Jijabai

The Story

Born in 1598 into the Jadhav family of Sindkhed Raja, Jijabai was married to Shahaji Bhosale, a Maratha general in service of the Deccan sultanates. When her son Shivaji was born at Shivneri fort in 1630, she took charge of his education herself — raising him on the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, on tales of the ancient kings, and on the dream that one day the Marathas would rule their own land.

While her husband served the sultans of Bijapur and the Mughals, Jijabai remained the soul of the family's lands, guiding Shivaji from boyhood through the first daring acts of his career — the capture of forts, the establishment of a free kingdom, and the defiance of the Bijapur court. It was she who strengthened him for the great mission: Hindavi Swarajya, self-rule of the Hindus.

She lived to see her son crowned Chhatrapati in 1674 — and died shortly after, at Raigad. Her death at the moment of his triumph was mourned across Maharashtra, and she is remembered as Jijau — the mother whose stories, discipline, and iron will built the man who built the Maratha empire.