The little-known brother of Shivaji

There are innumerable records, chronicles, annals and even letters  about the life and times of Chatrapathi Shivaji who spent two years in this city from 1640 to 1642. However, the very same records contain scanty or practically no information about Shivaji’s brother, Sambhaji.

When Shivaji came to Bangalore, Shahaji, his father, got him married a second time. He also ensured that Shivaji was trained in statecraft and warfare along with Sambhaji, and their half-brother Vyaknoji or Ekoji who later on went to found the Maratha line of rulers at Tanjore or Thanjavur, now in Tamil Nadu.

Both Shivaji and Sambhaji were the only surviving sons Shahaji and Jija Bai-four sons died in infancy. While Shivaji stayed on in Poona with his mother, Sambhaji was taken to the Deccan by Shahaji and he was with his father for several years. Shahaji had his second wife, Tuka bai Mohite, by his side and Venkoji was their son.  

When the Adil Shahis overran Bangalore in 1638 and defeated Kempe Gowda, the Adil Shahi commander Ranadulla Khan gave due credit to the victory for Shahaji, who was also a frontline  commander. Interestingly, the redoubtable Afzal Khan, who Shivaji later killed, was an understudy of Ranadullah Khan.

It was Ranadullah Khan who sent Afzal Khan to Sira, while he himself proceeded to Bangalore along with Shahaji.

The reason for the mighty Adil Shahi war machine to march towards south Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh were many. The Adil Shahi Emperor, Ibrahim Adil Shah also called Jagadguru, had died in 1627 and he was succeeded by Muhammad Adil Shah (1627-1658). Muhammad never wanted to see the rise of Vijayanagar and he decided to take on Sriranga Raya, the Vijayanagar ruler who was making attempts to reassert his authority.

Sriranganga was in touch with the many erstwhile provincial governors or palegars of the once mighty Vijayanagar Kingdom. At the same time, the Wodeyars of Mysore were emerging as the powerhouse of the south Mysore region. Kempe Gowda in Bangalore was also a prominent figure as were Bidanur and Sira.

Muhammad then ordered Ranadullah Khan and Shahaji to take on the Hindu principalities. They were ably assisted by Afzal Khan and at times by Myustafa Khan and Asad Khan.

Ranadullah Khan first took on the Raja of Dharwar and Lakshmshwar in 1637 and defeated them. He then took on the Vijayanagar King and captured Penugonda, Chandragiri, Adoni or Adwani in Andhra Pradesh, Vellor and Ginge in Tamil Nadu, Ikkeri-Bedanur, Bangalore, Kanakanagiri and Sira in Karnataka.

Ranadulla Khan and Shahaji got on well with each other. Both respected each other’s bravery and the Khan knew that Shahaji was an excellent military strategist. Once the war was over, Ranadullah Khan left the terms of surrender and other aspects to Shahaji and he rarely interfered.

Thus, when Kempe Gowda, the third, surrendered to the Adil Shahi, Shahaji allowed him to leave to Magadi and set up court there. Impressed with Shahaji, the Adil Shah granted him the jagir of Bangalore, which also included the surrounding principalities of Kolar, Chikaballapur, Doddaballapur and Kakakagiri.

Shahaji stayed back at Bangalore and set up court. His headquarters was the present Chickpet where he had his palace called Gauri Mahal.

Shahaji then became extremely busy in wars and campaigns conducted by the Adil Shah. He rarely had time to go back to Pune and meet his first wife Jija Bai and his second son, Shivaji.

Shahaji could not even attend the first marriage of Shivaji. He then invited Jija Bai and Shivaji to Bangalore so that he could meet his daughter-in-law.

Once in Bangalore, Shivaji learnt statecraft and warfare and he stayed here for two years from 1640 to 1642.

In 1642, Shivaji returned to Pune with his mother and he began the task of building up the Maratha Empire. Simultaneously, Shahaji began a process of  Hindu revival in the south. He did not put to the sword the Palegars or Nayakas whose territory he conquered on the behalf of the Adi Shah. He took away the capital cities of these provincial rulers and sent them away to smaller cities and towns. Thus, he earned the gratitude and respect of  the Palegars.

The only exception to this was in Sira where Afzal Khan treacherously murdered Kasturirangan, the ruler, by calling him out of the fort on the pretext of holding negotiations.

Sambhaji slowly earned the respect of his father and soon, Shahaji made him the Governor of Kolar.

When Muhammad Adil Shah called Shahaji to Bijapur in 1648 and imprisoned him, Sambhaji stoutly defended Bangalore against the Adil Shah army led by Farhad Khan and Tanaji Dure and even defeated them. In the Pune region, Shivaji defied the Adil Shah. Both gave up their defiance only after Shahaji addressed a letter to them and pointed out that their resistance might lead to his losing his life.

However, the Adil Shah realised the folly of imprisoning Shahaji and released him and conferred several honors on him. He also restored the jagir of Bangalore to Shahaji who then came back to Bangalore.

Sambhaji then continued to govern from Kolar, while his father lorded over Bangalore. Sambhaji met an unfortunate death in 1654 when the Adli Shahis under Afzal Khan attacked Kanakagiri. The Palegar, Apakhan, had revolted against the Adilshahis.

