Mata Gujri
Mata Gujri | |
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ਮਾਤਾ ਗੁਜਰੀ | |
![]() Newborn Gobind Rai cradled by Mata Gujari (top-right) during celebrations led by female musicians in Patna | |
Personal | |
Born | Gujri Subhiki 1624 |
Died | 1705 (aged 81) Sirhind, Punjab (present-dayFatehgarh Sahib) |
Cause of death | Hypothermia |
Religion | Sikhism |
Spouse | Guru Tegh Bahadur(wedded on 4 February 1633) |
Children | Guru Gobind Singh |
Parents |
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Mata Gujri(Gurmukhi:ਮਾਤਾ ਗੁਜਰੀ;mātā gujarī;1624–1705), also spelt asMata Gujari,was the wife ofGuru Tegh Bahadur,the ninth Guru of Sikhism, and the mother ofGuru Gobind Singh,the tenth Guru of Sikhism.[1]She played a central role in the history ofSikhismand is one of the four consorts bestowed with the title ofGuru-Mahal.[2]
Biography
[edit]Early life
[edit]Mata Gujri was born to Bhāī Lāl Chand, a SubhikkhīKhatri[3]and Bishan Kaur, who lived atKartarpur.[4]
She was betrothed to Guru Tegh Bahadur in 1629 when he visited Kartarpur for the marriage celebrations of his brother, Suraj Mal. She married Guru Tegh Bahadur at Kartarpur on 4 February 1633 and joined her husband's family inAmritsar.In 1635 the family moved toKiratpurand, on the death in 1644 of Guru Tegh Bahadur's father,Guru Hargobind,Mata Gujri moved with her husband and mother-in-law,Mata Nanaki,toBakala,near Amritsar.[5]
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Soon after he was installed as Guru in 1664, Guru Tegh Bahadur founded a new village, which he called Chakk Nanaki, after his mother. The place, now a city, is now known asAnandpur Sahib.Not long after this, the Guru set out on a long journey, leaving his wife and mother-in-law atPatna.[4]
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Trilok_Singh_Artist_1933a.jpg/220px-Trilok_Singh_Artist_1933a.jpg)
On 22 December 1666 Mata Gujri gave birth to Gobind Rai, who later became Guru Gobind Singh.[5]Guru Tegh Bahadur returned to Patna in 1670 and instructed the family to leave for Lakhnaur. Mata Gujri reached Lakhnaur on 13 September 1670 and was accompanied by the aged Mata Nanaki and her son, Guru Gobind Singh. At Lakhnaur, she stayed with her brother, Mehar Chand. After Lakhnaur, the family proceeded toChakk Nanaki(now known as Anandpur Sahib) where Guru Tegh Bahadur rejoined them in March 1671. After the martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the responsibility for managing the affairs of Chakk Nanaki fell to her at first as Guru Gobind Rai was still young. Her younger brother, Kirpal Chand, assisted her in this affair.
Later life
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Painting_of_Mata_Gujri%2C_Sahibzada_Zorawar_Singh%2C_and_Sahibzada_Fateh_Singh%2C_after_the_Anandpur_battle%2C_reach_Sirhind%2C_where_the_princes%2C_Zorawar_Singh_and_Fateh_Singh%2C_were_executed_by_immurement%2C_circa_19th_century.jpg/220px-thumbnail.jpg)
During the evacuation of Anandpur during theMughal siege of Anandpurin December 1704 or 1705, she was accompanied byZorawar SinghandFateh Singh(younger two sons of Guru Gobind Singh) when they became separated from the main group of evacuees whilst crossing theSarsarivulet, as abattletook place between the Sikh evacuees and pursuing Mughal troops. A Brahmin servant, named Gangu, led Mata Gujri and her two younger grandchildren to his village named Saheri, located in present-dayRopar district.[6]He is said to have then deceitfully betrayed them to two Muslim officers of Morinda and the three were arrested on 8 December.[6]After this, they were confined to theThanda Burj(cold tower) located at the fort of Sirhind. On the same day as the execution of the younger Sahibzades, Mata Gujri died in the cold tower.[6]Seth Todar Mal, whom was a benevolent and wealthy local ofSirhind,cremated the three the next day.[4][6]
It is said that Todar Mal of Sirhind paid heavy price of gold coins standing on their edge to recover the bodies of Mata Gujri and the Sahibzades.[7]
Legacy
[edit]Her father's ancestral village was Lakhnaur Sahib, 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) south ofAmbalain Haryana, where the road from Ambala to popular pilgrimage site of Gurudawara Lakhnaur Sahib was named after her by the BJPGovernment of Haryanain 2017.[8][4]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]Citation
[edit]- ^"ਗੁਜਰੀ ਮਾਤਾ - ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਪੀਡੀਆ"[Mata Gujri].punjabipedia.org(in Punjabi).Retrieved21 August2022.
- ^Gill, Mahinder Kaur (1992).The Guru Consorts.Radha Publications. p. 120.ISBN9788185484112.
Mata Bhani, Mata Ganga, Mata Kishan Kaur and Mata Gujri, are the four consorts who were honoured as the Guru Mahals.
- ^Surjit Singh Gandhi (2007).History of Sikh Gurus Retold: 1606-1708 C.E.Atlantic Publishers & Dist. p. 619.ISBN978-81-269-0858-5.
...Gujri, the daughter of Lal Chand, a Subhikhi Khatri of Lakhnaur near Ambala who had migrated and settled at Kartarpur.
- ^abcdThe encyclopaedia of Sikhism.Vol. 2. Harbans Singh. Patiala: Punjabi University. 1992–1998. pp. 113–114.ISBN0-8364-2883-8.OCLC29703420.
{{cite book}}
:CS1 maint: others (link) - ^abBanerjee, A. C."GUJARĪ, MĀTĀ (1624-1705)".Encyclopaedia of Sikhism.Punjabi University Patiala.Retrieved30 March2016.
- ^abcdGandhi, Surjit Singh (2007).History of Sikh Gurus Retold: 1606-1708 C.E.Vol. 2. Atlantic Publishers & Dist. p. 839.ISBN9788126908585.
- ^Dahiya 2014,p. 185.
- ^Praveen Arora,"Varsity to be named after Guru Gobind Singh, says Khattar"Archived15 June 2018 at theWayback Machine,The Tribune,12 February 2017.
Sources
[edit]- Dahiya, Amardeep S. (2014),Founder of the Khalsa: The Life and Times of Guru Gobind Singh,Hay House,ISBN978-93-81398-53-1