NISHAN SAHIB is the name for the tall Sikh flag which marks all gurudwaras and other religious premises of the Sikhs. Nishdn is a Persian word with multiple meanings, one of these being a flag or standard. Sahib, an Arabic word with the applied meaning of lord or master, is here used as an honorific. Thus Nishan Sahib in the Sikh tradition means the holy flag or exalted ensign. A synonymous term is Jhanda Sahib (jhandd also meaning a flag or banner). The Sikh pennant, made out of saffron coloured, occasionally out of blue coloured, mainly in the case of Nihangs, cloth is triangular in shape, normally each of the two equal sides being double of the shorter one.

The pennant is stitched to the mast sheath at the top which is also of the same cloth. On it is commonly printed or embroidered the Sikh emblem, comprising a khandd (two edged sword) and chakra (an edged circular weapon, a disc or quoit) and two kirpdns which cross each other at the handles, with the blades flanking the chakra. Sometimes the flag would have inscribed on it Ik Onkdr, term in the Mul Mantra signifying the Supreme Reality. The flagstaff has a steel khandd fixed on the top of it. No size is laid down for the Nishan Sahib. The two flags standing adjacent to each other betwixt the Harimandar and the Akal Takht at Amritsar are approximately 40 metres high.

Nishan Sahib is hoisted either in the compound of a gurudwara or on the top of the building itself. Sometimes there are two flags in a gurudwara, one in the premises and the other atop the edifice. Outside of gurudwaras, the Nishan Sahib is seen carried at the head of Sikh processions. In such public marches which generally take place on religious occasions, five Sikhs, designated as Panj Piare, carry one each of the five Nishan Sahibs in front of the palanquin in which the holy Guru Granth Sahib is seated. Sikh public congregations as often as not open with the flaghoisting ceremony at which Nishan Sahib is unfurled by an eminent member of the Panth.

Earlier in the time of Guru Gobind Singh and during the eighteenth century, the Sikh armies, when on the march or in the battlefield, had the Sikh standard carried in front by nishdnchis (standardbearers). One of the Sikh misis, which in addition to being a fighting formation in its own right, perhaps provided nishdnchis to other misis, was for this reason named Nishanarivali misl. In their ardds, routine supplicatory prayer, Sikhs daily, and in fact every time they pray individually or collectively, recall nishdndn dhdmdn di kamdi, the grandeur of their flags and holy places, and supplicate: chauktdn, jhande, bunge jugo jug atal (may our choirs, standards and citadels flourish forever).

The origin of the Nishan Sahib is traced to the time of Guru Hargobind who hoist ed a flag over the Akal Takht (or Akal Bunga) at Amritsar as it was erected in 1606. The flag, the first of its kind in Sikh tradition was called Akal Dhuja (the immortal flag) or Satguru ka Nishan (standard of the true Guru). The flag on the top of the Harimandar was first installed by Sardar Jhanda Singh of the Bhangi clan in 1771. In 1783, Udasi Mahants Santokh Das and Pritam Das brought from Dera Ram Rai (Dehra Dun) a tall sal tree in one piece and using it as the flag post raised a Nishan Sahib in front of a bungd (a hospice or resting place) next to the Akal Takht, whence this bungd acquired the name Jhanda Bungd.

In 1820, Sardar Desa Singh Majithia whom Maharaja Ranjit Singh had entrusted with the management of Darbar Sahib, replaced the wooden flag post with a steel one covered with gilded copper sheets. Later, a similar flag post was also presented by the Maharaja himself, but this was not erected till 1841 when the one installed by the Majithia sarddr was damaged in a storm. Then the damaged flag post was also got repaired and erected by Desa Singh`s son, Lahina Singh Majithia, and two Nishan Sahibs of equal height have been flying in front of Jhanda Bunga since then.

Both these flag posts were of solid iron. After it had been decided to widen the parikramd (circumambulatory terrace around the sarover), the two Nishan Sahibs were pulled out and refixed a few metres away from the former site in 1923. In 1962, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee replaced them with new ones of steel pipes similarly sheathed with gilded copper sheets so that electric cables leading to the lights on top could pass through them.

