Tiger. The Life of
Tipu Sultan by Kate Brittlebank. Juggernaut
Books.
Just one point, in view of the tirade against Tipu Sultan,
adventurer, opportunist, fierce fighter of the British, patroniser/destroyer of both temple and mosque, writer of the most
astute foreign policy letters to countries far away from India. The point being made through excerpts from
this splendid book by historian and
researcher Brittlebank, that adds to the
knowledge bank on this far-sighted ruler of the Deccan.
· * All across India, whenever a king conquered another, he
signalled his victory by either seizing or destroying the religious sites with
close ties to his victim – and it made no difference if conqueror and conquered
were co-religionists. Just as Shaivite and Vaishnava dynasties in south India
patronised mosques, dargahs and churches, they did not hesitate to capture the
temples of their enemies and seize or destroy the images.
· * The Cholas seized temple images from the
Calukyas; and Vijaynagara`s Krishnadevaraya, to celebrate his defeat of the
Gajapati king, removed an image of Balakrishna from Udayagiri to the capital.
· * v We can see this process in operation with Tipu`s
demolition of the Varahaswami temple at Srirangapattana; after his death, the
Wodeyars, in a statement of their own `victory,` relocated the ruined temple`s
image to Mysore town. If Tipu`s actions had been driven by religious rather
than political motivation, he would not have allowed the Sri Ranganatha temple
to continue to flourish.
· * …Similarly, Tipo did not discriminate against
particular religious groups on the basis of their faith --- indeed, his diwan,
Purnaiya, was a Hindu. Tipu suspected the Kanara Christians of treachery and
being in league with the British; the Nairs and the Kodavas, too, were punished
for intriguing against him.
· * … The records show that Tipu authorised sixty-seven
grants of rent-free land, primarily to temples and mosques, solely for the
taluks of Calicut, Ernad, Bettathnad and Chowghat.
· * … The expulsion of the Mahdevis, a tight-knit Muslim
community, from Mysore, confirms the
political character of such acts.
So. Not a benevolent god. Not a religious zealot. Just a
very clever ruler who played the game by the rules of his time.