Bibi Mata
Bhani
Ji
ਬੀਬੀ ਭਾਨੀ
18th century painting of Bibi Bhani, commissioned by her descendants
Personal
Born19 January 1535
Basarke Gillan
Died9 April 1598
Goindval
ReligionSikhism
SpouseBhai Jetha (whom later became Guru Ram Das)
ChildrenPrithi Chand
Mahadev
Guru Arjan
Parents
Known forHead leader of the Piri system
RelativesBibi Dani (elder sister)
Bhai Mohan and Bhai Mohri (brothers)

Bibi Bhani (Gurmukhi: ਬੀਬੀ ਭਾਨੀ; January 19, 1535 – April 9, 1598), also known as Mata Bhani (Gurmukhi: ਮਾਤਾ ਭਾਨੀ), was the daughter of Guru Amar Das, the third Sikh Guru.[1][2][3] She played a central role in the history of Sikhism and is one of the four consorts bestowed with the title of Guru-Mahal.[4]

Biography

Bibi Bhani was born to Guru Amar Das and Mata Mansa Devi on 19 January 1535 in Basarke Gillan, a village near Amritsar.[2][3] Her older sister was Bibi Dani and two brothers were Bhai Mohan and Bhai Mohri.[2]

Her spouse was Bhai Jetha (who later became Guru Ram Das), a Sodhi Khatri from Lahore.[2] The marriage was arranged by her father as he had been impressed by Jetha's devotion to seva (selfless service).[2] Her mother, Mansa Devi, also noticed Jetha walking by one day and expressed a desire for her daughter to be wed to him as she was anxious about her youngest daughter's unwed status.[5] The two were wed on 18 February 1554.[2] Bhai Jetha later moved to Goindval, a Sikh town, and carried out voluntary service (sewa) in the construction of Baoli Sahib (sacred well).[2] They had three sons: Prithi Chand, Maha Dev, and Arjan Dev.[6][7][2] She kept serving her father after her marriage, as her in-laws were local.

As the completion of the Gurdwara at Goindval neared, Guru Amar Das charged Bhai Jetha with the task of establishing a new Sikh center at a location that first was known as Ramdasar. Noticing that the waters of the pond were said to have "curative" powers, Bhai Jetha expanded the pond into a sarovar that he named Amritsar. It was in the center of this "Lake of Amrit" that the construction of the Harmandar Sahib was begun. The modern city of Amritsar took its name from Bhai Jetha's sarovar.

She is said to have served her father devoutly.[1][2] One story involves her seeing Guru Amar Das meditating on a wooden seat.[1][2] She noticed one of the legs of the seat were about to break so she used her hands to keep the seat upright to prevent the Guru from falling.[1][2] After the Guru finished meditating, he noticed her hand was bleeding from holding the seat upright.[1][2] After witnessing this, the Guru told her that her offspring will inherit the guruship.[1][8]

During Akbar's visit to Guru Amar Das, it is said the emperor bestowed a jagir grant donation (lands and villages) as gifts to Bhani, putting the grant in her own name, as the Guru rejected receiving any such official state patronage in his own name.[9][10] Akbar bestowed this land as a wedding gift for Bhani and he figuratively viewed her as his own daughter as well.[9] According to one version of accounts, the jagir land that was gifted to her under her own name was used for the building of Ramdaspur (future Amritsar), where the Golden Temple was built.[1][9][10]

She was one of the head leaders of the missionary Piri system that had been established by her father to disseminate Sikhism to women, having been chosen due to her intellectual inclinations.[11] With this responsibility, she was tasked with educating women on the tenets and norms of the Sikh faith.[11]

Mural formerly painted on the walls of the Baoli Sahib at Goindwal depicting the story of Bibi Bhani holding the platform Guru Amar Das was seated on whilst meditating when one of its four legs broke

She is said to have served her father devoutly. One story involves her seeing Guru Amar Das meditating on a wooden seat. She noticed one of the legs of the seat were about to break so she used her hands to keep the seat upright to prevent the Guru from falling. After the Guru finished meditating, he noticed her hand was bleeding from holding the seat upright. After witnessing this, the Guru told her that her offspring will inherit the guruship.[1]

Bhani was the one who convinced Guru Amar Das to change the system of choosing a successor for the Sikh guruship to a hereditary one (but still grounded on a successor being chosen on merit).[5][12]

