Vol. III — General View of Amritsar
LIFE OF GURU < ARJAN
the Ravi and Bias. He first visited Khadur and Goindwal, and then proceeded to the village of Sarhali, where he sought to obtain land whereon to build himself a dwelling.
A Sikh of the village of Bhaini in vited the Guru to visit him, and the Guru knowing his devotion consented. When he arrived in the village the day was far advanced. The Sikh’s wife saw that the Guru was hungry, but at the same time it would take too long to cook vegetables for his dinner. She therefore prepared a dish of broken bread mixed with butter and sugar, and laid it before him. Having satisfied himself he inquired the name of the village. She said, ‘ Bhaini.’ The Guru replied, * The name of this village shall be Cholha, that is, tit-bit, or dainty dish.’ Upon this he composed the following :—
I am a sacrifice to my Guru who implanted God’s name in my heart;
Who pointed out to me the straight road when I was in a great wilderness and darkness.
God is my life ;
He feeleth anxiety for me regarding everything in this world and the next.
By remembering Him I obtain all treasure, respect, greatness, and perfect honour.
By repeating His name, the dust of whose feet all saints desire, millions of sins are erased,
Let him who desireth all desirable things worship the one supreme Treasure.
The Lord is the supreme Being, limitless ; by remembering Him man crosseth over the world.
By abiding in the association of the saints man obtaineth comfort, peace, and great happiness, and his honour is preserved. *
To amass God’s wealth and make God’s name my food— Nanak hath made these things his cholha (dainties). 1
On the same occasion the Guru composed the following*
God’s name is priceless ;
It is naturally comfortable.
God abideth with me and helpeth ipej .He forsaketh me not; He’ is unfathomable and unrivalled. • t
^Heis my beloved brother, my father, my mother, and the shelter of the saints.
The Invisible is seen when He is obtained from the Guru, >vho, O Nanak, is God’s cholha (dainty). 1
The name Bhaini was duly changed into Cholha in the government records of the period.
A Jat inhabitant of the village of Cholha represented to Guru Arjan that the inhabitants of the village of Buh would not allow his cattle to graze on their lands, though he had an ancient right of pasturage. The Guru replied, ‘ Buh juh howega,’ that is, ‘ Buh shall become sterile,’ a prediction which was subsequently fulfilled.
Guru Arjan on this tour visited a village called Khanpur, between Goindwal and the present Tarn Taran. He was accompanied by five Sikhs, including Bidhi Chand and Gur Das, men famous in different ways, of whom we shall hereafter have much to say. He remained the whole day engaged in his devotions. In the evening it rained heavily and wintry winds were blowing. Bidhi Chand said to the Guru: ‘ That lofty house which thou seest in the village is very near. Let us go and rest there for the night.’ The Guru objected, and said it would be better to remain where they were than associate with the evil people who dwelt there. Bidhi Chand, however, prevailed on him to let him go into the village and endeavour to secure shelter, as the night was piercingly cold. Bidhi Chand begged the people to- let his party have even one room in which they could all sleep together. The villagers only laughed
LIFE * OF! GURU! ARJiAN 23
at him, and called the Guru and his Sikhs hypocrites. Bidhi Chand went and duly informed the Guru of the character of his reception. The Guru replied: ‘ Pay no heed, I told thee they were foul-tongued people. Whoever hath, devotion in his h^rt ( yill come to us of his own accord, and give us accommodation for the night.’
As Guru Arjan had anticipated, Hema, a devhut Sikh of the village, arrived and said, ‘ O true Guru, I have a tattered hut made out of grass and twigs which is at thy service. It will be hallowed by receiving thee.’ Hema, who had been made a Sikh by Guru Ram Das, lived by grinding corn for the villagers. His leisure time he employed in repeating the Guru's hymns. Though he was extremely poor, and possessed only a coarse blanket to Wear, his hut was ever open to the stranger. The Guru seeing his love and devotion gladly accepted his hospitality. He then cooked and supplied his distinguished guest with the best food in his possession. Before retiring he took off his sole blanket, and put it under the Guru as bedding, so that he might enjoy sweet repose. The Guru, seeing his devotion, composed the following
Very beautiful is that hut in which God’s praises are sung,
While the mansion in which God is forgotten is of no avaif.
