[ p. 143 ]
In a conversation regarding the fabulous bird called anal in Hindi and huma in Persian poetry, some one remarked that arrows winged with the bird’s feathers would reach a prodigious distance. The Guru remarked that, as it was the peculiarity of the bird’s feathers to carry arrows to its home in the sky, so the repetition of one of the Gurus’ hymns would take the soul to heaven. ‘ He’, continued the Guru, ‘who speaketh truth, who serveth the congregation of saints, and who hath confidence in the Gurus’ hymns is my Sikh, and shall for ever abide in bliss.’
Several Sikhs from the north of the Panjab came to visit the Guru and present their offerings. A Sikh residing in Rohtas in the present district of Jihlam[1] thought that the most suitable offering he could make the Guru was his daughter Sahib Devi. He accordingly took her to him in a palki. The Guru, in response to this offer, said he had relinquished family life. The girl’s father on hearing this became much disappointed and distressed. He pointed out that he had long since dedicated her to the Guru, that in consequence every one called her mother, and now no one would wed her after her rejection. On the other hand, if she remained single, great sin would in the estimation of pious persons attach to her parents. He accordingly pressed the Guru to reconsider his decision.
The Guru then told him to ask her if she would consent to serve him. She replied in the affirmative. The Guru upon this baptized her, gave her the name Sahib Kaur, and consigned her to his mother’s apartments. There she made a vow that she would [ p. 144 ] not touch food until she had seen the Guru. The Guru could not allow her to die of hunger, and accordingly visited her. One day as she was shampooing him, he asked her if she had any request to make. She replied, that as her two co-wives had sons, so she also desired a son to call her own. The Guru replied, ‘I will give thee a son who will abide for ever. I will put the whole Khalsa into thy lap. The lady on hearing this was much pleased, and prostrated herself before her master. It is still not an uncommon thing for a Sikh to say, when asked regarding his parentage, that his father is Guru Gobind Singh, and his mother Sahib Kaur. Such a Sikh would also say that he was born in Patna, and resided in Anandpur. Indeed, Sikhs are enjoined to give these answers at the time of baptism.
One Jagga Singh performed most assiduous service for the Guru, and was consequently much envied by his fellow servants. Some said that several men had done similar service and gone away ungrateful, and Jagga Singh was not superior to any of his predecessors. Others again said that he being a new servant was no doubt diligent, but his zeal would soon evaporate. The Guru overhearing these remarks sent for a vessel of water, a stone, and some sweets. He put the stone and sweets into the water. After a short time he. ordered them to be taken out. The stone of course came out whole, but the sweets had all dissolved. The Guru read his servants a moral lesson from what they had seen. He said that those who served him well and heartily, blended with him as the sweets had done with the water; while those who served him for show and appearance, had hearts like the stone which never dissolved. He then ordered that no one should for the future molest or speak evil of his faithful servant Jagga Singh.
Raja Ajmer Chand,.though outwardly professing [ p. 145 ] peace, determined to again expel the Guru from Anandpur. He accordingly sent a Brahman as an ambassador, but really as a spy on the Guru’s proceedings. The Brahman on being introduced to the Guru used very mild and plausible language. The Guru, however, soon discovered that he was a very dangerous person, in no way to be trusted, soft to the touch like a snake, but filled with concealed poison. The man duly set himself to the task of ferreting out the Guru’s secrets. The Guru well understood his designs, but at the same time maintained a semblance of friendship towards him. The Brahman wrote to his master to describe the excellent and confidential relations that subsisted between him and the Guru, and at the same time suggested that some dexterous persons should be sent to steal the Guru’s horses. The Brahman also kept his eye on the Guru’s treasury with the object of ascertaining how much it contained, and how its contents could be abstracted. In due time Raja Ajmer Chand dispatched some of the most expert thieves he could find in his state, and they succeeded in depriving the Guru of two of his favourite chargers.
The Brahman suggested to the Guru to go to the approaching fair of Rawalsar near Mandi. The other chiefs would attend, and it would be a good opportunity of cementing friendly relations with them. At the same time, he told the Guru’s Sikhs as an inducement that if they went there they should see stones swim. The Guru’s mother, his wives, and his sons all pressed him to visit the fair. He yielded to the wish of the majority, and ordered all preparations to be made for his departure.
