Mazhabi: Difference between revisions

From SikhiWiki
Jump to navigationJump to search
 
(17 intermediate revisions by 6 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{NonSikhArticle}}
{{NonSikhArticle}}


or more correctly Mazhabi, is a Chuhra who has become a Sikh. Sikh Chu'hras are mostly found in the Districts and States immediately east and southeast of Lahore, which form the historic centre of Sikhism.  
Mazhabi Sikhs (Punjabi: ਮਜਬੀ ਸਿੱਖ) (also spelt as Mazbhi, Mazbi, Majhabhi or Majabhi) are members of the Rangretta clan who embraced the sikh faith and are mainly found in the Punjab region, Kashmir and Rajastan. The word "Mazhabi" is derived from the Urdu term "Mazhab" ("sect"), and can be translated as "the religious" or "the faithful".


A Mazbi a member of the former scavenger class of Hindu religion who converted to Sikhism. The Majhabis take the pahul wear their hair long, and abstain from tobacco. They apparently refuse to touch night-soil, though they perform all the other offices hereditary to the Chuhra caste. Their great guru is Tegh Bahadur, whose mutilated body was brought back from Delhi by Chuhras who were then and there admitted to the faith by Guru Gobind Singh as a reward for their devotion.  
Mazhabis are best known for their history of bravery, strength and self sacrifice in the Sikh, Khalsa, British Indian army and Indian army. The Mazhabis were designated as a martial race by British officials. "Martial Race" was a designation created by officials of British India to describe "races" (peoples) that were thought to be naturally warlike and aggressive in battle, and to possess qualities of courage, loyalty, self sufficiency, physical strength, resilience, orderliness, the ability to work hard for long periods of time, fighting tenacity and military strategy.  


But though good Sikhs so far as religious observance is concerned, the taint of hereditary pollution is upon them and Sikhs of other castes refuse to associate with them even in religious ceremonies. Guru Nanak's, as well as the admonitions of all the other Sikh Gurus, have been apparently insufficient to wash their fellow Sikh brethren's minds of the memories of their ancestors once having done the 'dirtiest work' of the Hindu caste system.
The British recruited heavily from these Martial Races for service in the British Indian Army. The British recruited heavily from the Mazhabi sikhs. On the out break of the Indian mutiny in 1857, the British immediately recruited 12,000 Mazhabis to crush the mutiny. After the mutiny, it was only the Mazhabi Sikhs who got recognition as a martial race after they took part in Younghusband’s mission to Lhasa in 1903.


== History==


They often intermarry with the Lal Begi or Hindu Chuhra. They make capital soldiers and some of our Pioneer regiments are wholly composed of Masbis. One of the bravest of the generals of the Gurus, was Jiwan Singh, a Majhabi, whose tomb is still shown at Chamkaur in Ambala. He fell at its siege in 1705-06. During the' Muhammadan persecution of the Sikhs they dropped out of notice and failing a supporter in the place of Guru Gobind, they never came to the front as a class, although Maharaja Ranjit Singh had a great admiration for their bravery and enlisted them freely.  
The Mazhabi Sikhs are originally inhabitants of the old Greater Punjab which today spans into Pakistani Punjab, Its frontier province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and into Indian Punjab, including its former punjab territories of Himachal Pradesh and Haryana in Northern India including Delhi. Peshawer, Lahore and Amritsar are historical to the Mazhabis and also form the historical center of Sikhism.  


Being afraid, however, to form them into separate corps, he attached a company to various battalions. They were, however, looked down upon by the other men and naturally became discontented. When the Punjab was annexed, the Majhabi was a dacoit, a robber and often a thug. In this capacity he was generally styled a Rangretha. The latter are a class of Majhabi apparently found only in Ambala, Ludhiana, and the neighbourhood who consider themselves socially superior to the rest. The origin of their superiority, according to Srt. Denail Ibbetson 's information, lies in the fact that they were once notorious as highway robbers! But it appears that the Rangrethas have very generally abandoned scavenging for leather-work, and this would at once account for their rise in the social scale.  
Accorded a low caste status in the Hindu faith; the Rangretas were employed as scavengers, poor farmers, and landless labourers. The Sikh faith had a special appeal for the mazhabi sikha and they rapidly embraced it as it did not differentiate on the basis of caste or creed and held everybody equal. This emboldened the downtrodden to fight against injustice, tyranny and persecution.


