Sardar Hari Singh Nalwa was an amazing Gursikh of Ranjit Singh's time. ('maharaja' ranjit singh).
Hari Singh Nalwa was raised by his mother and his mamas (i think his father died when he was young) and they raised him to be a good, strong Singh. When he was around 14, he was such an amazing and skilled warrior, that Ranjit Singh appointed Hari Singh to fight in his army.
Ranjit Singh may have had some faults (he had more than one wife, people say other stuff about him too) BUT he was very good at knowing a true Singh when he saw one. Once he saw Sardar Hari Singh training and practicing with the other singhs, and Ranjit Singh was SOOO impressed by Hari Singh that he appointed him as his immediate right-hand bodyguard. Ranjit Singh had many bodyguards, but he immediately appointed Hari Singh as his closest bodyguard, just by seeing his fighting skills ONCE.
Eventually, people began calling Hari Singh "Sardar Hari Singh" because he became the leader of one of Ranjit Singh's fauj's. He was given great respect. They also began calling him "Sardar Hari Singh NALUA" because:
Raja Nal was an old Indian king, and at one point in his life, he fought with a lion bare-handed. Sardar Hari Singh, at one point in his life, did the same thing. He was going through the forest and he came across a huge lion. Instead of running away, Sardar Hari Singh took both of his arms, put them IN the lions mouth, and with his amazing strength he toppled the lion over... Imagine a Singh doing this to like a 600-lb lion! So he did that, and some people say he used his kirpan immediately to stab the lion as well. What a brave warrior, to go head to head with a lion... This is why people began calling him Sardar Hari Singh NALUA, as he was named after Raja Nal who also fought with a lion bare-handed..
Sardar Hari Singh Nalua was extremely brave. Another amazing thing about him - people referred to him as "Doola" (meaning "the groom"). He is known as "the original Doola" because he was said to have danced with death the way a groom dances with a bride.
Dhan Gur Sikhi, Dhan Guru Dhey Sikh.
WAHEGURU Jee Ka Khalsa
WAHEGURU Jee Kee Fateh!!