He was born in 1888 at Lalton Khurd, District Ludhiana. He studied up to Matriculation at a Church Mission School of Ludhiana and was a school-mate of Kartar Singh Sarabha. In 1914 he decided to go to America. At Hong Kong, he learnt about the new restrictions imposed by the Canada Government. He got a seat in the Kamagata Maru. When the ship reached Canada were not allowed to leave their ship and enter America. After a great suffering the ship sailed back to India with all its passengers. At the Budge Budge Ghat (Calcutta) where they landed, a serious clash occurred between them and the police. Gurmukh Singh escaped but for a short time. Three days later, he was captured at Calcutta and confined in the Alipur jail. After three months he was brought to the Punjab.
Though he was placed under orders of internment, who under the influence of Kartar Singh Sarabha and Rash Bihari Bose he made efforts to establish secret contacts with Indian soldiers in some of the Punjab cantonments. But all plans of Gurmukh Singh and his companions went away on account of betrayal of one of their colleagues. He was arrested among the many revolutionaries after the disclosure of the plot. He was confined in the Lahore Central Jail and tried in the First Lahore Conspiracy Case along with others. On being sentenced he was sent to Kala Pani (Andaman Islands). The transfer created in his mind the idea of running away but he preferred to wait for a better opportunity. He jumped off a running train when he was being transferred from Madras to UP in 1922 and escaped to the Punjab. From there, after some years, he proceeded to Kabul via Khybr Pass in company with Teja Singh Swatantar. In 1934 after he came back he was arrested again on suspicion of being in correspondence with Ghadrites and transported to Kala Pani to complete the remained of his incarceration which was now enhanced by six months by way of penalty for his misconduct. He remained in confinement on the Andman Islands till 1945 or so. After that he was transferred to the Punjab and kept in the Multan jail. From there he was released in 1947 on the country's attainment of freedom. |
Showing posts with label famous personalities of punjab. Show all posts
Showing posts with label famous personalities of punjab. Show all posts
Saturday, 3 November 2012
Baba Gurmukh Singh
Wednesday, 31 October 2012
Bulleh Shah
Bulleh Shah (1680 – 1757), whose real name was Abdullah Shah,
was a Punjabi Sufi poet and humanist. He is believed to have been born
in the small village of Uch, Bahawalpur in 1680 in modern day Pakistan.
His ancestors had migrated from Bukhara in modern Uzbekistan . At the
age of six months, his parents relocated to Malakwal. There his father,
Shah Muhammad Darwaish, was a preacher in the village mosque and a
teacher. His father later got a job in Pandoke, about 50 miles southeast
of Kasur. Bulleh Shah received his early schooling in Pandoke, and
later moved to Kasur for higher education, to become a student of the
prominent professor, Ghulam Murtaza.
Baba Bulleh Shah was a direct descendant of Muhammad peace be upon him, through the progeny of Shaikh Abdul Qadir Gillani of Baghdad. |  |
A large amount of what is known about Bulleh Shah comes through legends, and is subjective; to the point that there isn’t even agreement among historians concerning his precise date and place of birth. Some "facts" about his life have been pieced together from his own writings. Other "facts" seem to have been passed down through oral traditions. Bulleh Shah practiced the Sufi tradition of Punjabi poetry established by poets like Shah Hussain (1538 – 1599), Sultan Bahu (1629 – 1691), and Shah Sharaf (1640 – 1724). Bulleh Shah lived in the same period as the famous Sindhi Sufi poet, Shah Abdul Latif Bhatai (1689 – 1752). His lifespan also overlapped with the legendary Punjabi poet Waris Shah (1722 – 1798), of Heer Ranjha fame, and the famous Sindhi Sufi poet Abdul Wahad (1739 – 1829), better known by his pen-name, Sachal Sarmast (“truth seeking leader of the intoxicated ones”). Amongst Urdu poets, Bulleh Shah lived a mere 400 miles from Mir Taqi Mir (1723 – 1810) of Agra. | |
Poetry Style: | |
The
verse form Bulleh Shah primarily employed is called the Kafi (Refrain),
a traditional style of Punjabi poetry used by Punjabi Sufis and Sikh
gurus (such as Guru Nanak and Guru Gobind Singh). In Bulleh's time, Sufi
poets often did not adopt the classical languages of Persian and Urdu,
instead choosing to write their verses in Punjabi, Saraiki, and Sindhi –
languages of the commonfolk amongst whom they lived. Although the
number is disputed, Bulleh Shah is credited with authoring anywhere
from 50 to 150 Kafi, 1 Athwara, 1 Baramah, 3 Siharfi, 49 Oeodh and 40
Gandhan. This appears to be a large body of work; however, this oeuvre
is small enough that one could read it all in a few weeks.
