SIKH GENIUS

GANGA SINGH, PRINCIPAL

A FORGOTTEN PROTAGONIST OF PUNJAB

 When it comes to the history of Punjab, the name of S. Ganga Singh Dhillon would always be remembered. He left an indelible imprint on it. It is ironical that the role played by this philosopher-son remains unknown to the new generations, laments R C GANJOO

Awell known thinker, philosopher, intellectual, writer and orator of the Sikh community in the pre-1947 era, Ganga Singh Dhillon was the first to raise the demand of Punjabi Subha (separate statehood for Punjabis) way back in 1956. Popularly known as principal, Ganga Singh suffered at the hands of British as well as Indian authorities before and after Independence. He passed away at the age of 68 in Gurudwara Shish Ganj on December 26, 1961. He faded away from public memory into an unknown champion in the history of Sikhs. His tales of daring deeds practically vanished along with him leaving hardly anyone to remember him in Punjab. So much so that the present generation hardly knows about his contribution. Although he was a guiding force behind the formation of the Akali Dal, he was never interested in power. He never endorsed "Politics based on false promises", as told by his own son Trilochan Singh. However, he enjoyed playing the man behind the throne. "I am a king maker, why should I become a king," he told Harbans Singh Ghuman (former MLA), also his student. In fact, many people would not know that Ganga Singh was instrumental in making his cousin brother-in-law Sardar Baldev Singh the first defence minister of India on the Akali Dal mandate. Many facets of his life are still not known to many. A progressive individual, he was also a nationalist to the core. According to his son Trilochan Singh, when the Jalianawala Bagh massacre took place in 1919, Ganga Singh, then a Tehsildar of Batala Tehsil, was ordered by the British government to decree the property of those killed at Jalianawala. He declined to carry out the orders and was subsequently declared deserter. Ganga Singh joined the Ghadar Party headed by Ras Bihari Bose and did not look back ever since. He started writing for the official organ of Ghadar Party published from Lahore. The colonial masters had put a ban on its publication and its reading. He toured the USA and Europe in 1947, where he met with intellectuals and world leaders, including Winston Churchill in the UK. With these leaders especially with Churchill, he is said to have pleaded the case of separate statehood for Punjabis. Unfortunately, in the US he met with an accident and suffered a serious head injury and broke his jaw. And doctors shaved off his hair to perform surgery on his head. When he returned t to India in 1949, he drove to Amritsar and rebaptized himself into the Sikh fold. Tarlochan Singh [Son] Ganga Singh also came to be known as an Urdu lyricist for valiant couplets against the Raj. One of them to earn him popularity was,: Ab ham ne himalya ki choti pe chadke lalkara hai, door hato ai dunya walo Hindustan hamaara hai. (Now that we have climbed atop Himalayas, you better get off, Hindustan is ours). In fact, Ganga Singh's fascination with Urdu started when he was in the sixth standard. He then studied the Holy Quran in a mosque and also wrote his first couplet "Rukhsat Hue is jahaan se jo mumaalik ke baani baani the…. From here, he picked up the art of writing Sufiana Kalaam. So much was his affinity to Urdu that he used to write Punjabi in the Urdu script. Under the Ghadar Party he started campaign against the British rule. Gatherings used to be held in Gurudwaras where he would deliver religious sermons. It was a team comprising Harnayal Singh, Partap Singh Kairon, Baba Mool Singh Gadhmulya, Veer Singh Atehbarya and Harbans Singh Attari (who founded Khalsa Yateem Khana). Besides fanning the nationalistic spirit, they would also highlight the importance of education for women who could play a pivotal role for developing the nation. Subsequently, these lofty idealisms led to many more serious and concrete works. For instance, Shahid Sikh Missionary College, at Putli Ghar in Amritsar was established in 1927 under the auspices of the apex Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC). Ganga Singh, well versed in the art of oratory and with perfect mastery of Persian, Urdu and Punjabi languages, became its first principal and continued till 1946. This institution holds the credit of producing the pracharaks (preachers) like Ishar Singh Majael (first irrigation minister of Punjab), Gyani Sharm Singh, Gyani Badal Singh, Gyani Tegh Singh , Amar Singh Dussanj, Pyara Singh Padam, Gyani Lal Singh, Kartar Singh Pudi, Shama Singh Layalpuri, Kehar Singh Bairagi, Tara Singh Perdesi, Gyani Zail Singh (former president of India), Tara Singh Tara, Gurudev Singh Mann (father of famous Punjabi folk singer Gurudas Mann). His oratory was so powerful that he could mesmerize the audience. In Calcutta a round table conference of religious leaders was held in 1935 in which Calcutta scholarly persons from Budhist, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh and Jain religions were invited. Ganga Singh representing Sikh community, spoke for 25 minutes leaving the audience spell bound. He also edited Akali Patrika magazine for two years as chief editor. Thereafter, he started daily 'Ajit' and managed it for five years. The highlight of the stint was running a series dwelling on certain controversies involving Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi. Harbans Singh Ghumman [Ex-M.L.A., Student] Dark Phase: Ironically, Ganga Singh had to face a turbulent phase. His visit to Pakistan proved costly affair for him. He had reportedly gone there to attend the marriage of a grand daughter of Ghaznafar Ali Baweja who was the then governor of Punjab (Pakistan). He stayed in Pakistan for over one month. On his return to India in July 1956, he was arrested on the charges of conspiracy and sedition. His passport was impounded. He was lodged in Jaipur jail and his family members were not allowed to meet him. He was shifted to Gwalior jail and subsequently to Jhansi and Kodaikanal and allegedly subjected to all sorts of mental and physical torture. These left his body, mind and soul shattered. Ganga Singh took shelter at Ragi Santa Singh in Mata Sundri lane and decided to dedicate rest of his life to singing religious hymns. He was employed in Gurudwara Shish Ganj for Rs 10/- per day for singing hymns. The didn't join his family probably because he had sensed that his stay with his family members would invite troubles for them

