sadhu sundar singh
sadhu sundar singh indian christian missionary. jesus is a saviour he is alpha umega
[ 12 ] francis. “sadhu sundar singh: the lover of the cross, ” in the christian witness of sadhu sundar singh, ed. francis, 4 .
[ 22 ] francis. “sadhu sundar singh: the lover of the cross, ” in the christian witness of sadhu sundar singh, ed. francis, 13 .
[ 25 ] francis. “sadhu sundar singh: the lover of the cross, ” in the christian witness of sadhu sundar singh, ed. francis, 5 .
thompson, phyllis. 1992. sadhu sundar singh. om pub. isbn 9781850780991 .
↑ tent maker, sadhu sundar singh 1889 - 1929. retrieved september 15, 2008 .
links in a golden chain: c. s. lewis, george macdonald and sadhu sundar singh
↑ 9. 0 9. 1 tentmaker, sadhu sundar singh. retrieved august 12, 2008 .
the writings of sadhu sundar singh, an indian christian missionary who led a christ - like life .
↑ sundar singh, the christian witness of sadhu sundar singh: a collection of his writings (madras: christian literature society, 1989), 32 .
parker, rebecca jane. sadhu sundar singh, called of god. london: student christian movement, 1927 .
sadhu sundar singh: essential writings (modern spiritual masters): urltoken charles e. moore: 9781570755927: books
sadhu sundar singh is prized by numerous as a developmental figure in the improvement of the christian church in india .
andrews, c. f. sadhu sundar singh; a personal memoir. london: hodder & stoughton, 1934 .
andrews, c. f. sadhu sundar singh: a personal memoir. hodder & stoughton, london, 1934 .
[ 3 ] friedrich heiler, the gospel of sadhu sundar singh (delhi: ispck, 1989), 42 .
[ 31 ] phyllis thompson, sadhu sundar singh (kent: om publishing, 1992), 182 - 183 .
parker, arthur. 1927. sadhu sundar singh: called of god. london: student christian movement. oclc 65098274 .
sharpe, eric j. 2003. the riddle of sadhu sundar singh. new delhi: intercultural publications. isbn 9788185574608 .
tue 17 aug 1920 - the sydney morning herald (nsw: 1842 - 1954) page 6 - sadhu sundar singh .
singh, sundar, and t. dayanandan francis. 1996. the christian witness of sadhu sundar singh: a collection of his writings. madras: christian literature society. oclc 42766751 .
[ 4 ] t. dayanandan francis. “sadhu sundar singh: the lover of the cross, ” in the christian witness of sadhu sundar singh, ed. t. dayanandan francis (madras: the christian literature society, 1989), 2 .
in sadhu sundar singh, christianity and hinduism meet, and the former stands like a flower that blossoms on an indian stem .
the sydney morning herald (nsw: 1842 - 1954), tue 17 aug 1920, page 6 - sadhu sundar singh .
sadhu sundars singh book on wisdom of the sadhu may be help ful and useful for me to be close to god, thank u for keeping this book in online, may god bless this web and who designed, and all the people be blessed who reads sadhu sundar singh s ...
davey, cyril j. the story of sadhu sundar singh; the yellow robe. chicago: moody press, 1963, 1950 .
i so admire sadhu sundar singh that i would encourage all those who are seeking a deeper spiritual life to read his written works .
↑ arthur parker, sadhu sundar singh: called of god (london: student christian movement, 1927), 28 - 29 .
sadhu sundars singh book on wisdom of the sadhu may be help ful and useful for me to be close to god, thank u for keeping this book in online, may god bless this web and who designed, and all the people be blessed who reads sadhu sundar singh s writings, amen .
davey, cyril james. 1963. the story of sadhu sundar singh: the yellow robe. chicago: moody press. oclc 3248996 .
abstract sadhu sundar singh. the hindu missionary, visited the university yesterday under the auspices of the university christian union before a large audience comprising students
born into a sikh family, sundar singh often listened to the teachings of a sadhu, an ascetic holy man. at the same time, sundar singh’s mother also sent him to a christian mission school to study english .
lynch - watson, janet. 1975. the saffron robe: a life of sadhu sundar singh. london: hodder and stoughton. isbn 9780340180488 .
indian protestants bakht singh krishna mohan banerjee michael madhusudan dutt pandita ramabai sadhu sundar singh jashwant rao chitambar victor premasagar k. david mahakavi k. v. simon p. c. john ravi zacharias
( size: 22. 5x14. 5cms .), contents: sadhu sundar singh in uppsala (1920); sadhu sundar singh at subathu (1928); foreword; preface; acknowledgements; 1. the early years; 2. on the road; 3. the world tour of 1920; 4. europe 1922; 5. return to subathu; 6. apostle or impostor? ; 7. sundar singh and emanuel swedenborg; 8. i go bound in the spirit; 9. the riddle of sadhu sundar singh; letter of sundar singh to a swedish correspondent; appendix one: the sundar singh literature; appendix two: sadhu sundar singh in recent literature; appendix three: a letter from stokes to hosten; notes; bibliography; index. 244 verify isbn for international edition, year of publication 2004 818557460x .
