During 1964, when some of the holy weapons of Guru Gobind Singh were brought back
from England, an Englishman, in complete Sikh attire, accompanied the weapons. The
Englishman was asked by someone the reason for his adopting the Sikh attire. Was it
due to his respect for the holy weapons or was there an other reason ? The explanation
given by the Englishman to the Sikh congregation in Gurdwara Bangla Sahib is being
reproduced for the benefit of the readers.
"My name was A. David. I happened to be commanding a Sikh Regimentduring the
Second World War. My regiment suffered very heavy losses fighting the Germans.
Most of the jawans (soldiers) of my Battalion were killed. Only a few survived and we
were all surrounded by the Germans. As there were very remote chances of our
survival, I called the Subedar Major of the Battalion and informed him about our
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/sakhis/30729-british-soldier-meets-guru-gobind-singh.html
precarious situation. Death was facing us and there were no chances of our survival. I
suggested to him that the jawans should individually attempt to escape from the
enemy encirclement and save their lives.
'The Subedar Major replied, 'We cannot bring ignominy to the Sikh Regiment by
running away from the battlefield.' However, he had a suggestion that they should
perform the Akhand Path ceremony and take action as per the divine hukam (holy
command). Accordingly, necessary security arrangements were made and the Akhand
Path ceremony was completed without interruption.
After the slipplicatory prayer (ardas), the divine Hukam from the Holy Granth was
explained to me by the Subedar Major and the religious teacher (granthi). As per the
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=30729
divine hukam, we should not abandon the battlefield; victory will be ours.
"Then I conveyed to them the miracle that I had witnessed during the supplicatory
prayer. While standing with my eyes closed during the supplicatory prayer, a fully
armed Sikh on horseback with a unique grandeur appeared in front of me and ordered
'Follow me.' I pointed out the direction in which the fully armed Sikh went after giving
the order and asked them about the identity of the warrior. The Subedar Major said that
as per the appearance described by me, he was none other than Guru Gobind Singh
himself.
"So, we got ready and launched an attack at the Germans in the direction pointed out
by Guru Gobind Singh. After a short while, we were able to break through the German
encirclement and save ourselves. We then got in touch with the Brigade Commander
on wireless and requested for additional help.
"After the war, I reflected on the incident and the divine personality who had saved my
and my men's lives from an impregnable enemy encirclementin a desperate situation
by ordering me to follow him. I made up my mind to follow him for the rest of my life. I
resigned from the Army and, along with my daughter, embraced Sikhism with the
initiation ceremony of the Khalsa.
Now my name is Devinder Singh and my daugther's name is Surjit Kaur. ......
This is due to the divine blessings of Guru Gobind Singh that he look pity on us and
made us his disciples." This incident was narrated to me by my younger brother
Raghbir Singh (retired Subedar), who happened to be present in Gurudwara Bangla
Sahib on the day the Englishman (Devinder Singh) narrated mentioned personal
experience.
Bhai Ranjit Singh
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