=Mahārāja Abhai Singh, A.D. 1724-50.=—The parricidal murder of Ajit is
accounted the germ of destruction, which, taking root in the social
edifice of Marwar, ultimately rent it asunder. Bitter has been the fruit
of this crime, “even unto the third and fourth generation” of his
unnatural sons, whose issue, but for this crime, would in all human
probability have been the most potent princes in India, able
single-handed to have stopped Mahratta aggrandisement.
“It was in 1781 (says the bard) Ajit went to heaven. With his own hand
did the emperor Muhammad Shah put the _tika_ on the forehead of Abhai
Singh, girded him with the sword, bound the _turah_[5.10.1] on his head,
placed a dagger set with gems [98] in his girdle, and with Chaunris,
Naubats, and Nakkaras,[5.10.2] and many valuable gifts, invested the
young prince in all the dignities of his father. Even Nagor was resumed
from the son of Amra and included in his sanad. With these marks of
royal favour, he took leave of the court, and returned to his paternal
dominions. From village to village, as he journeyed homeward, the
_kalas_ was raised on the head.[5.10.3] When he reached Jodhpur, he
distributed gifts to all his chiefs, and to the Bardais (bards and
Charans), and lands to the family priests (_Purohits_).”
A day at the court of the desert king, related in the phraseology of the
chronicle, would be deemed interesting as a picture of manners. It would
also make the reader more familiar with Karna, the most celebrated bard
in the latter days of Rajput independence: but this must be reserved for
an equally appropriate vehicle,[5.10.4] and we shall at present rest
satisfied with a slight sketch of the historian of Maru.
=Karan, the Bard.=—Karna-Kavya, or simply Karna, who traced his descent
from the last household bard of the last emperor of Kanauj, was at once
a politician, a warrior, and a scholar, and in each capacity has left
ample proofs of his abilities. In the first he took a distinguished part
in all the events of the civil wars; in the second, he was one of the
few who survived a combat almost without parallel in the annals even of
Rajput chivalry; and as a scholar, he has left us, in the introduction
to his work,[5.10.5] the most instructive proof, not only of his
inheriting the poetic mantle of his fathers, but of the course he
pursued for the maintenance of its lustre. The bare enumeration of the
works he had studied evinces that there was no royal road to Parnassus
for the Rajput Kaviswar,[5.10.6] but that, on the contrary, it was beset
with difficulties not a little appalling. The mere nomenclature of works
on grammar and historical epics, which were to be mastered ere he could
hope for fame, must have often made Kama exclaim, “How hard it is to
climb the steeps” on which from afar he viewed her temple. Those who
desire to see, under a new aspect, an imperfectly known but interesting
family of the human race, will be made acquainted with the
qualifications of our bardic historians, and the particular course of
studies which [99] fitted Karna “to sit in the gate[5.10.7] of
Jodhagir,” and add a new book to the chronicles of its kings.
These festivities of the new reign were not of long duration, and were
succeeded by warlike preparations against Nagor, which, during the
contentions between Ajit and the emperor, had been assigned to the
descendant of the ancient princes of Mandor.
“When Ajmer was invested by the collective force of the empire,[5.10.8]
Iradat Khan (Bangash), collector of the Jizya,[5.10.9] took the Indha by
the arm, and seated him in Nagor.[5.10.10] But as soon as the
Holi[5.10.11] was past, the ‘Avatars of Jawalamukhi’[5.10.12] were
consecrated: goats were sacrificed, and the blood, with oil and
vermilion, was sprinkled upon them. The tents were moved out. Hearing
this, Rao Indra produced the imperial patent, with the personal
guarantee of Jai Singh of Amber. Abhai heeded not, and invested Nagor;
but Indra left his honour and his castle to the Fearless,[5.10.13] who
bestowed it on Bakhta his brother. He received the congratulations of
Mewar, Jaisalmer, Bikaner, and Amber, and returned to his capital amidst
the rejoicings of his subjects. This was in S. 1781.
