RANA SURAT SINGH, an epic like poem by Bhai Vir Singh published in 1905. This poem of more than fourteen thousand lines is written in blank verse, tried for the first time in Punjabi. With all its protracted search and pang, it is ultimately a poem of complete spiritual certitude, of utter harmony and undifferentiation, of turiydpad, the final stage of realization. But despite this religious leitmotif, the work does not degenerate into a dry and didactic poem, but possesses intrinsic worth as a literary production of high aesthetic value. The backdrop of the story is the eighteenth century when the Sikh people were facing oppression and persecution.
The plot turns on Ram Raj Kaur`s heartache and its resolution. The Rani was the daughter of a hill monarch ruling in one of the Himalayan principalities who had embraced Sikhism under the influence of Sadhu Singh, a Sikh of saintly character, who had been driven to the hills by state persecution. The ruler had no male heir and married his daughter to Sadhu Singh`s son, Surat Singh. Upon his death, Surat Singh succeeded to the throne. But, although he was now the chief of a small territory, he never failed to answer the call of his compatriot Sikhs whenever they needed his help in battle.
In one such battle Rana Surat Singh got killed. This shattered the world of Raj Kaur whose love for her husband was tender beyond words. Nothing could assuage the pain other heart. Duties of state which now fell to her engaged not her attention. She had the ashes of the burnt body of her husband brought to her and entombed them in a shrine of white marble on stream bank on the summit of a small hill. Her mother dissuaded her, but she did not listen to anyone. She had sculptors sent for from Agra and had a life size white statue of the Rana made. She placed it in a temple especially erected for the purpose. Thus did she occupy herself in her love irrepressible.
Never for a moment was she abstracted from her sorrow. Lovelorn Ness was thus Rani Raj Kaur`s fate.Her life was one long drawn sigh. She wept tears of blood for her husband. She offered flowers before the sculptured image and she worshipped the enshrined ashes.
But nothing seemed to assuage the pain of separation. And, then, one day as she lay inert with grief, “She felt she had stolen out of the body where it lay and started soaring upwards like a kite in the skies… Like a bird flying in the skies she saw cleareyed all things be low the mansion, the women`s apartments, the whole palace indeed; the forest, the pastures and the trees; the streamlet and the shrine; gardens, and orchards, servants and retainers, maids and her mother herself… the body lay unconscious, and wide awake she…. As she soared further heavenwards, there sprang into sight spirits in myriads floating in the region refulgent. Who could describe their beauty? The beauty of the world below was as if soot, compared to theirs.
Blithesome they all were like the lotus in bloom.” One of those blithe happy spirits advanced towards Raj Kaur from behind to lead her to regions beyond. Upwards they went into subtler and more luminous spheres. They came to a plane where “the ground shone like crystal. “This was Gian Khand, the Realm of Knowledge. The residents here “were without desire and of pure frame. Sustained by knowledge they dwelt in continued felicity.” Then they came to Saram Khand, the Realm of Aesthetic Beauty.
Here speech subtler than thought took form most beauteous; and here consciousness and intellect, understanding and reason were reformed and refashioned. Further on was the Realm of Grace, Karam Khand, peopled by those of dedicated soul and power. “Beyond words and beyond limit was the splendour that here prevailed. Here death had no access… Grace abounding rained here without cease.” They could go no further. The ultimate domain Sach Khand, the Realm Eternal, was beyond the reach of Rani Raj Kaur`s heavenly companion. So she pointed it out to her from a distance.
As she turned her gaze in that direction, she beheld a vast shore-less ocean of light. It flashed with the brilliance of millions of lightnings. In this light so unlike the daily light of the world, the queen could see nothing. But she rejoiced to have a sight of the “exalted city” in which dwelt the Loved One. In gratefulness, a prayer arose from her heart. The prayer was heard and a glimpse was vouchsafed to her other husband seated in front of the Throne of the Timeless. She was enchanted. The duality ended. “I and mine were annulled.” The pain of separation was erased.
This was a fleeting vision and it vanished with the alacrity of lightning. The queen was left in a daze. Or, was she intoxicated? As she recovered, she felt overwhelmed with gratitude. Her “friend comforting” came forth to escort her back. In descent, the experience was reversed. She was becoming heavier and less radiant as she bore downwards. On the way, her heavenly guide instructed her in the secret of attaining Sach Khand while still in the world as indeed her husband had done. The suspension of ego and selfless, but active, living in the love of mankind and of the Creator transported one into that state.
Then the celestial being disappeared “like a drop of milk in a pool.” When Ram Raj Kaur opened her eyes, she saw that it was the same spot the same body in which she had lapsed into unconsciousness in the acuteness of her torment. She stood up and felt light like a rosepetal. What had happened was sculptured vividly in her memory. Yet her pain was far from abated. For her “the time cycle without her husband flowed but emptily.” Disconsolate in her consuming love, she remained withdrawn from all worldly business. The queen mother tried cure by charms and exorcism and, not entirely novel in courtly code, by stratagem.