4 friedrich heiler, the gospel of sadhu sundar singh, abridged translation by olive wyon (lucknow, india: lucknow publishing house1970), 31. back
earlier sundar singh had been told by his interpreter that young daniel was not one of those autograph hunters or idly curious persons. thus sundar singh admitted him into close intimacy with himself. just being with sundar singh was an education in itself .
scope and content / abstract: letters, 1918 - 1929, of sadhu sundar singh in india to rebecca parker, the subjects including his work and activities .
and the new testament. the visions experienced by sadhu sundar singh are reminiscent of christ' s parable of lazarus and the rich man as recorded in luke .
[ 15 ] arthur parker, sadhu sundar singh: called of god (london: christian literature society for india, n. d .), 95 .
singh, sundar. visions of sadhu sundar singh of india. foreword by bishop lafroy of lahore, india. first published by anker g. dahle in 1926. now published (no date) by osterhus publishing company of minneapolis, minnesota .
combining the lifestyle of an ascetic
holy man
with the devotion of a christian visionary, sadhu sundar singh became for many a symbol of authentically indian christianity .
within three days sundar singh could bear his misery no longer. late at night ,
sundar singh' s teaching story illustrating how in helping others we receive help ourselves .
sundar singh returned to his room and prayed. then he cut off his hair .
the coming of sundar singh administered a great shock to sluggish and sleeping churches everywhere .
sundar singh memorial church” in doraha, a town near rampur. the church of north
published by noah' s ark, po box 607, armidale, nsw, 2350, australia. 1996. email: noah @ urltoken the wisdom of sadhu sundar singh
sundar singh with me. with every conversation i had with them, i walked away with
sundar singh, sadhu .
the oxford dictionary of the christian church. edited by f. l. cross and e. a. livingstone. oxford, 1997 .
↑ eric j. sharpe, the riddle of sadhu sundar singh (new delhi: intercultural publications, 2004, isbn 81 - 85574 - 60 - x), 64 .
parker, rebeccah. sadhu sundar singh, called of god. published by the christian literature society in madras and the s. c. m. press in london, 1920 .
you can also sign - up to receive email notifications whenever sundar singh releases a new book .
my mother too as a young woman heard sundar singh and was deeply moved by his preaching .
thank you so much for publishing this wonderful book of the life and teachings of the sadhu, sundar singh, devout and faithful follower of the lord jesus christ. years ago a pastor gave me an old book about the sadhu but it was written in italian so ...
george macdonald' s spiritual influence upon c. s. lewis is common knowledge, but until now sadhu sundar singh' s influence upon c. s. lewis has been overlooked. 1
that dr. lee has compared swedenborg and sundar singh, who both taught about the spirit world .
the sadhu was once asked to comment on those who say that christ is the supreme mystic .
india has produced many dynamic men and woman of god who have labored for the extension of his kingdom. one of the foremost among them is sadhu sundar singh. his story is a saga of christian faith and discipleship. sadhu sundar singh is a living example of what it really means to follow christ. his saintly life had a profound influence on people all across the globe. his life and testimony speak volumes of his commitment to please his master. this paper attempts to portray the life story of sadhu sundar singh, his call to christian service and his immense contribution to the ministry of the lord .
streeter, b. h. and a. j. appasamy. the message of sadhu sundar singh: a study in mysticism on practical religion. published by macmillan in new york, 1921. (the sadhu: a study in mysticism and practical religion. published by macmillan in london, 1922. )
sadhu sundar singh’s dramatic encounter with the living christ, his refusal to clothe his faith with western trappings, and his absolute devotion to the way of jesus make for compelling reading. i highly ­recommend this book .
suddenly the room filled with a glow. a man appeared before him. sundar singh heard a voice say ,
appasamy, aiyadurai jesudasen. 1958. sundar singh: a biography. london: lutterworth press. oclc 8338855 .
while in india in 1978 i got all of sadhu sundar singh’s writings in a single volume as well as his writings in smaller booklets. also the book, at the masters feet, i had beforehand as well .
[ 11 ] streeter and appasamy, the sadhu: a study in mysticism & practical religion, 17 .
