It was a time when the South Indian political landscape was fragmented with infighting. The nayaka kingdom at Tanjavur had lost its heydeys of glory and was tottering on its last stages. Vijayaraghava nayaka was ruling Tanjavur and Chokkanatha nayaka was ruling Madurai. It is said that when Chokkanatha made his proposal for the marriage of Vijayaraghava nayaka’s daughter and was refused, he fought with Tanjavur Nayakas in the year 1673 and captured it. The kingdom then fell into Chokkanatha nayaka’s hands and he appointed Azhagiri nayaka as the ruler of Tanjavur in 1674. Azhagiri had also retained some of the older officers associated with the previous Tanjavur Nayaka rulers and one among them was Venkanna. As time progressed, Azhagirinayaka’s ambitions were stirred and he resented his subordination to Chokkanatha and started asserting his independence. Venkanna in the meanwhile had retained his loyalty to his previous employer and had learnt that a son of the Tanjavur Nayakas was being secretly raised in Nagapatnam and then plotted to make him the ruler. Venkanna brought the young boy Chengamala Dasa and took him to Bijapur with the intent of garnering support from the Sultan to make him the ruler.

Ekoji who was the step brother of Chatrapati Shivaji was then serving as the general of Idal Khan. When Venkanna approached the Sultan, he ordered Ekoji to help carry out Venkanna’s task. Ekoji made an attempt and after some initial setback, waited for a year. He then captured Tanjavur making use of the differences between Chokkanatha and Azhagiri Nayaka. Ekoji then crowned Chengamala Dasa as the Nayaka king and retired to Kumbakonam with his army. Meanwhile, Venkanna who was instrumental in making Chengamaladasa the king, was now deeply resentful that he got no benefit for his loyalty. He turned to Ekoji and urged him to usurp the throne. Meanwhile Idal Khan had died and Ekoji’s ambitions were fuelled. Venkanna went back to Tanjavur and threatened Chengamala Dasa with Ekoji’s plans. This made Chengamaladasa flee to Ariyalur.

Thus, Ekoji took possession of Tanjavur in the year 1675 Chitra month and became its ruler. According to accounts composed during the Maratha rule, it is said that Shiva (as Tyagesa) appeared in Ekoji’s dreams and said that his sons would one day rule Tanjavur and that He himself would be born to his queen Dipamba who had been a great devotee of His all her life. Ekoji had three wives Dipabai, Saibai and Anubai and several other concubines.

Dipamba was born in the family of Ingles and extolled by no less a person than Shridhara Venkatesa Ayyaval in his Shahendra Vilasa as
“दीपाभिधाना विचकास्ति कन्या धन्या गुणैः इङ्गिलवंशजाता ।” (The blessed young maiden named Deepa is radiant and with good qualities, born in the family of Ingles). Over the course of several decades, this noble queen played a key role in the stability of the Maratha Kingdom in Tanjavur and in the flourishing and encouragement of dharmic and scholarly activity in the region. The Ingles were part of the Brahmavamsha Kshatriya clans of the marathas whose original kingdoms were Mahinagar and Ayodhya and Vidarbha region in the Maharashtra. The Marathi Poet Chindad Shankara, refers to Dipamba Bai as “Kuladipaka” meaning that she was the lamp that spread the light of the Bhonsle vamsa far and wide. What exactly did this queen do to deserve such high praise?

Like the wise Tara in the Ramayana, she offered counsel and enabled her husband remain on the side of dharma. Like Madalasa, she poured vairagya and viveka into her children.Like Avvaiyar, she cared enough that dharma needed to reach common people. Further, she herself put into practice these tenets. Not only that, she was instrumental in spreading and nourishing an intellectual climate of scholarly patronage in an era of strife and conflict.

In examining these roles, we have several sources before us.
The main sources that provide us a picture of Dipamba are: The Dipamba Mahatmiyam a short panegyric work, Shahendra Vilasa, the biography of Shahaji by Sridhara Venkatesha Ayyaval, Bhosala Vamsha charita etc.. In addition, there are references to her in the works of her family members and also in some colophons of the books by scholars she patronised and their commissioned works.

