Ramraiyas (Gurmukhi: ਰਾਮਰਾਈਆ; ''rāmarā'ī'ā''), also referred to as ''Ram Raiyas'', are a Sikh sect that follow

Baba Ram Rai Baba Ram Rai (Gurmukhi: ਰਾਮ ਰਾਏ; ''rāma rā'ē''; 1645–1687) was the eldest son of the seventh Sikh Guru, Guru Har Rai, and the founder of the Ramraiyas, an unorthodox sect in Sikhism. He founded the Guru Ram Rai Darbar Sahib, ...

, the excommunicated eldest son of

Guru Har Rai Guru Har Rai (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਹਰਿ ਰਾਇ, pronunciation: ; 16 January 1630 – 6 October 1661) revered as the ''seventh Nanak'', was the seventh of ten Gurus of the Sikh religion.Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...

in Delhi. Aurangzeb objected to a verse in the Sikh scripture (''

Asa ki Var Asa Di Var, (Gurmukhi: ਆਸਾ ਦੀ ਵਾਰ) meaning “A ballad of hope,” is a collection of 24 stanzas (''pauris'') in the Guru Granth Sahib, from ang 462 to ang 475. Some people argue that the founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak Dev, wrote ...

'') that stated, "the clay from a Musalman's grave is kneaded into potter's lump", considering it an insult to Islam. Baba Ram Rai explained that the text was miscopied and modified it, substituting "Musalman" with "Beiman" (faithless, evil) which Aurangzeb approved.Ram Rai
Encyclopedia of Sikhism, Editor in Chief: Harbans Singh, Punjab University The willingness to change a word led Guru Har Rai to bar his son from his presence, and name his younger son as his successor. Aurangzeb responded by granting Baba Ram Rai a

jagir A jagir ( fa, , translit=Jāgir), also spelled as jageer, was a type of feudal land grant in the Indian subcontinent at the foundation of its Jagirdar (Zamindar) system. It developed during the Islamic rule era of the Indian subcontinent, starti ...

(land grant) in Garhwal region (

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand ( , or ; , ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; the official name until 2007), is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhumi" (literally 'Land of the Gods') due to its religious significance and ...

). The town later came to be known as

Dehradun Dehradun () is the capital and the List of cities in Uttarakhand by population, most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous Dehradun district, district and is governed by the Dehr ...

, after ''Dehra'' referring to Baba Ram Rai's shrine. Many followers of Ram Rai settled with Ram Rai, they followed Guru Nanak, but Sikhs have shunned them. They were one of the Panj Mel, the five reprobate groups that Sikhs are expected to shun with contempt. The other four are the Minas, the

Masand A masand was a representative and tithe collector in Sikhism. They were an officially appointed missionary minister representing the Sikh Guru, who baptized conversions to Sikhism, and collected ''dasvandh'' ("the tenth" of income) as an offering ...

s, the Dhirmalias, the Sir-gums (those Sikhs who accept Amrit baptism but subsequently cut their hair).

References

{{Sikhism Sikh groups and sects

See also

References