Cetak, or Chetak, was the horse of Rana Pratap, whom Pratap rode during the Battle of Haldighati, June 21, 1576. Chetak died in this battle and since then has been immortalized in the ballads of Rajasthan. The warhorse was of Kathiawari breed.[1] Folklore has it that Chetak's coat had a blue tinge. That is why Rana Pratap is sometime referred as the Rider of the Blue Horse in ballads.[2]
Rana Pratap's forces were decisively outnumbered. While mounted on Chetak, Pratap made an attempt on the life of Imperial Mughal Commander Man Singh. When Pratap saw that the battle's tide was turning against him, he charged toward Imperial commander Man Singh who directing the battle seated on an elephant. Pratap made a frontal charge at the Imperial army, hacked his way through the massed ranks of enemy combatants and reached in front of Man Singh's elephant. Once there, Chetak reared high in the air and planted his hooves on the forehead of Man Singh's elephant. Pratap threw his lance at Man Singh, who ducked in time. The blow fell on the mahout(elephant driver) instead, who was killed instantly. In the general melee that followed, Chetak received a fatal wound on one of his legs. This was the turning point of the battle.Mewar's bold gamble to siege the battle in its favor had failed. As Man Singh was whisked away to safety, Pratap found himself surrounded by enemy soldiers.[2]
Maharana was loath to leave a battle in between, but was prevailed upon by his faithful followers. By some accounts, one of the Jhala Sardar literally snatched the Royal Insignia from Maharana's person and wore them himself, thus making him a target for the Mughal Army.
As the Mughal army fell upon the Jhala sardar mistaking him for Maharana, Maharana left the battlefield with some of his loyal followers. Chetak was exhausted and seriously wounded, but labored on carrying his master, about 2 miles from the site of the battle he came across a small stream. It was here, while trying to leap across the stream that Chetak collapsed.[3]
Maharana erected a small monument for his horse at the place where Chetak fell. The cenotaph still exists at Haldighati in Rajsamand District.
| Maharana Pratap Singh | |
|---|---|
| The Ruler of Mewar | |
 | |
| Reign | 1568-1597 |
| Born | May 9, 1540 |
| Birthplace | Kumbhalgarh Fort, Rajasthan, India |
| Died | January 19, 1597 (age 57) |
| Predecessor | Udai Singh II |
| Successor | Amar Singh[1] |
| Consort | Maharani Ajbade Punwar[2] |
| Issue | Amar Singh Bhagwan Das Others |
| Royal House | Sisodia, Suryavanshi Rajput Raja of Mewar |
| Father | Maharana Udai Singh II |
| Mother | Maharani Jaivantabai[2] |
| Religious beliefs | Hinduism |
My concern is not for this great patriot of India who fought endlessly to keep India away from Mughal Empire and had fought in the Battle of Haldighati.But what has kept torturing me since yesterday is this:
Can you see the flames in the picture? This is a traditional jauhar ritual going on. This potrait refers to the First Jauhar of Chittor conducted when Allaudin Khilji attacked Mewar.
Jauhar refers to the ancient Indian Rajput Hindu tradition of honorary self-immolation of women and subsequent march of men to the battlefield (against any odds) to end their life with respect. It was followed by the Rajput clans in order to avoid capture and dishonour at the hands of muslim invaders.
Jauhar (also spelled jowhar) was originally the voluntary death on a funeral of the queens and female royals of Rajput kingdoms defeated by Muslim rulers. The term is extended to describe the occasional practice of mass suicide carried out in medieval times by Rajput women and men. Mass self-immolation by women was called jauhar. This was usually done before or at the same time their husbands, brothers, fathers and sons rode out in a charge to meet their attackers and certain death.
After reading the meanings of all these, I was literally shocked. For the fear of defeat, the Rajput women chose death rather than being taken in chains by the Muslim invaders, mainly refering to the Mughal Empire. But why?
Mummy explained: "After being caught by the Mughals, the Rajputs would have been tortured severely. Men would have been killed, either during the war or after being captured, while women and children were molested and children too, killed. In this way the Mughals could instill fear in the people of their new kingdom. Then only the people will be subordinate to the king."
Now I understood. To save their honor, the women decided to kill themselves rather than fall prey in the hands of the lust locked enemy. Really, its a feat, a great achievement as there was no other body at that time which could save these brave ladies. I salute them.
My eyes were filled with tears by the time I read the whole article in Wikipedia. I had thoughts on cloud nine for Mughal Empire. It has fascinated me since I was 11 years old. Now all my devotion disappeared. Maybe they were great warriors in the battlefield, but if you ask me I would say that they are no better than animals. To set a territory, animals too fight, take away the best mates from losing enemy and kill the children. They may cannibalise too[ as in case of Chimpanzees]. We humans too are made of the same Rh factors, how can we differ? We don't eat into the bodies of the prey: we eat up the soul within. That's the distinction.
Here's my summary of the results of the wars in 16th Century India: a MURDER system
Mass killings through war
Underestimate
Rape and molest
Dictatorship
Enhance power
Radiate to new kingdoms
And so, it went on...and continues to exist till today. Surprised? No surprise. Till recently, the practice of sati[ forcibly putting the widow on the pyre of her husband] was going on in our so called Independent India. Fortunately, with the help of common people, social activists and the Indian Government, this shit has come to a shutdown.
But the story of molestation never ends.
There has been a sharp fall in the number of foreign tourists. India is not a safe place for women. Infact, it is getting on at par with Islamic countries where most of the basic rights for women are denied. Everyday in the newspapers we read about girls being molested and killed. We also hear about prostitution, child trafficking, and what not. All of us are equally responsible. True, we are speeding like anything on the path of education and technological development, only to simply cancel it out in this negative direction though this shameless acts. Wolves are everywhere; at the marketplace, work place and amongst our near and dear ones. They keep on terrorising us. My parents never leave me alone outside. They know what type of kid I am: A foolish and stupid kid who understands nothing about this world, this cruel and wicked society. Whenever I go out alone to the neighborhood market, guys do stare at me. Some give a slight chase and then give their best smiles and speed away on their bikes. I am not beautiful. Then why me???????
We readily come up to light candles when anyone has passed away due to such henious act, but never have the courage to wipe out those goons completely. We never mind things until and unless they happen to us. This modernisation has deprived us of selflessness and humanity. Movies affect a lot of youngsters to try out these blasted things but the movie makers don't attempt to stop these. They just check out the box office, that's all.
In an article I had read that the attitude of paedophiles makes us remember about the ancient Homo sapiens. This behaviour is considered to be very primitive as it was related to increase the population of the species. Now the situation doesnot demand that. Then why are men showing up such peculiar behaviour?
| Part of a series on |
| Violence against women |
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Maybe Science has the answer. Or History. I just have no idea. The possibilities are endless. Everything is related in this world. I connected jauhar with molestation and learnt so much. Next day someone might connect it with another item with solid evidence.
I promise I won't call TV an idiot box anymore.
@Debashrita
Courtesy: Wikipedia
nicely written and in a very true sense feel like its all what i feel..thanks
Thanks for dropping by and sharing your valuable thought...
good article
Thanks for the comment. It really means to me a lot...
the serial brings tears to my eyes too abt knowing abt jauhar n saka...from last 1 month i always thinking about it even in the clinic...the things shared by you (my dear sister) are correct...all india requires is a person like adolf hitler to create strict law and order against the bas***d animals...these people cant be considered as animals coz animals are still better than bas***d indian generation...
I also cried when I saw the serial. Really a great one. We need to learn history and be proud of it.
Thanks for dropping by my website! I'm really attached to this article.
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