SIKH THEOLOGIANS

GYANI SANT SINGH JI MASKEEN

Gyani Sant Singh Maskeen (1934-18 February 2005) was born in 1934 at a place called Lak Marwat in District Bannu today part ofPakistan. The only son of his parents, Gyani ji lived in Alwar, Rajasthan for the last 57 years of his life.

He was honoured by the Sikh community with the rare title of “Panth Rattan” for his services to mankind through the message of Gurbani. Sadly “Panth Rattan” Gyani Sant Singh Maskeen passed away on 18th February 2005 at approximately 8.00 AM I.S.T. due to a massive heart attack while attending a marriage function in Etawah in Uttar Pradesh, India.

It is beyond doubt that Gyani Sant Singh Maskeen was the most venerated and best known religious scholar among the Sikhs. This was due to the fact that he had an in-depth, broad knowledge of Gurmat and Gurbani, as well as, a deep knowledge and understanding of comparative religions. His excellent art of delivery allowed him to make use of his vast database to make the most difficult relations and concepts to be easily understood

SUMMARY

Gyani Sant Singh ji spread the message of the holy Guru Granth Sahib in different countries around the world, including the USA, UK, Canada, the Middle East, Thailand and Singapore. His followers include not only Sikhs, but many persons who are not Sikh.

He was very fluent in Punjabi, Hindi, Urdu and Persian and also had a basic knowledge of English. Maskeen ji was secular to the core, once he even agreed to perform katha in a Muslim mosque in Rajasthan but some of the organisers didn't want a non-Muslim to enter the mosque.

Giani Maskeen ji was a very well read person who frequently quoted Ghalib, UStaad Zauk, Bulle Shah and other noted poets.

Having once promised a Sikh high priest to come to Amritsar to do katha every year during the month of Diwali, Giani ji kept his word for 25 years, until his sudden and unexpected death.

During the 300 year celebration of the Khalsa Panth, Maskeen ji was invited to the Harmandar Sahib by the Jathedar of the Akal Takht to perform katha. Despite the fact that he was then recovering from a heart problem in the USA, Maskeen ji, against the advise of his doctors, travelled to Amritsar to perform the katha.

Gyani Sant Singh Maskeen was well known for exposing scams and other wrong doings in Sikh Temples. He was also known to publish books detailing how many temple's kept a majority of the donations for themselves. His efforts to expose such behavior created shockwaves throughout Sikhism, for this he won the admiration of many and the hatred of others.

