Bhai Vir Singh.pdf - Vidhia.com

Father of Modem Punjabi Literature / 21
By his tact lmd intervention, Kaura Mall procured for the
Sikhsintervals oftruce andrelaxation from tyranny aswellas
rights to revenue-collection in certain territories which
foreshadowed. theirfuture rise to power. He hadendowments
madeinfavour oftheAmritsarDurbarSahib andraisedshrines
in honour of Guru Nanak at Nankana Sahib, the Guru's
birthplace. He enjoyed the confidence of Jassa Singh
Ahluwalia, the leader and hero of the Sikh revolt in the
eighteenth century, and was able to secure his support in his
campaign againstMultanundertakenonbehalfofMir Mannu,
the Mughal Governor of Lahore. For the splendid victory he
had won, Kaura Mall was appointed Governor of Multan and
honoured with the title of Maharaja Bahadur. He died on the
battlefieldfighting against Ahmad Shah Durrani atthe time of
his third invasion oflndia. 1
The family retired to the ancestral estate near Multan
which had come to be known as Garh Maharaja, or the
Maharaja's Fort. There it lived in easy and influential
circumstances, until Kahan Singh, sixth in descentfrom Kaura
Mall, ran away from home. He was then a boy of fourteen or
fifteen. From the very beginninghe had a retiring disposition.
The premature death of his father caused him profound pain
and sharpenedthe craving of his heart. H3 suddenly left Garh
Maharaja without telling anyone. An eight day's trek brought
him to Amritsar. Amritsar then had many deras, or traditional
seats of religious learning. Kahan Singh went to the most
famous of them--- that of Sant Ram Dayal.
After threeyears of studyandpious discipline, hejoineda
group of wandering sadhus and journeyed with them to
Hardwar. Twelve years he spent roaming from place to place
led by a keen spiritual urge. As he returned to Amritsar his
mother sought him out inhis dera andwith patience andlove
won him back to the world. He was persuaded to marry and
1. Diwan Kaura Mall, as he is popularly known, is the subject of several
historical treatises, includingone by Dr. Ganda Singh.
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