Dipamba and her timely and wise political counsel
Shivaji did not like the fact that Ekoji had allied himself with the Turks and Pathans of Bijapur who had been the enemies of Sanatana Dharma and Shivaji worked all his life against them.The relationship between Shivaji and his step-brother Ekoji was hence fraught with mistrust and disagreement. In additionm there was dispute over the share of their father’s property. Shivaji repeatedly admonished Ekoji for giving him a share of their father’s twelve biruds that was in the latter’s possession. Ekoji was not prepared to do this, but did not express his disagreement openly. The looming shadow of the advance of Shivaji and his fame caused dismay for his step brother. After disposing of Sher Khan Lodi, Shivaji was advancing towards Tanjavur to meet his step-brother Ekoji to settle these old familial dues. The year was 1677 and it was summer time. Shivaji was camping at Tirumazhappadi about ten miles North of Tanjavur. Ekoji arrived at Shivaji’s camp accompanied by his Peshwa. It was the month of Shravana. After spending time with each other, Ekoji’s mind was still steeped in mistrust and he could never agree with Shivaji’s demands. Thus, he fled to Tanjavur by boat overnight. Shivaji then wrote a letter to Venkoji that it was thirteen years since their father died and Raghunatha Pant gave all of their father’s territory and treasures to him and that he had thus far desisted from asking his share. He then quoted the Mahabharata and explained how the Pandavas and Kauravas battling led them to great grief and compared Ekoji and his greed to Duryodhana. Sivaji also expressed his concerns that his step-brother listened to the advice of mussalmans and was intending to fight with him and articulated his grave concern that his brother’s army was filled with mussalmans and there was thus no hope of his survival.The perfect storm was brewing pitting brother against brother.

Naro Trimal Hanumante had served as the advisor for Shahaji. His son Raghunatha Hanumante served his son Ekoji. For reasons unknown and due to some difference, Raghunatha Hanumante had left the services of Ekoji. It was at this momentous juncture, that the shrewd Dipabai chose to intervene. She first dismissed Ekoji’s Muslim advisers and made him accept Raghunatha Pandita as his counsellor. To this effect, she also made him write a respectful letter to Hanumante and bring him back. Further, the main difference Shivaji had with Ekoji seems to have been the alliance with the Bijapur, a muslim state, so these actions of Dipa Bhai aligned with the dharmic vision of Shivaji as well. Ekoji wrote a letter to the Pandita and he arrived from Jinji. Raghunatha Pandita was then chosen as the messenger and due to his good offices and history with the family, he intervened and settled the dispute between the brothers and a treaty made between them around March 1678. Shivaji was very pleased with this amicable settlement and came to an agreement with his brother. His letter to Raghunatha Pandita says:
“I cannot but highly recommend the wisdom and foresight of my sister-in-law DipaBai who with uncommon zeal and skill induced her husband to come to terms with me and thereby so satisfactorily solved a difficult problem. Infact he lays down in his 15th article, “The districts of Bangalore, Hoskote and Shiralkot yielding a revenue of two laks have already been conquered by us. We assign these districts as a voluntary present to our sister-in-law Dipa Bai, wife of Ekoji. Ekoji may supervise their management but may not lay claim to them. Thus he gave this as a Stri dhanam(choli-bangdi) to her.”

This incident, is detailed by G.S.Sardesai whereas the role of Dipamba bai is not mentioned by R.Sathyanatha Iyer. It was after this key juncture that the Maratha Kingdom at Tanjavur stabilised and played a key role even until the late British period as the Center of Arts and all learning in the South.
Dipamba the Mother
Ekoji and Dipamba Bai had three sons — Shahaji, Tulajaji and Sarabhoji I. When Shahaji I was ruling Bengaluru as a Jagir, Ekoji was assisting him and then took over Bengaluru after him. In Shaka 1593 (1671 CE) Paritapi year that Shahaji II was born. Later when the family was staying in Tirumazhappadi after Ekoji made Chengamala Dasa as the king of Tanjavur, the second son Sarabhoji I was born in 1676. It was during this time that the poets say that Shiva himself came in the dreams of Ekoji and assured him that his sons would rule the kingdom of Tanjavur. After Ekoji became the King of Tanjavur, Dipamba gave birth to her third son Tulaja in 1676.

