The hawker thought for a moment and then lifted his hand but then quickly lowered it as if he had changed his mind. ‘Sir, would you please consider staying with me? It’s a small but neatly maintained one-room house. I assure you, you will be comfortable. I live alone, and I have no bad habits. I have Lord Krishna’s pictures in the room. Hopefully those won’t bother you?’

Arif smiled and said, ‘Back home, Bibi too has them, and those of Guru Nanak as well. She’s no less a saint herself. She taught us the true meaning of an omnipresent God. Nothing else matters to us now. I am obliged by your kindness, and I will feel privileged to be surrounded by the pictures of Lord Krishna.’

13

From Attari, the bus travelled fifty kilometres out of Lahore to Hassan Abdal, popularly known as Gurdwara Punja Sahib by the followers of Guru Nanak. A historic place of worship, it is visited by millions of people from many faiths including Muslims, Hindus, Multanis, Sindhis and Sikhs. It is said that Guru Nanak stopped at Hassan Abdal during his travels for a few days to preach the essence of ‘Ik Onkar [One God]’. One of his disciples, Bhai Mardana, a Muslim saint, became thirsty and went to Wali Qandhari, a self-proclaimed owner of the reservoirs and natural streams in the area. Sitting on top of the hill, Wali saw Nanak addressing a large congregation. He felt a pang of jealousy seeing the influence of an ordinary-looking man dressed in simple clothes over the masses.

When Mardana approached Wali and requested for water, the latter threatened him with dire consequences and shooed him away. A dejected Mardana made two more futile attempts. Helpless and thirsty, he finally went to his guru and pleaded for help. ‘I am dying of thirst, Baba, please help.’ Having given ample opportunities to Wali Qandhari to release the water voluntarily, Guru Nanak walked a few paces and reached a spot where lots of small and big rocks were scattered around. It was a dry, sandy area. With the sun beating down fiercely, it was difficult to even stand barefoot in the open. But the guru didn’t seem to care. He squatted on the rocks and began praying.

The innocent and humble villagers were curious. They were mesmerized by his aura and began pinning their hopes on the guru. They were impressed by his simple yet meaningful sermons. His voice had an inexplicable magnetism. It seemed as if his eyes could cut through the walls of the past and pierce the future. In him they saw their messiah who had the power to resolve their biggest problem—the water scarcity created by Wali Qandhari who controlled the reservoir on the mountaintop.

Nanak continued to sit on the big rock and sing praises to his God.