Amid hymns and music marking Sawan, the Bhai Vir Singh Sahitya Sadan on Wednesday announced 60 memorial scholarships for research scholars at universities in Delhi, Punjab and Chandigarh.Director General of the Sadan Mohinder Singh said the scholarships would honour six distinguished personalities: Bhai Vir Singh, former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, former External Affairs Minister Sardar Swaran Singh, Prof Amrik Singh, scholar Dr Jaswant Singh Neki and Harbans Singh, editor of the Encyclopaedia of Sikhism.Read story: When Bhai Vir Singh’s verses came alive in KashmirTen scholarships will be awarded in the name of each personality. A jury comprising university representatives and senior scholars from the respective institutions will select the recipients.Talking to The Tribune, Mohinder Singh said the initiative would support research students and keep alive the intellectual legacy of those being honoured.The announcement was made during the Sadan’s Sawan celebrations, where music and spirituality took centre stage. The programme featured Ferrofluid, a four-member ensemble comprising vocalist and composer Love Gulshan, Jashan Preet Singh on ukulele, Taari on didgeridoo and Guramrit Singh on dilruba.The ensemble blended traditional sounds with contemporary musical expression. For Mohinder Singh, Sawan is more than a seasonal or cultural celebration. It reflects humanity’s spiritual connection with the ultimate reality.“Sawan talks of the unity of man with the ultimate,” he said, adding that while the idea could be understood in worldly terms, the Guru Granth Sahib presents it as the unity of humanity with the ultimate reality.Recalling an earlier Sawan programme at the Sadan, he said it had featured a rare musical jugalbandi and an explanation of Sawan’s significance by Dr Jaswant Singh Neki.He said music had always been central to Sikh spiritual tradition, with the Guru Granth Sahib containing shabads set to music. “Music is celebrated, and then we talk of the ultimate, not merely of worldly things,” he said.Reflecting on contemporary society, Mohinder Singh said Sawan’s spiritual message was increasingly relevant.“We have become very rich physically, but bankrupt spiritually. We need to rediscover our rich heritage, which is contained in our ancient wisdom,” he said.The Sawan programme thus brought together music, spirituality and scholarship, while the Sadan used the occasion to announce an initiative aimed at supporting the next generation of researchers.