Samadhi of Bhai Mani Singh

This memorial in Lahore honours Bhai Mani Singh, the scholar and martyr executed in the city in 1738.

Bhai Mani Singh was a granthi of the Harmandir Sahib at Amritsar and one of the most learned Sikhs of his generation, entrusted with the scripture and with the affairs of the sangat at a time when both were under severe pressure. He sought permission from the Lahore administration to hold a Diwali gathering at Amritsar, on payment of a tax. When the gathering did not take place as agreed — the accounts hold that troops were sent to attack it — the tax was demanded regardless. He could not pay, and refused to accept Islam as the alternative offered.

He was sentenced to be dismembered joint by joint. Sikh tradition records that when the executioner began at the wrist rather than the finger joints, Bhai Mani Singh corrected him, and held to the sentence as it had been passed.

The site is a quiet one and is often visited together with Gurdwara Shaheed Ganj, since both belong to the same decades of persecution in Lahore. Yatris who come here tend to know the account already; those who do not are usually told it standing in front of the memorial.

Konnect Yatra groups visit as part of the Lahore programme where the schedule allows, travelling together with our own transport and staff.

What a visit involves

A brief and quiet stop, usually taken with Gurdwara Shaheed Ganj since both belong to the same period of persecution in Lahore. Shoes off and heads covered.

Allow thirty to forty-five minutes.

Before you go

• The account of his execution is graphic. Our staff will tell it if the group wants it told; say if you would rather they did not.
• The site is modest and easily skipped on a rushed itinerary. Ask for it if you want it.

Getting there from your hotel

In Lahore, combined with the other old-city sites on the same morning. Konnect Yatra groups travel by private coach with our own staff.