In the hills Rangreta is often used as synonymous with Rangrez, or Chhimba or Lilari, to denote the cotton dyer and stamper, and in Sirsa the Sikhs will often call any Chuhra whom they wish to please Rangretha, and a rhyme is current Rangretha:
When [[Guru Tegh Bahadur]] was killed by the Mughals in Delhi, [[Bhai Jaita|Bhai Jaita ji]] (Baba Jeevan Singh ji) brought his head back to [[Guru Gobind Singh]]. Guru Gobind Singh declared that the Rangrettas (Mazhabis) were his sons, and admitted them to the Sikh faith. Originally, the term Mazhabi referred only to the descendants of these people.
:'''Guru ka beta, or "the Rangreta is the son of the Guru".'''


The Majhabis have social distinctions among themselves. The descendants of the true Majhabis who rescued Tegh Bahaldur's Head are strictly speaking, the only asl or real Majhabi.
==Reputation as soldiers==


The term is applied loosely to more recent converts. Recent converts are looked upon more or less with a critical eye and are termed Malwais. This term was probably a geographical distinction at first, but is now merely a caste one. It takes some generations to make a Mazbi, but how many he cannot say. Much depends on circumstances, and on the strictness of the convert's adherence to the faith as to when he may be admitted to an equal footing with a true Mazbi. For this reason the asl Majhabi is scarce and his physique is falling off. Until quite lately he was never found in large numbers in any special locality, except for the purpose of work on a new canal or railway. Two or three Majhabi houses are attached to the villages where they work as labourers. Grants of land have, however, been made in Gujranwala to pensioners of Pioneer regiments. The Majhabi gotras are numerous and many of them are the same as those of the Jat, doubtless following the family or group whose hereditary servants they were. In their customs too, at weddings, etc., they conform to a great extent to those prevalent among the Jats.
Over the years, the Mazhabi Sikhs acquired a reputation as fine and formidable soldiers. The British recognised them as "once a redoubtable foe of the English, and now one of the finest soldiers in the British army". The Mazhabis are highly regarded for their determined resolve to complete the assigned tasks against all opposition; and were deployed in various military campaigns in India and abroad. The British were greatly impressed by their superior physique and the martial and religious fervour imparted by Sikhism.


==The above basically restated==
The corps of Mazhabi Sikhs became famous for their fighting reputation and discipline. In addition to their soldiering reputation, the Mazhabis were also known for their loyalty and it was noted that during their service with the army, they never once betrayed the trust placed in them. The British noted that during the First World War, the Mazhabi Sikh soldiers reached a "remarkably high standard" and that their contribution to the war surpassed that of the Jatt Sikhs.


MAZHABI SIKHS (Mazhabi = steadfast in religious faith), commonly pronounced as Mazhbi Sikhs, is the name given to SIKH converts from the Chuhra community, among the lowest in the Hindu caste order. Chuhras in medieval Punjab, corresponding to Bharigis of the Hindispeaking regions, were the village menials who received customary payment in kind at harvest time for such services as sweeping and scavenging.  
Major-General A.E.Barstow described the Mazhabi Sikhs as "...extremely good soldiers." and goes on to mention that the Sikh Pioneer Regiments, "...have a proud record of service in many campaigns." Historically they have fought battles for Guru Gobind Singh and the Mazhabis formed the majority of Akali Nihang ranks, even throughout the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Maharaja Ranjit Singh also enlisted them in large numbers for the existing misls, and in the irregular corps.


They lived in separate quarters, sequestered from the main village population, and were allowed neither instruction nor entry into places of worship. They were the "untouchable" class, for a mere touch by anyone of them "polluted" members of the upper castes. With the advent of Islam, some of them sought amelioration of their social status in conversion gaining the title of mihtar, Persian for chief, but the bulk still remained in the Hindu fold. The teachings of GURU NANAK and his nine spiritual successors, with their rejection of distinctions based upon caste or birth and their emphasis on equality of all human beings, had a special appeal for them.
==Maharaja Ranjit Singh's great admiration==
 
Maharaja Ranjit Singh had a great admiration for their bravery and enlisted the Mazhabis extensivly into the Khalsa Army which he nurtured into an excellent instrument of war. Being afraid, however, to form them into separate corps, Maharaja Ranjit Singh attached a company of Mazhabis to the existing battalions (misls). During his reign, the Mazhabi Sikhs were generally stationed on the Peshawer border, where constant fighting against invading Islamic Afghan and Pashtun forces gave them the opportunity to show their bravery and endurance.
 
Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu and Kashmir raised a corps of Mazhabi Sikhs in 1851. The British also recognised the great fighting qualities and prowess of these soldiers in the Anglo-Sikh Wars. The stubborn and sustained resistance offered by them and their ability to maintain themselves frugally amazed them. The British had admiration for the mazhabi as they made capital soldiers. The The raised Pioneers were a splendid Corps and displayed remarkable valour in the field. The first world war would see a rise their enlistment numbers as the Mazhabi sikh pioneers, 23rd Sikh Pioneers, 32nd Sikh Pioneers and the 34th Sikh Pioneers were developed into three battalions each.
 
The mazhabi sikh pioneers performed well during the great war. The 1/34th Sikh pioneers won the title of "Royal" during the Great war. The unit armourer and blacksmith made a highly burnished screen, proudly displaying the magnificent achievements of the Mazhabi Sikh Pioneers as epitomized in their Battle Honours. The 34th Royal Sikh Pioneers presented this screen to his majesty King George V of the United Kingdom in 1933. The Mazhabis, along with the Ramdasea Sikhs, were recruited to form the Mazhabi and Ramdasea battalions, that were later merged together to form the Sikh Light Infantry in 1941 for the World War II.
 
==Social status==
 
The social status of the Mazbhi Sikhs has varied over time. Unlike several other Dalit groups that still practise Hinduism, the Mazhabi Sikhs have abandoned all ties with Hinduism and its traditional caste roles. During the British raj, the Mazbhis were listed as an agricultural caste on British censuses of caste populations. Historically the Mazhabi Sikhs are generally found throughout the Punjab province, however the Mazhabis are most numerously found in Ferozepore, Lahore, Amritsar and Faridkot. The Mazhabi Sikhs perform much of the agricultural labour in these areas.
 
In spite of the Sikhism's egalitarian tenets, many Jat Sikhs continued to look down upon the Mazhabis. In March 1966, the Federation of Mazhabi Sikhs offered to support Arya Samaj and Jan Sangh in an agitation against the formation of the Jat Sikh-majority Punjabi Suba. According to a report published in The Tribune on 16 March 1966, a spokesperson for the organization stated that "the Sikh Scheduled Castes had been reduced to a position of mere serfs by the Sikh landlords who would literally crush the Mazhabi Sikhs if Punjabi Suba was formed."
 
In 2005, 56 expelled employees of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee abandoned Sikhism, and alleged that they were being discriminated against because they were Mazhabis. Economically poor Mazhabi sikhs can still face discrimination and violence from Sikhs of upper castes in Punjab's rural areas.
 
The Government of India recognises Mazhabi Sikh as a "Scheduled Caste", as part of their official affirmative action program. The urban Mazbhis have made social and economic progress over the years, and are very active in the Panjab Akali party (Sikh nationalist party). However, poverty and illiteracy is still rampant among the Mazhabi Sikhs living in the rural areas of Punjab.


==Ranghreta==   
==Ranghreta==   
Line 31: Line 47:
:'''"Ranghrete Guru ke bete," Ranghretas are the Guru`s own sons".'''
:'''"Ranghrete Guru ke bete," Ranghretas are the Guru`s own sons".'''


Upon the creation of the Khalsa in 1699, Bhai Jaita took the rites of the double edged sword and was renamed Jivan Singh. Several others of his caste also took khande di pahul and joined the order of the Khalsa. The new spirit infused by khande di pahul added to the native tenacity and hardiness of the Ranghretas as a class and during the troubled eighteenth century, they suffered and fought valiantly hand in hand with other Sikhs.  
Upon the creation of the Khalsa in [[1699]], Bhai Jaita took the rites of the double edged sword and was renamed Jivan Singh. Several others of his caste also took khande di pahul and joined the order of the Khalsa. The new spirit infused by khande di pahul added to the native tenacity and hardiness of the Ranghretas as a class and during the troubled eighteenth century, they suffered and fought valiantly hand in hand with other Sikhs.  
 
==Bravery: Bota Singh and Garja Singh==


==Bota Singh and Garja Singh==
[[Bhai Bota Singh]] who, with nothing but a heavy club in his hand, dared the Mughal might while proclaiming the sovereignty of the Khalsa, started to levying a toll on Mughal passerbys on the main Punjab highway. A [[Ranghreta Sikh]], [[Garja Singh]], was his sole comrade in arms while the two took to reaffirming the sovereignty of the Sikhs. After they baited the Mughals by speaking in familiar  terms (terms only used in a family not vulgar terms) of a Mughal's female relative they were attacked by a punitive contingent sent by the governor of Lahore, the two stood back-to-back fighting until their last breath. This was in 1739. Earlier, in 1735, when Nawab Kapur Singh, the chosen leader of the Dal Khalsa, as the guerrilla force of the Sikhs was called, reorganized the Dal into five jathas (fighting bands), one of the jathas consisted exclusively of Ranghreta Sikhs.


