History of Aurangzib, Based on Original Sources v3.c47.15

v3.c47.15

[R. A. S. MS. 71 ascribes the authorship of this letter to Shivaji, A.S.B. MS. 56 to Shambhuji, Orme's *Fragments*, p. 252, to Jaswant Singh, and Tod, i. ch. 13, to Maharana Raj Singh. Now, Shambhuji and Jaswant are ruled out by the dates. The internal evidence and autobiographical details of the writer apply to Shivaji and not to Raj Singh. R.A.S. MS. adds that the letter was drafted by Nila Prabhu, the Persian Secretary (*Parasnis*) of Shivaji. In the penultimate paragraph of the letter, Rajah Ram Singh is given for Rana Raj Singh by A.S.B. MS. and Orme; but no Jaipur chieftain could have been "the head of the Hindus." I have critically discussed and annotated this letter in *Modern Review*, January, 1908, pp. 21-23].