Mirza Sahiban is one of the most famous love stories of Punjab and the Indian subcontinent. Mirza was a Kharal Rajput from Danabad village (31°12'51" N, 72°27'09" E) in Tehsil Jaranwala, District Faisalabad. Sahiban belonged to the Sial tribe and lived in Kheiwa (31°27'13" N, 72°27'32" E), a village about 20 kilometers north of Jhang. The direct distance between these two places is nearly 98 kilometers—a considerable journey in earlier times.
According to the legend, Mirza was sent to Kheiwa in his childhood to live with relatives. There, he and Sahiban attended the same mosque for their studies. Their love blossomed from a young age and grew stronger with time.
Later, while Mirza was back in Danabad, Sahiban’s family arranged her marriage. In desperation, she sent Mirza a message:
"You must come and decorate Sahiban’s hands with the marriage henna."
Mirza rushed to Kheiwa, and the two lovers eloped on Mirza’s famous mare, Bakki. However, Sahiban’s brothers pursued them and caught up with the couple near Danabad, while they were resting under a tree. They killed both Mirza and Sahiban at that spot.
Today, their graves lie near Danabad at 31°11'08.05" N, 73°23'30.33" E. A small and simple tomb has been constructed over them, likely in recent years, as the graves were previously open to the sky. Their tragic tale was immortalized in poetry by Pilu, though the exact date of its composition remains uncertain.
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On 14 March, 2017, Mr Amit Karwarsa commented on this post and suggested that as per his information, Mirza was a Jat and not a Rajput. I asked my friends about it and my friend and schoolfellow Dr Awais Nouman sent me the following link:
http://jhang.sujag.org/feature/42193
On the above-mentioned link, Ms Suraiya Manzoor has given the following account of the love story of Mirza and Sahibaan:
پنجاب کی لوک داستانوں میں سے مرزا صاحباں کو ایک خاص مقام حاصل ہے۔ تاریخ دان میاں نور محمد چیلہ کی لکھی گئی کتاب 'تاریخ جھنگ سیالاں' کے مطابق مرزا صاحباں کا تعلق ہیر کی گیارہویں پشت سے تھا۔ اُن کی کتاب کے مطابق جھنگ کے نواحی موضع ستیانہ کی بنیاد رکھنے والے ستی خان کے ہاں بیٹے کھیوہ خان (صاحباں کا باپ) کی پیدائش ہوئی جس کے تین ماہ بعد اس کی بیوی وفات پاگئی۔ اکلوتے بچے کی پرورش کے لیے واڑھ سلیمان سے مڑہل خاندان کی خاتون نور بی بی کو بلایا گیا جس نے اپنی بچی فتح بی بی (مرزا کی ماں) کے ساتھ کھیوہ خان کو بھی دودھ پلایا اور یہ دونوں دودھ شریک بہن بھائی بن گئے۔کتاب کے مطابق سیال سردار سوم غازی خان نے موضع کھیوہ کی بنیاد رکھنے پر سردار کھیوہ کو "خان" کے خطاب سے نوازا۔فتح بی بی نے جب یہ سنا کہ اس کا دودھ شریک بھائی ایک سردار بن گیا ہے تو اس نے اپنے کم عمر بیٹے مرزا کو اس کے پاس تعلیم و تربیت کے لیے بھیج دیا۔ یوں مرزا اور صاحبا ں ایک مدرسے میں تعلیم حاصل کرنے لگے اور کم عمری سے ہی ایک دوسرے کو پسند کرنے لگے۔تاریخ دان ایک واقع پر متفق ہیں کہ ایک بار معلم نے مرزا کو اپنی چھمک سے مارا تو صاحباں نے اپنی ہتھیلی بند کر لی اور جب اس نے ہتھیلی کھولی تو اس پر چھمک کے نشان تھے۔ یہ بات جنگل میں آگ کی طرح پھیلی اور مرزا کو واپس اس کی ماں کے پاس بھیج دیا گیا لیکن تب تک عشق دلوں میں گھر کر چُکا تھا۔پڑھائی کے ساتھ ساتھ مرزا ایک بہترین تیر انداز اور گھڑ سوار بن چکا تھا۔ صاحباں کے ایک ملازم کے ذریعے مرزا کا اس سے رابطہ تھا جس کا نام تاریخ میں کرموں ملتا ہے۔مرزا کے چلے جانے کے کچھ ہی عرصہ بعد کھیوہ خان نے صاحباں کا رشتہ چدھڑ خاندان میں طے کر دیا جبکہ مرزا کا رشتہ اس کی ماں نے ساہی خاندان میں طے کر دیا۔ شادی کی تیاریاں شروع ہوئیں تو صاحباں نے کرموں کو مرزا تک اس کی شادی کی اطلاع پہنچانے کے لیے بھیجا۔جب کرموں نے اطلاع مرزا کو پہنچائی تو مرزا ترکش اور تیر کمان سے لیس ہو کر اپنی "بکی" نامی گھوڑی پر سوار ہوا اور صاحباں کو لینے نکل کھڑا ہوا۔ تاریخ دان لکھتے ہیں کہ جب مرزا گھر سے نکلا تب اس کی بہن کی شادی ہو رہی تھی اسی وجہ سے ماں اور بہن نے روکنے کی کوشش کی لیکن عشق تھا کہ ہر رشتہ بُھلا گیا۔مرزا سیدھا صاحباں کے علاقے میں پہنچا اور شادی والے گھر سے صاحباں کو لے کر نکل گیا اس وقت گھوڑی کے قدموں کی ٹاپ نے ڈھولکی کی تھاپ کو نیچا دکھا دیا اور یوں وہ سفر شروع ہوا جس کی منزل مرزا کی موت ٹھہری۔تاریخ دان لکھتے ہیں چونکہ جاٹ بہنوں کے معاملے میں کافی محتاط ہوتے ہیں اس لیے مرزا نے بہن کی ڈولی اٹھ جانے کے بعد رات کی تاریکی میں گھر جانے کا فیصلہ کیا اور راستے میں ایک درخت کے نیچے تھکان اتارنے کے لیے سو گیا۔صاحباں نے مرزا کے تیر توڑ دیئے کیونکہ یہ جانتی تھی کہ وہ ایک قابل تیر انداز ہے اور یہ ہرگز نہیں چاہتی تھی کہ مرزا کے نشانے پر اس کے بھائی ہوں۔ صاحباں کا خیال تھا کہ وہ اپنے بھائیوں کو منا لے گی لیکن اُس کے بھائیوں نے اس کی ایک نہ سنی اور مرزا کو مار دیا۔کہا جاتا ہے کہ مرزا صاحباں کے بھائیوں سے نہیں بلکہ اس کی بے وفائی سے ہی مر گیا تھا اور یہ بھی روایت کی جاتی ہے کہ مرزا کے مرنے کے وقت بھی اس کی زبان پر صاحباں کا نام تھا۔ اس حوالے سے بہت سی متضاد روایات ملتی ہیں۔ کچھ کے مطابق صاحباں مرزا کو بچاتے ہوئے جان کی بازی ہار گئی اور کچھ کے مطابق اس کے بھائی اسے محل واپس لے گئے اور وہاں پر اسے مار دیا گیا۔اس موقع پر پیرو کی نظم کے یہ الفاظ پڑھنے والوں کے دل میں اتر جاتے ہیں۔مندا کیتوئی صاحبا،میرا ترکش ٹنگی او جنڈ سر توں منڈا سا اڈ گیا، گل وچ پیندی چنڈ باجھ بھراواں جٹ ماریا،کوئی نہ مرزے دے سنگ جٹا ای اوترجمہ : اے صاحباں یہ تو نے اچھا نہیں کیا کہ میرا ترکش درخت پہ لٹکا دیا مرزا کے سر سے پگڑی اتر گئی اور چہرے پر دھول پڑ گئی۔ جاٹ کو بغیر بھائیوں کے مارا اور مرزا بالکل اکیلا تھا۔
So as it is clearly mentioned in the above story that Mirza was a Jat. However, this discussion is still open and I invite my readers to give their input.The story of Mirza Sahiban holds a prominent place among the folk tales of Punjab. According to the book Tareekh-e-Jhang Sialaan (The History of the Sials of Jhang) written by historian Mian Nur Muhammad Chela, Mirza and Sahiban were eleventh-generation descendants of Heer.
As per the book, Sahiban's father, Kheiwa Khan, was the son of Satti Khan, who founded the town of Satiana near Jhang. Three months after Kheiwa’s birth, his mother passed away. To care for the infant, a woman named Nur Bibi from the Marhal family of Wara Sulaiman was brought in. She, along with her daughter Fateh Bibi (Mirza’s future mother), nursed Kheiwa Khan. As a result, Kheiwa and Fateh Bibi became milk siblings.
