BHAG SINGH, SANT (1766-1839), of Kuri. a holy man widely respected in his time, was born the son of Bhai Hans Rai in 1766 at Qadirabad, a village in Gujrat district (now in Pakistan), where his grandfather, Gurbakhsh Singh, said to have been in the retinue of Guru Gobind Singh, settled after the Guru`s passing away at Nanded, in the Deccan. Bhag Singh learnt to read Gurmukhi letters and the Guru Granth Sahib at the village gurdwara. As he grew up, he made a pilgrimage to Nanded. Returning to the north, he visited Una, now in Himachal Pradesh, where he became a disciple of Baba Sahib Singh Bedi, a descendant of Guru Nanak in direct line.
After a few years, he, at the bidding of Baba Sahib Singh, went to preach in the Pothohar region. He established himself at Kuri, a village on the bank of a small stream, Gumrah, 8 km from Rawalpindi. Such was his repute for piety that Maharaja Ranjit Singh once came to visit him and seek his blessing. Baba Bir Singh of Naurarigabad, who himself emerged as a figure of great sanctity in Sikh times, also sought advice from him. Sant Bhag Singh died on 20 January 1839.
References :
1. Sher Singh, Sri Bir Mirgesh Cur Bilas Dev Taru.
2. Ganesha Singh, Mahant, Nirmal Bh usan arthat Itihas Nirmal Bhekh. Amritsar, n.d.
3. Sobha Ram, Gur-bJ/as Baba Sahib Singh Bcdi, ed. Gurmukli Singh. Patiala, 1988
