Gurudwara Sri Manji Sahib, Alamgir

Gurudwara Sri Manji Sahib (Alamgir Sahib) is situated in the Alamgir Village in Ludhiana district. Sri Guru Gobind Singh ji, after his four sons & mother were martyred by the mughals, was going from machhiwara on a bed as " uchh da pir " & reached here on 14 poh 1761 bikrami (1704 a.d.). On reaching here , one of the horse traders of the Village named Bhai nigahia Singh, gifted a horse to Guru Sahib. Nabi khan & gani khan were sent back with the bed. Guru Sahib asked an old lady who was picking cow dung whether he could get some water from somewhere to take bath to which the old lady replied that " pir ji this is a place of ruins, there is no water here. There is a well far away but there is a big python that lives there, no one goes there. Guru Sahib ji hit the python with an arrow & gave it " mukti " ( exemption from further transmigration ) & the python fell into the well. When the sikhs went to fetch water, the water had gone bad so close to where Guru Sahib was sitting, Guru Sahib hit one more arrow & there was a water spring that came out & all the sikhs had a bath. On seeing this miracle, the old lady fell into Guru Sahib's feet & said " peer ji you are a wonderful peer, i have a request. I have leprosy & i have gone to various places to get the treatment done but it has not been cured, kindly cure my disease & help me to get rid of this disease. Guru Sahib said that whoever takes a bath under this water spring with belief, god will cure all his sadness. Then Guru ji sat on the horse given by Bhai nigahia Singh & went towards raikot. The old lady had a bath in that water spring & was cured. She went back to the Village & told about the whole story. The place where Bhai nabi khan & Bhai gani khan kept Guru Sahib's bed, today at that place exists a beautiful Gurudwara known as Manji Sahib.   ALAMGIR, a village in Ludhiana district, 13 km to the southwest of the city (30°54'N, 75°52'E), is famed for its Gurdwara Manji Sahib Patshahi 10. Guru Gobind Singh made a halt in the village as he was travelling after the battle of Chamkaur in December 1705. Here the Guru discarded the palanquin which he had used for part of the journey, and took a horse presented by an old disciple, Bhai Naudha. A Manji Sahib was later constructed on the site. At present, the gurdwara compound covers over three acres of land. A four storeyed gateway topped over by a small lotus dome opens on a vast paved courtyard across which is the central building a divan hall, with a verandah all around. The prakash asthan adjoining the hall has a basement marking the original site of the Manji Sahib. Above the prakash asthan there is a 3 storeyed domed tower with domed turrets at the corners. For larger gatherings on festivals, a vast shelter of reinforced concrete was built in 1969 in honour of the 500th anniversary of the birth of Guru Nanak. The dining hall can accommodate 2,000 persons at a time.There are several blocks of residential rooms for staff and pilgrims. A legend has grown around the 63 metre square sarovar, the holy tank, called Tir Sar. It is said that the Guru shot down a huge python occupying the only well in the vicinity. But the monster bled so profusely that it made the water of the well unfit for drinking. There being no other source of water near by, the Guru shot another arrow into the ground and caused clean water to spring forth. The pool so formed came to be named after the arrow (tir). People still believe that the water of this pool cures diseases. A three day fair is held at Alamgir from 1416 Poh (Decemberend) every year. The management of Gurdwara Manji Sahib is in the hands of a local committee under the control of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee.