Mata Gujri (

Gurmukhi Gurmukhī ( pa, ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ, , Shahmukhi: ) is an abugida developed from the Laṇḍā scripts, standardized and used by the second Sikh guru, Guru Angad (1504–1552). It is used by Punjabi Sikhs to write the language, commonly ...

: ਮਾਤਾ ਗੁਜਰੀ; ''mātā gujarī''; 1624–1705), also spelt as Mata Gujari, was the wife of

Guru Tegh Bahadur Guru Tegh Bahadur (Punjabi: ਗੁਰੂ ਤੇਗ਼ ਬਹਾਦਰ (Gurmukhi); ; 1 April 1621 – 11 November 1675) was the ninth of ten Gurus who founded the Sikh religion and the leader of Sikhs from 1665 until his beheading in 1675. ...

, the ninth Guru of Sikhism, and the mother of

Guru Gobind Singh Guru Gobind Singh (; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), born Gobind Das or Gobind Rai the tenth Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed by Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind Sin ...

, the tenth Guru of Sikhism.

Biography

Mata Gujri was born to Bhāī Lāl Chand, a Subhikkhī

Khatri Khatri is a caste of the Indian subcontinent that is predominantly found in India, but also in Pakistan and Afghanistan. In the subcontinent, they were mostly engaged in mercantilistic professions such as banking and trade, they were the d ...

and Bishan Kaur, who lived at Kartarpur. She was betrothed to Guru Tegh Bahadur in 1629 when he visited Kartarpur for the marriage celebrations of his brother, Suraj Mal. She married Guru Tegh Bahadur at Kartarpur on 4 February 1633 and joined her husband's family in

Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha ...

. In 1635 the family moved to Kiratpur and, on the death in 1644 of Guru Tegh Bahadur's father,

Guru Hargobind Gurū Hargobind (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਹਰਿਗੋਬਿੰਦ, pronunciation: l 19 June 1595 – 28 February 1644), revered as the ''sixth Nānak'', was the sixth of ten Gurus of the Sikh religion. He had become Guru at the young age of e ...

, Mata Gujri moved with her husband and mother-in-law,

Mata Nanaki Mata Nanaki (1598–1678), alternatively spelt as Mata Nanki or with the prefix Bibi/Bebe, was the wife of the sixth Sikh guru, Guru Hargobind and the mother of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Sikh guru. Mata Nanki was the daughter of Hari Chand a ...

, to Bakala, near Amritsar.Soon after he was installed as Guru in 1664, Guru Tegh Bahadur founded a new village, which he called Chakk Nanaki, after his mother. The place, now a city, is now known as

Anandpur Sahib Anandpur Sahib, sometimes referred to simply as Anandpur (lit. "city of bliss"), is a city in Rupnagar district (Ropar), on the edge of Shivalik Hills, in the Indian state of Punjab. Located near the Sutlej River, the city is one of the most ...

. Not long after this, the Guru set out on a long journey, leaving his wife and mother-in-law at

Patna Patna ( ), historically known as Pataliputra, is the capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Patna had a population of 2.35 million, making it the 19th largest city in India. ...

. On 22 December 1666 Mata Gujri gave birth to Gobind Rai, who later became Guru Gobind Singh. Guru Tegh Bahadur returned to Patna in 1670 and instructed the family to leave for Lakhnaur. Mata Gujri reached Lakhnaur on 13 September 1670 and was accompanied by the aged Mata Nanaki and her son, Guru Gobind Singh. At Lakhnaur, she stayed with her brother, Mehar Chand. After Lakhnaur, the family proceeded to Chakk Nanaki (now known as Anandpur Sahib) where Guru Tegh Bahadur rejoined them in March 1671. After the martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the responsibility for managing the affairs of Chakk Nanaki fell to her at first as Guru Gobind Rai was still young. Her younger brother, Kirpal Chand, assisted her in this affair.

Later life

During the evacuation of Anandpur during the Mughal siege of Anandpur in December 1704 or 1705, she was accompanied by Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh (younger two sons of Guru Gobind Singh) when they became separated from the main group of evacuees whilst crossing the Sarsa rivulet, as a

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and for ...

took place between the Sikh evacuees and pursuing Mughal troops. A servant, named Gangu, led Mata Gujri and her two younger grandchildren to his village named Saheri, located in present-day

Ropar district Rupnagar district is one of twenty-two districts in the state of Punjab, India. The city of Rupnagar is said to have been founded by a Raja called Rokeshar, who ruled during the 11th century and named it after his son Rup Sen. It is also the ...

. There he deceitfully betrayed them to a local Muslim officer and the three were arrested on 8 December. After this, they were confined to the ''Thanda Burj'' (cold tower) located at the fort of Sirhind. On the same day as the execution of the younger Sahibzades, Mata Gujri died in the cold tower. Seth Todar Mal, whom was a benevolent and wealthy local of Sirhind, cremated the three the next day. It is said that Todar Mal of Sirhind paid heavy price of gold coins standing on their edge to recover the bodies of Mata Gujri and the Sahibzades.

Legacy

Her father's ancestral village was Lakhnaur Sahib, south of

Ambala Ambala () is a city and a municipal corporation in Ambala district in the state of Haryana, India, located on the border with the Indian state of Punjab and in proximity to both states capital Chandigarh. Politically, Ambala has two sub-ar ...

in Haryana, where the road from Ambala to popular pilgrimage site of Gurudawara Lakhnaur Sahib was named after her by the BJP

Government of Haryana The Government of Haryana, also known as the State Government of Haryana, or locally as the State Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Haryana and its 22 districts. It consists of an executive, ceremonially led ...

in 2017. Praveen Arora
"Varsity to be named after Guru Gobind Singh, says Khattar"

The Tribune ''The Tribune'' or ''Tribune'' is the name of various newspapers: United States Daily California *'' Oakland Tribune'' * ''The Tribune'' (San Luis Obispo) *''San Gabriel Valley Tribune'' Indiana *'' Kokomo Tribune'' *'' Peru Tribune'' * ''The Tri ...

, 12 February 2017.

References

Citation

Sources