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Childhood memories
Sant Bhagwan Singh Ji Khalsa was born on 6th June 1946 in the village of Lailpur, after partition Baba Ji’s family moved to village Ibrahiemval India. Baba Ji's ancestor's were royal rajas from Dhaan Dhraval, Baba Ji’s father was Santa Singh Ji and mother Mata Harnam Kaur Ji and Baba Ji went to junior school in Ibrahiemval district of Kapurthula.
Mata Ji used to awaken at 2:00 am, bathe and go to the gurdwara where she would do sewa and sweep the grounds. As Baba Ji grew up Mata Ji would take him to the gurdwara as well. Standing in front of Guru Granth Sahib Ji Mata Ji would instruct the young Baba Ji that this is where Guru Nanak Dev Ji resides, if you want anything if you need anything this is where you come to ask.
Baba Ji spent a lot of his young life in the company of Sadhus or Holy men. Over the years a steady stream of holy men would come wondering into the village and all would recognise something in the young child and Baba Ji would sit with them hours on end listening to their simran and conversing with them. When aged around six years Baba Ji was enrolled into the local primary school at Ibrahiemwal.
The only problem was that the attraction of the holy Sadhus would sometimes be too much and rather than going to school Baba Ji would head towards the Gurdwara where invariably the Sadhus had set up camp. On the way to school Baba Ji would stop off at the Gurdwara to matha-take and wait for parkash of Guru Sahib Ji and many days Baba Ji would miss school altogether and just sit in front of Guru Granth Sahib Ji waiting for darshan of Guru Nanak Dev Ji and then going outside and sitting with the Sadhus.
One day a mahapursh came wondering into the village, This Sadhu had a “hokka”, or a chant that he would say out loud every thirty seconds or so. The Sadhu would shout out load “Oh, saaria tha ekh-o pio” which translates to “He (God) is the father of everyone.” This phrase the Sadhu would repeat every few moments regardless of what he was doing or saying. Whatever he was doing, whatever he was saying, thirty seconds or so later he would interrupt with “Oh, saaria tha ekh-o pio.”
In the morning Baba Ji would be given his little satchel and sent off to school but while everyone would think that Baba Ji had gone to school instead Baba Ji would make a line to the Gurdwara. He would mutha-take and then head outside to the Sadhu and sit in his lap. Baba Ji would be given two small prathay and achaar (pickle) for his lunch and at noon Baba Ji would take out the parathey and hand one to the Sadhu and eat one himself. During the day, the Sadhu would repeat various shabads into Baba Ji’s ear and then would continue with his simran, and of course every few moments would say “Oh, saaria tha ekh-o pio.” One day someone from Baba Ji’s family in conversation mentioned that Baba Ji was at school, and this was overheard by the granthi. The granthi told them to follow him. He took them behind the Gurdwara where the Sadhu was sat repeating his simran and Baba Ji was sat in his lap in deep contemplation. “There” he pointed “there is your son, not at school but here with this sadhu”. Baba Ji’s father was not too pleased that his son was sitting here all day rather than going to school. He was angry with Baba Ji and with the Sadhu, but the Sadhu was not shaken, he said that he would be staying in the village for a whole year and no matter what anyone did or said he was going to teach the young Baba Ji what he had been instructed to teach him.
So, for a whole year the Sadhu stayed in the village and Baba Ji would spend a lot of time with him and the Sadhu would repeat shabads in Baba Ji’s ear and every few moments would shout “Oh, saaria tha ekh-o pio.” The sadhu became very fond of Baba Ji but when the year passed the Sadhu packed up his few belongings, gave piyar to Baba Ji and said “I am going now, but another Sadhu will come by soon” and with this he was off, he wondered out of the village never to return.
So it was that a little while later another Sadhu came to the village. The most striking feature of this Sadhu was his matted hair. Great ‘Jatta’ or matted hair was wound round into a large bun on the Sadhus head towering above him. When he saw the young Baba Ji, he came over and picked him up and put him on his shoulders, and he would do this for the time he stayed in the village.
Ibrahiemwal, Punjab
For a period of eight to ten months the Sadhu stayed in the village and Baba Ji would sit on his shoulders or in his lap when the Sadhu was sat on the floor, and all the time the Sadhu would be repeating his simran under his breath and would lean over and repeat it in Baba Ji’s ear. When his time came, he also gathered his few possessions and bid farewell. In this way Baba Ji spent most of his childhood in the company of Sadhus and Sants. Another Sant that came to the village was Sant Baba Majha Singh Hoti-Mardanwalle who also spent some time with Baba Ji.
Baba Ji's mother used to do ‘Charru’ or clean the floors of the Gurdwara twice a day. Mata Ji used to tell little Baba Ji that Guru Nanak Dev Ji appears from over there, pointing at Guru Granth Sahib Ji, “one day you will see Him from there” she would say.
When Mata Ji passed away in 1950 Baba Ji was very young and they would come to the Gurdwara and sit in front of Guru Granth Sahib Ji with great sadness in his heart. Many times Baba Ji's siblings would have to come to collect him from the gurdwara where he had sat all day. Baba Ji would go to the Gurudwara to try to find his mother and could not understand why she was not there and would become very emotional and sad. Baba Ji remembered his mother’s words that Guru Nanak Dev Ji resides here and he would ask out aloud "Where is my mata Ji?" to Guru Granth Sahib Ji and Baba Ji would cry out loud. Then one early morning with eyes wet with crying a light (parkash) appeared from Guru Granth Sahib Ji. The parkash grew larger and more intense and from the light a saroop or form of Guru Nanak Dev Ji appeared. Guru Ji smiled at the young child and after a while disappeared back into Guru Granth Sahib Ji. . The young chaild ran to the Granthi, the old priest, who was sitting outside the darbar hall, he told him “I have seen Baba Ji, I have seen Baba Ji.” The Granthi did not believe the young child and asked where he had seen Baba Ji. Baba Ji pointed at Guru Granth Sahib Ji but the Granthi became quite annoyed, how could a young child see Guru Nanak Dev Ji he thought and grabbed him by the arm and dragged him outside and gave him a slap. As Baba Ji sobbed home, it so happened that the old granthi climbed up the steps, stumbled and fell and badly bruised his knees. When Baba Ji’s elder brother heard of what had happened, he took Baba Ji back to the Gurdwara to have a word with the granthi. The granthi was now sitting on the floor nursing his wounds, he had seen the error of his ways and apologised, from then on he treated the young Baba Ji with love and care and told him to come to the Gurdwara whenever he liked.
The darshan of Guru Nanak Dev Ji gave Baba Ji great solace and from then on Baba Ji coped with the loss of his mother and his faith in Guru Granth Sahib Ji increased. Every year in the month of Padhro chacha Shangara Singh Ji, Baba Ji's uncle would organise a smagam, like a kirtan darbar, and this was done very year. It so happened that Baba Ji's mother passed away on the same day as the smagam was to take place.
It was a time of great shock and sorrow as everything was sent into turmoil. The locals and village people were asking how can they do two opposing functions, one of great sorrow and one of great joy, they will have to cancel the smagam. Chacha Shangara Singh Ji stated that birth and death are both part of life and all under Guru Ji's hukam so the smagam must go ahead, in the end both karaj took place. Baba Ji was very young at the time and missed his mother very much and became very sad of a time, but the darshan of Guru Nanak Dev Ji imbued Baba Ji with a new sense of mission.
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