2.Service to temples

When Ekoji became the king, on one side he was under pressure to pay Shivaji his dues.In the initial period of his reign, he seems to have heavily taxed residents. On the other the Jesuits and the Danish missionaries caused other problems threatening peace and stability. The accounts of these Jesuits are an important historical source, at the same time their accounts were often colored by their own prejudice where evangelism and success of their missions was the end goal. A Jesuit Andre’ Freire in a letter to Paul Oliva in Vadugarpatti dated 1682 says, “The tyranny of Ekoji continues his work of destruction there. After plundering the men he has fallen on the pagodas of his own idols. One had never seen so much temerity in a pagan, but he is a pagan who has no other god than his cupidity. To satisfy it, he has appropriated the treasures of the pagodas and their large possessions. The brahmans came in vain to lament and represent to thim that their Gods were abandoned without offerings because rice fields whose produce was intended for their worship had been taken away from them. He replied to them that the Gods did not eat rice and that the offerings of fragrant flowers would suffice. It can be judged from this how Ekoji treats his subjects…”

There are numerous other conflicting accounts that say that Ekoji started doing many things for the welfare of his subjects like digging canals and the only reason he extracted money from his subjects was to pay off his step brother. Another letter written by the same Jesuit priest, Andre Freire’s says, “Ekoji became the absolute master of the kingdom and seeks to make himself loved by the inhabitants and has already succeeded in it. The justice and wisdom of his government begin to heal the woulds of the preceding reign and develop the natural resources of this country. By repairing the canals and tanks, he has fertilised extensive fields, uncultivated for many years and the last harvest has surpassed all that one had ever seen. “

With Dipamba’s wise counsel and the stability of the kingdom, Ekoji slowly gained the confidence of his new subjects and the royal couple ushered in a dharmarajya. Their acts included donations made to support Vaidikas, the conduct of Yajnas. We also have the reference of the poet/composer Papavinasa Mudaliar who wrote the Kumbhesar Kuravanji addresses Ekoji as “இரவலர் தரு தஞ்சை மன்னன் ஏகோஜி” (iravalar taru tanjai mannan ekoji meaning the wish-yielding tree Ekoji to those who seek his patronage ). Over time, with stability, power and the benign influence exerted by Dipa Bai, Ekoji continued to establish dharmarajya in Tanjavur.
The kingdom and its fostering of dharma was described such that it did not allow the entry of Kalipurusha in the kingdom. Arrangements were made for puranapatham, japa in places along the banks of the river Kaveri says a work named Tripuravijayam.
कावेरीनीरपुरैरतिजितदुरितैः सर्वतः पावितां त्वाम् |
देवस्थानैः पुराणैः कलिकलुषहरैर्यज्वभिर्व्याप्तिसीमाम् || (त्रिपुरविजयम्)

It was 1684. Ekoji was around 54 and Shahaji was only 13 when he abdicated the throne and made Shahaji the King. Some sources say he passed away in 1683 at the age of 54. However other sources say he died in 1686. It however seems that he abdicated the throne at 1683 and passed away subsequently. Given that Ekoji was only in his fifties and Shahaji was barely a teen, one wonders why there was such an overwhelming need to to abdicate the throne?

Unlike Shivaji who was always marked by a spirit of kshatra and a burning desire to establish and resurrect a dharmic, rule Ekoji’s nature was to some extent that of resignation. The constant pressures from inside and outside became a constant urge to renounce the duties and escape to a life of asceticism. This seems to be a strong characteristic of this branch of the Bhonsle family. Ekoji wrote a Telugu Ramayana and his name is mentioned with reference to a work named Parabrahma-nirupana and ascribed to Ekoji but it was written by Mahadeva. He was also imbued with a strong spirit of “renunciation” which ran across the family and it is said that Ekoji seems to have threatened multiple times earlier that he would take up sannyasa. One of Ekoji’s daughters (it is said of Deepamba but no records mention of her having a daughter) remained unmarried as a yogini. One can surmise that perhaps his strong interest in the Ramayana imbued by Vedanta made him take leaf off Dasharatha and saw a trace of Rama in the young Shahaji with his minister Tryambakarayamakhi serving as Vasishtha.

