DelmarPrisco at 14:30, 4 May 2026

2026-05-04T14:30:46Z

New page

{{Short description|Historic Sikh gurdwara}}
{{For|the gurdwara in Eminabad|Gurdwara Rori Sahib, Eminabad}}
{{Infobox religious building
| name = Gurdwara Rori Sahib Patshahi Pehli
| religious_affiliation = [[Sikhism]]
| image = Photograph of Gurdwara Rori Sahib (Jahman).jpg
| caption = Photographed in 2015 prior to its collapse
| location = Jahman village, Lahore district, Punjab, Pakistan
| festivals = [[Vaisakhi]] (historical)
| status =
| functional_status = Defunct (abandoned in 1947; collapsed in July 2023)
| architecture_style = [[Sikh architecture]]
| creator = Bhai Wadhawa Singh
| completed = c. 1799–1839
}}

'''Gurdwara Rori Sahib''' (official name '''Gurdwara Rori Sahib Patshahi Pehla'''<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Singh |first=Gurmukh |title=JĀHMAṆ |url=https://eos.learnpunjabi.org/JAHMAN.html |access-date=25 January 2025 |website=eos.learnpunjabi.org (digital version of 'The Encyclopedia of Sikhism' operated by Punjabi University, Patiala)}}</ref>) was a historic [[Sikhs|Sikh]] [[gurdwara]] located half a kilometre east of Jahman village in [[Lahore District]], [[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab]], Pakistan.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Khalid |first=Haroon |date=Nov 30, 2018 |title=Kartarpur: Along world’s most dangerous border, these gurdwaras could be made part of peace corridor |url=https://scroll.in/article/903973/kartarpur-along-worlds-most-dangerous-border-these-gurdwaras-could-be-made-part-of-peace-corridor |access-date=25 January 2025 |work=Scroll.in}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Khalid |first=Haroon |date=Jan 11, 2019 |title=This ruined Pakistani shrine linked with Guru Nanak tells of Sikhism’s lost architectural traditions |url=https://scroll.in/article/909019/this-ruined-pakistani-shrine-linked-with-guru-nanak-tells-of-sikhisms-lost-architectural-traditions |access-date=25 January 2025 |website=Scroll.in}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=Aslam |first=Irfan |date=July 18, 2023 |title=The fall of neglected gurdwara in border village |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1765330 |access-date=25 January 2025 |work=Dawn}}</ref> The edifice marked a spot on a mound where [[Guru Nanak]] and [[Bhai Mardana]] sat and sung songs together.<ref name="Khalid 2018">{{cite web |last=Khalid |first=Haroon |date=2018-11-30 |title=Kartarpur: Along world's most dangerous border, these gurdwaras could be made part of peace corridor |url=https://scroll.in/article/903973/kartarpur-along-worlds-most-dangerous-border-these-gurdwaras-could-be-made-part-of-peace-corridor |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190530151817/https://scroll.in/article/903973/kartarpur-along-worlds-most-dangerous-border-these-gurdwaras-could-be-made-part-of-peace-corridor |archive-date=30 May 2019 |access-date=2019-11-11 |website=Scroll.in}}</ref><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018">{{cite web |last=Khalid |first=Haroon |date=2018-12-13 |title=5 gurdwaras that could be made part of Kartarpur Corridor |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1451202 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191010073248/https://www.dawn.com/news/1451202 |archive-date=10 October 2019 |access-date=2019-11-11 |website=DAWN.COM}}</ref> Existing as a temple on a raised mound, the shrine was located only a few kilometres from the India-Pakistan border, with houses from the Indian side of the border being viewable from the roof of the shrine.<ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" />

The gurdwara was located on a historical route that connected several historical Sikh shrines together based out of villages in the general vicinity, such as Jahman, Bedian, Heir, and Chahal villages.<ref name=":1" /> Bedian was founded by Nanak's descendants, Heir was associated with the Mina sect, and Chahal was the ancestral village of Nanak's maternal family.<ref name=":1" /> The gurdwara is in poor condition and dangerous to explore due to its unstable nature. The gurdwara is located at the coordinates 31°21'20.6"N 74°32'02.5"E.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Butalia |first=Tarunjit Singh |url=https://jeevaysanjhapunjab.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Sikh-Historical-Shrines-in-Pakistan-Lahore-District.pdf |title=Sikh Historical Shrines in Pakistan: Lahore District |date=April 2025 |publisher=Jeevay Sanjha Punjab |edition=1st |pages=8 |chapter=}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
The word ''rori'' (meaning "shards" in [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]]<ref name=":1" />) is derived from the [[Pottery sherds|<dfn>potsherd</dfn>s]] excavated at the mound the shrine was built-on.<ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" /> Thus, the site acquired the name ''Rori Sahib''.<ref name=":2" />

