JHATKA, the Sikh mode of killing an animal for food, also stands for the meal of an animal or bird so killed. Derived, etymologically, from jhat, an adverb meaning instantly, immediately or at once, jhatka signifies a Jerk, snap, jolt or a swift blow. For Sikhs jhatka karna or jhatkaund

PAL SINGH ARIF, SANT (1873-1958), mystic and poet, was born on Maghar sudi 15, 1930 Bk/4 December 1873, the son of Gurdit Singh Sandhu and Sahib Kaur of the village of Paddhari, now in Amritsar district of the Punjab. He learnt to read and write Punjabi from the village granthi

HOURI Let Grace of the Lord be your Mecca and becoming the dust of the feet be your fast. Let the practice of Pir\'s (Guru\'s) instruction as required be your Bhista (Paradise). The devotion of the Lord-God in suitable cloister by your Hourt, light and fragrance. (Maru M. 5,

URI, an old town 54 km southwest of Baramula (S^ia`N, 74<)23`E) at the western end of the Kashmir valley, was visited by Guru Hargobind (1595-1644) on his way from Baramula to Naluchhi (now in Pakistan occupied territory). Gurdwara Patshahi Chhevin Param Pillan commemorating the visit is situated 6 km east

JAMAL, MIAN (d. 1650), a pious Muslim was an admirer of Guru Arjan. His name appears in Guru Arjan`s composition Chaubole, addressed to four devotees, namely Samman, Musan, Jamal and Patarig. The Guru exhorts Jamal to sec what beauty emerges from humility. In the mud in the low pit

KALA SINGH, a Mazhabi Sikh, was of pilchblack colour as his name (kdid = dark) indicated. He was converted to Sikhism by Jhanda Singh (d. 1774), a Bharigi chieftain. A bold and desperate man, Kala Singh joined the band of Gujjar Singh Bharigi (d. 1788) who appointed him the

KARAM SINGH DULLU, an eighteenth century Bhangi sarddr, was the chief of Jhang district, along the River Chcnab. He commanded about 2,000 cavalry and 1,000 infantry as a permanent force, and could on occasions muster 6,000 horse and 3,000 foot. He had eight strong forts in his territory. Karam

If you pray fraudulently in your mind, what is the need of going to Ka\'bah .for a Å«^/ ? (Prabhali Kabir, p. 1350) The Sheikh (Muslim divine) without the quality of sabar (patience)—why should he go to Ka\'bab for a hajj, says Kabir ? The one who has no

AJMER SINGH was the name given a seventeenth century Muslim recluse of Chhatteana, a village in present day Faridkot district of the Punjab, as he received the initiatory rites of the Khalsa. His original name was Ibrahim, popularly shortened to Brahmi or Bahmi. According to an old chronicle, Malva

MULTAN (SO012`N, 71°31`E), ancient city which had been a prominent centre of Muslim piety, was where according to Bhai Gurdas, Varan I. 4445, Guru Nanak met with some local Sufi saints. Travelling from Kartarpur, on the River Ravi, Guru Nanak first went to Achal Batala and thence to Multan. As

AZAD PUNJAB scheme, signifying a major shift in the kinds of political strategies to be pursued by Sikh political leadership in their efforts to enhance the political influence of their community, was a crucial turning point in the development of modern Sikh politics. With the introduction of the Montagu Chelmsford

BABAK (d. 1642), a Muslim rababi or musician, kept Guru Hargobind company and recited the sacred hymns at divans morning and evening. The word babak, from Persian, means faithful. As says the Gurbilas Chhevin Patshahi, Babak was, at the death of Satta and Balvand, who used to recite sacred