How Sikhs emerged into a Warrior race! The Birth of Akal Sena

Sikhism is the 5th amongst the major religions in the world that originated in Undivided Punjab, India during the 15th century. India was at the time in the clutches of Muslim rulers, particularly the Mughals. To get a better understanding about the basic tenements of Sikhism, please refer to~

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Previous blogpost- Understanding Sikhism: Basic facts and its origins

While the core teachings of Sikhism lies in the belief of One Supreme Universal God; a Sikh is one who also follows the utterances of the 10 Sikh Gurus from Guru Nanak to Guru Gobind Singh. The Gurus left a legacy of teachings and hymns of devotion to the Supreme God. The compilation of their works is the holy scriptures of the Sikhs~ The Guru Granth Sahib.

The Guru Granth Sahib is also considered as 11th Guru ie. The inner voice of spiritual wisdom. 

Under the influence of the Gurus, Sikhism developed and evolved despite religious persecution, gaining converts from both Hindus and Muslims. This irked the Mughal rulers who regarded Islam as the only true religion and all the rest as infidels unless they converted to Islam. This brought the Sikh gurus eye to eye with Mughals.

TABLE OF CONTENT 

1) Mughal-Sikh wars by Akal Sena 
2) Mughal-Sikh wars by Khalsa
3) Sikh pilgrimage: Delhi to Amritsar 

The Birth of Akal Sena 

Guru Arjan's martyrdom in such a manner left a powerful impact on his only son Guru Hargobind, who now took his place as the 6th Sikh guru. The new Guru realised that vulnerability in the face of injustice is not the answer to the problem. Hatred and injustice needs to be confronted in a befitting manner.  

Guru Hargobind thus introduced the process of militarisation into Sikhism and formed the Akal Sena.  

Sikh militarisation first began under the leadership of Guru Hargobind (6th Sikh Guru), when he formed the Akal Sena 

In due course he came to possess 700 horses and a cavalry or Risaldari' of 300 men and another 60 musketeers. Plus he always maintained a personal retinue of armed men. 

A retinue of armed Sikhs guarding a Sikh guru 

The term Akal Sena means An Army of Immortal warriors. It came to be recognised as the 1st standing Sikh Army.

The Nishan Sahib, also known as the Akal Dhuja [the Immortal flag] or Basanti [signifying it's bright yellow-orange shades] was first raised by Guru Hargobind in 1606

The above Akal Dhuja flag signifies the combined Spirituality + Warrior spirit of the elite Sikh army corps. The warriors of Akal Sena was referred to as Akalis (the Immortals).

💡 During the early days of the Akal Sena formation, Rajputs who converted to Sikhism shared their expertise in the Art of Warfare. 

Who were Guru Arjan's enemies? Calling the elephant in the room.

It would be incorrect to state that Guru Arjan's horrific execution was entirely the doings of Jehangir. Prithi Chand the eldest son of Guru Ram Das who believed the seat of guruship to be an entitlement, was embittered for being overlooked for the position. He conspired with Chandu Mal, an affluent and influential Khatri businessman who also bore hatred  against Guru Arjan. After much persuasion they influenced Mughal emperor Jehangir to press unworthy charges against the Guru inorder to execute him. Jehangir, on his part wrongly suspected the Guru of offering asylum to KHUSRAU (Jehangir's rebellious son), saw an opportunity to arrest Guru Arjan.

Mughal-Sikh wars fought by Akal Sena ⚔️ Tearing through the barriers of Mughal Invincibility

Achieving martial prowess, staying fit and ever ready for battle was the core objective. 

Subsequently from 1621 untill 12 March 1788 ie. within a span of 167 years the Akal Sena  engaged in a staggering 144 wars, campaigns and skirmishes with Mughal rulers~ from Jehangir I to Shah Alam II. 

The outcome- Sikh armies suffered defeat 17/ 144 times with 1 inconclusive battle.  

Here are some momentous highlights of the Battles fought between  Akal Sena Sikh warriors and Mughals.

Battle of Hargobindpur- 1621  

The 1st Mughal-Skh war since the martyrdom of Guru Arjan on 30 May 1606, was The Battle of Rohilla or Hargobindpur [1629]. The Sikhs of Akal Sena succeeded in taking revenge for Guru Arjan's barbaric treatment. Chandu Mal's two sons and Abdul Khan, commander of the Mughal army were killed in this battle. 

Battle of Sangrana- 1628 

Emperor Shahjahan and Guru Hargobind got into a scuffle over a hunting game dispute in which 2 Mughals got killed. In retaliation, Shahjahan destroyed a langar site and marched against the Akal Sena. But the Sikhs won their 1st victory against the all-powerful Shahjahan, thus tearing through the Mughal's mask of Invincibility.

Battle of Amritsar- 1634 

As religious persecution progressed, the Sikhs rallied together. This heightened tensions and the Mughals under Muqhlis Khan set out on an offensive with 7000 soldiers. The Sikhs were unprepared for such a large scale confrontation, evacuated the spot, except for the 25 soldiers guarding the garrison at Fort Lohgarh. The small unit of Sikhs perished only after killing 100s of Mughal soldiers using wooden cannons. 

