Diwali and Bandi Chor Divas

For other posts in the Indian Mythology in Gurbani Series: Table of Contents

Note: The following post will be a bit of special feature since it will not be Gurbani focused but instead focus on Sikh History and its connection to Hindu History/Mythology. I plan to do a future post on references to the stories and characters of Ramayana in Gurbani.

Bandi Chor Divas

The Sikh Celebration of Bandi Chor Divas coincides with the Hindu celebration of Diwali. Although there may be a difference in the reasons for celebration the way the two holidays are celebrated is virtually indistinguishable. In Punjab, it is almost impossible to find where the Hindu Diwali begins and Sikh Bandi Chor Divas ends.

Bandi Chor Divas, roughly translates to the Day of Freedom. Around 1619, Guru Hargobind Sahib was imprisoned by the Mughal Emperor, Jahangir. By this time Guru Sahib had built the Akal Takht and was well on his way to arming the Sikhs. As such the threat of Guru Sahib was two-fold. First, the growing military power of the Guru was a concern for the Emperor’s hold over Punjab. Second, the Guru had continued to attract religious followers which was a threat to the spread of Islam in Northern India. To nullify these threats and appease some of his advisers the Emperor Jahangir fined Guru Sahib an extreme amount for some minor offence. When Guru Hargobind Ji refused to pay this fine he was imprisoned. Knowing his own innocence on the matter, Guru Ji went willingly to prison and advised his Sikhs to remain peaceful.

Gwalior Fort

Guru Ji was sent to Gwalior Fort and was held there for a few months. Gwalior Fort (Gwalior Qila) was one of largest in India and was considered almost impregnable. Because of this the Mughal’s held their most powerful prisoners there. The majority of these prisoners were kings, princes and leaders who were either rebellious or uncooperative. Although accounts of Guru Ji’s release vary, one tradition holds that Jahangir eventually became ill. Since medicines were not working he asked his religious advisers if the illness was Allah’s punishment for some wrongdoing. One of his advisers was the Sufi Saint Mian Mir who was a friend of both Guru Hargobind Sahib and of their father, Guru Arjun Dev Ji. Baba Mian Mir advised the Emperor to free Guru Hargobind Sahib since imprisoning a saint of Allah was a grave sin. The Emperor then sent for Guru Ji to be released. However, Guru Ji refused, saying that he would not leave unless other innocent prisoners were also let go. The Emperor replied that those kings and princes who could hold on to the Guru’s clothing would be granted freedom alongside the Guru. Guru Ji then either cut-up his overcoat or had a special garment delivered such that it would have 52 strips which accounted for virtually all of the prisoners in Gwalior Qila. Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji then left Gwalior along with 52 other kings and princes.

Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib leaves Gwalior Fort

Guru Ji’s release coincided with Diwali and when Guru Ji entered Amritsar the Sikhs lit up the city, Akal Takht and Harmandir Sahib with thousands upon thousands of deevas (small lamps) and then celebrated Diwali with full festivities. For the Sikhs, the return of their Guru was as great of a celebration as the return of Sri Raam Chandar was for the Hindus.

Diwali - The Story of Raam and Sita

Raam, Sita, Lakshman and Hanuman

Diwali was first celebrated when Sri Raam Chandar returned to Ayodhya after defeating Raavan in Lanka and freeing his wife, Sita. The story of the Ramayana comprises of one of world's oldest and longest poems so it is impossible to do it justice in a short blog post. However, I will provide a relatively short summary here:

