How many wives did Samudragupta have?

Answer 1

The wrong impression that the Guru had more than one wife was created by those writers who were ignorant of Punjabi culture. Later authors accepted those writings indicating more than one marriage of the Guru and presented it as a royal act. During those days kings, chiefs, and other important people usually had more than one wife as a symbol of their being great and superior to the common man. Guru Gobind Singh, being a true king, was justified in their eyes to have had more than one wife. This is actually incorrect. In Punjab, there are two and sometimes three big functions connected with marriage, i.e., engagement, wedding, and Muklawa. Big gatherings and singings are held at all these three functions. In many cases, the engagement was held as soon as the person had passed the infant stage. Even today engagements at 8 to 12 years of age are not uncommon in some interior parts of India. The wedding is performed a couple of years after the engagement. After the wedding, it takes another couple of years for the bride to move in with her in laws and live there. This is called Muklawa. A dowry and other gifts to the bride are usually given at this time of this ceremony to help her to establish a new home. Now, the wedding and Muklawa are performed on the same day and only when the partners are adults. A big befitting function and other joyful activities were held at Anand Pur, according to custom, at the time of the engagement of the Guru. The bride, Mata Jeeto Ji, resided at Lahore, which was the capital of the Mughal rulers who were not on good terms with the Gurus. When the time for the marriage ceremony came, it was not considered desirable for the Guru to go to Lahore, along with the armed Sikhs in large numbers. Furthermore, it would involve a lot of traveling and huge expenses, in addition to the inconvenience to the Sangat, younger and old, who wished to witness the marriage of the Guru. Therefore, as mentioned in the Sikh chronicles, Lahore was 'brought' to Anand Pur Sahib for the marriage instead of the Guru going to Lahore. A scenic place a couple of miles to the north of Anand Pur was developed into a nice camp for the marriage. This place was named Guru Ka Lahore. Today, people are going to Anand Pur visit this place as well. The bride was brought to this place by her parents and the marriage was celebrated with a very huge gathering attending the ceremony. The two elaborate functions, one at the time of engagement and the other at the time of the marriage of the Guru, gave the outside observers the impression of two marriages. They had reason to assume this because a second name was also there, i.e., Mata Sundari Ji. After the marriage, there is a custom in the Panjab of giving a new affectionate name to the bride by her inlaws. Mata Jeeto Ji, because of her fine features and good looks, was named Sundari (beautiful) by the Guru's mother. The two names and two functions gave a basis for outsiders to believe that the Guru had two wives. In fact, the Guru had one wife with two names as explained above. Some historians even say that Guru Gobind Singh had a third wife, Mata Sahib Kaur. In 1699, the Guru asked her to put patasas (puffed sugar) in the water for preparing Amrit when he founded the Khalsa Panth. Whereas Guru Gobind Singh is recognized as the spiritual father of the Khalsa, Mata Sahib Kaur is recognized as the spiritual mother of the Khalsa. People not conversant with the Amrit ceremony mistakenly assume that Mata Sahib Kaur was the wife of Guru Gobind Singh. As Guru Gobind Singh is the spiritual but not the biological father of the Khalsa, Mata Sahib Devan is the spiritual mother of the Khalsa, Mata Sahib Devan is the spiritual mother of the Khalsa but not the wife of Guru Gobind Singh. From ignorance of Punjabi culture and the Amrit ceremony, some writers mistook these three names of the women in the life of Guru Gobind Singh as the names of his three wives. Another reason for this misunderstanding is that the parents of Mata Sahib Devan, as some Sikh chronicles have mentioned, had decided to marry her to Guru Gobind Singh. When the proposal was brought for discussion to Anandpur, the Guru had already been married. Therefore, the Guru said that he could not have another wife since he was already married. The dilemma before the parents of the girl was that, the proposal having become public, no Sikh would be willing to marry her. The Guru agreed for her to stay at Anand Pur but without accepting her as his wife. The question arose, as most women desire to have children, how could she have one without being married. The Guru told, "She will be the "mother" of a great son who will live forever and be known all over the world." The people understood the hidden meaning of his statement only after the Guru associated Mata Sahib Devan with preparing Amrit by bringing patasas. It is, therefore, out of ignorance that some writers consider Mata Sahib Devan as the worldly wife of Guru Gobind Singh.

Above decription taken mainly from : the book "The Sikh Faith Questions & Answers " by Gurbaksh Singh USA

Mata JITO JI was ji was the wife of Guru Gobind Singh ji (1666-1708), the daughter of Bhai Ram Saran, a Kumarav Khatri of Bijvara, in present-day Hoshiarpur district of the Punjab. Her name JITO JI according to old traditions was changed by her In Laws to be lovingly called as SUNDARI JI. She was married to Guru Gobind Singh at Anandpur on 4 April 1684. Four sons were born to Mata Jito ji/Sundari ji - Baba Ajit Singh ji, Baba Jujhar Singh ji (14 March 1691), Baba Zorawar Singh ji (17 November 1696) and Baba Fateh Singh ji (25 February 1699).

Mata Sahib Devan Ji is by tradition mother of the Khalsa, was the daughter of Bhai Har Bhagvan alias Ramu, from clan of a Bassi , and his wife,Jas Devi, a devout Sikh couple of Rohtas, in Jehlum district (now in Pakistan). Her parents had from the beginning dedicated her to the service of Guru Gobind Singh. They took her along as they came to Anandpur on the occasion of the Baisakhi festival of 1700, and disclosed to the Guru their heart's wish to give away their daughter in marriage to him. The Guru, who already had married and was the father of four sons, refused the offer. But when Bhai Har Bhagvan insisted that their daughter had been brought up as a prospective spouse of the Guru and would not countenance marriage with anyone else, he agreed, but made it explicit that she would remain virgin all her life. The nuptials took place at Anandpur on 15 April 1700. Guru Gobind Singh proclaimed Mata Sahib Devan to be the mother of the Khalsa. Ever since the custom has been that, at the time of initiation, the novitiates declare themselves to be the sons and daughters of Guru Gobind Singh and Mata Sahib Devan.

Mata Sahib Devan / Sahib Kaur Ji accompanied Guru Gobind Singh to Nanded, but again, shortly before his assassination in early October 1708, she was persuaded to return to Delhi and stay with Mata Sundari. She brought with her from Nanded five weapons said to have originally belonged to Guru Hargobied. From Delhi she, jointly with Mata Sundari, supervised the affairs of the community as is evident from some of the hukamnamas issued to sangats in her name.The exact date of Mata Sahib Devan's death is not known, but it is believed that she passed away some time before Mata Sundari who died in 1747. The available hukamnamas issued by Mata Sahib Devan bear dates between 1726 and 1734 indicating that she must have expired some time between 1734 and 1747. The memorial in her honour stands close to the one commemorating Mata Sundari in the premises of Gurdwara Bala Sahib, New Delhi. The weapons said to have been brought by her from Nanded are preserved as sacred relics in Gurdwara Rikabganj in Parliament Street, New Delhi.

Answer 2

only 1!!!!

Answer 3

3

Answer 4

4