During the early part of his life with resources short, Maskeen ji would walk long distances to reach remote places to spread the message of Sikhism. Always being careful to stay away from politics he dedicated his life to spreading the message of Guru Nanak.

DEDICATED LECTURER AND PROMOTER OF SIKHI

He always fixed his annual programmes in advance and would stick to his schedules come what may. He had made a profound study of Sri Guru Granth Sahib and acquired an in-depth knowledge of the Vedas and Bhagat Banis as enshrined in Sri Guru Granth Sahib. Apart from Gurmukhi and Hindi he had a command over Farsi and often quoted Bhai Nand Lal Ji. During discourses he also used to quote from the religious texts of Hindu, Muslim and other world religions with all the useful relevant references.

In his discourses, Maskeen ji particularly used to mention Bhagat Banis as enshrined in Guru Granth Sahib, which has frequent references to Rama, Krishna and other Hindu gods and goddesses, and often said that, to understand the message of Gurbani it is necessary to have basic knowledge of past Indian culture and traditions. However, some Sikhs scholars failed to understand his thoughtful analytical expressions and wrongly labelled him as pro-brahminical.

The attitude of these ‘scholars’ who if they continue to spread these wrong notions, could end in even raising questions about the authenticity of Bhagat Bani, or about references toHinduism and Islam in the Guru Granth Sahib. It is felt that if these critics had their way, they might raise their voices to edit the Guru Granth Sahib, removing the names of Ram, Allah, Rahim, etc.

It just goes to show how little these so called 'academics' realise the uniqueness of the Guru Granth Sahib and the universality of its message and the importance of its words for all of mankind around the globe.

INTRODUCTION

Gyani ji was a colossal figure, striding across contemporary Sikh society for nearly five decades. He was a dedicated Sikh missionary of great knowledge, zeal and repute who was renowned worldwide. A fearless preacher, he was very outspoken and with his rational outlook, he preached according to the concepts of Gurmat and Gurbani. He was one of the few towering personalities that the Sikhs looked up to. Not only did he have a thorough knowledge of Gurbani, his mastery of the holy scriptures of Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists and others allowed him to quote from them at will.

He successfully disseminated the message of the Gurus' teaching in America, Europe, the Middle East and South East Asia. He was extremely popular abroad and his discourses were always well attended. He also established a meditation center at his home town Alwar in Rajasthan, India where a Samagam (function) is held every year on the eve of Hollah Mohallah and which is attended by the scholars, preachers and learned people of the Sikh community. The Khalsa School he established at Alwar has been a great success.

He authored more than a dozen books and innumerable audio cassettes and CDs, which have impacted the thinking and way of life of the Sikh community. His daily discourses ofGuru Granth Sahib on National TV network were beamed worldwide and were keenly followed by many thousands of Sikhs and others. His words provided solace and guidance to many a wavering mind.

His demise in 2005 has created a vacuum, which will be very difficult to fill. Today when western influences are making inroads into Sikh culture he will be sorely missed by the Sikh community. The loss of Giani Sant Singh Maskeen is indeed, a great loss to not only the Sikh Community, but to the whole world.

BACKGROUND

During the partition of Indian in 1947, Maskeen Ji, like millions of other Sikhs in the western half of the Punjab, who were uprooted from their ancestral homelands, during the violent rendering of one land into two, that saw the deaths of untold lakhs of men, women and children, he was fortunate to survive, by Waheguru's grace, finally settling in Alwar, Rajasthan where he spent 57 years of his life. Every year, during the last four decades, a Gurmat Samagam had been held on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd March under his personal supervision. Eminent Gurmat scholars/preachers, Kirtan Jathas, as well as, thousands of devotees have come to participate in the annual gurmat samagams from varied parts of the country.

As per the tradition of Sikhism, Guru’s Langar, (free community kitchen), was served uninterrupted for three days for one and all who came. These events in Alwar were exceptional experiences and were always very well attended. A moderate Sikh population is settled in the villages around Alwar city. At present two Sikhs schools are functional and a big educational centre had already been erected under the able guidance of Maskeen Ji. The fate of these community welfare projects and their completion are now a serious concern. One wonders if any reputed Panthic organization will come forward to take charge of these institutions and to make the dreams of Maskeen Ji a reality?

