ÿþ<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>CHAMKAUR S&#256HIB (30º-53'N, 76º-25'E)</TITLE> <style type="text/css"> .BODY { background-color: #EAF1F7; background-image: url('images/gtbh.jpg'); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-attachment: fixed; background-position: center; color: #0066CC;} .C1{text-align: justify;color: #0066CC;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} .BIB{text-align: center;color: #000099;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} .CONT{text-align: right;color: #FF0000;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} </style><META NAME="keywords" CONTENT="CHAMKAUR,SHIB"> <META http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8"></HEAD> <BODY class="BODY" oncontextmenu="return false" ondragstart="return false" onselectstart="return false"> <FONT ALIGN="JUSTIFY" FACE="Tahoma"> <p class="C1">&#65279CHAMKAUR S&#256HIB (30º-53'N, 76º-25'E) in Ropa&#7771 district of the Punjab was the scene of two engagements which took place here between Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh and the imperial troops in the opening years of the eighteenth century. There exist six shrines in the town commemorating the events of those fateful days.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;GURDW&#256R&#256 DAMDAM&#256 S&#256HIB marks the spot where Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh first alighted upon reaching Chamkaur late on 6 December 1705. The site was then a garden belonging to R&#257i Jagat Si&#7749gh, the local landlord. The Gur&#363 sent some of his disciples to request R&#257i Jagat Si&#7749gh to let him take shelter in his <i>havel&#299</i>. Jagat Si&#7749gh, for fear of the rulers' wrath, refused, but his younger brother, R&#363p Chand, asserting his right as a co-owner of the house, allowed Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh to enter. According to some chroniclers, the names of the owners of the property were : Budh&#299 Chand and <u>Gh</u>ar&#299b&#363. According to <i>Gurushabad Ratn&#257kar Mah&#257n Kosh</i>, Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh had been here once before when he was on his way to Kurukshetra in 1702. A small <i>gurdw&#257r&#257</i> was first constructed here around 1930 by Sard&#257r Bah&#257dur Dharam Si&#7749gh (1881-1933), a well-known philanthropist of Delhi. The present building was raised in 1963 by Sant Pi&#257r&#257 Si&#7749gh of Jh&#257&#7771 S&#257hib. It duplicates the design of the central building of the older Gurdw&#257r&#257 Qatalga&#7771h S&#257hib-a square sanctum on the ground floor within a square hall, and a domed room above the sanctum with decorative cupolas at the corners. The Gurdw&#257r&#257 is managed by the Shiroma&#7751&#299 Gurdw&#257r&#257 Parbandhak Committee through a local committee, with offices located at Gurdw&#257r&#257 Qatalga&#7771h S&#257hib.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;GURDW&#256R&#256 GA&#7770H&#298 S&#256HIB marks the site of the fortress-like double-storeyed house, with a high compound wall around it and only one entrance from the north, which was used by Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh as a temporary citadel in the unequal battle on 7 December 1705. On occupying the house during the night of 6-7 December, he had assigned 8 Sikhs each to guarding the four sides, while another two, Madan Si&#7749gh and Ko&#7789h&#257 Si&#7749gh, were posted at the entrance. Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh, with his sons Aj&#299t Si&#7749gh and Jujh&#257r Si&#7749gh and other disciples, took up position on the first floor of the house in the centre. The imperial army, now inflated with reinforcements from Ropa&#7771, Sirhind and M&#257lerko&#7789l&#257, arrived and surrounded the <i>ga&#7771h&#299</i>. The battle raged throughout the day. Successive efforts of the besiegers to storm the citadel were thwarted. As the ammunition and arrows in the fortress ran out, the Sikhs started coming out in small batches to engage the enemy in hand-to-hand fight. Two such successive sallies were led by the S&#257hibz&#257d&#257s, Aj&#299t Si&#7749gh and Jujh&#257r Si&#7749gh, 18 and 14 years old respectively, who like the other Sikhs fell fighting heroically. The valour displayed by the young sons of Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh has been poignantly narrated by a modern Muslim poet Allahy&#257r <u>Kh</u>&#257n Jog&#299 who used to recite his Urdu poem entitled "Shah&#299d&#257n-i-Waf&#257&#8221 from Sikh pulpits during the second and third decades of the twentieth century.