General Sikhism
Gobind Singh’s reported predictions about the Khalsa and the English
On one occasion he was questioned about the prophecies of his father. The Sikhs asked what their condition should be when the English arrived. The Guru replied: "The English shall come with a great army. The Sikhs too, shall be very powerful, and their army shall engage that of the English. Sometimes victory shall incline to my Sikhs, sometimes to the English. As long as the religion of the Sikhs remaineth distinct, so long shall the glory of those who profess it increase." He went on to say that when the Sikhs become selfish and tangled in worldly affairs, corrupt and forgetful of their religion; when they relapse into Hinduism, "then the English shall rule and their glory increase." He then prophesied the fall of the Muhammadan empire and said: "At the end of the Sambat year 1800 (A.D. 1743) the Sikhs shall take possession of many countries. Three years after that Sikhs shall spring out of every bush, and there shall subsequently be terrible warfare between the Sikhs and the Muhammadans. A powerful monarch shall come from Kandhar and destroy countless Sikhs. He shall continue his progress of destruction to Mathura in Hindustan, and alarm many lands. None shall be able to withstand him. As prophesied by Guru Arjan, he shall raze the temple of Amritsar to the ground, but the Sikhs shall plunder his camp on his retreat from India. In the Sambat year 1900 (A.D. 1843) the Turks who survive shall lose their empire. A Christian army shall come from Calcutta. The Sikhs who are at variance with one another will join them. There shall be great destruction of life, and men and women shall be expelled from their homes. The Sikhs who abandon their arms and join the Brahmans against the English, shall have great sufferings. The real Sikhs shall hold their ground and survive." On another occasion it was pointed out to Gobind Singh that the Sikhs were much less numerous than the Hindus and Muhammadans. Upon this he made the following reply, which has a special interest to-day: "What God willeth shall take place. When the army of the Turks cometh, my Sikhs shall strike steel on steel. The Khālsa shall then awake, and know the play of battle. Amid the clash of arms the Khālsa shall be partners in present and future bliss, tranquillity, meditation, virtue, and divine knowledge. Then shall the English come, and, joined by the Khālsa, rule as well in the East as in the West. The holy Baba Nanak shall bestow all wealth on them. The English shall possess great power, and by force of arms take possession of many principalities. The combined armies of the English and the Sikhs shall be very powerful as long as they rule with united councils. The empire of the English shall vastly increase, and they shall in every way attain prosperity. Wherever they take their armies they shall conquer, and bestow thrones on those who assist them. Then in every house shall be wealth, in every house happiness, in every house rejoicing, in every house religion, in every house learning, and in every house a woman. The English shall rule for a long time."
On the timeline
- End of Sambat 1800 · 1743 in Field’s conversionSikhs take possession of countries in Field’s reported prediction Predicted dateSikhs spring from every bush, three years later (c.1746 · three years after Field’s 1743) derives from this date.
- c.1746 · three years after Field’s 1743Sikhs spring from every bush, three years later Predicted dateDerives from Sikhs take possession of countries in Field’s reported prediction (End of Sambat 1800 · 1743 in Field’s conversion).
- Sambat 1900 ·1843 in Field’s conversionSurviving Turks lose their empire in the reported prediction Predicted date
- 1909 · published accountMacauliffe publishes the Gobind Singh speech about English rule Prophecy given or recorded
- 1914 · publication of Field’s accountField publishes the reported predictions of Gobind Singh Prophecy given or recorded