One day the Sikhs asked a pandit who used to read epic poems to the Guru, ‘ Are the deeds attributed to Bhim, Arjan, and others, real or exaggerated?’ The pandit, thus addressed, actuated by greed, decided to mislead his questioners, and replied, ‘ Bhim, Arjan, and the rest were really as powerful as they are described to have been. This was the result of their sacrifices and burnt offerings in honour of Durga which made her visible to them.’ The Sikhs then prayed the pandit to show them how they could behold the goddess, and vanquish their enemies. The pandit, on hearing this, inwardly rejoiced that the Sikhs had at last fallen into his power, and, what he deemed more important, that he had found an opportunity of making a competence for himself. He replied, ‘ Although no god or goddess becometh visible in this Kal age, yet such a manifestation may be possible by a due expenditure of money and by the performance of certain. acts of devotion. Were the goddess Durga to appear, she would fulfil all your desires. But a great feast must first be celebrated, and a trial made as to who [ p. 61 ] are the most holy Brahmans, so that they may perform sacrifice and burnt offerings with the object of ensuring the appearance of the goddess.’ The Sikhs informed the Guru of this conversation. He said to the pandit, ‘Your statement that the goddess becometh not manifest in the Kal age is not supported by proof. If she appeared in the past ages, why should she not also in this ? And if she appear not in this age, then it is unlikely that she appeared in any former age. At the same time, I require not her blessings or curses. I am son of the Immortal, who is the King of gods and men, who controlleth millions of worlds, who is omnipotent, who cherisheth me; and I have no need to adore gods or goddesses.’ [1]
The pandit again represented that if the Sikhs made Durga manifest, they should be successful in all their battles as Durga herself had been in all her contests [2] with the demons who had made war on the benign deities. The Guru being thus importuned, determined to demonstrate the hypocrisy of the Brahmans. He invited them all to a great feast. Every form of viands, including meat, was provided for the guests. When they were assembled, he made it known that he would give five gold muhars to each Brahman who ate meat, while to each of those who ate food cooked with clarified butter he would give five rupees. To eat meat is really forbidden to all Brahmans; yet several of them did so, induced by the promised reward. According to one account fourteen, and according to another twenty-one Brahmans refused the meat offered them. The Guru went to the Brahmans who had eaten it, and rebuked them, saying, ‘ You are setting a bad example to your people. You are not Brahmans but ghouls. It is to deceive men you wear the tilaks on your foreheads and pretend you are high priests [ p. 62 ] of religion, but in reality you are merely Chandals, the lowest class of pariahs.’ The Guru, however, gave them the prornised reward.
On that occasion the Guru quoted the following words of Kabir :—
Kabir, where there is divine knowledge there is virtue : and where there is falsehood there is sin ;
Where there is covetousness there is death ; where there is forgiveness there is God Himself.
The Guru also quoted the following slok of Guru Amar Das :—
As far as possible rely not on the covetous : At the last moment they will plant thee where nobody will lend thee a hand.
The Brahmans who abstained from meat pressed the pandit’s suggestion on the Guru, ‘If thou by worship and austerities can behold Durga, who is the living burning light of this age, she will grant thee any boon thou mayest desire.’ The Guru inquired, Can you render Durga manifest ? What you propose is not according to my religion.’ The Brahmans replied that there was a Brahman called Kesho at Banaras who had power to render the goddess manifest, but he would demand large remuneration. The Guru again asked how a man filled with greed, such as they represented Kesho to be, could possess such spiritual power as to cause Durga to appear. The Brahmans, unable to answer this question, took their departure.
The Guru utilized the assemblage at the Hindu festival of the Holi to organize on the following day a mimic warfare, which he called mahalla,[3] for the exercise of his troops. The object of the Guru has in recent times been obtained by the camps of exercise yearly established by the Indian Government.[4]
[ p. 63 ]
Kesho, who was exceedingly avaricious, heard that the Guru was very open-handed, and accordingly went to him. He said he was on his way to behold the goddess of Jawalamukhi, but had halted to see the Guru whose greatness was universally recognized. He told the Guru that he had power to render the goddess manifest, but the ceremonies and burnt offerings which would have to be performed as a preliminary would be very expensive. Kesho was supported by the other Brahmans, who again pressed the Guru to have the necessary ceremonies and burnt offerings performed. The Guru in order to demonstrate Kesho’s insincerity outwardly accepted his offer. The Brahman on ascertaining the Guru’s wealth was highly pleased and promised all assistance. He made out a list of materials for a hom or burnt offering, which would cost a large sum of money. The Guru provided what was required, and asked where the hom was to be performed. The Brahman replied that it must be performed in a lonely spot. The Guru pointed to the beautiful hill of Naina Devi as a place where all ceremonies could be performed privately and without interruption. The Brahman was much pleased, praised the Guru’s judgement and liberality, and said that the goddess would certainly appear at the place indicated. The Guru then ordered the ground to be cleared, after which the Brahman proceeded to perform the ceremonies necessary for the goddess’s manifestation.
One day the Guru went out shooting and killed several forest birds. On his return Kesho told him the goddess would never appear to any one who took life. The Guru replied that animals were continually sacrificed to the Brahman’s goddess at Jawalamukhi. He then ordered his servant to let go the birds. When the strings with which they had been fastened to the Guru’s saddle were undone, it is said, the birds flew away. Kesho was astonished and [ p. 64 ] expressed himself happy at having been brought in contact with such a holy man as the Guru.
