|
These five were the first
to be admitted to the fold of the Khalsa and
they in turn administered the rites of
initiation to Guru Gobind Singh who called
them collectively Panj Piare. Daya Ram after
initiation became Daya Singh. Although the
five enjoyed equal status as the Guru's close
confidants and constant attendants, Bhaa Daya
Singh was always regarded as the first among
equals. He took part in the battles of
Anandpur, and was one of the three Sikhs who
followed Guru Gobind Singh out of Chamkaur on
the night of 7th December 1705, eluding the
besieging hordes. He was Guru Gobind
Singh's emissary sent from the
village
of
Dina
in the
Punjab
to deliver his letter which became famous as
Zafarnamah, the Letter of Victory, to Emperor
Aurangzeb, then camping at Ahmadnagar.
Bhai Daya Singh,
accompanied by Bhai Dharam Singh, another of
the Panj Piare, reached Ahmad nagar via
Aurangabad
, but found that it was not possible to have
access to the Emperor and deliver to him the
letter personally as Guru Cobind Singh had
directed. Daya Singh sent Dharam Singh back to
seek the Guru's adviceJ but before the latter
could rejoin him with fresh instructions, he
had managed to have the letter delivered, and
had himself returned to
Aurangabad
. A shrine called Gurdwara Bhai Daya Singh
marks the place of his sOjourn in Dhami
Mahalla.
Bhai Daya Singh and Bhai
Dharam Singh returned and, according to Sikh
tradition, they re-joined Guru Gobind Singh at
Kalayat, a town 52 km southwest of Bikaner (28
4'N, 73 - 21'E) in Rajasthan. Bhai Daya Singh
remaxned in attendance upon the Guru and was
with him at the time of his death at Nanded on
7 October 1708. He died at Nanded soon after
and a joint memorial there for him and for
Bhai Dharam Singh known as Aaigitha (lit.
burning pyre) Bhai Daya Singh and Bhai Dharam
Singh marks the site of their cremation.
Bhai Daya Singh was a
learned man. One of the Rahitnamas, manuals on
Sikh conduct, is ascribed to him. The Nirmalas,
a sect of Sikh schoolmen, claim him as one of
their forebears. Their Darauli branch traces
its origin to Bhai Daya Singh through Baba Dip
Singh.
In the institution of
Panj Piares the names of the five Beloved
one's have a very special significance. Bhai
Daya Singh Stands for Compassion, Bhai Dharam
Singh signifies the rule of Dharma or justice,
Bhai Himmat Singh, denotes courage, Bhai
Mohkam Singh refers to discipline and serinity,
and Bhai Sahib Singh represents Sardari or
Leadership/Sovereignty. Thus Guru Gobind Singh
looking for an element of all five
(Compassion, Justice, Courage, Discipline and
Leadership) among his Khalsa.
|
