Buta Singh was now in control of his emotions and decided to make another attempt. ‘I only wanted to say this. I hope and pray that all of us will live up to the ideals of truth Sabhrai stood for. She was like the gold the Guru speaks of. She has left us and the light is gone out of our home. We must try to find our way in life in the same way as she did: through the Guru’s words.’

Chapter XIII

Buta Singh had learnt not to rely too much on his memory. He did not make notes on the subjects he had to discuss, but usually numbered them and had symbols which fixed them in his mind. If it was only one thing he had to bring up, it didn’t need much memorizing—and of course he thought of God, because there was only one God. Two didn’t offer much difficulty either; it was ‘just two things I had to ask you,’ as one said even if there were more things to ask. There was no symbol for two. For three, there was the Trinity of Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Preserver, and Siva the Destroyer. Four was always causing trouble, but the mere fact that it caused trouble was good enough to remind him that he must have had four points to discuss. For five there were the ‘Five Beloved Ones’—the first batch of converts to the Sikh faith made by the last Guru. And beyond five it was too much to expect symbols to remind him of what they were, they had to be put down in his notebook.