TOUGH EARLY YEARS

During Gyani ji's initial years of Gurmat Parchar he had to struggle hard to sustain his mission because of his weak financial position. However, he was not a man to give up easily. He used to walk miles to attend religious congregations and to make discourses on gurmat in villages and towns. Whatever the sangat used to offer out of love and affection was his only source of income and he boldly faced all the challenges that came his way and remained firm in his goal of spreading the message of holy Guru Granth Sahib for the benefits of all mankind. Throughout his life he preferred to stay miles away from politics and extremism.

Wherever he went in India and abroad for Gurmat Parchar he never shied away from asking Sikhs to adopt the proper system of management, as per the tenets of Gurmat, to maintain thegurdwaras and other panthic institutions. Recently, he authored a book on the subject of Gurdwara management. He was very much concerned about the election procedure to constitute the committees for the management of Gurdwaras, a subject which has now become the root cause of the infighting among Sikhs around the world.

During 2005, the Sikh masses praised the SGPC for making excellent arrangements for his last rites. Though Maskeen Ji had already been the recipient of the highest honour “Panth Ratan” during his lifetime, on the day of his Bhog ceremony he was honoured by SGPC with the “Gurmat Vidya Marthand” posthumous award. Bibi Jagir Kaur, the then president of SGPC also announced "Bhai Gurdas Gold posthumous Award", worth rupees one lakh, for Maskeen Ji and also presented a cheque for rupees ten lakh to the wife of Maskeen Ji for his outstanding contribution in the cause of Sikhism and gurmat way of life, but unfortunately, for those of us who had come to know her, now even she too has cast away her mortal coil and joined the Holy spirit.

HIS EARLY YEARS

Giani ji's parents were S. Kartar Singh and Mata Ram Kaur. He received his primary education from the Khalsa School but the turmoil of Partition interrupted his completion of his higher education from Government High School. Like many Sikh families his was fortunate enough to escape the pogroms of Muslim mobs who wanted their new "Land of the Pure' free of anyone not Muslim (contrary to the father of the country, Mohaammad Ali Jinnah) who dreamed of a non-sectarian Pakistan for those of all religions and sects. Untold numbers of Sikhs and their Hindu neighbors died before reaching safety in India (and to be fair many Muslims died on their way to Pakistan, a move many of them would have preferred not to make as well, but Giani ji's family finally made a new home in Alwar in Rajasthan.

However the demise of his father in 1952 had an adverse impact on him and he started feeling sad and isolated from worldly issues. Therefore he left home and started learning the basic tenets of Gurbani from various places and from different scholars. He became so engrossed in Gurbani that he soon became a learned narrator.

MARRIAGE
He was married to Bibi Sunder Kaur in 1958 and thereafter made Alwar his permanent home.


LIFESTYLE

Maskeen Ji was a very simple person who advocated simplicity. Wearing simple white clothes with a black turban, he looked very distinguished. His associates and other people accompanying him also followed the same simplicity of dress. He was very down to earth and had a simple and frugal lifestyle. Where ever he went he always preferred to stay at the Gurdwara Sahib and partook his meals from the Langar.

We would not do justice to this great personality if we fail to mention Maskeen ji's complete fearlessness. In 1984 when the Indian Army attacked and placed a siege around Sri Darbar Sahib and many other gurdwaras, Giani ji endured great mental agony due to this act of sacrilege. When the curfew was lifted he made an emotional electrifying speech (on the first diwans held at Gurdwara Shahidan) to rejuvenate the mentally demoralized Sikhs due to the army attack on their holiest shrine. Professor Darshan Singh Ji, another outstanding personality of Sikh Panth, recited Gurbani kirtan to provide the healing touch to the broken hearts of the Sikhs. It was these two personalities who helped the Sikh Panth, through the healing message of Gurbani, to successfully counter and to emerge triumphant from the most difficult period in recent history

STYLE OF NARRATION AND ITS IMPACT

His way of narration was uniquely different from all other scholars whether old or new. He began a particular topic and continued to elaborate on it giving different examples and thereby creating a style which the common person readily understood and could follow in their daily life. His concepts were quiet clear and his voice created a deep impact on all his listeners. Every person whether educated or not was inspired by him.

Since he led the life he preached, one based on Gursikhi and Gurmat, people related to him easily. This had a tremendous impact on his audiences as he was the living example of what he advocated.