“In S. 1782 he was employed in restraining the turbulent Bhumias on the
western frontiers of his dominions; when the Sindhals, the Deoras, the
Balas, the Boras, the Balechas, and the Sodhas were compelled to
servitude.
=Abhai Singh summoned to Delhi, A.D. 1726.=—“In S. 1783 a farman of
summons arrived, calling the prince to attend the Presence at Delhi. He
put it to his head, assembled all his chiefs, and on his passage to
court made a tour of his dominions, examining his garrisons, redressing
[100] wrongs, and adjusting whatever was in disorder. At
Parbatsar[5.10.14] he was attacked by the small-pox: the nation called
on Jagrani[5.10.15] to shield him from evil.
“In 1784 the prince reached Delhi. Khandauran, the chief noble of the
empire, was deputed by the emperor to conduct him to the capital; and
when he reached the Presence, his majesty called him close to his
person, exclaiming, ‘Welcome, _Khushbakht_,[5.10.16] _Maharaja
Rajeswar_,[5.10.17] it is long since we met; this day makes me happy;
the splendour of the Ammkhass is redoubled.’ When he took leave, the
king sent to his quarters, at Abhaipur, choice fruits of the north,
fragrant oils, and rose-water.”
The prince of Maru was placed at the head of all the nobility. About the
end of S. 1784, Sarbuland Khan’s rebellion broke out,[5.10.18] which
gave ample scope for the valour of the Rathors and materials for the
bard, who thus circumstantially relates it:
“The troubles in the Deccan increased. The Shahzada Jangali[5.10.19]
rebelled, and forming an army of sixty thousand men, attacked the
provincial governors of Malwa, Surat, and Ahmadpur, slaying the king’s
lieutenants, Girdhar Bahadur, Ibrahim Kuli,[5.10.20] Rustam Ali, and the
Mogul Shujaat.
=Rebellion of Sarbuland Khan. Scene at the Imperial Court.=—“Hearing
this, the king appointed Sarbuland Khan to quash the rebellion. He
marched at the head of fifty thousand men, having a crore of rupees for
their subsistence; but his advanced army of ten thousand men being
defeated in the first encounter, he entered into terms with the rebels,
and agreed to a partition of the country.”
It was at this time the prince of Marwar begged permission to retire to
his hereditary dominions. The bard’s description of the court, and of
the emperor’s distress on this occasion, though prolix, deserves
insertion:
“The king was seated on his throne, attended by the seventy-two grand
Omras of the empire, when tidings reached him of the revolt of
Sarbuland. There was the wazir Kamaru-din Khan, Itimadu-Daula,
Khandauran, commander-in-chief [101] (Mir Bakhshi), Samsamu-d-daula, the
Amiru-Umara, Mansur Ali, Roshanu-d-daula, Tura Baz Khan, the Lord
Marcher (_Sim ka Bakhshi_); Rustam Jang, Afghan Khan, Khwaja
Sayyidu-d-din, commandant of artillery (_Mir Atish_); Saadat
Khan,[5.10.21] grand chamberlain (_Darogha Khawass_), Burhanu-l-Mulk,
Abdul Samad Khan, Dalil Khan, Zafariyab Khan, governor of Lahore, Dalel
Khan, Mir Jumla, Khankhanan; Zafar Jang, Iradat Khan, Murshid Kuli Khan,
Ja’far Khan, Allahwirdi Khan,[5.10.22] Muzaffar Khan, governor of Ajmer.
Such and many more were assembled in the Presence.
“It was read aloud that Sarbuland had reduced Gujarat, and proclaimed
his own _an_; that he had ground the Kolis to dust; that he had
vanquished the Mandalas, the Jhalas, the Chudasamas, the Baghels, and
the Gohils, and had nearly exterminated the Balas; that Halar had agreed
to pay tribute, and that such was the fire of this Yavan, that the
Bhumias of themselves abandoned their strongholds to seek sanctuary with
him whom the ‘seventeen thousand’[5.10.23] now called sovereign; that he
had set himself up a king in Ahmadabad, and made a league with the
‘Southron.’
