guru

NIRANKARIS, a sect of the Sikhs born of a reform movement which arose in northwest Punjab in the middle of the nineteenth century aiming to restore the purity of Sikh belief and custom. Its founder, Baba Dayal (1783-1855), was a contemporary of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. A man of humble origin, he cavilled at the shortcomings of the mighty and assailed the rites and observances which had perverted the Sikh way of life. His main target was the worship of images against which he preached vigorously.

ONKAR, generally written down as Oankar in Sikh Scriptural writings, is derived from the Upanisadic word Oankara (om+kara) originally signifying pronouncing or rendering into writing the syllable Om. Known as synonym of Om it has been used in the Vedic literature and, in particular in its religio philosophical texts known as the Upanisads, as a holy vocable of mystical signification and as the most sacred of the names of Brahman, the Supreme Self or the one entity which fills all space and time and which is the source of the whole universe including the gods themselves. The word om, the most hallowed name of Brahman, is derived, according to the Gopathabrdhmana (I. 24), from dp `to pervade` or from av `to protect`.

PALAHI, village 4 km north of Phagwara (31° 14`N, 75° 46`E) in the Punjab, is sacred to Guru Hargobind, who passed through it in 1635 on his way from Kartarpur to Kiratpur. According to the Bhatt Vaht Talaudd, a skirmish between the Mughal troops and the Guru`s followers, generally described as the battle of Phagwara, took place here on 29 April 1635. Later, Guru Har Rai also visited the place. Gurdwara Chhevin Patshahi, commemorating the martyrs who laid down their lives in the battle, is in the eastern part of the village, with the sanctum where the Guru Granth Sahib is seated at one end.

PARCHIAN PATSHAI 10 is an anonymous and so far unpublished work, comprising 50 parchts or stories from the life of Guru Gobind Singh (MS. held at the Khalsa College, Amritsar, under MS. No. 2300E). Of the 45 folios, 14 describe in brief the lives of the first nine Gurus; the rest are devoted to Guru Gobind Singh. Special mention is made of the Zafamdmah at which point the Guru`s major battles against the hill chiefs and the Mughal government are alluded to.

PEHOVA or Pahoa, also called Paheva or Bheva (29°59`N, 76°35`E), an ancient pilgrimage centre of the Hindus situated on the left bank of the rivulet Sarsvati, in Kurukshetra district of Haryana, has two historical gurudwaras. GURDWARA BAOLI SAHIB, located outside the old town, is dedicated to Guru Nanak, though Guru Tegh Bahadur and Guru Gobind Singh are also said to have visited the site. Guru Nanak was in Pehova at the time of the festival of Chef Chaudas (fourteenth day of the dark half of the month of Chet) and preached on the futility of offering oblations for the benefit of the souls of one`s ancestors long dead.

PIARA, BHAI, a RandhavaJatt, was a devoted Sikh of the time of Guru Hargobind. When the Guru was...

PRITHI CHAND DADHVAL (d.1696) was one of the hill chieftains who sided with Bhim Chand, the ruler of Kahlur, in the battle of Nadaun fought on 20 March 1691 against Alif Khan, the deputy of Mian Khan. governor of Jammu. Guru Gobind Singh helped Bhim Chand and his allies in this battle, which they won. In 1696, Dilawar Khan, Mughal chief, sent an expedition under his commander Husain Khan to chastise the hill chiefs. Husain Khan overran the Dadhval territory, subjugated a part of Kangra, won over the ruler of Kahliir and invested Guler, whose ruler Raj Singh (Raja Gopal of the Bachitra Ndtak) sought Guru Gobind Singh`s help to ward of the Mughal invasion. Husain waged war against the Guru`s force and his hill allies. In the battle, fought at Guler, Husain was slain in action. So was Raja Prithi Chand who had been fighting on the side of Raja Raj Singh.

PITAMBAR PIR My hajj (pilgrimage) is performed on the bank of Gomati, where lives my Pitambar Pir (the Preceptor Krishna who wears yellow clothes) (Asa Kabir_ p. 4J8) Pitambar Pir and Pit Basan (see p. 1402) are the two epithets used for Krishna, who is said to be the wearer of yellow garments

RAILON, village 9 km to the southeast of Bassi Pathanari (30° 42`N, 76° 25`E) in Fatehgarh Sahib district, was, according to local tradition, visited by Guru Tegh Bahadur at the request of its inhabitants. A shrine was established here and it continued to be looked after by Udasi sadhus until the control passed to the Sikhs of the village. They built a new complex which is now known as Gurdwara Navin Patshahi. It comprises a square hall with a verandah in front. The sanctum replacing the old Manji Sahib is in the centre of the hall and has a low dome over it. The Gurdwara is managed by the village committee.

RAM SINGH, BHAI, a descendant of Bhai Bhagatu, was a devout Sikh. He served Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) with devotion when the latter visited his village Chakk Bhai in Bathinda district of the Punjab during his travels through these parts in 1706. He again presented himself at Damdama Sahib, originally Talvandi Sabo, to do obeisance on the eve of the Guru`s departure for the South. BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. Santokh Singh, Bhai, Sri Gur Pratap Suraj Granth. Amritsar, 1927-35 2. Gian Singh, Giani, Twarikh Guru Khalsa [Reprint]. Patiala, 1970 3. Malva Desk Ratan di Sakhl Pothi.