“You are a Jagat Guru!
You are always performing penance in order that the whole world may prosper and the people may be happy, please pray to God for the increase of our prosperity.
In whatever country holy personages like yourself may reside, that country will flourish with good showers and crops!”
This is an excerpt from a letter written by Tipu Sultan to the Swami Sacchidananda Ji Maharaj (1770-1814), the Shankaracharya of Shingeri Math.
This is one of the thirty letters written by him in Kannada, which has been discovered by the Director of Archaeology in Mysore in 1916.
In my opinion, no ruler has addressed the religious head of another faith in this manner in Indian history.
In the wake of recent controversies regarding Tipu Sultan, this letter is speaking for itself.
In 1791, the army of Parshuram Bhave (Bhau), a Maratha General marched on Tipu Sultan’s wealthiest province, Bednur. Under the command of Raghunathrao Patwardhan some Maratha horsemen, plundered and robbed the ShringeriMonastery. They also killed and wounded several people, and desecrated and committed sacrilege at the Holy shrine of Sri Sharada Devi.
Shocked by this vandalism, the then Jagadguru of Shringeri, Sri Sacchidananda Bharati III was forced to leave the place and move to Karkala, a temple town about 50 miles south of Shringeri. Helpless and despondent in the face of this aggression, the first-ever recorded attack on this temple town, The Shankaracharya reached out to Tipu Sultan for help.
Tipu Sultan expressed his indignation and grief at the news of the raid and wrote to the Shankaracharya:
“People who have sinned against such a holy place are sure to suffer the consequences of their misdeeds at no distant date in this Kali age in accordance with the Sanskrit verse: “Hasadbhih kriyate karma rudadbhir-anubhuyate” (People do [evil] deeds smilingly but suffer the consequences crying).”
Tipu Sultan immediately ordered his army to fight off the Maratha invaders and sent Jagadguru Shankaracharya a letter dated July 6, 1791.
The Honourable Shankaracharya ShringeriShri Sacchidananda Swamigal, bestowed with Shrimat Param Hansa.
“We received your letter and have understood the gravity of the matter.
We have noted that the cavalry of the Maratha king attacked Sringeri and beat the Brahmins and the other people, removed the idol of the Goddess Sharda Ammanavaru(Mother) and also looted the valuables belonging to the Shringeri Math.
We have also noted that four disciples belonging to the Shringeri Math had to take shelter at Karkalaand that the idol of Shringeri Sharda Ammanavaru was consecrated in ancient times, and if this idol has to be consecrated again, the support of the government is needed.
The reconsecration of the deity will be performed along with mass feeding by the requisite amount provided by the Government.
Those who have committed such atrocities will suffer the consequences as stated in the Sanskrit shloka ‘People do evil smiling but will suffer the penalty in torments of agony – Hasadhvi Kriyathe Karma Raudhrir Anubhuyathe’.
On hearing of the attack, the Sarkar sent an elephant with its Mahavat, Ahammed. The Asaf of the city has been ordered to get a palanquin made for the Math and pay 200 rahathis in cash and 200 rahathis for paddy for the consecration of the idol of Sri Sharada Ammanavauru, and carry out appropriate measures for it. He shall send me a report immediately.
We are sending a heavy sari (worked in gold) and a blouse piece for the Goddess Sharada Ammanavaru, and a pair of shawls for you. Please write on receiving them. An order is sent to the Asaf of the town to deal with the problems of the Math. Contact him.”
Date 26, month Samarisala Babarabadhi, Year San 1219, Mahammad, Virodhikrita Samvat Ashadha Bahula 12. Writer Narasaiah Signed Nabi Malik
III
Between 1782-1799, Tipu issued at least 34 Sands (Deeds of Endowments) to temples in his kingdom.