“The emperor saw that if this defection was not quelled, all the
viceroys would declare themselves independent. Already had Jagaria Khan
in the north, Saadat Khan in the east, and the Mlechchha Nizamu-l-mulk
in the south, shown the blackness of their designs. The _tap_ (verve) of
the empire had fled.
“The _bira_ was placed on a golden salver, which the Mir Tajik bore in
his extended arms, slowly passing in front of the nobles ranged on
either side of the throne, mighty men, at the sight of whose faces the
rustic would tremble: but in vain he passed both lines; no hand was
stretched forth; some looked awry; some trembled; but none cast an eye
upon the _bira_.
“The ‘almighty monarch’ (_Parameswar Padshah_), who could make the
beggar an Omra of twelve thousand, and the noble of twelve thousand a
beggar, was without resource. ‘Who,’ said one, ‘would grasp the forked
lightning, let him engage Sarbuland!’ Another exclaimed, ‘Who would
seize the vessel, and plunge with her in the whirlpool, he may contend
with Sarbuland.’ And a third, ‘Whoever [102] dare seize the forked
tongue of the serpent, let him engage Sarbuland.’ The king was troubled;
he gave a sign to the Mir Tajik to return the _bira_ to him.
“The Rathor prince saw the monarch’s distress, and as he was about to
leave the Ammkhass, he stretched forth his hand, and placed the _bira_
in his turban, as he said, ‘Be not cast down, O king of the world; I
will pluck down this Sarbuland:[5.10.24] leafless shall be the boughs of
his ambition, and his head (_sar_) the forfeit of his arrogant
exaltation (_buland_).’
“When Abhai Singh grasped the _bira_, the breasts of the mighty were
ready to burst with the fulness of envy, even like the ripe pomegranate,
as the king placed the grant of Gujarat into the hands of the Rathor.
The Shah’s heart was rejoiced, as he said, ‘Thus acted your ancestors in
support of the throne; thus was quelled the revolt of Khurram and Bhim
in the time of Jahangir; that of the Deccan settled; and in like manner
do I trust that by you the honour and the throne of Muhammad Shah will
be upheld.’
“Rich gifts, including seven gems of great price, were bestowed upon the
Rathor; the treasury was unlocked and thirty-one lakhs of coin were
assigned for the troops. The guns were taken from the arsenals, and with
the patent of the vice-royalties of Ahmadabad and Ajmer, in the month of
Asarh (1786), Abhai took leave of the king.”[5.10.25]
=Abhai Singh starts for Gujarat, A.D. 1730.=—The political
arrondissement of Marwar dates from this period; for the rebellion of
Sarbuland was the forerunner of the disintegration of the empire. It was
in June A.D. 1730 that the prince of Marwar left the court of Delhi. He
had a double motive in proceeding direct to Ajmer, of which province he
was viceroy; first, to take possession of his stronghold (the key not
only of Marwar but of every State in Rajputana); and second, to consult
with the prince of Amber on the affairs of that critical conjuncture.
What was the cause of Jai Singh’s presence at Ajmer the chronicle says
not; but from circumstances elsewhere related, it may be conjectured
that it was for the purpose of celebrating “the rites of the Pitrideva”
(manes of his ancestors) at Pushkar. The bard gives a most prolix
account of the meeting, even to the _pagtar_, ‘or foot-clothes’ spread
for “the kings of the Hindus” to walk on, “who feasted together, and
together plotted the destruction of the [103] empire”: from which we
perceive that Karna, the bard, had a peep behind the curtain.