Bhat Bota Singh, who with nothing but a heavy club in his hand dared the Mughal might proclaiming the sovereignty of the Khalsa he started levying toll on the main Punjab highway. He had a Ranghreta Sikh, Garja Singh, as his sole comrade in arms. Attacked by a punitive contingent sent by the governor of Lahore, the two stood back-to-back fighting until their last breath. This was in 1739. Earlier, in 1735, when Nawab Kapur Singh, the chosen leader of the Dal Khalsa, as the guerrilla force of the Sikhs was called, reorganized the Dal into five jaihds or fighting bands, one of them consisted exclusively of the Ranghreta Sikhs.  
According to Ratan Singh Bhangu, Prathm Panth Prakash, Bir Singh, the leader of this jatha, commanded 1300 horse. With the virtual establishment of their sovereignty in the plains of the central Punjab, the Sikh's slowly reverted to their traditional village life, with farming as their main occupation, the Ranghreta Sikhs resumed their old role of scavenging and field labour, but they were no longer the outcastes they had been.  


According lo Ratan Singh Bhangu, Prathm Panth Prakash, Bir Singh, the leader of tins jaihd, commanded 1300 horse. With the virtual establishment of their sovereignty in the plains of the central Punjab, as the Sikh's slowly reverted to their traditional village life, with farming as their main occupation, the Ranghreta Sikhs resumed their old role of scavenging and field labour, but they were no longer the outcastes they had been.
==Prominence of the sect grows==


They wore unshorn hair and abstained from tobacco and meat. They were endearingly called Mazhabi Sikhs (lit. Sikhs steadfast in their religious faith), the term Ranghreta gradually falling into disuse. During the reign of Maharaja RANJIT Singh, Mazhabi Sikhs were freely enlisted in the Khalsa army, especially in the infantry, and were generally deployed for duty on the northwestern frontier. Demobilization followed the annexation in 1849 of the Sikh country to the British dominions. Many of the Mazhabi soldiers, no longer content with their former station as village menials, resorted to highway robbery, theft and dacoity so that the British government declared them to be a criminal tribe.  
They wore unshorn hair and abstained from tobacco and meat. They were endearingly called Mazhabi Sikhs (lit. Sikhs steadfast in their religious faith), the term Ranghreta gradually falling into disuse. During the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Mazhabi Sikhs were freely enlisted in the Khalsa army, especially in the infantry, and were generally deployed for duty on the northwestern frontier.  


About 1851, Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu and Kashmir raised a corps of Mazhabi Sikhs. The British recruited them for a coolie corps meant for road construction. In 1857, they were also enlisted, 1200 of them, to form the 23rd, 32nd and 34th Pioneer Regiments. Their extraordinary bravery and endurance earned them a high reputation as soldiers. They were no longer considered a criminal tribe and formed a significant component of the regular Indian army. In 1911, there were 1,626 Mazhabi Sikhs out of a total strength of 10,866 Sikhs in the Indian army.  
About 1851, Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu and Kashmir raised a corps of Mazhabi Sikhs. The British recruited them for a coolie corps meant for road construction. In 1857, they were also enlisted, 1200 of them, to form the 23rd, 32nd and 34th Pioneer Regiments. Their extraordinary bravery and endurance earned them a high reputation as soldiers. They were no longer considered a criminal tribe and formed a significant component of the regular Indian army. In 1911, there were 1,626 Mazhabi Sikhs out of a total strength of 10,866 Sikhs in the Indian army.  


Thus 17 per cent of the Sikh soldiers were Mazhabis. Mazhabi Sikhs were also employed on canal digging and road construction projects in the new canal colonies in West Punjab, to which a large number of them had migrated for permanent settlement as farm hands and agricultural tenants. A number of them, mostly retired soldiers, were even allotted lands in the lower Chenab colony. This brought them a better economic and social status as a class. In the Chenab colony (Lyallpur and Gujrariwala districts), Mazhabi Sikhs were officially declared to be an agricultural caste and in the census reports they were reckoned separately from Chuhra Sikhs, i.e. those who had not received the Khalsa baptism.  
==Strong presence in the military==
 
Thus 17 per cent of the Sikh soldiers were Mazhabis. Mazhabi Sikhs were also employed on canal digging and road construction projects in the new canal colonies in West Punjab, to which a large number of them had migrated for permanent settlement as farm hands and agricultural tenants. A number of them, mostly retired soldiers, were even allotted lands in the lower Chenab colony. This brought them a better economic and social status as a class. In the Chenab colony (Lyallpur and Gujranwala districts), Mazhabi Sikhs were officially declared to be an agricultural caste and in the census reports they were reckoned separately from Chuhra Sikhs, i.e. those who had not received the Khalsa baptism.  


