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Gurdwara Sri Babe Di Ber

Location - (approximate location) Kartarpur, Jalandhar, Punjab, India


Associated with - Baba Sri Chand Ji, Baba Gurditta Ji


Sikh Artifacts - unknown


Sarovar - unknown


Sarai - unknown


Kartarpur, which means 'Town/ City of God', is a town near Jalandhar city and is located in the Doaba region of the state. It was founded by Sri Guru Arjan Sahib Ji. Kartarpur (in Jalandhar ) is not the same as the Kartarpur founded by Sri Guru Nanak Sahib Ji (which is now across the Pakistan border opposite Dera Baba Nanak).

Kartarpur is famous for its furniture industry. It lays 15 km north-west of Jallandar along the GT Road. The town was founded by Guru Arjan in 1594 on land granted during the reign of Emperor Akbar. Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji, resided here for some time too. Two of Guru Hargobind's sons, Suraj Mal and Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, were married at Kartarpur.

In April 1635, the 'faujdar' or garrison commander of Jalandhar, at the instigation of Painda Khan, a former protege of Guru Hargobind, turned hostile and attacked Kartarpur. After a battle lasting three days in which the Guru's youngest son, Guru Tegh Bahadur, displayed feats of valour, Guru Hargobind left the town and retired with his family and other Sikhs to the hill resort of Kiratpur.

Guru Hargobind's young grandson, Dhir Mall, however, would neither leave Kartarpur nor part with the Holy Granth, the original copy of Guru Granth Sahib. He stayed behind and declared himself Guru forming his own sect and collecting income from land as well as from offerings made by Sikhs to the Holy Granth. Dhir Mall's decendants called Sodhis of Kartarpur that became the owners of the place and the sacred Gurdwaras located here.

The Dhirmallia sect was rejected by Sri Guru Gobind Singh, who forbade the Sikhs to have any dealings with them. The Sodhis of Kartarpur later returned to the Sikh fold accepting vows of the Khalsa. In 1757, Ahmad Shah Durrani attacked and ransacked Kartarpur. He burnt down the sacred Gurdwara Sri Tham Sahib and forced Sodhi Vadbhag Singh (d. 1762) to flee and find refuge in the hills of Una. The Sikhs soon avenged the desecration and re-established the Gurdwaras when they came to power in the Punjab, during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

The following Historic Sikh Gurdwaras are in Kartarpur;

Gurdwara Sri Babe Di Ber

Gurdwara Sri Babe Di Ber or simply Ber Sahib was the location Baba Sri Chand, the son of Guru Nanak Sahib Ji, met with Baba Gurditta, the son of Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji. Baba Sri Chand spoke with Baba Gurditta while sitting under a beri tree (Ziziphus Mamaitna).

After discussions Baba Sri Chand chose Baba Gurditta as his successor and made him head of the 'udasis'. The beri tree and an old well known as 'Khuh Malliari' are still present.

Gurdwara Sri Chaubacha Sahib Kartarpur

This Gurdwara is situated 16 km northwest of Jalandhar City in Kartarpur town and is about 100 metres northwest of Gurdwara Sri Tham Sahib Kartarpur. Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji stayed at this location where Guru Ji used to play chess with his Jarnail Painde Khan.

A bagh (garden) and a well also existed here. The bagh was irrigated by the well. A Chaubacha lay near the well where water fountains were operational. The Gurdwara was known as Gurdwara Sri Chaubacha Sahib because of the water fountains and Chaubacha.

Gurdwara Sri Gangsar Sahib Kartarpur

Gurdwara Sri Gangsar Sahib Kartarpur has a well that was built by Guru Arjan in 1599. The well was made to help the local people who needed water. The name Gangsar Sahib relates to a story where, an urn that had been lost in the river Ganga, was found here. Guru Ji explained to the Sangat that the water here was as holy as that of the river Ganga, therfore the name Gurdwara Sri Gangsar Sahib.

