● What is not commonly known is that the Independence movement was led and organized by four great Sadhu Yogis.
● The main organizers of the 1857 independence struggle were four Yogi Sannyasis.
● The first was Swami Omanand of the Himalayas. In 1857, he was 162 years old.
● The second was Swami Purananand of Kankhal (Haridwar, U.P.), a disciple of Omanand, who was 100 years old.
● The third was Swami Virajanand, a student and disciple of Purananand, who was 79 years old.
● The fourth was Swami Dayanand Saraswati, a student and disciple of Swami Virajanand, who was 33 years old. Swami Dayanand was the founder of the Arya Samaj movement.
● These four great individuals, through their teachings, organized 2,000 Sadhus and Saints to spread the message of the country's liberation. This group included Saints from both Hindu and Muslim communities, and from all Mutts.
● These Sadhus spread anti-British messages in the cantonments among native soldiers and revolutionaries, as well as during various pilgrimages and fairs held at places like the Ganga River, Haridwar, Garh Mukteshwar, Mathura, etc.
● They acted as secret agents, gathering and providing information about British movements to their Sadhu organization.
● Swami Omanand was 160 years old at that time. Together with Swami Purananand and other Sadhus, he chose two symbols for the resistance movement: the lotus flower and a roti or chapati (flatbread).
● The lotus flower was circulated among army units where soldiers had pledged support for the revolution. One soldier in a unit would pass the flower to the next unit, and so on. This signified that all soldiers in that unit were ready to participate in the revolution. In this way, thousands of lotus flowers were passed from Peshawar to Barrackpore (Calcutta) across army units.
● The other symbol, the roti, was passed from one village to another. It indicated that the entire village was ready to support the war. Within a few months, rotis had been spread across hundreds of thousands of villages across the country.
● In the assembly, Swami Omanand said: “Keep your self-respect high. Trust in God. Treat every citizen of your motherland as your brother or sister. Get ready for independence.”
● Present in the assembly were Feroze Shah (son of Bahadur Shah, the last Mughal emperor), Bala Sahib Maharatta, Rungo Babu, Maulana Aji Mullah, Ramjaan Baig, Nana Sahib Peshwa, and others.
● The assembly consisted of about 1,500 attendees. From each jati (community), 15 women over the age of 50 were present.
● Nana Sahib Peshwa and Prince Feroze Shah donated ₹5,000 to the Sadhu organization.
● On October 5, 1855, an assembly was held at the Garh Ganga Mela under the chairmanship of Swami Purananand. The vice‑chairperson was Sai Fakhru‑u‑din, who was highly respected in the Delhi court. About 2,500 attendees gathered, and many speeches were delivered against the British on both religious and political grounds.
● A brief summary of Swami Purananand’s speech is as follows:
“Do not leave the nation in the hands or trust of foreigners. They are not Rajas (kings/governors), but bandits and looters who worship only material wealth. They are enemies of all members of society; they will drink your blood and eat your flesh. Beware of them-or they will destroy your race and occupy our lands. They must be driven out of our land.”
● This assembly was held six days later, on October 11, 1855 AD, and was organized by Swami Purananand in the hills near Haridwar. A total of 565 Sadhus attended the meeting—195 Muslims and 370 Hindus. Among them were the blind Sadhu Virajanand and Swami Dayanand.
● The Mantri (Premier) of the Haryana Sarv Khap, Mohanlal Jat, the army chief Sheoram Jat, the vice-chief Bhagwat Gujar, and Pandit Shobaram were also present. The official recorder and messenger of the Sarv Khap, Mir Mustaq Mirasi, also attended. In the assembly, Sai Fakhruddin and Swami Purananand shared their views.
● Swami Purananand wished not only to inspire the feeling of Dharma (religion and duty) but also to encourage the upliftment of the nation. In 1855, Swami Dayanand (birth name: Shuddh Chaitanya) arrived at the Kumbh Mela to meet Swami Purananand. There, he received initiation into Sannyas from him. Swami Dayanand expressed his desire to study the true Shastras (scriptures) of the Vedas. Swami Purananand, being too old to teach, advised him to go to his disciple Swami Virajanand Saraswati in Mathura. He also advised Swami Dayanand to dedicate himself first to the nation's upliftment before fully devoting his life to scriptural study.
