After the Guru’s return to Amritsar, Prithia continued to annoy him as before. Prithia’s jealousy was toa great extent fanned by his wife’s reproaches. She said to her husband: ‘My lord, hadst thou pleased thy father by serving him, thou shouldst now be Guru, and I should be the Guru’s revered wife. The eldest son hath been superseded. The youngest hath obtained the position of Guru and is worshipped by the world. The Emperor and kings bow before him. Wealth ever cometh to him while the fates are against us.’ Prithia replied: ‘Thou hast the greatest wealth of all in thy son Mihrban. When he shall have grown up, he shall obtain the Guruship. Arjan hath no son himself, and his prosperity is but short-lived.’
The Guru’s wife, who overheard this conversation, repeated it to her husband. He bade her pay no heed to it but continue to repeat the true Name. He then addressed her the following hymn :—
O my soul, grasp the shelter of the Supreme and Omnipotent God.
Repeat the name of God who supporteth the regions of the earth and the universe.
O saint of God, abandon thine intellectual pride, understand the will of God, and thou shalt be happy.
Accept the act of God as good : in weal and woe meditate on Him. [ p. 29 ]
The Creator saveth in a moment millions of fallen ones, and in this there is no delay.
The Lord is the destroyer of the pain and sorrow of the poor ; He rewardeth whom He pleaseth ;
He is mother and father, cherisher of life and soul, and a sea of comfort for all.
There is no deficiency in the Creator’s gifts ; He is omnipresent, and a mine of jewels.
The beggar beggeth Thy name, O Lord ; Thou abidest in every heart.
The slave Nanak hath entered the sanctuary of Him from whom nobody departeth empty.[^1
]
The Guru continued his instruction :—
Fools love the world though it is as a mirage, an enchanted city, or the shadow of a tree.
In the same way, Nanak, wise men regard family and wealth as perishable, and remember God’s name.[1]
O my good wife, even if Karmo’s jealousy and pride please thee not, be not jealous and proud like her. If one throwa handful of dust at the moon, it will not reach it, but recoil on the thrower. If my eldest brother’s wife hath addressed thee bad language, bear it. Shaikh Farid hath said :—
Farid, do good for evil, clothe not thy heart with anger ;
Thus shall thy body not suffer pain, and thou shalt obtain everything.[2]
The Guru’s wife said: ‘ Although thine instruction is the best, yet my married life would be most happy if thou grant me a son. Great king, they who seek thy protection obtain happiness in this life and salvation in the next. If thou grant not thy servant a son, it will not be well.’
With the object of giving his Sikhs a lesson in humility he decided on referring her to Bhai Budha to pray for the desired boon, and gave her the following directions: ‘My beloved, if thou really [ p. 30 ] desire a son, then go to Bhai Budha, an ancient Sikh of Baba Nanak’s time, and wait on him. He dwelleth in a forest. He is a humble man. He carrieth firewood and grass, and sendeth to my kitchen the corn which is the Guru’s right after the cultivators have taken their share. He is ever engaged in worship, and only eateth when he receiveth food from the Guru’s kitchen. If he be pleased, he will bless thee and thou shalt have ason. God arrangeth the affairs of His saints.’
Next day the Guru’s wife set out in great state to see Bhai Budha. She took with her as her attendants the wives of the headmen of Amritsar. They rode in carriages, palkis, and sedans, and formed an imposing procession. She was also attended by servants male and female who carried plates of sweets as offerings to the saint. They reached his place in the forest in the afternoon when he was hungry and thirsty, and in momentary expectation of his meal from the Guru’s kitchen. When he saw the dust of the cortége flying, and the carriages, palkis, sedans, bearers and horsemen approaching at high speed, he said, ‘Is there a stampede from Amritsar that the inhabitants have left the city and sought shelter here?’ The Guru’s wife, on being informed of Bhai Budha’s surprise, was much distressed, and remarked that her journey had brought her a curse instead of a blessing. Having made her obeisance and placed before him the delicious food she had brought, she addressed him: ‘ Thou hast seen and heard and served Guru Nanak. Thou art respected by us and worthy art thou of reverence. The Guru hath sent me to thee that by thy blessing I may obtain the boon of a son.’
Bhai Budha replied, ‘ Revered lady, I am but the grass-cutter and servant of thy house. If I possessed the power thou supposest, why should I cut grass and sweep the Guru’s stables ? It is the Guru himself who fulfilleth every one’s desires. It is the [ p. 31 ] Guru himself who is the ocean of supernatural power. Should he desire to dismiss me, I must be content. As for these savoury dishes thou placest before me, I am not worthy of them. They are only fitted for the Guru himself. If thou think I should take them, expect not service from me. Were I to eat them, how could I afterwards think of cutting grass? If thou desire menial service from me, then I am thy slave, but take away these viands.’ The lady’s further solicitations were useless. She had to return disappointed and crestfallen to the Guru.
The Guru on hearing the result of his wife’s mission quoted to her the following hymn of Guru Amar Das :—
O man, be not proud of thy knowledge; become pious and humble.
Within thee are ignorance and pride of intellect: by the true Word wash away this filth.
Be humble before the true Guru, and allow not thyself to be at all noticed—
The world is burning by its own pride ; allow not thyself to be noticed—
Act according to the will of the true Guru, and abide by his wishes.