[ 13 ] streeter and appasamy, the sadhu: a study in mysticism & practical religion, 32 .
nearly all of these good and godly authors laboured under the decided disadvantage of not being able to converse with someone who knew sundar singh firsthand. while this book makes no claims to scholarship, it fills that gap, revealing sundar singh as a very human personality and as a young man saw him. that young man was my dad, who bore indelibly in his life, many marks of those precious lessons in christlikeness, which he learned from sadhu sundar singh .
the life of sadhu sundar singh was most remarkable in it' s christ - likeness. he was born amidst the depths of indian culture and religion, and into a sikh family. during the early part of his life sundar' s mother would take him week by week to sit at the feet of a sadhu, an ascetic holy man, who lived some distance away in the rainforest .
the life of sadhu sundar singh was most remarkable in it' s christ - likeness. he was born amidst the depths of indian culture and religion, and into a sikh family. during the early part of his life, sundar' s mother would take him week by week to sit at the feet of a sadhu, an ascetic holy man, who lived some distance away in the rainforest .
this signaled the beginning of a new life for sundar singh – a life of servitude paved with great suffering and hardship .
my late dad himself was given an interview with sundar singh. sensing that this young disciple was no mere eccentric moved by idle curiosity, sundar singh invited him to stay and eat with him in the next place to which he was going. thus he accompanied sundar singh and lived with him for a while, though he very firmly and politely declined the invitation to dine with him, simply because he felt that he was not worthy to sit at the same table with sundar singh .
hi all, sadhu sunder singh is my ideal personality. i love to read about his life. impressive messages about christian life. this book is really beautiful and blessing of god .
the contribution of sundar singh’s life is phenomenal considering the fact that he founded no work, established no order or was he of any political significance. [ 31 ] the sadhu was not technically a theologian but his writings and sayings were full of indian theology. [ 32 ] sundar singh was deeply convinced that christianity will make its entrance into indian hearts only when it is presented in indian form. he serves as an indigenous ideal to the indian church through his life as a sadhu. [ 33 ] the methods adopted by sundar singh provide the framework for an indian to express his christian commitment within his culture. [ 34 ] his teaching method was through parables drawing examples from every day life. [ 35 ] sundar singh never attempted for syncretism but was emphatic on the uniqueness of christ. thus, sundar singh challenges the indian church today to take indegenisation seriously .
sundar singh may have influenced c. s. lewis in several ways. for example, the name singh comes from the sanskrit word for lion. because sundar singh was popularly perceived as the most christ - like man in lewis' s day, it is possible that sundar singh was in the back of lewis' s mind when aslan the lion came bounding into lewis' s first story of narnia. (aslan is the turkish word for lion. )
heiler, friedrich. the gospel of sadhu sundar singh. first published in german in 1924, then published in english in 1927. first indian edition published by the lucknow publishing house in lucknow, india, 1970. abridged english translation by olive wyon .
sundar singh' s correspondence with the swedish lutheran bishop nathan soderblom in november 1928 further confirms that he claimed visionary contact with swedenborg .
in march 1929, sundar singh was visited in subathu by a. j. appasamy. he reported on their meeting as follows :
some in europe, who had seen sundar singh while they were very young, spoke to the present writer of the unforgettable experience .
to check my conviction that c. s. lewis' s sura was really meant to represent sadhu sundar singh, in 1987 i contacted lewis' s oxford pupil and lifetime friend dom bede griffiths, since 1955 a benedictine monk in india. i explained my theory and asked him what he thought. (griffiths, like sundar singh, wore the traditional robe of an indian holy man. )
the life of sundar singh 1889 – born at rampur, punjab 1903 – conversion 1904 – cast out from home 1905 – baptised in simla; begins life as a sadhu 1907 – works in leprosy hospital at sabathu 1908 – first visit to tibet 1909 – enters divinity college, lahore, to train for the ministry 1911 – hands back his preacher’s license; returns to the sadhu’s life 1912 – tours through north india and the buddhist states of the himalayas 1918 to 1922 – travels worldwide 1923 – turned back from tibet 1925 to 1927 – quietly spends time writing 1927 – sets out for tibet but returns due to illness 1929 – attempts to reach tibet and disappears soon after sundar “met” jesus christ in 1904, he was baptized in 1905, and four years later in 1909 - 10, he spent a whole year at st. john’s divinity college in lahore. soon thereafter he opted to lead the life of a sadhu (a wandering ascetic) rather than a licensed preacher; thus becoming sadhu sundar singh. in the eyes of the church leaders, sadhu’s name and example is an avenue to promote christianity especially among the sikhs with a calculated hope that the sikhs will follow through. lately, it has come to my attention that rampur village in punjab where sundar was born now “hosts several christian cells planted by india - based missions. ” also recently opened is the “sadhu sundar singh memorial church” in doraha, a town near rampur. the church of north india has also constructed a “sadhu sundar singh memorial church” in faridkot, about 24 miles from the pakistan border .
what did lewis mean by the term sura? in sanscrit the word means god. in the hindu pantheon, a sura is a good angel or genie. in arabic a sura is one of the 114 chapters of the koran. lewis must have known all this when he chose the word. i believe that lewis used the word sura because he was hinting at the word sadhu, which means a holy man in india. (as an adjective in sanscrit, sadhu means straight .) if lewis had actually called his christian mystic the sadhu, some readers might have believed that his tale was a true account about the famous sadhu sundar singh .
