Traditions, Personalities and Memories: Aspects of Sikh History, 1469–1914,
Essays in Honour of Sardar Saran Singh highlights the traditions of self-sacrifice associated with the Sikh Gurus and their renowned followers. Ironically, these great traditions ended up being undermined during the most glorious phase of Sikh history—the rule of Maharajah Ranjit Singh—so much so that both the British sympathizers, Chief Khalsa Diwan and the Singh Sabhas, as well as the anti-British Namdharis, tried to revive these noble traditions. Persecuted by the British rulers, the Namdharis sustained their anti-colonial activities through the Ghadar movement in the twentieth century.

The legacy of Baba Gurdit Singh, explored in this volume, is also intertwined with those of the Ghadarites, owing to his expedition with Sikh migrants from Punjab to Vancouver on his chartered ship Komagata Maru, to circumvent the repressive strategies of the white dominions of Canada and the US against the Indian migrants. Around the same time, Ghadarites, retired army personnel and radical Bengali anti-colonial forces began to collaborate closely in Calcutta, which became the hub of these revolutionary activities. This volume is an effort to join these dots across history, highlight the varying sacrificial traditions and the fascinating personalities associated with such sacrifice and to rekindle the memories cherished by Sikhs over centuries.