Guru: Why Guru Tegh Bahadur's sacrifice wasn't about Sikhs alone

Red Fort was the supreme seat of power when the ninth Sikh master, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed in 1675 during Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s rule. Now, the guru’s 400th birth anniversary is being celebrated at the same place."The guru’s supreme sacrifice to defend the right of Kashmiri Pandits to practice their faith still remains unique and unparalleled in the annals of human history,” says former IAS officer and noted Sikh author Gurtej Singh. “He laid down his life for the freedom of conscience, to defend the unhindered and unrestricted practice of faith. Even as Kashmiri Pandits and the larger Hindu society got immediate protection due to his sacrifice, his sacrifice has universal meaning and is valid for all times. Through his most crucial intervention, the guru saved the Indic civilisation, which was at the point of extinction,” he says. Who is Guru Tegh Bahadur?The son of the sixth Sikh master, Guru Hargobind and Mata Nanki, Guru Tegh Bahadur was born on April 21, 1621. He became the ninth Nanak in 1664 in Bakala town, succeeding Guru Harkrishan in whose memory Gurdwara Bangla Sahib and Gurdwara Bala Sahib were constructed in Delhi. The eighth Guru had passed away in Delhi. medium90962936Guru Tegh Bahadur married Mata Gujri in 1632.After Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, Guru Tegh Bahadur was the most-travelled Sikh guru. According to historical accounts, in the 11 years of his leadership, apart from different parts of Punjab (including Haryana), he also travelled to eastern parts of India including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Assam, Bengal (including present-day Bangladesh) and Odisha.He also founded Chak Nanki, in the name of his mother, which was later developed as Anandpur Sahib where Guru Gobind Singh founded Khalsa on the Vaisakhi day of 1699. It was at Chak Nanaki that a delegation of Kashmiri Brahmins came to visit in May 1675.“Ifthikar Khan [the Mughal governor of Kashmir during 1671-75] tyrannised the Brahmins to such an extent that they approached Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Sikh Guru, at Anandpur Sahib in Punjab, and solicited his personal intervention with the emperor [Aurangzeb],” PKN Bamzai writes in his book History of Kashmir. medium90963218What happened in Delhi?Before leaving for Delhi, Guru Tegh Bahadur appointed his son Gobind Rai as his successor. Three Sikhs — Bhai Mati Das, Bhai Sati Das and Bhai Dayal Das — accompanied him to Delhi to convey the pleas of Brahmins of Kashmir.Guru Tegh Bahadur was arrested in Malikpur Rangran village in the second week of July 1675 and was kept imprisoned for over three months at Bassi Pathana (Punjab) under the order of the hakim (administrator) of Sirhind. He was sent to Delhi in the first week of November, where the subedar of Delhi gave him three options — to show miracles, accept Islam or face death.Historical accounts reveal that the guru rejected the first two options and his three followers were executed in his presence on November 11 — Mati Das was tied between two logs and cut into two with a saw; Sati Das was burnt alive with cotton wrapped around him; and Dayal Das was boiled to death in a cauldron of hot water. medium90962955 However, this did not break the guru’s resolve and in the afternoon of the same day, he was beheaded.Showing immense courage and commitment, a few Sikhs of Delhi managed to get hold of both parts of the guru’s body. His head was taken away by Bhai Jaita, who along with Bhai Nannu Rai and Udha, escorted it to his son and tenth master,Guru Gobind in Kiratpur on November 16.Back in Delhi, the other part of the guru’s body was taken away by Bhai Lakhi Das and his three sons. To cremate the guru’s body at night, Lakhi Das set his house at Raisina on fire to escape detection that they were actually cremating the guru’s body. Gurudwaras Sis Ganj Sahib and Rakab Ganj Sahib in Delhi mark the execution and cremation places of the guru. medium90962906Guru’s legacyThe guru’s martyrdom led to the first acts of militancy at the people’s level, noted Sangat Singh, a chronicler of Sikh history. Historians have reproduced an incident recorded by Saqi Must-id-Khan in Maasir-i-Alamgiri, which reflected the anger among the guru’s followers against the emperor. “When he [Aurangzeb] alighted the boat and was about to get on to the movable throne [Takhte-Rawan], a disciple of Guru Tegh Bahadur threw two bricks at the emperor, one of which hit the throne.”Hari Ram Gupta, author of History of the Sikhs also mentioned this incident.Guru Tegh Bahadur’s martyrdom would go a long way to steel his son, Guru Gobind Singh’s faith in Sikhism and lead to the formation of Khalsa, the military brotherhood of the Sikhs.boxcontentThe 10 Sikh gurus1. Guru Nanak Dev2. Guru Angad Dev3. Guru Amar Das4. Guru Ram Das5. Guru Arjan Dev6. Guru Hargobind 7. Guru Har Rai8. Guru Harkrishan9. Guru Tegh Bahadur10. Guru Gobind Singh