Sambhaji Brigade is a bahujan organization in the state of Maharashtra, India. The organization is named after Sambhaji, son of the first Maratha king Shivaji.

History The organization was founded by Purushottam Khedekar, also prominent in the Maratha Seva Sangh, a related organisation. Khedekar, an executive engineer in the state Public Works Department, founded the MSS in 1990 'to work for upliftment of the Maratha community'. Soon, many unemployed youths from the rural areas joined the organization. The organization's network is now spread almost all over Maharashtra and even Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and in farther states like Hariyana.

Ideology The outfit distances itself from the Hindutva organisations and considers itself as the ideological descendant of the Maratha Empire. The outfit's members consists of mostly Maratha youths from the rural interiors of Maharashtra. The organisation's ideology is directed against the control of Marathi Brahmins in historiographical institutes. The parent organisation MSS's founder Khedekar is alleged to have close ties with many Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leaders, although the NCP denies it. Although politically inactive, the organization claims to be a social forum for Maratha revival.

Controversies The Sambhaji Brigade attacked Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute of Maharashtra in January 2004, claiming that the Institute had assisted in defaming Shivaji. Later the Sambhaji Brigade issued statements reflecting a stand that criticized the control that Brahmins have over institutions such as Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute. The group claims that Brahmin historians have overemphasized the roles of people such as Ramdas Swami and Dadoji Konddev (who were Brahmins) on the life of Shivaji.

This group attacked some portions of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, to protest against the slanderous remarks about Maratha Empire founder Shivaji by American academic James Laine.

In 2006, the organisation's activists ransacked the office of Marathi daily Loksatta, protesting that the newspaper did not publish photograph of Chhatrapati Shivaji on the front page on the occasion of Shivjayanti, the birth anniversary of Shivaji.

Criticism

The outfit distances itself from the Vaidic organisations which according to them divides Indians right from the birth . The organization mainly has been the sole reason for creating unrest among the people due to its separatist philosophies but aims on unifying Indian people. Its work is limited only to few villages & rural areas in Maharashtra. An Organization which claims to uncover true history of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and invalidating the image of Shivaji Maharaj as hard liner hindu Warrior. In doing so it has written its own form of history which is not just false but also tries to negate & critisize the good work of some people, just because they belonged to upper castes. Their leaders pass lewd & unjust comments at the great saints, visionaries & freedom fighters on the base that they belonged to the upper castes & hence should be boycotted. The organization claims for progress of all suppressed factions of India including Muslims.. Although politically inactive, the organization claims to be a social forum for Bahujans revival by changing written history.

External links

The Sambhaji brigades attack on Bhandarkar Institute and the Laine book controversy

Sambhaji Brigade in The Week Magazine

About P. Khedekar

Category:Ethnocentrism Category:Organisations based in Maharashtra

Name	Chhatrapati Shivaji Shahaji Bhosle
Native lang1	Marathi
Native lang1 name1	शिवाजी राजे भोसले
Title	Chhatrapati
Religion	Hinduism
Full name	Shivaji Shahaji Bhosle
Othertitles	Kshatriya Kulavantas , Go-Brahmanpratipalak
Coronation	6 June 1674
Date of birth	19 February 1630 Shivaji led a resistance to free the Marathas from Sultanate of Bijapur, and establish the rule of the Hindus ("Hindavi Swarajya"). He created an independent Maratha kingdom with Raigad as its capital,

References

http://www.majhapaper.com/content/shivaji-maharaj-article

Further reading

Shivaji, the great Maratha By H. S. Sardesai

Category:History of Maharashtra Category:1630 births Category:1680 deaths Category:Indian monarchs Category:Maratha Empire Category:Hindu warriors Category:Indian warriors Category:Hindu monarchs

Imagesize	255px
Caption	Carravagio's imagining of David with the head of Goliath
Honorific prefix	Prophet
Name	DaudProphet, Messenger, Seer, King, Warrior, Lawgiver, Leader
Children	Solomon
Birth date	10th Century B.C.
Birth place	Jerusalem
Predecessor	Kingship: Saul
Successor	Kingship: Solomon
Other names	Bible: David
Known for	Defeating Goliath, Being the King of Israel, Being given the Psalms, Ushering praise to God, Prophesying to Israel
Footnotes	David is also venerated as a prophetic king in Judaism and Christianity.

In Islam, David () (circa 1043 BC - 937 BC?) is known as an appointed prophet, messenger ("Rasul"), and lawgiver of God, and was a righteous King of the united Kingdom of Israel, which itself is a holy country in Islam. David is perhaps most famous in Islam for defeating the Philistine giant Goliath, when he was a soldier in King Saul's army.

His genealogy goes back through Judah, the son of Jacob (Ya'qub), to Abraham (Ibrahim). The figure of David is of extreme importance in Islam because he was one of the few prophets to receive a named revealed book. It says in the Qur'an that the Zabur, the Biblical Psalms, were given to David. David's son, Solomon (Sulayman), took over the task of prophecy after his death and he was made the subsequent King of Israel.