The Singh Sabha, launched in 1873 with the object of reforming Sikh practice and ceremonial, preached against caste distinctions and brought further prestige to Mazhabi Sikhs. Many more now opted for the rites of initiation. The population of the Mazhabi Sikhs increased from 8,961 in 1901 to 21,691 in 1911 and 169,247 in 1931. During the Second World War (1939-45). Mazhabi Sikhs along with Ramdasia (Chamar) Sikhs recruited to the newly raised Mazhabi and Ramdasia battalions, later redesignated as the Sikh Light Infantry.  
The Singh Sabha, launched in 1873 with the object of reforming Sikh practice and ceremonial, preached against caste distinctions and brought further prestige to Mazhabi Sikhs. Many more now opted for the rites of initiation. The population of the Mazhabi Sikhs increased from 8,961 in 1901 to 21,691 in 1911 and 169,247 in 1931. During the Second World War (1939-45). Mazhabi Sikhs along with Ramdasia (Weavers) Sikhs recruited to the newly raised Mazhabi and Ramdasia battalions, later redesignated as the Sikh Light Infantry.  


Their pioneer regiments had already been amalgamated in the Bombay Engineers Group. Mazhabi Sikhs, as an integral part of the Sikh community, took an active part in the Gurdwara Reform movement and the freedom struggle. After Independence, when the Constitution of India was being framed, the Shiromani AKALI DAL, in order to obtain for the Sikh backward classes benefits and privileges being provided for similar sections of the Hindus, insisted and secured the inclusion of Mazhabi Sikhs (along with Ramdasia, Kabirpanthi and Sikligar Sikhs) among the scheduled classes. Although this was not consistent with the basic Sikh doctrine of castelessness, Mazhabi and other backward Sikhs have benefited from the concessions statutorily provided to them in the field of education, employment and political representation.
Their pioneer regiments had already been amalgamated in the Bombay Engineers Group. Mazhabi Sikhs, as an integral part of the Sikh community, took an active part in the Gurdwara Reform movement and the freedom struggle. After Independence, when the Constitution of India was being framed, the Shiromani Akali Dal, in order to obtain for the Sikh backward classes benefits and privileges being provided for similar sections of the Hindu population, insisted on and secured the inclusion of Mazhabi Sikhs (along with [[Ramdasia]], [[Kabirpanthi]] and [[Sikligar Sikhs]]) among the scheduled classes. Although this was not consistent with the basic Sikh doctrine of castelessness, Mazhabi and other backward Sikhs have benefited from the concessions statutorily provided to them in the field of education, employment and political representation.


==References==
==References==
Line 53: Line 73:


2. Rose, H. A., A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province. Lahore, 1911-19
2. Rose, H. A., A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province. Lahore, 1911-19
{{nocopyright}}
{{nocopyright}}


{{Sects & Cults}}
{{Sects & Cults}}
[[category:Sikh Sects]]
[[category:Sikh Sects]]

Latest revision as of 18:29, 9 April 2012

For Information only This article may contain Sects or Cults, Fake Babas, Deras, Fake Nihangs, Sanatan Dharmis, Pseudo Akalis & Mahants, Pseudo Intellectuals & Historians, Leftists and agnostic which are not considered a part of Sikhism. The article is just for information purposes.

Please do not amended this article. If you have any comments, please discuss them here

Mazhabi Sikhs (Punjabi: ਮਜਬੀ ਸਿੱਖ) (also spelt as Mazbhi, Mazbi, Majhabhi or Majabhi) are members of the Rangretta clan who embraced the sikh faith and are mainly found in the Punjab region, Kashmir and Rajastan. The word "Mazhabi" is derived from the Urdu term "Mazhab" ("sect"), and can be translated as "the religious" or "the faithful".

Mazhabis are best known for their history of bravery, strength and self sacrifice in the Sikh, Khalsa, British Indian army and Indian army. The Mazhabis were designated as a martial race by British officials. "Martial Race" was a designation created by officials of British India to describe "races" (peoples) that were thought to be naturally warlike and aggressive in battle, and to possess qualities of courage, loyalty, self sufficiency, physical strength, resilience, orderliness, the ability to work hard for long periods of time, fighting tenacity and military strategy.