A letter was brought to Raj Kaur said to have been written by Rana Surat Singh in his own blood just before he died. He described the fury of the raging battle and his own hopeless condition owing to a serious wound he had received. He advised her that after his death she marry the neighbouring chieftain who had done him a good turn in that desperate state. It was not difficult for Ram Raj Kaur to see that such could never have been her husband`s suggestion. The long suffering search finally ended when an old man found her lying exhaust ed and senseless in front of a remote mountaincave and took her to a satsang, the Sikh word for holy company engaged in prayer and devotion.
She was told that by her immaculate love she had become worthy of satsang. The old man who was the leader of that sacred fellowship, started by Rana Surat Singh himself, instructed her in the way of truth. “To recognize one`s duty in the world, to stay firm in it like the mountain, to overcome one`s ego and give oneself to deeds of service and love like the cloud expending itself in rain, to accept the Divine Will as the principle of all things, to harmonize consciousness with Word and to remain ever in union with the Creator through Nam was to attain Sach Khand while still alive a consummation which was the happy lot of Rana Surat Singh in this world.
” Raj Kaur was a changed being. She took the reins of government into her hands and yet daily shared in the satsang. Rejoicing in God`s Will, attached to Nam and diligent in her daily duty, she was united to her lord as never before. She had reached the state of grace and equipoise. A superficial reading of the poem might bring out the yearning and emotional agony of a wife born of physical separation from her late husband, but, allegorically, it is the story of the eternal longing of the human soul for merger with its original essence, of the matter bound human consciousness to reach out to its divine source.
There could perhaps also be discerned in it an autobiographical motif tracing the poet`s own spiritual strivings, progress and fulfilment. Aesthetically, the poem presents an ardent and artistically wrought vision of a world beyond the categories of time and space
a glowing, but substantive, recollection of one who has gazed upon the innermost mystery of the phenomenon. It is definitely tempered to a moral end and has its religious and theological meanings.
References :
1. Harbans Singh, Bhai Vir Singh. Delhi, 1972
2. Talib, Gurbachan Singh, and Attar Singh, eds., Bhai Vir Singh: Life, Time and Works. Chandigarh, 1973
3. Kohli, Surindar Singh, and Harnam Singh Shan, eds., Bhai Vir Singh, Jivan, Saman te Rachna. Chandigarh, 1973
A Monumental Literary Achievement
Published in 1905 and composed in over fourteen thousand lines of blank verse, Rana Surat Singh was a bold experiment in Punjabi literature. Bhai Vir Singh innovatively employed blank verse in this work for the first time, aiming to capture not just historical events but the inner turbulence and eventual serene certitude of the spirit. The epic’s language is both lyrical and profound—a medium through which the poet conveys the ineffable nature of spiritual realization, ultimately guiding the reader toward what is known in Sikh thought as turiydpad (the final stage of realization) .
The Hero’s Journey: From Earthly Trials to Transcendent Certitude
At the heart of the poem is the figure of Rana Surat Singh, a heroic warrior and devout Sikh leader whose life embodies the struggle against oppression during the turbulent eighteenth century. His journey is twofold:
- The External Battle:
Against the backdrop of incessant persecution and the valiant defense of the Sikh community, Rana Surat Singh emerges as a leader who answers the rallying call for justice. His military exploits against oppressors, marked by personal sacrifice and relentless valor, mirror the historical struggles of the Sikh people. This external conflict is pivotal—it sets the stage for his internal metamorphosis. - The Internal Quest for Spiritual Certitude:
Beyond the battlefield, the epic delves into his inner landscape. The relentless vicissitudes of fate—battles fought, victories won and lost, and the poignant loss of his life in combat—propel him on a journey of selfexamination. Bhai Vir Singh uses his life story as an allegory for the soul’s search for truth. In undergoing intense pain and sacrifice, Rana Surat Singh gradually sheds worldly attachments. His heroic demise is not merely a tragic end but a doorway through which the soul transitions from personal grief into the heightened state of undifferentiated unity with the divine—turiydpad. This ultimate state represents complete spiritual certitude, where the dualities of existence merge into an eternal harmony . The Heartbreak of Rani Raj Kaur and the Allegory of Love
Intertwined with the hero’s journey is the moving narrative of Rani Raj Kaur, his devoted wife. Her unbearable sorrow upon losing her beloved husband transforms her grief into a profound, almost mystical love. Her enduring heartache—portrayed in vivid, poetic imagery—serves as a complementary counterpoint to the external heroism of Rana Surat Singh. Through her journey, Bhai Vir Singh illustrates how the pain of separation can ignite a deeper yearning for union with the divine, an integral aspect of spiritual transformation. The interplay between mortal love and transcendent spirituality in this narrative enriches the epic, making it a layered exploration of personal loss, societal duty, and the redemptive power of spiritual awakening .
A Work of Aesthetic and Spiritual Harmony
Despite its overt religious and historical theme, Rana Surat Singh transcends being a mere didactic text. Bhai Vir Singh imbues the work with intrinsic literary merit—the blank verse flows with an elegance that captures the reader’s imagination, while its allegorical narrative invites endless interpretations. The poem successfully merges the physical heroism of its protagonist with his internal evolution, suggesting that the path to spiritual certainty is forged not only in moments of triumphant battle but also through enduring personal sacrifice and profound introspection.