Having installed his officers in Ajmer, Abhai Singh proceeded to Merta,
when he was met by his brother, Bakhta Singh, on which occasion the
grant of Nagor was bestowed upon the latter. The brothers continued
their route to the capital, when all the chiefs were dismissed to their
homes with injunctions to assemble their vassals for the ensuing
campaign against Sarbuland. At the appointed time, the Kher (feudal
array) of Marwar assembled under the walls of Jodhpur. The occasion is a
delightful one to the bard, who revels in all “the pomp and circumstance
of war”: from the initiatory ceremony, the moving out the tents, to the
consecration of the ‘mighty tubes’ (_balwannal_), the ‘volcanos of the
field,’ or, as he terms them, the ‘crocodile-mouths’ (_magarmukhan_),
‘emblems of Yama,’ which were sprinkled abundantly with the blood of
goats slain under their muzzles. He describes each clan as it arrives,
their steeds, and caparisons.
=Abhai Singh attacks Sirohi.=—Instead, however, of proceeding direct to
the main object of the war, Abhai Singh took advantage of the immense
army thus placed under his command, as viceroy of Gujarat, to wreak his
own vengeance upon his neighbour, the gallant prince of Sirohi, who,
trusting to his native strength, had spurned every compromise which
involved his independence. This resolution he maintained by his natural
position, strengthened by alliances with the aboriginal races who hemmed
his little State on all sides, excepting that towards Marwar.
These Minas, the mountaineers of the Aravalli, had given offence to
Abhai Singh; for while the prince, between his arrival at Jodhpur and
the assemblage of the Kher, gave himself up to indolence and opium, they
carried off the whole cattle of the train to the mountains. When this
was reported to Abhai Singh, he coolly said, “Let them go, they knew we
were short of forage, and have only taken them to their own pastures in
the mountains.” Strange to say, they did return them, and in excellent
condition, as soon as he prepared to march. When he heard of this, he
observed, “Did I not tell you these Minas were faithful subjects?”
The order to march was now given, when the bard enumerates the names and
strength of the different Rajput princes, whose contingents formed this
array, in which there were only two Muhammadan leaders of distinction:
“The Haras of Kotah and Bundi; the Khichis of Gagraun; the Gaurs of
Sheopur; the Kachhwahas of [104] Amber, and [even] the Sodhas of the
desert, under their respective princes or chiefs, were under the command
of the Marwar prince. His native retainers, the united clans of Marwar,
formed the right wing of the whole army, headed by his brother Bakhta.
“On the 10th Chait (Sudi) S. 1786, Abhai marched from Jodhpur, by
Bhadrajun and Malgarh, Siwana and Jalor. Rewara was assaulted; the
swords of the enemy showered, and the Champawat fell amidst heaps of
slain. The Deoras abandoned the hill and fled. The trees were levelled
to the summit; a garrison was posted, and the array moved on to Pusalia.
Then Abu shook with affright. Affliction seized Sirohi; its prince was
in despair when he heard Rewara and Pusalia were destroyed.[5.10.26] The
Chauhan preferred decking his daughter in the bridal vestments to
arraying his army to oppose Abhaimall.”
=Submission of Sirohi to Abhai Singh.=—Rao Narayan Das, through the
intervention of a Rajput chieftain, named Mayaram, of the Chawara tribe,
made overtures to the Rathor, proposing his niece (daughter of Man Singh
his predecessor) in marriage.[5.10.27] “In the midst of strife ‘the
coco-nut,’ with eight choice steeds and the price of four elephants,
were sent and accepted. The drum of battle ceased; the nuptials were
solemnized, and in the tenth month Ram Singh was born at Jodhpur.” The
bard, however, lets us into the secret, and shows that the Rajputs had
‘secret articles,’ as well as the more polished diplomacy of Europe; for
besides the fair Chauhani, the Rao consented to pay Peshachchanni a
‘concealed tribute.’