3.Dipamba and her practice of dharma

Whether it was illness or other reasons that was the reason behind Ekoji’s withdrawal, it is amply clear that behind the young king was the strong presence of his mother Dipamba, who continued to do her duty even after her husband’s death by exercising a choice not to undertake sahagamana. She ably guided him in administration along with her two other young minor sons.
It is said that Dipambika established numerous chatrams (places of rest for travellers and pilgrims), Tanneer pandals to distribute Panakam and cool buttermilk during the hot summer and arranged for food for those who undertook pilgrimage. She also helped in building many Shiva temples and arranged for several agraharas and settlements and brought together many scholars, panditas, artistes and experts in various fields to settle in these agraharas. This enabled the region to become a center for great intellectual activity. It was Dipamba who guided and nurtured her son Shahaji who along with the genes he inherited from his parents also become a great vedantin and a patron of these scholars. It earned for him the name “Abhinavabhoja”

It was not just in the sphere of dharma that she guided her sons but also in the administration. Sridhara Venkatesa Ayyaval gives her the epithet that she had the ability to come up with political strategy that was capable of removing all fear. भीमोक्तिशीला दमयन्त्यतोभूः
Another poet says that Dipamba’s vachana was like Vedavachana fit to be followed unfailingly. After Shahaji became king, she again intervenes and encourages to take the Tanjavur army to assist Rameshvaram and the Setupatis in the fight against Mangammal. The missionaries had made inroads in Madurai and one can surmise that the reason behind wanting to help the Setupati was also the ideal of “dharmarajya” that Dipamba and her son believed in. Thus, when Setupati was arrested by the Madurai Nayakas, based on Dipamba’s counsel, the young Shahaji marched to Ramanathapuram with his troops and helped secure the release of Setupati. In gratitude to this assistance rendered, they were invited to Ramanathapuram and the mother and the son did a Setu yatra on the invitation of the Setupati. She did the setu yatra, made appropriate dana as described in the texts and then sat on a svarna-tulabhara on the Ardhodaya Punyakalam on 18th January 1967.

(अमार्कपातश्रवणैर्युक्ता चेत् पुष्यमाघयोः ।
अर्धोदयः स विज्ञेयः कोटिसूर्यग्रहैस्समः ॥
The confluence of Amavasya, Ravivara, Vyatipata yoga and Shravana Nakshatra is ardhodaya punyakala and it is equivalent in merit to a crore suryagrahanas. )
It is also understood that she also sat on a tulabharam in Tiruvayyaru and did a lot of dharmic activities from the money obtained. She used the money from the tulabharam and conducted the weddings of several poor young women. She also gave lands to scholars and artistes and arranged for centers of learning. It becomes clear that she served as a shining example in practising of dharma laid out in the texts. When Mahamagham took place at Kumbhagonam, Shahaji along with his mother Dipambal, and brothers Sharabhoji and Tulaja went to Kumbhagonam along with their royal entourage including ministers. The play AdbhutaPanjaram depicting the story of Shahaji and the heorine Leelavati written by Narayana, a student of Ramabhadra Dikshita was enacted.

4.Dipamba as a patron

The practice of creating settlements of scholars fostered a productive and intellectual, scholarly, cultural and dharmika climate in the region. An agraharam at Ekojirajapuram was also established. Another village named Dipambalpuram on the Tanjavur-Nagapatnam road, was made as settlement of Bhagavatamela artistes were given places to live. This brought together a confluence of musicians, artistes, dancers, and drama artistes. It is said that Girirajakavi/ Giriraja brahman the ancestor of Tyagaraja too lived here. It were these steps that later enabled Tanjavur to become a premier cultural center with artistes from various regions migrating there. Subsequently Shahaji also extended this practice and created settlements of scholars in Shaharajapuram and Bhaskararajapuram. The scholarly output from this region and the brilliant scholars who lived there is a veritable who’s who in the Samskrta firmament. The following were the books that appeared due to the efforts and patronage of Dipamba.
Stridharmapaddhati of Tryambakarayamakhi

Women’s education especially among family women was seriously crippled in a large part of the country due to the constant threats to peace by invading religions. If an attack of horsemen of Haider, Malik Kafur or one of the Muslim rulers happened in a town or village, their first victims would be women and hence it was considered socially a safer practice to keep them inside rather than become the slaves and concubines of the invaders. Dipamba probably felt a need to educate the women of the kingdom, on the dharmic aspects and sought out scholars in her court to achieve this.

