SADHU JAN

SADHU JAN, a Punjabi poet of the seventeenth century who wrote verses on mythical and spiritual themes. His identity is not clearly established. While Gurbilas Chhevin Patshahi (1718) identifies him as Bhai Sadhu who married in 1629 Bibi Viro, daughter of Guru Hargobind, Sarup Das Bhalla, Mahima Prakash, part II, describes him as a young poet who came to Guru Arjan with Chhajju Bhagat, Shah Hussain and a Bairagi in 1603-04 with the hope of having their compositions included in the scripture being compiled by the Guru. The Guru addressed him as Sadhu Jan and this is how he came to be known. Whatever the case, Sadhu Jan was a prolific poet, with a good knowledge of musicology.

His verses in chaste Punjabi as well as in Hindi and Sadhukari are in several prosodic forms and in over 30 different musical measures. Some of his poems bear titles similar to those of Sikh texts such as Japu, Sukhmam, Bavan Akhari, Varand Salok. Other known titles are Sakhian (136) and Jhulane (6). Among his longer works are Mahabharata, Prahilad Charitra, Dhru Charitra, Sudama Charitra, Ramayana, 2Sahansarnama, Gopi Chand and Solan Sahelian.