 Dayal
Das was the eldest brother of Bhai Mani
Singh. He was one of the five companions
of Guru Tegh Bahadur before his execution
at Delhi. First of all Bhai Mati Das was
asked to become a Musalman. He boldly
pleaded for his own religion as being
the best. He was at once tied between
two posts, and while standing erect was
sawn across from head to loins. Dayal
Das condemned the Emperor and his courtiers
for this inhuman act. He was immediately
tied up like a bundle, thrown into a huge
cauldron of boiling oil and roasted alive
into a block of charcoal.
Mani Singh was born nearly three years
before Dayal Das's martyrdom in the
beginning of February, 1673, on Wednesday.
His father was Kala Dullat and Mother
Daya Kaur. They lived at village Longowal
near Kangar in Malwa. Some writers are
of the opinion that Mani Siugh was born
in Akoi village not far from Longowal.
When Guru Tegh Bahadur was touring in
Maiwa, Kala waited on him with his two
younger sons, Nigahia and Mani Ram.
Guru Tegh Bahadur's execution took
place in November, 1675. In 1682 Kala
called at Anandpur to pay homage to
Guru Gobind Singh. Both of his sons
were with him. Maui Ram was then nine
years of age. Nigahia was older. Mani
Ram had such a fascination for the place,
the Guru and sangat that he declined
to return home.
Mani Ram spent his time in singing
hymns, in serving sangats, in learning
Gurmukbi and in memorising Gurbani.
In 1699 AD on the occasion of creation
of the Khalsa, after the Five Beloved
Ones, Maui Ram received baptism from
Guru Gobind Siugh and became Mani ~ingh.
According to Dr. Trilochan Singh, Bhai
Maui Siugh was married to Sito Bai,
daughter of Lakhi Rae Yadav of Muzaffargarh
district.
At the time of evacuation of Anandpur
by Guru Gobind Singh in December, 1704,
Mani Siugh followed the Guru. When on
the bank of river Sarsa the Guru was
suddenly attacked at night by the Mughal
forces, all were scattered in different
sides. The Guru's mother and his two
youngest sons went in one direction.
The Guru's wives, Mata Sundari and Mata
Sahib Devi, followed another route.
Maui Singh immediately joined the ladies.
He led them along the bank to a distance.
In a village he change~ their clothes
into those of a peasant woman. He also
acquired ordinary ponies with pack saddles.
Thus disguised he led them across the
river the following day when the flood
water bad subsided. He guided them on
to Ambala. His aim was to take them
to Nahan, the capital of the friendly
Raja in whose territory the Guru spent
three years at Paonta. But the numerous
streams were flooded on account of heavy
rains. Under advice of Nand Lal, who
also accompanied the ladies, it was
decided to go to Delhi outside Wazir
Khan's jurisdiction. There posing themselves
as Muslims they stayed in Matya Mahal,
a purely Muslim locality even upto now,
out of sheer necessity for security.
When Mani Siugh knew that the Guru was
living at Talwandi Sabo now called Damdma
Sahib, he conducted the Guru's wives
there.
The Adi Granth was in possession of
Dhir Mal, a grandson of Guru Hargobind
who lived at Kartarpur near Jalandhar.
Guru Tegh Bahadur's disciples had
seized the Granth by force without the
knowledge of the Guru, who returned
it to Dhir Mal. Guru Gobind Siugh sent
Mani Siugh to Kartarpur to borrow the
Granth, and in case of refusal to copy
it. Dhir Mal declined to part with it,
or to be copied. He tauntingly said
if Gobind Singh were a true Guru, he
should be able to reproduce it. This
challenge touched the Guru's heart,
and he set himself to this task in right
earnest. It is said that he dictated
the whole Granth to Bbai Mani Siugh
from memory including 116 hymns of Guru
Tegh Bahadur, and one of his own.
Afterwards the Guru dictated to Bhai
Maui Singh his Jap, Bachitra Notak or
his own autobiography, Akal Ustat or
praise of God, Chandi Ki Var or the
praise of Durga, the goddess of war,
Gian Prabod or the awakening of knowledge,
Chaubis Avtars or twenty-four warlike
incarnations of God, Swayyas or religious
hymns in praise of God, Shastar Nan'
Mala or a description of weapons of
war both offensive and defensive, Triya
Charitar or character of women, and
Zafar Nama or the Epistle of Victory
addressed to Aurarigzeb. All these works
were later on arranged by Mani Singh
in one volume. Collectively they formed
the Dasam Granth.
Having spent a little over nine months
at Damdama Sabib, the Guru decided to
leave for the Deccan to see Aurangzeb.
He sent his wives back to Delhi under
the charge of Bhai Mani Singh. When
Guru Gobind Singh had advanced into
Rajasthan as far as Baghaur, he learnt
that the Emperor was no more. He turned
towards Delhi. He joined the new Emperor,
Bahadur Shah, at Agra in July, 1707,
Mata Sundari was left in Delhi, while
Mata Sahib Devi accompanied him. Bhai
Mani Singli remained in attendance upon
the Guru. Guru Gobind Singh passed away
at Nander on October 7, 1708. Bhai Mani
Singh was present there. He escorted
Mata Sahib Devi back to Delhi where
she lived with Mata Sundari for the
rest of her life.
