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Hasan Abdal & Gurudwara Panja Sahib Hasan Abdal is 48 km from Rawalpindi. It is a beautiful, quiet place and a convenient halting point on G.T. Road enroute to Peshawar or Abbottabad.
On the nearby hill, at an altitude of 714 meters, there is a meditation chamber related to a 15th century Muslim Saint, Baba Wali Qandhari, popularly known as Baba Hasan Abdal. The saint stayed in Hasan Abdal from c.1406 - 1416 AD but died and buried in village Baba Wali near Qandhar (Afghanistan). The devotees and visitors climb over the steps leading to the hill, for offerings and to have a panoramic view of Hasan Abdal. Just opposite the eastern gate of Gurudwara Panja Sahib, there is a small mosque and ‘chilla gah’ (meditation cell) of Baba Wali Qandhari. Behind the mosque is a fresh water pond with big Mahasheer fish. Adjacent to the pond is a building called Maqbara Hakeeman. Two Royal Hakeem (doctor) brothers namely, Abual Fateh Gilani (died 1589 AD) and Hamam Gilani (died 1595 AD) are buried here on the orders of the Mughal emperor Akbar. Both, the fish pond and the tomb, were built by Khawaja Shamsuddin Khawafi, Akbar’s minister, between 1581 - 1583 AD. A paved path leads from the fish pond to a small, walled garden. The garden has two graves, one in the centre and the other in a corner. The central grave is wrongly attributed to a so-called Mughal Princess, Lala Rukh. However, it is not known that who is buried here.
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This town has a particular association with Mughals and Sikhs. It was mentioned by Emperor Jehangir in his memoirs and frequently visited by successive Mughal Kings, on their way to Kashmir. It remained a holy place for various religious groups through the ages. It has a Sikh Gurdwara (temple) known as Panja Sahib having a scared rock with the hand print of their religious leader, Guru Nanak. Twice a year, Sikh pilgrims visit this Gurdwara from all over the world.
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