Sodhi ( Punjabi: ਸੋਢੀ) is a Khatri clan from the Punjab region. [1] [2] [3] Seven of the Sikh Gurus, from Guru Ram Das to Guru Gobind Singh were of Sodhi surname. [1] [4][ better source needed]
In the Bachittar Natak Guru Gobind Singh wrote the origin of Sodhi clan and described them as linear descendants of Lava, one of the twin sons of Sita and Rama. According to the legend, some of the descendants migrated to Sanaudh where the clan chieftain married the daughter of the king and had a son named Sodhi Rai whose descendants ruled over the Sanaudh region now known as East and West Punjab and Haryana and some parts of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir [3][ need quotation to verify]
At the time of the Sikh Empire, Maharaja Ranjit Singh awarded revenue-free grants to Sodhis, who were not strictly associated with any particular religion and usually "maintained a considerable number of horsemen". Towards the end of his reign, the total worth of jaigirs was ₹500,000 a year. Ranjit Singh lavishly patronised a descendant of Dhir Mahal, Sodhi Sadhu Singh, with a gift of several villages. [5] The original copy of the Adi Granth, also known as the Kartarpuri Bir, is reported to be in the possession of the descendants of Sodhi Sadhu Singh at Kartarpur. [6] [7]
The Sodhis of Anandpur Sahib are descendants of Sodhi Suraj Mal,[ citation needed] one of Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji's sons and brother of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji. The Sodhis of Anandpur held revenue free lands in Anandpur Sahib and various other parts of Punjab. [8] They were the ruling family of Anandpur Sahib. [9]