Remembering the glorious legacy of Bhai Jaita: His family had a long history of devotion to the Sikh gurus

Before turning to his family legacy, two defining feats of Bhai Jaita during the events of November 1675 must be recalled. On November 10, a day before the execution of Guru Tegh Bahadur, he, along with Bhai Nanu and Bhai Uda, both from the so-called Shudra background, gathered the mutilated remains of Bhai Mati Das, Bhai Sati Das and Bhai Dayala, who had accepted martyrdom while defending the Guru’s cause. They immersed the remains in the Yamuna. The following day, taking advantage of a dust storm and encroaching darkness, the three quietly carried away the severed head of the Guru from Chandni Chowk. They travelled on foot from Delhi to Kiratpur and eventually to Anandpur Sahib, where Guru Gobind Singh led the cremation rites in a solemn procession.

Their devotion did not begin on that day; Bhai Jaita had earlier walked the Delhi–Anandpur route many times to carry correspondence between Guru Tegh Bahadur and the young Gobind Rai.

Bhai Jaita descended from a line of remarkable sewadars. His great-great grandfather, Bhai Kalyana, served the Gurus from the time of Guru Nanak to Guru Hargobind and was close to Baba Budda. He later settled in Ramdaspur and maintained a dharamshala in Delhi, known as Kalyane di Dharamshala, a resting place frequented by the Gurus.

His son, Bhai Sukhbhan, great-grandfather of Bhai Jaita, emerged as a scholar and a musician reputed to be second only to Tansen in Akbar’s era. Bhai Jasbhan, son of Sukhbhan, dedicated his life to the service of the seventh and eighth Gurus. His devotion is recorded in a hukamnama of Guru Harkrishan. He had two sons, Bhai Agya Ram and Bhai Sada Nand.

Bhai Agya Ram lived in Delhi, taught music at the school founded by his grandfather, and maintained close ties with musicians in Aurangzeb’s court. His access enabled him to meet Guru Tegh Bahadur in prison. Along with Bhai Sada Nand, Lakhi Shah Banjara and his sons, he secretly retrieved the Guru’s mutilated body and cremated it with full honour. The ashes were preserved in a bronze pot and buried at the cremation spot. When the Mughal administration discovered this, they brutally executed Bhai Agya Ram and built a mosque over the site. It was recovered in 1783 by Jathedar Baghel Singh, who built Gurdwara Rakabganj there.

Bhai Sada Nand, father of Bhai Jaita, was also a gifted musician and one of Guru Tegh Bahadur’s closest Sikhs, acknowledged in five hukamnamas. Guru Tegh Bahadur personally arranged his marriage to Lajwanti, daughter of Pandit Shiv Narayan, breaking caste barriers and setting an example for inter-caste harmony. After their marriage, the couple lived in Bakala with Bibi Nanaki and Mata Gujri. Lajwanti was named “Premo” by Mata Gujri for her devotion.

There are various accounts of Bhai Jaita’s birth, but most scholars cite September 2, 1661, in Patna. He and his younger brother Bhai Sangta grew up playing with young Gobind Rai. Trained in languages, martial skills, music, swimming, riding, and Gurbani, Bhai Jaita later produced a significant literary work, Shri Gur Katha.

After bringing the Guru’s head to Anandpur Sahib, he settled there and joined the battles fought by Guru Gobind Singh. He was honoured as Shiromani Jarnail after the victory at Bhangani in 1688. On the request of Mata Premo, he married Bibi Raj Rani, daughter of Bhai Khajaan Singh Riar. They had four sons, all born in their Anandpur residence near Anandgarh Fort. The house, along with Bhai Jaita’s toshakhana, is still preserved by his descendant, Baba Tirath Singh.

Bhai Jaita and his family were among those who crossed the turbulent Sirsa river with Guru Gobind Singh. His two elder sons, Sukha Singh and Sewa Singh, fought bravely at the riverbank and later in Chamkaur Di Garhi. Bhai Jaita, his two elder sons, his wife, his two younger sons, his father, uncle, and brother all attained martyrdom in battles that followed.

(The writer is Professor Emeritus at IDC, and was formerly Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chair Professor and Dean, Faculty of Arts, Panjab University.)

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