ਮੀਰੀ ਪੀਰੀ
Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji · 1606
Miri Piri
The two swords of the Sikh path
When Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji became the sixth Guru, he wore not one sword but two. One for Miri, worldly authority and justice. One for Piri, spiritual authority and devotion. Together they show the Sikh way of life: rooted in prayer, ready to stand for truth.
The story of the two swords
ਦੋ ਤਲਵਾਰਾਂ ਬੱਧੀਆਂ, ਇਕ ਮੀਰੀ ਦੀ ਇਕ ਪੀਰੀ ਦੀ
Two swords were girded: one of Miri, one of Piri.
FROM THE DHADI VAAR TRADITIONALLY SUNG BY BHAI ABDULLAH AND BHAI NATHA AT SRI AKAL TAKHT SAHIB
Two swords, one path
What Miri and Piri mean
Miri
Temporal authorityResponsibility in the world: justice, leadership, and the duty to protect the weak and stand up against oppression.
Piri
Spiritual authorityThe inner life: remembering Waheguru, living by Gurbani, and keeping humility and compassion at the heart of everything we do.
A Sikh is a Sant Sipahi, a saint-soldier: one who meditates on the One, and stands ready to defend what is right.
The history
How Miri Piri began
The martyrdom of Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji
In 1606 the fifth Guru, Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji, was tortured and martyred in Lahore under the Mughal emperor Jahangir. The young Sikh Panth was in grief, and faced a powerful empire.
A Guru with two swords
Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji became the sixth Guru at just eleven years old. At his gurgaddi he did not take the seli, the cap worn by earlier Gurus. Instead he wore a kalgi on his dastar and a belt with two swords.
Tradition tells that when Baba Budha Ji came to put on the sword, the Guru asked for a second: one for Miri and one for Piri.
Sri Akal Takht Sahib
Facing Sri Harmandir Sahib, the seat of Piri, the Guru raised a platform about twelve feet high as the seat of Miri, first known as the Akal Bunga and now Sri Akal Takht Sahib. It was built by the Guru with Baba Budha Ji and Bhai Gurdas Ji, by their own hands.
From here the Guru held court, heard the sangat and gave justice, under the authority of Akal Purakh alone.
Horses, weapons and vaars
The Guru asked the sangat to bring horses and weapons as offerings, and to train their bodies as well as their minds. Dhadis such as Bhai Abdullah and Bhai Natha sang vaars of courage at Sri Akal Takht Sahib, lifting the spirit of the sangat.
The twin Nishan Sahibs
Sri Akal Takht Sahib flies two Nishan Sahibs side by side, for Miri and Piri. The Nishan Sahib of Piri stands a little taller, a reminder that worldly power must always be guided by the spirit.
The Khanda
The two curved kirpans on either side of the Khanda stand for Miri and Piri. Every time we see the Khanda, on a Nishan Sahib or a Gurdwara, we see the two swords of Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji.
Our home
Why we are called Miri Piri House
It was Baba Budha Ji, the namesake of our Gurdwara, who tied on the two swords of Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji. That is why our home in Nottingham is called Miri Piri House, and why two Nishan Sahibs stand outside it.
Here we try to live both swords: Piri in the darbar, through Gurbani, kirtan and Ardas, and Miri in the community, through langar for all, seva, and standing up for those in need.
Live both swords
Come and be part of the sangat
Join us in the darbar, share langar, or give your time as a sevadar at Miri Piri House.
Become a sewadaarThe story of Baba Budha Ji