GADIAL, a village in Ropar district of the Punjab about 18 km east of Garhshankar, is sacred to Guru Gobind Singh, who arrived here in 1700 from Khera Kalmot and stayed awhile under a fig tree. A memorial in the form of a small platform built around the fig

GOKHU MAHITA, BHAI, Bhai Toda Mahita. Bhai Tota and Bhat Maddu, all devoted Siklis who performed dedicated service at the time of the excavation of the sacred tank at Amritsar, once came to Guru Arjan and begged to be instructed. The Guru told them to sit in the sangal

GURPRANALI, a distinct genre in Punjabi historical writing, providing in prose or in verse chronological information about the lives of the Gurus and of the members of their families. The genre records in the main dates of their birth, marriage and death. Occasionally, the dates of some major events are

HARIMANDAR (lit. the House of God; hari = Visnu, or God; mandar = temple, house), Golden Temple to the English speaking world, is the Sikhs` most famous sacred shrine. Also called Sri Darbar Sahib (the Exalted Holy Court), it lies in the heart of the city of

JANAM SAKHI derives its name from the number attached to the manuscript in the catalogue of the India Office Library, London (MS. Panj B40). It consists of a unique collection of sakhis or anecdotes concerning the life of Guru Nanak, and, although it sliares common sources with the Puratan and

JAPUPARAMARATH, by Bhai Ram Kishan, is an unpublished manuscript of the exegesis of Guru Nanak`s Japu. The only manuscript copy is available at Ace. No. 612 in the Dashmesh Library, Anandpur the other two in the Sikh Reference Library, Amritsar, and the Khalsa College Library, Patiala, having since been destroyed

JHANDA SINGH (d. 1774) succeeded his father, Hari Singh, to the leadership of the Bharigi principality upon his death in 1765. Under Jhanda Singh, the power and prestige of the Bharigi misi rapidly increased. In 1766, he challenged both Shuja` Khan. Afghan governor of Multan, and Mubarak Khan, the

KALU, BHAI, a Sikh of Lahore, was a mason by trade. He once waited upon Guru Arjan, who explained to him that mere recitation of the sacred hymns did not lead to liberation unless it was accompanied by faith and virtuous action.

ISHAR SINGH MARHANA (1878-1941), Akali activist and Ghadr revolutionary, was born on 1 January 1878, younger of the two sons of BhaIJind Singh, a SandhuJatt, and Mai Chand Kaur, of farming stock of the village of Marhana, near Tarn Taran, in Ainritsar district of the Punjab. He learnt Gurmukhi

MADDU, BHAI, a carpenter by trade, was a devoted Sikh of the time of Guru Arjan. According to Bhai Santokh Singh, Sri Gur Partap Suraj Granth, Bhai Maddu lived up to the time of Guru Hargobind and remained in attendance on him. He revelled in serving in the Guru

MALI SINGH (d. 1716), resident of the village of Salaudi near Sirhind, was in the service of Nawab Wazir Khan, the Mughal faujdar. Following his brother Ali Singh, he left his service and joined Banda Singh Bahadur\'s army. Mali Singh took part in several of Banda Singh\'s campaigns and

MANSUKH was, according to Puratan Janam Sakhi, a merchant of Lahore who, learning about Guru Nanak from one of his customers Bhai Bhagirath, travelled with him to Sultanpur. There he remained in attendance on the Guru for three years and learnt, as says the Janam Sakhi, to recite bdni,