By T Sher Singh | Opinion |
None of the political shenanigans one hears about Bihar in Eastern India have deterred me from continuing to proclaim myself a proud Bihari. How could I not? Born and brought up in the Old City of Patna in the land of Buddha and Mahavira, of Chandragupta, Ashoka and Chanakya, where Sita was born and where the heroes of the Mahabharta gambolled, I have always revelled in the moniker.
But the clincher for my ego was that I was born not far from the birthplace and neighbourhood of young Gobind Rai, the son of Tegh Bahadar who later succeeded his father as our Tenth Guru. He is the one who would become the sixth soul to take Amrit on the historic First Vaisakhi Day, and be transformed into Gobind Singh.
Once known as Pataliputra, the capital of the great Mauryan empire, it now honours Guru Gobind Singh in its new name, Patna Sahib.
It’s my only claim to fame, but it is no small mercy. Being a Bihari who spent the first 21 years of his life in the State’s capital city has shaped me in so many different ways.
My childhood and early years are therefore different from those of most other Sikhs who hail from Punjab, because West Punjab (now in Pakistan, since 1947) is where my parents fled from during the great human tragedy of Partition, and East Punjab (in the newly-carved India) was for me but a place to visit every now and then to visit relatives or to explore the part of Sikhdom that was now left to a diminished India.
My earliest memories of Patna are, of course, of the Gurdwara. Being the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh, the sprawling complex constitutes a Takht, one of the four original Thrones (now five) of temporal authority in Sikhdom.
It was a much smaller edifice then. Its features remain etched in my mind in considerable detail since my earliest days even though none of the original structure, sadly, is around today. Probably because we were there so often and because I saw the old structure being taken down and the current one being built before my very eyes.
I recall the commotion and the massive mess and operation around the building of a grand new, monumental gurdwara, commencing around the time I was barely four years old. I remember the regular visits to do seva as volunteers from across the country came in droves to help in the construction.
I vividly remember the hullabaloo around the arrival of Yadavindra Singh, the then Maharaja of Patiala. It caught the imagination of all of us that a Prince would dirty his hands and soil his clothes to personally carry cement and bricks up the scaffolding. It seemed to give everyone added fervour. I remember the electricity in the air while he and his entourage did their seva mingling freely with the rest of the workers.
HAPPY GURPURAB
[Editor’s Note: Guru Gobind Singh’s birthday falls on 5th Jan as per the Nanakshahi Calendar. Some gurdwaras observing the Bikrami calendar may celebrate it on a different date)
T. Sher Singh, born September 11, 1949, at Patna, Bihar, India. Have worn various hats (actually, turbans), including as Police Commissioner, Lawyer/Attorney, Speaker, TV Host, Radio commentator, Newspaper Columnist on current affairs for Toronto Star et al, World Traveler, and travel writer. Canadian citizen, and resident of Canada since 1971. He was also the editor and publisher at sikhchic.com. The article, an excerpt from his book “The Lion & The Princess, was shared at his LinkedIn.
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