December is a month of intense cold, and it was during this very month that the tragic separation of Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji and his family took place. On the night of the 6th of Poh, while leaving the fort of Anandpur Sahib, Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji set out with his family and a small group of Singhs. When Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji reached the banks of the Sarsa River, the Mughals came to know of it and launched an attack on the Guru Sahib and his family. Guru Sahib divided the Khalsa army into two groups—one to hold back the Mughals and the other to cross the Sarsa River. Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji, along with his family and the Singhs, began crossing the river. At that time, the Sarsa River was in severe flood. With the Mughal forces on one side and the raging flood on the other, the entire family was scattered. Due to the flooding of the Sarsa River, Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s family was divided into three parts. Guru Sahib Ji, the elder Sahibzadas—Sahibzada Baba Ajit Singh and Sahibzada Baba Jujhar Singh—and forty Singhs remained on one side. The younger Sahibzadas—Sahibzada Baba Zorawar Singh and Sahibzada Baba Fateh Singh—along with Mata Gujri Ji, crossed to the other side of the river and went to Morinda with Gangu Brahmin, the cook of the Guru’s household. Meanwhile, Mata Sahib Kaur Ji and a few Singhs reached Delhi. That dark night and the flood of the Sarsa River separated the entire family forever, and they were never able to reunite thereafter. Today, on the banks of the Sarsa River, Gurdwara Sri Parivar Vichhora Sahib stands in memory of that unforgettable separation.
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