There is a pleasure even in poverty when in the company of the saints God is remembered.
May that grandeur which is bound up with manimon perish !
Even when turning a handmill or wearing a coarse blanket, the heart may be happy and contented. > -
That empire is of no avail which conferreth not satisfaction.
( They who wander eyen naked in the love pf the pne God obtain honour, ,
While vain are silks and satins, attachment to which maketh man covetous.
Everything is in Thy power, O God; Thou actest and causest to act.
May Nanak obtain the gift of remembering Thee at every breath he draweth f 1 , ■ >. • 1
On the same occasion the Guiru composed the following
The place where the name of the beloved God is repeated, Is like a mansion of gold ;
The city in which the name of God is not repeated is like a wilderness. ,
He who eating dry bread remembereth God,
Shall behold Him whether at home or abroad.
Know that he who through pamperihg his belly com- mitteth bad deeds is planting for himself a garden of poison. The spiritually ignorant man who loveth not the saints, And committeth sins in company with the infidel,
, Loseth his human body so difficult of attainment, and uprooteth himself.
' I have entered Thine asylum, O compassionate to the poor. O ocean of comfort, my great God, •
Nanak singeth Thy praises, mercifully preserve his honour. 2
The Guru remained for some time in Khanpur. During his stay Hema obtained his desire, and went to his heavenly abode. After the Guru’s departure, the Emperor’s viceroy, who had some reason to be dissatisfied with the inhabitants of Khanpur, sent an army against it, razed it to the ground, and massacred its chief inhabitants. The survivors had reason to reflect on the words of Kabir
Kabir, the house in which God and His saints are not served,
Is like a cremation-ground and 1 ghosts dwell therein.
' The Gunl thence proceeded to the village of Khara, where he was pleased with the prospect around him
LIFE OF GURW ARJAN 25
—the flowering woods and glades, the limpid whter, and the fresh and exhilarating atmosphere. On entering the village he received a friendly reception from the headmen. ! They afterwards assisted him in obtainingdand from the villagers on which he laid the foundation of what is now the famous Sikh ! city of Tarn Taran, and proceeded to construct a tank for the devotional ablutions of his Sikhs. The year m which these events occurred is stated to be a. d. 1590. The name Tarn Taran means a raft to take men across the world's ocean. The Guru, at great expense, built lime-kilns and caused bricks to be baked. When these were seen by Nur-ul-Din, the local Muhammadan governor, they were, according to the tyrannical custom of the age. Seized by him for the construction of a seraglio designed by the Emperor for the public use. The Sikhs on seeing this suggested to the Guru to write to the Emperor to allow the tank to be finished and to inspire fear in Nur-ul-Din. The Guru, who was the essence of humility, refused to take notice of the outrage. He said that God had not yet ordered the tank to be made, wherefore they were to stop its construction altogether. ‘Mercy’, continued the Guru, ‘is the basis of religious worship; wherefore we should have mercy on every one. All the acts of him who hath not mercy in his heart are vain.’
In the Sambat year 1832 (a. d. 1775) Sardar Khushal Singh of Faizullapur and Sardar Jassa Singh of Ramgarh destroyed Nur-ul-Din's edifice, and employed the bricks, of which Nur-ul-Din had robbed the Guru, in the construction of the tank. 1
The approach to the temple lias lately been opened by the demolition of some houses, to whose proprietors large sums of money have been paid by willing subscribers as compensation.
The Guru then went into the Jalandhar district, where he purchased land to build another city, Kartarpur, or thei city of the Creator, which -has since risen to considerable spiritual and temporal eminence. It lies, in what is called the Jalandhar Doab between the Bias and Satluj rivers., ; .