What is most striking about Bulleh Shah’s poetry and philosophy is his audacious critique of the religious orthodoxy of his day, particularly the Islamic religious orthodoxy. His poetry is filled with direct attacks on those worldly, fake religeous leaders who claim control over religion, to the point of comparing mullahs to barking dogs and crowing roosters. | |
Spiritual Purification: | |
Sufis
typically spend their lives trying to penetrate the meaning of life
while searching for God. Those among them who were poets articulated
this exploration through their poetry. ‘Who is the Creator?’ ‘What is
the truth?’ ‘What is the meaning of life?’ ‘How can one find God?’ ‘Who
am I?’ These are some of the questions Sufis have tried to answer, by
dissociating themselves from worldly activity, and moving onto a
saintly field where they are no longer bound by conventionally
interpreted holy or material boundaries.
Bulleh Shah studied Arabic, Persian and the Quran under his traditional teachers. After that, in an attempt to move to the next level (of mystic realization), he searched for a spiritual guide. Ultimately he found his murshid, in the form of Inayat Shah Qadri. Inayat Shah Qadri (or Shah Inayat, as he is referred to in Bulleh Shah’s poetry) was a Sufi of the Qadri order, who authored many Persian books on mysticism. He was from the Arain cast and grew vegetables to earn a living. Paradoxically, Bulleh Shah was of the much higher Syed caste. Yet, in defiance of tradition, Bulleh Shah accepted Shah Inayat as his spiritual master, and subordinated his life to his lower-caste murshid. Much of Bulleh Shah’s verses about love are addressed directly to his spiritual guide, Shah Inayat. | |
Religion: | |
Despite
being very critical of religion, Bulleh Shah does not denounce
religion as a whole. Nor does he appear to be pushing any other
structure of thought to supplant religious notions. His ideas,
therefore, cannot be placed into the category of secularism or
atheism.As he says...I take myself to be the beginning and the end....I
do not recognize aught except the One. In reality, Bulleh Shah seems
somewhat critical of all persons in authority - including
intellectuals, academicians and jurists - who create obstacles and
needless complexities for common people in discovering love, and
through love, discovering God. Bulleh Shah preaches an uncomplicated
conception of humanity, as the common connection through which persons
of all faiths, creeds and opinions can attain a superior and more pure
existence, eventually coming closer to God.
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Humanist:s | |
Bulleh
Shah’s writings represent him as a humanist, someone providing
solutions to the sociological problems of the world around him as he
lives through it, describing the turbulence his motherland of Punjab is
passing through, while concurrently searching for God. His poetry
highlights his mystical spiritual voyage through the four stages of
Sufism: Shariat (Islamic Law), Tariqat (Observance), Haqiqat
(Truth-Essence) and Marfat (Union or God knowledge). The simplicity with
which Bulleh Shah has been able to address the complex fundamental
issues of life and humanity is a large part of his appeal. Thus, many
people have put his kafis to music, from humble street-singers to
renowned Sufi singers like the Waddali Brothers and Abida Parveen, from
the synthesized techno qawwali remixes of UK-based Asian artists to the
rock band Junoon.
Bulleh Shah’s popularity stretches uniformly across Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims, to the point that much of the written material about this Muslim thinker is from Hindu and Sikh authors.Read More.... | |
Bhai Gurdas
As
we cannot think of Rama without Hanuman, of Krishna without Arjan, of
Buddha without Ananda, of Jesus Christ without St. Paul so we cannot
separate Guru Arjan from Bhai Gurdas. One was the spring, the other was
the stream to carry spring waters. Bhai Gurdas. remained in close
association with third, fourth, fifth and sixth Gurus from 1579 to 1637
for 58 years.
