PM bows to Bhai Taru Singh Ji, on his 300th birth anniversary
Kanwar Inder Singh/ royalpatiala.in/ Chandigarh
The Prime Minister Narendra Modi has bowed to Bhai Taru Singh Ji, on the occasion of his 300th birth anniversary.
In a tweet, the Prime Minister said, “On the special occasion of his 300th birth anniversary, I bow to the great Bhai Taru Singh Ji. His name will always be synonymous with courage and fearlessness. Always proud of his culture as well as ethos, he never bowed to injustice. He continues to inspire millions.”
Bhai Taru Singh was a prominent Sikh martyr known for sacrificing his life for protecting Sikh values, having had his head scalped rather than cutting his hair or converting to Islam.
Bhai Taru Singh was born around 1720 into a Sandhu Jat family Amritsar during the reign of the Mughal Empire. He was raised as a Sikh by his widowed mother and had one sister, Tar Kaur.
Bhai Taru Singh was engaged in agriculture at Poolha, Tehsil Kasur, in the Lahore district during the period when Sikhs were heavily maltreated by the Mughal empire Upon watching Sikh fighters save a poor girl from the clutches of the Mughal oppressors Bhai Taru Singh decided and initiated into the Khalsa.
During this time, Sikh revolutionaries were plotting the overthrow of the Mughal governor of Punjab, Zakaria Khan. Bhai Taru Singh and his sister gave food and other aid to the Gursikhs (Devout Sikhs of the Guru). An informant reported them to Zakaria Khan and the two were arrested for sedition. Though his sister’s freedom was bribed for by the villagers, Singh refused to seek a pardon.
After a period of imprisonment and torture, Bhai Taru Singh was brought before the Khan and asked him where he got his powers from to undergo all of the agony. His reply was through his Keshas (Unshorn Hair) blessed by Guru Gobind Singh. Zakaria Khan then gave him the choice of converting to Islam and having his hair cut off as an offering or being executed. Upon his refusal to forsake his religion, Bhai Taru Singh’s scalp was cut away from his skull with a sharp knife to prevent his hair from ever growing back in a public display.
October 9,2020
