Bhai Jaita’s Sri Gur Katha translated by Neeti Singh Book Review
ਦੋਹਰਾ
ਜਯਤੇ ਤਾਰਣਹਾਰ ਗੁਰ ਤਾਰ ਦੀਏ ਰੰਘਰੇਟੜੇ ।
ਗੁਰ ਪਾਰਸ ਨੇ ਕਰ ਦੀਏ ਰੰਘਰੇਟ ਗੁਰ ਬੇਟੜੇ ।।
Dohira
O Jaita, The eternal boatman, the Guru has ferried across the rangrettas.
The touchstone of It’s grace has turned the rangrettas, into Guru-ka-bettas!
Bhai Jaita’s Sri Gur Katha
Neeti Singh
Singh Brothers, 2015
139 pages
Introduction
This is a book I would recommend to anyone and everyone. It is an epic poem of Bhai Jaita, a dalit, (also known as Bhai Jivan Singh) from the 17th century battlefields of Punjab.
The Sri Gur Katha is a huge major milestone in Sikh literature as it becomes one of the earliest references to the creation of the Khalsa, the new initiation of khanda dee pahul and Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s rahit. It provides testimony of the Panj Kakkars as being a fundamental part of the Khalsa (although there are questions regarding the authenticity of the inclusion of these lines).
The foreword provides the origins of the manuscripts of the Katha, a framework around the text, in terms of Sikh history, ideology and dalit dynamics, then and now.
The introduction by the translator explores the potential the Katha holds as a source text for historians, anthropologists, social scientists and researchers in religious and literary studies.
The Katha covers the shaheedi of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, the personality of Guru Gobind Singh Ji, Guru’s convocation of a divan at Anadpur, the new identity of the Panj Pyare, a story of rescuing a Brahmin’s wife who had been abducted by a Turk, the machinations of Bhim Chand, a fair picture of the Battle of Bhagani, an explicit mention of the Panj Kakkar, amrit bidh and rahit (conduct).
Neeti Singh, the translator of Sri Guru Katha, is familiar with the medieval poetic language of India, after having done a doctorate on compositions of Kabir and Guru Nanak Sahib Ji, and having command over both languages.
Before diving into the main part of this book review, I think it’s worthwhile providing a short synopsis of Bhai Jaita.
Who is Bhai Jaita?
Bhai Jaita (1649-1704), known later in life as Bhai Jivan Singh, was born in 1649 to Sada Nand and Mata Premo. His childhood was spent in Patna learning the art of warfare and weaponry, amongst swimming, horse riding and music.
This change in name is significant as the poem does carry the authorial name; Jaiyata or Jaiyate 13 times where as Jeevan Singh is registered in 5 places. Arguably, this indicates that Bhai Jaita took amrit in the midst of writing Sri Gur Katha.
Bhai Jaita came from an ancestry that had rendered services to the Gurus from the time of Guru Nanak Sahib Ji. Bhai Kalyan, an ancestor of Bhai Jaita, performed kar seva during the days of Guru Nanak and Guru Angad Sahib Ji. Bhai Kalyan’s son, Bhai Sukh Bhan established a school of gurmat sangeet and built the Kalyan Dharmasal. Guru Tegh Bahadur often stayed at the Dharamsal during their visits to Delhi.
Bhai Jaita’s younger brother, Sangta, was born the day after Guru Gobind Singh Ji in the same pind. Bhai Jaita was roughly 17 at this point in time. Bhai Jaita even provides an insight into the friendship of Sangta and Guru Sahib:
“Sangta and Gobind in Patna Sahib, peerless their bond, their friendship, like Krishan-Malram in Brindaban! In cool gangetic waters bathed the boys twain. Blessed with the Guru’s company Sangta is a blessed companion.”
Bhai Jaita was a skilled musician, teacher to Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s two eldest sons, a remarkable warrior who held the officer of chief dummer and general, along with being a personal accomplice, companion and friend of Guru Gobind Singh Ji.
It was Bhai Jaita’s who beheaded his own father Bhai Sada Nand, buried the body beneft the floor of the house where the family lived, smuggled his father’s head to the spot where Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib Ji’s head lay, exchanged them, and brought Guru Sahib’s head to Guru Gobind Singh Ji. It was this act that earned him and the entire community of dalits, the honourable title of Rangrette Guru Ke Bette (the Dalits are the sons of the Guru).
Bhai Jaita died fighting a Mughal army, dressed in the clothes of the Guru, adorning a Kalgi, along with seven other Sikhs, outside a Rajput chief’s haveli near Ropar in December 1704.
Breakdown
The foreword provides much insight into the text and starts with providing the origins of the Sri Gur Katha manuscripts and then is mainly focused on date of the composition; an issue for some of Sikh hagiographic sources.
What is most interesting is that the text hints at the ‘creation of the Khalsa’ as an event that unfolded in two phases. The first phase is pre-Bhangani (1686) call by Guru Gobind Singh Ji to the Sikhs to assemble at Anandpur with emphasis to come with war material.
The title of ‘Singh’ is conferred upon the Sikhs who came forward to give their lives in the Katha. The second phase is post-Bhangani, having tested the success of infusing a new spirit into the Sikhs, Guru Sahib thought of launching a ‘new Panth’ of ‘Khalsa’.
A brilliant breakdown of the historiography regarding the date of the creation of the Khalsa Panth is included – “None of the 18th century sources places it [creation of Khalsa Panth] in 1699.” In fact, a copper-plate issued in 1679 bestowed on Jawala Das Brahman of a Shiva temple in Kapal Mochan near Paonta assumes a special significance as it talks about Khalsa while Guru’s name is inscribed as “Gobind Singh”. Professor Raj Kumar gives credence to Koer Singh’s 1689 as the date of the creation of the Khalsa.
