(C) THE 10 SIKH GURUS
Answering our very 1st question, on what makes Sikhism different?
Besides belief in the One Immortal Being, a Sikh holds reverence to the utterances and teachings of the 10 Sikh gurus from Nanak to Guru Gobind Singh. A Guru is neither an incarnation of God, not is he a prophet ~ but is simply an illuminated soul. The Guru Granth Sahib is now the 11th Guru that is held in reverence. Here is a list of the 10 Sukh Gurus.
 |
| All 10 SIKH Gurus depicted in a single painting- an 1882 watercolor on paper exhibited at Chandigarh Art gallery |
1- Guru Nanak [b. 15 April 1469, d. 22 Sept 1539] was the 1st Sikh Guru who founded the Sikh faith to the people of Punjab. Nanak lived until the age of 70. He appointed the next Guru to lead the Sikh tradition further.
2- Guru Angad [b. 31 March 1504, d. 28 March 1552] meaning 'one's very own'. He too was born into a Hindu Khatri family in a village named Sarainaga at Sri Mukhtsar Sahib, Punjab before converting to Sikhism. Thereafter he began serving and working with Guru Nanak for many years. A colony of Bhatti Rajputs from Jaisalmer who now lived in Sri Mukhtsar Sahib were influenced by and converted to Sikhism.
 |
| Depiction of a Sikh guru |
Guru Angad wrote some 62 shloka compositions himself, but his main task lay in compiling Guru Nanak hymns. He is also credited for standardising the Gurmukhi (Punjabi language) script and undertook many charitable works such as 'seva' and the famed 'langar' tradition ie. serving free food to anyone without discrimination.
3- Guru Amardas [b. 5 May 1479, d. 1 Sept 1574] was 72 years old when he chose to become the disciple of a much younger Guru Angad. Like previous gurus, Amardas belonged to the Hindu Khatri caste prior to embracing Sikhi. He strived to do away with repressive customs that women endured; such as~ banning the Hindu custom of Sati and disallowed 'purdah' ie. veiling for Muslim women. He introduced the Manji system which was basically meant for the propagation of Sikhism and a special branch called as 'Piri' to reach out to women, especially muslim women.
 |
Guru seva and singing in praise of the Immortal God
|
4- Guru Ram Das [b. 24 Sept 1524, d. 1 Sept 1598]
Just before his death at the age of 95, Guru Amardas named his son-in-law as the next Guru to lead the Sikh faith. Guru Ram Das also belonged to the Hindu Khatri community. He got orphaned at a young age, so alongwith his grandmother moved to Goindval in search of the Guru. Thereafter he served the Guru selflessly. After becoming himself the Guru, he faced hostilities from Guru Ram Das's sons, so he moved his base to Amritsar- a city that he was founded by him in the Sikh tradition. The holy pool within the Golden temple complex was built by him.
5- Guru Arjan [b. 15 April 1563, d. 30 May 1606] was Guru Ram Das's son who was named the next Guru. Here too arose a struggle for succession; Arjan Dev (ie. his original name) faced severe hostility from his elder brother, Prithi Chand. By this time the Sikhs had become a formidable social group. This enraged Mughal emperor Jehangir, who executed the Guru in the most brutal inhuman way.
Before his death, Guru Arjan had completed the Harminder Sahib or Golden temple on 1 Sept, 1604. He then installed the Guru Granth Sahib in Harminder Sahib.
6- Guru Hargobind [b. 19 June 1595, d. 28 Feb 1644]
Before his death Guru Arjan named his only son Hargobind as the next Guru. He was only 11 years old then. Impacted by the the brutal execution of his father at the hands of Mughal emperor Jehangir, Guru Hargobind found a new purpose and direction and formed the Akal Sena; ie militarisation of Sikhism. His resistance against Mughal rule resulted in the Mughal-Sikh wars.
His other credible work was founding the Akal Takht which is the 1st and most important of the Panch Takhts.
7- Guru Har Rai [b. 16 Jan 1630, d. 6 Oct 1661]
Guru Har Rai was Guru Hargobind's grand-son. He continued the tradition of maintaining a large Sikh army, yet avoided any military conflict. He lived during the period of succession conflicts within the Mughal empire. Guru Har Rai much preferred the sober and level-minded Dara Shikoh over the Islamic fanatic Aurangzeb. When Aurangzeb finally murdered Dara Shikoh and overtook the Mughal throne, the Sikh Guru faced persecution for having supported Dara.
Guru Har Rai is credited for introducing the akhand kirtan ie. continuous kirtan singing, as well as the public singing and scripture recital tradition that continues to this day.
8- Guru Har Krishan [b. 7 July 1656, d. 30 March 1664]
Guru Har Kishan was only 5 years old when he was named the Bal Guru (child guru). But he did not live long. A smallpox and cholera epidemic struck when he was resting at Raja Jai Singh's bungalow (bangla) in Delhi. People who came to him to be cured, were invited to bathe in the bangla well to be healed~ which they did! However Guru himself contracted the deadly illness and died here. He was only 8 years old, Gurudwara Bangla Sahib at Connaught place, Delhi is the same bangla mentioned here.
9- Guru Tegh Bahadur [b. 1 April 1621, d. 11 Nov 1675]
Guru Tegh Bahadur was the youngest son of Guru Hargobind- the 6th Sikh guru. Brought up in a Sikh tradition, Tegh Bahadur was skilled in horsemanship and archery. Like his predecessors he also reserved a retinue of Sikh soldiers, but otherwise he led an austere lifestyle. He is credited for his contribution of 116 hymns and 15 ragas which are part of the Guru Granth Sahib. Besides, he is also the founder of Anandpur Sahib town, where the 2nd Takht Keshgarh Sahib is situated.
Guru Teg Bahadur was martyred by beheading at the hands of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.
10- Guru Gobind Singh [b. 22 Dec 1666, d. 7 Oct 1708]
His father's execution had a profound impact on the 9 years old Guru Gobind Singh, hence he gave the call for forming the Khalsa.
The Tragic end of Guru Gobind Singh ji's family line
 |
| 4 sons of Guru Gobind Singh- late 19th ce painting, watercolour on paper |
Guru Gobind Singh had 4 sons, all of whome he lost during his lifetime. In the 2nd Battle of Chamkaur against the Mughals on 6 Dec 1704, his elder 2 sons; Ajit Singh and Jhujhar Singh were killed in action alongwith with many other valiant Sikhs.
In another incident with the Mughals, Guru Gobind Singh's two younger sons namely~ Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh alongwith their grandmother, were captured and imprisoned at the Thanda Burj by Wazir Khan- Mughal governor of Sirhind. The fort named Thanda meaning 'cold' was meant to be cool on warmer days. However, the Guru ji's family was made to suffer the cold during winter months.
Later the two young boys were buried alive because they refused to convert to Islam. This bringing an end to the Guru's family line.
Towards the end of his lifetime, the Guru departed for Nanded in Maharashtra where he died on 7 October 1708. Before his death Guru Gobind Singh established that there would be no need for any human Gurus hereon. The Guru Granth Sahib (Sikh scriptures) shall serve as the 11th guru, wherein Sikhs should seek spiritual pursuit.
On the hand the Mughals gained nothing out of the oppression and cruelty they caused to the subcontinent. Emperor Aurangzeb's death in 1707 spiralled the beginning of Mughal Empire decline.
Thanks 🙏 for reading this blogpost. Your comments are appreciated. Please do share with others.
Comments
Post a Comment