Bhai Mati Das


Bhai Mati Das along with his younger brother Bhai Sati Das were martyrs of early Sikh history. Bhai Mati Das, Bhai Dayala, and Bhai Sati Das were executed at a kotwali in the Chandni Chowk area of Delhi, under the express orders of Emperor Aurangzeb just before the martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur. Bhai Mati Das was executed by being bound between two pillars and cut in two.

Biography

Birth

Bhai Mati Das was a Hindu Panjabi and belonged to the Moyhal Jati, he was apart of the Chhibber family. He lived in the ancient village of Karyala, about ten kilometres from Chakwal on the road to the Katas Raj Temples in the Jhelum District in Punjab. Bhai Sati Das was his younger brother. Bhai Mati Das was the son of Hira Nand, a disciple of Guru Har Gobind, under whom he had fought in many battles and was a great warrior. Hira Nand was the grandson of Lakhi Das, the son of the Bhai Praga, who was also a martyr and had been a Jathedar in Guru Hargobind's first battle.

Service of Guru Tegh Bahadur

During the time after Guru Har Krishan's death at Delhi, and the uncertainty over who would be the next Guru, Bhai Mati Das, and Bhai Sati Das are sometimes mentioned as being present looking for the Guru or directly after when Baba Makhan Shah Labana found Guru Tegh Bahadur in the village of Bakala where the new Guru was then residing.
The new Guru entrusted all his financial activities to Bhai Mati Das, and thus he is sometimes given the name Diwan Mati Das, whereas Bhai Sati Das served Guru Tegh Bahadur as a cook. The two brothers accompanied Guru Teg Bahadur during his two-year stay at Assam. Guru Tegh Bahadur then bought a hillock near the village of Makhowal five miles north of Kiratpur and established a new town, Chakk Nanaki now named Anandpur Sahib where Bhai Mati Das and Bhai Sati Das also resided.

The Guru's eastern tours

Bhai Mati Das and Bhai Sati Das were present on the Guru's eastern tours beginning in August 1665 including the tours of Saifabad and Dhamtan where they were arrested perhaps because of the influence of Dhir Mal, or the Ulemas and orthodox Brahmins. The Guru was sent to Delhi and detained for one month. After being freed on December 1665, he continued his tour and Bhai Mati Das and Bhai Sati Das were again in his company particularly at Dacca, and Malda.

Guru's Arrest

In 1675 the Guru was summoned by Emperor Aurangzeb to Delhi to convert to Islam. Aurangzeb was very happy that all he had to do was covert one man and the rest of the Hindus from Kashmir, Kurukshetra, Hardwar, and Beneras would follow suit. The Guru left for Delhi on his own accord but was arrested at Malikpur Rangharan near Ropar.
While the Guru was traveling towards Delhi his company at this time consisted of his most devoted Sikhs including Bhai Dayala, Bhai Udai, and Bhai Jaita as well as Bhai Mati Das and Bhai Sati Das. After visiting a few places where large crowds of devotees had gathered the Guru sent Bhai Jaita and Bhai Udai to Delhi to scout ahead and report back to him and to Anandpur as well.
After being arrested Guru Tegh Bahadur was taken to Sirhind and from there he was sent to Delhi in an iron cage.
At Delhi, the Guru and his five companions were taken into the council chamber of the Red Fort. The Guru was asked numerous questions on religion, Hinduism, Sikhism and Islam, such as why he was sacrificing his life for people who wear the Janeu and the Tilak when he himself was a Sikh. The Guru answered that the Hindus were powerless and weak against tyranny. They had come to the abode of Guru Nanak as refuge, and with the same logic he would have sacrificed his life for Muslims as well. On the Guru's emphatic refusal to abjure his faith, he was asked why he was called Teg Bahadur. Bhai Mati Das immediately replied that the Guru had won the title by inflicting a heavy blow on the imperial forces at the young age of fourteen. Guru Tegh Bahadur was reprimanded for his breach of etiquette and outspokenness, and the Guru and his companions were ordered to be imprisoned and tortured until they agreed to embrace Islam.

Guru's Martyrdom

After a few days, Guru Tegh Bahadur and three of his companions were again brought before the Qazi of the city and again the Sikhs repeated their sentiments. Bhai Mati Das was offered marriage of the Nawab's daughter as well as governship of the province if he converted to Islam.
On November 11, 1676, large crowds gathered to see the Guru and the executioners were called to the kotwali near the Sunehri Masjid in the Chandni Chowk. The Guru, who was kept in an iron cage, and his three companions were moved to the place of execution. Mughal Empire records from the 17th century explain Bhai Mati Das' death as punishment for challenging the authorities. Bhai Mati Das, Bhai Dayala and Bhai Sati Das were then tortured and executed.

Martyrdom of Bhai Mati Das

Bhai Mati Das, the first to be martyred, was asked if he had any final wishes. He replied that he desired to be facing towards the guru on his execution.
Bhai Mati Das was made to stand erect between two posts and a double headed saw was placed on his head and he was sawed from his head to his loins. While this was happening, Bhai Mati Das recited the Japuji Sahib. There is a mystical belief that the recitation of the Gurbani continued and was completed even though the body was in two distinct halves. Seeing this, Dyal Das abused the Emperor and his courtiers for this infernal act.

Martyrdom of Bhai Dayala and Bhai Sati Das

was tied up like a round bundle and put into a huge bronze cauldron of boiling oil. He was roasted alive into a block of charcoal. No sign of grief was shown by the disciples of the Guru and the Guru also witnessed this savagery with divine calm.
Bhai Sati Das was tied to a pole and wrapped in cotton fibre. He was then set on fire by the executioner. He remained calm and peaceful and kept uttering Waheguru Gurmantar, while fire consumed his body.

Martyrdom of the Guru

Early the next morning Guru Tegh Bahadur was beheaded by an executioner named Jalal-ud-din Jallad, who resided in the town of Samana in present-day Punjab. The spot of the execution was under a banyan tree, opposite the Sunheri Masjid near the Kotwali in Chandni Chowk where he was lodged as a prisoner, on November 11, 1675.
His head was carried by Bhai Jaita, a disciple of the Guru, to Anandpur where the nine-year-old Guru Gobind Singh cremated it. The body, before it could be quartered, was stolen under the cover of darkness by Lakhi Shah Vanjara, another disciple, who carried it in a cart of hay and cremated it by burning his hut. The Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib stands today at this location. Later on, the Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib, was built at Chandni Chowk at the site of Guru’s martyrdom.

Legacy

Bhai Mati Das is regarded as a great martyr by the Sikh. The date of his martyrdom, is celebrated in certain parts of India as a public holiday.Guru Tegh Bahadur#cite note-37|Guru Tegh Bahadur#cite note-38|Guru Tegh Bahadur#cite note-39| Bhai Mati Das' martydom finds explicit mention in the daily supplication prayers of Ardas.
The Bhai Mati Das Sati Das Museum was built in honor of Bhai Mati Das and Bhai Sati Das in Delhi opposite Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib, Chandni Chowk the spot where they were martyred.