SGPC clears air on Mangu Mutt, says it has religious significance

Amritsar,
Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) chief secretary Roop Singh on Monday cleared the air on the authenticity and religious significance of Mangu Mutt in Jagannath Puri.
Roop Singh, who had visited Jagannath Puri umpteen times earlier, said both Mangu and Bauli Mutts had associational significance with the Sikh faith. The connection between Sikhism and Jagannath Temple goes back to over 500 years, when Guru Nanak visited the holy temple to spread the universal message.

Recently, reports surfaced on the existence of Mangu and Bauli Mutts was in jeopardy to pave the way for the Orissa government’s plan of creating a heritage corridor within 75 m of the Meghanad Prachir of Jagannath Temple.
Following this, a three-member SGPC panel went to Orissa to gauge the situation and concluded that all religious buildings were safe, yet one of the members had raised doubts over the ties of Mangu Mutt with the first Sikh Guru. This had invited the ire of the Sikh scholars and historians and put the SGPC in a fix.

Taking about the visit, Roop Singh said the SGPC had never raised any doubts over the religious significance of Mangu Mutt and that a mere statement of a panel member should not be taken as an official version of the apex body.

“Bauli Mutt was directly associated with Guru Nanak as he visited there in 1509 during his eastern travels. There are references in the Mahakosh, which mentions that saint Mangu had demarcated and acknowledged the site to memorise Guru Nanak’s visit. Later in 1615, Bhai Almast, head of the Dhuari of the Udasi sect, served as a preacher of the Guru’s teachings here.”

Meanwhile, SGPC chief Gobind Singh Longowal said Guru Granth Sahib had been enshrined in the Bauli Mutt and efforts were on to takeover its service after the approval of Orissa authorities.

On the other hand, Sukhdev Singh, INTACH state convener, emphasised that heritage should gain priority over tourism as it was a commercial and profit-seeking industry while the former was sacred and had cultural value.

He said these two sites were associated with Guru Nanak, who went to Jagannath Puri and composed the ‘aarti’ enshrined in Guru Granth Sahib. “Though the demolition has been temporarily stopped, their existence should be ensured permanently as these mutts constitute the precious heritage of the humanity in general and the Sikhs in particular.”