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BABA FATEH SINGH G
Sahibzada Fateh Singh (12 December 1699 -26 December 1705), the youngest of Guru Gobind Singh's four sons, was born to Mata Jitoji (also known as Mata Sundari ji) at Anandpuron 12 December 1699. During the flight from Anandpur, when the Sikhs, having been promised safe passage to Punjab, Sahibzada Fateh Singh was, along with his elder brotherZorawar Singh, put under the care of his grandmother, Mata Gujari Kaur ji, Unfortunately in the confusion of the rain swollen Sarsa (normally little more than a creek) and an attack by Muslim pursuers, the Guru's two youngest sons and their Grandmother were separated from the main body of Sikhs. However, managing to get across they were befriended by one of the Guru's former cooks. Later betrayed and handed off by the authorities of the small village where they had been given sanctuary, they were handed over to agents of Wazir Khan and carted off to Sirhind and placed under arrest in the Khan's Thanda Burj (cold tower). While the Thanda Burj was built to capture the cool night breezes of air drawn over water channels in the areas hot summers, during the dead of winter the unheated burj offered no comfort for the Guru's mother and sons.
On 26 December 1705, Fateh Singh and his elder brother, Zorawar Singh were martyred at Sirhind. Fateh Singh is probably the youngest recorded martyr in history who knowingly laid down his life at the very tender age of 6 years. Sahibzada Fateh Singh and his older brother, Sahibzada Zorawar Singh are among the most hallowed martyrs in Sikhism.
The mind boggles to understand how children of such young age had the guts, courage, bravery and focus to refuse the promise of many lavish gifts and a future of cosy comforts of royalty that were being offered by the Mughals. All they had to do to get all these luxuries was to abandon their religion. This young child was asked to weigh an easy out against the stark option of a brutal, painful and tragic death entombed within a wall of bricks and cement.
The world salutes the supreme sacrifice of these kids of steel who never once - even for a moment considered the easy option and always remained focused on their mission to uphold the principles of God's kingdom and allowed their bodies to be tortured, violated and endured the intense pain of a slow, pain-ridden and certain death.
On the one hand the world witnessed, the supreme sacrifice of the youngest members of the Guru's household for the highest ideals of humanity and on the other hand you have the lowly, cruel, cold-blooded and barbaric acts of the heartless and immoral Wazir Khan who had broke an oath sworn on his own Holy book—the Qur'an. May the world reflect on this supreme sacrifice made by this 6 year old, following in the footsteps of his grandfather, Guru Tegh Bahadar to fight for justice and for the right of his people and people of other faiths to practise their own faiths without interference or imposition. May we all, the different peoples of our planet learn from this episode in our global history, the values of life and the way to uphold these values. Also, may we all realise the dangers posed by uncontrolled and immoral minds on the development of humanity on this fragile earth.
The flight from Anandpur
A combination of Mughals and hillmen besieged Anandpur Sahib on the orders of emperor Aurangzeb. Finally the stock of food in the town ran out. The Mughals promised safe passage to Punjab for the Sikhs if they would hand over the fortress of Anandpur. At first Guru Gobind tested their promise of safe passage by staging a test which the attackers failed miserably, later with promises written in the margins of the Muslims Holy Qur'an and some of the sacred writings of the Hindu elements of the army that had all but starved his small contingent of family and Sikhs and a personal promise of safety by Aurangzeb sent by an ajent of the Emperor who was fighting in the distant Deccan, the Guru was persuaded to agree to their offer, leaving Anandpur with his family and a small band of retainers.
They had not gone very far when the Mughals, breaking their promise, came after them. Guru Gobind and his two older sons got separated from his mother, Mata Gujri and his two youngest sons, Zorawar and Fateh Singh during the confused departure from Anandpur. After they managed to cross the nearby river they felt themselves saved when they reached the village of Sahedi and ran into their former Hindu cook, Gangu who kindly gave them shelter in his home. But like a sly fox he handed them over to the Mughal authorities of his village, no doubt hoping for a reward.
Turned over to the faujdar of Morinda. They were soon taken to Sirhind where, still stinging over the escape of the Guru, Wazir Khan, the Nawab of Sirhind was most pleased to have the two young Princes.
The two sons of Guru Gobind, Zorawar (9 years old) and Fateh (6 years old) were offered princely rewards, riches, honor and power if they would only bend down and recite the Kalma and becomeMuslims. With a courage that belied their years, both boys refused to do so.
