Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, or the Central and Western Rajput States of India v3.c43.t1.135

v3.c43.t1.135

Nāthji Mahārāja.—Maharaja Nathji was one of the sons of Rana Sangram Singh, and brother to the reigning prince Jagat Singh, on whose death, doubts of the legitimacy of his successor Raj Singh being raised, Nathji aspired to the dignity; but his projects failed by the death of Raj Singh. He left a posthumous child, whose history, and the civil wars engendered by his uncle Arsi, who took possession of the gaddi, have been fully detailed. Arsi, who was assuredly a usurper, if the pretender was a lawful son of Rana Raj, had suspicions regarding his own uncle Nathji, who had once shown a predilection for the supreme power; but the moment he heard that his nephew fancied he was plotting against him, he renounced ambition, and sought to make his peace with [655] heaven; amusing himself with poetry, in which he had some skill, and by cultivating his melons in the bed of the Banas, which ran under the walls of his castle, Bagor.¹ The fervour of his devotions, and the love and respect which his qualifications as a man and a Rajput obtained him, now caused his ruin. In the coldest nights, accompanied by a single attendant, he was accustomed to repair to the lake, and thence convey water to sprinkle the statue of his tutelary divinity, ‘ the god of all mankind ’ (Jagannath). It was reported to the Rana that, by means of these ascetic devotions, he was endeavouring to enlist the gods in his traitorous designs, and, determined to ascertain the truth, Arsi, with a confidential friend, disguised himself, and repaired to the steps of the temple. Nathji soon appeared with his brazen vessel of water, and as he passed, the prince, revealing himself, thus addressed him: “ Why all this devotion, this excess of sanctity? if it be the throne you covet, uncle, it is yours”; to which Nathji, in no wise thrown off his guard, replied with much urbanity, “You are my sovereign, my child, and I consider my devotions as acceptable to the deity, from their giving me such a chief, for my prayers are for your prosperity.” This unaffected sincerity reassured the Rana; but the chiefs of Deogarh, Bhindar, and other clans, being dissatisfied with the harsh and uncompromising temper of their sovereign, endeavoured to check his ebullitions by pointing to the Maharaja as a refuge against his tyranny.