References :

1. Kahn Singh, Bhai, Curmat Martand. Amritsar, 1962
2. Sumer Singh, Baba, Sri Gurpad Prem Prakash. Lahore, 1882
3. Macauliffe, Max Arthur, The Sikh Religion. Oxford, 1909
4. Cole, W.Owen and Piara Singh Sambhi, The Sikhs: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices. Delhi, 1978

AFGHAN SIKH RELATIONS spanning the years 1748 to 1849 go back to the first invasion of India by Ahmad Shah Durrani, although he must have heard of the Sikhs when in 1739 he accompanied Nadir Shah, the Iranian invader, as a young staff officer. Having occupied Lahore after a minor engagement fought on 11 January 1748 during his first invasion of India, Ahmad Shah advanced towards Sirhind to meet a Mughal army which he was informed was advancing from Delhi to oppose him. On the way he had two slight skirmishes at Sarai Nur Din and at the Vairoval ferry, both in present day Amritsar district, with a Sikh jatha or fighting band under Jassa Singh Ahluvalia.

While lying in wait at Sirhind between 2 and 11 March 1748 for a Mughal force, Ala Singh, leader of the Malva Sikhs, cut off his supplies of food and fodder. Ahmad Shah, defeated in the battle of Manupur fought on 11 March, retraced his steps home wards. Sikhs harassed the retreating invader between the Sutlej and the Chenab, Charhat Singh Sukkarchakkia following him even up to the Indus, relieving him of a number of weapons, horses and camels.

Ahmad Shah`s subsequent invasions in a way helped the Sikhs to increase and consolidate their power. Anticipating a second invasion towards the close of 1748, the new Mughal governor of the Punjab, Mir Mu`in ul-Mulk (Mir Mannu, in shortened form in Sikh chronicles), tried to conciliate Sikhs through his minister, Diwan Kaura Mall, and granted them one fourth of the revenue of the parganah of Patti, but the truce did not last long and during the second Durrani invasion (December 1749-February 1750), the Sikhs made bold to enter and plunder Lahore itself.

During Ahmad Shah`s next invasion (December 1751-March 1752), Kaura Mall again enlisted the help of several thousand Sikh warriors under the command of Sarigat Singh and Sukkha Singh of Mari Kambo. The latter was killed in a sudden skirmish with the invaders. As a result of this invasion the provinces of Lahore and Multan were annexed to the Afghan empire, although Mir Mannu remained governor of these provinces on Ahmad Shah Durrani`s behalf. This meant that Sikhs had now to contend with Afghans as well as with Mughals.

The disorder which overtook the Punjab following the death of Mir Mannu in November 1753 opened the way for them to establish their sway over vast tracts in the form of rakhi (q.v.) system under which local populations sought their protection on payment of a portion of their land revenue. During his fourth invasion (November 1756-April 1757), the Afghan invader had reached as far as the Mughal capital, Delhi. The Sikhs preyed upon him during his onward march and, when his son Prince Taimur was transporting the plundered wealth of Delhi to Lahore, Ala Singh in concert with other Sikh sardars barred his path at Sanaur, near Patiala, and robbed him of his treasures, and again attacked and plundered him at Malerkotla.

Prince Taimur gave vent to his chagrin by destroying Sikh shrines at Kartarpur, 15 km northwest of Jalandhar, and subjecting its residents to indiscriminate massacre and plunder. Ahmad Shah, during his brief stay at Lahore, sent out troops who sacked Amritsar and desecrated the sacred pool, besides killing a large number of Sikhs. He left his son Taimur and his general Jahan Khan in charge of the Punjab and himself retired to Afghanistan. The two deputies were expelled from Punjab by Sikhs in 1758 with the help of the Marathas and of Adina Beg Khan, who was rewarded with the governorship of the province.

During Ahmad Shah`s fifth invasion (October 1759 May 1761), while the Marathas retired from the Punjab without resistance, the Sikhs gave a battle to the invader in the neighbourhood of Lahore in which the Afghan lost as many as 2,000 men, with their general Jahan Khan wounded. The Maratha`s dream of supremacy in north India was shattered in the third battle of Panipat (14 January 1761). The Sikhs on the other hand were emboldened to raid Lahore in November 1760. They stayed there for eleven days and the Afghan deputy appeased them with a present of Rs 30,000 for sacramental karahprasad.

