GURU TEGH BAHADUR
CONTEXT
- Prime Minister of India has paid tributes to Sri Guru Teg Bahadur Ji on his martyrdom day.
ABOUT GURU TEG BAHADUR (1621-1675)
- Guru Tegh Bahadur was the ninth of ten Gurus of the Sikh religion. Born at Amritsar in 1621, was the youngest son of Guru Hargobind.
- One hundred and fifteen of his hymns are in Guru Granth Sahib.
- There are several accounts explaining the motive behind the assassination of Guru Tegh Bahadur on Aurangzeb’s orders. He stood up for the rights of Kashmiri Pandits who approached him against religious persecution by Aurangzeb.
- He was publicly killed in 1675 on the orders of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in Delhi for himself refusing Mughal rulers and defying them.
- Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib and Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib in Delhi mark the places of execution and cremation of his body.
SIKHISM (SOURCE – MODERN INDIAN HISTORY BY SONALIBANSAL)
- Sikhism was founded by Guru Nanak in the Punjab region in the 15th century. The Sikh Panth was as old as the Mughal Empire. When Guru Nanak began to preach his message of devotion and equality in punjab in the 15th century, Babur was founding the Mughal Empire. ‘Sikh’ literally means learner or disciple. In the course of time, the new cult took the form of a religious movement and spread quickly among the Jat peasantry and other lower castes in Punjab. Guru Nanak’s religious movement was peaceful and secu¬lar. Nanak was succeeded by nine Gurus; all the ten Sikh Gurus emphasised on simplicity of religion and freedom from bigotry.
- Guru Nanak- founder of Sikhism.
- Guru Angad- developed the Gurumukhi script, introduced the langar (free kitchen) and tradition of mall akhara for the youth.
- Guru Amar Das- composed the Anand Sahib, introduced the simple Anand Karaj marriage and abolished sati among the Sikhs.
- Guru Ram Das- laid the foundation of the holy city of Amritsar (earlier known as Ramdaspur and Guru- ka-Chak) and initiated the construction of the Golden Temple.
- Guru Arjan Dev- compiled the Adi Granth and completed the construction of the Golden Temple (It was during Ranjit Singh’s reign that the shrine of the temple was richly decorated with marble and gold plates and came to be known as the Golden Temple).
- Guru Hargobind- created the Sikh marital art called Gatka, trained the Sikhs in military art and war tactics, built the Akal Takhat, and was known as the ‘soldier saint’.
- Guru Har Rai- he maintained the large army of Sikh soldiers that the sixth Sikh Guru had amassed, yet avoided military conflict, and was known as the ‘tender-hearted guru’.
- Guru Har Krishan- was the youngest of all gurus, installed as guru at the age of five.
- Guru Teg Bahadur- he refused to convert to Islam and was beheaded in Delhi on the orders of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.
- Guru Gobind Singh- transformed the Sikhs into a military force by establishing the body of the Khalsa in 1699.