singh, sundar. with and without christ. introduction by the lord bishop of winchester. harper & brothers, new york, 1929 .
sundar singh had been a christian universalist; he believed that all people would, eventually, attain salvation. writing in 1925 he argued :
however, sundar singh received a vision of christ that ultimately changed the course of his life. after surrendering his life to christ, he devoted himself to the sharing of the gospel. upon discovering sundar singh’s conversion, his father denounced and expelled his son from the family .
now this was the question which haunted my dad in his early teen - age years. in sundar singh god provided a meaningful answer .
meeting sundar singh or hearing him speak of jesus, made the whole gospel narrative come alive in a striking and incontrovertible manner to many in several parts of the globe. my dad and others known to me were amongst those who were deeply influenced by sundar singh' s life .
in 1922 a young indian research student, a. j. appasamy and the noted theologian and new testament scholar b. h. streeter published the sadhu, a study in mysticism and practical religion, in which the visionary aspect of sundar singh' s life was first brought out into the open. it was also in this book that the name of emanuel swedenborg was first mentioned in connection with sundar singh .
in 1905, sundar singh was baptised into the church of india and shortly afterwards took the vow of a sadhu, giving away his possessions and, owning only a saffron robe, a shawl and a copy of the new testament, adopted the life of a wandering preacher .
appasamy, a. j. sundar singh: a biography. published by lutterworth press in london, 1958. first indian edition, 1966 .
on seeing the fabulous wealth which was offered to him, young sundar singh exclaimed ,
all this gold cannot give me the peace which the lord jesus christ has given me .
the unshakable determination of sundar singh to follow jesus, only made his father more desperate and angry .
was sadhu a sikh? not once sadhu called himself a former sikh. not once sadhu mentioned sikh doctrines let alone forsaking them. in his writings only at one place he referred that he was “born in a family that was commonly considered sikh. ” but then qualified it: that for his family “the teaching of hinduism was considered most essential. ” this was written in his book, “with and without christ” published in 1928, merely a year before sadhu’s own death. frankly i am puzzled at all of this. how could his family be sikh but practices diehard hinduism? why would he wait for so long to reveal his family links as sikh? have sadhu and his church cohorts being putting up a smoke screen here— - killing two birds with one stone so to speak? why? was sadhu as a christian with an attached sikh name, leading an ascetic hindu way of life, a ticket too attractive for the evangelical church? history texts tell us that sadhu’s mother was really the genius behind to plant ideas in his mind of leading a life of a wandering hermit. for someone to be that important in sundar’s upbringing without being named anywhere in the literature is mind - boggling! his mother had hired the services of a hindu pundit and an old “sikh sadhu” to teach sundar. sadhu sundar singh in his book, “with and without christ” has devoted more than one page under the heading “the sadhu and i” explaining his quandary over the questions with this supposedly “sikh sadhu. ” reading this questionable page, i realized that there is not a single word mentioned giving me any hint that sundar was talking of the sikh religion. moreover how could “sikh sadhu” be a sikh? something doesn’t make sense. keep in mind, sadhu had three elder siblings born from the same un - named mother. it is apparent from the literature that this mother didn’t impart hinduism to any of her first three children. if so why would she pick sunder, her youngest child, for this special exotic religious training? again these detail questionings with no apparent answers doesn’t make sense. i cannot help but reach a conclusion: sadhu was not a sikh and had no links with the sikh religion in any fashion whatsoever. this only further deepens the mystery on sundar. who was he then ?
we are just finishing our book group using the
wisdom of the sadhu, teachings of sundar singh
. the discussions have been amazing! this is a must read book for all of those folks who are exploring their faith. we keep adding weeks to the ...
there might as well be more of these jesus and other testimonies given out by sundar just like this one: “i am christ whom you are persecuting. there is salvation only through me. if you believe me now, you will be saved. if you don’t believe me you will be damned forever. ” what transpired on this faithful day cannot be verified. sundar is the sole witness. one is never sure what jesus actually spoke. sundar is the only person who is narrating his own supernatural incident. and unfortunately, with so many inconsistencies and profound contradictions inherent in the above - mentioned witness accounts, one has to ask: is sadhu reliable? my answer is no. what is sadhu up to? is he lying and why? sadhu’s psychological make up is prone to seeing visions which is fraught with many pitfalls. in one of the above accounts sadhu has mentioned the date december 18th without giving the year. c. f. andrews, who had known sadhu personally, mentioned the time “december 1903” for this incident. cyril j. davey, a christian biographer for sadhu has given the date “december 3, 1903. ” which one is correct? it’s high time to ask: would the real sadhu sundar singh please stand up and tell the truth about him for jesus’s sake ?
