1. ADDAN SHAH, BHAI

ADDAN SHAH, BHAI (1688-1757), third in succession to Bhai Kanhaiya, founder of the Sevapanthi sect, was born in 1688 in the village of Lau in Jhang district, now in Pakistan. His parents were of a devout temperament and he inherited from them a deeply religious bent of mind. He learnt Gurmukhi and got training in the exegesis of Sikh scriptural texts from Bhai Gurdas Dakkhani, a leading Sikh of Guru Tegh Bahadur`s time. He also remained in the company of Bhai Seva Ram, a disciple of and successor to Bhai Kanhaiya, for a long time and ultimately succeeded him as chief of the Sevapanthi sect.

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2. ALMAST, BHAI

ALMAST, BHAI (1553-1643), Sikh preacher and head of a dhuari or branch of the Udasi sect, was born in a Gaur Brahman family of Srinagar (Kashmir) on 26 August 1553. He was the son of Bhai Hardatt and Mai Prabha, and was the elder brother of Balu Hasna, another equally prominent preacher of the sect. Almast's original name was Alu; he came to be called Almast (lit. intoxicated, in a state of ecstasy, in different) because of his mystical proclivities and indifference towards worldly affairs. He was also called Kambalia or Godaria because he would normally be dressed only in a ragged blanket (kambal, in Punjabi) or godari, a light quilt or padded sheet.

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3. AMAR SINGH MAN

AMAR SINGH MAN (d. 1805), landowner in Amritsar district who left his village about the year 1759, adopted the Sikh faith and joined the Kanhaiya Misl. He overran and took possession of a large part of Gurdaspur district, including Sukalgarh and Dharamkot. He built a fort at Sukalgarh which he made his main residence. After a lifelong fighting career, he died quietly in his bed in the year 1805.

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4. AMIR SINGH, GIANI

AMIR SINGH, GIANI (1870-1954), a widely revered Sikh school man, was born in 1870 at the village of Dargahi Shah in Jhang district, now in Pakistan. His parents, Prem Singh and Thakari Devi, a religious minded couple of modest means, admitted him at the age of 15 to Mahant Jawahar Singh Sevapanthi`s dera or monastery, in Sattovali Gali in Amritsar, to learn Sikh sacred music and scriptures. After the death, in 1888, of Mahant Jawahar Singh, Amir Singh had his further education and religious training under Mahant Uttam Singh, the new head of the dera, and later from Giani Bhagvan Singh and Giani Bakhshish Singh, both noted men of letters of their time. Soon Giani Amir Singh`s scholarship came to be acknowledged. Mahant Uttam Singh, head of the dera, chose him his successor during his own lifetime.

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5. ANANDGHANA, SVAMI,

ANANDGHANA, SVAMI, an Udasi sadhii known for the commentaries he wrote on some of the Sikh scriptural texts. Not much biographical detail is available about him, but references in his own works indicate that he was a disciple of Baba Ram Dayal, an Udasi ascetic; also, that he was born into the family of Guru Nanak, tenth in descent from him. Since his first tika, a commentary on the Japu, was completed in 1852 Bk/AD 1795, it may be presumed that he was born around the middle of the eighteenth century. He spent the early years of his life at Dera Baba Nanak where he was born.

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6. ATAR SINGH ATLEVALE, SANT

ATAR SINGH ATLEVALE, SANT (d. 1937), Sikh holy man and preacher, born in early fifties of the nineteenth century, was the eldest son of Bhai Kishan Singh and Mai Naraini, a devoted couple of Mirpur, in Jammu and Kashmir state. Atar Singh, originally known as Hari Singh, was adopted by his childless uncle, Mehar Singh, who had migrated to the village of Jore, in Khariari tahsil of district Gujrat, now in Pakistan. Hari Singh thus moved to Jore and joined the business of his foster father. His work frequently took him to Rawalpindi where he began to attend congregations at the Nirankari Darbar established by Baba Dayal (1783-1855) and then headed by Bhai Sahib Ratta (d. 1911) whose follower he became.

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7. ATAR SINGH, SANT

ATAR SINGH, SANT (1867-1927), of Gurdwara Reru Sahib at Rampur, in Ludhiana district in the Punjab, was born in March 1867 at the village of Lopon, now in Faridkot district. He was the son of Lal Singh, the village headman. Atar Singh was married in 1885 to Bishan Kaur ofTodarpur, a village near Samrala. A son, Indar Singh, was born to them in 1887. 

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8. ATAR SINGH, SANT

ATAR SINGH, SANT (1867-1927), of Gurdwara Reru Sahib at Rampur, in Ludhiana district in the Punjab, was born in March 1867 at the village of Lopon, now in Faridkot district. He was the son of Lal Singh, the village headman. Atar Singh was married in 1885 to Bishan Kaur ofTodarpur, a village near Samrala. A son, Indar Singh, was born to them in 1887.

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9. BALU HASNA

BALU HASNA (1564-1660), Sikh preacher and the first head of a dhuan or branch of the Udasi sect, was born the son of Pandit Hardatt and Mai Prabha of Srinagar (Kashmir) on 13 November 1564.. His original name was Balu. Accompanying his elder brother, Alu, better known as Bhai Almast, he came to Amritsar in 1604, to receive instruction from Guru Arjan. He devoted himself to the service of the Guru. Of Guru Hargobind he was a constant companion.

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10. BASANT SINGH, PANDIT

BASANT SINGH, PANDIT (1868-1941). eminent Nirmala scholar which status is betokened by the prefix Pandit (meaning a man of surpassing learning) added to his name, was born on 26 June 1868, the son of Bhai Kala Singh of a Jatt Sikh family of Dhingarian village, 3 km north of Adampurin Jalandhar district of the Punjab. Having served his apprenticeship with the head of the village dera or monastery, Basant Singh left home at the age of 16 and went to Nirmal Panchayati Akhara, premier institution of the Nirmalas, at Kankhal, near Haridvar in Uttar Pradesh, where he learnt Sanskrit and studied classical religious literature under Pandit Divan Singh. Two other centres of learning where he studied were Amritsar and Varanasi. Ordained a missionary sadhu of the Nirmala sect, he joined the dera at Thikarivala, in present day Sarigrur district of the Punjab.

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