The Deora chiefs united their contingents to the royal army, for the
subjugation of Sarbuland, and the march recommenced by Palanpur and
Siddhpur, or the Sarasvati. Here they halted, and “an envoy was
dispatched to Sarbuland, summoning him to surrender the imperial
equipments, cannons, and stores; to account for the revenues, and to
withdraw his garrisons from Ahmadabad and all the strongholds of the
province.” The reply was laconic and dignified; “that he himself was
king, and his head was with Ahmadabad” [105].
A grand council of war was convened in the Rajput camp, which is
described _con amore_ by the bard. The overture and its reception were
communicated, and the debates and speeches which ensued thereon, as to
the future course of proceeding, are detailed. The bard is, however,
satisfied with recording the speeches of ‘the chiefs of the eight grades
of Maru.’
“First spoke the chief of the children of Champa, Kusal, son of Harnath
of Awa, whose seat is on the right of the throne. Then Kanairam of Asop,
leader of the Kumpawats, whose place is on the left: ‘let us, like the
Kilkila,[5.10.28] dive into the waters of battle.’ He was followed by
Kesari, the Mertia Sarmor—then by the veteran who led the Udawats: old
and brave, many a battle had he seen. Then the chief of Khanua, who led
the clan of Jodha, protested he would be the first to claim the immortal
garland from the hand of the Apsaras:[5.10.29] ‘Let us stain our
garments with saffron, and our lances with crimson, and play at ball
with this Sarbuland.’[5.10.30] Fateh the Jethawat, and Karnavat
Abhaimall, re-echoed his words. All shouted ‘battle!’ ‘battle!’ while
some put on the coloured garments, determined to conquer Bhanuloka.
Kama, the Champawat, said aloud, ‘With sparkling cup the Apsaras will
serve us in the mansion of the sun.’[5.10.31] Every clan, every chief,
and every bard re-echoed ‘battle!’
“Then Bakhta stood up to claim the onset, to lead the van in battle
against Sarbuland, while his brother and prince should await the result
in his tents. A jar of saffron-water was placed before the prince, with
which he sprinkled each chief, who shouted, ‘They would people
Amarapur.’”[5.10.32]
The bard then describes the steeds of the Rajput chivalry, in which the
Bhimthadi [106][5.10.33] of the Deccan takes precedence; he is followed
by the horses of Dhat and Rardara in Marwar, and the Kathiawar of
Saurashtra.
=The Battle with Sarbuland.=—Sarbuland’s plans of defence are minutely
detailed. At each gate he posted two thousand men and five guns, “manned
by Europeans,” of whom he had a body of musketeers round his person. The
cannonade had been kept up three days on both sides, in which the son of
Sarbuland was killed. At length, Bakhta led the storm, when all the
_ots_ and _awats_ performed prodigies of valour. The Champawat Kusal was
the first to be carried to the “immortal abode”; but though “the sun
stood still to see the deeds of the son of Harnath” we cannot
particularize the bard’s catalogue of heroes transferred to
Suryaloka[5.10.34] on this day, when the best blood of Rajputana was
shed on the walls of Ahmadabad. Both the princely brothers had their
share in “the play of swords,” and each slew more than one leader of
note. Amra, who had so often defended Ajmer, slew five chiefs of the
grades of two and three thousand horse.
“Eight gharis of the day remained, when Sarbuland fled; but Aliyar, the
leader of his vanguard, made a desperate resistance, until he fell by
the hand of Bakhta Singh. The drum of victory sounded. The Nawab left
his _pani_ in the Rankund.[5.10.35] The ‘would-be-king’ was wounded; his
elephant showed the speed of the deer. Four thousand four hundred and
ninety-three were slain, of whom one hundred were Palkinishins, eight
Hathinishins,[5.10.36] and three hundred entitled to the Tazim on
entering the Diwan-i-amm.[5.10.37]
“One hundred and twenty of Abhai Singh’s chieftains of note, with five
hundred horse, were slain, and seven hundred wounded.
