Pune Travelogue – April 2015

The Pune trip was filled with history and heritage. We visited several forts, read and heard great stories of the Great Maratha Shivaji Maharaj.

It was not the best of the weather. It was summer & dry, but it wasn’t too hot to dampen our spirits. The best time to visit would be the monsoon or post monsoon.

We visited the following forts:

-          Raigad fort

-          Shivaneri fort

-          Pratapgad fort

-          Sinhagad fort

There are 100 s of forts along the Sahyadri ranges, which Shivaji Maharaj captured, constructed and ruled during his reign. His forts are mostly strategically located atop some of the most dreaded hills. He built few sea forts also in islands. He probably is the first Indian ruler to envisage the importance of building Naval force & built it. He is considered as master strategist, Yugapurush, Visionary to reinstate the Hindavi Swarajya. At a time when Vijayanagara Hindu Samrajya had a spectacular fall, Mughal Shahi ruling the north, Adil Shahi, Qutub Shahi ruling the deccan, it seems Shivaji literally rose from the ashes of the Hindu dust. The story of Shivaji is one of adrenaline rushing, roller coaster ride for someone interested. You can hold full attention of the kids telling his story of raise, fall and raise.

Raigad Fort

This was the second capital of Shivaji and this is where he died his natural death when he was around 50 years age. It is about 130Kms from Pune but takes more than 3hrs to reach by car. We have to go through some of the most scenic ghats. There is a river which makes a beautiful pearl necklace turn around a hill on the way. While returning it was full moon day and it dazzled under the moonshine in the surrounding dark hills creating a beautiful contrast. I was too wonderstruck to take a photo.

The fort is built on a flat surface of about 100 acres above the top of a hill. We have to reach the top via a rope way. The other way is by about 1500 steps. The guide tells, it was a very rich capital during those days. There is a super market street in ruins where they used to trade jewelry, exotic metals, minerals, pearls. The durbar hall is very large and they have installed a sculpture of Shivaji sitting in Veerasana on the throne. We paid respects to the great ruler there. Shivaji ruled from here in his last years for about 12 years. His throne had about 1280kg of gold. The British after winning over the Maratha kingdom looted and burnt the palace. The palace is believed to have burnt for 11 days.

Why British Looted and Burnt Down the Royal Riches of the Maratha?

Even in Sinhagad we heard the same story. That the British brought down a magnificent palace there. The loot is understandable as a barbaric loot of wealth. But why burn down the palace? Was it piercing their ego? Or was it a standing symbol of Swarajya (Self Rule) which might raise Swathanthrya (freedom) consciousness amongst the masses? Did they strategically burn it down to make them feel pitiful? Why did they not do the same in Mysuru, Bengaluru or Royal Rajasthan palaces? Was it because they were friendly & accepted their superiority & paid rich tributes?

Shivaneri Durga

Shivaji was born here. Shivai Devi temple is there atop the hill after whom he believed to be named after. Jijabai, his mother played crucial role in raising the Swathanthrya, Swarajya consciousness in the young Shivaji. He grew up under able guidance of the highly experienced aged warrior called Dadaji Kondadev here. There is a bronze statue of Young Shivaji with his mother here. We pay tribute to the great mother to have given a great son to the Swarajya. Her own story of sacrifice moves ones heart with great pride in the story of Shivaji.

We visited the Junnar Caves near by the fort. The caves are typical of the buddist style. During the later years it has become a piligrim centre for Hindus as one of the Ashta Vinayakas is installed and worshipped in one of these caves. The central hall is very large about 300ft width and 200ft depth. It is very cool inside as it is carved right in the middle of large mountain.

Pratapgad Fort

This is the fort where the real valour of Shivaji was first witnessed by the world at large by how he killed Afzalkhan. When the young Shivaji became a rebel to the Bijapur kingdom, capturing many forts and declaring Swarajya in the surrounding villages of the Sahyadris, they sent their best general to quell the rebellion. The story of killing of this ferocious general gives the glimpse of Shivaji’s tenacity, tactics, patience, ultimate bravery of taking upon directly on the barbaric general. This episode established the young Shivaji as a force to reckon with in the Deccan.

This fort is very well maintained privately by the kin of Shivaji Maharaj. This is a living fort with the guides, poojars, shop keepers living inside the fort based on tourism. The fort is in the Mahabaleshwar hills. So it is an easy visit for those visiting the exotic hill station. There are beautiful view points in the hill station. The various facets of the rugged Sahyadris is breath taking and beautiful.

The fort is built by Shivaji himself in straight 2 years in this strategic place. It is a fine example of his project management acumen. All the neo jargons of management viz., person day effort, shift based round the clock work, minimum input maximum output, sustainable product with minimal maintenance are standing examples there. You got to see it to believe it. Government has gifted one magnificent bronze mounted statue of Shivaji which is installed at the top of the fort.

Sinhagad Fort

This fort is just at the outskirts of Pune. There is NDA (National Defense Academy) out here. You get past a beautiful large lake at the base of the hill and climb one of the toughest climbs even in car. The story is that of Tanaji Malasure here. He died a martyr while winning the fort in a fiercely fought battle. The story depicts the sacrifice & great valour of the Mawal warriors of the region willing to win over the swarajya & provide unstinting support for their benefactor Shivaji Maharaj.

