Sadd

Baba Sundar Ji, the composer of Bani ‘Sadd’
According to ‘Gurbilas Patshahi 6,’ Baba Sundar Ji, the contributor of Sadd composition, was the great-grandson of Guru Amardas Sahib, grandson of Baba Mohri, and son of Baba Anand. In ‘Bhallea De Shajre,’ Baba Sundar Ji is recorded as the son of Baba Arjani Ji, brother of Baba Anand Ji. But in Sikh tradition, Baba Sundar Ji is accepted as the son of Baba Anand Ji. We have not found any information regarding the birth date of Baba Sundar Ji from earlier sources, but Dr. Saroop Singh Alag writes that Baba Sundar Ji was born in 1560 CE. However, he did not provide any citations for his source. Thus, to ascertain the authenticity of the date of birth discussed by Dr. Saroop Singh Alag, one has to read the life details of Guru Amardas Sahib.

Birth, marriage, and children of Guru Amardas Sahib
There are two popular dates regarding the birth of Guru Amardas Sahib: the first was in 1479 CE, and the second was in 1509 CE. Principal Teja Singh, Dr. Ganda Singh, Prof. Sahib Singh, Giani Sohan Singh Sital, and other scholars expressed their agreement with the first date, while Prof. Piara Singh Padam, research scholar Bhai Randhir Singh, Dr. Harjinder Singh Dilgeer and other scholars have expressed their agreement with the second date. About the first date of birth, Dr. Harjinder Singh Dilgeer is of the opinion that in a source, instead of 1566 Samvat (1509 CE), 1536 (1479 CE) was written, which continued to be accepted as is later.

Similarly, two dates are considered for the Guru’s marriage. The first is 1502 CE, and the second 1532 CE. But it is worth mentioning that there is not much difference between the dates given by scholars regarding the birth of his child. Among Guru Amardas Sahib’s children, Bibi Bhani was born in 1534 CE, Baba Mohan Ji in 1537 CE, and Baba Mohri Ji in 1539 CE. Apart from these, the mention of another daughter, Bibi Dani, is also found. Baba Mohri Ji’s son Baba Anand Ji’s birth is believed to be in 1554 CE. As per this, the date of birth of Baba Sundar Ji given by Dr. Sarup Singh Alag is inaccurate.

Similarly, the birth and marriage of the Guru in 1509 CE and 1532 CE, respectively, seems more logical. Assuming the birth of the Guru to be in 1479 CE, his marriage in 1502 CE seems possible because the age of 22-23 years is suitable for marriage. But there is no mention of or reason given in historical sources for having no child for about 30 years after marriage.

It is also worth mentioning here that Sant Hari Singh Randhawa provided a different view based on the aesthetical elements of the stanzas. According to Sant Hari Singh Randhawa, Baba Sundar Ji heard the story of the passing of Guru Amardas Sahib from his elders and narrated it to Guru Arjan Sahib, who revealed the Bani based on Baba Sundar Ji’s narrative. Sant Hari Singh Randhawa further argues that while writing this Bani in Adi Granth, Baba Sundar Ji’s name was written in the end, and Baba Sundar Ji was honored with a robe of honor (siropao) for narrating the story.

However, this idea seems to be inaccurate because, according to tradition, Baba Sundar Ji has always been considered the author of this Bani. Secondly, the stamp of Baba Sundar Ji’s name in the last line of this stanza is a clear testimony that this Bani was uttered by him alone:
kahai sundaru suṇahu santahu sabhu jagatu pairī pāi jīu. -Guru Granth Sahib 924.

Year and place of the utterance of Bani ‘Sadd’
There are two prevailing views regarding the year of composition of this Bani. The first view is revealed in the ‘Mahima Prakash Vartak,’ according to which when Guru Amardas Sahib was departing the earthly realm and Bhai Jetha Ji (Guru Ramdas Sahib) was enthroned, Baba Sundar Ji composed this Bani. According to this, the year of composition of this Bani is 1574 CE. But there seems to be an error in this as per the above-mentioned dates of birth of Guru Amardas Sahib and his children. At the time of the passing of Guru Amardas Sahib, Baba Anand Ji was about twenty years old. There is no information about how old Baba Sundar Ji was at this time.

The second view is found in ‘Gur Bilas Patshahi 6’ and ‘Gur Partap Suraj Granth.’ According to these sources, when Guru Arjan Sahib met Baba Sundar Ji at Goindwal Sahib (around 1589-90 CE), the Guru asked Baba Sundar Ji about the time of Guru Amardas Sahib’s departure from the earthly realm. Baba Sundar Ji narrated this to Guru Arjan Sahib by composing Bani Sadd, which the Guru kept with himself to record in the Adi Granth. Giani Sohan Singh Sital has also written with a reference to ‘Gur Bilas Patshahi 6’ that at the request of Baba Mohri Ji, Guru Arjan Sahib stayed at Goindwal for three days. During this time, Guru Arjan Sahib heard the story of Guru Amardas Sahib leaving the earthly realm from Baba Sundar Ji. Adi Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji Satik (Faridkot Vala Tika) mentions the same idea with a slight difference.

Raijasbir Singh is of the view that it is not even possible that Baba Sundar Ji wrote this composition at the same time and gave it to the Guru. This composition must have been written sometime earlier. If we assume the age of Baba Sundar Ji was at least 16-17 years at the time of writing this composition, then we can say that it was not written before 1588 CE. The period of compilation of the Guru Granth Sahib is 1601-1604 CE. Therefore, it can be said that this composition might have been written between 1588 to 1601 CE.