this curious Hindu custom at its worst and at its best; in other words, where the victims were brutally murdered in the name of religion, or where they voluntarily and cheerfully met the death of fire as the glorious crown of a life of self-sacrifice and devotion.
The first took place on the 22nd of September. 1845, when the body of the debauched and infamous Jowáhir Singh, brother of Ráni Jindan and minister of the State, who had been killed by the infuriated soldiery who rightly suspected him of treachery to the Khálsa, was burnt on the plain outside the Lahore fort. It was decided that his four wives should be burnt with him, though the unfortunate women begged for their lives. The scene at the funeral pile was a shocking one. The troops, who had lost all discipline, stripped the women of their jewels and tore away their nose-rings. A Satí is considered a sacred object among Hindus, and her last words prophetic. At the feet of these wretched women. Rájá Dina Náth, who was officially present on behalf of the Ráni, and many others, fell down, imploring their blessings. The Satís blessed him and the Mahárájá, but cursed the army of the Khálsa. When asked the fate of the Punjab, they answered that during the year the country would lose its independence, the Khálsa be overthrown, and the wives of the men of the army would be widows. They were then forced into the flames of the funeral pile; but the prophecy came true, and no curse was more amply fulfilled.
The next Satí was of the widow of Sirdár Shám
