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Baba Baghel Singh (1730 – 1802) – The Conquer of Delhi, was born in village Jhabal, District Amritsar. From humble beginnings he arose to become a formidable force in the area between River Sutlej and River Yamuna. He aligned himself with Karor Singhia led by Sardar Karora Singh. After the early demise of Karora Singh, Baba Baghel Singh succeeded as a leader of Karora Singhia misl in 1765. As well as being a good soldier, Baba Baghel Singh was a very good political negotiator and was able to win over many an adversary to his side. The Mughals, the Ruhilas, the Marathas and British sought his friendship.

 Then Baba Baghel Singh turned his attention towards the cis-Yamuna territories. Soon the Sikhs were invading territories in Delhi and beyond, including Meerut, Awadh, collecting tribute from the Nawabs of each area. He is celebrated in Sikh history as the vanquisher of Mughal Delhi. On the 11th of March 1783, the Sikhs entered the Red Fort in Delhi and occupied the Diwan-i-Am (Hall of Public Audience).

 It is also commonly believed that Baba Baghel Singh with his army had camped in the jungles surrounding Delhi from which they were planning to secretly launch their attack. The place where the camp was established later came to be known as “Tees Hazaari”. This is where the present day Delhi Court is located.

Dhan Sikhi! Dhan Khalsa!

~ Deeksha Singh
~ New Delhi, 15th Feb ’14

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Another story goes with Tees Hazari – When the Mughal Emperor came to know that Sikhs were planning to attack Delhi, as sufficient quantity of food and other essential commodities were stocked in the fort; he ordered that all gates of the fort be closed so that the Sikhs camping in the jungles would soon run out of rations and go back.

Some of the Sikhs accidentally came across a mason from the neighbourly village who informed them that a particular place in the wall of the fort had caved in from inside though the exterior was intact. He also agreed to lead the Sikhs and show them this spot.

The Sikhs planned to ram the wall with logs to make a hole in the wall to enter the fort through. This place is now called “Mori Gate” and this is where the Inter State Bus Terminus (ISBT) in present Delhi is located.

Dhan Sikhi! Dhan Khalsa!

~ Deeksha Singh
~ New Delhi, 15th Feb ’14

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Baba Baghel Singh had set up an octroi-post near Sabzi Mandi to collect the tax on the goods imported into the city to finance the search and the construction of the Sikh Temples. He did not want to use the cash received from the Government Treasury for this purpose, and most of that was handed out to the needy and poor. He often distributed sweetmeats, bought out of this Government gift, to the congregationalists at the place which, now, is know as the Pul Mithai, New Delhi.

Near the Old Delhi railway station is a congested location with a quirky name. ‘Pul Mithai’ — a bridge with a sweet connection that goes back to the late 18th century. Pul Mithai is the stretch on Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Marg from Pili Kothi to the junction where it meets Qutb Road and Azad Market road with two railway lines passing below it.

It was in 1783 that thousands of Sikhs led by Sardar Baghel Singh laid siege to the Red Fort during Shah Alam II’s reign. The Mughal emperor, through his court official Munshi Ram Dyal and Begum Samroo, sought a “settlement.’ In lieu of ‘returning’ the Red Fort, Baghel Singh would trace all the sites in Delhi connected with Sikh Gurus and build gurdwaras there. He would stay for four years and get a cut from tax collected by Mughals for expenditure of his soldiers.

Dhan Sikhi! Dhan Khalsa!

~ Deeksha Singh
~ New Delhi, 15th Feb ’14

Amritsar, February 10, 2014,With the Indian Railways all set to launch Panj Takht train from February 16, a long-pending demand of the Sikh pilgrims has finally been met. The tickets for this 10-day journey could be booked from today either online or in person at Dhuri and Sangrur railway stations. The fare includes cost of food, lodging etc.

Sangat hailed the move, saying it would be of immense benefit to the devotees, who wish to pay obeisance at all the five Takhts. The special train would facilitate comfortable travel, particularly for women, the elderly and children. A local resident, said with the launch of this train, the devotees would find it easier to travel to the Takhts that are located in three different states. Moreover, they will get an opportunity to offer prayers at all five Takhts in a single tour.

The Indian Railways will start Panj Takht Special Train, connecting all the five Takhts of Sikhs, on February 16 at 10 am from the Dhuri railway station, 15 km from here. The Panj Takht train that is to be flagged off from Dhuri on February 16 will connect Sri Akal Takht Sahib (Amritsar), Sri Kesgarh Sahib (Anandpur Sahib), Sri Damdama Sahib (Talwandi Sabo), Sri Patna Sahib (Patna) in Bihar and Sri Hazoor Sahib (Nanded) in Maharashtra. The train will complete its first journey in Dhuri on February 25.