The British recruited heavily from these Martial Races for service in the British Indian Army. The British recruited heavily from the Mazhabi sikhs. On the out break of the Indian mutiny in 1857, the British immediately recruited 12,000 Mazhabis to crush the mutiny. After the mutiny, it was only the Mazhabi Sikhs who got recognition as a martial race after they took part in Younghusband’s mission to Lhasa in 1903.

History

The Mazhabi Sikhs are originally inhabitants of the old Greater Punjab which today spans into Pakistani Punjab, Its frontier province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and into Indian Punjab, including its former punjab territories of Himachal Pradesh and Haryana in Northern India including Delhi. Peshawer, Lahore and Amritsar are historical to the Mazhabis and also form the historical center of Sikhism.

Accorded a low caste status in the Hindu faith; the Rangretas were employed as scavengers, poor farmers, and landless labourers. The Sikh faith had a special appeal for the mazhabi sikha and they rapidly embraced it as it did not differentiate on the basis of caste or creed and held everybody equal. This emboldened the downtrodden to fight against injustice, tyranny and persecution.

When Guru Tegh Bahadur was killed by the Mughals in Delhi, Bhai Jaita ji (Baba Jeevan Singh ji) brought his head back to Guru Gobind Singh. Guru Gobind Singh declared that the Rangrettas (Mazhabis) were his sons, and admitted them to the Sikh faith. Originally, the term Mazhabi referred only to the descendants of these people.

Reputation as soldiers

Over the years, the Mazhabi Sikhs acquired a reputation as fine and formidable soldiers. The British recognised them as "once a redoubtable foe of the English, and now one of the finest soldiers in the British army". The Mazhabis are highly regarded for their determined resolve to complete the assigned tasks against all opposition; and were deployed in various military campaigns in India and abroad. The British were greatly impressed by their superior physique and the martial and religious fervour imparted by Sikhism.

The corps of Mazhabi Sikhs became famous for their fighting reputation and discipline. In addition to their soldiering reputation, the Mazhabis were also known for their loyalty and it was noted that during their service with the army, they never once betrayed the trust placed in them. The British noted that during the First World War, the Mazhabi Sikh soldiers reached a "remarkably high standard" and that their contribution to the war surpassed that of the Jatt Sikhs.

Major-General A.E.Barstow described the Mazhabi Sikhs as "...extremely good soldiers." and goes on to mention that the Sikh Pioneer Regiments, "...have a proud record of service in many campaigns." Historically they have fought battles for Guru Gobind Singh and the Mazhabis formed the majority of Akali Nihang ranks, even throughout the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Maharaja Ranjit Singh also enlisted them in large numbers for the existing misls, and in the irregular corps.

Maharaja Ranjit Singh's great admiration

Maharaja Ranjit Singh had a great admiration for their bravery and enlisted the Mazhabis extensivly into the Khalsa Army which he nurtured into an excellent instrument of war. Being afraid, however, to form them into separate corps, Maharaja Ranjit Singh attached a company of Mazhabis to the existing battalions (misls). During his reign, the Mazhabi Sikhs were generally stationed on the Peshawer border, where constant fighting against invading Islamic Afghan and Pashtun forces gave them the opportunity to show their bravery and endurance.

Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu and Kashmir raised a corps of Mazhabi Sikhs in 1851. The British also recognised the great fighting qualities and prowess of these soldiers in the Anglo-Sikh Wars. The stubborn and sustained resistance offered by them and their ability to maintain themselves frugally amazed them. The British had admiration for the mazhabi as they made capital soldiers. The The raised Pioneers were a splendid Corps and displayed remarkable valour in the field. The first world war would see a rise their enlistment numbers as the Mazhabi sikh pioneers, 23rd Sikh Pioneers, 32nd Sikh Pioneers and the 34th Sikh Pioneers were developed into three battalions each.

The mazhabi sikh pioneers performed well during the great war. The 1/34th Sikh pioneers won the title of "Royal" during the Great war. The unit armourer and blacksmith made a highly burnished screen, proudly displaying the magnificent achievements of the Mazhabi Sikh Pioneers as epitomized in their Battle Honours. The 34th Royal Sikh Pioneers presented this screen to his majesty King George V of the United Kingdom in 1933. The Mazhabis, along with the Ramdasea Sikhs, were recruited to form the Mazhabi and Ramdasea battalions, that were later merged together to form the Sikh Light Infantry in 1941 for the World War II.

