Our Heroes
Jind Kaur:
Escape from Chunar Fort
A Poem by MICHELE GIBSON
Rani Jindan was summarily removed to exile from the Land of the Five Rivers after the British concocted a series of skirmishes they labelled the "Anglo-Sikh Wars" and used them as an excuse to annex Punjab to India and their dominions. While imprisoned in distant Chunar Fort (40 km from Benares), she escaped while disguished in the garb of her maid and fled to Nepal. Years later, she was allowed to re-unite with her son, Duleep Singh, in Calcutta. He took his ailing mother to London where he lived. She died shortly thereafter.
Six yards of peasant wrap and shawl
A sari crafted by a weary hand
Disguised each measure my cocoon
Secured my exile to a foreign land
One measure of muslin to mask my flight
Fort Chunar could never bind me
I disappeared before their eyes
And taunted them to find me
One measure of muslin to bind my sorrow
I know this place but not as home
A cautious refuge for my torment
My sentry a height of jutting stone
One measure of muslin to choke regret
That heats my blood at every hour
The hands of time would tumble back
If I could ransom any power
One measure of thanks and soon farewell
To Kathmandu, the Bagmati river
Before the symbol of my escape
Now, freedom I deliver
One measure of muslin to yoke my heart
I hid, but as the British near Nepal
A swath of enemy blankets my path
Shielded, I charge the wall
One measure of patience, I waited and now
My journey begins a'new
I must awaken all that we are
Our history sleeps in you
In my distinct ghagra choli reaffirmed
With humility, truth and liberty won
Six yards of muslin I bring to Calcutta
To present to my Sikh born son
* * * * *
Six yards of muslin I bring to my love
From Kathmandu to Calcutta this day
My gift to you is this modest cloth
And the counsel in what I say
One measure for all that came before
Let go the confusion and subterfuge
Remember the strength that underlies
Remember, then you can choose
One measure for honour and self-respect
'Round your precious hair unshorn
You are the Khalsa come to life
You are a Sikh reborn
One measure of cloth upon the last
This for responsibility
The poor, the weak, the ostracized
We defend equality
One measure of muslin, broadening so
Prominent, strong and revealed
Courageous, our kin we stand beside
Through seva our frailty healed
One measure for humility
Always a student, disciple and friend
We long for the realm of ultimate truth
We must study to comprehend
One measure of cloth for meditation
Scripture to quietly rest upon
Ten Gurus reveal the way to God
And we honour Them in song
Six yards of muslin, remember dear
All that we stand for I bring to you
In one measure the Guru Granth Sahib
In our devotion Waheguru
Michele Gibson is a Social Worker based in Ontario, Canada. Through her partner, she has been introduced to things Sikh. Greatly moved by the saga of Rani Jindan and her son, Duleep Singh, she turns to her other love, poetry, to express her fascination for these historical characters and events.
[May 3, 2009]
Conversation about this article
1: Gurwinder Singh (Surrey, British Columbia, Canada ), May 04, 2009, 3:49 PM.
Beautiful poem. Thanks for sharing it with us.
2: Amardeep (U.S.A.), May 06, 2009, 1:27 PM.
An inspiring and moving poem!
3: Umesh Chandra Pandey (Mumbai, India), May 08, 2010, 2:03 AM.
I like the Chunar Fort. Chunar is on the soil of Varanasi.