Shivaji Inspires Unification of Vietnam

Shivaji Inspires Unification of Vietnam

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj destroyed the mighty Moghul kingdom and established a great Hindu empire under the guidance of Saint Samarth Ramdas. He is also respected the world over for his ingenuity of gorilla warfare by which method he could defeat armies very much larger than his own. North Vietnam was engaged in a war against the wealthiest and most powerful of all nations ¨C America from 1955 to 1975. Ultimately North Vietnam succeeded in defeating South Vietnam and America in that war of 20 years and united the country. Their defence minister Madame Binh visited Bharat in 1977. Our defence minister Jagjivan Ram received her. Whenever such foreign dignitaries visit India, government of India arranges their visits to Raj Ghat, Shanti Van, Kutub Minar and Taj Mahal in Delhi and Agra. But Binh had her own priorities. She expressed her keen desire to garland the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. This created some embarrassment to the Indian government as it had to clean and get the statue ready for her and to arrange for a suitable crane to take her that height. When asked why she was so particular about garlanding an Indian hero, she replied that during the bitter war against the Americans, the Vietcong soldiers narrated the heroic saga of Shivaji Maharaj and of his military generals who made mincemeat of the mighty Moghuls. By this they were able to inspire and instill a sense of patriotism among the young Vietcong soldiers, leading them ultimately to victory in war. Also Shivaji was the inventor of guerilla warfare, a technique the Vietcong soldiers used successfully against the American armies and Cuban revolutionaries like Che Guevara and Fidel Castro.