This is important because it is through dating other sources that the Sri Gur Katha is provided a rough date of origin – 1698-1704. More importantly, if we follow Bhai Jaita’s sequence of events the first phase of the creation of the Khalsa comes in quick succession to the shaheedi of Guru Tegh Bahadur.
In fact, it is after offering the head of Guru Tegh Bahdur Sahib Ji to Guru Gobind Singh Ji, the Ranghrettas were pronounced as sons of the Guru. The popular saying, “ranghrette guru ke bette,’ is confirmed by Jaita’s self statement, “Jaiyate taaranhaar gur, taar diye ranghreet de, Gur paras ne kar diye ranghrete gur bet de.”
The poem, unlike most 17th century to early-19th century sources, explicitly mentions the ‘Panj Kakkars’. This brilliant piece of evidence flies directly in the face of the McLeod’s suggestion that there is no evidence that Guru Gobind Singh Ji decreed the Panj Kakkars. The Panj Kakkars and changes to the earlier practice of Sikh initiation are elaborated upon within the ‘amrit bidhi’ section provided by Bhai Jaita.
The remainder of the introduction focuses on the poetics of Sri Gur Katha. Although the following paragraph doesn’t do justice to the detail breakdown of the poetics provided in the introduction it will provide an overall glimpse of the discussion.
Fundamentally Sri Gur Katha is a narrative regarding Guru Gobind Singh Ji by Bhai Jaita a childhood companion, poet, mystic and ace warrior. The Katha is originally written in Sadh Bhasha and is nurtured by two poetic traditions that ran parallel to 17th century Sikh poetics and sensibility. On one hand the Katha straddles the 200 year tradition of Nirguna bhakti and on the other it subsumes the poetics of the Dhadhis – bards who sing martial ballads and draw inspiration from the folk traditions of Punjab.
The Katha, composed in the last decade of the 17th century (the language, dictation and vocabulary) is similar to that used in the Dasam Granth. The epic of Guru Gobind Singh explores the Saint along with the Warrior-King and combines in itself a poetics that is both mystic and martial. This is further exemplified by the depth and ability of Bhai Jaita – Sri Gur Katha includes sabad, sawaiya, soratha, kabitt, sirkhandi, chaupai, kundaliya, rola and adil – lends itself to the suggestion that Bhai Jaita could have penned other works.
The remaining eighty-two pages of the book include a Punjabi and English version of Sri Gur Katha. The katha is sectioned as into an Ardas (supplication), Ustati (praise), then the bulk of it consisting of the Chitra Kalgidhar Ji Ka (Portrait of the Plume Wearer – Guru Gobind Singh Ji), followed by a couple of pages under the title of Amrit-Bidhi (the Amrit initiation) and followed by four or so pages under the title of Rahit (way to live/code of conduct).
The ardas provides a brilliant insight into the perspective of Bhai Jaita’s notions of the Divine and their relation to his environment. For instance, entire sawwaiya focuses on blessing the cattle, cattle keepers, natural environment, fruits, flowers and nourishment provided by the Divine.
The Ustati praises the first eight Gurus, before touching upon Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji and the childhood of Guru Gobind Singh Ji. For instance, “hands folded I bow before Hari Rai, Guru who led me to envision the Creator and Its Creation divine. Maya failed to impress the man, the thread of whose devotion lay in the Divine’s Grace,” and “Eternal light divine, in the cowardly hearts of cowards, Guru Tegh Bahadur did ignite.”
The Chitra Kalgidhar Ji Ka delves more deeply into Guru Tegh Bahadur’s shaheedi, Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s life and response to this father’s shaheedi, the creation of the Khalsa, the events that took place on the day of Vaisakhi and concludes with the rahit of the Khalsa.
Amongst this Bhai Jaita touches upon the practices of Aurangzeb who would relocate colonies of Brahmins and coax them to convert, the machinations of some of the local hill chiefs, Bhim Chand, the relationship between dharma and a Sikh, the importance of a Guru, some of the Guru’s comrades, such as Shah Baddrudin, Krpial Das and Kale Khan.
The amrit-bidhi reinforces and supports amrit sanchaars – five Singhs who read Jap, Jaap, Sawwaiya, Chaupai and Anand Sahib whilst mixing water and sugar crystals with a khanda. The rahit section is clear “follow not the ritual of Brahmins” to love and care for weapons, which include celibacy, truth, restraint and scriptures. To not tamper with your hair or piercing of nose and ears, along with a strict ban on hookah, halal, charas/hashish and tobacco. In fact, Bhai Jaita goes as far as to say the absence of weapons makes cowards of individuals.
Conclusion and Rating
Bhai Jaita’s Sri Gur Katha rightfully gets a full five out of five-star rating. I strongly recommend it to anyone interested in Sikhi. Not only is it an eye-witness account but also comes from one of the closest associates of Guru Gobind Singh Ji and provides insight into numerous important factors of Sikhi - Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji's shaheedi, Guru Gobind Singh Ji, amrit sanchar, and Khalsa practice.
“Hail the One who raised from death Sikh heroes; infused with valour arms inert.
Made lions out of weak jackals, and raised the giant victory-call!
A portion of courage he fed to the sparrows who duelled with the hawks and tore them to shreds in battle.
Hail the Singh Gobind Guru!
Hail the Guru Gobind Raghurai*!”
* term for Vishnu/Divine
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