Thus saith Nanak, forsake pride and continue to be of humble mind ; thus shalt thou obtain happiness.[3]
The Guru continued: “The saints and the true Guru are not pleased with display. If thou desire anything from them, never appear in the character of a superior. Come, I will teach thee how to succeed. With devotion in thy heart grind corn, knead the flour, and bake the bread with thine own hands. Dress it with onions. Then take it with some thick buttermilk on thy head to Bhai Budha. Dress thyself as a cultivator’s wife, and go on foot and alone, so shalt thou obtain the saint’s blessing.’
The Guru’s wife, in accordance with his instructions, [ p. 32 ] proceeded next day without attendants to Bhai Budha. She found him hungry as before and waiting for his meal. On seeing her he thought to himself: ‘If a mother take not care of her son, who will do so? She hath brought me my meal, and I need it much. I was wrong in sending her away yesterday, but she hath pardoned mine error. Hail, lady! give me what thou hast brought.’
Bhai Budha while eating said, ‘The Guru is the owner of the storehouse, but I have received an order to open it. As thou hast given me food to my heart’s content, so shalt thou have a son to thy heart’s content. He shall be very handsome and brave, possess spiritual and temporal power, become a mighty hunter, ride on royal steeds, wear two swords, be puissant in battle, and trample on the Mughals.” With every morsel he ate Bhai Budha uttered a blessing on the lady’s progeny and said: “As I now crush these onions thou hast brought me, so shall thy son crush the heads of his enemies, and be at once a great warrior and exalted Guru. His shall not be the humble seat of a village Guru, but a gorgeous imperial throne. As I am now filled with thy viands, so shall thy heart be filled with joy on beholding him.’ A son who received at his birth the name of Har Gobind was duly conceived ; and in memory of the event an anniversary fair is held in the forest where Bhai Budha resided.
The Guru, on hearing from his wife on her return home of the graciousness of her reception by Bhai Budha said, ‘ If the saints desire it, they can make a poor man a king, fill the empty, and poise a mountain on a blade of grass.’
It may be convenient here to give a panegyric of Bhai Budha, which a Sikh biographer put into the mouth of Guru Arjan :—
Budha Sahib is the impersonation of austerity, a mine of divine knowledge and virtue. [ p. 33 ]
Simple and pious he hath asserted himself; he is unequalled like the sun, the moon, and the philosopher’s stone.
He hath adopted no religious garb nor in any wise practised hypocrisy ; he hath subdued all his desires and organs.
Hear, O Ganga,[4] ineffable is the word of the saints in whose complete power God is.
The Guru on being satisfied of his wife’s conception composed the following :—
That the words of holy men are immutable is apparent to all.
Whoever associateth with a saint shall meet the Lord God.
This faith and comfort are obtained by uttering God’s name.
Everybody hath been making his own remarks;[5] the Guru hath brought a child to my house.
There is no doubt God is the preserver of him who seeketh His shelter.
Plant God’s name in the soil of acts[6] since this opportunity is difficult to find.
God Himself is the Searcher of hearts; He doeth everything and causeth everything to be done.
It is God’s function to purify many sinners.
Be not led astray, O man, by the deceit of mammon.
Nanak, God will preserve his honour whom He hath robed in His court.[7]
When Karmo, Prithia’s wife, heard of the Guru’s wife’s pregnancy, she upbraided her husband with having falsely prophesied that no child should be born to Guru Arjan.
When Bhai Budha spoke of a stampede from Amritsar he little thought that there would be a stampede of another character, which would give his words literal fulfilment. Prithia instigated his friend Sulahi Khan, now grown insolent with power, [ p. 34 ] to proceed, under pretence of levying tribute, with a strong force to plunder Amritsar and inspire fear in the Guru. The Guru, anticipating the raid and otherwise apprehending unprovoked annoyance from Sulahi, resolved to leave Amritsar and seek shelter in Wadali, a village six or seven miles distant. A faithful Sikh, apprehending danger to the Guru, persuaded him to retire to a tract of barren land, called Raur in the local dialect, which belonged to him. It is said that after the Guru’s arrival the land became green. It may be here mentioned that the Guru’s retreat is still called the Guru’s Raur, and possesses an imposing and well appointed temple.
The Guru was not suffered to abide long in peace in his retreat. Wadali, originally founded by the Chambal and Man tribes, had become a prosperous village, and on this account the inhabitants of the neighbouring villages grew jealous and made war on them. The Wadali people, unaccustomed to a marauding life, were defeated, and in their difficulties, hearing that Guru Arjan was encamped in the vicinity, sought his protection and mediation with their enemies. The Guru accepted the rédle thus offered him, and proceeded with the Wadali men to their village, where he lived for a considerable time.
Prithia, not wishing to undergo the expense of entertaining Sulahi Khan, went forth to meet him. Sulahi after salutation said, ‘ Prithi Chand, thou the eldest hast not obtained the Guruship. Where is thy youngest brother who hath obtained it?’ Prithia replied, ‘My lord, my brother Arjan, hearing of thine approach, hath left Amritsar and gone I know not whither.’ Prithia offered Sulahi a _ present, which he refused, saying that it was more proper for him to give than to take a present from a guru. Sulahi requested Prithia to let. him know when Arjan returned, and he would take measures to restrain his irregularities.
[ p. 35 ]
The Guru, finding in Wadali a scarcity of water, ordered a large well to be dug and worked by six Persian wheels (chheharat), whence it was afterwards called Chhiharta. On the fifth day of the light halt of Magh, the Indian vernal festival, there is a yearly fair held at the place.