The Brahman informed all the hill chiefs of the Guru’s intention to appear at the fair, and suggested that they should be present also. The Guru prepared a magnificent reception for them, and they were all charmed with his engaging manners. The rajas entreated him to forget and forgive their former [ p. 146 ] offences. They were assured in reply that the Guru would treat them as they deserved at his hands.
The Guru received the wives of the rajas in a separate tent. He gave them instruction suitable to their status and position, and they were entranced with the interview. The Guru noticing their admiration told the eldest among them that it was time for their departure. The ranis were, it is said, loth to move, but the eldest lady convinced them of the propriety of terminating their visit. One of them, Padmani, daughter of the Raja of Chamba, with her father’s permission, sent the Guru a letter in the form of a riddle—‘ What is that which is complete ? What is its three-fourths ? What is duality ? What is departure ? What are the two houses for human beings? They ate some and took the rest to sleep with them. O Guru, riddle me this.’ The Guru replied :—
A god’s body is complete ; a man’s is only three-quarters thereof,
People run after wealth; men and women are but dust.
People wander in both worlds after eating and spending their wealth in this.
When the world is destroyed every one goeth to sleep ; this is the answer to thy riddle, O child.
The princess was much pleased on receiving this answer, and with her father’s permission went again to visit the Guru. When she made her obeisance before him he patted her on the shoulder with his bow. She said, ‘I am thy worshipper ; why hast thou not patted me with thy hand?’ The Guru replied he never touched any woman except his own wives with his hand.
As the Guru was returning home from the fair, he was met by the Raja of Mandi who besought him to pay a visit to his capital The Guru readily accepted the invitation. During his stay the Guru [ p. 147 ] promised the raja that Mandi should for ever remain in his line.
While the Guru was occupied with the hill chiefs, the Brahmans were counteracting his religious efforts. Sikhs who before their conversion had been Brahmans and Khatris now came in fewer numbers to visit him. They did not wish that their sacrificial threads should be thrown away among the bushes, or that they should have to part with their loin-clothes[2]. It was in vain the Guru told them that Sikhs should spring from every bush on which their sacrificial threads had been thrown. He said that they who had no faith in him might or might not come as they chose. The paltry fellows who wore threads the Guru thought of no use to him. His Sikhs should become very powerful, if they freed themselves from Brahmanical prejudices and influences, and adopted the Sikh ritual when there were births, marriages, or deaths in their families.
The Guru upon this prepared a general feast both for Sikhs and Brahmans, but the latter refused to attend, and reproached him with having taken away the distinguishing marks of the Hindus. When the Sikhs were feasting he said that as the Brahmans had forsaken him, so he would forsake them, and break off all relations with them. To some of his own people who manifested symptoms of dissatisfaction, he said that if they remained on good terms with the Khalsa, they should always be happy ; otherwise sorrow should be their portion. He had. given everything to the Khalsa—spiritual and temporal power, enterprise, glory, self-devotion, skill in arms, and by these should they acquire empire. His speech was heard by his first wife, and when he went to his private apartments she inquired what he had left his family. He replied that he [ p. 148 ] had given to her children the stable empire of heaven.
His Sikhs were one day discussing idolatry. The Guru when asked to give his opinion said, ‘ All worship is valueless without love. The worship of images is unreal: the worship of God alone is real. Nothing can be obtained by image-worship They who place images before them and worship them are fools. Let my Sikhs ever meditate on the Immortal God and worship none besides. Let them ever practise arms, that they may be enabled to defend themselves against their enemies.’
On another occasion the Guru gave the following reply to questions put him by his Sikhs :—
He who ever thinketh of the future is accepted as the Guru’s disciple.
Famine is bad, and bad is cold; bad is the love of a courtesan ;
Bad are debt and falsehood ; utter the truth, my friends,
The Guru further advised his Sikhs not to employ an enemy as a doctor, not to listen to astrologers, to avoid greed, and to consider wealth unreal as a dream. Winding up his discourse he said, ‘ Let my Sikhs eschew evil, adopt what is good, and have confidence in me.’