The old Manji Sahib near the well was replaced by the present five storey building raised by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee in 1975. The sanctum is at one end of a square hall on the ground floor. The other four storeys with the dome on lop rise above the sanctum. Within the hall to the right side as one faces the sanctum there is a Manji Sahib dedicated to Guru Hargobind who, according to local tradition, sat here sometimes to address the visiting sangat.

Also in the area around Gurdwara Sri Gangsar Sahib, Guru Hargobind fought and won his fourth battle against the muslims for their atrocities. It was here that Guru Hargobind killed Painde Khan who was a friend of the Guru and betrayed him. Afterwards, Guru Hargobind removed his kamarkasa (a sash bound around the waist) and rested.

Gurdwara Sri Sheesh Mehal Sahib Kartarpur

Gurdwara Sri Sheesh Mehal Sahib Kartarpur was the home of Guru Arjan and Guru Hargobind when at Kartarpur.

Many Sikh artifacts are preserved here, which include an original copy of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji prepared by Guru Arjan, a Khanda (a heavy sword) used by Guru Hargobind, a collection of nitnem prayers used by Guru Arjan for daily prayers, a Khanda of Guru Har Rai Sahib Ji, a few garments of Baba Gurditta Ji (the eldest son of Guru Hargobind), the ceremonial cord and cap given to Baba Gurditta by Baba Sri Chand Ji (the eldest son of Guru Nanak) when Baba Gurditta Ji was chosen as head of udasi.

Gurdwara Sri Tahli Sahib Kartarpur

About 2 km south of the main town, marks the site where Guru Har Rai Sahib Ji, accompanied by his horseguards, stopped while on his way from Kiratpur to Goindwal. The Gurdwara is named after a shisham Tahli tree (Dalbergia sissoo), which still exists. According to local tradition, the Guru's horse was tied to the tree. The present buildings were constructed in 1949 under the supervision of Bhai Ishar Singh of Rara Sahib. The central building is a flat roofed rectangular hall in which is located the Sri Guru Granth Sahib.

Gurdwara Sri Tham Sahib Kartarpur

Gurdwara Sri Tham Sahib Kartarpur is named after a massive wooden log ('tham' in Punjabi means wooden log) that was used as a central support for the first assembly hall built by Guru Arjan. The Tham was later treated by Sikhs as a sacred Sikh artifact, they named this pillar as 'dukhan da thaman' by giving it various boons. A very beautiful platform was also contructed around this pillar.

Some time after the building was destroyed in 1757 by Ahmad Shah Durrani, a simple structure was raised on the site, replaced by the present 7 storey structure constructed by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Standing on a high plinth in the middle of a walled compound, it comprises of a 15 metre square, double storey, marble floored hall, encompassing the square sanctum at the ground floor. The six storeys rising above the sanctum are topped by a dome with a gilded pinnacle. The Gurdwara owns 100 acres of land and is administered by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee through a local committee which also controls Gurdwara Sri Gangsar Sahib, Gurdwara Sri Chaubacha Sahib, Gurdwara Sri Vivah Asthan Mata Gujri, and Gurdwara Sri Tahli Sahib.

Gurdwara Sri Vivah Asthan Mata Gujri

At the end of Rabablarivali Lane marks the house where Bhai Lal Chand Subhikkhi, father of Mata Gujari, stayed and where Mata Gujari's marriage with Guru Tegh Bahadar was solemnized on 4th February 1633. The five storey Gurdwara was built during the 1980's under the supervision of Baba Uttam Singh of Khadoor Sahib. The sanctum is at the far end of a rectangular hall on the ground floor. A separate building to the north of the hall houses a library.

Other historical monuments at Kartarpur are the samddhi of Bibi Kaulari; Nanakiana Sahib, a Gurdwara commemorating Mata Nanaki, the mother of Guru Tegh Bahadur; Damdama Sahib, a platform dedicated to Guru Hargobind; and Dera Bhai Bhagatu Ji marking the site where Bhai Bhagatu, a prominent Sikh contemporary of the Fifth, Sixth and the Seventh Gurus, was cremated in 1652 by Guru Har Rai Sahib Ji.

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