Nihang
The Nihang or Akali, also known as Dal Khalsa, is an armed Sikh warrior order originating in the Indian subcontinent. Nihangs are believed to have originated either from Fateh Singh and the attire he wore or from the "Akal Sena" started by Guru Hargobind. Early Sikh military history was dominated by the Nihang, known for their victories where they were heavily outnumbered. Traditionally known for their bravery and ruthlessness in the battlefield, the Nihang once formed the irregular guerrilla squads of the armed forces of the Sikh Empire, the Sikh Khalsa Army.
Etymology
The word Nihang may come from the Persian word for a mythical sea creature. The term owes its origin to Mughal historians, who compared the ferocity of the Akāli with that of crocodiles. The meaning of Akali in Sikhism however, is the immortal army of Akāl. According to Harjinder Singh Dilgeer, tracing the term Nihang to the Persian word for a crocodile is a misinterpretation and instead it refers to a "fearless person". Dilgeer states that the term Nihang is also used in gurbani, where it refers to someone who is carefree.The word Akāli means timeless or immortal. Literally, it means one who belongs to Akāl. In other words, an Akāli is that person who is subject of none but God only. The term Akāli was first used during the time of Guru Gobind Singh. It became popular in the last decades of the eighteenth century. The term came to be associated with “commitment, fearlessness, boldness, struggle, and justice.”
History
Origins
According to Pashaura Singh and Louis E. Fenech, reiterating the work of Kahn Singh Nabha, there exists three main theories regarding the genesis of the Nihangs. These three theories are summarised below:- Began with the son of Guru Gobind Singh, Fateh Singh with his blue clothing and turban with the Guru prescribing this uniform for his warriors.
- Second hypothesis claims that they originate from the disguise of Guru Gobind Singh when he escaped from Chamkaur in 1704 or 1705.
- Third theory postulates that they can be traced back to the garb of Akali Naina Singh, who was the leader of the Shaheedan Misl.
According to J. S. Grewal, the Nihangs originate from remnants of the Khalsa of the late 18th century who failed or refused to occupy any territory, and were not associated with government or administration. The Nihang tradition may originate from ascetic Shaivite warrior-traditions, as evidenced by the contents of the Sarbloh Granth and Chandi di Vār. In traditional Sikh martial arts whose custodianship lies with the Nihangs, Shiva is revered as the Adi Akhara Gurdav.
Pre-colonial period
It is claimed that the Nihangs arose as early as the period of the Akal Sena of Guru Hargobind, while other theories trace them to the period of Guru Gobind Singh, yet there are few Nihangs recorded in the history of the 18th and 19th centuries aside from Akali Naina Singh and Akali Phula Singh. Nihangs claim Baba Deep Singh as being a Nihang and also trace their legacy back to the bifurcation of the Dal Khalsa into to groups, the Buddha Dal and Taruna Dal, by Nawab Kapur Singh in the 18th century. Nihangs claim that their modern organisations sharing the same name can be traced back to these historical organisations of the Misl-era Sikhs. Akali Phula Singh was the overseer of the Akal Takht in Amritsar during his time and participated in the military conquests of the contemporary Sikh Empire. The deras of the Nihangs during Sikh-rule were kept independent from those of other Sikh groups. According to Dilgeer, the Nihangs reached the zenith of their influence during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. During Sikh-rule, the Nihangs maintained many Sikh places of worship. With the oncoming of the mantle of leadership of Akali Phula Singh, the Nihangs also became known by a new term, Akali. During the Sikh Empire and particularly after the death of Phula Singh, the Nihangs became increasingly addicted to cannabis and lost their influence. However, another change marked by the death of Phula Singh is Maharaja Ranjit Singh made an order of Sikhs, namely the sarbarahs and mahants, the custodians of Sikh shrines, with Nihangs assisting in this management structure.British rule
