Tribune News Service

Ratwara, November 2
Lakhs of followers of Sant Waryam Singh, founder President of the Vishav Gurmat Ruhani Mission, who passed away on October 31, bade a tearful farewell to the spiritual leader near the Ratwara Sahib Gurdwara amidst chanting of shalokas and recitation of Gurbani. They came from various parts of the country and also from abroad.

The pyre was lit by Baba Lakhbir Singh, one of his disciples. His two sons, Mr Manjit Gill and Mr Naripjeet Gill, who are in the USA, could not reach in time for the cremation. His two daughters, Ms
Rubina Sidhu and Ms Baldev Kaur, were, however, present.

The body was taken to the cremation ground in a flower-bedecked tractor-trailer, accompanied by an Army band. According to Dr Jagjit Singh, Chief Editor, who brings out a publication of the Ratwara Sahib Gurdwara titled “A Glimpse of His Holiness” on behalf of the Ratwara Sahib Gurdwara, told The Tribune that the sons of the deceased were expected here on November 5 for the immersion of the ashes in the Sutlej at Bhambor Sahib Gurdwara near Anandpur Sahib.

He said the saint propagated contentment in life and after death. He told his disciples some time before his passing away that his pyre should be made of simple traditional wood and not of chandan wood as was suggested by some of his followers.

Lakhs of his devotees had the last glimpse of their departed saint. The disciples had come from the USA, Canada, UK and several other countries. There were also hundreds of disciples from the Terai area in Uttar Pradesh where the saint did his farming. Disciples also descended on the gurdwara from Bombay, Tarn Taran, Phagwara, Paunta Sahib, Faridkot, Patna, Rajpura, Ludhiana, Gurdaspur, Karnal and Shahbad
Markanda, apart from a large number of other cities and towns.

Devotees present at the cremation ground said Sant Waryam Singh was a Sikh mystic par excellence who has devoted his whole life to make humanity conscious of the fact that this life is the rarest of the rare opportunity to realise God, and this God-gifted human birth should not be wasted in indulgence.