● Swami Dayanand then went to Mathura, to Swami Virajanand’s hermitage, and took part in a secret meeting. Also present were: 40-year-old Chaudhry Mohar Singh Jat of Shamli (District Muzaffarnagar), 42-year-old Dada Sahaimull Jat of Bijraul (District Meerut), Chaudhary Daya Singh Jat of Dhakauli (District Meerut), Emperor Bahadur Shah of Delhi, Nana Sahib, Tatya Tope, Raja Kunwar Singh, Begum Hazrat Mahal (wife of the Nawab of Lucknow), Maulana Aji Mullah, Rungo Babu Kayasth of Bengal, the Rani of Jhansi, and others.
● Dada Sahaimull Jat became a martyr while fighting British troops at the head of 300 Sarv Khap warriors near a pond in the village of Bardhka near Baraut (U.P.). Similarly, Chaudhry Mohar Singh gave his life along with his companions near Shamli (District Muzaffarnagar, U.P.). In his memory, the Shamli Kisan Dharmshala (Shamli Farmers’ Society) erected a monument on April 4, 1976.
● In 1856, the main leaders of the freedom movement gathered under the leadership of Swami Virajanand and planned the form the 1857 revolution would take.
● Mir Mustaq Mirasi (also known as Mir Elahi) was present at this gathering, and his eyewitness account is provided below:
● This account by Mir Mustaq was previously published in the Urdu newspaper Milap, published from Jalandhar, Punjab, on October 12, 1969, and in the Hindi magazine Arya Maryada, published from Delhi. It is also included in Raja Mahendra Pratap Abhinandan Granth, authored by Ramnarayan Agarwal.
● The account of Mir Elahi is as follows:
⇰ “In 1856 AD, Samvat 1913, a panchayat was held at the pilgrimage site of Mathura. Hindus, Muslims, and members of other communities participated. In this panchayat, a blind Hindu Sadhu, Virajanand, was brought in a palanquin. Upon his arrival, everyone present paid him their respects. When he sat on the dais, all the Hindu and Muslim fakirs kissed his feet as a sign of reverence.
⇰ Nana Sahib Peshwa, Maulvi Aji Mullah Khan, Rungo Babu, and the son of Emperor Bahadur Shah presented Ashrafis (gold coins) to him with great respect.
⇰ Then, one Hindu and one Muslim fakir stood up and addressed the audience, asking them to listen with patience to what their leader had to say:
⇰ ‘What he will say will be of great benefit to this nation. The great master Sadhu is also a master of many languages and a respected elder of our nation. Thanks to the grace of God, we have such an elder in our midst.’
● He first praised God and then said:
⇰ “Independence is true wealth, while slavery is false and deceitful. Rule by the people of the land is a hundred times better than rule by foreigners. The slavery of others brings only disrespect and shame.
⇰ We hold no hatred toward any community, people, or country. We pray to God for their well-being and blessings. However, these brutal rulers govern our land by force. They disrespect our kings, and although they praise themselves, they treat our people worse than animals. In the eyes of God, all people are equal, but these cruel foreigners do not treat us as equals—they treat us as slaves.
⇰ No religious book teaches that people must be treated badly or that God’s commandments should be ignored. These foreigners may have some good qualities, but when the truth is revealed, they twist facts and reject our honest advice and good nature.
⇰ They do not consider this land their home. Even if every child in our land cared for their well-being, they would still value their dogs more than our people. This is the root of the problem.
⇰ These foreigners love only their own land. Therefore, we appeal to all people of this country: it is the duty of every citizen to be a patriot and treat one another as brothers. All who live in Hindustan are brothers, and Shahenshah Bahadur Shah Zafar is your rightful emperor.”
-Written by Mir Elahi and Mir Mustaq Mirasi - Sarv Khap Panchayat
⇰ From this account by Mir Elahi, it is clear that the driving force behind the first revolution was Swami Virajanand. He was a truly great and awakened soul who stirred the people of Hindustan.
⇰ This speech ignited a desire for freedom among the people and turned them against British rule.
⇰ Swami Virajanand gave this movement the name "Raj Badlo Kranti" - meaning “Revolution to Change the Regime” - or "Swatrasangram", the Independence Movement.
