|
Attack on Anandpur
The mountain Kings tried to attack the Guru many times but failed.
Aurangzeb had also tried to attack the Guru and failed. The mountain kings
thought that if they team up with Aurangzeb then they might be able to
defeat the Guru.
Aurangzeb ordered the governors of Sirhand and Lahore to attack the
Guru, the mountain kings also joined them. Altogether, it was a huge
coalition army that marched towards Anandpur Saheb. They Surrounded the
Fort and the battle started. The Sikhs were outnumbered, but they fought
with courage. The Fort was built on higher ground so the Guru had the
advantage. The arrows and bullets of the Guru’s army would reach the
enemy soldiers, but the Mughal armies weapons would not reach the Guru’s
soldiers.
The enemy army knew that they were at a disadvantage and they would
lose too many men if they continued to fight. So they devised a new plan.
They stopped fighting and pulled back a little. They decided to just keep
the fort surrounded so no rations could go in to the fort, that way the
Singhs will run out of food and start to starve.
Some time went by and the Sikhs ran out of food inside the fort.
Many animals, such as horses and elephants in the fort started to die from
starvation. Many Sikhs also died while the ones that survived had lost a
lot of weight.
The army on the outside then made an offer that any Sikh who
surrenders will be allowed out of the fort and will not be harmed. The
only stipulation is that you must denounce your Guru. At that moment, Bhai
Mahan Singh and 39 others decided to surrender, the Guru allowed them to
go but requested them to write on a piece of paper that from today you are
not our Guru and we are not your Sikhs.
Some time again went by, the rainy season came and because the fort
was situated in a hilly area, floods started to form. Many of the Mughal
army’s soldiers were washed away with the floods. The soldiers started
to get tired of just sitting around because almost 7 months had gone by.
So they devised another plan. They sent a Muslim and Hindu priest
to talk to Guru Gobind Singh Ji. The two told the Guru that if he leaves
the fort nobody would attack him. They swore on the name of the holy Quran
and Gita. The Sikhs were happy to hear this and told the Guru that they
should leave.
Guru Gobind Singh Ji knew that it was just a trick. He said, “I
will evacuate the fort on one condition, that I first be allowed to ship
out my valuable items.”
The army accepted this proposal. The Guru then ordered the Sikhs to
load up a cart with old junk and cover it with a big cloth. Then the Guru
sent that cart out of the fort. The cart had only gone a little distance
when the enemy soldiers attacked it and started to uncover the goods.
However, they were surprised to see that the Guru had outsmarted them.
The Siege continued. Aurangzeb sent a copy of the Quran that he
signed and said that he would not attack the Guru if he left the Fort. The
Sikhs started to plead with the Guru to leave the Fortress. The Guru Said
no, but the Sikhs were starving and begged the Guru. The Guru said, “It
will only take a little longer, winter is coming and the enemy will freeze
outside and we will win.”
But the Sikhs could not take anymore, so the Guru listened to his
Sikhs and decided to leave the Fort on December 20, 1704. The Sikhs left
in small groups so that the enemy army would not notice them during the
dark night.
After some time, the Mughal army realized that the Guru had left
the Fort. They started to follow the Guru and finally caught up with his
army at the Sursa River. Here, a battle ensued and during this battle,
some very precious manuscripts of the Sikhs were lost in the River. Many
of the Sikhs got separated here, Mata Gujri Ji and the Guru’s two
youngest sons went one way, Bhai Muni Singh and Mata Saheb Kaur went
another way, while the Guru went a separate way. | Gurmat Studies Foundation | Guru Nanak Academy | Shaheed Baba Deep Singh Gatka Akhara | Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh!
|