Chapter 15

PAONTA SAHIB:
A CENTRE FOR LITERARY AND CULTURAL
ACTIVITIES

Before leaving Anandpur, the Guru called a meeting of all his senior disciples. He told them that even though he would be away from Anandpur, the town must not be abandoned. Then in the summer of 1686, accompanied by his family and five hundred Sikhs, the Guru left Anandpur.

When they met, the raja was impressed with the Guru’s bearing and his fearlessness. Even though he took an active interest in matters of the world, in the day-to-day problems of his followers and of his own family, there was an air of detachment to everything he did, and on his face there was a glow of saintliness. He offered the Guru land to build a fort for himself. The Guru replied that he would say a yes only after consulting his mother and his advisers.

The Guru’s advisers and his mother unanimously decided to accept the raja’s generous offer. What now remained to be done was to choose the site for the Guru’s centre. One day while the Guru and the raja were out hunting, they came to a beautiful spot on the banks of the river Yamuna. It was high ground with thick forest all around. Building plans were drawn up of a small fort and work started almost at once. When the Sikhs heard of this, they came out in large numbers to help with the construction. The raja’s men also worked side by side with the Sikhs and in, a very short time the fort was completed. It was called Paonta, which means footstool. Unlike a chair or a bed, the footstool is used to sit upon only for a short time. So the Guru and his followers, whenever they used the expression, would know that they were only resting here – this was not their home. The Guru created a smaller Anandpur at Paonta and was absorbed once again in pursuing his education. He was determined that not one of his followers should remain illiterate. He engaged many tutors, not only to teach all the children and young men and women of his sangat, but also all the grown-ups who did not know how to read and write.

He also realized that mere book learning was not enough. Like most of the Gurus before him he firmly believed that a healthy body was as essential to a human being as a healthy mind. So he insisted that all his followers should involve themselves in physical activity, which would give strength to their bodies. Regular sports activities and athletic competitions were conducted in the Guru’s camp at Paonta. As in Guru Angad’s time, there were prizes and honours for all the winners. The young men amongst his sangat, learnt skills in martial arts and in riding and hunting and the use of arms like swords, bows and arrows, the spear and the discuss.

By now, there were strong well-organized Sikh communities from Kabul down to Ceylon, Sri Lanka and from Karachi all the way to Assam. There were Sikh communities even outside India at places as far away as Central Asia. All these followers regarded the Guru as the source, the fountainhead of all their spiritual strength.

Guru Gobind realized, quite early, that his greatest strength lay in the large number of his followers, and he must organize them and give them a sense of unity so that they would be able to rise up as one against their enemies. He asked all the able-bodied amongst his followers, to offer their services to the Sikh community by coming to Paonta and joining the Sikh army.

All those who joined his army, had to undergo rigorous training, which made them competent in riding, swordsmanship, and shooting. They took part in mock battles and then in discussions about the mistakes that had been made during these battles. With each of these exercises, the Guru’s army came closer to being well-prepared for a real battle.

Like the Gurus before him, Guru Gobind too was deeply interested in music. Music had always formed an important part of the Sikh religious ceremonies and no prayers could be complete without the singing of hymns.

Guru Gobind himself was very fond of playing the rabab, and played the instrument both in solo performances as well as an accompaniment to the singers. This encouraged the other members of the sangat to learn music. When Aurangzeb banned music from his court, all the famous musicians and singers who had served the Mughals for generations, sought the patronage of other kings and princes. Many of them heard about the Guru’s interest in music and came to Paonta to seek employment with him. The Guru welcomed them with open arms and Paonta soon became the home of many famous musicians.

The Guru had made a deep study of classical literature and of mythology. This classical education and the beauty of his new surroundings brought out the poet in Guru Gobind and he began to write poetry in Hindi, Sanskrit, Persian as well as Punjabi. When Aurangzeb banned poetry too from his court, some of the court poets too sought employment at Paonta. The Guru invited them to come and live in Paonta and work on their poetry. He would hold kavi darbars and sammelans on the banks of the Yamuna. Finally, fifty-two poets from the Mughal court came to live in Paonta.

Inspired by all this literary activity, the Guru too wrote beautiful poetry. He took stories from Hindu mythology and rewrote them in the form of poems. His favourite themes were connected with the deeds of the Goddess Chandi. He wrote poems about the beauty of his surroundings, about the flowers and trees of the forest, about the mountains and about the beautiful rivers. His writings marked a clear break with the tradition of poetry set by the earlier Gurus. His poems were full of stories of warriors and of war. Their purpose was clear. It was to teach the Sikhs that a glorious death in battle, in fighting for a cause that you believed in, was far better than a life that was lived in fear.

Paonta became the centre for literary and artistic activity in North India and the fame of the Guru and of the poets and musicians spread far and wide. The Guru gained many new disciples amongst the visitors who came to Paonta primarily to listen to the great poets and musicians.