They harassed the Afghan chief of Chahar Mahal and sacked Jalandhar, Sirhind and Malerkotla. In November 1761, they captured Lahore and struck their own coin. Ahmad Shah, on hearing of these developments, hurried to the relief of his deputies. Sikhs retreated as he marched upon them, but were overtaken near Kup and Rahira villages, near Malerkotla, on the morning of 5 February 1762. About 25,000 Sikhs were killed in the daylong battle known in Sikh annals as Vadda Ghallughara or the great holocaust. On his return he blew up the holy Harimandar at Amritsar with gunpowder.

The Sikhs retaliated with attacks on Sirhind in May 1762. They freely roamed around Lahore during July-August 1762 and celebrated Divali at Amritsar in defiance of the Shah who was still present in the Punjab. After the departure of the Durrani in December 1762, Sikhs sacked the Afghan principality of Kasur in May 1763, over ran Jalandhar Doab during June, defeated in November near Wazirabad an expeditionary force sent by Ahmad Shah and invested Malerkotla, killing its Afghan chief, Bhikhan Khan (December 1763). They followed these successes with the reduction of Morinda and Sirhind in January 1764.

Zain Khan, the faujdar or governor of Sirhind, was killed, and the territories of Sirhind sarkar or district were appropriated by various Sikh mis is or chief ships. The Dal Khalsa Jio, as the confederated Sikh force was called, then fell upon the territories of Najib-ud-Daulah, a powerful Ruhila Afghan chief and Ahmad Shah Durrani`s regent in India. Ransacking Saharanpur on 20 February 1764, they pushed on seizing Shamli, Kandhia, Muzaffarnagar. Moradabad, Najibabad and several other towns. Najib-ud-Daulah, unable to meet the Sikhs in battle, paid them Rs 11,00,000, inducing them to return to Punjab by the end of February 1764.

While the Buddha Dal, a division of the Dal Khalsa under Jassa Singh Ahluvalia, was thus engaged in the Gangetic Doab, its younger counterpart, the Taruna Dal, was active in the central and western Punjab. Lahore was attacked in February 1764 and its governor, Kabuli Mall, saved it from plunder only by paying a large sum to the Sikhs, by accepting a nominee of Hari Singh of the Bhangi misl as a resident at his court and allowing an agent of Sobha Singh of the Kanhaiya misl to receive customs duty on all goods coming from the side of Multan.

During April-June 1764, the Bhangi and Nakai sardars captured the Lamma country lying between Lahore and Multan, and Charhat Singh Sukkarchakkia took Rohtas in the north. Ahmad Shah Durrani came out again, in December 1764, but harassed by Sikhs, he was forced to return home wards without reaching Delhi. On his way back, realizing the futility of appointing his own governors in the Punjab, he recognized Ala Singh of Patiala as the ruling chief in Sirhind territory and bestowed upon him the title of Raja, with tablo`alam (drum and banner). He, however, sent back Kabuli Mall to resume governorship of Lahore, but before the latter could reach the city, the Sikhs had occupied it (17 April 1765).

Ahmad Shah made yet another (his last) bid to regain Punjab and Delhi during the winter of 1766-67, but failed. He died at Qandahar on 23 October 1772. Ahmad Shah`s son and successor, Taimur Shah (1746-93), attempted five successive incursions, but could not reach Lahore. His successor, Shah Zaman, also made several attempts to regain a foothold in India and did enter Lahore twice (January 1797-December 1798) but was forced to evacuate it within a few weeks on each occasion. Ranjit Singh, the chief of the Sukkarchakkia misl of the Dal Khalsa was destined finally to clear Punjab of the Afghans.

He became master of Lahore on 7 July 1799. The provinces of Kashmir and Multan were still ruled by Afghan satraps and Peshawar across the Indus was directly under Kabul which, however, was weakened by internal dissensions. Shah Zaman, was deposed and blinded in 1800 and the throne was seized by his brother, Mahmud Shah, with the help of a Barakzai chief, Fateh Khan who emerged as the kingmaker. In 1803, Fateh Khan discarded Mahmud in favour of Shuja`ul-Mulk, better known as Shah Shuja`, another brother of Shah Zaman, but in 1809 Mahmud was reinstated and Shah Shuja` shifted to Peshawar.