Lokamanya Tilak bought a house at the top inside this fort & lived here for some time. I wondered what made him take this tough decision. It is a very tough climb to reach here from Pune. It is very treacherous lonely living. The British had already made this place a hell by destroying a palace and other fortifications. Tilak is understood to have used it as his summer residence and wrote Geeta Rahasya. The trip album is here: https://plus.google.com/photos/110449838432121172507/albums/6137186002538111777 Read through the comments and captions for more information

Other places of interest we visited are:

• Lonavala – Near it we visited the Lohgad Fort & Pawna Dam
• Dhom – There is a Lakshmi Narasimha temple just behind the Dhom dam. Dhom is a small quit village off Mahabaleshwar road near Wai. The serenity of the temple with little pond with ducks, Thirtha coming from Gomukha, connects us with nature. The temple history dates back to the Pandavas period. Dhaumya maharishi’s abode is there inside temple premises.
• Siddhagiri Matha Museum or Kaneri Matha at the outskirts of Kolhapur – Exceptionally well set up Grameena Jeevana in beautiful Wax tableaux. It is very good to learn the old traditions & introduce them to the kids. It has good set of figurines of ancient Rishis and their contributions to the world of science. 

A Tribute to Tribals of India

Tribal way of living is the most primitive type. In any part of the world the tribals represent the Indigenous culture of that region. They represent the most independent way of life. That means the tribal living requires very less dependency on each other. There is no large society structure. Every family is independent. Every family hunts or gathers their own food & water. They make their own clothes. For dwelling they take little help from other families. For entertainment they get together and develop indigenous culture, tradition, language, ballads. Their religion will be generally simple. If a mountain is their life line, they worship it. In desert they worship sand, cloud, water etc., In forest they create forest goddess, or worship various animals, plants, trees etc., which they feel are their lifelines.

Just to give a comparison with our life, let’s take an example of a small family of an engineer, teacher and their kids in a city. They would not grow vegetables, pulses. They don’t fetch water.  They don’t build their house by themselves. They don’t grow cotton nor make clothes. They get all that by paying money. How they get money? There exists a complex system. It is a societal structure. Money plays complex role in this structure. In this complex structure the family head works for money and feeds the family with the basic needs like food, water, clothing, shelter & security. He works in a small part of that complex system which provides these basic needs for seemingly all. 

So anthropologists who want to understand the human evolution study tribals to know how society evolved? Because that’s how man existed in ancient times. Then they look at how man evolved? Why society evolved? Who defines that structure? How? Who protects that structure? How kingdoms came up. Why it requires such large complex structure? Etc., The more you like to know the murkier it gets. The tribal way of life is the epitome of simplicity.

India must take some pride that we have NOT wiped out tribal way of life completely. Several tribes still persist with semi tribal way of life with little interaction with modern civilization. Some tribals who are completely untouched by civilization in Andamans, Orissa are being declared UN Heritage and being given state protection.

Compare it with the rest of the world. In whole of Europe, north and south Americas, most of Asia, Australia the tribal way of life is completely wiped out. The European imperialists with their invention of steam engine, fast transportation, navy, increased their fire power, gun power and went about ruling the entire world. The religion which plays key role in shaping society also was more taunting and oppressive rather than self-exploratory. The Imperialistic religions like Christianity and Islam slayed their indigenous way of life & self-exploratory life style. The new religions brought new way of worshipping, new theories, new gods. But unfortunately they focused equally ferociously on killing the old faith. The Pagan religious culture of Europe, The Mayans of Americas, The Egyptians, The Mesopotamians, Various indigenous Arabian tribal cultures are all completely wiped out today.

As these imperial religions expanded, they did nothing to imbibe any good things from other religions & regions. They are very rigid. They forced their theory upon people they came to rule. For example in Christianity, the individual aspirations for material needs are much appreciated. Every individual has the right to aspire for material needs & luxury life. Control over ones desires is not wise according to them. Where as in eastern religions like Hindu, Jain, Buddhism the importance given to abstinence, contentment, simplicity, yogic way of life not just for saints but for householders is very high. If as society we don’t control our material desires then it is not sustainable. We all know that. We have to look inner for happiness, satisfaction, god!

Indian freedom struggle has got much aid from tribals at various stages of history. Maharana Pratap Singh, Shivaji the Great, Chandrasekhar Azad the revolutionary freedom fighter are few examples of many in India whose life is greatly shaped by the tribals of India. 

Maharana Pratap Singh & Mewar Bhils 

The Bhils of Mewar had special relation with the Maharana Pratap. These tribals protected the great king and their family during the 13 long years of exile in forests. They shifted him safely from place to place in harshest of the conditions.

The tribal leaders lent a great help in the great battle of Haldi Ghati. Why did they put their life in danger for the great leader? Why so many tribes risked their life to protect him? When Akbar’s army was scouting the mountains for the traces of the Maharana why did they sacrifice their life to protect him?