“The next morning, Sarbuland surrendered with all his effects. He was
escorted towards Agra, his wounded Moguls dying at every stage; but the
soul of the ‘Fearless’ was sad at the loss of his kin.[5.10.38]
Abhaimall ruled over the seventeen [107] thousand towns of Gujarat, and
the nine thousand of Marwar, besides one thousand elsewhere. The princes
of Idar, of Bhuj, of Parkar, of Sind, and of Sirohi, the Chalukya Ran of
Fatehpur, Jhunjunu, Jaisalmer, Nagor, Dungarpur, Banswara, Lunawara,
Halwad, every morning bowed the head to Abhaimall.
“Thus, in the enlightened half of the moon, on the victorious
tenth[5.10.39] (S. 1787, A.D. 1731), the day on which Ramachandra
captured Lanka, the war against Sarbuland, an Omrah (lord) of twelve
thousand, was concluded.”[5.10.40]
Having left a garrison of seventeen thousand men for the duties of the
capital and province, Abhai Singh returned to Jodhpur with the spoils of
Gujarat, and there he deposited four crores of rupees, and one thousand
four hundred guns of all calibres, besides military stores of every
description. With these, in the declining state of the empire, the
desert king strengthened his forts and garrisons, and determined, in the
general scramble for dominion, not to neglect his own interests [108].
-----
Footnote 5.10.1:
[A plumed crest worn on the turban.]
Footnote 5.10.2:
[Fly-flappers, bands of music, kettledrums.]
Footnote 5.10.3:
The _kalas_ is a brazen vessel, of household use. A female of each
family, filling one of these with water, repairs to the house of the
head of the village, when, being all convened, they proceed in a body
to meet the person to whom they render honour, singing the _suhaila_,
or ‘song of joy.’ The presenting water is a token of homage and
regard, and one which the author has often had paid to him, especially
in Mewar, where every village met him in this way.
Footnote 5.10.4:
I hope some day to present a few of the works of the great bard Chand,
with a dissertation on the Bardais, and all the ‘sons of song.’ [Karan
flourished about A.D. 1730: see Grierson, _Modern Vernacular
Literature of Hindustan_, 98.]
Footnote 5.10.5:
Entitled the _Surya Prakas_, of 7500 stanzas.
Footnote 5.10.6:
_Kāvīswar_, or _kāvya-īswara_, ‘lord of verse,’ from _kāvya_, ‘poesy,’
and _īswara_, ‘lord.’
Footnote 5.10.7:
The portal of the palace appears to have been the bard’s post. Pope
gives the same position to his historic bards in ‘the Temple of Fame’:
“Full in the passage of each spacious gate,
The sage Historians in white garments wait;
Grav’d o’er their seats the form of Time was found,
His scythe revers’d, and both his pinions bound.” [l. 145-8.]
Footnote 5.10.8:
In the original, “by the _bāīsa_,” the ‘twenty-two,’ meaning the
collective force of the twenty-two _subahdars_, ‘or satraps of the
provinces.’
Footnote 5.10.9:
Capitation tax.
Footnote 5.10.10:
The poet calls it by its classic appellation, _Nāgadurga_, the ‘castle
of the serpent’ [rather Nāgapura, capital of the Nāga sept of
Rājputs].
Footnote 5.10.11:
For this festival see p. 661.
Footnote 5.10.12:
Jawalamukhi, the ‘mouth of flame,’ the cannon, which are thus
consecrated before action. They are called _avatars_, or
‘incarnations’ of Jawalamukhi, the Etna of India, at the edge of whose
crater the Hindu poet very properly places the temple of Jawali Rani,
‘the terrific’ Kali Ma, the Hindu Hecate. [Jawālamukhi in the Kāngra
District, Panjāb (_IGI_, xiv. 86 f.).]
Footnote 5.10.13:
_Abhai_, the name of the prince, means ‘fearless,’ from _bhai_,
‘fear,’ and privative prefix.
