Anandpur Sahib
Encyclopedia
Anandpur Sahib is a city in Rupnagar district
Rupnagar district
Rupnagar district is one of the twenty districts in the state of Punjab in North-West Republic of India. The town 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 site of an ancient town of...

  in the state of Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...

, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. Known as "the holy City of Bliss," it is a holy city of the Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...

s and is one of their most important sacred places, closely linked with their religious traditions and history. It is located on the lower spurs of the Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...

 surrounded by picturesque natural scenery, with the river Sutlej
Sutlej
The Sutlej River is the longest of the five rivers that flow through the historic crossroad region of Punjab in northern India and Pakistan. It is located north of the Vindhya Range, south of the Hindu Kush segment of the Himalayas, and east of the Central Sulaiman Range in Pakistan.The Sutlej...

 forming a shimmering and shiny blue border on the south west barely four miles away.

History

Anandpur Sahib was founded in the year 1665 by the ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur, near the ruins of an ancient place, Makhowal. On May 13, 1665, Guru Tegh Bahadur went to Bilaspur
Bilaspur, Himachal Pradesh
Bilaspur is a city and a municipal council in Bilaspur district in the state of Himachal Pradesh, India.-Geography:Bilaspur is located at . It has an average elevation of 673 metres . It is hot in summer and cold in winters. It rains mostly in July to august .It lies near the reservoir of...

 to attend the mourning for Raja Dip Chand of Bilaspur State
Kahlur
Kahlur , covering an area of 1173 km², and currently a part of Himachal Pradesh state, was one of the Princely states of India during the period of the British Raj. The state was founded in/around 697 by Kahal Chand. Kahal Chand had built a fort, which was named after him, and was called...

. The Dowager Rani Champa of Bilaspur offered to give the Guru a piece of land in her state. The land consisted of the villages of Lodhipur, Mianpur and Sahota. Here on the mound of Makhowal, Guru Tegh Bahadur raised a new habitation. The ground was broken on 19 June 1665, by Baba Gurditta Ji. The new village was named Chakk Nanaki after the Guru's mother, Nanaki. The place later came to be known as Anandpur Sahib.

Demographics

India census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

, Anandpur Sahib had a population of 13,886. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Anandpur Sahib has an average literacy rate of 73%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with 56% of the males and 44% of females literate. 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Festivals and Fairs

Anandpur Sahib comes to life every year on the occasion of Hola Mohalla
Hola Mohalla
Hola Mahalla is a Sikh Olympics event which begins on the first day of the lunar month of Chet in the Nanakshahi calendar. It most often falls in March, and sometimes coincides with the Sikh New Year. The event lasts for a week, and consists of camping out and enjoying various displays of fighting...

. This tradition dates back to the times of the 10th Guru, Sri Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh is the tenth and last Sikh guru in a sacred lineage of ten Sikh gurus. Born in Patna, Bihar in India, he was also a warrior, poet and philosopher. He succeeded his father Guru Tegh Bahadur as the leader of Sikhs at a young age of nine...

 . The Guru decreed that the occasion of the festival of Holi
Holi
Holi , is a religious spring festival celebrated by Hindus. Holi is also known as festival of Colours. It is primarily observed in India, Nepal, Pakistan, and countries with large Indic diaspora populations following Hinduism, such as Suriname, Malaysia, Guyana, South Africa, Trinidad, United...

 be the occasion for the display of the martial spirit of his people and he gave this festival of Holi the Sikh name of 'Hola Mohalla'. Each year Hola Mohalla marks the congregation of up to 100,000 devotees from all over the country for a festival of colour and gaiety.

Thousands of devotees from various parts of the country throng to Anandpur Sahib to participate in the fair which lasts for three days. The Gurudwaras are specially decorated for the occasion. During Hola Mohalla Anandpur Sahib wears a festive appearance and hums with activities in the month of March every year. Community conferences and religious functions are also organized. On this occasion, Nihangs from all over the country gather for the celebrations of the Hola Mohalla. The highlight of the festival is a huge procession by the Nihangs, clad in their traditional dress and weapons, on the last day of the fair. The procession starts from the headquarters of the Nihangs, opposite Gurudwara Anandgarh Sahib, and passing through the bazar goes to village Agampur and reaches the fort of Holgarh, the place where Guru Gobind Singh used to celebrate this fair. Thereafter, the procession heads toward the sandy bed of Charan Ganga, where demonstration of martial games including riding, tent pegging, sword wielding etc. are witmessed by a large number of people.
Baisakhi in 1999, at Anandpur Sahib marked the completion of 300 years of the birth of the Khalsa
Khalsa
+YouWebImagesVideosMapsNewsMailMoreTranslateFrom: ArabicTo: EnglishEnglishHindiEnglishAllow phonetic typingHindiEnglishArabicAssumptionGoogle Translate for Business:Translator ToolkitWebsite TranslatorGlobal Market Finder...