Since his childhood days he regarded the Mewar Bhils with respect. He roamed around the Aravali hills understanding the geography and people. He vouched for protecting their habitats, their independence. He encouraged their skills, culture & tradition. He trained and played warfare with them in their way.

When Akbar’s army backed off, Maharana was reinstated on the throne. The Bhils of Mewar wanted nothing material in return. No big edifices, no big forts, no highways. They got their life of freedom, a life of self-exploration, a life of harmony with nature, a life of harnessing nature, a simple beautiful livelihood.

The Raja protected their living rights. And they laid their life for him.

Compare it to today’s Raja = The Indian Government = Praja Rajya = Large business houses + Middleclass demands. That’s all. All others are scums.

60% of Indian tribals are displaced from their dwellings. Mostly due to dams & mining. Did they ask for mining & dams? No. State asked for it. Who is state? Is it people protector? Or is it people destructor? These tribals are called internally displaced. They are illegal occupants of land wherever they go. So they have taken up arms. They have become Maoists. They are called naxals. They have become anti nationals, violent & bloody.

Shivaji the Great & Mavalli Tribals 

Shivaji grew up playing earthly games with the Mavalli tribes. Most of his child hood friends were from these freedom loving tribes. Under the watchful eyes of Dadaji Kondadev, these free spirited boys wandered around the hills & forests of the Great Sahyadri range. They grew up to become Shivaji’s trusted generals in building up his empire.

Baji Prabhu Deshpande laid down his life protecting Shivaji at the mouth of Panhalaghad. Tanaji’s sacrifice while capturing the Simhaghad for Shivaji’s mother’s wish is very famous in the folklore of Maratha region.

Why these people did willingly laid down their lives for the kingdom? Shivaji built new forts and fortified old ones in toughest of the Sahyadri hills. Why did they help him? Did he enslave them? Or Entrust them? Did he snatch their livelihood? Or did he give them status?

What can our today’s tribals do for us? What their strengths are? How can we utilize them for nation building? Are they good archers? Are they good artisans? Artists? Builders? Naturalists? Do they know the forest landscape? Do they have knowledge of the flaura & fauna? Should we not care today? Are they just illegal occupants of the world!?

The India’s Freedom Struggle & Tribals

Till the British rose to the power no government or king had disturbed the various tribals living across Indian mountains and forests. The need for coal, iron, for railways, brought the need of modern civilization in direct conflict with the tribals. The traditional community land rights were challenged. Also the British craze for coffee & tea guzzling and exporting cleared pristine forests for monoculture and enslaved its inhabitants in large estates.

Birsa Munda a young tribal leader lead an uprising in the Chota Nagpur forest areas. He became spiritual guru also. He lead a great armed rebellion against the British. Similarly there were, many uprising against the British misrule by the tribals across India especially in Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand regions.    

How can we protect Tribals today? 

We still have about 8% tribal population in India. They are peaceful people. We should let them live where they are & however they are. We need to learn from them. We need to engage with them humanely. Entrust and empower them to protect the forests, mountains, rivers. Utilize their archery, physical strength in sports, army, police. Utilize their naturalist knowledge.

We are aping too much of western culture. We must know civilization thrived well even before coffee tea were discovered. We must get back to roots. Why not? Baba Ramdev sells simple alternatives. Our own elders used to do many alternatives from simple things grown in backyard. We must get back to that.

Too much of carbon footprint by each and every family. We are growing our material needs. We don’t even realize it is causing so much stress on government to acquire forests and come in direct conflict with the tribals.

Do we know that we are the cause of Naxalism? Our life style is the root cause of Maoism? We demand high lifestyle. Government in order to provide it, cuts forests, drills mines, bring down hills. Where do people living there go? For them state is a terrorist organization. For them we are all terrorists.

If we have to remove Naxalism we have to be ready to remove consumerism. We have to adopt ancient ways of simplicity. We have to gain confidence and love of the tribals. Yes. That is possible. Then they themselves will help us build Submarines, Fighter jets, Mars Mission Satellites. Those are necessary for us. Not individual luxury like, granite flooring, leather jacket, luxury high speed car. We need to build community assets like our ancients built beautiful long lasting temples, lakes, tanks, forts. Like the way the tribals built formidable forts for Rana Pratap & Shivaji, they can help us build today’s defense. Provided we ask them. Provided, we tell them why they should sacrifice. And how we can rehabilitate and empower, train them to contribute for such feats! If we directly displace them without even asking for Car manufacturing, Paint manufacturing for meeting someone’s luxury needs, then they obviously revolt.

We should let them live. We should let them fight to retain their forests, hills, rivers. We should recognize their rights to live. At least in theory if we support their life, then it translates to some austerity in our life. In practice to bring in much austerity is difficult. But if we give them right to protect their environment, then we force ourselves for simple living. It can be however gradual.

Some of my friends say when I pick a subject I don’t stick to the line of that subject. I go all around. Like in this example, Tribals – Religion – conversion –  freedom struggle - materialism – simplicity – Maoism etc., But as you see they are all interconnected. Each of it is not standalone & sacrosanct. I wish our policies were as people oriented as our ancient times than today’s mad economics based.