Bhai Gurdas is one of the most eminent personalities in the history of Sikh religion. He was a brilliant scholar and poet and rendered imperishable service to Sikhism. He was so much devoted to his cause-that he never married. His humility was so great that though he-wrote the Adi Granth at the dictation of Guru Arjan, and included therein sayings of many Hindu and Muslim saints, and was the Guru's maternal uncle, yet he declined to include in it his own compositions-which were of a high order, for the simple reason that he did not like to raise himself to the position of bhaktas. Guru Amar Das's father was Tej Bhan. Tej Bhan's brother was Chandra Bhan. His son was Ishwar Das. Bhai Gurdas was his son. His mother was Jiwani. Thus Gurdas was a nephew of Guru Amar Das. |  | ||
He was born in 1551 AD, twelve years after Guru Nanak's death. He was thus the first cousin of Bibi Bhani, daughter of Guru Amar Das, wife of Guru Ram Das and mother of Guru Arjan. His parents belonged to village Basarke, but they migrated to Goindwal, the headquarters of Guru Amar Das. It was here that Gurdas took birth. His parents had embraced Sikh religion. As a child Gurdas attended sangats or congregations. He possessed a sweet and melodious voice,-and enthusiastically participated in singing hymns. He developed great love and affection for the Gurus' teachings. He picked up Gurmukhi and learnt by heart Gurbani or the Gurus' hymns, prayers, and chants. He seldom missed any divine service. In 1567 Guru Amar Das got a baoli or a well with stairs dug up at Goindwal. On the Baisakhi day a great fair was held there which was attended by all the Sikhs. Gurdas as a lad of sixteen served in this festival and entertained the congregations with his songs and recitations. Guru Amar Das had established twenty-two manjis or dioceses each under a sangatia. The most important and distant diocese at Agra, then capital of the Mughal Empire in India, was assigned to him. At this time Akbar was the Emperor. Hindi and Sanskrit were flourishing. Goswami Tulsidas had just composed his immortal Ramayana called Ramcharitmanas. The most celebrated musician Tansen was living at Akbar's court. Gurdas made the most of his opportunity. He learnt Brajbhasha, Sanskrit and many ragas or musical metres after the style of Tansen and composed poetry. | |||
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In
1596 AD, Guru Arjan decided to compile the Holy Granth. He deputed
Gurdas to many Sikhs to collect Gurbani. Then he was sent to Mohan, son
of Guru Amar Das, at Goindwal to bring the collection of Guru's hymns
from him.
Guru Arjan addressed Bhai Gurdas as 'Mamaji' or maternal uncle. There being no better scholar than Gurdas among the Sikhs, the Guru entrusted to him the duty of writing the Granth at his dictation. Guru Arjan selected a beautiful site two kilometres to the east of the holy tank in the grove of Beri (Zizyphus Jajuba) trees on the bank of a pond now called Ramsar. There he put up a small tent. The Guru sat on a cot inside and Bhai Gurdas outside. The dictation continued from sunrise for 4 to 5 hours daily. Gurdas simplified the Gurmukhi style at the bidding of Guru Arjan,1 and he wrote the Granth in the modified script. When the sayings of bhaktas had been included in the Granth, the Guru asked Bhai Gurdas to insert his own Vars and Kabits also. Bhaiji declined saying that he had not attained that degree of perfection in devotion to God. The Granth was completed in 1604 AD. In 1605 Emperor Akbar on a visit to Lahore stayed at Batala. Prithi Mal with the help of local Mughal officials complained to the Emperor against Guru Arjan saying that he had abused Hinduism and Islam therein. The Emperor called for the Granth. It was sent under custody of Bhai Budha and Bhai Gurdas. Akbar asked Bhai Gurdas to read at a certain place. At the first place it said: Khak nur karand alam duniyai [God reduces worldly pedagogues to dust] The Emperor pointed to a hymn on another page. It stated: Allah agam Khudai bande [God is eternal and men are his creation] Akbar now asked his clerk, Munshi Sarb Dayal, who knew Gurmukhi, to read the Granth from another place. It said: Koi bole Ram Ram koi Khuda [Some call Him Ram, others Khuda.] The Emperor was pleased. He made an offering of 51 gold mohars to the Granth, and awarded robes of honour to its two bearers with another khilat