GURU TEGH BAHADUR - MEDIAEVAL HISTORY
News: Recalling
the life and times of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Guru of the Sikhs
What's in the news?
● The
Parkash Purab of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth guru of the Sikhs, is being celebrated on April 11.
Guru Tegh Bahadur:
● Guru
Tegh Bahadur was the ninth of ten Gurus.
● Born
in Amritsar, Punjab, India in 1621 considered as a disciplined and fearless
warrior.
● He founded the Sikh
religion and was the leader of Sikhs from 1665.
● Guru
Tegh Bahadur was executed on the orders
of Aurangzeb the sixth Mughal emperor in Delhi in 1675.
Contributions:
● Sikhs
revered Guru Tegh Bahadur as the ‘Protector
of Humanity’ (Srisht-di-Chadar).
● He
was a great thinker and poet who provided thorough explanations of the nature
of God, body, mind and bodily attachments, among other spiritual matters.
● In
the form of 116 poetic hymns called Slokas
and Couplets, his compositions are enshrined in the sacred scripture, ‘Guru Granth Sahib’.
● He
is said to have traveled widely to spread Nanak’s teachings.
● He
also built up communal kitchens and
wells for the locals.
● He
created the settlement of Chak-Nanki in
Punjab, which eventually became a part of Anandpur Sahib, a well-known holy
city and popular tourist destination in the Himalayan foothills
Martyrdom:
● He
fought for the rights of Kashmiri
Pandits who approached him against Aurangzeb’s religious persecution.
● At
the command of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, he was publicly executed in Delhi
in 1675 for refusing to submit to Mughal authorities and opposing
them.
● His
martyrdom aided the Sikh Panth in uniting to make human rights protection vital
to Sikh identity.
● Inspired
by him, Guru Gobind Singh Ji,
finally formed the Sikh group into a separate, formal, symbol-patterned society
that became known as Khalsa (Martial).