Footnote 5.10.14:
[On the Kishangarh border, N.E. of Jodhpur State.]
Footnote 5.10.15:
_Jagrani_ (I write all these phrases exactly as pronounced in the
western dialect), ‘Queen of the world.’ Sitala Mata is the common name
for the goddess who presides over this scourge of infancy.
Footnote 5.10.16:
‘Of happy fortune.’
Footnote 5.10.17:
Mahārāja-Rājeswar, the pompous title of the kings of Maru; ‘great
Raja, lord of Rajas.’
Footnote 5.10.18:
[Sarbuland Khān was Governor of Gujarāt, A.D. 1724, and was removed
from office in 1730 because he consented to pay _Chauth_ or blackmail
to the Marāthas. He opposed the installation of Abhai as his
successor, and defeated him at Adālaj (Beale, _Dict. Oriental
Biography_, s.v.; Grant Duff 217).]
Footnote 5.10.19:
In none of the Muhammadan histories of this period is it mentioned,
that there was an imperial prince at the head of the first Mahratta
irruption; probably he was a mere tool for the purposes of others.
[The ‘Boorish Prince,’ as the name implies, was a nickname of Hāmid
Khān Bahādur, uncle of Nizāmu-l-mulk, Āsaf Jāh (Grant Duff 217; _BG_,
i. Part i. 303 ff.).]
Footnote 5.10.20:
[Girdhar Bahādur was a Nāgar Brāhman; Ibrāhīm Kuli, son of Shujā’at
Khān.]
Footnote 5.10.21:
Afterwards Wazir of Oudh, a State founded and maintained by consummate
treason.
Footnote 5.10.22:
Nawab of Bengal, another traitor.
Footnote 5.10.23:
This number of cities, towns, and villages constituted the kingdom of
Gujarat under its ancient sovereigns.
Footnote 5.10.24:
_Sar_, ‘the head,’ _buland_, ‘exalted, high, arrogant.’ I write the
name _Sirbullund_, being the orthography long known.
Footnote 5.10.25:
In the original, the emperor is called the _Aspati_, ‘lord of swords,’
or perhaps _Aswapati_, ‘lord of steeds.’
Footnote 5.10.26:
Both these places are famous in the Mewasa, or fastnesses of Sirohi,
and gave the Author, who was intrusted with its political affairs,
much trouble. Fortunately for the Deora prince, descendant of Rao
Narayan Das, the Author knew their history, and was enabled to
discriminate the claims which Jodhpur asserted over her in virtue of
such attacks as this; in short, between the claims of ‘the princes of
Marwar,’ and the king’s lieutenants of Gujarat. In these negotiations
wherein Jodhpur advanced its pretensions to _suzeraineté_ over Sirohi,
which as stoutly denied the right, he clearly distinguished the claims
of the princes of Jodhpur, in their capacities of viceroys of the
empire, and argued that claims conceded by Sirohi in that character
guaranteed none to them, in their individual capacity, as chiefs of
Marwar, a distinction which they affected not to comprehend, but which
was at length fully recognized and acted on by the paramount power.
Sirohi is maintained in its ancient independence, which but for this
previous knowledge must have been inevitably lost.
Footnote 5.10.27:
[It was Rāo Mān Singh III. (A.D. 1705-49) who gave his daughter in
marriage to Abhai Singh. The Sirohi records contain no mention of a
Rāo named Nārāyan Dās (Erskine iii. A. 243).]
Footnote 5.10.28:
The _kilkila_ is the bird we call the kingfisher.
Footnote 5.10.29:
The maids of war, the Valkyries of Rajput mythology.
Footnote 5.10.30:
Another _jeu-de-mots_ on the name Sarbuland, with whose head (_sar_)
the Jodha chief proposes to play at ball.