The Srikanteswara temple in Nanjangud has in their possession a bejewelled cup gifted to them by Tipu Sultan. He has also gifted a kettledrum to the Narasimha temple at Melukote along with making donating gold and silver vessels. He issued a decree that the Shri Vaishnava invocatory verses should be recited in the traditional way at the temple. In 1785, Tipu Sultan also gifted a few elephants to the temple.
He gave a green Linga to Ranganatha Temple at Srirangapattaand gifted several silver & gold cups to Lakshmikanta Temple at Kalale, along with camphor burners, silver spittoon (Padiga) and plates of silver and gold to several temples such as Shri Sarada Devi Temple, Sringeri and the Sringeri Matha, Nanjundesvara Temple, Nanjangud, Selva Narayana Temple, Melkote, Ranganatha Temple, Srirangapatnam. It has been recorded that he donated 10,000 gold coins to complete the construction work for a temple at Kanchi.
The grants and gifts mentioned above have been meticulously preserved in inscriptions referring to him as Tipu Sultan Padshah.
IV
Tipu Sultan’s treasurer was Krishna Rao. Shamaiya Iyengar was his Minister of Post and Police and his brother Ranga Iyengar also held an important post. Purnaiya held the important post of Mir Atash, and Chief Peshkar was SubbaRao. Moolchand and Sujan Rai were his representatives at the Mughal Court. He also made regular endowments to hisHindu subjects and Hindu institutions. Mr Sreekantaiah has listed 134 temples to which Tipu gave regular grants for maintenance.
Tipu may have done several wrongs and I am not here to defend him for any wrong that he committed or administered.
I attempt to show you the other aspect as well so that the balance is maintained.
We should all understand that Tipu was after all a Ruler and he would have done a lot of wrongs to save, maintain or retain its power and strengthen its grip over his fiefdom but this is nothing new, this has happened all over history and has nothing to do with a ruler’s religion or religious conviction.
“While Tipu Sultan’s treatment of Hindus is portrayed by the British (now taken as gospel truth by RSS) to be harsh, not many are aware Sultan’s treatment of Muslims was equally stern whoever supported the British was treated like enemy including The Mappillas of Malabar, Mahdavi Muslims, Nawabs of Savanur, Cuddapah and Kurnoolb, all Muslims, were inflicted severe treatment for their disloyalty and it was purely political in nature. One cannot ascribe communal or religious motives to it and Tipu Sultan was more hostile towards the Nizam than towards the Marathas,”
Please also note that in keeping with their policies, the controversial reports of Tipu sultan’s persecution of other faiths are mostly reported and written by the British chroniclers who were prejudiced against Tipu’s independence and left no stone unturned to fill hatred in the hearts and minds of Kannada people against Tipu Sultan.
The British authors had long vested interests in portraying Tipu as a tyrant and oppressor. This calls for a reanalysing of colonial archives which has consciously chosen to paint a native ruler as problematic because he did not agree with their policies.
This view is not mine. This has been corroborated and seconded by the historians like Brittlebank, Chetty and Saletare
Attached with it is the forged letter by RSS and its allies who readily spread these colonial rumours to serve their purpose of repugnance. The letter is actually by the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him- ascribed here to Tipu Sultan.
Further Readings:
1. Sampath, Vikram, (2008), Splendours of Royal Mysore, Chapter: The Sword of Tipu Sultan AD 1791-1799, Section: The Controversial Sultan, Rupa Publications,
2. Habib, Irfan (2002), p118, Confronting Colonialism: Resistance and Modernization Under Haidar Ali & Tipu Sultan, Anthem Press, London
3. Hasan, Mohibbul (1951), p360, History of Tipu Sultan, Aakar Books, Delhi,
4. A. Subbaraya Chetty “Tipu’s endowments to Hindus and Hindu institutions” in Habib (Ed.) Confronting Colonialism
5. Encyclopaedia of Asian culture by Feroz Kapadia, Mandira Mukherjee
6. Tipu Sultan: A Biography by Estefania Wenger