in october 1906, he set out on his voyage as another christian, wearing a turban and the yellow robe of a hindu sadhu, a plain gave to profound practice. singh saw himself as a sadhu, yet one inside of christianity instead of hinduism, on the grounds that he understood christianity couldn’t infiltrate india unless it was in an indian way .
kunick and marx received sundar singh and taught him some elements of the tibetan language and even gave him an interpreter to help him in his work .
on october 6, exactly after 33 days of his baptism, sundar singh began his life as a christian sadhu. [ 6 ] he always had that aspiration in life which was instilled in him by his spiritual mother. he was distressed to see the indian church inculcating western culture and imitating their customs and failing to present the gospel in indian terms. sundar singh knew that a life of a sadhu was the best way to present the gospel message of christ to indians. his yellow robe won him admission into many villages and people listened to his messages earnestly. unlike the old hindu sadhus who were dirty and smeared themselves with ashes, sundar singh was clean, tall and well built and just sixteen years old. [ 7 ]
thank you so much for publishing this wonderful book of the life and teachings of the sadhu, sundar singh, devout and faithful follower of the lord jesus christ. years ago a pastor gave me an old book about the sadhu but it was written in italian so i was so glad to find something in english. after reading this book i went ahead and orderd more copies to share with my friends in canada and united states !
known in his lifetime as india’s most famous convert to christianity, sadhu sundar singh (1889–1929) would not approve of that characterization. he loved jesus and devoted his life to knowing him and following him, but he never accepted christianity’s cultural conventions, even as he embraced its stark original teachings .
in the mid 1940s bishop dr. augustine peters, a local evangelist of south india, searched out sundar’s sibling rajender singh, drove him to the christian confidence and sanctified through water him in punjab. rajender alluded to numerous supernatural occurrences performed by sundar singh and individuals changed over to christ under his service .
possessed of a burning heart, he was aflame to tell all whom he could reach, of the love of god in christ jesus. the image of an ill - kept figure, robed in filthy garments, trudging along the dusty indian road is the kind of picture that the thought of a' sadhu' conjures before one' s mind. sundar singh was distinctly different. his person and attire at all times were clean. my father, during his sojourn with him, was not a little surprised at how clean sundar singh managed to keep himself and his sadhu' s yellow robe .
sadhu sundar singh was born on 3 rd september, 1889 in a rich sikh family in punjab. [ 1 ] his mother was a very pious woman who had a strong influence in his life. her prayer was that her youngest son sundar should renounce the world and become a sadhu or saint. she nurtured sundar singh in the sikh and hindu scriptures. her death when sundar was only fourteen years dealt a severe blow on him. [ 2 ] he started desperately longing for peace because of a deep unrest in his heart and began reading all religious books and even practised yoga. his father put him in a christian mission school in his village where sundar developed a profound hatred for christians. he went to the extent of tearing the bible and burning it into pieces and was admonished by his father .
in october 1906, he set out walking a road, wearing a yellow robe and turban. the yellow robe designated the
uniform
of a hindu sadhu, traditionally an ascetic devoted to the gods, who either begged his way along the roads or sat, silent, remote, and often filthy, meditating in the jungle or some lonely place. the young sundar singh had also chosen the sadhu' s way, as a christian .
god granted sundar singh also to see a great personal victory in the conversion of his dear dad who had initially suffered much pain and embarrassment at sundar' s conversion to christ. his dad approached him saying ,
i want to be baptized by you .
but sundar singh said ,
no, you must be ready to be baptized in the name of jesus christ by any true christian preacher .
what a joy it was to sundar singh to see the triumph of the gospel in his own father' s life !
the life of a sadhu was a chosen life of self denial, suffering and cross bearing. brought up in luxury in a rich family, sundar singh as a sadhu wandered barefooted, without any possessions except his thin linen garment, a blanket and a new testament in urdu. sundar singh preached the gospel in his native and surrounding villages and he wandered through punjab to afghanistan and kashmir, lands where christian mission work had hardly begun. [ 8 ] at this time, sundar singh met with mr. stokes, a wealthy american who came to india for missionary work and joined with him for some time in ministry. he learnt from him the ideals of st. francis of assisi and his life as a preaching friar inspired him. [ 9 ]
from here on the life of sundar singh became most christ - like. being unwilling to denounce his master, it was not long before his family had rejected him. sundar took the saffron robes of the sadhu and began a life of spreading the simple message of love and peace and rebirth through jesus. he carried no money or other possessions, only a new testament .
because many of them discuss the sons of light and the sons of darkness. this is the exact same term used in sadhu' s book .
india, the country that gave birth to great religions – hinduism, buddhism, jainism and sikhism – continues to be a fertile ground for those seeking spiritual sustenance, a meaning to life, in general. the image of the sadhu in his orange robes is a common sight. and it was this very image that i encountered the other day that brought to mind the life and times of the indian christian ascetic – sadhu sundar singh 1889 - 1929 .