Bishambhar of Ujjain had once fallen under the influence of the Guru’s teach ng and made him an offering of one hundred rupees. He now sent his son, a Vaishnav called Har Gopal, with an offering of five times that amount. The son on seeing the Guru eat meat became disgusted. The Guru said in his presence, that all relishes were pleasing to the mind. A Sikh replied that a relish was only pleasing to the tongue. Others also gave their opinions, and when it came to Har Gopal’s turn, he said that the real relish was faith in Sikhism. The Guru knowing that he was not uttering his real sentiments, said, ‘Thou enjoyest no such relish, for thou hast no [ p. 149 ] faith in the Sikh religion.’ When the Guru addressed him further reproaches, he fell at his feet and implored his pardon. He then laid his father’s present of five hundred rupees before the Guru. The Guru jn return gave him a steel bracelet[3] to wear, and promised that the love of God should abide in his family.
Har Gopal, not at all satisfied or convinced by the Guru’s teaching or example, took his departure. On his way home he stopped at Chamkaur where he met an earnest Sikh named Dhyan Singh. He confided to him how he had wasted five hundred rupees in making a present to a Guru who ate meat. Dhyan Singh said he would restore him the money, if he in return gave him the steel bracelet and the love of God bestowed on him by the Guru. Har Gopal was delighted on receiving such an offer, and took the money in exchange for what he believed to be the worthless gifts of the Guru. He traded with the money and made a large profit. When he reached home he told his father Bishambhar all the events of the journey. Bishambhar was much distressed at his want of faith in the Guru, and remonstrated with him. Har Gopal continued his pecuniary speculations, and in the end lost all his moncy. He was then satisfied that this was the result of his want of faith in the Guru, and he prayed his father to take him again to the spiritual and temporal head of the Sikhs. The father was pleased to do so, and set out with his wife and all his family. On the way the party called on Dhyan Singh at Chamkaur and induced him to accompany them on their journey.
‘Bishambhar on reaching the Guru begged forgiveness for his unworthy son. The Guru baptized [ p. 150 ] them all, and thus addressed Har Gopal— Thou oughtest to have had confidence in my words. He who believeth that the ten Gurus are all the same is a Sikh of mine. Look on the hymns of the Granth as the embodiment of the true Guru. Put faith in the Guru, and becoming a Sikh perform thy worldly duties. With humble words induct others into the faith, and give thy daughter to a Sikh. Let him who is a Sikh according to the old rites, marry his daughter to him who is a Sikh according to the new rites. Ifa Sikh cannot find a husband according to the new rites for his daughter, then let him give her to him who is a Sikh according to the old rites, but willing to receive Sikh baptism. Let a Sikh receive instruction from another Sikh, and not consider whether he is of high.or low degree. Look on him as a good Sikh who thinketh not of caste or lineage. Let a Sikh be honest in his dealings, and pray for him who affordeth him maintenance. Whoever of the rank of Sikh committeth treachery shall find no place of rest.
‘Love the Name; repeat it in thine innermost heart ; teach the Name. In the Name is happiness ; the Name is a generous companion. He who liveth for his religion, who eateth only to support his body, who walketh in the Guru’s way, and who is not enamoured of the world, is my friend. As when a traveller goeth to a foreign land and is ever hoping for the end of his journey, so should man hope for his soul’s final repose by doing good works and remaining estranged from the world. Listen to me, my friend, and be ever ready to leave this life. Thou and I shall depart. This is not a new ordinance.’
After this the father and son proceeded rejoicing to their home. In the course of a short time their wealth increased, and Har Gopal recovered all that he had lost. Dhyan Singh told the Guru that, as he was ploughing in his field on the day after he [ p. 151 ] had received the bracelet and God’s love from Har Gopal, his plough exposed a buried treasure of great value. The Guru congratulated him and called him a devout Sikh who would always possess God’s love and favour.
