History of Sikhism

Guru Nanak Dev (1469-1538), the founder of Sikhism, was born in the village of Talwandi, now called Nankana Sahib, near Lahore in present-day Pakistan. His father, Mehta Kalu was a Patwari- an accountant of land revenue in the government. Guru's mother was Mata Tripta and he had one older sister, Bibi Nanki. From early childhood, Bibi Nanki saw the Light of God in him but did not reveal this to anyone. She is known as the first disciple of Guru Nanak. Even as a boy, Nanak was fascinated by religion, and his desire to explore the mysteries of life eventually led him to leave home. He wandered all over India in the manner of Hindu saints. It was during this period that Nanak met Kabir (1441–1518), a saint revered by both Hindus and Muslims. He made four distinct major journeys, which are called Udasis, spanning many thousands of miles.

The Ten Sikh Gurus

In 1538, Guru Nanak chose Lehna as his disciple and successor to the Guruship rather than his son. Bhai Lehna was named Guru Angad and became the second guru of the Sikhs. He continued the work started by the Founder. Guru Amar Das became the third Sikh guru in 1552 at the age of 73. Goindwal became an important centre for Sikhism during the Guruship of Guru Amar Das. He continued to preach the principle of equality for women, the prohibition of Sati and the practise of Langar. In 1567, Emperor Akbar sat with the ordinary and poor people of Punjab to have Langar. Guru Amar Das also trained 140 apostles of which 52 were women to manage the rapid expansion of the religion. He appointed his son-in-law, Jetha as the fourth Sikh Guru before he died in 1574, aged 95.

Jetha became Guru Ram Das and vigorously undertook his duties as the new guru. He is responsible for the establishment of the city of Ramdaspur later to be named Amritsar. In 1581, Guru Arjan, youngest son of fourth guru, became the Fifth Guru of the Sikhs. In addition to being responsible for the construction of the Golden Temple, he prepared the Sikh Sacred text and his personal addition of some 2,000 plus hymns in the Guru Granth Sahib. In 1604 he installed the Adi Granth for the first time as the Holy Book of the Sikhs. For refusing to make changes to the Guru Granth Sahib, he was tortured and killed by the Mughal rulers in 1606.

Guru Hargobind, became the sixth guru of the Sikhs. He carried two swords – one for Spiritual reasons and one for temporal (worldly) reasons. From this point onward, the Sikhs became a military force and always had a trained fighting force to defend their independence. In 1644, Guru Har Rai became Guru followed by Guru Har Krishan, the boy Guru in 1661. Guru Teg Bahadur became Guru in 1665 and led the Sikhs until 1675, when he sacrificed his life to save the Kashmiri Hindus who had come to him for help.

In 1675, Aurangzeb publicly executed the ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur. Sikh mythos says that Guru Tegh Bahadur sacrificed himself to save Hindus, after Kashmiri pandits came to him for help when the Emperor condemned them for failing to convert to Islam. This marked a turning point for Sikhism. His successor, Guru Gobind Singh further militarised his followers. After Aurangzeb killed four of Gobind Singh's sons, Gobind Singh sent Aurangzeb the Zafarnama (Notification of Victory).

Shortly before passing away Guru Gobind ordered that Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh Holy Scripture, would be the ultimate spiritual authority for the Sikhs and temporal authority would vest in the Khalsa Panth – The Sikh Nation. The first Sikh Holy Scripture was compiled and edited by the Fifth Guru, Guru Arjan in AD 1604, although some of the earlier gurus are also known to have documented their revelations. This is one of the few scriptures in the world that has been compiled by the founders of a faith during their own life time. The Guru Granth Sahib is particularly unique among sacred texts in that it is written in Gurmukhi script but contains many languages including Punjabi, Hindi-Urdu, Sanskrit, Bhojpuri and Persian. Sikhs consider the Guru Granth Sahib the last, perpetual living guru.

The Ten Gurus of Sikhism

Sikhism was established by ten Gurus — teachers or masters — over the period 1469 to 1708. These teachers were enlightened souls whose main purpose in life was the spiritual and moral well-being of the masses. Each master added to and reinforced the message taught by the previous, resulting to the creation of the religion of Sikhism. Guru Nanak was the first Guru and Guru Gobind Singh the final Guru in human form. When Guru Gobind Singh left this world, he made the Sri Guru Granth Sahib the ultimate and final Sikh Guru. The Gurus are believed to have the same spirit, or “jot,” but different bodies.

Name/Lifespan	Guruship Began	Father	Mother
Guru Nanak Dev (1469-1539)	1469	Mehta Kalu	Mata Tripta
Guru Angad Dev (1504-1552)	1539	Baba Pheru	Mata Ramo
Guru Amar Das (1479-1574)	1552	Tej Bhan Bhalla	Bakht Kaur
Guru Ram Das (1534-1581)	1574	Baba Hari Das	Mata Daya Kaur
Guru Arjan Dev (1563-1606)	1581	Guru Ram Das	Mata Bhani
Guru Har Gobind (1595- 1644)	1606	Guru Arjan	Mata Ganga
Guru Har Rai (1630-1661)	1644	Baba Gurditta	Mata Nihal Kaur
Guru Har Krishan (1656-1664)	1661	Guru Har Rai	Mata Krishan Kaur
Guru Tegh Bahadur (1621- 1675)	1665	Guru Har Gobind	Mata Nanki
Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708)	1675	Guru Tegh Bahadur	Mata Gujri
Guru Granth Sahib (1708-?)	1708	-	-

The eleventh and final Guru

The Guru Granth Sahib is held in the highest regard by the Sikhs and is treated as the Eternal Guru, as instructed by Guru Gobind Singh.

A man reading the Guru Granth Sahib at the Harmandir Sahib.

The Guru Granth Sahib text is separated into musical measures, called Raags. There are 31 raags within the Guru Granth Sahib. It is perhaps the only scripture of its kind which not only contains the teachings of its own religious founders but also writings of people from other faiths. Besides the Banis of the Gurus, it also contains the writings of saints like Kabir, Namdev, Ravidas, Sheikh Farid, Trilochan, Dhanna, Beni, Sheikh Bhikan, Jaidev, Surdas, Parmanad, Pipa and Ramanand.

Interpretations of the Guru Granth Sahib, although translated into English and many other languages, vary from person to person. Its interpretation is based on the mindset and perception of each individual. Its guiding advice can be used for both religious and non-religious purposes.

The Granth forms the central part of the Sikh place of worship called a gurdwara. The Holy Scripture placed on the dominant platform in the main hall of the gurdwara during the day. It is placed there with great respect and dignity upon a throne with beautiful and colourful fabric.