Guru Gobind Singh's petition for protection: the 405th charitar of the Charitropakhyan, recited twice daily, and the one bani Sikh traditions disagree about most.
Chaupai Sahib, properly Kabiyo Bach Benti Chaupai, is a petition for protection composed by Guru Gobind Singh and drawn from the Dasam Granth, where it forms the closing section of the 405th charitar of the Charitropakhyan. It is recited twice in the Sikh day, within the evening Rehras Sahib in every tradition and among the morning banis in some, and it is one of the five banis recited at the Amrit Sanchar.
| Composed by | Guru Gobind Singh (1666–1708), the tenth Guru |
|---|---|
| Where it sits | The Dasam Granth, closing the 405th charitar of the Charitropakhyan |
| Structure | Kabiyo Bach Benti Chaupai, then Arril, then Savaiya, then a closing Dohra |
| When recited | Twice daily: within Rehras Sahib after sunset, and among the morning banis in some traditions |
| How long | Usually under 10 minutes |
| In Nitnem | In the evening Rehras in every tradition; required in the morning by the Damdami Taksal and AKJ but not by the SGPC Rehat Maryada |
Chaupai Sahib is a benti, a petition, and its subject throughout is protection: from enemies, from fear, from affliction reaching the petitioner from outside and from within. Guru Gobind Singh (1666 to 1708) composed it, and it sits in the Dasam Granth at the end of the 405th charitar of the Charitropakhyan rather than in the Guru Granth Sahib.
The bani runs in four movements. The Kabiyo Bach Benti Chaupai carries the petition itself, followed by an Arril, then a Savaiya, then a closing Dohra. It is short, usually under ten minutes, which is part of why it travels so well: a devotee who cannot hold a full Nitnem will often still keep Chaupai Sahib.
Its place in Sikh life is unusually wide. It appears in the evening Rehras under the SGPC's 1945 Rehat Maryada, it is among the five banis of the Amrit Sanchar, and it is the bani households turn to at a specific kind of moment: before surgery, before a court date, during an illness, on a journey taken in fear. Bhai Deep Singh's handwritten copy is among the relics associated with it.
It is also the bani that carries the most live disagreement in Sikh practice, on two separate questions set out below.
The disagreement is real and long-standing. An Amritdhari Sikh may follow either column; neither is a deviation from the other's point of view.
| Bani | SGPC Sikh Rehat Maryada | Damdami Taksal / AKJ |
|---|---|---|
| Japji Sahib | Required | Required |
| Jaap Sahib | Required | Required |
| Tav-Prasad Savaiye | Required | Required |
| Chaupai Sahib | Not listed for the morning | Required |
| Anand Sahib | Not listed for the morning | Required |
| Occasion | Position |
|---|---|
| Evening Rehras Sahib | Recited after the So Dar and So Purakh sections, per the SGPC Rehat Maryada of 1945 |
| Morning Nitnem | Recited by Damdami Taksal and AKJ practice; not listed in the SGPC morning order |
| Amrit Sanchar | One of the five banis recited at the Khalsa initiation |
| Personal recitation | Commonly recited outside any fixed time at moments of danger, illness or fear |
Two genuine disagreements sit behind this bani, and naming them is more useful than writing as though Sikh practice were uniform. The first concerns the morning Nitnem: the SGPC's Sikh Rehat Maryada lists Japji Sahib, Jaap Sahib and Tav-Prasad Savaiye, while the Damdami Taksal and the Akhand Kirtani Jatha hold that Chaupai Sahib and Anand Sahib belong there too. The second concerns the Dasam Granth itself. Its compilation and the authorship of parts of it have been debated within the Panth since the nineteenth century, and the debate has at times been sharp. Chaupai Sahib's own standing is not what is at issue: it is recited in gurudwaras worldwide, sits in the SGPC's own Rehras order, and forms part of the Amrit Sanchar. The contested question is the wider status of the volume it comes from, and anyone presenting either dispute as settled is choosing a side in it.
Sevahey does not perform paths. No Sevak recites Chaupai Sahib for you, and this page carries no text, transliteration or recording of the bani. An ardas at a gurudwara is what Sevahey arranges, and it is a different thing.
Devotees reach for Chaupai Sahib at the sharp moments: a diagnosis, a hearing, a journey undertaken in fear. Those are the same moments a family asks a gurudwara for an ardas, where the granthi speaks the name, the gotra and the request aloud before the Guru Granth Sahib. A path is kept by the person reciting it; an ardas can be offered for someone who is absent, which is what a verified Sevak arranges when you cannot reach the gurudwara yourself.
Chaupai Sahib, properly Kabiyo Bach Benti Chaupai, is a petition for protection composed by Guru Gobind Singh. It sits in the Dasam Granth as the closing section of the 405th charitar of the Charitropakhyan, and it is recited within the evening Rehras Sahib as well as among the morning banis in some traditions.
Guru Gobind Singh (1666 to 1708), the tenth Guru. It appears in the Dasam Granth rather than the Guru Granth Sahib, closing the 405th charitar of the Charitropakhyan composition.
Both, and the morning question is genuinely disputed. It is recited in the evening Rehras Sahib in every tradition, placed there by the SGPC's Sikh Rehat Maryada of 1945. For the morning, the SGPC lists Japji Sahib, Jaap Sahib and Tav-Prasad Savaiye only, while the Damdami Taksal and the Akhand Kirtani Jatha hold that Chaupai Sahib and Anand Sahib are also required.
Four movements: the Kabiyo Bach Benti Chaupai carrying the petition itself, then an Arril, then a Savaiya, then a closing Dohra. The whole bani usually takes under ten minutes to recite.
Protection. The petition asks to be kept from enemies, from fear and from affliction arriving both from outside and from within. Beyond daily Nitnem, devotees commonly recite it before surgery, before a court hearing, during illness, and on a journey taken in fear.
Yes. It is one of the five banis recited at the Khalsa initiation, alongside Japji Sahib, Jaap Sahib, Tav-Prasad Savaiye and Anand Sahib.
Its compilation and the authorship of parts of it have been debated within the Panth since the nineteenth century. Chaupai Sahib's own standing is not the point at issue: it is recited in gurudwaras worldwide, appears in the SGPC's own Rehras order, and forms part of the Amrit Sanchar. What remains disputed is the wider status of the volume it is drawn from.
Usually under ten minutes, which is one reason it is the bani most often kept by devotees who cannot hold a full Nitnem. As with any bani, the pace belongs to the reciter and no tradition prescribes one.
No. Sevahey does not perform paths and no Sevak recites a bani on anyone's behalf. What a verified Sevak can do is request an ardas in your name and gotra at the gurudwara you choose, receive the hukamnama read after it, and send you same-day proof.
Choose the gurudwara, name your sankalp, receive the proof.
* Sevahey does not perform paths. A full seva is ₹899; sevas start from ₹251. Sevahey is a service platform and does not promise a spiritual, medical, financial, legal, or personal outcome from any prayer or ritual.