• The story of Ramayana begins with Raavan, the ambitious King of the Rakhsas (demons) who rules from his throne on the island of Lanka. After doing thousands of years of bhagati to Shiva, Raavan was granted invincibility with the exception of one weak spot - his naval. With his newly gained power he undertook a series of conquests through which he subjugated not only the Earth but also the underworld and the Devta Loka (Heaven realm). The latter he accomplishes by defeating Indra, King of Devtas. Becoming so powerful and using a blessing of Mahadev for personal gain he created an imbalance in the universe and had upset dharma. Indra and the Devtas then came to Vishnu and asked him to restore order. Vishnu then descended to Earth as the Prince Raam to return the universe to balance by killing Raavan.
• Growing up as the first born son of King Dasarath and therefore the Crown Prince ( ie. Yuvraj) Raam eventually married Sita who is said to be the incarnation of Mother Earth (Bhumi Devi) and is said to be born directly from the Earth. In fact, the name Sita in Sanskrit means a furrow which is a reference to agriculture and fertility (for more on the significance of the Goddess/Devi in Indian Mythology see here). Seen as a very auspicious child she was adopted by King Janaka before being married to Raam. Eventually, due to the politics of the royal family Raam was exiled for 14 years from the Kingdom of Ayodhya. Sita and Lakshman (Raam's step-brother) followed Raam into exile voluntarily because of their undying devotion to Raam and unfaltering attitude towards duty and dharma. 
• One day, in the forest, Sita is kidnapped by Raavan while Raam and Lakshman were distracted by a deer. The kidnapping of Sita was a major breach of dharma. Raam and Lakshman then set out to Lanka to take Sita back and avenge her kidnapping. Dharma called for Raavan to be killed for such a transgression. 
• On the way, Raam and Lakshman met a powerful monkey-prince who would become Raam’s most devoted follower, Hanuman. Together Hanuman and Raam win the allegiance of the monkey-people (Vanaras) who then promised to fight Raavan’s army with Raam. 
• Raam, Lakshman, Hanuman and the Vanara army eventually made their way down to Tamil Nadu where the Indian Ocean separated them from Lanka. Without a naval fleet the army had no way to cross the ocean. Raam then asked the Vanara army to say his name, write it on stones and then throw these stones in the ocean. The Vanaras complied and when they threw the stones in the ocean, to their amazement, the stones began to float. Creating a sort of bridge in this way the army crossed the ocean into Lanka. 
• In Lanka, a tremendous battle ensued. At the end, Raavan, his giant brother Kumbakarna and powerful son Indrajit were defeated by Raam and his companions. Raam defeated Raavan by shooting a magic arrow directly into his naval, his only weak spot. 
• Raavan's defeat is still celebrated in India as Dusherra, 20 days prior to Diwali. Plays of Raam (Raamleela) are concluded by burning  effigies of the 10 headed Raavan as well as of Kumbakarna and Indrajit. 
• With Raavan defeated Raam was able to rescue Sita. Since Raam's exile had also ended they made thier way back to Ayodhya. Upon their return, the people of Ayodhya celebrated joyously by dancing and singing and lighting up the entire city with thousands of deevas. Raam is then crowned as the rightful king and thus begins the rule of Raja Raam, known as Raamraj. Raamraj lasted for ten thousand years, an idyllic time on Earth during which peace and dharma was upheld in all matters.

Symbolism of Diwali

Diwali in Ayodhya, India

At first, seeing the deevas, lights and firecrackers one is led to believe that Diwali is a festival of light. This is indeed true but it only scratches the surface of Diwali's meaning. A more thorough definition of Diwali may be that it is the celebration of light's victory over darkness. On Diwali, Raam, the Avtar of Vishnu and the embodiment of all that is right, returned home after defeating Raavan, who had broken away from dharma. It is the celebration of good's ultimate triumph over bad.

But Diwali is not just a celebration of light over darkness. It is also a celebration of order restored; the world brought back into balance. By defeating Raavan and rescuing Sita, Raam reclaimed the Earth from the clutches of adharma. After all, Sita is the incarnation of the Earth and Raam, whose name means pleasing or restful pleasure, brought a calming peace to the Earth. The fact that Raam and Sita return to Ayodhya speaks to this since Ayodhya itself means non-war or peace. After his return, Raam is crowned as King and thus begins Raamraj, the reign of peace. We can now see that Diwali is not just a celebration of light's victory of darkness but also of order being restored, the world being brought back to balance and dharma being upheld. The restoration and maintenance of balance is the prime duty of Vishnu. It is for that reason he came as Raam to Earth and that is exactly what he accomplished on Diwali.

Bandi Chor Divas - A Second Look

Why did the Sikhs celebrate the return of Guru Hargobind Sahib by lighting thousands of deevas in the Holy City of Amritsar just as Diwali? It is clear that the Sikhs saw parallels between the return of Raam with the return of their most beloved Guru. When their Guru returned to them, they saw their own Raam Raja return from his exile. Like Raam, Guru Sahib had gone willingly to this exile. Like Raam's return to his capital, Ayodhya, Guru Sahib had returned to his own capital, the Tank of Divine Nectar, Amritsar. As Raam took his rightful throne as King, so did Guru Hargobind Sahib take his rightful place on the Akal Takht, the Immortal Throne. Guru Sahib in that body and subsequent bodies would uphold dharma and fight against adharma. The reign of the Guru would be Raamraj for the Sikhs. Those who seek the Guru's Sanctuary will always find Raamraj, at any place, any time.

Happy Bandi Chor Divas & Diwali! Diwali Di Vaadian!