Jaibans Singh
Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth master of the Sikhs is remembered for his simplicity, piety and more so for his strong will that changed the course of history. He is known for the firm and principled stand that he took against forced conversions of Hindus to the Muslim religion by Emperor Aurangzeb. He sacrificed his life to stand by his principles and for the sake of the weak and the downtrodden.
The Guru was born on Vaisakh Vadi 5, Bikrami Samvat 1678 that, on the western calendar, coincides with April, 1, 1621. He was the fifth son of Guru Hargobind and his second wife, Bibi Nanki. His birth place was the holy city of Amritsar in a house known as Guru ka Mahal. Guru Hargobind had three wives – Damodri, Nanki and Mahadevi and he had children from all three. As a child he was named Tyaga Mal.
Young Tyaga Mal was given an education befitting a son of a Guru and a Prince and in accordance with Sikh tenets and teachings. He learnt languages, social sciences and philosophy from Bhai Gurdas and martial skills like archery and horsemanship from Baba Buddha. It is said that Guru Hargobind personally taught swordsmanship to his son Tyaga Mal. Tyaga Mal was married to Gujri in 1632 at a very young age. Gujri was the daughter of a wealthy and noble man, Lal Chand and his wife Bishan Kaur who were residents of Kartarpur.
Tyaga Mal fought bravely against Mughal forces in the Battle of Kartarpur in 1635. The Mughal Forces under Paidane Khan were defeated and the victorious Sikhs rechristened their new hero, Tyaga Mal as Tegh Bahadur (Brave Sword Wielder).
When Guru Hargobind bestowed the Gur Gaddi to Guru Har Rai, Tegh Bahadur shifted to at Bakala and remained there for twenty years till he was anointed the ninth master of the Sikhs in 1966. Guru Tegh Bahadur, was destined to serve his community and also humanity in many ways. Thus, while maintaining all the royal trappings of a Guru and performing his duties, he remained an austere ascetic at heart.
This was the time when Emperor Aurangzeb started becoming increasingly intolerant towards the Hindus and other communities including the Sikhs. Temples were desecrated and forced conversions resorted to; the infamous religious tax, Jazia, was reimposed. Guru Tegh Bahadur had completed his religious mission in the eastern parts of the country and he decided to get back to Punjab to be with his community at this time of religious crisis. Accordingly he, along with his family and entourage of loyal followers proceed back to Anandpur Sahib. On the way back, the Guru was arrested at Agra in July 1970 but was released. He reached Anandpur Sahib in February 1671 and for about two years he preached from there peacefully.
Aurangzeb, in his pursuit of the ambition to lslamise the whole of India, built on a strategy of targeting Hindu Pundits and Brahmins especially those from the holy towns of the country like Kashi, Prayag, Kurukshetra, Haridwar and Kashmir. The Governor of Kashmir, Iftikhar Khan, was particularly energetic in application of the orders of the Emperor; he let lose a reign of terror on the Pundit community residing there. A delegation of the desperate Kashmir Pundits led by Pandit Kirpa Ram Dutt approached Guru Tegh Bahadur at Anandpur Sahib in May, 1675 and requested for his support to save them. Pundit Kirpa Ram was associated with the Sikh community since his great grandfather, Bhai Brahm Das, was a devoted disciple of Guru Nanak.
Guru Tegh Bahadur, after due consultation with the Sikh community, decided to peacefully present the case of the Kashmir Pundits at New Delhi. The Pundits accordingly informed their Governor that if Guru Tegh Bahadur converts to Islam they all would also do so. This message was conveyed to Aurangzeb who was, as it is, quite prejudiced against the Guru. He disliked the trappings of royalty of the Guru and the use of the word “Bahadur” with his name. He looked upon the support to the Kashmir Pundits by the Guru as a direct assault on his authority. He immediately ordered the arrest of the Guru.
The Guru was accordingly summoned to Delhi, but before the summons reached him he had already named his son, Gobind, as the tenth master of the Sikhs and proceeded to Delhi with his close associates. This was in June 1975.
Attempts to intimidate the Guru into submission started much before the party reached Delhi. He was detained and tortured at Bassi Pathana, Ropar, by Mirza Nur Mohammad Khan. The attempt did not succeed and after detaining him in Sirhind for four months the Mughals were compelled move the party to Delhi in November 1975.
The Guru, all through his detention and extreme torture, was given three options. One, show a miracle; two, embrace Islam; three, prepare to die. The Guru consistently chose the third option.
The manner in which the execution was carried out was particularly savage even by Mughal standards. First his three main disciples were done to death in his presence. Bhai Mati Das was sawn from the head downwards while standing in erect position; Bhai Dayal Das was thrown into a huge cauldron of boiling oil and then came the turn of Bhai Sati Das. Bhai Sati Das sought the blessings of the Guru before embracing martyrdom. The Guru praised him for his lifelong devotion to him and his family and bid him to embrace the will of God. Bhai Sati Das touched the Gurus feet and then he was tied to a pole, wrapped in cotton and burnt alive. The entire disgusting proceedings were absorbed by the Guru in the most calm and peaceful manner. The Guru did not change his stand and the Mughals decided to execute him.
Early next morning, on November, 11, 1675, the Guru was beheaded by an executioner called Jalal-ud-Din Jallad. The place where the execution took place in Chandni Chowk, Shahjahanabad (Now Old Delhi) is marked by Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib. His body was retrieved by a disciple, Lakhi Shah Vanjara, who carried the remains to his hut in a cart and cremated the same by burning the hut; the place is marked by Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Sahib. The head of the Guru was retrieved by another disciple, Bhai Jatta, and was taken to Anandpur Sahib where the nine year old Guru Gobind Singh carried out the cremation rituals. The jailer, Khwaja Abdulla, a pious man who tried to help the Guru as much as he could, resigned from his post after the execution and went to live in Anandpur Sahib.
Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib, Delhi
Guru Tegh Bahadur was ascetic in nature and spiritually inclined with less involvement in worldly affairs. He rooted for peace and stayed away from conflict when he could. Yet, he remained true to his duty. His teachings guide mankind towards indifference to both misery and happiness in pursuit of praise of the Almighty.
The martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur had an electrifying effect on the Sikh community and the other communities too. By sacrificing his life in protest against injustice to mankind, he set an enduring precedent of humanity based on truthfulness and godliness. It is from him that the Sikhs learnt to stand up for the weak and the underprivileged. His principles and values were upheld and taken forward by his son and the tenth master, Guru Gobind Singh, leading to the creation of the Khalsa. It is from there that the fight of righteousness and justice commenced. The common people, especially the Sikhs, started raising their voice; atrocities and persecution continued but the people found the courage to stand up to them leading to a down trend in conversions.
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