The Tenth Master and the last Guru of the Sikh faith was Gobind Rai born on the 22nd.December 1666 at Patna, Bihar. His father, Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, the Ninth Guru was then traveling across East India, Bengal and Assam. Gobind Rai was 4 years of age in 1670 when his father returned to Patna and on his request, the family returned to the Panjab. To commemorate the birthplace of Gobind Rai, where he spent his formative years, there now stands one of the most honoured seats of religious authority, Takht Sri Harimandir Sahib, Patna.
Gobind Rai’s next destination was Anandpur Sahib, which used to be called Chakk Nanaki, the City of Bliss nestling in the foothills of the majestic Sivaliks hill range. He reached Anandpur in March 1672 where he had his early education in reading and writing of Gurmukhi, Braj, Sanskrit and Farsi. At barely 9 years of age, his destiny to lead the Sikh community was clear following his response to his father: “None could be worthier than yourself to make such a sacrifice.” His father faced martyrdom at Chandni Chowk in New Delhi at the merciless hands of the Mughal Rulers. The young Gobind Rai, in a very dignified manner, consoled the Sangat and members of the family to bear their loss with great fortitude. The brutal execution of his father spurred him on to change the shape of the Sikh community forever. He regarded himself as the man to fulfill the mission:
“For this purpose I was born,
And left the virtuous understand it,
To advance righteousness and to emancipate the good,
And destroy evil doers root and branch”
Guru Gobind Singh Ji was formally installed as Guru on Vaisakhi day in 1676. In the midst of his engagement with the community, he focused on the mastery of physical skills and literary accomplishment, which later enabled him to face adversary gallantly and contribute to the Bani. He had grown into a comely youth; spare, lithe of limb and versatile. He had a unique aptitude and natural ability for poetic composition and his first composition was Var Sri Bhagauti Ji Ki (popularly called Chandi di Var). The themes contained in the composition were made to infuse martial spirit amongst his followers to prepare them to stand against injustice, tyranny and oppression.
Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s major creative work was completed at Paonta, on the banks of Yamuna River where he resided temporarily and where Guru Gobind Singh Ji stayed from 1685 to 1691. During this period he engaged himself not only in hunting and training his warrior Sikhs in the martial arts, but also in literary activities composing many works of religious as well as heroic poetry and patronizing several talented poets and writers whom he employed mostly for translating ancient classics into contemporary Braj or Gurmukhi. Towards the end, he also fought and won the first famous Battle of Bhangani of his life against hill chiefs hostile to him, in his own words, “for no cause.” He also preached love and equality and a strictly ethical and moral code of conduct. The glorification of the sword as bhaugauti was to secure fulfillment of God’s justice. As Guru Gobind Singh Ji said in a Persian couplet in his Zafarnamah: When all other means have failed, it is but lawful to take to the sword.
