Hindavi Swarajya (; "self-rule of Hindu people") is a term attributed to Shivaji, the founder of the Maratha Kingdom. The term Swaraj was later adopted by Bal Gangadhar Tilak, one of the early leaders of the Indian independence movement against the British Empire.
Origin Popular belief holds that the Maratha warrior Shivaji used the phrase Hindavi Swarajya in a letter to Dadaji Naras Prabhu Deshpande of Rohidkhore on 17 April 1645. The purported letter, in Marathi, states:
Scholars do not agree on the authenticity of the letter.: "The authenticity of this letter has, however, been questioned by several eminent scholars, who consider that its language is not the language of the 17th century." Historian Setumadhavarao Pagadi states that a lot of the historical source material on Shivaji is spurious, contributed by various influential families of Maharashtra to show how close their ancestors were to Shivaji. J. V. Naik states that, irrespective of the authenticity of the letter, Shivaji's career itself amply demonstrates his conception of Swarajya.
Interpretation Swarajya (IAST: svarājya) is a Sanskrit term, whose meaning is "independent dominion or sovereignty" according to the Monier Williams dictionary. Pagadi notes that Shivaji had referred to his jagir in Pune as a rajya. He takes Swarajya to have meant a "homeland", and Hindavi Swarajya a "state of the sons of the soil".
Historian Irfan Habib states that the term "Hindu" had acquired a religious sense by this time (though not with the present day meaning) and so, other terms such as Hindi, Hindustani and Hindavi began to be employed to mean "Indian", spanning both Hindus and Muslims. According to Pagadi, Hindavi had the sense of "the sons of the soil" in this context. Pagadi also interprets it as "Indian rule".: "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 was a bid for Hindawi Swarajya (Indian rule), a term in use in Marathi sources of history."
Religious studies scholar Wilfred Cantwell Smith interprets Shivaji's Hindavi Swarajya to mean "Indian independence from foreign rule". William Jackson, while agreeing that it means independence from foreign rule, thinks its literal meaning is "self-rule of Hindu people.": "Probably the earliest use of a word like 'Hindu' was in 1645 in a phrase in a letter of Shivaji, Hindavi swarajya, meaning independence from foreign rule, 'self-rule of Hindu people'."
References
Bibliography