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; By nightfall, Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh was left with only five Sikhs in the fortress. These five urged him to escape so that he could rally his followers again and continue the struggle against oppression. The Gur&#363 agreed. He gave his own attire to Sa&#7749gat Si&#7749gh who resembled him somewhat in features and physical stature, and, under cover of darkness, made good his way through the encircling host slackened by the fatigue of the day's battle. Day&#257 Si&#7749gh, Dharam Si&#7749gh and M&#257n Si&#7749gh also escaped leaving behind only two Sikhs, Sa&#7749gat Si&#7749gh and Sant Si&#7749gh. Next morning as the attack was resumed, the imperial troops entered the <i>ga&#7771h&#299</i> without much resistance, and were surprised to find only two occupants who, determined to die rather than give in, gave battle till the last.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Upon the fall of Sirhind to the <u>Kh</u>&#257ls&#257 in 1764 when this part of the country came under Sikh domination, the fortress at Chamkaur came to be preserved as a sacred monument. Mah&#257r&#257j&#257 Karam Si&#7749gh of Pa&#7789i&#257l&#257 had a <i>gurdw&#257r&#257</i> constructed here. It was called Ga&#7771h&#299 S&#257hib; also, Tilak Asth&#257n (Anointment Site) in the belief that Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh's act of obeying the five Sikhs with regard to his escape and giving his dress, turban and plume to Bh&#257&#299 Sa&#7749gat Si&#7749gh were symbolic of anointing the <u>Kh</u>&#257ls&#257 as his successor to gur&#363ship. The old Gurdw&#257r&#257 building has since been demolished and replaced by a four-storeyed structure. The sanctum is on the ground floor in the centre of a large <i>d&#299v&#257n</i> hall. The building is topped by a lotus dome covered with chips of glazed tiles. There are decorative domed pavilions over the corners and walls of the main hall.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;GURDW&#256R&#256 QATALGA&#7770H S&#256HIB (SH&#256H&#298D GAÑJ), west of Ga&#7771h&#299 S&#257hib, is the main shrine at Chamkaur S&#257hib. This marks the site where the thickest hand-to-hand fight took place on 7 December 1705 between the Mu<u>gh</u>al army and the Sikhs, including the S&#257hibz&#257d&#257s, Aj&#299t Si&#7749gh and Jujh&#257r Si&#7749gh, and three of the original five Pi&#257re (the Five Beloved). A <i>gurdw&#257r&#257</i> was constructed here by Sard&#257r Hardi&#257l Si&#7749gh of Bel&#257 in 1831 but that building was replaced during the 1960's by a new complex raised under the supervision of Sant Pi&#257r&#257 Si&#7749gh of Jh&#257&#7771 S&#257hib and later of Sant Bishan Si&#7749gh of Amritsar. The main building called Mañj&#299 S&#257hib is an elegant three-storeyed domed structure standing upon a high base. The large <i>d&#299v&#257n</i> hall contains an eight-metre square sanctum. Another vast hall close by is called Ak&#257l Bu&#7749g&#257. It was used for the daily congregations before Mañj&#299 S&#257hib was constructed. To the west of Ak&#257l Bu&#7749g&#257 is an old B&#257ol&#299 S&#257hib still in use. The Gur&#363 k&#257 La&#7749gar, community kitchen, is further north from B&#257ol&#299 S&#257hib and Ak&#257l Bu&#7749g&#257. The Gurdw&#257r&#257 also houses the offices of the local managing committee which administers all historical shrines at Chamkaur under the overall control of the Shiroma&#7751&#299 Gurdw&#257r&#257 Parbandhak Committee. In addition to the daily services, largely attended assemblies take place on the first of each Bikram&#299 month and on important anniversaries on Sikh calendar. A three-day fair called Shah&#299d&#299 Jo&#7771 Mel&#257 is held on 6, 7 and 8 Poh, usually corresponding with 20, 21 and 22 December, commemorating the martyrs of Chamkaur.