Later, Sial chieftain Ghazi Khan granted Kheiwa the title of "Khan" when he established the town of Kheiwa. Upon hearing that her milk brother had become a chieftain, Fateh Bibi sent her young son Mirza to Kheiwa for education. There, Mirza and Sahiban studied at the same madrassah and developed feelings for each other from a young age.
Historians agree on a notable incident: once, when a teacher struck Mirza with a stick, Sahiban instinctively clenched her palm. When she opened it, marks of the stick appeared on her hand. This mysterious event caused an uproar, and Mirza was sent back to his mother. But by then, love had already taken root in both hearts.
In addition to his education, Mirza became a master archer and skilled horseman. He stayed in contact with Sahiban through her servant, Karmoon, who is mentioned in several historical accounts.
Shortly after Mirza’s departure, Kheiwa Khan arranged Sahiban’s marriage into the Chadhar family. At the same time, Mirza's mother arranged his marriage in the Sahi family. When the preparations for Sahiban’s wedding began, she sent Karmoon to inform Mirza.
As soon as Mirza heard the news, he mounted his famous mare Bakki, took up his bow and quiver, and set off to rescue Sahiban. Historians mention that his sister’s wedding was taking place at that very time. His mother and sister tried to stop him, but love overpowered all other ties.
Mirza rode straight to Sahiban’s home and eloped with her. The sound of his mare’s hoofbeats drowned out the beating of the wedding drums. Thus began a journey that would end in Mirza’s death.
Being a Jat, Mirza was sensitive to social norms and decided not to reach home until after his sister’s wedding procession had departed. So, he and Sahiban rested under a tree.
But Sahiban, knowing Mirza’s skill with the bow and fearing for her brothers' lives, quietly broke his arrows. She hoped she could convince her brothers to forgive them. But her brothers didn’t listen. They found the couple while they were resting and killed Mirza.
Some say it was not her brothers, but Sahiban’s act of breaking the arrows—seen as betrayal—that caused Mirza's death. It is said that as he lay dying, Sahiban’s name was on his lips. Many conflicting versions of the story exist: in some, Sahiban dies trying to protect Mirza; in others, her brothers take her back and kill her in the palace.
At this tragic moment, the lines of Peelu’s verse pierce the heart:
"O Sahiban, you have not done it right,
That you hung my quiver on the tree.
Mirza lost the turban of his head,
And dust covered his face.
The Jat was killed without his brothers,
All alone."
Tariq Amir
March 17, 2017.
Doha - Qatar.
The above part of my post was about the tomb of Mirza and Sahiban, which I visited about two years ago. In the meantime, I came to know that the mosque where they studied during their childhood—and where this entire love story began, still exists. I was skeptical about the authenticity of this information. There was only one way to confirm it: visit the place myself.
So, on a fine spring morning, 22 March 2016, I set out from my base camp in Sargodha. In about two and a half hours, I reached the town. My uncle, Sahibzada Riaz, was accompanying me. He is still more energetic than I am and often joins me on such adventures, especially the kind that aren't easy in a 1990 model Suzuki Khyber.
The bazaar of this small town is located on both sides of the Chiniot–Jhang Road, about 20 kilometers before Jhang. We asked a gentleman who was sitting and chatting with a friend, and he kindly asked someone to guide us to the mosque. I wasn’t too hopeful, so their helpful response came as a pleasant surprise.
Our guide led us through the bazaar and narrow lanes, and then out of the town. There, amid the lush green fields, stood the mosque, where Mirza and Sahiban had learned their first lessons of love. The mosque is located at 31°27'13.50" N, 72°27'33.15" E.
I’m not sure how old this mosque is, and even the locals aren’t aware of its construction history. But its architecture clearly indicates that it is quite old. Perhaps we can better estimate its age if we can determine the exact period when the story of Mirza and Sahiban took place. I hope someone with deeper knowledge of the subject can shed light on this.
The mosque is no longer in use and, as can be seen in the pictures, is in urgent need of repair. Sadly, I’m not surprised. But still, one cannot help but feel disappointed that such a beautiful mosque, bearing deep historical and cultural significance, has been completely abandoned. A place where one of Punjab’s most iconic love stories began now stands in silence, neglected by all.
I invite you all to share your thoughts or add anything you know about this subject. Perhaps together we can help raise awareness about preserving such forgotten heritage.
Tariq Amir
April 28, 2016.
Doha - Qatar.
View Tomb Of Mirza Sahibaan in a larger map
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