GURU ARJUN DEV JI

(1581-1606)

The youngest son of Guru Ram Das Ji and Bibi Bhani, Guru Arjun Dev Ji was born at Goindwal in the year 1573. Right from childhood, Arjun always obeyed the commands of his father and fixed his thoughts on the worship of the Supreme Being. Guru Amar Das Ji was very fond of Arjun who as a child was always hovering around him. The Guru had predicted that his grandson would cruise the people across the deep ocean of life. As predicted when the time came for Guru Ram Das Ji to exit, Arjun was ordained the Guruship. However, this was not acceptable to Prithi Chand, Guru Arjun Dev Ji’s eldest brother. Generous and magnanimous as Arjun was, he offered to abdicate the Guruship and leave Goindwal for Amritsar, the new township in the making. But Prithi Chand was neither convinced nor contented. Instead he started conniving and conspiring against Guru Arjun Dev Ji.  Guru Ji was above all these things. He had his own higher and holy pursuits to accomplish.

Guru Arjun Dev Ji was an illustrious poet, an astute philosopher, original thinker, able organiser, eminent statesman and the first martyr to the faith. He gave his full attention to the completion of Amritsar, the pool of immortality. He widened and deepened the Amritsar tank. He also started construction of Hari Mandir (now known as Golden Temple) in the center of Amritsar tank. The famous Muslim Sufi saint Mian Mir laid the foundation of Hari Mandir. The Sikhs wanted the Mandir to be the tallest building. But the Guru had very cogent and convincing reasons to think otherwise.  He made his followers realize that humility is the toughest virtue. Therefore the Temple should be built on a lower elevation. Thus the Temple was constructed on a lower plinth to emphasize the point that God could be attained in bending low in submission and humility. The Temple was also to open from all the four sides to enable everyone to enter the Temple from any side, thereby making no discrimination against anyone.

The Hari Mandir or the Golden Temple became the spiritual and cultural seat of the new community as also a leading place of pilgrimage of the Guru’s disciples. Guru Arjun Dev established his permanent abode here. In addition to the Hari Temple at Amritsar, the Guru built other big ones at Taran Taran and Kartarpur. Guru Ji took many steps to make the Sikh community distinct from the Hindus and Muslims.

The most treasured and endearing feat of Guru Arjun Dev Ji was the compilation of Guru Granth Sahib (Also known as Adi Granth) by collecting the writings of the preceding Gurus and those deemed most valuable in the compositions of Hindu and Muslim saints, adding to them his own. With this glorious act, He gave consistent form and order to Sikh religion. In Sikhism, worship consisted of singing the hymns of Gurus. Guru Arjun Dev Ji wished to lay down the exact hymns to be sung and correct rituals to be performed. The Guru Granth Sahib became the sacred scripture of the Sikhs. It became a sacred book of the new faith and a new consciousness among the Sikhs of their being a separate community emerged. The fascinating hymns of Guru Granth Sahib chanted in deep reverence and devotion, inspired the minds of listeners to lofty ideals of simple living and high thinking. The hymns establish a deep spiritual unity between man and God.

The greatest contribution of Guru Arjun Dev Ji to the Sikh faith was to give supreme sacrifice for the faith. Guru Ji’s ever growing influence amongst the people perturbed Emperor Jehangir. Under royal instruction the Governor of Lahore had him arrested on a frivolous charge and subjected him to severe torture that eventually resulted in the Guru’s death. Guru Arjun Dev Ji set the noblest example of courage and boldness in resisting the wrongs of the mightiest power on earth, and thus sowed the seed that was to bear rich fruit in the times to come. It was the turning point in the growth and development of Sikh community. He was the first in the long series of Sikh martyrs. His martyrdom entirely changed the character of reformatory religious movement. The Sikhs were transmuted from a pacifist to assertive and marshal people after the execution of Guru Arjun Dev Ji.