The land of five waters gave the world its first cities, its saints and its songs. Broken by every empire that crossed it, it is still ours to remember, and to make whole again.

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PUNJAB WIKIਪੰਜਾਬپنجابThe Land
EN
Englishਪੰਜਾਬੀپنجابی

Land & Ages

The LandRivers, doabs, Harappa and the first cities, seasons, numbersAgesEight ages of the Punjab, from the Soan to todayTimelineEvery dated event on one lineAtlasEvery place on one map, age by agePlacesCities, ancient sites, temples, mosques and gurdwaras, battlefieldsLanguage & scriptsPunjabi, its dialects, Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi

People & Faiths

PeopleSaints and teachers, poets and singers, rulers, rebels, the people of both PunjabsPeople of the landJats, Rajputs, Arains, Khatris, Dalit communities and more, across every faithFaithsHindu traditions, Islam and the Sufis, Sikhi, and the Punjab's other faiths

Kingdoms & Struggles

Kingdoms & WarsWho ruled the Punjab, the Kingdom of Lahore, and the battles fought over itWho ruled the PunjabEvery ruling power, 518 BCE to todayWars & BattlesFrom the Hydaspes to BasantarStruggles & Partitions1849, 1919, 1947, 1966, 1984, 2020

Culture & Museum

CulturePoets, qisse, songs, music, dance, festivals, foodMuseumSculpture, coins, manuscripts, painting, arms, buildings, and where to see themChronicles & ProphecyThe poetry of the old chroniclesAboutWhat this atlas is, its sources, and every word explainedHelp maintain this siteCorrections, pictures, sources and new entries
Punjab WikiPlacesSufi shrines
HA
Sufi shrine

Haider Shaikh's shrine, Malerkotla

ਹੈਦਰ ਸ਼ੇਖ਼ ਦੀ ਦਰਗਾਹ

Shrine of the founder of Malerkotla, visited by Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus in a town that was spared in 1947.

Shaikh Sadruddin, called Haider Shaikh, was an Afghan Sufi of the 15th century whose descendants became the Nawabs of Malerkotla. His shrine is the heart of the town.

When in 1704 the Nawab of Malerkotla protested against the killing of Guru Gobind Singh's young sons at Sirhind, he won the Sikhs' lasting gratitude. In 1947, when Muslims were killed or driven out across East Punjab, Malerkotla was left in peace, and its shrine is still visited by people of every faith.

Haider Shaikh's shrine, Malerkotla, Punjab, India
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