GULAB CHAND, son of Bhai Sadhu of village Malla, in Faridkot district of the Punjab, and Bibi Viro, daughter of Guru Hargobind (1595-1644), fought along with his four brothers in the battle of Bharigani (18 September 1688), near Paonta in present day Himachal Pradesh, in which two of his

KALIAN SUD, a resident of Lahore, was a, soldier by profession. He once waited on Guru Arjan, and, as records Bhai Man! Singh, Sikhdn di, Bhagal Maid, began relating his feats on the field of battle. The Guru said, "It is easy to wield a weapon in the field

NIDHAN SINGH PANJHATTHA (d. 1839), soldier, minor commander and jdgirddr under Maharaja Ranjit Singh. He acquired the epithet Parijhattha, the "five handed," for his gallantry in the battle of Ten hill (1823). He singlehanded made five Pathans prisoners and captured their weapons. This act of valour earned him the

SANGAT RAI (d. 1696), also referred to in Sikh chronicles as Sangatia Singh, was, according to Guru Gobind Singh`s autobiographical Bachitra Natak, sent on an embassy of peace to the court of Raja Gopal of Guler. At that time a Mughal commander, Husain Khan marching upon Anandpur was extorting along

BUDDH SINGH SANDHANVALIA (d. 1827), soldier wdjagirdar in the time of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, was son of Amir Singh Sandhanvalia, his two brothers being the more famous Lahina Singh Sandhanvalia and Atar Singh Sandhanvalia. Buddh Singh entered the Maharaja`s service in 1811. The first independent command he held was

HARI SINGH NALVA (1791-1837), celebrated general of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, was horn in April 1791, at Gujranwala, now in Pakistan, to Gurdial Singh, an Uppal Sikh and a derdddrm the Sukkarchakkia misl. The family originally came from Majitha, near Amritsar. His grandfather, Hardas Singh, had been killed fighting against

KALU NATH, son of Jaimal, also called Data, a Dhalival Jatt of the Malva region, became a Vaisnav sddhu while still very young and, according to his biographer, Balmukand Das, roamed the countryside accompanied by his mother, Mohini, and young brother, Chikha. Later, he settled down under a jand

Nandram, one of the poets who kept Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) company, was the son of a well-known Sufi poet, Vali Ram. He had been in the service of Dara Shukoh, who, having lost the struggle for succession to his father\'s throne, was executed by his brother, Emperor Aurangzib,

SARAGARHI, BATTLE OF, a heroic action fought by a small detachment of Sikh soldiers against heavy odds, took place on 12 September 1897 in the Tirah region of North-West Frontier Province (now in Pakistan). The heroes of Saragarhi, barely 22 in number, belonged to the 36th Sikhs, since re-designated as

AJAB SINGH (d. 1705). son of Bhai Mani Ram, a Rajput Sikh of `Alipur in Multan district, now in Pakistan, came to Anandpur with his father and four brothers, and received the rites of initiation at the inauguration of the Khalsa by Guru Gobind Singh on the Baisakhi day

BAANA: Literally: dress. In Sikh cultural terminology it means all the five Kakaars (articles of faith) plus a Chola (a long shirt), a tight fitting trousers, a Kamarkassa (a belt to tighten Gaatra and like a sash around the waist) which make one very active. This was actually a dress

HAYAT KHAN (d. 1688), one of the disbanded officials of the Mughal army who, along with five hundred Pathan soldiers, was recruited by Guru Gobind Singh at Paonta Sahib, on the recommendation of Pir Buddhu Shah of Sadhaura. On the eve of the battle of Bharigani, he however deserted