== History ==

=== Religious significance ===
The village of Jahman, located 1.5 km from the international border, was purportedly founded in the 13th century as per British land survey reports.<ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" /> Jhaman village was a stopping place for Guru Nanak, who journeyed to his ancestral maternal village of Chahal (located near Jahman) to visit his maternal grandparents, travelling with his companion Bhai Mardana.{{Efn|The name of Jahman village is alternatively spelt as 'Jhaman'.|group=note}}<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last=Singh |first='Giani' Thakur |title=Srī Gurduāre Darshan |year=1923 |location=Amritsar |language=pa}}</ref><ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" /><ref name=":2" /> The site the gurdwara was built on is said to have been a spot near the bank of a big pond that Nanak and Mardana are believed to taken rest at and sung spiritual hymns whilst seated atop of the mound.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3" /><ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" />

It is believed Guru Nanak visited the site three times during his life.<ref name=":2" /> During one such visit prior to his divine revelation, Guru Nanak is said to have found some pottery shards from ruins located on the mound.<ref name=":1" /> Afterwards, Guru Nanak disembarked from Jahman for Sultanpur Lodhi.<ref name=":1" /> On one of these visits, it is believed that Nanak used wood from a tree at Jahman village to use for the construction of a ''[[sarangi]]'' instrument for Bhai Mardana.<ref name=":2" />

=== Operation as a gurdwara ===
Afterwards, the pond was expanded and converted into a temple tank (''[[Temple tank|sarovar]]'') by a devotee of the area named Naria<ref name=":2" /> and the gurdwara was constructed, most likely during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh,<ref name=":2" /> at the location to mark its significance.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3" /><ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" /> The raising of the darbar-style gurdwara is attributed to Bhai Wadhawa Singh.<ref name=":2" /> [[Punjabi festivals|Festivals]] were held at the shrine's location on [[Vaisakhi]] and the 20th day of the month of ''[[Jeth]]''.<ref name=":2" /> There exists a land-grant of 100 ''bigha'' in the name of the gurdwara.<ref name=":2" />

The gurdwara became affiliated to the [[Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee]].<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3" /> During the colonial-period, the [[Naujawan Bharat Sabha]] was based in nearby Jahman village.<ref name=":2" /> As a result, some martyrs of the [[Indian independence movement]] also hailed from the local village.<ref name=":2" /> The bhog ceremony of [[Bhagat Singh]], [[Sukhdev Thapar]], and [[Shivaram Rajguru]] attracted five-to-seven thousand attendees to the village.<ref name=":2" />

After the [[partition of Punjab]] in 1947, the gurdwara was abandoned by Sikhs.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3" /> Pre-partition, the nearby village of Jahman had a Sikh-majority population, with a Muslim minority belonging to landless artisans and scheduled castes.<ref name=":2" /> After 1947, land formerly owned by Sikhs surrounding the gurdwara was illegally-occupied, which amounted to 100 ''[[bigha]]'' (around 500 [[Acre#Indian subcontinent|kanal]]).<ref name=":2" />

The [[Pakistan Rangers]] took possession of the former gurdwara and used it as a border outpost to survey the boundary with India.<ref name=":2" /> Civilians were not allowed to visit the former gurdwara or take photos of it while it was occupied by the Pakistani military.<ref name=":2" /> According to Yudhvir Rana of ''[[The Times of India]]'', the [[Khalistan movement|Khalistani]] militant Wadhawa Singh Babbar of [[Babbar Khalsa]] International was housed in the gurdwara during the [[Insurgency in Punjab, India|Punjab insurgency]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rana |first=Yudhvir |date=11 July 2023 |title=Pak historical gurdwara loses section to rain fury |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/pak-historical-gurdwara-loses-section-to-rain-fury/articleshow/101653566.cms |access-date=20 April 2026 |work=Times of India}}</ref> Visiting the site in 1994, Iqbal Qaiser later wrote in a book titled ''Historical Sikh Shrines in Pakistan'' (1998) that the pond associated with the shrine had shrunk and the dome of the building needed repairs, warning of future collapse if not availed.<ref name=":2" /> In 1995, the Pakistan Rangers stopped using the shrine as a border post due to safety concerns as the building started forming cracks and also due to privacy complaints by local villagers.<ref name=":2" /> In circa 2008, the shrine was still in a relatively complete state but started decaying fast shortly thereafter.<ref name=":2" /> An outhouse was placed outside of the gurdwara by a local landlord.<ref name=":2" /> The quick decline of the site after the clearance of the Pakistan Rangers has been attributed to land-grabbers seizing land around the gurdwara.<ref name=":2" />