The Guru had many strange presents made him. One day a gardener presented himself. He had come all the way from Patna with a young mangotree as an offering. The gardener narrated how he had planted a garden, and vowed in the hope of success to give the first tree it produced to the Guru. He now brought the tree, and asked the Guru where he would have it planted. The Guru said he would shoot an arrow, and where it fell the tree might be planted. The Guru’s arrow fell far distant, and there the young tree was duly planted.
After nine months’ worship and invocation of the goddess the pandit told the Guru that she would soon appear. There would be many indications of such a result. A disastrous earthquake would occur, there would be unusual lightnings, and several other formidable portents would appear in the heavens. The Guru pressed the Brahman to fix a date for the goddess’s appearance. The Brahman fixed the first day of the Nauratar—a festival in honour of Durga held in the month of Assu and Chet—for the phenomenon. The first day of Chet passed, and she did not appear. The Brahman then said she would appear on the fifth of the Nauratar. The fifth day passed, and she did not appear. The Brahman then said that some holy person must be offered as a sacrifice to her, and she would afterwards undoubtedly disclose herself. The Guru replied, ‘ Who so worthy to be offered as a sacrifice as thou ? Thou sayest there are none so holy as Brahmans.’ The pandit on hearing this began to suspect that the Guru meant to sacrifice him to the goddess, and, if this occurred, what a sad recompense it would be for all his labours! He then said, ‘If thou give me permission, I will go and fetch a human sacrifice. The Guru replied, ‘ No; the sacrifice is here.’ On this the pandit’s courage oozed forth from the [ p. 65 ] partitions of his brain. He immediately left the Guru’s presence on the pretext of performing an office of nature, and never paused in his flight until he had arrived at a safe retreat.
After Kesho had thus absconded, the Guru ordered that the materials which had been collected for the ceremony should be thrown into the hom-pit. Upon this a great flame shot up towards the heavens. When this was seen from afar, all the spectators felt certain that the Guru himself had caused Durga to appear. The Guru drew his sword and set out for Anandpur. When the people asked if the goddess had appeared to him, he raised his sword aloft, inasmuch as to say that by God’s assistance his sword would perform the deeds which the Brahmans attributed to Durga. The people then erroneously believed that the goddess had given him the sword.[5]
The Baisakhi festival was now approaching. The Guru gave a great feast to which he invited all who were assembled in Anandpur, but omitted the Brahman Kesho. He, however, sent for him when all the guests had partaken of the feast. Kesho angrily refused the invitation, and said he would not eat the leavings of a low-caste rabble. Diwan Nand Chand, on behalf of the Guru, recalled to Kesho’s memory the fact that he had like a coward deserted him. ‘Fine service thou didst perform for him, and thine anger and disappointment are the result!’ Kesho on further reflection went to the Guru, but at the same time refused to eat the remains of the feast. The Guru composed the following on this occasion :—
Whatever God wrote in thy destiny thou hast obtained ; O Brahman, banish thy regret :
It is not my fault that it escaped my memory; think not of anger.
I shall send thee clothes and bedding to-day; be thoroughly assured of this. [ p. 66 ]
Kesho replied—All Khatris are made by the Brahmans.
The Guru—Look on my Sikhs here with a glance of favour.[6]
Here the Guru began to laud his Sikhs and acknowledge the powerful assistance he had received from them :—
My victories in battle have been through their favour ; through their favour I have already made gifts ;
Through their favour all my troubles have been removed ; through their favour again my house is replenished ;
Through their favour I have acquired knowledge; through their kindness all my enemies have been killed ;
Through their favour I am exalted; otherwise there are millions of ordinary men like myself.[7]
To serve them pleaseth my heart; no other service is dear to my soul. ;
To bestow gifts on them is well; to make gifts to others is not profitable for my Sikhs.
To bestow upon them will bear fruit in the next world and will bring honour even in this: to bestow on others is altogether useless.
All the wealth of my house with my soul and body is for them.
The Brahman became angry and his heart began to fry and burn like dry grass.
He wept at the custom which had been established for the future.
Some writers are of opinion that the Guru, during the time the chroniclers state he was occupied in worshipping Durga, was in reality translating Sanskrit works in the seclusion and tranquillity of the mountain glades. These events occurred in Sambat 1755, [ p. 67 ] A. D. 1698,[8] and it was on the fourteenth day of June of that year the Guru according to his own statement completed his translation of the Ram Avatar from Sanskrit into Hindi. He adds that it was completed at the base of the lofty Naina Devi on the margin of the Satluj waters.
Bhai Gyan Singh’s Panth Parkash, Chapter 25. ↩︎
These are related in the Markandeya Puran of the Hindus. The work has recently been translated by Mr. I. E. Pargiter. ↩︎
A place for halla or contest. ↩︎
Sardar Kahn Singh’s Gurumat Prabhakar, p. 134. ↩︎
Gyan Singh’s Panth Parkash, Chapter 25. ↩︎
This was said ironically. The Guru did not require Kesho’s assistance for his Sikhs. ↩︎
That is, if the Sikhs had not assisted me I should be now in the same plight as millions of others. ↩︎
Siraj Parkash, Rut UI, Chapter 29. ↩︎