Social status

The social status of the Mazbhi Sikhs has varied over time. Unlike several other Dalit groups that still practise Hinduism, the Mazhabi Sikhs have abandoned all ties with Hinduism and its traditional caste roles. During the British raj, the Mazbhis were listed as an agricultural caste on British censuses of caste populations. Historically the Mazhabi Sikhs are generally found throughout the Punjab province, however the Mazhabis are most numerously found in Ferozepore, Lahore, Amritsar and Faridkot. The Mazhabi Sikhs perform much of the agricultural labour in these areas.

In spite of the Sikhism's egalitarian tenets, many Jat Sikhs continued to look down upon the Mazhabis. In March 1966, the Federation of Mazhabi Sikhs offered to support Arya Samaj and Jan Sangh in an agitation against the formation of the Jat Sikh-majority Punjabi Suba. According to a report published in The Tribune on 16 March 1966, a spokesperson for the organization stated that "the Sikh Scheduled Castes had been reduced to a position of mere serfs by the Sikh landlords who would literally crush the Mazhabi Sikhs if Punjabi Suba was formed."

In 2005, 56 expelled employees of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee abandoned Sikhism, and alleged that they were being discriminated against because they were Mazhabis. Economically poor Mazhabi sikhs can still face discrimination and violence from Sikhs of upper castes in Punjab's rural areas.

The Government of India recognises Mazhabi Sikh as a "Scheduled Caste", as part of their official affirmative action program. The urban Mazbhis have made social and economic progress over the years, and are very active in the Panjab Akali party (Sikh nationalist party). However, poverty and illiteracy is still rampant among the Mazhabi Sikhs living in the rural areas of Punjab.

Ranghreta

Those of them who joined the new faith gained admittance along with others to SANGAT, religious congregation, and pangat, commensality. They received the high sounding designation of Ranghreta, reminiscent of Ranghars, Rajput converts to Islam. A special honour was earned for the community by Bhai Jaita, a Rarnghreta Sikh when he boldly lifted the severed head of Guru Teg Bahadur, martyred in the Chandni Chowk in Delhi on 11 November 1675, and brought it to Kiratpur, covering a distance of 300 odd km in five days. Guru Gobind Singh, coming out of Anandpur to receive him at Kiratpur, embraced him warmly, and exalted his whole tribe by conferring on it the blessing:

"Ranghrete Guru ke bete," Ranghretas are the Guru`s own sons".

Upon the creation of the Khalsa in 1699, Bhai Jaita took the rites of the double edged sword and was renamed Jivan Singh. Several others of his caste also took khande di pahul and joined the order of the Khalsa. The new spirit infused by khande di pahul added to the native tenacity and hardiness of the Ranghretas as a class and during the troubled eighteenth century, they suffered and fought valiantly hand in hand with other Sikhs.

Bravery: Bota Singh and Garja Singh

Bhai Bota Singh who, with nothing but a heavy club in his hand, dared the Mughal might while proclaiming the sovereignty of the Khalsa, started to levying a toll on Mughal passerbys on the main Punjab highway. A Ranghreta Sikh, Garja Singh, was his sole comrade in arms while the two took to reaffirming the sovereignty of the Sikhs. After they baited the Mughals by speaking in familiar terms (terms only used in a family not vulgar terms) of a Mughal's female relative they were attacked by a punitive contingent sent by the governor of Lahore, the two stood back-to-back fighting until their last breath. This was in 1739. Earlier, in 1735, when Nawab Kapur Singh, the chosen leader of the Dal Khalsa, as the guerrilla force of the Sikhs was called, reorganized the Dal into five jathas (fighting bands), one of the jathas consisted exclusively of Ranghreta Sikhs.

According to Ratan Singh Bhangu, Prathm Panth Prakash, Bir Singh, the leader of this jatha, commanded 1300 horse. With the virtual establishment of their sovereignty in the plains of the central Punjab, the Sikh's slowly reverted to their traditional village life, with farming as their main occupation, the Ranghreta Sikhs resumed their old role of scavenging and field labour, but they were no longer the outcastes they had been.

Prominence of the sect grows

They wore unshorn hair and abstained from tobacco and meat. They were endearingly called Mazhabi Sikhs (lit. Sikhs steadfast in their religious faith), the term Ranghreta gradually falling into disuse. During the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Mazhabi Sikhs were freely enlisted in the Khalsa army, especially in the infantry, and were generally deployed for duty on the northwestern frontier.

