Gurdwara Hado Sahari & Memories of Baba Virsa Singh Virik (2021)

 Date of visit: 31 January 2021

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Gurdwara Building & Grave on right

In August 1947, when, after three hundred years in India, the British finally left, the subcontinent was partitioned into two independent nation-states: Hindu-majority India and Muslim-majority Pakistan. Immediately, there began one of the greatest migrations in human history, as millions of Muslims trekked to West and East Pakistan (the latter is now known as Bangladesh) while millions of Hindus and Sikhs headed in the opposite direction. Many hundreds of thousands never made it.

Across the Indian subcontinent, communities that had coexisted for almost a millennium attacked each other in a terrifying outbreak of sectarian violence, with Hindus and Sikhs on one side and Muslims on the other—a mutual genocide as unexpected as it was unprecedented. In Punjab and Bengal—provinces abutting India’s borders with West and East Pakistan, respectively—the carnage was especially intense, with massacres, arson, forced conversions, mass abductions, and savage sexual violence. Some seventy-five thousand women were raped, and many of them were then disfigured or dismembered.

My  article is a retrospection of memories of Baba Virsa Singh Virik about Hado Sahari village of district Kasur in Pakistan, where he was born in 1931 and lives there till the partition of 1947.

Hado Sahari village is located 7 kilometers from district Kasur and 50 kilometers from Lahore city. It lies on a natural mound.  Baba Virsa Singh was born in a Sikh Jatt family, for centuries his family's only source of living was farming and livestock. Before the partitioning of British India, in Hado Sahari village mostly Virik Jut’s clan used to live.

Along Hado Sahari there were four other villages of Virik Jut’s (Nathoke, Gagga, and he has forgotten the name of one village of Virk’s) in Lahore. In the proximity of Hado Sahari, most of the villages were of Bhullar Jut’s.  Baba Virsa Singh never went to school, every day he drew his cattle to Kot Murad in Kasur for Grazing and returns home in the evening.

He shared an interesting story about how his ancestors came to this village and decide to settle here.  Five generations back, a boy name Sahari lives with his widow mother in a village in Sheikhupura. 

At that time in villages, there used to be only one oil mill.  Oil sold and given to every home on their turn, that is once a week. The oil mill owner maintains a weekly register for that.

One day some guests have arrived at Sahari's house, his mother sends him to the oil mill shop to bring oil, so she could be able to cook some food for his guests. It was not the Sahari family's turn of the day of getting oil, the oil mill the owner refused and returns him home empty-handed.  The guests were hungry, Sahari's mother did not want to send them without serving food, so she came along his son to the oil mill shop and requested him to lend him the oil of somebody else turn and gave them oil back on their turn.

The person whose turn of getting oil was dew that day came to the oil mill shop and when he came to know that his turn oil taken by somebody else, he got angry and called Sahari's mother in the Panchayat (villagers court) the next day. The Sahari's mother was embarrassed in front of Panchayat and warned for doing such an act again in the future. She took this insult to heart, grabbed his son along, and left the village in the south direction at night. Both the mother and son walked for many days and reached the place where the present village of Hado Sahari is located. They decided to settle here.

There are two Villages by the same name i.e., Sahari in tehsil and district Kasur, and have earned the name Hado Sahari (Hardo in ‘Persian’ means both). The Gurdwara Sahari Pir is in the outskirt of the Village and there is a grave present adjacent to it. The present custodian of this place told this grave to belong to Sahari Pir. It was interesting for me to find a Sikh Gurudwara and Grave at the same place as both are symbols of two different religions.

How the young Sahari turned to 'Sahari Pir' is also a very interesting story and shared by Baba Virsa Singh Virik in his oral interview. (one can find on YouTube, 'Hardo Sahari, Kasur to Sanghe, Mansha by Sanwal Dhami, santalinama-252).

Sahari was a Sikh Virk Jatt, after settling in the village he started his living by harvesting a few seasonal vegetables and having few domestic animals.

If you travel to Kasur there is a small town named Basti Sheikh Bhago present, here the tomb of Hazrat Sheikh Bhago Sultan R.A is still standing. This shrine is one of the oldest in Kasur. Hazrat Sheikh Bhago Sultan RA settled in the area even a century earlier than Baba Bullah Shah. This shrine is roughly 7 kilometers from the present Hado Sahari village.

Tomb of Hazrat Sheikh Bhago Sultan R.A

One-night thieves came to Hado Sahari and stole most of the domestic animals from the village and took them to the nearest town of Kot Murad in Kasur.

Sahari's animals were also among the stolen, along with the other villagers he also started searching and found out few clues that their animal was taken to Kot Murad. The thieves, who stole the animal found that villagers reached after them. It was an era of Hazrat Sheikh Bhago Sultan R.A living in Kot Murad khan.  The thieves reached to the Sheikh and persuaded repentance for their sin and promised they will leave stealing in the future if their lives were protected from villagers.  Which he accepted, and with his manifestation, he changed the looks of animals. The stolen animals were shown to villagers and Sahari; the villagers could not guess that these were their animal and were returning in despair but Sahari came in front of Hazrat and asked what bribe he took from the thieves to change the looks of animals. Hazrat Sheikh Bhago Sultan R.A smiled and said only a true soul can found this secret. Hazrat Sheikh Bhago Sultan R.A also announced to Sahari that he will become a saint in the future. 

Mosque of Hazrat Sheikh Bhago Sultan R.A

Mosque of Hazrat Sheikh Bhago Sultan R.A

Mosque of Hazrat Sheikh Bhago Sultan R.A

Hazrat Sheikh Bhago Sultan R. A’s statement went true in future years, Sahari becomes a saint and people still know his name by Pir Sahari Chhina. Sahari was born in the Sikh Virik Jatt family when he died his last will was that his body shall be buried instead of cremation. Hence a controversy arose between Sikhs and Muslims that whether Sahari died as a Muslim or Sikh.

According to Sikh's, Pir Sahari Chhina Jatt became a great saint after becoming a Sikh of Guru Amar Das Ji and the Gurdwara built in this memory. The building is strong being new. 85 ghumaon of land granted to the Gurdwara is in this Village. The Muslims of the Village call this place Sahari Pir. A sheet of cloth with Quranic verses covers his grave now and Muslim Villagers recite Quran. A fair is held annually. Muslim fakir_ looks after the Shrine.

Now come to Baba Virsa Singh Virik during the partition of 1947 three of his father's brothers were murdered, he lost all his property, he luckily crossed the border with his elder sister. He is now living a happy life with his grandchildren in the village of Varnala in Indian Punjab. He stills remember his early days of his life in Hado Sahari village. Many years back after partition, he sent a letter to Hado Sahari's postal address, that he is coming to Lahore for a religious tour from India and if somebody knows him from the village should come to meet him.  At the partition, an eight-year boy from his family was left behind in the village. The boy converted his faith to Muslim, so his life was forgiven. He still remembers Baba Virsa Singh and after receiving his letter he took all his family to Lahore to welcome Baba Virsa. It was the time of the '80s, unfortunately, Baba Virsa Singh Virik was mistakenly arrested last minute before coming to Pakistan under the charges that he is a member of the Akali movement. His host that arrived from his native village of Hado Sahari waited for him for fifteen days, but he was not able to come.

Baba Virsa Singh Virik never able to come to Pakistan again to see his birthplace  but he still remembers every inch of that village.

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