DHARAM ARTH BOARD, a body representing different sections of the Sikh community constituted in May 1949 by Maharaja Yadavinder Singh, Rajpramukh of the Patiala and East Punjab States Union (PEPSU), to manage the major Sikh shrines within the new state which had come into being in consequence of the amalgamation of the eight princely territories in the Punjab. Before merger some of these states had their own boards or committees for the purpose. Patiala state had, for instance, its Interim Gurdwara Board formed on 8 November 1946; Kapurthala its General Gurdwara Committee; and Jind its Gurdwara Committee.
DIVALI, festival of lights (from Sanskrit dipamala or dipavali meaning row of lamps or nocturnal illumination), is observed all over India on amavasya, the last day of the dark half of the lunar month of Kartika (October-November). Like other seasonal festivals, Divali has been celebrated since time immemorial. In its earliest form, it was regarded as a means to ward off, expel or appease the malignant spirits of darkness and ill luck. The festival is usually linked with the return to Ayodhya of Lord Rama at the end of his fourteen year exile. For the Hindus it is also an occasion for the worship of Laksmi, the goddess of good fortune, beauty and wealth.
NIDHAN SINGH, SANT (1882-1947), holy man popularly known as Hazur Sahibvale, was born the son of Bhai Uttam Singh of the village of Nidalori in Hoshiarpur district of the Punjab. He received religious instruction at the hands of Sant Divan Singh, popular in the area for his holiness. He left his home at the age of 20 and enlisted in the 5th Probyn`s Horse, a cavalry regiment of the Indian army, atJharisi. But he resigned within a year and set out on pilgrimage to Takhl Sachkhand Sri Hazur Sahib, Nanded, where he took up his permanent abode and found his calling in work in Guru ka Larigar.
DELHI, also called Dilli (28° 40`N. 77° 13`E), the capital of India, is also connected with Sikh history. The first, sixth, eighth, ninth and tenth Gurus visited it. Mata Sundari and Mata Sahib Devari, consorts of Guru Gobind Singh, stayed here for a long time before and after the death of the Guru. A Sikh sangat existed in what came to be known as Kucha Dilvali Singhari in Old Delhi.
- 1
- 2