Afzal Khan once again played the part of a traitor and this led to the death of Sambhaji who was wounded by a cannon ball fired from within the fort of  Kanakanagiri.

When Shahaji heard of his son’s death, he personally marched to Kanakagiri and conquered it. For Shivaji, the loss of his elder brother was devastating. When his mother told him about the complicity of Afzal Khan in the death of Sambhaji, the Maratha swore revenge.

Today, people know about Sambhaji, the son of Shivaji but very few know about Sambhaji, the brother.

Sambhaji was born at Verul or today’s Ellora near Aurangabad in 1619 in Maharashtra. He was married to Makai and they had two sons- Suratsingh and Umaji, who records say was an adopted son. Umaji was believed to be the son of Parsoji Raje Bhamberker
After the death of Sambhaji,  Kolar was continued as Jahagir to his son Suratsing. When Shivaji conquered Bangalore from his half-brother Vyankoji, he continued the jagir of Kolar to his brother’s children.

Kola remained in Maratha hands till Hyder Ali (1721-1781) claimed Kolar as his right. Hyder’s reason for his conquest of Kolar was because he was born at Budikote, a short distance away from Kolar.

The Tarik-i-Shivaji, Siva Digvijaya, Chitnis Bakhars, Sabhasad and Adil Shah records give us information about Shahaji, Shivaji and Sambhaji as does the excellent work by H.S. Sardesai.

When an Emperor caught a bolt of lightning

The Gol Gumbaz is one of the most well-known monuments of India. Located in Bijapur in north Karnataka, the magnificent structure has the second largest dome in the world with a diameter of 44 metres or 124 feet. The whispering gallery of the Gol Gumbaz, where you can hear a whisper at a distance, is another marvel. The gallery is so designed that a faint whisper, clap, tick of a watch or even the rustle of paper can be heard across a distance of 37 metres and the sound is echoed seven times over. In earlier tines, the sound echoed eleven times over.

The Gol Gumbaz is also one of the biggest single chamber structures in the world and covers an area of 18,225 square feet or 1,693 square meters, which is substantially bigger than the Pantheon in Rome which is 14,996 square feet  or 1,393 square meters.

However, this post is not about the construction of the Gol Gumbaz or its features.  Built by Mohammad Adil Shah (1627-1656), the Gol Gumbaz was never fully completed as it was taken up during the ending years of Muhammad Adil Shah. The construction of the Gol Gumbaz was stopped in 1659, twenty years after it was taken up.  

However, the Gol Gumbaz, which is the subject of many legends and myths, has an unusual aspect which is generally ignored by both locals and millions of tourists who visit the monument.

One of the many popular legends about the Gol Gumbaz is that Muhammad Adil Shah chased and caught a bolt of  lightning which struck a place a little away from the monument.

Muhammad Adil Shah believed that the bolt of lightning or Sidilu in Kannada would bring him and the Kingdom luck and he hung the piece of rock in front of the Gol Gumbaz.

This bolt of lightning can be seen even today, hung ornamentally on the façade of the monument. It is tied in a tripod like ring and hung through a chain.

Since the bolt of lightning can be seen only if one observes the façade closely, it has been generally given a royal go by by the many tourists who mill around the monument.

Historians and archaeologists who have examined the rock have said that it is a piece of meteorite that fell within the confines of Bijapur.

When Muhammad Adil Shah was told about the falling piece from the sky, he went to the spot and had it examined. His astrologers told him that the rock would bring him and his Kingdom luck. They also told him that the rock would help him expand his Kingdom and lead to greater prosperity of Bijapur. However, they warned him that the rock would have to be carefully preserved if the good luck was to continue. Muhammad Adil Shah then decided to use it as a good luck charm and hang it from the façade of the Gol Gumbaz.

Believe it or not, after Muhammad got the rock, then called Bijli Pathar, hung on the façade atop the south door or main entrance of the Gol Gumbaz, he was officially recognized as the ruler of the Kingdom by the Mughal Emperor, Shahajahan.

Muhammad Adil Shah also managed to defeat Kempe Gowda of Bangalore and the Nayaka of Ginji from whom he seized immense booty. He also managed to sack the city of Doddaballapur. Muhammad also sealed an alliance with the Mughals to put an end to the Ahmednagar Kingdom.            

When the Mughal Emperor, Aurangzeb, annexed the Adil Shahi Kingdom in 1686, Bijapur soon became a ghost town and the Mughals and Marathas were at war with for gaining a stranglehold over Bijapur. The meteorite also came to be almost forgotten after the eclipse of the Adil Shahi dynasty.

However, it was Henry Cousens (1854-1933), a British officer, who served as the chief archaeology officer in Western India in 1896, who re-discovered and recorded the Sidlu of Gol Gumbaz.

Cousens has described Bijapur and its monuments in his book, “Ruins of Bijapur City”.

Cousens visited Bijapur for the first time in May 1891to organise the Museum in the Yaqut Mahal. However, it is only in 1896 that Cousens talks about rediscovering a meteorite at the Gol Gumbaz in Bijapur in his “Ruins of Bijapur City.”

He examined the rock and said, “This is a rare piece of rock and believed to bring good luck to those who possess it. Therefore, Mohammed Ali Adil Shah might have brought and dangled it before the Gol Gumbaz.”