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Meaning of Sarab Loh


shaheediyan

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I came across this article from a Sikhnet posting where "Sarvaloha" is translated as "all metals".

Interesting with regards to the popular/mainstream understanding that it means "pure Iron". Apologies if this sounds like a typical Tapoban discussion, I just found the historic reference very interesting.

"The powder of all the metals (sarvaloha) as red as fire, or the mixture of the powder of kumbhí (gmelia arberea, sísa (lead), trapu (zinc), mixed with the charcoal powder of the flowers of páribhadraka (deodar), palása (Butea Frondosa), and hair, and with oil, wax, and turpentine, is also an inflammable powder."

http://www.mssu.edu/projectsouthasia/histo...ra/BookXIII.htm

Sikhnet post:

Waheguru ji ka khalsa

Waheguru ji ki fateh

<<The>>

We normally think that stainless steel is pure iron, it is not. It contains chromium and nickel alloyed with iron in significant amounts that is why it does not get rusted.

We have conveniently translated the term 'Sarab Loh' as 'Pure Iron'. In old literature 'Sarab Loh' meant all available metals other than gold. Shakats or worshippers of godess or shakti considered metals as manifestations of godess's shakti hence in addition to worshipping 'iron' or 'iron weapons' worshipped all metals and collective term 'Sarab Loh' was used for these.

Incidentally iron became known much later than other metals in India. Copper and alloys of copper especially bronze were known for making weapons much earlier in Bronze Age.

We find word 'Sarva Loha' mentioned in Chankya's Arth Shastar. See the URL below:

http://www.mssu.edu/projectsouthasia/histo...ra/BookXIII.htm

"The powder of all the metals (sarvaloha) as red as fire, or the mixture of the powder of kumbhí (gmelia arberea, sísa (lead), trapu (zinc), mixed with the charcoal powder of the flowers of páribhadraka (deodar), palása (Butea Frondosa), and hair, and with oil, wax, and turpentine, is also an inflammable powder."

Here Chankaya is giving a recipe for coating the tip of an arrow with an incediary mixture, iginiting it, and firing towards a beseiged fort in order to set on fire to help end the siege. The relevant phrase used is 'Sarvaloha Chooran' meaning powder of Sarvloh.

Elsewhere in wikipedia under 'Arth Shastara' under the metals the Sarvloh metals listed are Silver, Iron, Zinc, Tin, and Lead.

Humbly

Serjinder Singh

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  • 1 month later...

Shaheedyan ji,

It is interesting to see my friend Serjinder Singh's write up. He is basically a scientist. I came across this pharase Sarva Loha while reading Arthashastara. I thought a scientist would better understand the science behind this mixture of metals. He explained many things about it and sent this information to Sikhnet. He explained that Since gold does not interact with oxygen in air so it does no rust. Gold therefore is found quite pure in nature and shining. Silver also is similar to some extent. These two are therefore known as noble metals. Third metal to be easily available is copper because it can be easily prepared from its ore by heating it in a relatively simple fire. Since copper was red coloured like blood or Lohu in Sanskrit, it began to be called Loha in early vedic period. After discovery of other metals such as tin, zinc, murcury, lead etc, mixtures of these non-Noble metals began to be callrd Sarva Loh. the importance of Sarva Loh apart from Chankya's reference is that even today these mixtures of metals are melted and cast into statues of goddesses. Generally it is called Sarabloh. Hence when In Dasam Granth we see this word it refers to goddess or Shiv. Even these days statues are made from five metals and the mixture when molten is called Panchloh. Google this word and see. During ancient times whatever metals could be collected to either make a weapon or to make statue of goddess or Shiv was called Sarva Loh. Shiv was both Sarabloh as a mixed metal statue of Shiv as well as Sarabkal as death. During pre-vedic period only Shiv and goddess are believed to have been worshipped on the basis seals depicting prototypes of these deities. Vishnu appeared quite late just before the Christian era. Iron was not that easily available during the Rigvedic period. Only meteoritic iron was known and sparingly used particularly for important statues or weapons such as Axe of Prsuram or the Bajjar of Indra. Metallurgy of iron was not well known at that time. Iron at that time was known as Ayas. Word Asi in Dasam Granth refers to a weapon made of iron as in Asiket or Asidhuj. Asi is a distortion of Sanskrit word Ayas.

Edited by Anandpuria
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  • 6 years later...
6 hours ago, Guest Open Opinions said:

'Sarb loh' and 'Dasam Grnath' is nothing to do with Sikhi. It's a Brahmanism concept infiltrated into Sikhi by nirmales.

Ehh. Sorry. You have two chances remaining to answer the final question.

At least spell it right. 

That's Guru Gobind Singh Ji's Bani. Clear to anyone familiar with Gurbani or the concepts therein. It is part of your Nitnem and makes Amrit. That is if you do Nitnem. 

You're clearly unfamiliar with the text and unable to see past superficial misconceptions. I recommend you study your Guru's Bani and come back with an actual profile. 

The concepts in Dasam Granth are ahead of today's understanding still. It's self verifying to anyone who actually reads it. 

If you think you're reading the same type of text as Shabad Guru, you aren't, it's Gurbani most definitely, written for a different purpose however. 

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