The Ten Sikh Gurus - Life and Teachings by:Jaspinder Grover
The term 'Guru' is quite common in the Indian culture
, but in Sikhism it enjoys a very distinct meaning .Guru epitomizes a spiritual teacher who enlightens his disciples for their all round development , inculcates in them devotion and Godly love , shows them a path of righteousness and justice , heals them with the medicine of 'Naam' , refines their thought processes leading them into a state of equipoise , instills in them a spirit of service to his community and teaches them the art of attaining liberation while leading the life of a householder.
Of what form is the Sikh Guru ? What are his attributes ? Is it necessary for him to manifest in physical form ? Who must Sikhs consider their Guru ? How does the Guru communicate with the masses ?
What strikes the mind of a Sikh when he hears the term Guru ?Immediately the mind shoots off to the Ten Sikh Gurus , from Guru Nanak to Guru Gobind who seeded the Sikh religion and sprouted it into a dynamic faith that has elevated and reformed millions of lives for more than five centuries . Of what form then is the Sikh Guru who continues to influence the consciousness of the masses long after he discontinued His physical presence on earth ? It is vital to comprehend the meaning of Guru in Sikhism . When we say that Sikhs had ten Gurus or as the title of this book 'The Ten Gurus - Life and Teachings ' does , are we really talking about ten different inviduals or about individuals at all ?
As Guru Gobind Singh very succinctly puts it for us in His composition 'Bachitra Naatak'-
Nanak metamorphosed into Angad,
and preached Sikhism around the world.
He was then revered as Amardas,
just as a candle is lit from another candle.
At time oppurtune of the boon, Ramdas became the Guru,
While Amardas ascended the heavenly abodes.
I recognise Angad as Nanak and Amardas as Angad.
Amardas then became Ramdas.
While the fools have seen them as distinct ,
the saints recognise them as one .
Those who have deciphered the similarity,
have attained liberation while it has evaded the ignorant .
When Ramdas became one with almighty,
Guruship was passed to Arjan .
When Arjan passed into eternal realms Hargobind took his place .
Hargobind gave way to Hari Rai .
Hari Rai's son Hari Krishan then became the Guru ,
To be followd by Guru Tegh Bahadur .
(Bachitra Naatak)
nwnk AMgd ko bpu Drw ]Drm pRcur ieh jg mo krw ]
Amrdws puin nwmu khwXo ]jn dIpk qy dIp jgwXo ]
jb brdwn smY vhu Awvw ]rwmdws qb gurU khwvw ]
iqh brdwn purwqn dIAw ] Amrdws surpur mgu lIAw ]
sRI nwnk AMgid kir mwnw ] Amrdws AMgd pihcwnw ]
Amrdws rwmdws khwXo ] swDin lKw mUVH nih pwXo ]
iBMn iBMn sBhUM kr jwnw ] eyk rUp iknhUM pihcwnw ]
ijn jwnw iqn hI isD pweI ] ibn smJy isD hwiQ n AweI ]
rwmdws hr so iml gey ]gurqw dyq Arjnih Bey ]
jb Arjn pRBu lok isDwey ] hirgoibMd iqh TW Tihrwey ]
hirgoibMd pRB lok isDwry ] hrIrwie iqh TW bYTwry ]
hrIikRsn iqn ky suq vey ]iqn ky qyg bhwdr Bey ]
(bic~qR nwtk)
Guru Gobind has thus emphasized that the Ten Gurus are to be seen as one soul that transmigrated from one body to another . It is the soul in them which is to be looked upon as the guru and not their physical body .Though Sikhs consider them God and might worship them , the Gurus themselves always preached the existence of -
One Immanent and Transcendent God Whose name is True , Who is the creator Himself, Fearless and inimical to none , Who is beyond the cycle of births and deaths , Who is Self Illumined and Who is realised by His own grace .(Japji)
Guru Gobind Singh said -
Who was in the beginning and Who will be in the end ,
Consider Him my Guru . Chaupaee(Guru Gobind Singh Ji)
Awd AMq eyko Avqwrw [
soeI gurU smiJE hmwrw [ cOpeI (gurU goibMd isMG jI)
So according to the Sikh Gurus themselves God is only one . None of the Ten Gurus called themselves incarnates or God , it is only the Sikh people who saw them as incarnation of God . Though The Sikh doctrine and scriptures, however , emphasize that God is beyond births and deaths and strictly discards the concept of incarnation of God .It is only because of the Divine qualities of the Ten Gurus that Sikhs consider them to be no less than incarnates . They not only preached but implemented the philosophy and ideals they believed in , in their very own lives .Thus their lives are specimens to be studied and looked upon at with an acute eye as lies hidden in them the key to living a wholesome and meaningful life . The study provides us with a clue as to how they were able to uplift millions of lives from a state of moral degradation and set up a system capable of reforming generations to be born . Though the Guru manifested in physical form to start with , he acquired the form of Word thereafter . Guru Gobind Singh after being convinced that Sikhism was on a firm footing , concluded that the Sikh religion no longer needed the leadership of a physical Guru . Sohe declared the 'Adi Granth ' to be the Sikh Guru forever and it thus became 'Sri Guru Granth Sahib' . Guru Granth Sahib is held in deep reverence by the entire Sikh community . They bow before it just as they did before the ten Gurus , they keep their heads covered when in itsd benign presence , wash their hands before touching it , wrap it in a neat piece of cloth (Rumaalaa) . They also take the 'Hukamnama' from the holy granth each morning ,seeking divine guidance . However emphais must be laid on the content of the Granth and inculcating its actual message into our lives by making a thorough reading of it and making an effort to undertand what it really says . It is the reading and practical application of the teachings contained therein , that would bring about any fruitful upliftment in the quality of our life .
