Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti, also known simply as Shiv Jayanti, is a festival and public holiday of the Indian state of
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
. This festival is celebrated on February 19, celebrating the birth anniversary of
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adilsh ...
, the first
Chhatrapati
Chhatrapati is a royal title from Sanskrit language.The word ‘Chhatrapati’ is a Sanskrit language compound word (tatpurusha in Sanskrit) of ''Chatra (umbrella), chhatra'' (''parasol'' or ''umbrella'') and ''pati'' (''master/lord/ruler''). Th ...
and founder of the
Maratha Empire
The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern Indian confederation that came to dominate much of the Indian subcontinent in the 18th century. Maratha rule formally began in 1674 with the coronation of Shi ...
. He restablished
Hindavi Swarajya
The Hindavi Swarajya (; "self-rule of Hindu people", meaning independence from foreign rule): "Chhatrapati Shivaji's coronation and setting himself up as a sovereign prince symbolises the rise of the Indian people in all parts of the country. It w ...
indavī Svarājya; "Self-Rule of the hindavi people" Some people celebrate this day as per Hindu Calendar in Maharashtra.
[
: "It was a bid for ''Hindavi Swarajya'' (Indian rule), a term used in Marathi sources of history."
]
History
In 1870,
Mahatma Phule
Jyotirao Govindrao Phule, also known as Mahatma Jyotiba Phule (11 April 1827 – 28 November 1890) was an Indian social activist, thinker, anti-caste social reformer and writer from Maharashtra. His work extended to many fields, including era ...
started celebration of Shivaji Jayanti which was then taken forward by
Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Bal Gangadhar Tilak (; born Keshav Gangadhar Tilak (pronunciation: eʃəʋ ɡəŋɡaːd̪ʱəɾ ʈiɭək; 23 July 1856 – 1 August 1920), endeared as Lokmanya (IAST: ''Lokmānya''), was an Indian nationalist, teacher, and an independence a ...
.
Shiv Jayanti is the birth anniversary of great Maratha ruler Shivaji Maharaj. Shivaji Maharaj was born on Marathi
Shalivahana Hindu calendar Falgun's Krishna paksha 3, 1551/
Julian February 19, 1630, in
Shivneri Fort
Shivneri Fort (Marathi pronunciation: iʋneɾiː is a 17th-century military fortification located near Junnar in Pune district in Maharashtra, India. It is the birthplace of Shivaji, the emperor and founder of Maratha Empire.
History
Shivner ...
. The error of not converting the Julian date to the corresponding Gregorian one is still not corrected.
Shivaji Maharaj is considered as the greatest Maratha ruler who carved an enclave from the declining
Adilshahi sultanate
The Adil Shahi or Adilshahi, was a Shia,Salma Ahmed Farooqui, ''A Comprehensive History of Medieval India: From Twelfth to the Mid-Eighteenth Century'', (Dorling Kindersley Pvt Ltd., 2011), 174. and later Sunni Muslim,Muhammad Qasim Firishta's T ...
of Bijapur that became the start of the
Maratha Empire
The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern Indian confederation that came to dominate much of the Indian subcontinent in the 18th century. Maratha rule formally began in 1674 with the coronation of Shi ...
. At the young age of 16, Shivaji Maharaj seized the Torna fort and by the age of 17 had seized the
Raigad and
Kondana
Sinhagad is an ancient hill fortress located at around 49 km southwest of the city of Pune, India.
Previously known as ''Kondhana'', the fort had been the site of many battles, most notably the Battle of Sinhagad in 1670.
The Sinhagad ...
forts. Shivaji Maharaj as he is popularly known was named Shivaji Bhosale and was a member of the
Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji Maharaj promoted the use of
Marathi
Marathi may refer to:
*Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India
*Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people
*Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece
See also
*
* ...
and
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
in court and administration, rather than using
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
which was the norm in those times.
References
{{Indian days
Festivals in India
Public holidays in India
February observances
Birthdays