By Madhukar Joshi

This was my speech delivered July 4, 1998 in the BMM Convention at the Hynes auditorium.  It was designed primarily for the members of the "next generation."  Since these members are far more comfortable with English than Marathi, I had deliberately chosen to speak in English.  Afterwards,  many members of the next generation voluntarily stated that my speech helped them understand Shivaji – for the first time.  Some of them had also visited Janata Raja – an exhibition depicting Shivaji’s human jewels as well as his policies.  They recommended that I should publish Shivaji’s life work on the web as well as in a printed book.

To avoid the feeling that "Shivaji lived so far away and so many years in the past that his work is no longer relevant to us" I have focused on his qualities as a leader and manager.  Many of his principles would be very relevant when seen in this light.  Whether one wishes to become a chief engineer, a well-known doctor, a lawyer, or a successful businessperson, he/she must have the art of attracting and retaining loyal followers. He/she must also have a clear vision of the future that that be stated briefly – preferably in a single sentence. Both of these qualities are crucial to becoming a leader.  Shivaji provides a perfect model to follow in order to become a leader.

He was also a successful manager and once again, this quality is very relevant for success in today’s competitive world – whether or not you work in the private or public sector, whether or not your official job title contains the adjective "manager."  As a successful manager, Shivaji wrote a book of policies and implemented these throughout his life.

That is the motivation for my first article on the web.  I would certainly appreciate knowing the opinions of  readers.

Since Shivaji began his career almost 350 years ago in a land that is over 10,000 miles from Boston, it is natural to ask: Why is Shivaji relevant today and here? The shortest answer is: "Because, he was ahead of his time. He fought and won against many of the same ‘enemies’ that we meet even today." See if you can find parallels between his approaches to problem-solving and their relevance to the society to-day. Shivaji was both a leader and manager of people. I will briefly discuss each of these two qualities.

A good leader knows what is hurting his people and then devises a strategy that will help them achieve their goals against seemingly insurmountable odds. This is how he worked his "magic".

Shivaji inspired common people to succeed against overwhelming odds. In Shivaji’s times, 90% of the civilians were farmers. They lived in constant fear of losing their income, their property, their life or their women’s dignity to the whims of their rulers. Shivaji was well-tuned to the aspirations and fears of these common people. What did he do for them?

 

He protected women’s dignity, especially against those in power, by swiftly and severely punishing those found to be guilty of such crimes. When he was only 15, prior to winning even his first fort, he severely punished a "Patil" – a village chief – for raping a farmer’s daughter in his town. Shivaji’s last known act of women’s protection occurred when he punished his chief of a military campaign for raping his enemy commander! Shivaji was 48 and already coronated for over 4 years.

 

Shivaji established a fair system of taxation on farm incomes and employed civilians to collect taxes. This act established supremacy of civilians over military might. He also established a series of granaries and a system of affordable loans for farmers in need.

 

Shivaji was well aware of the dangers of an unruly army. Therefore, he had given strict orders: "Do not obtain even a grain of rice from any civilian by force and always pay fair market price."

 

Shivaji promoted common people based on their qualifications. Naturally a majority of his officers were Hindus, but a number of Moslems also held key positions: chief of artillery, chief of navy as well as diplomats. When Shivaji visited Agra to attend Aurangzeb’s 50th birthday celebration, his most trusted body guard was Madari Mehtar – a Moslem teenager!

What was the result of all this? Common citizen had much to gain by helping Shivaji and they fought for their cause against two mighty but tyrannical empires with valor and tenacity. A large majority of Shivaji’s "jewels" were "commoners" with little or no prior military experience – barbers, farmers, clerks and so on.
 

A manager knows his people’s strengths and weaknesses, and ensures to utilize these for furthering his vision. As defined by a very capable diplomat, Arya Chanakya,  Shivaji was a "true king" since he was forever striving to further the welfare of his people. Examples:

In any organization, now as well as then, there are two kinds of people: those who work and those who occupy chairs. In Shivaji’s times, the chair-occupiers, called Vatanadar, ruled by accident of birth. They were often tyrannical. Shivaji labeled them "enemies of the nation", that is, rajyache dayadach. He wrote a special chapter on techniques for dealing with them in his book of policies, called adnyapatre.

 

Shivaji’s well-planned meeting with Afzalkhan, his surprise visit to Shahistekhan, his daring escapes from house arrest in Agra as well as from the siege of Panhala show that he chose and fought his battles well with invaluable help from his chief of intelligence, Bahirji Naik, who was born in a supposedly lowly caste. Lion’s share of credit for Shivaji’s surprising escapes and quick victories goes to his superb spy network.

 

Shivaji promoted commerce by providing businessmen with choice locations at discount prices as well as tax concessions. His motto was, Sahukar he to rajyache bhushan (Business people are jewels of a nation). The very first shopping mall in the world is on RaiGad. It was a drive-through mall – except, of course, you rode a horse! On the other hand, he had given careful instructions to guard against the British!

 

Shivaji was the first Indian king to cultivate navy in addition to acquiring land. He had 3 shipyards, hundreds of frigates and many sea forts. He controlled over 300 miles of coastline.

 

Shivaji gave detailed instructions for running a safe military camp just a few months before his coronation – when someone else might have been more into getting ready for the pomp & circumstance!