The; Guru with his ; own hands cut i the first sod for the construction of the city and its necesr sarily accompanying well to supply water to the inhabitants. The well he called Gangsar, or the Ganges tank, for. the following reason; A man called Baisakhi, who used every year to visit the Ganges, once called upon the Guru on his way. The Guru asked him not to go, but bathe in his well, worship God, repeat the true Name, and he should thus obtain all the advantages of bathing in the Ganges. Baisakhi respectfully represented that he had made a vow to go to the Ganges^ and must accordingly proceed thither. The Guru, on seeing his determination, allowed him to continue his journey. When Baisakhi on the point of returning sought to fill a vessel with Ganges water, it slipped from his hand and was taken away by the current. He did all in his power to recover it, but in vain. When he returned to the Guru, and related the untoward incident, it is said that the Guru to his astonishment produced in his presence from the new well the very vessel that had fallen from his hands at the Ganges. Baisakhi was then convinced that his pilgrimage to Hardwar had been in, vain. On this account the well at Kartarpur was called the Gangsar.
The Guru went to the country of Nakka at the invitation of Bhai Bhuria, Chaudhri Chuhar Mai, and other pious Sikhs. He visited Khemkaran, Chunian, and other villages, where he preached with great success. He then went to J ambar, where he remained for some time, during which he converted Kidara, Kheda, Samdu, Mukanda, Tulsa, Lalu, and others]
LIFE OF GURU ARJAN 27
The Guru then proceeded to Lahore at the request of the Sikhs who resided there. He rested in the Dabbi Bazar on the site of the present Guru’s Bawali', and planned its construction. People of all classes hearing Of his fame flocked to see him, receive his instruction, and make provision for their future salvation. Thither came the Jogi Sambhunath and the Hindu saints Kahna and Chhajju; the Moslem saints Shah Husain, Shah Sulaiman, Shah Inayat Qadari, Shaikh Wali Shah, and others, all humbling themselves before the Guru and beseeching soul-saving: religious instruction. The, Guru .flying his thoughts on God uttered the following hymn
O wise men, think of the Lprd in your hearts.
The true King, the Releaser from bondage, dwelleth in the heart by the mind’s affection.
Nothing is equal in value to the sight of God.
Thou art the pure Cherisher ; Thou Thyself art the Lord great and incomparable.
• Give me Thy hand, O Brave One, Thou art the only one to assist me.
O Creator, by Thy power didst Thou Create the World ; Thou art Nanak’s prop. 1
This hymn, when heard by the Viceroy of Lahore', produced a great impression on his mind. It is said that he reformed his life, and devoted himself to God’s service. He invited the Guru to ask him a favour. The Guru did so, and the result was the excavation of the Bawali at the Viceroy’s expense.
The Guru then went to the shrine of Guru Napak at Dehra Baba Nanak in the Gurdaspur district. Thence he proceeded to Barath in the same district to visit Sri Chand, Guru Nanak’s sop. After piutuaf salutations they held a conversation. Sri Chand asked why the Guru wandered hither and thither and, did not reside in Amritsar. The Guru replied
that Prithia was distressed at his residence there, and so he travelled to propagate his religion. After some further conversation, in the course of which Sri Chand censured the conduct of Prithia, and said it would be the cause of his damnation, the Guru took his departure for Amritsar, and thus consulted the wishes of his Sikhs and of Sri Chand.
Chapter V
After the Guru’s return to Amritsar, Prithia continued to annoy him as before. Prithia’s jealousy was to a 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.
0 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.
LIFE OF GURU ARJAN 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.
I 11 the same way, Nanak, wise men regard family and wealth as perishable, and remember God’s name. 2
O my good wife, even if Karmo’s jealousy and pride please thee not, be not jealous and proud like her. If one throw a 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. 3
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
desire a, son, then go to Bhai Budha, an ancient Sikh of Baba Nanak’s time, and wait on him. He dwell- eth 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 a son. 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 cortege 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-chtter 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
LITE OF GURU ARjAN
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. 1
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 instruc-
tions, 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.’