Guru Nanak along with Bhai Mardana reached Hasan Abdal in Baisakh Samwat 1578 B.K., corresponding to the summer of 1521 CE, when according to Sikh legend, Guru Nanak's handprint was imprinted onto a boulder. The Gurdwara was named Panja Sahib by Hari Singh Nalwa, the most famous general of the Sikh Empire. He is credited with having built the first gurdwara at the site.Nalwa, V. (2009), Hari Singh Nalwa - Champion of the Khalsaji, New Delhi: Manohar, pp. 229-31,
