Saint Hirdaram had restricted humans from plucking and tasting the fruit of these trees, dedicating it to birds only. Over 1500 birds used to come every season and enjoy the mangoes amidst their melodious chirping
By Nasir Aijaz
“I was delighted to read a news item in today’s papers and felt inner peace,” Mr. Nari Lachhwani, a friend poet, artist and singer, shared in a WhatsApp message on June 15, 2023 from Bairagarh, a part of Bhopal city of Madhya Pradesh state of India.
“The Mango Trees in a Saint’s Hut – was the heading of the news item that pertained to three mango trees, saplings of which were planted by Sant (Saint) Hirdaram some 31 years back near his hut where he spent whole of his life,” he told.
Since Bhiria is my own hometown, and I had been writing on Saint Hirdaram, I was keen to know more from Mr. Nari Lachhwani. I queried more details. “According to news item, the mango saplings, planted by Saint Hirdaram grew within a few years to bear fruit, but the Saint had strictly prohibited the people from enjoying the mangoes of these trees,” he shared the details of news item.
“Nobody is allowed to pluck and taste the mangoes of these trees. All the raw and ripe mango fruit of these trees is dedicated to the birds only,” Saint Hardaram had issued strict instructions, and since then, every year in the season, around 1500 birds used to come and enjoy the mango fruit sitting at the trees and turning the entire atmosphere melodious with their joyful tweets,” he read from the news item.
“Since last few years, ten monkeys have also joined the birds to enjoy the mangoes,” according to the paper.
Mr. Nari Lachhwani also shared images of the newspaper ‘Dainik Bhaskar’, a Hindi daily, one of the largest circulated newspapers, and told that Sidh Bhau (Brother), Lokchand Janiani and some other followers of Saint Hirdaram used to take care of the mango trees.
The news item was so brief but it contained an effective message for the human beings. Let me tell the readers something about Saint Hirdaram, a great soul.
Saint Hirdaram, who belonged to Bhiria, a town of Sahiti Pargana (District Naushehro Feroze, formerly part of Nawabshah district) of Sindh. He left Bhiria in 1948 and settled at Pushkar in Rajasthan, from where he used to visit Bhopal where a large number of Sindhis had settled after migration. On the insistence of Sindhis of Bairagarh, Saint Hirdaram decided to shift there in 1962 and spent rest of his life there in a small hut.
Hirdaram was most revered Saint who earned respect for his simple life and services for reforming the society by encouraging the people to establish educational, health and other welfare institutions.
Known for his philanthropic endeavors and service to humanity, Saint Hirdaram was far from religious extremism and firmly believed in service to humanity. He always said: “The old, the infirm and the children are all forms of God. Serve them with heart and soul, and win laurels of the Lord”.
During his stay in Pushkar, he undertook several welfare projects with the help of philanthropists and his followers. He worked under the banner of Jeev Sewa Samiti, a registered social service organization based in Ajmer, Rajasthan. With an aim to uplift the poor and needy of the society, he focused his activities mainly on the areas of morality, culture, education and health.
Saint Hirdaram had worked tirelessly to establish hospitals, maternity homes, educational institutions and homes for widows in Pushkar and later at Bairagarh. With his blessings, several eye camps, urological operations as well as mass marriages had been conducted on big scale at the aforesaid places.
After having settled permanently in Bairagarh, he again took to social work, public welfare, charity and service of poor and founded institutions like eye hospital, a number of schools for poor children, with focus on girls’ education, yoga & nature cure hospital and college, girls’ college, Science College, Commerce College, Institute of Management and several other institutions.
In Bairagarh too, Saint Hirdaram had established a non-government organization named as ‘Saint Hirdaram Swami Basantram Sewa Trust’ registered as Charitable Trust, to undertake welfare activities.
Whenever any of his well off followers used to visit him, Saint Hirdaram always asked, “If you want to see me happy, if you want to appease the God, go and serve the humanity, invest on welfare projects.”
In recognition of his services to humanity, the Madhya Pradesh government renamed Bairagarh in 1995 as ‘Saint Hirdaram Nagar’ and the railway station too is called Hirdaram Nagar railway Station, as hundreds of thousands of followers from all over India and abroad used to visit Bairagarah being the center of their faith.
Born on September 21, 1906 in Ahuja family of Sikh Saints at village Bango Bihan of former Khairpur State, he chose to live in Bhiria where his grandfather and one of the famous Saints of this family Saint Hariram had established worship place known as ‘Hariram Ji Darbar’ (Hariram’s Darbar). Baba Hariram, as called by the local people, was Saint Hirdaram’s Guru.
Master Hirdaram, far away from worldly attractions since childhood, adopted ‘Sanyas’ (Renouncing the world) at the age of 13 in the guidance of his Guru Baba Hariram Sahib, and decided to remain Bal-Brahmachari (Bachelor throughout the life). Even when his Guru Baba Hariram passed away on June 19, 1947, and Saint Hirdaram was asked to assume the responsibilities as Gaadi Nasheen, he refused, and as a result one of Baba Hariram’s followers – Saint Shivaram was made the caretaker of Darbar. But alas, soon the partition was announced, and they all decided to migrate to India, although no incident of violence had taken place against Hindus and Sikhs in Bhiria. Sant Shivaram migrated to Bhelwari in Rajasthan while Saint Hirdaram left Bhiria in 1948 and first went to Jodhpur and then to Ajmer and at last established his hermitage in Pushkar Teerath Raj in 1950.
Sant Hirdaram also used to visit different cities where Sindhis were settled. Mr. Prakash Khilnani , a friend hailing from Dewan Kauromal Chandanmal Khilnani of Bhiria, who is settled in USA, told that once he had opportunity of darshan of Saint Hirdaram in Baroda in 1960 when he was student of class six or seven. “My father had told that Saint Hirdaram, who hails from our village Bhiria, has come to Baroda. There was a Moolchandani family of Bhiria. They were three brothers – Dr. Veeru Mal, Kishanchand and Vasiyo Moolchandani. Saint Hirdaram was staying at Dr. Veeru Mal, where my parents took me. Saint was sitting in a room on a cot with a table in front and a plate full of sweets covered with a piece of cloth. My elder brother also came there. Saint gave each of us a sweet (Perra) but later looking in my face he again gave another sweet and told my father that as compared to his elder son, this boy will prove to be sober and obedient to you,” Prakash Khilnani told adding that it was his first and last meeting with Saint.
Saint Hirdaram left for eternal abode on December 21, 2006 at the age of 101 years.
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Writer is a senior journalist, Chief Editor Sindh Courier, based in Karachi. He is author of nine books including ‘Bahrawar Kha’n Bhiria – Tareekh Jo Safar’ (From Bahrawar to Bhiria – A Journey through the History) which contains two separate chapters on Baba Hariram and Sant Hirdaram.
