Guru Tegh Bahadur ji - The shield of Hindustan
- Gurvinder Singh
- 2 hours ago
- 5 min read
In 1658, a ruthless young Mughal prince Muhi-ud-din Mohammed, more commonly known as 'Aurangzeb' (1618 -1707), imprisoned his father, Emperor Shahjahan and killed all other male family members. He then proclaimed himself the new Mughal emperor.
India was traumatised by this brave but misguided, cruel, incompetent, power-hungry man. 'Aurangzeb, evil man, failed emperor.
To hide his insatiable personal lust for power and wealth, and to cover up for the misdeeds of his accession to the throne, he had to win over the clergy and the ruling class.
Claiming he was acting for the greater glory of Islam, he donned the garb of purist Islamic piety.
No despot can tolerate a real or perceived threat. Thus, an insecure Aurangzeb was not very discriminating; he was uniformly cruel, and he ruled mainly by fear. He inflicted misery upon all his subjects. Even though Muslims suffered under his rule, he preferred to persecute Hindus.
Though an excellent warrior and general, the bigot Aurangzeb was weak in statecraft and economics. Overall, he was an incompetent ruler who preferred violence and war.
Aurangzeb transformed his inheritance of an efficient, mostly tolerant Mughal empire into a corrupt, inefficient, intolerant empire. What was a socially, culturally, and economically successful and wealthy empire became financially, socially and morally bankrupt.
Aurangzeb's actions planted the seeds that led to the demise of the Mughal Empire. Probably one of his greatest follies was to behead the fearless but peace-loving 9th Sikh Guru, 'Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji' (1621 - 1675).
Aurangzeb's downfall began when, salivating with greed and misguided religious fervour, he set his eyes on his next major victim, the fabulously wealthy kingdom of 'Kashmir'. For additional sadistic pleasure, he sought to destroy the 6,000-year-old pinnacle of Vedic learning and finish off its majority Hindu population.
The people of Kashmir grew terrified and felt helpless. In May 1675, the Hindus of Kashmir, led by the Brahmin Pandit, Kirpa Ram, approached Guru Tegh Bahadur ji at Anandpur (Panjab), pleading for his help to save them from the rampant abduction and rape of their sisters and daughters, the looting, killing and destruction of all they held precious, and to save Hinduism.
The great Guru was great and fearless. His birth name was Tyag Mal (Master of Renunciation) was renamed Tegh Bahadur Ji (lit. Bravest sword wielder) by the 6th Guru, after the Battle of Kartarpur, where Guru Hargobind ji witnessed the courage and skill of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji while fighting the plunderer, Painde Khan.
The Guru contemplated the matter for a couple of days. The Guru told the Pandits that this terrible cruelty originates from Aurangzeb; fighting his armies will not defeat the tyrant. He had to be confronted and challenged individually and then personally defeated.
Aurangzeb, the tyrannical emperor, had to be defeated by moral, spiritual and diplomatic means. For this, the Pandits would need to find a great and noble soul willing to confront the emperor and defy him, sacrifice his life rather than yield.
Gobind Rai (who later became Guru Gobind Singh Ji), the 9-year-old son of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, overhearing the discussions, asked his father, "Who else is greater than you, O' father?"
Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji told the Hindu Pandits, "Go tell Aurangzeb that, if the emperor can convert Guru Tegh Bahadur to Islam, then you will all become Muslims. If not, then he must promise to spare the Hindus of Kashmir"
Kirpa Ram and his companions sent to Emperor Aurangzeb a petition to that effect through Zalim Khan, the governor of Lahore. Aurangzeb grabbed the proposal as a great opportunity. Converting just one individual would save him huge resources and much time.
On 11th July 1675, Guru Tegh Bahadur ji left for Delhi after anointing his son Gobind Rai as the 10th Sikh Guru.
En route, Guru Tegh Bahadur ji was arrested, along with his followers, on 27 July 1675. He was taken to Delhi.
When Aurangzeb asked the Guru, 'Why was a Sikh Guru standing up for the Hindus and even willing to risk his life?
Guru Tegh Bahadur ji replied, "Those who become Sikhs (disciples) see all as One. We belong to and serve all mankind. We Sikhs, the disciples of Guru Nanak ji, walk on the path of Truth. Therefore, it's my duty to protect the weak and helpless from injustice and tyranny. I would do the same for our Muslim brothers and sisters if they were being persecuted."
Aurangzeb, an ordinary man sitting on an extraordinary throne, adopted the same methods he used to overpower other ordinary men.
At first, Aurangzeb offered Guru Tegh Bahadur ji and his followers great riches and titles. When that did not sway them, Guru Ji and his followers were subject to all sorts of torture.
Great courage comes only from a fearless soul, which a true Guru possesses.
Aurangzeb, used to dealing with mere mortals, was unable to force the Guru to submit to his demands. Neither bribery, nor threats, nor physical, nor mental torture worked.
In an attempt to frighten the Guru into submission, three of the Guru's companions were cruelly tortured before the Guru's very eyes.
When they did not yield, they were martyred most horribly. The first, Bhai Mati Das was sawn into pieces alive. The second, Bhai Dayala was boiled alive, and the third, Bhai Sati Das was burnt alive.
Unable to break the spirit of the Guru, a defeated and furious Aurangzeb ordered the execution of the Guru. Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji was beheaded in public at Chandni Chowk (Delhi) on 24 November 1675.
The Guru's stand and message were, every individual has the right to worship as he or she chooses. No mortal, no matter how powerful or cruel, can impose himself or his rule if people do not submit. You can take the body but not the dignity nor the soul.
The spirit of sacrifice of such magnitude by so great a soul. The martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, was a turning point in Indian history. It compelled the passive Hindus and Sikhs to awaken and rise up and actively work against the cruel empire. It would set in motion a series of events that would destroy the Mughal empire forever and enshrine religious freedom across the world.
Were it not for the contributions and sacrifices of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji and his disciples, India would have become just like Aurangzeb, characterless, violent, despotic, corrupt and intolerant.
We Hindustani owe a great debt to Guru Tegh Bahadur ji for his sacrifice and martyrdom. That is why the Guru is also known as 'Hind di Chadar', meaning 'The Shield of Hindustan'
Interesting Links:
Guru Tegh Bahadur – Mission, Martyrdom and Message ~ Mr Bal Anand
Aurangzeb, evil man, failed emperor. ~ Guru Wonder
The Mosque built by the Guru ~ Guru Wonder
To be peace-loving does not mean submitting to tyranny and injustice. ~ Guru Wonder
Not every teacher is a Guru. ~ Guru Wonder
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