानो I
तुरकन में ना विवेक विलोक्यो I मिलन गये उन्हे तुम रोकयो I

A loose translation (part) goes as follows:

“Chhatrasal you are the crown jewel of Kshatriyas. You should fight and win back your lands. I am not different than you. Make their armies run away. Do not trust the Turks.”

This was in 1667 or 1668. Shivaji had just started capturing forts from Aurangzeb’s tyrannical rule over India.

Leadership Lesson #1

Since Chhatrasal had played a key role in defeat of Shivaji in an earlier battle, Shivaji could have easily nurtured animosity against him…perhaps even captured and imprisoned him.

Instead, Shivaji saw in Chhatrasal a fierce young Kshatriya warrior who was repenting his actions of fighting against a just Haindavi resistance to the bigoted Mughal rule.

He forgave him. Shivaji was focussed on freeing Bharatavarsha (India) from the clutches of the religious fanaticism of Aurangzeb. Towards that goal, in Chhatrasal, he saw another righteous warrior, willing to sacrifice his short-term comforts, for the larger cause of the civilization.

Leadership Lesson #2

Shivaji could have easily accepted Chhatrasal’s offer to join him. His coming on board with the Marathas would have significantly enhanced Shivaji’s own army (by merging the Bundela forces with his own) and given him access to much needed funds for sustaining an audacious war he had taken on.

Instead, he insisted that Chhatrasal fight his own good fight — encouraging him to recreate his army and reclaim his nation-state (Desha) from Aurangzeb’s rule.

Leadership Lesson #3

Not only does he encourage Chhatrasal to fight to liberate his desha/country from the Mughals, he also reminds Chhatrasal that he is not any different from him.

Do remember that barring some small states in the Deccan, south-India and Ahom Kingdom (modern day North-East) all of India (including modern Pay Pakistan and frontiers of Afghanistan) was ruled by Aurangzeb. He was the Emperor of India. Shivaji was fighting an asymmetric war against this massive war machine. Not only that, he was under aggression from the Portgugese and the Deccan Sultanates at the same time.

These were times when the Sikhs in the Punjab were down to being a spent force. Most of the Rajputs, sadly, had allied with the Mughals. Shivaji was the only civilizational resistance force at that time.

And at this time, instead of asking Chhatrasal to become a commander in his army, he encourages him to start his Bundeli own resistance in the north-central India.

For the next 40 years Chhatrasal fought Aurangzeb and somewhere amidst this endless resistance he also reclaimed a nation for himself — Bundelkhand — and ruled over it till his sons grew up.

There is another powerful story here on how 40 years after this incident, and much after Shivaji had passed away, on one ‘call for help’ from an ageing Chhatrasal, ‘Bajirao Peshwa’, one of the greatest generals the India and the world has seen, moved his forces from Pune to Jhansi to help Chhatrasal. Read the book ‘Battles of the Maratha Empire’ by Aneesh Gokhale to learn about more such stories of valour, unparalleled leadership in times of extreme adversity…leadership and valour that kept India alive.