Bibi Bhani died in Goindval on 9 April 1598.[1]

Possible guruship candidacy

It is postulated that Bhani may have been considered as a potential successor of her father for the Sikh guruship, however this did not come to be and her husband was selected instead.[13][14] Scholar Doris Jakobsh states the following:[13][14]

...Bhani alone was singled out as his [Amar Das's] economic successor. Bequeathing lands and villages to a female heir would have been inconceivable in even the later social and cultural milieu of ensuing chroniclers. Clearly, even the inclusion of Bibi Bhani as a possible leader points to an imagination which, given the Guru's estimation of his daughter and the possible inclusion of females among the elite devotees, envisioned a central place of leadership for women in the Sikh world view.

— Doris Jakobsh, Relocating Gender in Sikh History (2003), page 31

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 The encyclopaedia of Sikhism. Vol. 1. Harbans Singh. Patiala: Punjabi University. 1992–1998. p. 346. ISBN 0-8364-2883-8. OCLC 29703420.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Singh, Harjeet (2009). Faith & Philosophy of Sikhism. Indian religions series. Vol. 4. Kaplaz Publications. pp. 162–163. ISBN 9788178357218.
  3. 1 2 Kaur, Tajinderpal; Gill, M.K. (1992). "8. Bibi Bhani". The Guru Consorts. Radha Publications. pp. 74–88. ISBN 9788185484112.
  4. ↑ Gill, Mahinder Kaur (1992). The Guru Consorts. Radha Publications. p. 120. ISBN 9788185484112. Mata Bhani, Mata Ganga, Mata Kishan Kaur and Mata Gujri, are the four consorts who were honoured as the Guru Mahals.
  5. 1 2 Singh, Prithi Pal (2006). The History of Sikh Gurus. Lotus Press. p. 50. ISBN 9788183820752.
  6. ↑ Jain, Harish (2003). The Making of Punjab. Unistar Books. p. 275.
  7. ↑ Singh, Jagraj (2009). A Complete Guide to Sikhism. Unistar Books. p. 219. ISBN 9788171427543.
  8. ↑ Gandhi, Surjit Singh (2007). History of Sikh Gurus Retold: 1469-1606 C.E. History of Sikh Gurus Retold. Vol. 1. Atlantic Publishers & Dist. pp. 290–291. ISBN 9788126908578.
  9. 1 2 3 Duggal, Kartar Singh (2001). Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the Last to Lay Arms. Abhinav Publications. p. 20. ISBN 9788170174103.
  10. 1 2 Johar, Surinder Singh (1999). Guru Gobind Singh: A Multi-faceted Personality. M.D. Publications Pvt. Ltd. p. 18. ISBN 9788175330931.
  11. 1 2 Iftikhar, Rukhsana (2016). Indian Feminism: Class, Gender & Identity in Medieval Ages (1st ed.). Notion Press. ISBN 9789386073730. Guru Amar Das started Pin [sic] system for the regeneration of the society, which was entrusted with the task of educating women in religious and social norms. The whole organization was handled by intellectual women; Bibi Bhani, Bibi Dabi [sic] and Bibi Pal (these women were devotees of Guru Amar Das and helped him in educating women) were those who contributed in this system.
  12. ↑ Dhillon, Jaswant Singh (2023). Comparative Study of World Religions. Christian Faith Publishing, Inc. ISBN 9781685174354. Bhani asked Guru Amar Das one day to keep the Gur Gaddi with in the family.
  13. 1 2 Urubshurow, Victoria Kennick (2009). Introducing World Religions. Journal of Buddhist Ethics Online Books. p. 417. ISBN 9780980163308.
  14. 1 2 Jakobsh, Doris R. (2003). Relocating Gender in Sikh History: Transformation, Meaning and Identity. Oxford India paperbacks. Oxford University Press. pp. 30–31. ISBN 9780195663150.

Sources

  • Copyright © Harbans Singh "The encyclopedia of Sikhism. Vol III." pages 1 – 4
  • Bhalla, Sarup Das, Mahima Prakash. Patiala, 1971
  • Chhibbar, Kesar Singh, Bansavalinama Dasan Patshahiali Ka. Chandigarh, 1972
  • Gian Singh, Giani, Twarikh Curu Khalsa. Patiala, 1970
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