● Swami Dayanand was fully aware of the independence struggle.
● In May 1856 AD, he visited the house of Nana Sahib in Kanpur and, for four or five months, traveled between Kanpur and Allahabad. (Swami Giriraj, in his book "Sun 1857 ke Swatantrasangram se Swarajyapravartaka Maharishi Swami Dayanand Sarasvati ka Kriyatmak Yogdan" — Maharishi Swami Dayanand's Contribution to the 1857 Independence Struggle — presents the details on page 12.)
● In Samvat 1913 (1856 AD), Swami Dayanand arrived in Haridwar and took residence at Chandi Mandir, located on Neel Parvat (Blue Peak). There, Swami Rudrasen informed him, “The leaders of the movement to awaken the people of Bharat (India) will soon be coming to Chandi Mandir.”
● Three days later, five strangers arrived asking for Swami Dayanand. Swami Dayanand cautiously asked them to introduce themselves. They were:
(1) Dhondhupant (Nana Sahib Peshwa), the adopted son of Bajirao Peshwa II
(2) Bala Sahib
(3) Aji Mullah Khan
(4) Tatya Tope
(5) Kunwar Singh, Raja of Jagdishpur
● Sitting together in a secluded place, Swamiji discussed the revolution with them at length. At their request, he took upon himself the responsibility of organizing the Sadhu Samaj (monastic society) for the independence movement. They said,
“Maharaj, from Peshawar to Calcutta to Karnataka, thousands of Indians are ready - but the work of the Sadhu Samaj is still incomplete.”
● In addition to these five, two other revolutionaries later came into contact with Swami Dayanand: Raja Govind Rai and Rani Lakshmi Bai.
● Two or three days later, Rani Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi, along with her co-queen Ganga Bai and three of their officials, met Swamiji. Swamiji asked them to introduce themselves.
● The Queen tearfully shared her story. She said:
“Maharaj, I am a childless widow. The British have announced they will seize our kingdom from this sister of yours. They are preparing to attack Jhansi with a huge army. While I am alive, I will not let them take my dynasty’s kingdom. Please bless me so I may sacrifice my life fighting as a warrior.”
● Hearing these words from such a brave woman, Swamiji was deeply moved.
● He said:
“Lady, this body is not eternal. Blessed are those who sacrifice their lives in the cause of duty. They do not die-they live forever. Lift your sword and fight these foreigners with courage.”
● The Queen presented Swamiji with ₹1,101. Swamiji replied, “I do not need this wealth.” But the Queen insisted and, after paying her respects, departed.
● Seven or eight days after Rani Lakshmi Bai left, Nana Sahib and others returned to give Swamiji the latest updates. Swamiji handed over ₹1,101 from Govind Rai, ₹1,101 from Rani Lakshmi Bai, and ₹633 collected from others-amounting to a total of ₹2,835 to Nana Sahib for the cause of independence.
● Swamiji said to Nana Sahib:
“Leading people and playing with fire-both are dangerous. A small mistake can lead to total destruction. Be cautious. The message of the revolution must be spread across India by secret means.”
● Swamiji devoted his full energy to organizing the Sadhus for the independence movement.
● (Source: Records of the Haryana Sarv Khap)
● No known records exist of Swamiji’s life between 1857 and 1860. This suggests that he played a significant role in the 1857 independence movement but chose not to mention it in his book Satyarth Prakash. After October 1860, details of his life reappear. From 1860 to 1863, Swamiji studied Vedanta under Swami Virajanand. (Sudharak Balidan Visheshank, page 468, author: Bhagwandev Acharya.)
● Swami Dayanand was not only a Dharmic Maharishi but also a patriot and a leader in the independence movement.
● In the eighth chapter of Satyarth Prakash, he writes: “No matter how much anyone does, self-government is always supreme.”
● He belonged to the dynasty of the famous Rani Bhavani of the state of Nadore in North Bengal. The British had seized his kingdom. At Chandi Mandir, he discussed the loss of his kingdom and other matters with Swamiji. He presented Swamiji with ₹1,101. Although Swamiji repeatedly said, “I do not need this wealth,” Raja Govind Rai insisted, paid his respects, and left.