Not to be confused with Machhiwara, the present-day city with the same name.
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Machhiwara
Detail of the region of Machhiwara from a map of the country between Delhi and Ludhiana, surveyed by F. S. White, 1808
The name 'Machhiwara' is derived from machi, which is the Punjabi word for fish and came as a result of the fishermen who resided in the area.[2]
History
Illustration for the 1st Akbar-nama in the Cleveland Museum of Art, No. 1971.77. The Battle of Machhiwara in May 1555 is described on the reverse.
The jungle formed in a region near the bank of the Sutlej river.[2] The jungle was filled with thorny vegetation and existed during the time period of Guru Gobind Singh.[1] The jungle was located near a village, also called Machhiwara (now a town).[1] In the aftermath of the Battle of Chamkaur, the tenth Sikh guru, Guru Gobind Singh, became separated from the rest of his entourage and became lost in the Machhiwara jungle after leaving from Chamkaur in December 1705.[3][4][1] The guru was without food, shelter, or a mount during his trek through the jungle.[3] He eventually reunited with three of his companions. Man Singh, Dharam Singh, and Daya Singh, in the garden of the village sharing the name of the jungle.[3][1] The guru had chosen the garden outside the village as his resting place when he was come upon by his companions.[1] Gurdwara Charan Kaval Sahib now marks the location of this village garden.[1] A man named Gulaba Chand was the local masand of the Machhiwara area during the time of Guru Gobind Singh.[5][2] Guru Gobind Singh stayed with Gulaba, who had a house in the Machhiwara village, where he stayed in a room on the first floor.[1] Gurdwara Chubara Sahib now marks the location where Gulaba's house once was.[1] Two Rohilla Pathan brothers who worked as horse dealers, named Ghani Khan and Nabi Khan, helped transport the guru whilst he was disguised as a Muslim holy man.[1] The guru stayed at the family house of the Pathan brothers after staying in Gulaba's house.[1] The familial house of the Pathan brothers is now marked by Gurdwara Uchch Da Pir.[1] The group secretly disguised the guru as a Sufi Pir of Uch, carrying him in a palanquin, with the event known as Uch Da Peer.[1] With the assistance of three Muslims, the group was able to evade Mughal patrols in the area.[3] Eventually, the group made its way out of the area and reached Jatpura, where Rai Kalha, a local Muslim chieftain, received the Sikh guru.[3]
Detail of the region of Machhiwara from a map of the countries to the west of Delhi as far as Kabul and Multan, including the Punjab, surveyed by Mirza Mogul Beg between 1786 and 1796 for F. Wilford, compiled in 1804.
Some writings associated with Guru Gobind Singh are linked to the Machhiwara jungle and village. The Fatehnama letter is believed to have been composed within and dispatched from the area.[6][7] Furthermore, the sixth hymn of Shabad Hazare, Mittar Pyare Nu, is believed to have been composed by the tenth Guru in the Machhiwara area after the deaths of all his sons.[8][9] The Guru composed this work while leaning against a tree in the wilds of Machhiwara after having been wandering for days with only the soft leaves of the Akk plant (Calotropis gigantea) as sustenance, sleeping directly on the lumpy forest ground, suffering from foot blisters, wearing torn attire, and sustaining cuts from the thorny vegetation of the jungle.[9] This composition forms the sixth stanza of the Shabad Hazare chapter of the Dasam Granth.[9]
"Carry to the Beloved the message of His humble servant
Soft beds are to him like a disease, if thou are not with him
Living in the halls and mansions is like living among serpents, if thou art away
Wine cups hurt him like the sword and things of comfort kill,
as does the butcher's knife, if thou art not with him
In the companionship of the friend, turf is superior to soft beds,
accursed are the places if thou art away."
—Guru Gobind Singh, Shabad Hazare, Dasam Granth, translation from 'History of Sikh Gurus Retold: 1606-1708 C.E' (2007), pages 833–834, by Surjit Singh Gandhi
The Nihangs favour the dark blue colour for their clothing, which they adopted to emulate Guru Gobind Singh's attire when he escaped from Chamkaur through the Machhiwara jungle.[10]
The Machhiwara jungle, alongside the Lakhi jungle, were both used as hide-outs by Sikhs during periods of active oppression and active genocide, such as by the Mughal government.[11] Punjab used to have many thick forests that were used as safe-spots for Sikhs.[11]
Present
The jungle no longer exists for the most part, having been deforested, however surviving remnants can be found in the graveyard located to the north-east direction of the Government Girl School.[12]
Some have connected the surviving Mattewara forest with the historical Machhiwara jungle.[13][14]
The Machhiwara jungle that existed during Guru Gobind Singh's time, which was cut down in the subsequent centuries, is planned to be revived by the SGPC through the planting of samplings on gurdwara land the organization owns within the locality to revive the lost jungle.[15]
Guru Gobind Singh was the tenth and last human Sikh Guru. He was a warrior, poet, and philosopher. In 1675, at the age of nine he was formally installed as the leader of the Sikhs after his father Guru Tegh Bahadur was executed by Emperor Aurangzeb. His father was the ninth Sikh Guru. His four biological sons died during his lifetime – two in battle and two executed by the Mughal governor Wazir Khan.
The following outline is provides an overview of Sikhism, or Sikhi.
The Dasam Granth is a collection of various poetic compositions attributed to Guru Gobind Singh. The text enjoyed an equal status with the Adi Granth, or Guru Granth Sahib, in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and were installed side by side on the same platform. The Dasam Granth lost favor during the colonial period when reformist Singh Sabha Movement scholars couldn't contextualize the reworkings of Puranic stories or the vast collection of 'Tales of Deceit' Sri Charitropakhyan.