Tryambakarayamakhi belonged to Tiruvidamarudhur and served as the minister for Ekoji to Sarabhoji I.He was a great scholar, vaidika and performed shrouta yagas. Dipamba therefore invited Tryambakarayamakhin to write a simple compendium on stridharma pertaining to women according to the Dharmashastras and as per the then prevailing social norms. Trayambakarayamakhi collated information from Purnaas, Smrtis, Dharmashastra and compiled a text named “Stridharmapaddhati”. In the colophon, he says,
इत्थं त्रयम्बकयज्वना स्मृति पुराणोक्तिर्विलोड्याऽखिला |
धर्मास्त्रीविषयाः पुनः कतिपये तत्तद्व्यवस्थान्विताः ।|
सङ्गृह्याऽत्र कृतौ क्रमेण कथिता मात्राज्ञया धीमता |
तानाकर्ण्य सदा स्त्रियश्च सकला धर्मे मतिं तन्वताम् ॥ १ ॥
धर्माः स्त्रीविषया श्रुतिस्मृतिपुराणेषु श्रुता ये पृथक् |
तान् सङ्गृह्य ततस्तो मृगदृशां सौकर्यहेतोः कृता ।|
सेयं मत्कृतिरुज्वलैर्मणिगणैर्विष्वक्परीक्ष्याहृतेः|
मालेव ग्रथिता तनोतु जगतां मातुः प्रमोदं परम् ॥ २ ॥
“Thus, I Tryambakarayamakhi have examined the various stridharmas found in shruti, Smrti and Puranas and have presented a summary in sequence instructed by the wise mother (Dipamba) so that women should follow the rules outlined in this grantha. May this gem-studded garland of mine make the goddess Jaganmatha Herself happy as well.
Knowing fully well that a text alone would not enable the transmission of dharma to the common folks, she arranged Dundivyasa another court poet and upanyasaka to do upanyasas on the topic.