The Judeo-Christian and Islamic views of David, however, differ in some aspects. Muslims do not accept the sins of adultery and murder attributed to David in the Hebrew Bible, as they feel that prophets - in their belief the utmost chosen and elect of God - would never commit such grave crimes. The story of Bathsheba and Uriah is also absent in David's Qur'anic narrative and plays no role in Islamic tradition.

David in the Qur'an

King Saul set forth with his armies to fight the Philistines. There were, however, many doubtful unbelievers in his army. Thus, God made the wise king perform a test to see which of his warriors were loyal and which were not. They stopped by a flowing stream, and Saul, performing a test similar to that of Gideon's before him, warned his people that whoever drank of the stream's water would not go forward with the army.

Even in the small band of warriors that remained faithful to God, there were some that were appalled by the sheer size of the opposing Philistine army, and were startled when they saw the size and strength of their Commander, the giant Goliath. But there were a very small band of men that kept their belief in God and were determined to fight against all odds. Among these believing men was the courageous and wise youth David.

David is made the King of Israel

David at this point was a mere youth. He did not have much of a standing even in the Israelite camp. Although he was not as experienced in warfare as some of his contemporaries, his strong faith in God exalted him above any companion or enemy, and his mastery of the sling-shot led to the defeat - and death - of Goliath. The young warrior picked up some smooth pebbles from the ground and used his sling to such startling effect that he knocked down Goliath. He then used the giant's very own sword to slay him.

After David killed Goliath (Ǧālūt in the Qur'an), he became a hero overnight, and the Israelites loved him. Before this victory, David was an insignificant figure in the community, known only for his kind demeanour. Now, however, the Children of Israel wanted him as the successor to King Saul (Tālūt‎). When David took the position, however, he became not only the king of Israel but he was also given the gift of prophethood. The Qur'an states: }}

Teaching of the making of armor

Islamic belief holds that God taught David the making of armour. God says the 'iron was made soft for him', through which David could make instruments for protection against enemies. However, the rule in this story is to use weapons of defense only in true war (e.g., if you are fighting for freedom of worship) and not to simply use weapons for degenerate violence.

God says in the Qur'an: }}

David's remembrance of God

David was a man of superb strength, slaying Goliath in his raw youth. But God afterwards had bestowed upon him various gifts, including those of kingship and prophethood. Thus, the wise king would frequently praise God, in unison with the nature around him. Many scholars believe he was given the gifts of music as well, and would sing his prayers too, as he was blessed with great eloquence. The Qur'an mentions David's praise of God:

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The disputants

David would retire to his prayer chamber at various times in the day, to express his devotion to God. One day, however, his privacy was invaded by two men, who had obtained access into his palace by climbing over a wall. David was frightened, by this supposed apparition. But the two men soon told the king that they were brothers who had come to ask him to resolve an argument between them. One of the brothers was more grieved than the other. He told David that his brother had ninety-nine ewes while he only had one. He went onto describe his brother's greed and told David that his brother wanted his ewe as well.

The circumstances seemed mysterious to David, as he was puzzled at why the unjust brother would risk climbing into his palace and then not take any part in the argument. Nonetheless, he took the two men literally and began preaching about the falsehood and fraud of men, who should be content with what they have, but who always envy others. Although David, in his mind, thought he was doing the right thing, the men subsequently disappeared. David immediately realized that this whole vision was a test to see his wisdom and he fell down in prostration, praising God.

The Book of David

The Zabur was the Holy Book attributed to David by God, just as Musa (Moses) got the Tawrat (Torah), Isa (Jesus) got the Injil (Gospel) and Muhammad received the Qur'an. In the current Hebrew Bible scriptures, the Zabur is known as the Psalms. However, like other Islamic scripture of the past, the Psalms are believed to have been corrupted over time, with some of the original message gone. Nonetheless, Muslims are told to treat the present Psalms with immense respect because, in their original form, they too were an inspired Book of God. The Qur'an states:

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The term Zabur is the Arabic equivalent of the Hebrew Zimra, meaning "song/music." It, along with Zamir ("song") and Mizmor ("Psalm"), is a derivative of Zamar, meaning "sing", "sing praise", "make music". Thus, David is also usually attributed the gifts of music and song.

Importance of David in Islam

David is one of the few Islamic prophets who received kingship as well. While other prophets preached during the reign of kings, David, in his time, was the king. Thus, he received an extremely large task, of making sure that the people of Israel were not only held in check spiritually but that the country itself remained strong as well. His place as both leader and prophet is revered by all Muslims as one of extremely high rank. The figure of David, together with that of his prophetic son Sulayman (Solomon), are iconic of people who ruled justly over their land.

God frequently mentions David's high rank as a prophet and messenger in the Qur'an. He is often mentioned alongside other prophets, to show emphasize how great he was. For example, God says: }}

When the caliph Umar visited Jerusalem, the Patriarch Sophronius accompanied him on the Temple Mount, while he searched for the Mihrab Dawud (David's prayer-niche) to perform a prayer. Later commentators identified this site with the Tower of David.

See also

Kings of Israel

Psalms

Goliath

References

David David Category:David