About 1851, Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu and Kashmir raised a corps of Mazhabi Sikhs. The British recruited them for a coolie corps meant for road construction. In 1857, they were also enlisted, 1200 of them, to form the 23rd, 32nd and 34th Pioneer Regiments. Their extraordinary bravery and endurance earned them a high reputation as soldiers. They were no longer considered a criminal tribe and formed a significant component of the regular Indian army. In 1911, there were 1,626 Mazhabi Sikhs out of a total strength of 10,866 Sikhs in the Indian army.

Strong presence in the military

Thus 17 per cent of the Sikh soldiers were Mazhabis. Mazhabi Sikhs were also employed on canal digging and road construction projects in the new canal colonies in West Punjab, to which a large number of them had migrated for permanent settlement as farm hands and agricultural tenants. A number of them, mostly retired soldiers, were even allotted lands in the lower Chenab colony. This brought them a better economic and social status as a class. In the Chenab colony (Lyallpur and Gujranwala districts), Mazhabi Sikhs were officially declared to be an agricultural caste and in the census reports they were reckoned separately from Chuhra Sikhs, i.e. those who had not received the Khalsa baptism.

The Singh Sabha, launched in 1873 with the object of reforming Sikh practice and ceremonial, preached against caste distinctions and brought further prestige to Mazhabi Sikhs. Many more now opted for the rites of initiation. The population of the Mazhabi Sikhs increased from 8,961 in 1901 to 21,691 in 1911 and 169,247 in 1931. During the Second World War (1939-45). Mazhabi Sikhs along with Ramdasia (Weavers) Sikhs recruited to the newly raised Mazhabi and Ramdasia battalions, later redesignated as the Sikh Light Infantry.

Their pioneer regiments had already been amalgamated in the Bombay Engineers Group. Mazhabi Sikhs, as an integral part of the Sikh community, took an active part in the Gurdwara Reform movement and the freedom struggle. After Independence, when the Constitution of India was being framed, the Shiromani Akali Dal, in order to obtain for the Sikh backward classes benefits and privileges being provided for similar sections of the Hindu population, insisted on and secured the inclusion of Mazhabi Sikhs (along with Ramdasia, Kabirpanthi and Sikligar Sikhs) among the scheduled classes. Although this was not consistent with the basic Sikh doctrine of castelessness, Mazhabi and other backward Sikhs have benefited from the concessions statutorily provided to them in the field of education, employment and political representation.

References

1. Marenco, Ethne K., The Transformation of Sikh Society. Portland, Oregon, 1974

2. Rose, H. A., A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province. Lahore, 1911-19

For Information only This article was involved in a copyright issue with another website
The SikhiWiki team has carefully gone through this article
& considered the article free from any copyright issues.

Please do not amended this article. If you have any comments, please discuss them here
Sects & Cults

♣♣ Ad Dharm ♣♣ Akalis ♣♣ Bandai Sikhs ♣♣ Balmiki ♣♣ Bhatra ♣♣ Brindaban Matt ♣♣ Daya Singh Samparda ♣♣ Dhir Malias ♣♣ Handalis ♣♣ Kabir Panthi ♣♣ Kirtan jatha Group ♣♣ Kooka ♣♣ Kutta Marg ♣♣ Majhabi ♣♣ Manjis ♣♣ Masand ♣♣ Merhbanieh ♣♣ Mihan Sahibs ♣♣ Minas ♣♣ Nirankari ♣♣ Nanak panthi ♣♣ Nanakpanthi Sindhis ♣♣ Namdev Panthi ♣♣ Namdhari ♣♣ Nanaksaria ♣♣ Nihang ♣♣ Nikalsaini ♣♣ Niranjaniye ♣♣ Nirmala ♣♣ Panch Khalsa Diwan ♣♣ Parsadi Sikhs ♣♣ Phul Sahib dhuan ♣♣ Radha Swami ♣♣ Ram Raiyas ♣♣ Ravidasi ♣♣ Ridváni Sikhs ♣♣ Suthra Shahi ♣♣ Sewapanthi ♣♣ Sat kartaria ♣♣ Sant Nirankaris ♣♣ Sanwal Shahis ♣♣ Sanatan Singh Sabhais ♣♣ Sachkhand Nanak Dhaam ♣♣ Samparda Bhindra ♣♣ Tat Khalsa ♣♣ Sikligars ♣♣ Pachhada Jats ♣♣ Satnami's ♣♣ Udasi Sikhs ♣♣