Soon after Guru Gobind Singh Ji left Paonta Sahib and returned to Anandpur he fortified the city by building a chain of forts for defence in view of the incessant hostility of the Rajput chiefs as well as the repressive policy of the Mughal rulers and the imperial government. The Guru and his Sikhs were involved in a battle with the Mughal and they fled in utter disarray “without being able to give any attention to his camp.” In 1698, Guru Gobind Singh Ji issued orders to the Sikh Sangats (communities) in different parts, not to acknowledge masands, (the local ministers) against whom he had heard complaints. Sikhs, as instructed, should come directly to Anandpur to make their offerings. The Guru was then able to establish direct relationship with his Sikhs and addressed them as Khalsa meaning crown-lands or the Pure at Heart. The institution of Khalsa was given formal recognition on 30th. March 1699 when all the Sikhs gathered at Anandpur Sahib for the annual festival of Vaisakhi, three weeks after the Holla Mahalla. Guru Sahib Ji addressed the congregation with a sword in hand and spoke: “Is there present a True Sikh who would offer his head to the Guru as a sacrifice?” These words send shockwaves through the congregation and a pin dropping could have been heard in the awed silence. At the third call, Daya Ram arose and humbly walked behind the Guru into a tent nearby. The Guru returned with his sword dripping blood, and asked for another head. At this, Dharam Dass came forward and was taken inside the enclosure. Guru Gobind Singh Ji made three further calls; Mohkam Chand, Himmat Rai and Sahib Chand responded one after another and proceeded forward to sacrifice themselves to Guru Ji. All the five were led back from the tent dressed alike in saffron-coloured garments topped with neatly tied turbans similarly dyed, with swords hanging from their left sides. Guru Gobind Singh Ji then initiated khande batte di pahul (initiation by sweetened water) with his double-edged sword reciting the panj baniyas. Those five Sikhs were the first to be initiated with Amrit and this led to the nucleus of his self-abnegating, martial and casteless fellowships of the Khalsa. All of them surnamed Singh, meaning lion, were required in future to wear the five symbols of the Khalsa all beginning with the letter K-kesh (long hair), kangha (a wooden comb in the kesh to keep it tidy), Kara (iron bracelet), kachhera (Short breeches) and kirpan (a Sword). Guru Gobind Singh Ji himself then received the initiation in the hands of the five disciples and Gobind Rai’s name was changed to Gobind Singh Ji. Khalsa Panth aspires for the Sikh to practice the true essence of the warrior saint lifestyle, devotion to one Almighty Waheguru, the insignias of five kakkars and adhering to the Sikh Rehat Maryada (rules of conduct and practice)
These developments alarmed the caste- ridden Rajputs and the Mughals were rallied against the Sikhs. Guru Gobind Singh Ji and his Sikhs firmly weathered the successive assaults despite dire scarcity of food resulting from the prolonged blockade. The besiegers were also reduced to desperate straits and at this stage, the besiegers offered, on solemn oath of the Quran, safe exit to the Sikhs if they quit Anandpur Sahib. As soon as the Sikhs and Guru Ji came out, they were attacked in full force. In the ensuing confusion many Sikhs were killed and all of Guru Ji’s manuscripts were lost. The Guru himself was able to make his way to Chamkaur Sahib with barely forty Sikhs and his two elder sons. His two sons, Sahibzadas, Ajit Singh and Jujhar Singh and all but five of the Sikhs fell in the action that took place on 1705. The five surviving Sikhs bade the Guru to save himself in order to reconsolidate the Khalsa. Guru Gobind Singh Ji with three of his Sikhs escaped into the thorny wilderness of Machhiawara. Two of his Muslim devotees, Ghani Khan and Nabi Khan helped him to escape to their own detriment to Alamgir, where Gurdwara Manji Sahib is located.
Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s two younger sons, Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh and his mother Mata Gujri were betrayed by Gangu for divulging the whereabouts of Guru Gobind Singh’s children. Wazir Khan ordered them to be bricked alive in a wall and they kept them in the Cold Tower in severe winter for another two days. Mata Gujri was also with her grandsons and on the 11th.December, 1705 they under the orders of Wazir Khan began to be paved with bricks standing on the ground. However, as the masonry reached the above chest height, it crumbled. The next day on the 12th December 1705, both the Sahibzadas were once again offered the choice of conversion or death. They were tempted to riches and rewards but they chose the latter and fearlessly faced the executioner’s sword. Mata Gujri died the same day on hearing the tragic news of her grandsons. The dead bodies were kept for the night at a spot now called Bimangarh, just outside the Fort wall, and were cremated the following day by Seth Todar Mall, a wealthy merchant of Sirhind. A memorial was raised marking the spot where both Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh were martyred and named Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib. Travellers and passer-bys on the GT Road on reaching the Fatehgarh Sahib tends to bow their head in the direction with great reverence. It is just amazing to see this as a few even break down into tears. Banda Singh Bahadur avenged this atrocious act by killing Wazir Khan.
Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s trail goes on and befriended by his Muslim admirer, Rai Kalha of Raikot, reached Dina Kangar in the heart of the Malva region. There he enlisted a few hundred warriors of the Brar clan, and also composed the famous Epistle of Victory, the Zafarnamah addressed to Emperor Aurangzeb. Two of the Sikhs, Daya Singh and Dharam Singh were dispatched with the Zafarnamah, which was to be delivered to Aurangzeb at Ahmadnagar in the State of Maharashtra. The letter was a severe indictment of the ruler and his commanders who had perjured their oath and had attacked them outside the fortification of Anandpur. The Zafarnamah seems to have touched the heart of the ruler and Guru Gobind Singh Ji was invited to meet the Mughal ruler, Aurangzeb. Guru Ji was in Baghor, Rajasthan when the news arrived of the death of Emperor Aurangzeb.
From Dina Kangar, Guru Gobind Singh Ji continued his westward march until finding the host close upon his heels, he took position astride the water pool of Khidrana to make a last-ditch stand. The fighting in 1705 was hard and desperate. In spite of their overwhelming numbers, the Mughal troops failed to capture the Guru Ji and they were forced to retire in defeat. The most valorous part in this battle was played by a group of 40 Sikhs who had deserted Guru Gobind Singh Ji at Anandpur during the long siege, but who, chided by their womenfolk at home had come back under the leadership of Mai Bhago to redeem themselves. They had fallen fighting desperately to check the enemy’s advance towards the Guru’s position. The Guru blessed the forty dead (chaliya mukhtiya) as forty muktes (Forty Saved Ones). The site is now marked by a splendid Sri Darbar Sahib Mukhtsar and a sacred sarowar, pool of liberation, where the reflection of the shrine is beyond any natural beauty. The divine place is so blessed by Guru Ji’s presence, that just stepping foot within the precincts, brings tears to one’s eyes.
After spending some time in the Lakki Jungle, Guru Gobind Singh Ji arrived at Talwandi Saboo, in the present Bhatinda District, now called Damdama Sahib. During his nine months stay, a number of Sikhs joined him and prepared a fresh recension of the Sikh Scripture, the Guru Granth Sahib Ji with Bhai Mani Singh and the place came to be known as the Guru’s Kashi or the seat of learning like Varansai. Guru Gobind Singh Ji returned to Panjab via Delhi and later on he was accompanied by Emperor Bahadur Shah and his younger brother who eventually brought him to Nanded on the Godavari River in Maharasthra. Here, he met a Bairagi recluse, Madho Das, whom he converted to Sikhism administering to him the vows of the Khalsa and renaming him Gurbakhsh Singh. Guru Gobind Singh Ji gave him five arrows from his quiver and an escort, including five of his chosen Sikhs and directed him to go to Panjab and carry on the campaign against the tyranny of the overlords.
Nawab Wazir Khan of Sirhind had felt concerned at the Emperor’s conciliatory treatment of Guru Gobind Singh Ji. Their marching together to the South made him jealous and he charged two Pathans, Jamshed Khan and Wasil Beg to annihilate Guru Ji and his strong influence. They pursued the Guru Ji secretly and overtook him at Nanded. According to Sri Gur Sobha by Senapati, one of them stabbed the Guru in the left side below the heart one evening as he lay in his chamber after the Rehras path (evening prayer after sunset). Before he could deal another blow, Guru Gobind Singh Ji struck him with his sabre, while fleeing, his companion fell under the swords of Sikhs who had rushed in on hearing the noise. As the news reached Bahadur Shah’s ears, he sent an expert surgeon, an Englishman, Cole to attend to Guru Ji. The wound was stitched and appeared to have healed quickly but one day as the Guru applied strength to pull a stiff bow, it ruptured again and bled profusely. This weakened the Guru beyond cure and he passed away in 1708. Before the end came, Guru Gobind Singh Ji asked for the Sacred Volume: “It is my commandment: Own Sri Granth Ji in my place. He who so acknowledges it will obtain his reward. The Guru will rescue him. Know this as the Truth.”