During British rule, the Nihangs faced a decline, with there being fewer Nihangs, as they had lost the former prestige they held during the pre-colonial period. The system of managing Sikh shrines through sarbarahs, mahants, and Nihangs introduced during the Sikh Empire was continued by the British administeration. During the Singh Sabha Movement, the Sikh reformers may have adopted the unique markers of Nihangs in order to formulate and promote a separate Sikh identity, encapsulated as the Tat Khalsa. Aspects of the Nihang dress was adopted by other Sikhs, as it was seen as being "quintessentially" Sikh, alongside the martial aspects of the Nihangs, which was promoted by the British administrators as being ideal Sikh traits. The Akalis of the 20th century cannot be traced back to the historical Nihangs. Since 1920, the term Akali is also used synonymously to refer to members of a Sikh political party called the Shiromani Akali Dal.Post-independence
After the independence of India, Nihang deras started thriving. The Nihangs were renowned for their martial qualities but this popular image was damaged in 1978 and thereafter. During the Punjab insurgency, the Nihangs tended to not support the Khalistan movement, with there only being a few Nihangs who became militants, such as Avtar Singh Brahma and Pipal Singh, who fought for the movement. On the contrary, there are claims of fighting between the Khalistanis and Nihangs. It is alleged that a Nihang dera, the dera of Ajit Singh Phoola, was involved in the murder of the family of a Sikh militant named Joga Singh of the Khalistan Commando Force in Khanpur, Amritsar district. Similarly, Piara Singh Nihang is suspected of murdering over a dozen family members of the Sikh militant Jagir Singh.The Nihang leader Santa Singh and Ajit Singh Poohla had ties to the Indian National Congress party. Santa Singh was excommunicated from the Sikh religion in 1984. In 2001, Baba Santa Singh, the jathedar of Budha Dal, along with 20 Nihang jathadars, refused to accept the ban on the consumption of bhang by the SGPC. Baba Santa Singh was excommunicated for a different issue, and replaced with Balbir Singh, who agreed to shun the consumption of bhang.
Due to their promotion of the Dasam Granth, the Nihangs have succeeded in preventing, or at least slowing, the SGPC from censuring and removing the scripture entirely from the confines of modern Sikh spirituality. Many Nihang deras now operate their own Internet websites.
Arms and attire
Traditional Nihang dress is known as Khalsa Swarupa or bana. This comprises full attire of navy blue selected by Guru Gobind Singh after conflicts with Wazir Khan, the Mughal Governor of Sirhind, several edged bracelets of iron round on each of their wrists and quoits of steel tiered in their lofty conical blue turbans, together with the either a dori kirpan or a pesh kabaz – a predecessor to the modern kirpan. When fully armed a Nihang will also bear one or two swords, a katar on his left hip, a buckler made from buffalo-hide on his back, a large chakram around his neck, and an iron chain. In times of war, arms worn on the Nihang's person would generally be reserved until the warrior lost the weapon he held, often a bow or spear. Armour consisted of sanjo or iron chainmail worn under an iron breastplate. Nihang war-shoes were constructed of iron at the toe, making their pointed toes capable of inflicting cuts and stab wounds. The firearms carried by Nihangs are either a toradar or a musket. In modern times nihangs also carry revolvers, semi-automatic pistols, double-barreled shotguns and bolt-action rifles The Nihangs favour the dark blue colour for their clothing, which they adopted to emulate Guru Gobind Singh's attire when he escaped from Chamkaur through the Machhiwara jungle.The Nihang were particularly known for their high turbans and their extensive use of the chakram or war-quoit. Their turbans were often pointed at the top and outfitted with a chand torra or trident called astbhuja which could be used for stabbing in close-quarters. Other times, the turbans would be armed with a bagh nakh and one or several chakram to slice at an opponent's eyes. These steel-reinforced turbans, it was said, afforded enough protection so that there was no need for any other form of headgear. Today, Nihang still wear miniature versions of five weapons in their turbans, namely the chakram, the khanda, the karud, the kirpan, and the tir.