The battle continued into the next day. A Sikh military commander was killed, and Guru Hargobind had to take charge. The Guru struck Muqhlis Khan's head with a powerful blow splitting it into two. 

A scene of Guru Hargobind fighting Mughal military commander

This was another victory for the Akal Sena. It struck fear in the hearts of the musalmans and tremendous respect for Guru Hargobind, who won support from the peasants of Punjab. 

Battle of Gurusar- 1634 

The Battle of Lahira or Gurusar is an excellent example of strategy and maneovours employed by Akal Sena under the commandership of Guru Hargobind.

The battle was fought between 4,000 Akal Sena+ Kangra soldiers V/z 35,000 Mughal. Despite being outnumbered, Guru Hargobind's camp won the battle. 

Battle of Kartarpur- 1635

The battle of Kartarpur- 1635 is another example of a heavily outnumbered Mughal army of 50,000 men v/z the 1,500 Akalis commanded by Guru Hargobind. The Guru was assisted by Bhai Bhidi Chand and his eldest son Guruditta ji. 

Outcome~ This battle resulted in victory for the Akal Sena. An estimated 700 Sikh Akalis died in battle, whereas the 2000 Mughal soldiers who survived ran away from the battlefield on seeing the last of their leaders die.

Inside Gurudwara Guruditta ji, Kiratpur Sahib- PUNJAB

Baba Guruditta ji (b. 5 Nov 1613, d. March 1638) visited this place alongwith two of his associates and stayed here (ie. site of this gurudwara). 

Phagwara Incident between Sikhs and Mughals- 29 April 1635

After the battle of Kartarpur, Guru Hargobind began his journey from Bhatinda to Kiratpur Sahib.  Enroute at Phagwara the Sikh convoy was attacked by Mughal royal troops commanded by Ahmad Khan. But the Sikhs repelled the attack and killed Ahmad Khan and his associate Fateh Khan, while the rest managed to escape. The Sikhs also lost Bhai Sohela and Bhai Dessa in the battle. The battle of Kiratpur would be the last major battle fought by Akal Sena under the command of Guru Hargobind ji. Thereafter, Guru ji stayed at Kiratpur Sahib till his death.

Sutlej river's Nangal canal flowing from under a flyover bridge at Kiratpur Sahib, PUNJAB 

Besides the Phagwara incident, there were other incidents, such as the one at Kiratpur (1638) and another near the Sutlej river (1652) when Guru Har Rai (the 7th Sikh guru) was attacked by some Mughal soldiers seeking revenge for their defeat in previous battles. They were repelled successfully by Bhai Gaura and the Sikhs. 

Guru Har Rai generally strove for peace rather than conflict especially since a great number of Sikhs were lost in previous battles. That is why he supported the level-headed Dara Shikoh over his younger sibling Aurangzeb. But history proved otherwise; in this case for the worst! Aurangzeb came to power by imprisoning his father Shahjahan and eliminating his brother. Guru Har Rai who had often helped Dara Shikoh would now face persecution from the fanatic new Mughal ruler.

Invasion of Kiratpur- 1658 

So Aurangzeb initially sent a commander named Zalam Khan with a batch of 10,000 soldiers. But Zalam died of severe food-poisoning, as a result of which the campaign was abandoned. Unwilling to give up, Aurangzeb sent another faujdar named Nahar Khan. But disaster struck once again; a cholera epidemic spread throughout the Mughal camp killing Nahar Khan and half the army. 

The waters of river Sutlej flowing alongside Gurudwara Pataal Puri are made holy with the ashes of Guru Hargobind and Guru Har Rai. Sikhs from all over come here to immerse the ashes of their departed loved ones

Gurudwara Shish Mahal at Kiratpur Sahib PUNJAB- commemorates the spot where the 6th, 7th and 8th Sikh gurus lived between 1635 to 1665 [Guru Hargobind, Guru Har Rai and Guru Har Krishan]

Battle of Naduan- 1691 

Upon Mughal emperor Aurangzeb's command, Alif Khan, governor of Punjab began oppressing the hill rajas particularly Raja Bhimchand of Bilaspur (present-day H.P.) into paying annual tributes. This angered Raja Bhimchand, so he sought to form an alliance with the other hill rajas and Guru Hargobind ji as well. A few hill rajas however preferred to stay with the Mughal camp. 

On learning about Bhimchand's refusal to pay the tribute, a Mughal force led by Wazir Khan marched against Raja Bhimchand. But they were no match for the valiant Nihang Sikhs who fought against Raja Bhimchand's army and his allies. Gurudwara Dasvin paatshahi at Nadaun is built on the site where Guru Hargobind tent was pitched. 

Battle of Guler (1696)

A few hindu hill rajas in present-day Himachal Pradesh, probably in the hope of being exempt from paying the jiziya, stood in support of the Mughal camp. But their hopes were dashed when the musselmans demanded the jiziya. When Raja Gopal of Guler state was unable to pay the tribute, his fort was laid seige. Guru Gobind Singh's army confronted the Mughal forces at Guler, that resulted in another victory for the Akal Sena. Mughal army commander, Hussain Khan along with his two supporting hill rajas; namely, Kirpal Chand Katoch and Himmat Singh were killed in this battle.