Foreword
I am glad to know that the work of Dr. Ved Parkash on The Sikhs in Bihar, written in 1963, is being published. I was highly impressed with the author's researchful study in its writing and the vast amount of source material used therein. The accounts of the travels of Guru Nanak and Guru Tegh Bahadur in Bihar and of the early life of the Tenth Guru, Gobind Singh at Patna are very valuable chapters not only for the study of the history of the Sikhs but also for the history of the country as a whole during the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. And the Gurus' Hukamnamas or letters addressed to various Sikh Sangats and individuals included in this volume throw a good deal of light on the socio-economic conditions of those days. For this all, I welcome the publication of this work and offer my sincere congratulation to Dr. Ved Parkash. A Hindi translation of the book in the near future should be most welcomed.
Introduction
The province of Bihar, with its fertile and productive soil, temperate climate, vast mineral resources and a dominating geographical position, can rightly take pride in its rich cultural heritage and glorious traditions of the bygone ages. For centuries, it played a very prominent and leading role in the cultural and political history of India. The old relics and historical sites in different parts of the province, speak unmistakably, though in a mute language, of the high degree of civilisation and the glorious days of the mighty empires, that once flourished in this holy land. It was at Pataliputra and Nalanda, the great seats of learning, that scholars assembled from distant lands for quenching their insatiable thirst for true knowledge. At a time, when people were still accustomed to the despotic rule, the powerful and freedom-loving Lichchhavis of Vaisali had established here one of the first republics of India. In an age of vain and empty rituals and blood sacrifices and formal and conventional forms, stifling the very spirit of true religion, Bihar appeared as the centre of the two great humanitarian and popular cults of the 6th Century B.C., which formed part of the spiritual heritage of India. From here had been carried the doctrine of Ahimsa, inculcated by Vardhamana Mahavira and his renowned contemporary, Gautam Buddha, to the whole of Asia. If it had the proud privilege of producing Babu Kunwar Singh, the hero of the 1857 movement, it also served as the first laboratory wherein the Father of the Nation launched his first experiments of non-violence-a weapon with which he fought against, and turned back the surging waves of British Imperialism.
Bihar also was destined to become one of the most important centres of the religiomilitant community of the Sikhs. There is a strong tradition about the pious founder of the Sikhs, that during the course of his travels, he visited the sacred places in Bihar. His followers established Sangats in some parts of this province to commemorate his visit. During the time of Guru Hargobind, Patna and Rajmahal had become two chief centres of Sikhism. Bhagat Bhagwan, a Bihari, who became a convert to Sikhism at the hands of Guru Har Rai, did much to propagate the Sikh teachings and consolidate the position of the Sikh mission. Bihar rose high in the estimation of the Sikh people, because of the advent of the 9th Guru, Tegh Bahadur, and his stay here for some months. Tradition says that the Gurdwara at Gaighat, represents the site of the Haveli of a Halwai, who had accommodated Guru Tegh Bahadur in his house. The famous Harmandir of Patna City has grown up out of the original mansion, in which Guru Gobind Singh, the founder of a small, but historic republic, was born.
The Sikh movement, which took its roots in Bihar in the time of Guru Nanak and developed in subsequent centuries to such an extent as to encompass the major portion of this province. had not been previously made the subject of any one's research and investigation, But for what can be gleaned from Buchanan's Journals and Reports, official documents, such as Census Reports, Statistical Accounts of Bengal, and District Gazetteers, and succinct account about the Sikhs of Bihar that appeared in the form of articles in some Journals from the pen of the Europeans, the history of Bihar would have been completely devoid of all information about the important part, played by the Sikh community in Bihar. The lack of a detailed, connected and systematic account of these daring and warlike people was strongly felt by my revered teacher, Prof. S.H. Askari, who has spent his life in salvaging the original and rare Persian sources, relating to the history of Bihar.. As I have the proud privilege of sitting at his feet for some years, he advised me to take up this subject. It received due appreciation at the hands of my respected teacher, Dr. K.K. Dutta, ex-Vice-Chancellor of the Magadh and Patna Universities, who very kindly agreed to be my guide.
In this work I have brought the narrative down to the Indian Movement of 1857, an event of utmost importance in the political history of India. The role played by Captain Rattray's Sikh Regiment in the suppression of the Movement in Bihar, particularly its role in suppressing the Patna Rising of the 3rd July, 1857 led by Pir Ali, and in the defence of the Arrah House are well known, but not so well known is the fact of the stiff opposition of the high priest of their sacred shrine at Patna who did not allow them access to the building.
The subject has been treated in six Chapters. Beginning with the general development and progress of Sikhism in the Panjab under the Sikh Gurus, the first Chapter has been concluded with a passing reference to the importance of Bihar in Sikh history.
The salient features of the Sikh history in Bihar upto the time of Guru Tegh Bahadur, have been discussed in the second Chapter. Fresh light has been thrown on the question of Guru Tegh Bahadur's journey to and from Assam and an attempt has been made to establish the identity of the Raja, whom he accompanied.
The third Chapter is devoted to Guru Gobind Singh's early career in Bihar. The question of the duration of his stay at Patna, the legends that grew about him, and the help that he received from these people during his life and death struggle with the Mughals, have been critically dealt with.
The succeeding Chapter is concerned with the sacred shrine of Harmandir, one of the holiest of the holies in the eyes of the Sikhs. The history of the sacred shrine has been brought down to recent times.
The next Chapter, which may appear to many to be one of the most important in the history of the Sikhs, deals with the letters of the Sikh Gurus, specially those which were addressed to the Sikhs of Bihar. Besides the distinctive characteristics of the language and script, the letters of the Gurus throw some light on the socio-economic conditions of the Sikhs of this province.
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