=== Present condition ===
Prior to its collapse, the gurdwara was in a poor-condition.<ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" /> There existed [[Sikh art|frescoes]] depicting the ten Sikh gurus on the underside of the gurdwara's dome.<ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" /> The frescoes depicted the Sikh gurus engaged in warfare and also children of the gurus.<ref name=":1" /> However, the faces of the figuratives in the frescoes have been deliberately chipped-off by an iconoclastic vandal.<ref name=":1" /> The abandoned gurdwara was believed to be haunted, with an episode of a Pakistani paranormal investigation show being filmed at it.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tracking Pakistan's Forgotten Gurdwaras |url=https://www.worldsikh.org/tracking_pakistan_s_forgotten_gurdwaras |access-date=20 April 2026 |website=World Sikh Organization}}</ref>

Its associated temple tank has become dirty.<ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" /> Treasure-hunters dug-up the floor in the room where the Guru Granth Sahib was formerly recited within the temple.<ref name=":1" /> The walls of the edifice have been vandalized by Islamic graffiti.<ref name=":1" />

After the successful opening of the [[Kartarpur Corridor]], Haroon Khalid has proposed the feasibility of opening the gurdwara up for visits by Indian Sikh pilgrims via a corridor connecting to the Indian border.<ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" /> Haroon Khalid has identified a total of five Sikh gurdwaras (excluding [[Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur|Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib]]) associated with a Sikh guru very near to the Indian border in Pakistan.<ref name="Khalid 2018" /><ref name="Haroon Khalid 2018" />

==== Collapse ====
In July 2023, much of the gurdwara collapsed due to flooding and decades-long neglect.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=13 July 2023 |title=Pak neglect ruins Gurdwara Patshahi Rori Sahib Jahman |url=https://www.aninews.in/news/world/asia/pak-neglect-ruins-gurdwara-patshahi-rori-sahib-jahman20230713232139/ |access-date=25 January 2025 |work=ANI}}</ref> According to Balwinder Singh of INTACH, the immediate cause of the collapse was water from the flooded pond located adjacent to the site seeping into the foundation of the shrine.<ref name=":4">{{Cite news |date=13 July 2023 |title=Sikh shrine in Pakistan damaged |url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/sikh-shrine-in-pakistan-damaged-525408/ |access-date=25 January 2025 |work=The Tribune}}</ref> After the collapse, only the backwall and a small portion of a sidewall remains whilst the dome, central part of the building, and the whole front of the building totally collapsed.<ref name=":2" /> The remaining remnants of wall post-collapse are three to four feet in-height.<ref name=":2" />

The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) has requested Sikh and government bodies on both sides of the border to make efforts to preserve whatever remained of the site after its collapse.<ref name=":4" /> The Pakistani authorities and [[Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee]] have not made any attempts at conserving the shrine till now.<ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Goyal |first=Divya |date=July 11, 2023 |title=In Pak, rain fury — and apathy — consume a piece of Sikh history: Historic gurdwara related to Nanak collapses in Lahore |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/chandigarh/pakistan-rain-sikh-history-historic-gurdwara-nanak-collapses-lahore-8825222/ |access-date=25 January 2025 |work=Indian Express}}</ref>

== Architecture ==
The gurdwara was a two-storied structure constructed out of red [[nanakshahi bricks]].<ref name=":2" /> A large, golden dome complimented the top of the building.<ref name=":2" /> At the front of the site laid a pond.<ref name=":2" />

== Gallery ==
<gallery>
File:Defaced and decaying fresco formerly depicting Guru Nanak with Guru Angad, located underneath the dome of Gurdwara Rori Sahib in Jahman village, Lahore district, Punjab, Pakistan.jpg|Fresco formerly depicting Guru Nanak with Guru Angad
File:Defaced and decaying fresco formerly depicting Guru Gobind Singh, located underneath the dome of Gurdwara Rori Sahib in Jahman village, Lahore district, Punjab, Pakistan.jpg|Fresco formerly depicting Guru Gobind Singh
</gallery>

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|group=note}}

== References ==
<references />

{{Sikh sites in Pakistan}}

{{coord|31.35570|74.53408|format=dms|type:landmark_region:PK|display=title}}

{{authority control}}
[[Category:Gurdwaras in Pakistan]]

Gurdwara Rori Sahib - Revision history

DelmarPrisco at 14:30, 4 May 2026