Footnote 5.10.31:
The young chieftain of Salumbar, the first of the nobles of Mewar, was
sitting with me, attentively listening as I was translating the war
against Sarbuland, read by my old tutor. His family possess an
hereditary aversion to ‘the cup,’ which is under solemn prohibition
from some cause which I forget, and so far did his grandfather carry
his antipathy, that a drop falling upon him at an entertainment, he
cut out the contaminated part with his dagger. Aware of this, I turned
round to the young chief and said: “Well, Rawatji, would you accept
the cup from the hand of the Apsaras or would you refuse the
_munawwar_ (pledge)?” “Certainly I would take it; these are very
different cups from ours,” was his reply. “Then you believe that the
heavenly fair carry the souls of those who fall in battle to the
Mandal of Surya?” “Who dare doubt it? When my time comes, I will take
_that_ cup!” a glorious creed for a soldier! He sat for hours
listening to my old tutor and friend; for none of their bards
expounded like him the _bhujanga_ (serpentine verse) of the poet. I
have rated the Rawat for being unable to repeat the genealogy of his
house from Chonda to himself; but the family bard was dead and left no
progeny to inherit his mantle. This young chief is yet (A.D. 1820) but
twenty-two, and promises to be better prepared.
Footnote 5.10.32:
‘The city of immortality.’
Footnote 5.10.33:
[The Bhīmthadi or Bhīvarthadi horses, which take their name from a
division of the Poona District in the valley of the Bhīma River, were
highly esteemed by the Marāthas, being middle-sized, strong,
good-looking, generally dark bay with black legs (_BG_, xviii. Part i.
61). It was on a horse of this breed that Mahādāji Sindhia escaped
after the battle of Pānīpat (Elliot-Dowson viii. 156).]
Footnote 5.10.34:
The abode of heroes, the Valhalla of the Rajput mythology.
Footnote 5.10.35:
Rankund is the ‘fountain of battle,’ and _pāni_ is applied, as we use
the word water, to the temper or spirit of a sword: a play on words.
Footnote 5.10.36:
Chiefs entitled to ride in palkis and on elephants.
Footnote 5.10.37:
A long list of names is given, which would only fatigue the reader;
but amongst them we select a singular one, Nolakh Khan Anglez, ‘Nolakh
the Englishman.’
Footnote 5.10.38:
The bard enumerates with the meed of praise each vassal who fell,
whether Rathor or of the contingents of the other principalities
serving under the prince of Marwar. The Champawats bore the brunt, and
lost Karan of Pali, Kishan Singh of Sandri, Gordhan of Jalor, and
Kalyan. The Kumpawats lost also several leaders of clans, as Narsingh,
Surthan Singh, Padma, son of Durjan. The Jodha tribe lost three
leaders, namely, Hayatmall, Guman, and Jogidas. The brave Mertias also
lost three: Bhum Singh, Kusal Singh, and Gulab, son of Hathi. The
allodial chieftains, the Jadons, the Sonigiras, the Dhondals, and
Khichis, had many brave men “carried to Bhanuloka,” and even bards and
purohits were amongst the slain.
Footnote 5.10.39:
_Vijaya daswin._
Footnote 5.10.40:
With this battle the _Raj Rupaka_ and _Surya Prakas_ terminate. [All
the rhetoric of the bard cannot disguise what was really a Rājput
defeat. Their force advanced to Adālaj, about eight miles from
Ahmadābād, and was defeated. Abhai Singh took up a new position, and a
still more bloody engagement followed, in which each side tried to
kill the opposing commander; but as both Mubārizu-l-mulk, who was
known as Sarbuland Khān, and Abhai Singh fought in disguise, neither
party succeeded. The Rāthors were finally pursued as far as Sarkhej,
and it was only on Mubārizu-l-mulk receiving a lakh of rupees (£6666)
that he was induced to go to Agra. See Khāli Khan’s account in
Elliot-Dowson vii. 530, and _BG_, i. Part i. 310 f.]
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