ਸੁਲਤਾਨਪੁਰ ਲੋਧੀਸੁਲਤਾਨਪੁਰ ਲੋਧੀ

Sultanpur Lodhi is a historic town in the Doaba region of Punjab, India, the town where ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ ਦੇਵ ਜੀ spent fourteen formative years and where Sikhism's founding revelation took place. On the south bank of the seasonal rivulet Kali Bein, about 27 km from ਕਪੂਰਥਲਾ, it holds the richest cluster of gurdwaras connected with the life of the first Sikh Guru outside Nankana Sahib.

Guru Nanak's fourteen years in Sultanpur Lodhi

Guru Nanak's association with the town began in 1475, when his elder sister Bibi Nanaki was married to Jai Ram of Sultanpur Lodhi. In 1483 his father sent him into Jai Ram's custody, and on his brother-in-law's recommendation he was employed as the Modi, the in-charge of the Modi Khana, the civil provision stores of Nawab Daulat Khan Lodhi. The young Guru worked diligently by day and sang the praises of God by night; a sangat of disciples gathered around him, and Bhai Gurdas later called Sultanpur the 'treasure of God's adoration.'

In June 1488 Guru Nanak was married to Bibi Sulakhani in Sultanpur Lodhi. His two sons were born here: Baba Sri Chand in July 1494 and Baba Lakhmi Chand in February 1497. After more than fourteen years in the town, in late 1497 he disappeared into the Kali Bein and reappeared three days later with the teaching 'Na koi Hindu, na koi Musalman', no one is Hindu, no one is Muslim. That moment is remembered as the birth of Sikhism; Guru Nanak then left his job and the town to begin the First Udasi.

Gurdwaras of Sultanpur Lodhi

Gurdwara Sri Ber Sahib is the principal shrine, on the bank of the Kali Bein half a kilometre west of the old town. Guru Nanak performed his morning ablutions in the Bein and then sat under a ber (jujube) tree to meditate, tradition says for fourteen years, nine months and thirteen days. The present building, with its octagonal columns, marble hall and stuccoed archway, was raised by Maharaja Jagatjit Singh of Kapurthala; its cornerstone was laid on 25 February 1937 and it was dedicated on 26 January 1941. A large fair is held each November for Guru Nanak's birth anniversary.

Gurdwara Hatt Sahib, south of the old serai, marks where he worked as custodian of the Nawab's provision stores; the polished stones believed to be his measuring weights are displayed in a glass cabinet. Gurdwara Kothri Sahib is the narrow low-roofed cell in Mohalla Vaddian where he was briefly detained on a false complaint until his accounts were found correct. Gurdwara Guru Ka Bagh stands where he lived with his wife and sons, the well that supplied water for Bibi Nanaki's langar is still there. Gurdwara Sant Ghat, two kilometres upstream, marks where he re-emerged from the Bein; Gurdwara Antaryatma Sahib marks the mosque site where he declined to join the namaz; Gurdwara Bebe Nanaki Ji (cornerstone 13 November 1970) honours his elder sister; and Gurdwara Sehra Sahib recalls Guru Arjan Dev Ji's halt here in 1604, when the sehra was fastened on his son Hargobind's head on the way to Dhalla.

An ancient city: Sarwmanpur to Sultanpur

Long before the Gurus, the town was known as Sarwmanpur (1st–6th centuries), a major centre of Hinduism and Buddhism where Katiyana is said to have authored the Buddhist work Abinav-Prastava. Mahmud of Ghazni's armies burnt it down in 1020–1030. In the 12th century Sultan Khan rebuilt it as Sultanpur, and in 1443 Bahlol Lodi, then governor of Punjab, later Sultan of Delhi, renamed it Sultanpur Lodhi. It became the centre point of the old Delhi–Lahore trade route, a major north Indian trade centre with, by traditional estimates, 32 major markets and about 5,600 shops; it is mentioned in the Ain-e-Akbari, held royal gardens and farms (the relic building Hadera survives), and was called 'Perran Puri', the city of monks. Its madrassas were famed, even the Mughal princes Dara Shikoh and Aurangzeb are said to have studied here.

Destruction and the town of today

In 1739 Nader Shah looted and set fire to the town on his way to Delhi; Ahmed Shah Abdali destroyed it again. Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia later rebuilt it from the ground up, though it never regained its old glory as the Amritsar–Jalandhar Grand Trunk Road became the main route to Delhi. Since 1969 it has been a sub-division and tehsil of Kapurthala district, 13 municipal wards, a railway station under the Ferozepur division, linked to the Delhi–Katra and Amritsar–Jamnagar expressways, and part of the Smart City project. The 2011 census counted 16,855 residents; the town has three post-secondary colleges, with a regional campus of Guru Nanak Dev University nearby.

Visiting Sultanpur Lodhi

The town is about 27 km from Kapurthala, about 42 km from Jalandhar and roughly 35 km south-east of Amritsar. All the historic shrines except Gurdwara Bebe Nanaki Ji are administered by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee through a local committee. The most moving time to visit is Guru Nanak's Gurpurab each November, when the Ber Sahib fair draws lakhs of devotees.

Why is Sultanpur Lodhi famous in Sikh history?

Guru Nanak Dev Ji spent fourteen years here as a young man, working as the Modi of the Nawab's provision stores, marrying and raising his family here, and received the divine revelation in the Kali Bein that gave birth to Sikhism.

How many gurdwaras are in Sultanpur Lodhi?

Eight principal gurdwaras commemorate events in Guru Nanak's life: Ber Sahib, Hatt Sahib, Kothri Sahib, Guru Ka Bagh, Sant Ghat, Antaryatma Sahib, Bebe Nanaki Ji and Sehra Sahib.