at the young age of fifteen, sundar singh received a vision of christ and converted from his native hinduism to christianity. after his conversion, he became a sadhu - - an ascetic or holy man - - and for the next twenty - five years, until his death, he preached the gospel. at the master' s feet is a remarkable collection of sundar singh' s visions from god, organized in a dialogue between the
disciple
( sundar singh) and the
master
( god). he includes in this uncomplicated dialogue profound teachings revealed to him from god. these teachings focus on the important practical aspects of christianity - - sin, salvation, prayer, service, etc. - - rather than obscure or arcane theological discussions. truly inspirational, at the master' s feet reflects the depth of sadhu sundar singh' s dedication, and can encourage such dedication in all of its readers .
sundar singh had been born into an important landowning sikh family in patiala state in northern india. sikhs, rejecting hindu polytheism and muslim intolerance in the sixteenth century, had become a vigorous nation with a religion of their own. sundar singh' s mother took him weekly to sit at the feet of a sadhu, an ascetic holy man, who lived in the jungle some miles away. she also sent him to a christian mission school where he could learn english .
wisdom of the sadhu, a collection of anecdotes, sayings, parables, and meditations, brings together the best of sundar singh’s teachings. couched as they are in a distinctly indian idiom, they probe the essence of the gospels with unusual freshness and offer insights of great depth and value to every serious seeker .
george macdonald died on september 18, 1905. just then the young sundar singh decided to become a wandering sadhu, and less than three weeks after macdonald' s death he set out on his twenty - fouryear ministry. when sundar singh died in the spring of 1929, c. s. lewis dedicated his life to god and gradually began his own remarkable ministry. all three of these men ministered by public speaking, by writing, and by deep and constant prayer .
> from here on the life of sundar singh became most christ - like. being unwilling to denounce his master, it was not long before he had been rejected by his family. sundar took the saffron robes of the sadhu and began a life of spreading the simple message of love and peace and rebirth through jesus. he carried no money or other possessions, only a new testament .
when in the spring of 1920 an oxford don and his young indian tutee conceived the idea of writing a book about sadhu sundar singh, it was in their minds to interpret him to the west in terms that the west could grasp and according to a scale of values that the west could affirm. [ 10 ]
sundar singh fell down before jesus and worshipped him. peace and joy finally flooded his soul. at breakfast he told his bewildered father ,
the old sundar singh is dead; i am a new being .
7 his conversion was obviously much like that of the apostle paul, and he told everyone who would listen .
15 a. j. appasamy, sundar singh: a biography, (madras, india: c. l. s. , 1966), 7. back
18 b. h. streeter and a. j. appasamy, the message of sundar singh, (new york: macmillan, 1921), 68. back
sundar singh' s serene and glowing countenance with its beautifully chiselled features made many people think that he closely resembled the lord jesus, even in his external appearance .
i don' t suppose that anyone has made the link between lewis and sundar singh before ,
bede griffiths continued in another letter on july 27, 1987 .
on reflection i feel that it is very likely that lewis heard of him through the cowley fathers with whom he was very close. in any case, sundar singh needs to be more widely known .
17 (the cowley fathers were the devout anglicans who had hosted sundar singh during his 1920 visit to oxford. )
when parting with young daniel, sundar singh gifted to him his shawl, saying that he was giving it to him as a token of his love. the biblical parallel of the prophet elijah' s mantle falling on young elisha being unmistakable, many said in fun ,
the mantle of sundar singh has fallen on daniel .
as he trudged along a lonely road in an area particularly notorious for bandits, sundar singh was suddenly accosted one day by a bandit accustomed to summarily killing travellers and seizing and plundering their valuables. when sundar singh met this cruel man who blocked his path with an upraised sword, he meekly put down his head and expected the sword to fall at any moment. but, to his surprise, the man lowered his sword and his manner changed completely! he could not believe that a man who was strong and tall like sundar singh would so meekly submit. wondering at the words of sundar singh he led him to a cave. the bandit took him into the interior of the cave. there in the nether part, sundar singh saw the skeletons of men who had been killed by him. the bandit exclaimed ,
all these men have i killed! will god forgive me ?
there sundar singh proclaimed to this desperate and wicked man the forgiveness which the lord jesus offers to sinners .
sadhu sundar singh is one of the most fascinating and enigmatic spiritual guides of the twentieth century. rooted as it is in a distinctively indian style, his christian wisdom challenges western readers to step beyond theological ideas and taste the gospel itself. plough has done a great service by publishing the work of this wise and holy teacher .
