Guru Teg Bahadur’s valiant life and death, and why there’s confusion over his martyrdom date

Last year, during celebrations for the 400th birth anniversary of the Guru, who was beheaded on Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb’s orders, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that Guru Teg Bahadur gave his life to protect Kashmiri Pandits from the brutality of the Mughals. Here’s a short account of the Guru’s life, his execution by Aurangzeb, and how it was linked to Kashmiri Pandits.

Life of Guru Teg Bahadur

After Guru Nanak Dev, the first Sikh Guru, it was Guru Teg Bahadur who travelled the most among the 10 living Sikh Gurus.

He travelled to Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Bengal, Assam, and Bangladesh. Guru Teg Bahadur’s journey is documented in the form of Gurudwaras established in the memory of his visits, including one in Ayodhya.

After Guru Nanak Dev, many Sikh families in various parts of India had not been able to see any of their Gurus up close. Guru Teg Bahadur’s travels, thus, revived Sikh centers far away from Punjab. This proved strategically important when Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru, established the Khalsa in 1699.

The Guru was also a great poet, and his hymns are part of Guru Granth Sahib.

The founder of the City Anandpur Sahib, which was geographically well-suited to defend against a big army, Guru Teg Bahadur’s name earlier was Teyag Mal. His father and the sixth Guru of Sikhs, Guru Hargobind Sahib (1595-1644), changed the name to Teg Bahadur. He got his name from his fighting and sword skills on the battlefield.

The Guru was not only a warrior but also a great diplomat. He had very close relations with many contemporary kings. During the tour to the northeast region of India, Tegh Bahadur Sahib was instrumental in the conciliation between Raja Bishan Singh and Raja Paranpal, thus avoiding a war.

He was first arrested by the Mughals on the orders of Aurangzeb in 1665; however, the diplomatic relations he had established secured his release and he was able to continue his journey east. The execution came 10 years later in 1675.

Guru Teg Bahadur’s execution by Aurangzeb

According to Sikh sources Dasam Granth (1600), Gurbilas (1720), Gurbilas Patshahi Dasvi (1751), and Bansavalinama (1769), Kashmiri Pandits came to Guru Teg Bahadur at Anandpur Sahib to seek protection from forced conversion to Islam by Aurangzeb’s men.

The Guru assured the Pandits of his protection. When he reached New Delhi, he was arrested along with disciples Bhai Matti Dass, Bhai Satti Dass (brothers), and Bhai Deyala ji. The three disciples were executed one by one, to threaten Guru Teg Bahadur to embrace Islam. When he remained steadfast in his refusal to do so, the Guru was executed in Chandni Chowk.

Gurudwara Sis Ganj now stands where at the location of Guru Teh Bahadur’s beheading. It was constructed in 1783. There is another Gurudwara in Rakab Ganj, near Parliament building. This is believed to be the location where the Guru’s body was cremated by Bhai Lakhi Shah, by setting ablaze his own house.

Confusion over date of martyrdom

There is some confusion regarding the date of Guru Tegh Bahadur’s martyrdom.

Dr Hardev Singh, from the Department of Religious Studies, Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University, Fatehgarh Sahib, had told The Indian Express last year that this was due to the change in calendars over the years. “The Islamic Hijri calendar was in force when Guru ji was beheaded. Later, Sikh historians started relying on the lunisolar Bikrami Samvat calendar traditionally used in the Indian subcontinent. And then the British introduced the Gregorian calendar. This led to confusion,” he said.

A few years ago, some Sikh scholars sought to introduce the Nanakshahi calendar to fix the dates of important historical events in Sikh history, but there was no unanimity on it.