for the Guru. Guru Hargobind became Guru in 1606 AD. The tilak of succession was applied by Bhai Budha who adorned the Guru with two swords of Miri and Pin. The Holy Granth was recited by Bhai Gurdas. When the Guru was imprisoned in the fort of Gwalior, Mata Ganga, the Guru's mother, sent Bhai Gurdas there to bring news about Hargobind. Afterwards he was sent by the Guru to Afghanistan to purchase horses. On the death of Bhai Budha, the office of the head priest of Han Mandar was bestowed upon him. By natural temperament and training Bhai Gurdas was a man of peace. He did not much appreciate Guru Hargobind's militarist activities. He perhaps believed in co-operation with the Mughal Emperors. in a Var he represented people's views about the Guru's activities. He says that they did not approve of his wanderings, wars with Emperors and not devoting full attention to his religious duties. As the Guru was most popular with his Sikhs who were ready to lay down their lives for him voluntarily, Bhai Gurdas concluded his account thus: "I say the truth which cannot possibly be concealed ; the true Sikhs, like the humble bees, are enamoured of his lotus-feet." "He supporteth a burden intolerable to others and asserteth not himself." Bhai Gurdas composed thirtynine Vars and 556 Kabits. In Vars I and XI he gives a short account of Guru Nanak. In Kabit no.345 he tells us that Guru Nanak obtained divine light about his mission in life on Kartik full moon day: Kartik masi rut sarad puranmashi ath jam sath ghari aj ten ban hai. [It is the month of Kartik, weather is cool, full moon day of eight jams (24 hours), sixty gharis (24 hours) (is over); it is your turn today (to obtain divine knowledge). About mixing people of all castes and creeds in sangats and pangats on the basis of social equality Bhai Gurdas has given a fine example. A green betel leaf with a coating of white lime and brown katha, when chewed produces a bright red colour giving fragrance to breath and beauty to lips. Similarly the Guru's teachings dissolved all caste differences and produced a homogeneous society of the Sikhs. Bhai Gurdas further says: Do good even to bad people like the tree that gives fruit even to those who throw stones at it. Gurdas praises such persons as sacrifice for others and who are happy by serving others. Bhai Gurdas, who never married, died on Bhadon suds 5,1693 13k/25 August 1636 in Goindwal at the age of 86. He mentions Mardana, Daulat Khan Lodi and others, but there is no reference to Bhai Bala. The house of Bhai Gurdas containing a well and his smadhi were situated behind the residence of Guru Hargobind at Amritsar. | |||
Avtar Singh Sandhu
| Pash was the pen name of Avtar Singh Sandhu (September 9, 1950 - March 23, 1988), an Indian poet. His strongly left-wing views were reflected in his poetry. |
Biography: |
He
was born in Talwandi Salem, Jalandhar, Punjab, growing up in the
struggle between the Naxalite movement and working class,
poverty-stricken Punjabs, during the so-called Jujharu (rebellious era). He published his first book of revolutionary poems, Loh-Katha (Iron Tale)
in 1970; his militant and provocative tone raised the ire of the
establishment and a murder charge was hastily brought against him. He
spent nearly two years in jail, before being finally acquitted.
On acquittal, he became involved in Punjab's maoist front, editing a literary magazine, Siarh (The Plow Line). He became a popular political figure on the left during this period, and was awarded a fellowship at the Punjabi Academy of Letters in 1985. He toured the United Kingdom and the United States the following year; while in the U.S., he became involved with the Anti-47 Front, opposing Sikh nationalist violence; in retribution, he was murdered at the hands by a Sikh group in 1988. |
Literary works: |
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Quotes about Pash: |
"The
best known name in the Left and progressive movements in modern
Punjabi literature, Pash followed an old Punjabi tradition of fighting
against oppression and it was almost as if he was a reincarnation of
one of the renowned Punjabi freedom fighters.""He took the banner of
the Naxalite movement to actively participate in radical politics that
landed him in jail for a couple of years on a trumped up murder charge,
and finally got him brutally murdered in broad daylight at the age of
38."