Wazir Khan, loosing his chance to gain some small bit of revenge on the Guru, sentenced them to death. He gave orders that masons were to brick the Gurus two youngest sons into a section of the citiy's wall. Perhaps the masons were either Hindus who saw the cruelty of the orders or Muslims who had a better sense of the teachings of Islam than the angry Khan, which forbid the killing of innocents (especially children and women) for history tells us that the wall fell apart, as if mocking the faujdar's orders, who angryly ordered his executioner to kill the two youngest sons of the Guru in the same manner their grandfather had been killed. Told of the death of her grandsons the Guru's mother too left her earthly body.
Although he did not know it then, Wazir Khan was to pay for the crimes that he had committed. After Guru Gobind's death, Madhodas Bairagi, a former Hindu mendicant from Nanded, whom the Guru baptised as Banda Bahadur, was charged by a dying Guru Gobind Singh with returning to the Punjab and rallying the Sikhs to rid the land of Mughal rule. He and an army of Sikhs besieged the Punjab. After laying waste, to the cities of Samana and Sandhaura, he attacked Sirhind and after defeating the city's Mughal defenders, Wazir Khan was killed.
The place where the two sons of Guru Gobind were Martyred is today known as Fatehgarh Sahib.
BABA FATEH SINGH G
Diwan Todar Mal
This incident occurred after the Sahibzade had been executed by the Mughal authorities on the 12 December 1705 for not renouncing their faith and the death from shock of their grandmother at the news of the sudden and despicable execution of the innocent youngsters. This wealthy merchant had to cover the required ground for cremation with gold coins to get the release of the three bodies.
Contents
[hide]The Compassionate Sikh
The administrator's stipulation was that the buyer (Todar Mall) will take only as much of the space as he could cover with gold mohars (gold coins), that he would lay out for the purchase. The diwan produced the coins and bought the piece of land he needed for the cremation. It is estimated (see below) that at least 7,800 gold coins were required to buy the required land.The compassionate Sikh trader of Sirhind, according to tradition, performed the last rites for the two younger sons of Guru Gobind Singhmartyred on the orders of Wazir Khan, faujdar of Sirhind, and of Mata Gujari, the Guru's mother. It is said that landowners around the Sirhind Fort would not permit him to hold the cremation in their fields, until one Chaudhari Atta agreed to sell him a plot.
History tells us the Seth ji raised the required number of coins and that he cremated the three bodies and putting the ashes in an urn which he buried in the land he had bought. The site is now marked byGurdwara Jyoti Saroop at Fatehgarh Sahib, near Sirhind.
Dewan Todarmal Marg
Modern historians have tried to identify Seth Todar Mall as a son or later descendant of Raja Todar Mall, of Sirhind, who won renown as an administrator under the Mughal emperors, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb, and who, according to Shah Nawaz Khan, Ma'asir ulUmara, lived up to 1076 AH/AD 1666. To perpetuate the memory of the noble-minded Seth, a road in Sirhind town and a hall in Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib have now been named after him.
The Haveli Todar Mal also known as Jahaz Haveli is situated on the eastern side of Sirhind-Ropar Railway Line just 1 kilometre away from Fatehgarh Sahib. These are the remains of the Haveli of Devan Todar Mal, and a fine building it must have been in its hay day. Todar Mal was a true Sikh of Guru Gobind Singh. In the dark days when Guru Sahib made his way through the jungles of Machhiwara, and his younger sons were put on trial by Zikharia Khan many Sikhs betrayed the Guru.
Background
h Mata Gujri and the younger sons of the Guru – Baba Zorawar Singh and Baba Fateh Singh – shaheed (martyred) at the tender ages of 6 and 9 the despicable Mughal authorities refused their funeral rites on government land, it was decreed that there funeral rites could only be performed on land bought from Chaudhari Atta. Not only this, but the land could only be bought by laying gold coins (ashrifs) on the required area, possibly vertically.As the tenth Guru made his way from Machhiwara through to Talwandi Sabo many so called devotees asked Guru to leave their premises as they were in fear that if the authorities were to hear of it then they would be persecuted. But not Todar Mal, he did not shirk his responsibilities, he put the Guru's needs before everything.
Todar Mal did not shun his responsibility and laid down the required coins and made arrangements for the cremations.