{ { cite news urltoken | title = sadhu sundar singh. | newspaper = [ [ the sydney morning herald ] ] | issue = 25, 777 | location = new south wales, australia | date = 17 august 1920 | accessdate = 10 july 2018 | page = 6 | via = national library of australia } }
was sadhu a hindu? on a number of occasions sadhu had described himself as a former hindu, and more than once mentioned of his hindu heritage by pointing out doctrines that are without question of hindu origin. sadhu made it clear, “christianity was fulfillment of hinduism. hinduism has been digging channels. christ is the water to flow through these channels … there are many beautiful things in hinduism; but the fullest light is from christ. ” in 1922 while sadhu was journeying overseas, his expressed reservations about mahatma gandhi’s satyagraha tactics was published: “ [ sadhu ] made quite plain his profound disapproval of mr. gandhi’s method telling him in so many words that they can lead india to nothing but ruin and useless suffering. ” i learnt from gandhi’s reply that sadhu and gandhi had met more than once. according to gandhi, talking of sadhu, “we had the closet communion…. we had long discussions over all these and other matters and he certainly left on me the impression that for a religious man no course left open. ” was sadhu involved in politics with gandhi? evidence suggests he was. being a genuine hindu that he was and rightly so with so much of the efforts invested by his mother why sundar failed to mention her name? something is fishy here and i have developed suspicions that sadhu’s real history might be altogether different. could it be that sundar was a hindu boy raised by the missionaries and trained to carry out a double deception with respect to his allegedly hybrid “hindu - sikh model” as conduit to proselyte the masses who had grown resistant to the christ’s message ?
to meet christ was only the beginning for sundar singh. he was a sikh. sikhs had endured terrible persecutions in their early history. as a consequence they were fiercely loyal to their faith and to each other. conversion to christianity was considered treachery. now every effort was made to woo or coerce sundar singh back to his ancestral faith .
yet in the indian context that shaped sundar singh' s christianity, all these aspects of exemplary christian religious life had strong parallels in indian traditions. the sadhu or
holy man
renounces worldly life in seeking ultimate
salvation .
in this way, sundar singh sought to demonstrate that christian faith and indian religious culture had much more in common than the christianity brought by foreign missionaries seemed to allow. indian christians understood and appreciated this, and by the 1920s, many european christians began to agree .
if true, sundar in 1896 c. e. knew by heart the bhagavad
from gujranwala in punjab. theoretically it is possible for sundar to have read and
sundar singh' s zeal for the lord jesus and his practice of christian discipleship comes as a rebuke to the soft, over - cuddled, comfortable christian believer of today .
there were too many who were drawn by mere enthusiasm or curiosity and by the renown of sundar singh, to peer closely at him or to seek interviews with him. sundar singh needed privacy and guarded it very carefully. he preferred not to speak more than twice a day, and used his time for long periods of prayer and communion with god .
sadhu sundar singh came down to madras in 1918 intending to visit a few places. [ 15 ] by this time, his fame had spread far and wide and he was flooded with offers to preach all over south india. thousands of people flocked for his meetings with a keen desire to hear sundar singh. conventions were conducted in travancore where he was invited as a speaker. sundar singh went on to ceylon and conducted spiritual meetings of great power for six weeks. [ 16 ] he was greatly disturbed by the caste system prevailing in these regions and condemned them severely. his ministry to the eastern nations extended to burma, malaya, penang, singapore, china and japan. [ 17 ]
sadhu sundar singh was an indian christian missionary. he once said: “those who determine not to put self to death will never see the will of god fulfilled in their lives. those who ought to become the light of the world must necessarily burn and become less and less. by denying self, we are able to win others. ”
several biographies have been written about sundar singh which emphasize his piety, humility and christian witness. eric sharpe surveyed the biographical studies of sundar singh and discerned a number of significant discrepancies in chronological details, in the accounts of his christian conversion, and the accounts of his travels to tibet. sharpe indicates that writers in continental europe, england and the united states of america constructed different portraits of sundar singh. he argues that the different portraits disclose much about the way westerners thought about india in the 1920s and 1930s. sharpe remarks :
sadhu’s mental health: thanks to c. f. andrews for bringing to my notice that early on, sundar’s father and his uncle regarded sundar as mad. this was based upon the facts they possessed in their hands. his siblings kept themselves away and it seems because of sundar’s eccentric behaviors, he was rendered aloof. after sundar had adopted christianity he was let go and his family connections were cut off. sadhu, being a famous evangelist, was on a ride which he would have never imagined had he not left rampur village. if sadhu indeed had suffered from some psychiatric disorder, i suppose it might have been pointed out in his missionary journeys worldwide at least somewhere within the christian circles. come to think of–it did. here are some of their views: 1. father hosten, a jesuit at darjeeling, writing in the catholic herald of india (1923 - 1925) elaborated his impressions that the sadhu was a “shameless imposter, who has invented the greater part of his life - story in order to win the reputation of sanctity. ” 2. german jesuits published a series of accusations in a paper entitled stimmen der zeit (1924 - 1926) calling sadhu an “oriental deceiver, a childish visionary, who confounds the creations of his fantasy with reality. ” 3. father hosten and dr. o. pfister wrote a book titled, the legend of sundar singh (berne, 1926). pfister regarded sadhu as a “neurotic person whose sense of reality has been impaired, and who therefore tends, although unconscious that he is doing so, to misrepresent historical facts. ” pfister also believed to have discovered other morbid traits, such as sadism, in the sadhu’s psycho - physical life. from the point of view of a psychoanalyst, pfister believed that sadhu’s love to christ was “rooted in repressed infantile sex - complexes. ”
sadhu sundar singh (1889 - 1929) was known in his lifetime as india' s most famous convert to christianity. in the hindu tradition, a sadhu (literally ,
one who is on the right path
) is a holy man, saint or seer, one who has renounced the world for the sake of the path which leads to enlightenment. however, it could be said he rejected the western forms of christianity and instead adapted christ' s words to india' s unique culture and environment .
