pahul_, a form of military baptism. Sikhs were
henceforth to be _Singhs_ (lions). They were forbidden to smoke, and
enjoined to wear the five k's, _kes_, _kangha_, _kripan_, _kachh_, and
_kara_ (uncut hair, comb, sword, short drawers, and steel bracelet). He
established himself at Anandpur beyond the Hoshyarpur Siwaliks. Much of
his life was spent in struggles with his neighbours, the Rajput Hill
Rajas, backed from time to time by detachments of imperial troops from
Sirhind. In 1705 two of his sons were killed fighting and two young
grandsons were executed at Sirhind. He himself took refuge to the south
of the Sutlej, but finally decided to obey a summons from Aurangzeb, and
was on the way to the Deccan when the old Emperor died. The Guru took
up his residence on the banks of the Godavari, and died there in 1708.

~Banda.~--Before his death he had converted the Hindu ascetic Banda, and
sent him forth on a mission of revenge. Banda defeated and slew the
governor of Sirhind, Wazir Khan, and sacked the town. Doubtless he
dreamed of making himself Guru. But he was really little more than a
condottiere, and his orthodoxy was suspect. He was defeated and captured
in 1715 at Gurdaspur. Many of his followers were executed and he himself
was tortured to death at Delhi, where the members of an English mission
saw a ghastly procession of Sikh prisoners with 2000 heads carried on
poles. The blow was severe, and for a generation little was heard of the
Sikhs.

~Invasions of Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah.~--The central power was weak, and
a new era of invasions from the west began. Nadir Shah, the Turkman
shepherd, who had made himself master of Persia, advanced through the
Panjab. Zakaria Khan, the governor of Lahore, submitted and the town was
saved from sack. A victory at Karnal left the road to Delhi open, and in
March, 1738, the Persians occupied the capital. A shot fired at Nadir
Shah in the Chandni Chauk led to the nine hours' massacre, when the
Dariba ran with blood, and 100,000 citizens are said to have perished.
The Persians retired laden with booty, including the peacock throne and
the Kohinur diamond. The Sikhs harassed detachments of the army on its
homeward march. Nadir Shah was murdered nine years later, and his power
passed to the Afghan leader, the Durani Ahmad Shah.

Between 1748 and 1767 this remarkable man, who could conquer but could
not keep, invaded India eight times. Lahore was occupied in 1748, but at
Sirhind t