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;GURDW&#256R&#256 RA&#7750J&#298TGA&#7770H is on the eastern outskirts of the town. As Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh was returning from Kurukshetra to Anandpur early in 1703, it so happened that two imperial generals, Sayyid Beg and Alif <u>Kh</u>&#257n, were also moving with a body of troops towards Lahore. R&#257j&#257 Ajmer Chand of Kahl&#363r, who bore hostility towards him, persuaded these generals by promises of money to attack him. A skirmish occurred on the site of the present Gurdw&#257r&#257 Ra&#7751jitga&#7771h. The Sikhs, though surprised by a superior force, fought tenaciously. Sayyid Beg, when he came face to face with the Gur&#363, was so affected by a sight of him that he immediately changed sides. Alif <u>Kh</u>&#257n, chagrined by his colleague's behaviour, attacked with redoubled vigour, but was repulsed. This happened on 16 M&#257gh 1759 Bk/ 15 January 1703. Gurdw&#257r&#257 Ra&#7751jitgarh was built only recently to mark the scene of this battle.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;GURDW&#256R&#256 SHAH&#298D BURJ BH&#256&#298 J&#298VAN SI&#7748GH is next to Gurdw&#257r&#257 Ga&#7771h&#299 S&#257hib and represents the site of the gate of the fortress used by Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh as the bulwark of his defence in the unequal battle of 7 December 1705. The gate was guarded by Bh&#257&#299 Madan Si&#7749gh and Bh&#257&#299 Ko&#7789h&#257 Si&#7749gh, although the Gurdw&#257r&#257 came to be named after Bh&#257&#299 J&#299van Si&#7749gh. J&#299van Si&#7749gh was the same Bh&#257&#299 Jait&#257 who had brought Gur&#363 Te<u>gh</u> Bah&#257dur's head after his execution from Delhi to K&#299ratpur in 1675, and earned from Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh the endearing title of 'Ra&#7749ghre&#7789e Gur&#363 ke Be&#7789e. ' Upon his initiation into the order of the <u>Kh</u>&#257ls&#257 in 1699, he had received the name of J&#299van Si&#7749gh. According to the Bha&#7789&#7789 Vah&#299s, he was killed in a rearguard action on the bank of the Sars&#257. Gurdw&#257r&#257 Shah&#299d Burj, which commemorates his martyrdom, is a small shrine of old Sirhind&#299 bricks to which a small hall has been added lately. The original shrine in which the Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib is seated was built by Mazhab&#299 Sikhs, the community to which Bh&#257&#299 J&#299v&#257n Si&#7749gh originally belonged.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;GURDW&#256R&#256 T&#256&#7770&#298 S&#256HIB is situated on a low mound to the west of Gurdw&#257r&#257 Qatalga&#7771h. When Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh decided to leave the <i>Ga&#7771h&#299</i> at Chamkaur during the night of 7-8 December 1705, three Sikhs, Bh&#257&#299 Day&#257 Si&#7749gh, Bh&#257&#299 Dharam Si&#7749gh and Bh&#257&#299 M&#257n Si&#7749gh, came out with him, too. They proceeded each in a different direction, agreeing to meet later at a common spot guided by the position of certain stars. Since he did not wish to leave unannounced, Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh, upon reaching the mound where now stands Gurdw&#257r&#257 T&#257&#7771&#299 (literally, a clap) S&#257hib, clapped and shouted : "Here goes the P&#299r of Hind (the saint of India)!" From their different points the three Sikhs also raised shouts. This baffled the besieging host, and Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh and the Sikhs were soon gone out of harm's way. The Gurdw&#257r&#257 on the mound marks the site from where Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh had proclaimed his departure by hand-clapping.</p> </font> <p class="BIB"> BIBLIOGRAPHY<p class="C1"><ol class="C1"><li class="C1"> T&#257r&#257 Si&#7749gh, <i>Sr&#299 Gur T&#299rath Sa&#7749grahi</i>. Amritsar, n. d.<BR> <li class="C1"> &#7788h&#257kar Si&#7749gh, Gi&#257n&#299, <i>Sr&#299 Gurdu&#257re Darshan</i>. Amritsar, 1923<BR> </ol><p class="CONT">Major Gurmukh Si&#7749gh (Retd.)<br></p><BR> </font> <img src="counter.aspx" width="1px" height="1px" alt=""> </HTML></BODY>