really an inspiring disciple of christ of the 21st centuary. the way jesus might have revealed to him and showed his love love might have pulled sadhu that he was called as christ where ever he goes... glory to jesus that he (jesus) has raised such people trained like him, to live for him... i praise god for rasing sadhu... .! and spreading the gospel... sadhu proved jesus is in him and glorified jesus too... !
streeter, burnett hillman, and a. j. appasamy. 1923. the sadhu: a study in mysticism and practical religion. london: macmillan. oclc 154224895 .
now that his short stint of eight months at theological school was finished, sundar singh plunged again into the glorious mission of making christ known to all who would hear. it was in july 1910 that sundar singh secured his release from the seminary. his stay there however left some changes in lives, which would last long after he himself ceased from his labours .
such praise and adulation, however, were only faint echoes of the devotion sundar singh had inspired in india, where he had wandered robed in the style of a sadhu (ascetic
holy man
) preaching christ for 15 years. his indian admirers proclaimed
how like christ he is !
wherever he went. this likeness, they asserted, reflected a deep, mystical union :
it is no sin to call sundar singh' swami' [ i. e. , lord ] for christ himself dwells in him .
born on september 3, 1889 in the house of sher singh at rampur village in patiala state .
benge, janet, and geoff benge. 2005. sundar singh: footprints over the mountains. christian heroes, then & now. seattle, wa: ywam pub. isbn 9781576583180 .
on one occasion, when sundar singh was suffering greatly amidst the cold, stricken by malaria, stokes, being greatly concerned, drew the shawl from sundar' s face to see how he was. shivering and burning with fever as he was, sundar with a radiant face was heard saying ,
how sweet it is to suffer for jesus !
related material: the school of oriental and african studies also holds records of the conference of british missionary societies, international missionary council, including papers relating to sadhu sundar singh, 1929 - 1930s (ref: cbms / h / pb6 / 71 / 46, cbms / h / pb28 / 93 / 94, cbms / h / pb52 / 117) .
his successor, sadhu sundar selvaraj, prophesied last april 2013 that earthquakes will occur in the philippines and that strong typhoon will hit leyte and samar. he also stated that people might kill each other for food, it will be talked to all ...
now, this was the backdrop against which sundar singh began his missionary labours. the tradition of a young man clad in yellow robes who had renounced marriage and was therefore given the honorific' sadhu', gave a person freedom of travel, as a prerequisite of his calling. moreover, a sadhu would be accepted in circles where a white - robed or black - robed christian priest or pastor would be turned away. the people had been taught by long tradition to reverence a person who had made the requisite sacrifices to become a sadhu. sundar singh, in donning a yellow robe, immediately made himself accessible to many common people. they felt they could communicate with a man in a yellow robe. there was much which they shared with him in common. there were occasions too when people were moved to the nth degree of rage and violent vituperation and disgust when they discovered that this sadhu was preaching christ, and not the gods or the ancient epics and vedas, whom alone they venerated. thus he was thrust out of villages when it was discovered that he was a christian. but without question, after all has been said, the sadhu' s robe was a great help just to communicate and enter communities where no ordinary christian preacher could commonly go.
sadhu sundar singh ( punjabi : ਸਾਧੂ ਸੁੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ ( gurmukhi ) ; سادھو سندر سنگھ ( shahmukhi ) ; born 3 september 1889 ) was an indian christian missionary . he is believed to have died in the foothills of the himalayas in 1929 . 
sadhu sundar singh (punjabi: ਸਾਧੂ ਸੁੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ (gurmukhi); سادھو سندر سنگھ (shahmukhi); born 3 september 1889) was an indian christian missionary. he is believed to have died in the foothills of the himalayas in 1929.
sadhu sundar singh (punjabi: ਸਾਧੂ ਸੁੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ (gurmukhi); سادھو سندر سنگھ (shahmukhi); born 3 september 1889) was an indian christian missionary. he is believed to have died in the foothills of the himalayas in 1929.