The centuries old tradition of the continuous singing of kirtan (sacred hymns) at Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple) begins with the opening of the portals of the Sikhs holiest shrine, until their closing. But on June 6, 1984 this historical tradition was brought to a standstill when the Darbar Sahib was riddled with bullets. Inside, one of the bullets pierced the centuries old handwritten Guru Granth Sahib. Two of the devoted and gallant priests who had continued to perform kirtan despite not being able to hear their own voices above the roar of the bullets and cannon fire, lay dead. Martyrs Amrik Singh and Avtar Singh Parowal had been shot and killed. The cloth that covered the sacred Guru Granth Sahib was soaked in the blood of the dead attendants.
Avtar Singh Parowal was born in 1950 to parents Gurbaksh Singh and Bhagwant Kaur, in the village of Parowal (Batala). Avtar Singh was fifth of the eight brother-sisters. In 1966, after passing his secondary education from Fatehgarh Churian, he started working in his own village shop, and often had to visit Amritsar for business. During this time he met respected and learned kirtani’s (singers of sacred hymns). He began attending programs arranged by the Akhand Kirtani Jatha. After becoming a baptized Sikh in 1972, he started learning to perform kirtan himself. Soon he became a proficient kirtani, memorizing most of the Gurbani (words of the hymns). When he was not performing kirtan, he would often be seen doing seva voluntary service) at the water stations within the Darbar Sahib complex.
In June of 1984, when the full frontal army attack on Darbar Sahib began, many of the Kirtani’s were reluctant to continue performing, due to the danger all around. However, Avtar Singh insisted that the kirtan should not stop, because he knew how vital it was for the spirit of the Gursikhs fighting oppression and tyranny. Many hours passed as he performed the kirtan in the extreme heat, and in darkness, while the bullets flew overhead. Eventually, a sniper shot him in the chest. Others present with him, provided him with water as he bled from the chest wound. Breathing his last, he uttered “Waheguru!” How blessed was Avtar Singh Parowal, to have breathed his last in the presence of the Guru Granth Sahib in the holy Darbar Sahib built by the fourth Guru Raam Das. There is no more perfect a place on Earth, and no more noble a death…
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