"The intensity of his passion gave some of the best revolutionary poetry to modern Punjabi literature and an alternative to the romantic poetry of Shiv Kumar Batalvi, whom he had admired as a teenager and then challenged by confronting him personally and in writing, creating a fascinating legend of the clash of two major schools of thoughts of Punjabi poetry.""Paash, a famous revolutionary cultural poet combated communal terrorism through the anti-47 Front. Paash fought till the last breadth against the terrorists, till he fell to their bullets in Jalandhar in 1988." Samartha Vashishtha says in his essay "Politics in Poetry"--"I'd perhaps have accepted the logic put forward by the veteran writer without doubt, had I not spotted earlier a glaring paradox right in his camp. I translate below part of the prefatory note that Paash (1950-1989), one of the leading poets of the Jujharu (rebel) era of Punjabi poetry; and arguably one of the finest poets (pro-people, should I say?) of the 20th Century, wrote for his third book of poems Saade Samiyaan Vich (In Our Times), 1978: "Of those whose poetry has influenced me the most, Kamala Das is still alive. Kalidas left for heaven long back. As for now, I would like to thank Kamala Das. Neruda and Nazim belong to our own camp. So no need to thank them at all." "Because when they strike it can be that quick that if they're within range, you're dead, you're dead in your tracks. And his head weighs more than my body so it's WHACK!" - Steve Irwin. |
Poems: |
| Mainu Chahiday Han Kujh Bol |
| Two and Two Three |
| The Most Dangerous |
| Commitment |
| No, I Am Not Losing My Sleep |
| The Most Dangerous Thing |
| Everyone Doesn't Have The Propensity To Dream |
| After emergency was imposed |
| In a meeting of mourning |
Amrita Pritam
Amrita Pritam
(August 31, 1919 – October 31, 2005) was an Indian writer. She is
considered the first prominent woman Punjabi poet, novelist, and
essayist. When the former British India was partitioned into the
independent states of India and Pakistan, she migrated to India in 1947.
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Formative Years: | |
Amrita
Pritam was born in 1919 in Gujranwala, Punjab, now in Pakistan, the
only child of a school teacher and a poet. Her father was a pracharak
-- a preacher of the Sikh faith. Amrita's mother died when she was
eleven. Soon after, she and her father moved to Lahore. Confronting
adult responsibilities, she began to write at an early age. Her first
collection was published when she was only sixteen years old, the year
she married Pritam Singh, an editor to whom she was engaged in early
childhood.
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Partition: | |
Some
one million Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs died from communal violence that
followed the partition of India in 1947. Amrita Pritam moved to New
Delhi, where she began to write in Hindi instead of Punjabi, her mother
tongue. Her anguish was expressed in her poem, "Aaj Aakhaan Waris Shah
Noo", addressed to the Sufi poet Waris Shah, author of the tragic saga
of Heer and Ranjah, the Punjabi national epic: Utth dard-mandaan dey dardiyaa tak apna Punjab
Amrita
Pritam worked until 1961 for All India Radio. After her divorce in
1960, her work became more clearly feminist. Many of her stories and
poems drew on the unhappy experience of her marriage. A number of her
works have been translated into English, French, Japanese and other
languages from Punjabi and Urdu, including her autobiographical works Black Rose and Revenue Stamp (Raseedi Tikkat in Punjabi).
The first of Amrita Pritam's books to be filmed was Daaku (Dacoit, 1976), directed by Basu Bhattacharya. Her novel Pinjar (The Skeleton, 1970) was made into an award winning Hindi movie by Chandra Prakash Dwivedi, because of its humanism: "Amritaji has portrayed the suffering of people of both the countries." Pinjar was shot in a border region of Rajasthan and in Punjab. | |
Acclaim: | |
| The first woman recipient of the Sahitya Akademi ward in 1956 for Sunehe (Messages), Amrita Pritam received the Bhartiya Jnanpith, India's highest literary award, in 1982 for Kagaj te Canvas (Paper and Canvas).
She received the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian
award, as well. She received D Litt degrees, honoris causa, from Delhi,
Jabalpur and Vishva Bharti Universities. Amrita Pritam lived the last forty years of her life with the renowned artist, Imroz. She died on 31st October 2005 at the age of 86, after a long illness, survived by her daughter, Kundala; her son, Navraj; and her grandson, Aman. Her story cannot be completed without the name of Sahir. | |
Awards&Honours: | |
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Works: | |
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