Dharmakuta - Trayambakarayamakhi
It has already been mentioned that Ekoji wrote a Telugu Ramayanam. The itihasa was thus dear to the entire family and held in high regard. Tryambakarayamakhi wrote a commentary on Ramayana named Dharmakutam. Since Shrimadramayana has Vedadharma as its basis. Tryambakarayamakhi wrote a commentary on the Ramayana on the dharmic basis of the granthas, with references from Shruti, Smrti, Purana, Dharmashastra and Itihasa. Thus the commentary was named Dharmakutam. In the introductory verses, the author pays tribute to Ekoji and Dipamba and calls the three sons the three purusharthas.
तस्य श्रीरिव शार्ङ्गिणः पशुपतेर्गौरीव जम्भद्विषः
पौलोमीव सुदक्षिणेव जगतां जेतुर्दिलीपप्रभोः |
सद्वंशप्रभवा च पट्टमहिषी सौशील्यतोऽरुन्धती
दीपाम्बेति भुवि श्रुता विजयते सान्द्रानुकम्पा जने || १३
रक्षित्वा सेतुनाथं शरणमुपगतं पाण्ड्यराजात्तगन्धं
दीपाम्बाहस्ततोऽपि व्यरचयत तुलादीनी दानानि सेतौ |
Infact, Dipambika was looked upon as Kausalya by the court poets
कौसल्यामिवाभूत् रघुकुलतिलकोयोऽत्र दीपाम्बिकायाम् |
Based on the above upakrama, it could be surmised that this work too was written at the behest of Dipambika.
Marathi works on Dharma
Since Samskrta was far beyond the reach of the average subject of her kingdom, Dipambika also requested the Marathi poet Raghunatha Ganesha Navahasta to compose other Marathi works on Dharmashastra. Raghunatha Ganesha Navahasta (1675–1712) is said to have flourished between 1640–1712. He was the student of Anantadeva the son of Apadeva the well-known author of Mimamsanyayaprakasha. He served as the upadhyaya of the Chafal Matha of Samartha Ramadasa between 1648–1683 and renounced all his property in the Satara District and proceeded on a mahayatra. Later, he migrated to Tanjavur and lived under the patronage of the Queen Dipambika between 1683 and 1712 and composed several works. At the instance of her patronage he translated Tryambakararaya’s work Stridharmapaddhati into Marathi in the name Pativratadharma. In Pativratadharma. Raghunatha clearly says “मग दीपाम्बिकेच्या वचनें प्राकृत स्त्रीधर्मकथने ..|
In addition he also wrote works such as Dharmamrtamahodadhi and Narakavarnana. Narakavarnana and Dharmamrtamahoadhi. The NarakaVarnana was composed in 1701–1712 AD and Dharmamrtamahodadhi composed in 1701. The NarakavarNana says
जप तप यज्ञ दान होम |
जी ही पुरती सकलकाम |
होया निच्छिला पापां विराम |
तो प्रयत्न जायेचा || नरकवर्णनम् 64
This is recorded as “संस्कृत कठिण म्हाणूना प्राकृत”. Raghunatha has also deidicated his work to Dipambika and eulogises her in some ovis. He too says, that her sons were like the three purusharthas.
तीन पुरुषार्थ तिघे भूप |
जयेचे पुत्र कुलदीप |
दीपाम्बिका यथार्थरूप |
नाम म्हणौनि शोभतसे |
According to the Descriptive Catalog of Marathi MSS Tanjore by Ramachandra Rao, 1929,
नरकवर्णन रघुनाथकृत योव्या
जें जें पुसिलें नृपनायकें |
तें तें सांगितलें शुकें |
तें सर्वही दीपांबिके |
प्रति निरूपिलें रघुनाथें |
Bhojanakutuhalam
In addition to this, Dipamba also was instrumental in the creation of the work, Bhojanakutuhala. Bhojanakutuhala deals with the properties of different food materials, the methods of preparation and the digestive effects and the purification of food.
Shankaracharyacharitam of Govindanatha
This was written by a sannyasi named Govindananda. Dipambal requested him to write a succinct version of Shankarabhagavatpada. According to her wishes, he examined several Shankaravijayagranthas and wrote this on 30th March 1713 and this was scribed by a person named Venkateshvara Shastri as the yati dictated the work.
विजयाब्दे वसन्तर्तौचैत्रे दीपाम्बिकाकृते |
पौर्णमास्यां सोमवारे वेङ्कटेश्वरशास्त्रिणा ||
शङ्कराचार्यचरितं लिखितं पावनं महत् |
कृतं गोविन्दनाथेन यतिभक्तिसहायतः ||
This was first published in 1931 by Chitrashala Press, Poona. One of the MSS of this work is available at the Saraswati Mahal Library, Tanjavur. This work is also called Keraliya Shankara Vijaya and is set as a conversation between a guru and shishya and the guru narrating the Acharya’s life to the Shishya. The key feature of this work is the location of Sarvajnapitha in Kanchipuram in the South and the location of place of mukti Vrshachala in Kerala.. This work also describes the Acharya’s ascent of the Sarvajnapitham in Kanchipuram.
जातः केरलभूतले द्विजवरो भूत्वाशु भाष्याण्यतः
कृत्वा पञ्चदश क्रमेण चतुरो लब्ध्वा च शिष्यान् वरान् |
श्रीकाञ्चीपुरमेत्य तत्र जितवान् वाणीं च सर्वज्ञतां
गत्वा प्राप्तवृषाचलः स्वपदगः श्रीशङ्करः पातु नः ||

References:
1.W.R. Antarkar. Bharatiya Vidya, 1992 Shankaracharya Charitram
2.Journal of TSSML Dipamba Mahatmyam. Ed. Pt. Srinivasan
3.Hickey The Tanjore Maratha Principality
4.Maratha Rule in the Carnatic 1944
5.Sanskrit and Maharashtra, R.N.Dandekar
6.A topical analysis of the Bhojana Kutuhala, a work on dietetics, composed by Raghunatha Between AD 1675 and 1700 - Studies in Indian Literary History volume 2 by P. K. Gode
7.A new History of the Marathas, Kincaid, C.A and Parasnis, Rao Bahadur D.B.
8.A history of the Maratha People