This special Panj Takht train will enable the people of Punjab to visit the Sikh Gurdwaras of special significance at a low cost in a comfortable train environment – a facility which was not available earlier. The tickets for this 10 day Yatra can be booked at a Reasonable Amount which will including all expenses Like train fare, food and lodging etc. Sangrur MP mentioned that bookings for Panj Takht train can be made on internet or manually at Dhuri & Sangrur Railway Station.

~ Ramandeep Singh
~ New Delhi, 10th Feb ’14

Khoj Gurbani (www.khojgurbani.org) is a platform to study the Guru Granth Sahib. Each week this platform will present a section of the Guru Granth Sahib for worldwide study and discussion. Video, audio and written responses to the Shabad or the section would be solicited and crowdsourced. This exercise would allow eminent intellectuals and laypersons alike to engage with one another across different mediums and languages, all enabled on an online platform. A rotating Editorial Board of Sewadars would highlight the best responses, while allowing all voices to be heard. This discussion would culminate into the writing of commentaries followed by translations of the same Shabad into modern idiomatic English.

KHOJ GURBANI ​has a Vision –

“To Foster a culture in which Sikhs engage with a serious study of the Guru Granth Sahib using the latest online tools and pedagogy.”​

The need to create the same kind of excitement for the study of the Guru Granth Sahib and engage all Sikhs to participate this online platform will make it possible to study the Guru Granth Sahib, discover its deeper meanings through discussion, and finally arrive at a new translation and a commentary for the new millennium.

Online Platform and Its Features –

Successful mastery of the deeper understanding of Gurbani requires access to correct pronunciation, meaning and reflection on the Guru’s word.  The platform will take this pedagogical requirement and furnish proper tools to achieve new insights into Gurbani.

• Pronunciation: The online platform will facilitate reading from the original text of the Guru Granth Sahib with phonetic pronunciation (Santhia) established by the long-standing Sikh tradition.
• Dictionary: In addition, it would provide the multi-layered meaning of every word using existing and new dictionaries that will be developed.  Hovering over a word would provide its meaning in English, along with grammatical forms of the word established by Gurbani grammar.
• Discussion Section: A discussion forum in which the nuances of each word, sentence and the entire Shabad will be discussed before a commentary is attempted.
• Commentary Section: Insights from the discussion—both online and offline—would culminate into the joint writing of a commentary on the Shabad.  The commentary will be added to the commentary section corresponding to the Shabad.
• Translation Section: Once the finer meanings of a Shabad have been discussed and a detailed commentary is in place (much like a Wikipedia article), one or more translations for each line of the Shabad will be added with the aim to create a fresh translation.
• Teeka Sections: Sections featuring existing exegesis in Panjabi and English translations will be made available to enhance the aforementioned processes.

Get a hands on firsthand experience here –  http://goo.gl/A36WgT. Let us know of your reviews right here in the comment box below!

~ Deeksha Singh
~ New Delhi, 7th Jan ’14

PANCHAMI, the fifth day of either phase {vadior sudi) of the moon. In the three Sikh hymns entitled Thitin/ Thiti devoted to the lunar days of the month, the point commonly made in verses on Panchami is that the people are too engrossed in the worldy pursuits to take to remembrance of the Divine which alone can bring real joy and bliss. Guru Nanak says that people are mad about the world and the creation made up of the five elements, and fail to understand the Incomprehensible Unattached Being.

Guru Arjan has affirmed that those saints are really great who understand the reality of the five elements and, thus, get rid of the five lusts. Men are exhorted in all the three compositions to observe Panchami not by performing any rituals but by living unattached in the material world and by being devoted to the Name. By custom, however, Panchami, particularly of the bright phase, is observed in some of the gurudwaras when special divans take place. Devotees forgather from distant places to offer homage and make ablutions in the holy tanks.

The Basant Panchami (fifth day of the bright phase of the moon in the month of Magh) falling in late January or early February is marked by special celebrations, especially at the historical Gurdwara at Chheharta, about three miles from Amritsar, and at Gurdwara Dukh Nivaran Sahib, in Patiala.

For Sikhs, in the Harmandir Sahib, Amritsar, on the day of Vasant Panchmi, musicians start the music by singing Basant Raga. This practice continues up until the first day of Vaisakh when Basant Rag is no longer used.