One day Mata Jito, the Guru’s wife, appeared _ before him and said, ‘ Thou bestowest on thy Sikhs deliverance, union with God, and worldly blessings. Let me also be a partaker of thy gifts.’ The Guru told her to continually repeat Wahguru with fixed attention, and she should obtain what her heart desired. After some time she acquired by her devotion a knowledge of the future, and went to the Guru in great tribulation. She said, “ Mercifully save thy children, for I foresee thou art going: to make them martyrs to thy cause.’ The Guru replied, ‘Is it to reverse God’s decree thou didst receive instruction from me? I intended that thou shouldst abandon worldly love, but it hath increased all the more. I have already granted thy sons high rank in God’s court. Wherefore anticipate not their fate.’ Jito, understanding that the Guru did not intend to save the lives of his children, said she was going to abandon her body for she could not bear to behold their death. The Guru replied, ‘It is well; thou mayest go; thy children shall follow thee. Death is the law of all bodies. Some. may perish four days before and some four days after ; but all must sooner or later pay the debt they owe.’ Upon this, it is said, Jito permanently suspended her breath, and her soul took flight to heaven.
One day the conversation turned on an expression used by Guru Har Kai, that the vessel which Baba Nanak had constructed for the salvation of the world had almost foundered. Guru Gobind Singh vowed that he would repair it for the deliverance of his Sikhs. On that occasion he gave the following instruction to his assembled Sikhs— ‘I have established the Khalsa for the advancement [ p. 152 ] of true religion. Let not my Sikhs live on religious offerings. He who bound by greed obeyeth me not in this, shall be born again as a hog. Religious offerings have the same dissolving effect on men’s minds as borax on gold.’ He then quoted the following lines from Gur Das :—
As it is the custom of Hindus to abstain from the flesh of kine,
As swine and interest are solemnly forbidden the Muhammadans,
As it is sinful for a father-in-law to drink even water in his son-in-law’s house,
As even a sweeper though hungry will not eat hare’s flesh,[4]
As a fly gaineth no advantage but dieth in the clasp of honey,
So is greed for sacred offerings which are like poison coated with sugar.[5]
‘ Let those who are baptized according to my rites bear arms and live according to their means. Let them remain true to their sovereign in the battlefield, and not turn their backs to the foe. Let them face and repel their enemies, and they shall obtain both glory in this world and the heroes’ heaven in the next. He who fleeth from the battlefield shall be dishonoured in this world, and when he dieth shall be punished for his cowardice, and nowhere shall he obtain a state of happiness. Let the members of the Khalsa associate with one another and love one another irrespective of tribe or caste. Let them hearken to the Guru’s instruction, and let their minds be thoroughly imbued with it.’
[ p. 153 ]
It is said that, as the Guru was one day hunting, he came on a field of tobacco. He reined in his horse and gave expression to his hatred of the plant. He maintained that it burned the chest, induced nervousness, palpitation, bronchitis, and other diseases, and finally caused death. He therefore counselled his Sikhs to abstain from the destructive drug, and thus concluded his discourse—‘ Wine is bad, bhang destroyeth one generation, but tobacco destroyeth all generations.’
The custom of sale and barter of horses and other animals at religious fairs prevailed even in the time of the Guru. He went to a fair held in Kurkhetar on the occasion of a solar eclipse in order to purchase horses to replace those which had been stolen or killed in the previous warfare. Among other admirers Madan Nath, a superior of Jogis, waited on him. On seeing the Guru he remarked that he had the external appearance of a lion, but that he was inwardly a saint. The Guru explained that his external appearance had been assumed with the object of inspiring terror into the Turks, who had inflicted great misery and hardship on his country.
Bhai Sukha Singh makes this event occur when the Guru was on his way to the South of India. In that case the father of the girl might have come from Rohtas in Bihar. ↩︎
For the dhoti or insecurely fastened loin-cloth worn by the Hindus the Guru substituted the short drawers called kachh. ↩︎
In the time of the Guru men who could afford the expense, wore gold and silver ornaments. The Guru desired to wean his followers from the practice, and counselled them to depend on steel both for ornaments and defensive weapons. ↩︎
The Shiah Muhammadans will not eat hare. In the Quran blood is forbidden as food, and it is believed by Shiahs that blood does not separate by any process from hare’s flesh. Lal Beg, the sweepers’ Pir, was a Shiah Muhammadan, ¢o they adopt his prejudice in this matter. ↩︎
War XXXV, 12. ↩︎