ARDAMAN SINGH, BHAYEE (1899-1976), of pious lineage was born on 20 September 1899 (father: Bhayee Arjan Singh; mother: Devinder Kaur) at Bagarian, in present day Sarigrur district of the Punjab. The family traces its descent from Bhai Rup Chand, a devout Sikh of the time of Guru Hargobind (1595-1644) and has for the past several generations been a leading religious family among the Sikhs. For his schooling, Ardaman Singh was not sent to a Chiefs College as was then customary for aristocratic families, but to the Khalsa School at Ludhiana. He took his B.A. degree from Khalsa College, Amritsar, in 1918. He left off his law studies midway to lend his father a helping hand in his religious work.
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AYODHYA (26° 45`N, 82° 10`E), on the right bank of the River Saryu, also known as Ghaghara, is sacred to the Hindus as the birthplace of Lord Rama. This ancient town has Sikh shrines in memory of the First, the Ninth and the Tenth Gurus. All three are located within 50 metres of each other near Brahma`s Tap Sthan (Brahma Kund) on Saryu bank, and are collectively called Gurdwara Brahmakund. The memorial commemorating Guru Nanak`s visit at the beginning of the sixteenth century consists of only a Sikh flag on a platform constructed in 1972.
BAHORA, BHAI, a goldsmith, who once came to Goindval to see Guru Arjan and seek his blessing. He confessed to the Guru that he cheated his customers skimping their gold, and asked what other calling he should turn to. The Guru said, "Do not cheat, do not steal and then every calling is blessed. Earn your living by honest labour and share what you earn with others in God`s name. Go back to your home, absorb yourself in God`s praise and run a community kitchen for the needy." Bahora became a devoted disciple, and is remembered in Sikh tradition with honour.
BARAH MAHA or BARAH MASA, in Hindi, is a form of folk poetry in which the emotions and yearnings of the human heart are expressed in terms of the changing moods of Nature over the twelve months of the year. In this form of poetry, the mood of Nature in each particular month (of the Indian calendar) depicts the inner agony of the human heart which in most cases happens to be a woman separated from her spouse or lover. In other words, the separated woman finds her own agony reflected in the different faces of Nature. The tradition of Barah Maha poetry is traceable to classical epochs.
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BHAGO, MAI, the sole survivor of the battle of Khidrana, i.e. Muktsar (29 December 1705), was a descendant of Pero Shah, the younger brother of Bhai Langah, a Dhillon Jatt who had converted a Sikh during the time of Guru Arjan. Born at her ancestral village of Jhabal in present day Amritsar district of the Punjab, she was married to Nidhan Singh Varaich of Patti. A staunch Sikh by birth and upbringing, she was distressed to hear in 1705 that some of the Sikhs of her neighbourhood who had gone to Anandpur to fight for Guru Gobind Singh had deserted him under adverse conditions. She set off along with them and some other Sikhs to seek out the Guru, then travelling across the Malva region.
BIANCHI, an Italian engineer, who arrived at Lahore in Sikh times. According to the Khalsa Darbar payrolls, he served the Sikh State and was employed in 1835 as a road engineer on a salary of 9 rupees per day. He constructed a road from General Ventura`s house to the Fort in Lahore. He was entrusted with the task of building a circular road enclosing the city and the fort of Lahore. However, he could not accomplish the task owing to illness. He proceeded to Italy, but died on the way.
BROWN, JOHN, alias RICHARD POTTER, an Englishman, who, deserting the East Indian Company`s service in the Bengal artillery, came to Lahore and joined the Sikh artillery in 1826. He was later promoted colonel and placed in charge of the artillery depot at Lahore. During the first Anglo Sikh war, he acted as a British spy. Just before the battle of `Aliwal, he went to Ludhiana and offered his services to his countrymen.
BABA BAKALA GURUDWARA, AMRITSAR The historical shrine at Baba Bakala is associated with an important event in Sikh history. Here Makhan Shah Lubana declared from house top that he had found the true Guru. It may be recalled that before his death at Delhi on March30, 1664 Guru Harkrishan mumbled feebly \'Baba Bakala\', thereby meaning that his successor was to be found at Bakala village in Amritsar. On that day, the only Baba at Bakala was Baba Tegh Bahadur and none else. But many imposters tried to grab the Guru Gaddi by posing themselves as the real Guru.
CHUHAR, BHAI, a Chaujhar Khatri of Lucknow, once travelled to Amritsar to see Guru Hargobind (1595-1644). He, according to Bhai Mani Singh, Sikhan di Bhagat MaJa, one day implored the Guru: "Pray, instruct me, Lord, in what constitutes the root of the Sikh faith." "Humility is its root," spoke the Guru, "service of humanity its branches, sarigat, i.e. holy fellowship, its foliage and the fruit the understanding of the Word." Bhai Chuhar was known as a devoted Sikh who remained absorbed in repetition of the holy Name.
DAYA SINGH, BHAI (1661-1708), one of the Panj Piare or the Five Beloved celebrated in the Sikh tradition, was the son of Bhai Suddha, a Sobti Khatri of Lahore, and Mai Diali. His original name was Daya Ram. Bhai Suddha was a devout Sikh of Guru Tegh Bahadur and had visited Anandpur more than once to seek his blessing. In 1677, he travelled to Anandpur along with his family including his young son, Daya Ram, to make obeisance to Guru Gobind Singh, this time to settle there permanently. Daya Ram, already well versed in Punjabi and Persian, engaged himself in the study of classics and gurbani. He also received training in the use of weapons.