Ram Rai, Guru Har Rai’s elder son, had by this time established himself in Dehradun. He had given up all claims of being the Guru of the Sikhs and had become famous as a pious and saintly man and had gained many followers. Dehradun was less than a day’s ride from Paonta and when Ram Rai heard that his uncle Guru Gobind was in Paonta, he felt an overwhelming desire to meet him. At first, the memory of the difficulties he had caused for Guru Tegh Bahadur acted as a restraint. But then he sent a message to the Guru, expressing his desire for a meeting and when he received a positive answer he rode out to meet Guru Gobind. The uncle and nephew met on the banks of the Yamuna. There was no trace of bitterness and hostility and when, after many hours, the two parted, it was with mutual affection and respect.

Raja Fateh Shah of Garhwal was, at this time, having problems with some of the other kings, especially with Raja Medini of Nahan. His advisers advised Fateh Shah to go to Paonta to seek the Guru’s help and advice. Fateh Shah obtained a promise of safe conduct from the raja of Nahan and arrived at Paonta with many declarations of devotion and friendship. The Guru gave Fateh Shah a patient hearing and then invited King Medini Prakash to come to meet him at Paonta.

He told the raja of Nahan, ‘Fateh Shah and Bhim Chand will soon be related through marriage. If you have war with one, you will have war with the other. You will have enemy soldiers on both your borders and they can easily move into your kingdom and force you out. It is far more sensible to talk to your enemy, to sort out your differences and to negotiate a peace.’

The raja of Nahan listened to the Guru and marvelled at the way the young Guru had matured in a few years. He had been little more than a boy when he had first come to Nahan, but now he spoke with all the wisdom and knowledge of a grown-up leader of men. Of course, the Guru was right. He could not afford to have enemy soldiers on two of his borders.

‘In poem after poem you tell of courage on the battle-field and praise the use of the sword in heroic acts. Would you now advise me to sheath my sword and seek a solution through a cowardly act of negotiation?’ the raja asked.

‘Using a sword is not always a heroic act; and not wishing to fight is not always a cowardly act. I have in my poetry praised acts of valour. But I have also said that the sword should be drawn when all other means of resolving a problem have failed.’

‘I will do what you advice, Guruji,’ the raja said.

Long negotiations followed between the two rajas. In the end, the rajas embraced each other warmly and friendly relations were established between them.

In Sadhaura, a place close to Paonta, lived a Muslim saint, Sayyad Badruddin. Sayyad Badruddin was also known as Budhu Shah and was greatly respected by people of all religions. Budhu Shah and Guru Gobind had grown to respect and love each other. At this time, Aurangzeb disbanded a troop of five hundred Pathan soldiers on a charge of treachery. Amongst these soldiers were great warriors like Hyat Khan and Amir Khan. This troop of Pathan soldiers came to Sadhaura to seek the saint’s help. They pleaded their innocence and asked the saint to help them find employment. The saint was convinced that the charge against the soldiers was untrue and he gave them a letter of recommendation to the Guru. On the basis of this recommendation, the Guru recruited the Pathan soldiers into his army.

One morning, just after the prayers, a messenger arrived from Dehradun. He had ridden through the major part of the night and had then crossed over to Paonta, a few miles upstream, in the early hours of the morning. The Guru knew that he had come from the dera of his nephew Ram Rai.

The news was that saint Ram Rai was dead and his mother, Mata Punjab Kaur, needed help from Guru Gobind.

‘Mata Punjab Kaur is afraid that some of the more powerful masands might try to set themselves up as the Guru. She asks you to help her secure the succession for her son,’ said the messenger.

‘I will help her,’ the Guru said.

The Guru rode out at the head of a small group of armed soldiers to Dehradun. There he defeated all opposition to Ram Rai’s son, banished the troublesome masands and paid his respects to Mata Punjab Kaur.

While on his solitary walks along the river, his mind turned to other more serious matters as well. He began to consider, with concern, the state of the country and he pondered over his own role as the Guru and what he could do to improve the conditions that existed around him. All through the period of his education, he had read and re-read stories relating to the lives of the nine Gurus before him. He had learnt much from these stories. He had learnt how powerful the path of peace could be. Guru Nanak and his four successors had always followed a peaceful path and under them the new religion had grown from strength to strength. He had read of the martyrdom of Guru Arjan Dev and how Guru Hargobind had taught his followers that they should learn to defend their faith with the sword. Guru Hargobind himself had fought many successful battles against the might of the Mughals. In his young mind, the image of his father’s martyrdom was fresh and clear and, like Guru Hargobind, he too was training his followers for battle. Was he right in doing so? The path of the first five Gurus and the path that Guru Hargobind had followed seemed to be in conflict. But by pondering over it again and again, the young Guru Gobind was able to see the unbroken thread and continuity of mission which ran through all that he had read, and everything he had heard of the lives and teachings of the Gurus.

The Guru believed that hatred and the desire for revenge brought out the worst in men; while love and forgiveness bring out the best in us. We must try always to follow the path of love. But once we are attacked and we know that the enemy means to destroy us and our beliefs, we must resist him with all the strength that we can command. The battle is then a battle for the survival, not only of our lives but also our beliefs. It is a battle for righteousness, a dharmayuddh.

Guru Gobind, before he left Paonta to return to Anandpur, had worked out his future role as the Guru of the Sikhs, as a leader of his community. He would wage the battle of righteousness; he would uphold right and destroy sin and evil. This is a role he performed to the very end of his life.