Guru Tegh Bahadur
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Guru Tegh Bahadur (ਗੁਰੂ ਤੇਗ਼ ਬਹਾਦੁਰ) (गुरू तेग बहादुर) (Born in Amritsar, Punjab, India on 1 April 1621 He became the 9th Guru of Sikhism on March 20 1665, following in the footsteps of his grand-nephew, Guru Har Krishan. Guru Teg Bahadur was martyred by Aurangzeb for protecting the Hindus against religious genocide, in Delhi, on the 11th of November 1675 AD.[1]
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[edit] Biography
The sixth Guru of the Sikhs, Sri Guru Har Gobind Ji, had five sons of whom Guru Teg Bahadur was the youngest. The Guru's name, literally translates to "master of the sword". In fact, Guru Tegh Bahadur was the master of the spiritual sword and not the political sword.
Shortly after the birth of Guru Teg Bahadur, Sri Guru Har Gobind Sahib asked many priests, including Baba Budha Ji and Baba Gurdas to come with him and bless the child. On seeing the child, Guru Har Gobind and Baba Budha bowed to the him and touched his feet. On being asked by one of his followers to explain his actions, Guru Har Gobind said that Guru Teg Bahadur was sent to this world with a great mission: he would sacrifice his own life for the welfare of others. Sri Guru Har Gobind Sahib always wore two swords; Miri (political sovereignty) and Piri (spiritual sovereignty). When Guru Har Gobind Sahib picked up his child, Guru Tegh Bahadur picked up the sword that represented Piri.
A worldly mother takes upon herself all the sufferings and inconveniences to make her children comfortable. God is loved as father and mother and is addressed in many holy hymns as such. All beings are His children. The First Guru Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji, a true manifestation of God, demonstrates the divine climax of God's love for His children. For God there is no discrimination between His children on the basis of faith, belief or religion. With equity, the Great Guru accepts all of them and saves them. He had incarnated for the sake of love for the children of God. And He alleviates these sufferings and redeems them with such a grandiose and examplary excellence.
In the House of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji, the whole of the global community constitutes one family and all members of this family are lovable children of the one and only lovable God.
Grace emanates and radiates out to all alike from God and from His true manifestations. Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib filled the sinking hearts of the people with nectar of this Grace and delivered them.
In his life here he played the most dreadful game of human agony and glorified and divinised the whole phenomenon of human suffering. All this for the deliverence and future peace of the children of God.
[edit] Ascension
Early in 1675, a group of Kashmiri Pandits led by Pandit Kirpa Ram of Matton visited Anandpur to seek Guru Tegh Bahadur's assistance against persecution from the Islamic Mughal rulers. The Mughal emperor Aurangzeb had ordered the conversion of all Hindus to Islam, and the Mughal general Iftikar Khan had threatened the Brahmins with forced conversion. The Mughals assumed that if the Kashmiri Pandits belonging to the Hindu priestly class convert to Islam, others in the region would follow them. The Kashmiri Pandits had been given six months to convert to Islam, or suffer the consequences. Guru Tegh Bahadur asked the them to return to their village, and tell the Mughal authorities that they would convert to Islam only after Guru Tegh Bahadur could be persuaded to do so. In 1675, Guru Tegh Bahadur proceeded to the Mughal capital Delhi, to discuss the emperor's policty towards the non-Muslims. He was beheaded on 11 November 1675 a Chandani Chowk after refusing to convert to Islam.
Before dying, Guru Tegh Bahadur nominated his son, Gobind Rai – who later was renamed himself Guru Gobind Singh – as the next, and as it turned out, the last Guru of the Sikhs in human form. The Guru Granth Sahib is now the eternal Guru of Sikhism.
[edit] Notable events
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- Built the city of Anandpur Sahib.
- Toured various parts of India.
- Responsible for saving the Kashmiri Pandits who were being persecuted by the Mughals, but had to lay down his own life.
- Contributed many hundreds of hymns to the Guru Granth Sahib.
- The Saloks (Mahal 9) near the end of the Guru Granth Sahib are extremely popular.
- Martyred in Delhi by Mughal Emperor, Aurangzeb. See Martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadar
- Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib, Chandni Chowk, Delhi, where he was beheaded and Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib, Delhi, the residence of Lakhi Shah Vanjara - who burnt his house so as to cremate the Guru's body.
- Guru Har Gobind Ji was guru Tegh Bahadur's father.
- He was hired by Gobind Sahali to construct several domes in Mahali.
- He was also supposedly put forward to be dominated as a king but died before he was able to be crowned.
- He was earlier named Tyag Mal but later renamed Tegh Bahadur after his gallant display of sword fight in wars with Mughal forces.
[edit] The Eleven Gurus of Sikhism
[edit] References
[edit] External links
| Preceded by: Guru Har Krishan (7 July 1656 - 30 March 1664) | Guru Teg Bahadur | Followed by: Guru Gobind Singh (22 December 1666 - 7 October 1708) |
| The Eleven Gurus of Sikhism | ||
|
Guru Nanak Dev | Guru Angad Dev | Guru Amar Das | Guru Ram Das | Guru Arjun Dev | Guru Har Gobind | Guru Har Rai | Guru Har Krishan | Guru Teg Bahadur | Guru Gobind Singh | (Followed by Guru Granth Sahib, Perpetual Guru of the Sikhs) | ||
Template:Sikhismfr:Gurû Tegh Bahadur hi:गुरू तेग बहादुर सिंह nl:Goeroe Tegh Bahadur nn:Guru Teg Bahadur