. It was on Baisakhi day in 1699 that Sri Guru Gobind Singh baptised the Panj Pyaras at the place where Takht Sri Keshgarh Sahib
Takht Sri Keshgarh Sahib
Takht Sri Darbar Sahib Kesgarh Sahib is one of the five Temporal Authorities of Sikhism. It is located in Anandpur Sahib in Punjab State ,...

 stands.

Landmarks

  • Gurudwara Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib: In 1699, on the occasion of the festival of Baisakhi, Guru Nanak's mission was fulfilled by the 10th Guru when, through baptism of the double-edged-sword the Sikh was deemed as the Khalsa-Saint Soldier- in direct commune with the Guru and God. Still more astonishing is the fact that the Guru had got himself baptised by the Panj-Pyaras, the five beloved ones, who had offered him their heads to uphold Dharma - the moral duty and religion.


----

  • Gurudwara Sisganj Sahib: In November of 1675, the head of the martyred 9th Guru which was brought by Bhai Jaita ( Rechristened Bhai Jivan Singh according to Sikh rites) in defiance of the Mughal authorities was cremated here.


----
  • Gurudwara Bhora Sahib: Residence of Sri Guru Teg Bahadur, the 9th guru, which was inherited by Sri Guru Gobind Singh. The sahibzadas - the holy sons of the 10th Guru were born here. There is an underground room cut off from the din of life where the 9th Guru used to meditate.


----
  • Gurudwara Thara Sahib: The 9th Guru used to deliver sermons from this Gurudwara. There is a marker to indicate the spot where the Kashmiri Brahmins came to seek protection from the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. They were forcibly being asked to adopt Islam as their Religion.


----
  • Gurudwara Akal Bunga Sahib: After cremation of the holy head of his father, followed by a prayer to the Almighty, the 10th Guru had rested here with his relations and followers.


----
  • Gurudwara Damdama Sahib: The 10th Guru was given the Guru Gaddi (seat of Sikh religious leadership), here. It was from here that he had declared the end of the institution of the Masands-the priestly agents of the former Gurus.


----
  • Gurudwara Manji Sahib: The Sahibzadas received their education and military training at this spot. Military exercises were also rehearsed here.

Five Forts of Guru Gobind Singh Ji

10th Sikh Guru Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh is the tenth and last Sikh guru in a sacred lineage of ten Sikh gurus. Born in Patna, Bihar in India, he was also a warrior, poet and philosopher. He succeeded his father Guru Tegh Bahadur as the leader of Sikhs at a young age of nine...

 Ji made five forts on the border of the city to protect it from the external invasions. The fort is called Qila
Qila
Qila is a 1998 Bollywood Hindi language film directed by Umesh Mehra and starring Dilip Kumar , Rekha, Mukul Dev, Mamta Kulkarni, Smita Jaykar and Gulshan Grover...

 (Punjabi: , Hindi: ) in the Punjabi
Punjabi language
Punjabi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by inhabitants of the historical Punjab region . For Sikhs, the Punjabi language stands as the official language in which all ceremonies take place. In Pakistan, Punjabi is the most widely spoken language...

 and Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...

 languages.
  • Qila Anandgarh Sahib: This was the main fort, after which the city was also named Anandpur Sahib. The Army once resided here.

  • Qila Holgarh Sahib

  • Qila Lohgarh Sahib: Here the weapons for the Army were made.

  • Qila Fatehgarh Sahib

  • Qila Taragarh Sahib

Sacred sites near Anandpur Sahib

  • Guru-Ka-Lahore: It is situated about 11 km on Sri Anandpur Sahib-Ganguwal route leading to the state of Himachal Pradesh
    Himachal Pradesh
    Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east...

    , India. On 25 January, 1686, the 10th Guru's wedding to Mata was celebrated here. Two trickling springs, claimed to be dug out from the stony mountain-side by the 10th Guru, still exist today.

  • Gurudwara Mata Jito Ji : Not far from Holgarh Fort, this Gurudwara was where Mata Jito Ji was cremated.

  • Bhai Ghanaiya : Bhai Ghanaiya offered first aid to friendly and enemy forces alike across the area spanning the now-almost dried up rivulet Charan Ganga and below the Taragarh hill. His unbiased service has been compared to the functions of the Red Cross.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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