Guru Gobind Singh Ji thus passed on the succession with due ceremony to the Guru Granth Sahib ending the succession of personal Gurus. “The Guru’s spirit will henceforth be in the Granth and the Khalsa. Where the Granth is with five Sikhs representing the Khalsa, there will be a Guru.”
The Word enshrined in the Holy Book was always revered by the Gurus as well as by their disciples as being of Divine Origin. The Guru was the revealer of the Word. One day the Word was to take the place of the Guru. The inevitable came to pass when Guru Gobind Singh Ji declared the Guru Granth Sahib as his successor (Guru Granth Ji Maneyo...) It was only through the Word that Guruship could be made everlasting. The Word as contained in the Guru Granth Sahib was henceforth and for all time to come, to be the Living Guru for the Sikhs.
Although Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s greatest achievement was the formal establishment of the Khalsa Panth by bringing the Mission of Nanak to a successful conclusion, before his death, he was able to achieve more by clearly defining the future of the Sikh community. The appointment of the Sikh General, Banda Singh Bahadur alias Gurbaksh Singh to organize and lead Sikh armies which signaled the Sikh aspiration of achieving sovereign status in Panjab. The ordination of Aad Granth to the status of Guru Granth Sahib Ji and henceforth rejecting any claims of Guruship by any other living person amongst the Sikhs forever. Guru Ji said: Sabh Sikhan ko hukam hai Guru maneyo Granth….” As SGGS 982 quotes: “ Baani Guru, Guru Hai Baani Vich Baani Amrit Sare Gurbani Kahe, sevakjan mane partakh Guru Nistaare” (The Baani is the Guru, the Guru is the Baani; in the Word lies the essence of His Nectar. If the disciple obeys the Word in daily life, it can lead him to salvation.” Guru Ji also advocated the recognition of the human race as One (Manas keh jhaat ek pahchanbo) and when one casts their eyes around now, what Guru Ji has said, is absolutely true. In the current climate, masses irrespective of race, have embraced Sikhism and taken Amrit.
Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s birthplace, his trail and final destination in Nanded are commemorated by holy shrines to earmark the history. To date, many devotees follow this trail in his memory and at the same time have his darshan (blessings). Gurdwara Damdama Sahib, Rawalsar, Paonta Sahib, Gurdwara Bhangani Sahib, Takhat Sri Keshgarh Sahib, Gurdwara Anadgarh Sahib, Gurdwara Qila Fatehgarh Sahib, Gurdwara Qila Lohgarh Sahib, Gurdwara Holgarh Sahib, Gurdwara Kataar Sahib, Gurdwara Mata Jito Ji, Gurdwara Damdama Sahib, Gurdwara Parivar Vichhora Sahib, Gurdwara Chamkaur Sahib, Gurdwara Garhi Sahib, Gurdwara Qatalgarh Sahib, Gurdwara Tari Sahib, Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib, Gurdwara Charan Kanval Sahib, Gurdwara Chauhara Sahib, Gurdwara Uchch da Pir, Gurdwara Manji Sahib, Gurdwara Chota Sahib, Sri Darbar Sahib, Muktsar, Takhat Sri Damdama Sahib, Talwandi Saboo, Gurdwara Likhansar, Gurdwara Lakkhi Jangal, Hem Kundt Sahib, Takhat Sri Harmandir Sahib, Takhat Hazoor Sahib Abchalnagar, Gurdwara Nagina Ghat Sahib, Gurdwara Baba Banda Bahadur Ghat, Gurdwara Hira Ghat Sahib, Gurdwara Mata Sahib, Gurdwara Shikar Ghat Sahib, Gurdwara Mal Tekari Sahib andGurdwara Sangat Sahib.