He didn't hesitate in speaking out and could discourse with the best. Giani Sant Singh Maskeen even used to speak in the gatherings of people belonging to other communities and religions. And everybody was impressed by his persona.


GYANI JI's FOREIGN TRIPS
He visited different countries and places including Kabul, Kandhar, Kuwait, Singapore, Malaysia, England, Iran, Thailand, Canada and America among others. Sikh communities in all these countries had great respect for him and always awaited his arrival with great enthusiasm.


ACHIEVEMENTS

He established a meditation center at his home town of Alwar in Rajasthan, India where a Samagam (function) is held every year on the eve of "Hollah Mohallah", which is attended by many scholars, preachers and learned people of the Sikh Community. The Khalsa School he established at Alwar has been a great success.

He authored more than a dozen books and innumerable audio cassettes and CDs, which have impacted the thinking and way of life of the Sikh Community. His daily discourses of Guru Granth Sahib on National TV network were beamed worldwide. His words provided guidance to many a wavering mind.

OCEAN OF LEARNING

( a news story in The Tribune, Chandigarh at his demise on 18.02.2005)

Giani Sant Singh Maskeen was a colossal striding across the contemporary Sikh Society for nearly five decades. His demise has created a vacuum, which would be very difficult to fill. The Sikh Community needed him at this crucial juncture when western influences are making inroads into the Sikh Culture. The loss of Giani Sant Singh Maskeen is indeed, a great loss to the worldwide Sikh Community Maskeen was an epitome of learning

GIANI Sant Singh Maskeen, who died following a massive heart attack at Etawah in Uttar Pradesh yesterday, was not only an exemplary preacher, interpreter of religious scriptures but also an epitome of learning. His limited formal education notwithstanding, Giani ji had studied various granths in depth.

Born in Lak Makwat tehsil of Ban district in North West Frontier province in 1931, Giani Sant Singh Maskeen had to skip his matriculation examination because of partition. His parents moved to Alwar in Rajasthan where he joined the sacred company of various religious heads, preachers and saints. His interest in religious studies did not wane even after he got married to Bibi Sundar Kaur in 1958.

Though his family got into motor parts business, Giani Sant Singh Maskeen dedicated his life to religion. He leaves behind besides his widow, three sons and two daughters.

Interestingly, Giani Sant Singh Maskeen had immaculate familiarisation with the works of some of greatest Urdu poets, including Ghalib and Iqbal. His knowledge of Bhagwad Geeta, Quran and holy scriptures of other religions made it easier for him to interpret Guru Granth Sahib and recitations of various other saints, including Sufi saints. Bhai Gurdas, Guru Ravi Das, Bhagat Kabir and Sheikh Farid often used to get mention in his discourses. He also used to refer to work done by various religious scholars. For example, he had gone through all 23 interpretations of Japji Sahib, including by Bhai Nand Lal, Acharya Rajnish, Giani Gurdit Singh and Bhai Veer Singh.

He was a globe-trotter and delivered discourses on various aspects of Gurbani at gurdwaras and religious congregations on important occasions. Known for his candid comments, Giani Sant Singh Maskeen was bestowed with the tile of “Panth Rattan” by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. In fact it went to his credit that coming from a Hindi belt, he turned out to be an undisputed number one interpreter-cum-preacher of Gurbani.

Though just a matriculate, he authored a number of books on various religious scriptures. His Gurbani interpretation programmes were regularly serialised on various channels. One of the channels used to telecast his discourses every morning.

Some of his famous books included Guru Chintan, Ras Dhara, Shabad Guru, Ratnagar and Amrit Manthan. Giani Sant Singh Maskeen also frequented Chandigarh and other areas in Punjab and Haryana every year.

As a mark of respect to him, both the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee and the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee closed their offices for two days. He will be cremated at Alwar on Sunday.

In 2005, with the passing away of Maskeen Ji, the Sikh Panth has lost two of its precious jewels in a couple of months, first it was Yogi Harbhajan Singh Ji who sowed the seeds of "Sikhism in America" and later the death of great preacher Giani Sant Singh Maskeen Ji. Indeed it is difficult to fill-up the void created by the death of these two great personalities of the Sikh Panth.

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