Let us look at this in a little detail, say that a gold coin has a diameter of around 3cm and would take up an area of (3 x 3 ) 9cm squared. The land required for the martyred children would be approximately 2.0m by 2.0m a total area of 40,000 cm squared if laid next to each other. Add to this the area required for Mata Ji (2.0m by 1.5m) if the coins were laid horizontally then to cover this area would require around 7800 gold coins. Now, if the coins had to be stacked vertically then possibly 10 coins would be needed to cover the 9cm squared area, so vertically 7800 x 10 coins would be required, or 78,000. That is an awful lot of gold coins today, one can only imagine how much they were worth three hundred years ago. It is safe to say it was probably his life’s savings. Maybe he had to beg and borrow to raise the total amount, who knows, but the fact remains this was truly a noble deed. Todar Mal forsake everything for his love of Guru Gobind Singh, which is the reason why Sikhs hold Dewan Todar Mal in such high esteem.
Since all historic sites have now been destroyed and covered by such beautiful slabs of marble it is hard to envisage the type of Havali that Guru Gobind Singh and his 40 Sikhs took over at Chamkaur Sahib. By looking at the above images of Devan Todar Mals' haveli one can get an idea of the types of structure they were. This sweeps away the notion that a haveli was some sort of ramshackle building or wooden stables, rather they were solid buildings which could be defended against a potential siege situation, which is exactly what happened at Chamkaur Sahib. It is now easier to see how Guru Ji and 40 Singhs held out in such a building while around them the enemy hordes laid siege.
In the News
Diwan Todar Mal Jain of Sirhind, a local businessman, was an ardent follower of the Sikh Gurus. His richness could be gauged from his lavish haveli “Jahaz Mahal”. Constructed just outside the Mughal Governor Nawab Wazir Khan’s palace, Diwan Todar Mal’s haveli boasts of a grand reception area to receive and entertain guests and a well laid-out ground complete with a pool and fountains.by Surinder Bhardwaj The Tribune India, Fatehgarh Sahib, January 1, 2004
Little did he know that fate would bring him to a point where he would have to choose between his faith and fortune. And he sacrificed fortune at the alter of faith. At the end of 1704 A.D. the young Sahibzadas of Guru Gobind Singh, Baba Zorawar Singh and Baba Fateh Singh, were captured and bricked alive by Nawab Wazir Khan of Sirhind. When nobody had the courage to cremate the Sahibzadas, Diwan Todar Mal risked his life and took possession of the bodies.
The only palpable testimony to their existence is the haveli, which stands forlorn. Diwan Todar Mal gained immortality with this act and became a legend. The haveli has withstood the ransacking and destruction of Sirhind by Banda Singh Bahadur. The Sikh Confederacy left the haveli untouched out of great respect for Diwan Todar Mal. Unfortunately, the respect did not endure down the ages and unscrupulous people occupied its gardens and started taking away wood and bricks, causing the fall of certain portions. Nature too left its mark on the beautiful haveli in the absence of any caretaker. Successive governments too could not find time, effort or money to spare on the historical building.Immediately a royal order was issued, stating that the last rites could not be preformed on Mughal land. The Diwan had to buy land for cremating the Sahibzadas. He ensured that the last rites of the two were performed with full respect. But for this he had lose the peace and prosperity for his own family. Bankrupt and a victim of Nawab Wazir Khan’s wrath the family fled their beautiful home and eventually faded into oblivion.
Now Punjab Virasat Charitable Trust under Mr S.K. Ahluwalia, Deputy Commissioner, has formed a charitable association to acquire and restore the haveli to its former glory and to acquaint the people about the sacrifice and selflessness behind it.
BABA ZORAWAR SINGH G
Sahibzada Zorawar Singh (Punjabi: ਸਾਹਿਬਜ਼ਾਦਾ ਜ਼ੋਰਾਵਰ ਸਿੰਘ) was the third of Guru Gobind Singh's four sons. He and his younger brother,Sahibzada Fateh Singh are among the most hallowed martyrs in Sikhism.
A combination of Mughals and hillmen besiegedAnandpur Sahib on the orders of emperorAurangzeb. The stock of food in the town ran out. The Mughals promised to leave the Sikhs alone if they would hand over the fortress of Anandpur. To this Guru Gobind agreed and left the town with his family and a small band of retainers.
They had not gone very far when the Mughals, breaking their promise, came after them. Guru Gobind entrusted his two younger sons, Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh as well as his mother,Mata Gujri, to the care of a cook in his household named Gangu.
Gangu brought Mata Gujri and the two Sahibzadas to his native village of Sahedi. Bribed by the Mughals, he turned over the three members of Guru Gobind's family to the faujdar of Morinda. They were then brought toSirhind in the presence of Wazir Khan, the Nawab of Sirhind.