The latter met Maharaja Ranjit Singh at Khushab in 1810 in the hope of obtaining Sikh help. He tried to recover his kingdom with the help of `Ata Muhammad Khan, governor of Kashmir, who had not accepted the authority of Wazir Fateh Khan and had been ruling the province independently since 1809. The attempt failed and ended in Shah Shuja` taken captive in Kashmir and his family including the illfated Shah Zaman seeking refuge in Lahore. Wafa Begam, the senior wife of Shah Shuja`, approached Ranjit Singh through his trusted courtiers, Diwan Mohkam Chand and Faqir `Aziz-udDin to have her husband rescued from Kashmir.

Wazir Fateh Khan also solicited the Maharaja`s aid in the reduction of Kashmir promising him one third of the spoils. The joint expedition launched in 1812 was not a complete success. Fateh Khan refused to part with the promised share of the booty, but the Sikh general Mohkam Chand succeeded in bringing Shah Shuja` to Lahore and Ranjit Singh acquired the coveted diamond, KohiNur. Kashmir too was conquered and annexed to the Sikh kingdom in 1819. Multan which had been retaken from the Sikhs by Taimur Shah in 1780 had been placed under his nephew Nawab Muzaffar Khan.

Repeated expeditions sent by Ranjit Singh against him (in 1802,1805,1807,1810, 1812 and 1815) had proved abortive. Multan ultimately fell to the Sikhs in June 1818. On 19 November of that year, Maharaja Ranjit Singh entered Peshawar, the eastern citadel of the rulers of Kabul. With the conquest of Dera Ghazi Khan in 1820 and Dera Isma`Il Khan in 1821, the frontiers of the Sikh kingdom had been pushed far to the west of the River Indus. The Pathans (Afghans) of this frontier region, however, had not fully accepted Sikh authority. In 1826, they under the leadership of Sayyid Ahmad, a Wahabi fanatic, rose in jihad or holy war against the Sikhs. The campaign, a prolonged one, came to an end with the death of the Sayyid in May 1831.

In 1835, Dost Muhammad Khan, the youngest and the most energetic of the Barakzai brothers, who had supplanted the Durrani dynasty and become Amir (lord, chief or king) of Kabul in 1825, advanced up to Khaibar Pass threatening to recover Peshawar. In 1836 Hari Singh Nalva, the Sikh general who along with Prince Nau Nihal Singh was guarding that frontier, built a chain efforts including one at Jamrud at the eastern end of the Khaibar Pass to defend it. Dost Muhammad erected a fort at `Ali Masjid at the other end. In the beginning of 1837, as Prince Nau Nihal Singh returned to Lahore to get married and the Maharaja and his court got busy with preparations for the wedding.

Dost Muhammad Khan sent a 25,000 strong force, including a large number of local irregulars and equipped with 18 heavy guns, to invest Jam rud. The Sikh garrison there had only 600 men and a few light artillery pieces. The Afghans besieged the fort and cut off its water supply while a detachment was sent to the neighbouring Sikh fort of Shabqadar to prevent any help from that direction. Maha Singh, the garrison commander of Jamrud, kept the invaders at bay for four days and managed meanwhile to send a desperate appeal for help to Hari Singh Nalva at Peshawar. Nalva rose from his sick bed and rushed to Jamrud.

In the final battle fought on 30 April 1837, the Afghans were driven away, but Hari Singh Nalva was mortally wounded. In 1838, the Sikh monarch became a party to the Tripartite Treaty as a result of which Shah Shuja` was reinstalled on the throne of Kabul in August 1839 with British help. Dost Muhammad Khan was exiled to Calcutta in November 1839, but was restored to his former position after the murder of Shah Shuja` in April 1842. He thereafter maintained cordial relations with the Lahore Darbar. The second Anglo Sikh war reawakened Dost Muhammad`s ambition to seize Peshawar and the trans Indus territories, although overtly he sympathized with the Sikhs and even hired out an irregular Afghan contingent of 1500 horse to Chatar Singh, leader of Sikh resistance against the British.