Mani Singh took leave of the ladies
and came to Amritsar to look after the
holy places, and to convey to them the
offerings received at Han Mandar for
their maintenance. At that time Banda
Bahadur was conquering Panjab. A rift
soon took place among the Sikhs. A group
who considered themselves as the real
Khalsa for they had been baptised either
by Guru Gobind Singh himself or by his
baptised persons, called themselves
Tatva Khalsa. The other group directly
recruited by Banda in his army were
designated Bandai Sikhs. A conflict
arose over the possession of the holy
places of Amritsar. Bhai Mani Singh
was then in charge of Han Mandar. He
decided the case in a simple way. On
two pieces of paper he wrote the words
Tatv' Khalsa and Bandai Khalsa. The
papers were rolled up into a ball and
thrown into the holy tank at Har ki
Pauri. The paper bearing the name of
Tatv Khalsa came up the water first,
and the holy places were immediately
handed over to them.
In 1721 it struck Bhai Maui Singh that
the Adi Granth based upon ragas created
confusion. He thought that its rearrangement
into separate chapters of every Guru
and bhakta would be easier for the common
man to read and understand. Consequently
he took up this work and after years'
hard labour reorganised it. The sangats
grew furious. The Bhai was condemned
for tampering with the sacred scriptures
in such a brutal way. He was cursed
that his body should be cut to pieces
as he had mutilated the Holy Granth.
The condemnation by the sangats
came out to be true.
The Mughal Government of Lahore had
strictly forbidden Sikhs to. visit Amritsar
and bathe in the holy tank. On all sides
of the city strong contingents were
posted to arrest every Sikh approaching
their sacred shrines. Tall towers were
constructed to keep a close watch on
fresh arrivals. Mani Singh grew tired
of isolated life. He wished to meet
the sangats. He applied to the Government
that the Sikhs might be allowed to attend
the Baisakhi in 1734, for a tribute
of Rs. 5,000, and permission was granted.
The real object of the government seemed
to be to destroy all the Sikhs gathered
there.
Mani Singh sent messages all over the
Panjab inviting the Sikhs to celebrate
the Baisakhi festival at Amritsar. Young
men from far and wide began to pour
into the holy city in tens and twenties.
The Governor of Lahore sent a strong
force to Amritsar on the plea that troops
were needed to maintain peace and order.
Mani Singh protested that it was
his duty to preserve tranquility. Meanwhile
a report was received that many more
troops were on their way from Lahore
to Amritsar. The Sikhs considered it
a trap and all of them took to their
heels.
No fair was held and no offerings came.
Mani Singh had planned to pay Rs, 5,000
out of the offerings, otherwise he had
no money with him. The Government demanded
the promised fee. Mani Singh blamed
the Government for not enabling him
to h9ld the fair. He was arrested and
taken to Lahore. The Qazi sentenced
him to death, and he was cut to pieces
limb by limb on June 24, 1734.1 A monument
in honour of Mani Singh's martyrdom
was later on erected on the spot of
his execution behind the Lahore Fort.
A poet remarked:
Janani jane tan bhakta jan keh data
keh sur
Nah~an janani ban'h rahe kahe gawave
nur.
[If a woman is to give birth, she should
bear generous and brave men, otherwise
the woman should remain barren to save
her honour.).
This saying is fully applicable to
Bhai Mani Singh. He was indeed great
in Sikh lore and learning as well as
in service and sacrifice
Mani Singh. Bhai (d. 1708), a warrior
in Guru Gobind Singh's retinue, was,
according to Seva Singh, Shahid Bilas
Bhai Mani Singh, the son of Mal Das
of Alipur in Muzaffargarh district (now
in Pakistan) and a brother of Bhai Mani
Ram whose five sons were among the first
few to be initiated at the time of the
inauguration of the Khalsa on 30 March
1699. Bhai Mani Singh took part in the
battles of Anandpur both as an ensign
and a fighting soldier. He also fought
at Chamkaur and was one of the three
Sikhs who survived that critically unequal
battle and came out with Guru Gobind
Singh unscathed. Bhai Mani Singh constantly
attended upon the Guru thereafter until
his death in a chance skirmish with
Mughal troops near Chittor during the
Guru's march to the Deccan along with
Emperor Bahadur Shah. A minor dispute
between the foraging parties of the
two camps had developed into a fierce
encounter. Guru Gobind Singh sent Bhai
Mani Singh to the scene to intervene
and settle the issue, but a chance bullet
hit him and proved fatal. The exact
place and date of the incident are not
known. While Giani Garja Singh, editor
of Shahta Bilas quoting Bhatt Vahis,
places the event in Chittor in Rajasthan
(3 April 1708), Kavi Sainapati, a contemporary
of Guru Gobind Singh, in his Sri GurSobha
records that the skirmish took place
near the River Narbada (Narmada), which
was crossed a few weeks after the date
metioned in the former work. The Nihang
Sikhs trace the origin of their order
from Bhai Mani Singh.
Bibliography
Singh, Sukha (1912). Gurbilas Patshahi
Dasvin. Lahore. ISBN.
Singh, Santokh (1927-35). Sri Guru Pratap
Suraj Granth. Amritsar. ISBN.
Singh, Giani Gian (1970). Twarikh Guru
Khalsa [Reprint]. Patiala. ISBN.
Macauliffe, M.A (1909). The Sikh Religion:
Its Gurus Sacred Writings and Authors.
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