The two sons of Guru Gobind, Zorawar (7 years old - Born: 1697) and Fateh (5 years old - Born: 1699) were offered safe passage if they became Muslims. Both refused, and so Wazir Khan sentenced them to death. They were bricked alive. [1]
After Guru Gobind's death, Madhodas Bairagi, a hermit from Nanded, whom the Guru baptised as Gurbaksh Singh, commonly known as Banda Bahadur, besieged the Punjab. After laying waste, the cities of Samana and Sandhaura, he moved towards Sirhind and after defeating the Mughal forces, beheaded Wazir Khan.
The place where the two sons of Guru Gobind were bricked alive is today known asFatehgarh Sahib.
Zorawar Singh (November 28, 1696 -December 26, 1705), the third son of Guru Gobind Singh, was born to Mata Jito Ji (also known as Mata Sundari Ji) at Anandpur on November 28, 1696. He was barely nine years old at the time of the evacuation of Anandpur on the night of December 20, 1704.
Since the death of Mata Jito Ji(1) on December 5, Zorawar's grandmother, Mata Gujari, became especially attached to young Zorawar Singh and his infant brother, Fateh Singh. She took charge of both children as the column moved out of Anandpur.
While crossing the rivulet Sirsa on horseback, then in spate, the three were separated from Guru Gobind Singh. Their cook, Gangu, who had also succeeded in crossing the stream, escorted them to his own house in the village of Kheri, now known as Saheri, near Morinda in present day Ropar District.
While unsaddling the horse, Gangu saw that there was some valuables in the saddlebag. This tempted him to treachery. He not only stole the saddlebag during the night, but also planned to betray the fugitives to the government in hope of a reward.
Treachery by Gangu
On the morning of December 21, 1704, the day of the fatefulBattle of Chamkaur, Baba Zorawar Singh ji along with Baba Fateh Singh Ji and their grandmother, were taken into custody by Jani Khan and Mani Khan Ranghar, the officials at Morinda, after their cover was blown by Gangu who had reported them to the Mughal authorities.
They were dispatched on the following day to Sirhind, where they were consigned to the Cold Tower (Thanda Burj) of the fort. This spot is marked by the famous Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib.
On December 23, 1704, Baba Zorawar Singh Ji and Baba Fateh Singh Ji were produced before the faujdaar, Nawab Wazir Khan, who had just returned from Chamkaur with his feudal ally, Nawab Sher Muhammad Khan of Malerkotla.
Wazir Khan tried to lure the Sahibzade to embrace Islam with promises of riches and honors, but they spurned the suggestion. He then threatened them with death, but they remained undaunted. The death sentence of the two children was finally announced.
Upon Sher Muhammad Khan's intercession for the innocent children's lives to be spared, Zorawar and Fateh were given some more time to ponder over the suggestion to convert. Sahibzada Zorawar Singh Ji and his brother spent another two days during the severe winter in their old grandmother's lap in theCold Tower.
Atrocity by the Mughals
Still adamant, the young Sikhs were ordered to be sealed alive in a wall on December 25, 1704. According to tradition, as the masonry around their tender bodies reached chest high, it crumbled. The Sahibzade were sent to the Cold Tower again for the night. The next day, December 26, 1704, after the alternative of conversion was turned down again, Baba Zorawar Singh Ji and Baba Fateh Singh Ji were martyred by being sealed alive in a wall.
The aged Mata Gujari Kaur Ji, who had all along been kept in the Cold Tower only a little distance away, breathed her last as the news reached her ears. Mata Gujari Kaur, through the upbringing of her grandsons, played an important role in Sikhism and as Sikhs, we owe our existence to her.
It was due to her teachings that the 7 year old Zorawar Singh and 5 year old Fateh Singh did not budge from their Dharma and attained martyrdom., thus continuing and emphasizing the institute of martyrdom in Sikhism.
Seth Todar Mall, a wealthy merchant of Sirhind, performed the cremation of the three dead bodies the following day. The site of the fateful happenings, since christened as Fatehgarh Sahib, is close to the old town of Sirhind and is now marked by four Sikh shrines. A religious fair is held there from December 25 to 28 every year to honor the memory of the martyrs.
Death of Mata Jito in 1700 questioned
Following the link to Mata Jito Ji, one finds that "…consequent upon the evacuation of Anandpur on the night of 20 December 1704, Mata Sundari ji, along with Mata Sahib Devan (who adopted the name 'Sahib Kaur' after recieving Amrit), was escorted by Bhai Mani Singh Ji to Delhi."
She lived for many years in Delhi after the death of her husband, Guru Gobind Singh Ji. The writer/s of this article have followed the same line of reasoning that earlier historians have followed — that at the time the young Sahibzade were escorted out of Anandpur by their grandmother, their mother had died earlier in the confused fighting that took place at Anandpur Sahib.
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