References :

1. ShahamatAli, The Sikhs and Afghans. Patiala, 1970
2. Harlan,Josiah, A Memoir of India and Afghanistan. London,1842
3. Burnes, Alexander, Cabool. London, 1843
4. Ganda Singh, Ahmad Shah Durrani. Bombay, 1959
5. Sun, Sohan Lal, `Umdat-ut-Twarikh. Lahore, 1885-89

From woman, man is born;
within woman, man is conceived; to woman he is engaged and married.
Woman becomes his friend; through woman, the future generations come.
When his woman dies, he seeks another woman; to woman he is bound.
So why call her bad? From her, kings are born.
From woman, woman is born; without woman, there would be no one at all.


These are words that were uttered by the founder of Sikhism, Sri Guru Nanak Dev in about 1499. So for Sikhs from that period, there has been compulsion to treat women as equals and gender discrimination was not allowed. However, high principles set by prophets and religious leaders have always been very difficult to implement and put into practise. In this respect, equality for women has been a difficult class actually achieve in reality.

The Sikh Women always have been, and always will be, the backbone of the Khalsa Panth. Their selflessness lies second to none in the world. In fact, this quality of theirs has earned them the Godly qualities in their lifetime (due to the extremely important responsibilities placed on them) that their male counterparts may not be able to earn

Guru Nanak worked for the welfare of all to achieve which he strived for equality amongst all. Towards this aim, freeing the female of the overbearing influence of male was of utmost importance. Reading about the lives of some of the women of the Guru period, one realises the extent to which the Gurus were able to achieve their aim.

• Bebe Nanaki 
  • Bibi Nirbhai Kaur 
     
    • Bibi Agya Kaur   
    • Bibi Rajni 
       
    • Bibi Balbir Kaur 
    • Bibi Shamsher Kaur 
       
      • Bibi Dalair Kaur 
      • Bibi Sharan Kaur 
         
      • Bibi Deep Kaur 
      • Bibi Shushil Kaur 
        
        • Bibi Dharam Kaur
        • Bibi Viro
          
        • Bibi Harnam Kaur
        • Mai Kishan Kaur
           
          • Bibi Harsarn Kaur
          • Mai Bhago
             
            • Bibi Khem Kaur 
            • Mai Kabul Wali
               
              • Bibi Prem Kaur 
              • Mata Khivi 
                
                • Bibi Rajinder Kaur
                •   Mata Sullakhni
                   
                  • Bibi Ranjit Kaur
                  • Mata Sundri
                     
                    • Bibi Sachan Sach
                    • Mata Tripta
                       
                      • Bibi Sahib Kaur 
                      • Mata Daya Kaur
                         
                        • Bibi Amro       
                        • Mata Gujri
                           
                          • Bibi Anup Kaur   
                          • Mata Jito 
                             
                            • Bibi Baghel Kaur
                            • Mata Suhag Bai
                               
                              • Bibi Basant Lata
                              • Matho Murrari
                                 
                                • Bibi Bhagbhari   
                                • Rani Jindian
                                   
                                  • Bibi Bhani       
                                  • Rani Sada Kaur
                                     
                                    • Bibi Kaulan     
                                    • Women Warriors   
                                    ]

In Sikhism, the Holy Scriptures have clearly stated that the Sikh woman has always been regarded as an equal with man and has all the rights and privileges enjoyed by a man. She is considered to have the same soul as man and has equal right to grow spiritually. The Sikh woman is allowed to lead religious congregations, to take part in Akhand Path (the continuous recitation of the Holy Scriptures), to perform Kirtan, to work as Granthi (priest) or a preacher and to participate freely in all religious, cultural, social, political and secular activities.

Sikh woman have played a glorious part in Sikh History and have proven themselves as equal in service, devotion, sacrifice and bravery. Examples of their moral dignity, service and self sacrifice are and will remain a source of inspiration. Women are the backbone of the history of the Sikhs, their culture and tradition yet there is little written about this huge contribution by the Sikh women to the great history of this religion. Man and woman are two sides of the same coin - the human race. Man takes birth from a woman and woman is born of a man. This system is interrelating and inter-dependent. A man can never feel secure and complete in life without a woman. A man’s success depends upon the love and support of the woman who shares her life with him and vice versa.