Baba Banda Singh Bahadur
Banda Singh was known as Lachhman Dev in his childhood. Specifically, he was born on Kartik Sudi 13th, Samvat 1727, Bikrami, on the 27th of October, 1670, at Rajori in the Punchh district of western Kashmir. Furthermore, his father Ram Dev was an ordinary Rajput plowman of the Bhardwaj clan.
| Name | Birth Date | Martyrdom |
|---|---|---|
| Banda Singh Bahadur | 27th October 1670 | 9 June 1716 |
As is often the case with such persons, who are born in poor circumstances and rise to historical importance in the later years of their lives, nothing is known of his early childhood. However, it is known that the child Lachhman Dev, true to the traditions of his race, developed into a youth of very active habits, full of energy and fond of shooting and hunting.
- Baba Banda Singh Bahadur - An Old Painting
At that time, formal education was not widely accessible in the region. The Brahmins held an exclusive monopoly over it from time immemorial. Even in the twentieth century, we seldom hear of any learned person of outstanding merit in Kashmir beyond the Pundits. Consequently, Lachhman Dev's birthplace was situated in one of the most backward districts in matters of education.
| Popular Name | Baba Banda Singh Bahadur |
|---|---|
| Birthname | Lachhman Dev |
| Other Names | Madho Das, Gurbaksh Singh |
| Birthdate, Place | 27th October 1670 CE, Rajouri |
| First Guru | Janaki Dass (Initiated into Bairagi Panth) |
| Second Guru | Augharh Nath (Mastered Occult Powers from him) |
| Third Guru | Guru Gobind Singh (Spiritual Master, Initiated into Khalsa at Nanded) |
| Came to Punjab | 1708 CE |
| Battles Fought | Samana, Sadhaura, Sarhind, Ghurani, Malerkotla, Gurdas Nangal |
| Rule Over Punjab | From Panipat to East of Lahore |
| Spouse | Susheel Kaur |
| Children | Ajay Singh |
| Martyrdom | 9th June 1716 CE, Delhi |
Subsequently, it is related that during one of his hunting excursions, he became an ascetic under the teachings of a Bairagi Saint Janakidas who named him Madho Das.
Later, he wandered across the Godavari, practiced and gained many siddhis, and ultimately settled himself in Nanded. He was undoubtedly a mine of energy and enthusiasm, but his energy was misdirected until he met Guru Gobind Singh during his last days.
Conversation with Guru Gobind Singh
On coming under the spiritual influence of the Guru, Madho Das respectfully addressed him. Ahmad Shah of Batala records the following dialogue in the Zikr-i-Guruan wa Ibtida-i-Singhan wa Mazhab-i-Eshan.
- A Symbolic representation of Guru Gobind Singh Giving His Blessings to Banda Singh Before Leaving for Punjab
Madho Das: Who are you?
Guru Govind Singh: He whom you know.
Madho Das: What do I know?
Guru Govind Singh: Think it over in your mind.
Madho Das (after a pause): So you are Guru Govind Singh!
Guru Govind Singh: Yes!
Madho Das: What have you come here for?
Guru Govind Singh: I have come so that I may convert you into a disciple of mine.
Madho Das: I submit, my Lord. I am a Banda (a slave) of yours.
Following this encounter, after taking Pahul at the hands of Guru Gobind Singh, he was renamed Banda Singh.
Moreover, putting on his consecrated steel—his sword dangling by his side, and his iron bracelet on his arm—and adopting the title of 'Singh', his slumbering energy was resuscitated.
In addition, he did not take long to acquaint himself with the early history of Sikhism. He listened to the stories of the martyrdom of Guru Arjan and Guru Tegh Bahadur and many Singhs murdered at the hands of the Mughals. Witnessing the story of bricking up alive the younger Sahibzadas drove him into a sort of frenzy.
Banda left for Punjab
Eventually, Guru Sahib entrusted the military command of his people to the charge of Banda Singh Bahadur and gave him his 5 special arrows and the title "Bahadur". In 1707, Banda Singh left for Punjab under the guidance of 5 Pyare: Bhai Binod Singh, Kahan Singh, Baj Singh, Daya Singh, and Ram Singh. Furthermore, Guru Sahib handed over a Hukamnama to him, asking the Sikhs of Punjab to join the struggle for freedom.
Attacks on Samana, Sadhaura, and Sirhind
Initially, Banda Singh Bahadur resolved to commence operations by teaching a lesson to the faujdar of Kaithal for the atrocities committed by him and then to attack Samana.
Subsequently, in November 1709, Banda Singh attacked Samana, the native town of Jalal-ud-Din, the executioner of Guru Tegh Bahadur, and of the two executioners - Shashal Beg and Bashal Beg who had volunteered to behead Guru Gobind Singh Ji's two young sons at Sirhind. As a result, Samana was reduced to a mass of smoking ruins.
Following the attack on Samana, Banda Singh occupied Ghurham, Thaska, Shahabad, and Mustafabad. The town of Kapuri near Patiala, whose faujdar, Qadam-ud-Din, was notorious for his atrocities on Hindus and Sikhs, was razed to the ground.
Next, it was the turn of Sadhaura, whose chief, Usman Khan, had not only oppressed the Hindus but had also tortured to death the Muslim saint, Sayyid Buddhu Shah, for having helped Guru Gobind Singh JI in the battle of Bhangani. Therefore, Baba Banda Singh marched towards Sadhaura to avenge the torture and death of Pir Buddhu Shah as per the injunction of the Guru.
Finally, Bhai Baj Singh killed the killer of Sahibzadas, Nawab Wazir Khan, in the battle of Chappar Chiri on 12 May 1710, and on 14 May the city of Sirhind was captured.
Capturing
However, Baba Banda Singh Bahadur's increasing influence roused the fire of the Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah. He ordered the mass killing of all the Nanak-Prastan i.e. Sikhs. During the wars, Banda Singh was forced to retreat into the hills. After the death of Bahadurshah, his descendant Farrukhsiyar further accelerated the campaign and re-occupied Sadhaura and Lohgarh.
Eventually, the Mughals sieged Banda Bahadur at the village of Gurdas-Nangal and after 8 long months of gruesome conditions, captured him on December 7th, 1715 alongside 740 other companions. They executed his companions at a rate of 100 per day over the course of seven days. For the next six months, they tortured Baba Banda Singh and tried to search for the treasures he looted from the Mughal State at Gurdas-Nangal.
Martyrdom
Subsequently, the Mughals took Baba Banda Singh Bahadur and his remaining companions to the tomb of Khwaja Qutb ud-din Bakhtiyar Kaki, near the Qutab Minar. There they offered him the choice between Islam and death.
In addition to his military feats, Banda Singh left a lasting mark on the character of the Sikhs. He fanned the fire of independence ignited by Guru Gobind Singh. Moreover, he affected a revolution in the minds of the people. A will was created in the ordinary masses to resist tyranny and to live and die for a common or national cause. The example set by Banda Singh and his companions was to serve as a beacon of light for the people in the darker days to come.
In conclusion, Baba Banda Singh Bahadur was the first man to deal a severe blow to the cruel, fanatic Mughal rule in Punjab. He broke the first sod in the conquest of that province by the Sikhs. Although it was forty years after his death that the Khalsa occupied Lahore and declared a regular Sikh rule, it was Banda Singh Bahadur who laid the foundation of the Sikh Empire in 1710. He was truly the founder of Sikh rule.
[Video Courtesy: BBC Hindi]
The story of Baba Banda Singh's Rise and Martyrdom cannot be described on a single webpage. Therefore, we're uploading a series of books on the life of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur, which you'll be able to download and read from the links given below:
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