The Zafarnāma was a spiritual victory letter sent by Guru Gobind Singh in 1705 to the Mughal Emperor of India, Aurangzeb, after the Battle of Chamkaur.
The Nihang or Akali, also known as Dal Khalsa, is an armed Sikh warrior order originating in the Indian subcontinent. Nihangs are believed to have originated either from Fateh Singh and the attire he wore or from the "Akal Sena" started by Guru Hargobind. Early Sikh military history was dominated by the Nihang, known for their victories where they were heavily outnumbered. Traditionally known for their bravery and ruthlessness in the battlefield, the Nihang once formed the irregular guerrilla squads of the armed forces of the Sikh Empire, the Sikh Khalsa Army.
Dharam Singh, born as Dharam Das, was one of the original Panj Pyare or the Five Beloved, the forerunners of the Khalsa.
Bhai Mani Singh was an 18th-century Sikh scholar and martyr. He was a childhood companion of Guru Gobind Singh and took the vows of Sikhism when the Guru inaugurated the Khalsa in March 1699. Soon after that, the Guru sent him to Amritsar to take charge of Harmandir Sahib, which had been without a custodian since 1696. He took control and steered the course of Sikh destiny at a critical stage in Sikh history. He was also a teacher of the Gianian Bunga, later becoming known as the "Amritsari Taksal", currently located in Sato Ki Gali.
Daya Singh was one of the Panj Pyare, the first five Sikhs to be initiated into the Khalsa order in 17th-century India.
Fateh Singh, commonly referred to with honorifics as Baba Fateh Singh or Sahibzada Baba Fateh Singh, was the fourth and youngest son of Guru Gobind Singh.
Machhiwara Sahib is one of the developing cities in the Ludhiana district of the Indian state of Punjab. Machhiwara Sahib is famous for Gurudwara Sri Charan Kanwal Sahib associated with Guru Gobind Singh ji and named after the Guru's feet that are compared to the lotus flower.
Chandi Di Var also known as Vaar Durga Ki is a composition written by Guru Gobind Singh, included in the 5th chapter of Dasam Granth.
The Battle of Chamkaur, also known as Battle of Chamkaur Sahib or the Second battle of Chamkaur, was fought between the Khalsa, led by Guru Gobind Singh, and the coalition forces of the Mughals led by Wazir Khan and of Hindu hill chief. Guru Gobind Singh makes a reference to this battle in his letter Zafarnama.
The Battle of Nadaun, alternatively known as the Hussaini Yudh, was fought at Nadaun, between Raja Bhim Chand of Bilaspur (Kahlur) and the Mughals under Alif Khan. Bhim Chand was supported by Guru Gobind Singh and the Mughals were supported by other hill chieftains, notably Kirpal Chand from Kangra and Dayal Chand from Bijharwal. Bhim Chand and some hill chieftains, after conclusion of Battle of Bhangani had refused to pay tribute to the Mughal emperor which led to the battle at Nadaun. The battle resulted in the victory of Bilaspur State and Sikh alliance.
Shabad Hazare, also known as Sabad Patshahi 10, under the title Shabad, are ten religious hymns composed by Guru Gobind Singh that are present in Dasam Granth. These hymns have comments on ritualistic practices in Sanyas, Jogis and Bairagis, and also against any form of idolatry, human or deity worship.
A masand was a representative, religious preacher, and tithe collector in Sikhism. They were an officially appointed missionary minister representing the Sikh Guru, who baptized conversions to Sikhism, and collected dasvandh (tithe) as an offering to the Sikh community and religious establishment. A masand forwarded the collected amount to the Sikh guru.
Fatehnama, also known as Namah-i-Guru Gobind Singh or the Jangnamah is a Persian composition attributed to Guru Gobind Singh. It was contained within the Dasam Granth.
Lakhi Jungle was a historical jungle located in present-day Punjab, India. It should not be confused with the historical Machhiwara jungle.
Mittar Pyare Nu is a Shabad attributed to Guru Gobind Singh in Machhiwara after the Battle of Chamkaur.
1 2 3 4 Jaggi, Rattan Singh (10 March 2015). "ਮਾਛੀਵਾੜਾ"[Machhiwara]. Punjabipedia – Punjabi University, Patiala (originally published in the 'Sikh Panth Encyclopedia' by Gur Ratan Publishers) (in Punjabi). Retrieved 30 July 2024.
1 2 3 4 5 Singh, Patwant (2007). The Sikhs. Crown Publishing Group. ISBN9780307429339. But this tragic phase was still to reach its nadir. With the break of dawn, after having left Chamkaur in the dead of night, the Guru found himself separated from his companions and alone in the heart of the Machhiwara forest. He was without food, shelter, or his trusted mount, his mind filled with thoughts of Mughal betrayal and the loss of his men and sons; only his iron will sustain him in that bleak hour. As luck would have it his three companions, following the route they had agreed upon, were eventually reunited with him. The four, with the help of loyal Sikhs and at least three friendly Muslims, made their way through the enemy patrols who were searching for them. They finally reached the village of Jatpura where the Guru was warmly received by the Muslim chief of the area, Rai Kalha.
↑ Hardgrave, R. L. (1996). An Early Portrayal of the Sikhs: Two 18th Century Etchings by Baltazard Solvyns. International Journal of Punjab Studies, 3(2), 213-27. Accessed via: https://www.laits.utexas.edu/solvyns-project/sikhs.html
1 2 Singh, Jaspal (7 September 2023). Rejuvenating Punjab: New Economic World Order. Virsa Publications. pp.159–160. ISBN9788195904952.
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