Such is the Guru that He does not need to acquire a physical form for ever and yet His teachings permeate the Sikh consciousness through the power of His Word (Shabad) . Shabad or the Divine Word is the message of God which has been delivered to us through Gur-Bani preserved through the ages in 'Adi Granth' which later became Guru Granth Sahib , as ordained by Guru Gobind Singh Ji in 1708 .
Why divest an effort to become intimate with the lives of these Divine messengers? Because their lives embody the very principles they taught. Guru Nanak wanted not mere philosophy but practical application of the ideology called Sikhism . He felt that to make any significant impact and bring about a long lasting spiritual awakening and elevation of diseased human souls His message needed to be deeply embedded in the socio cultural consciousness of the masses, and for that to happen His message needed to be injected across several generations. He thus chose to pass on the Divine Light to Guru Angad and henceforth successively to each of the Ten Gurus. When the Tenth Guru felt that Sikhism was on firm footing and could survive and grow on its own, He declared that Sri Guru Granth Sahib would be the Guru forever, obliterate all their doubts and reveal to them the true purpose of life for ages to come .
The life of each of the Gurus was a specimen of a True Sikh's life from and if we succeed in applying even a tithe of the principles They taught , we would end up taking our lives to unconquered spiritual heights . Each life of the Guru brought forth a distinct human quality .While Guru Nanak was an idol of 'Humility' , Guru Angad immortalized 'Obedience' , Guru Amardas fortified the spirit of 'Equality' , Guru Amardas demonstrated the essence of 'Selfless Devotional Service' , Guru Hargobind was an apostle of 'Justice' , Guru Har Rai sanctified 'Mercy' , Guru Harkrishan idolized 'Purity' , Guru Tegh Bahadar was an ocean of 'Calmness' and Guru Gobind Singh embodied 'Royal Courage' .
Guru Nanak offered the way to attain God in His divine utterance Japuji.
"What words should we recite to win His grace?
One must recite His Name in the ambrosial morning
and think about His greatness ."
There is indeed a great wealth of knowledge in the divine hymns uttered by the Ten Gurus that obliterate all doubts on how this life is to be lived , what should be one's priorities in life , what should be the moral code of conduct and much more.Ordinary mortals treading the path of spirituality can find solace in the direction that Gur-Bani can provide to life.
Once Mardana asked Guru Nanak whether objects given in charity please God. He replied , " Yes , helping the destitute , feeding the hungry , providing cloth to the naked makes the donor a recipient of God's grace , but one must donate out of one's honest earnings .The one who receives must accept only what suffices to fulfill his needs and no more ." Guru Nanak denounced the caste system and introduced the practice of Langar, the community Kitchen, where people from all castes and creeds sat together to eat without any distinction of social hierarchy. The food for the Langar was prepared by the 'Sangat', the common people who belonged to all social strata and offered free services and contributed food materials out of their own free will. This custom went a long way in removing caste bias and promoting equality of all. He advocated earning out of one's own hard work by fair and just means. During his travels, while at Eminabaad he stayed in the house of a poor carpenter Lalo, considered untouchable, declining the services offered by the affluent Malak Bhagon. When Bhagon asked Guru Nanak the reason for declining his royal food for an outcaste's offerings, He replied, "Lalo earns in a just way out of his own labor and effort (Kirt) while you commit atrocities snatching away the shares of poor and weak abusing the power you possess. His food smells of milk but yours reeks of blood! "
Once Shah Sharaf, a famous Sufi saint asked Him why He wore the dress of a householder, which was unusual for a 'fakir' and why He had not shaven His head? Guru Nanak replied, "One must indulge in complete self surrender to God,crushing the cravings for pleasure and deflating the ego. Then whatever dress one wears is holy." Regarding the shaving of head He answered, "It is the mind that needs the shaving, not the head. And to be humble like dust that kisses the feet of one and all, is the true shaving of one's mind." Guru Nanak made five major journeys (Udaasis), through which he traveled the planet spreading his message to the remotest of habitats. He was truly a global saint and his influence was felt across all political, cultural and social boundaries.
Guru Nanak took a revolutionary step when he transferred the supreme seat of Sikhism, the Gur-Gaddi, to Bhai Lehna, a benevolent Sikh, in preference to His own sons Baba Sri Chand and Lakhmi Das and consecrated Him as the second Guru, Guru Angad Dev. He thus established that the Gur-Gaddi, was a responsibility and not merely a seat of power to be cherished for lavish comforts, and could be held only by someone who had the necessary attributes to take upon the challenge and do justice to it. He thus defied the popular custom of hereditary transfer of seats. Guru Nanak's decision to continue the line of succession to the tenth Guru is seen as a major contributing factor for the emergence of Sikhism as a popular religion which survived the test of times and attained a strong foothold in the state of Punjab and across the Indian territory. Too many religions previous to it had been consumed and lost into Hinduism as just another sects. The ten Gurus played a vital role in winning for Sikhism the distinct identity of a strong standalone religious force by delivering Guru Nanak's message to a much wider masses , establishing cities , appointing religious messengers to spread His word , enlightening masses , building Gurdwaras where Sikhs could offer prayers , fighting wars to defend the religion .
So lets venture into the life of Guru Nanak and His successors hoping to learn something that adds value to our lives .
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About the author
The author is Jaspinder Grover having written several books related to Sikh religion . Having done his BTEch in Computer science he was offered handsome jobs by three mutinational software companies , but instead he chose to follow his real interest which was writing. He is a writer for the masses using simple languagein most of his books yet getting the message across very clearly and succinctly.
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