Guru Tegh Bahadur and Religious Tolerence

 Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur made a poetic statement in response to the terror tactics of Aurangzeb, the religiously fanatic Mughal emperor of Delhi and the verse is preserved on the page 1427 of Sri Guru Granth Sahib:

"He who doesnot instill fear in anyone, and does not allow anyone to terrorize him, is the Enlightened Soul."

These words of wisdom by the 9th Nanak, must have echoed through the streets of old Delhi during the dark evening of 11th November, 1675 when Guru was beheaded by the order of the emperor. His severed head and the torso was left on the execution platform for the people of India to witness and fear.  

The Gauntlet

The Guru reresented the case of Kashmiri Pundits who were forcibly converted to Islam en masse. He laid down the gauntlet in front of the mighty Mughal empire. If they can convice the Guru to accept the Islamic Da’Wa or the declaration of the supremacy of Islam, the entire population of Kashmiri Pundit will convert.

When proselytic attempts by Islamic clerics to convert Guru Teg Bahadur failed, the Mughals tried terror as the last resort. Three of Guru's disciples - Bhai Mati Das, Bhai Sati Das, and Bhai Dayala were tortured and executed in front of the Guru. When this failed, the Guru was beheaded in public to terrorize the Indians.

To further humiliate the Indian conscious, the empirical order was announced that no one was allowed to pick up the remains of Guru's body as it lay in open display of religious bigotry. The locals were wailing at the macabre sight but no one dared to disobey the royal order.

The Impact

The reaction was opposite of what the emperor had envisioned. The supreme sacrifice of Guru Tegh Bahadur in standing firm in support of the religious rights of Kashmiri Hindu Pundits. The Indians hailed him as, Hind ki Chadar, the saviour of the Indian Pride. Instead of terror, this heinious act of Mughals instilled sense of pride among the people of India, specially the Sikhs. 

I am going to narrate five historical events that led to the change of people's attitude towards religious zealots and ultimately burried the Mughal empire forever:

Event I: The Pride of India

That night, a blinding sandstorm (Kali Andhi) struck Delhi. The Mughal soldiers on guard lost their bearings and a Sikh called Bhai Jaita who belonged to the lowcaste of Rangretta, took the Mughal guards by surprise. He picked up the head of the guru and vanished into the night. The severed head of the Guru represented the Indian self-pride and it needed to get to its destination - Guru's son Gobind Rai at Anandpur Sahib in Punjab Hills.

"Sheesh diya, Par Sirar na diya - Guru gave his Head but Not his Pride"

The Pride of India - Guru Tegh Bahadur

Event II: The Last Respect

Simultaneously, Bhai Lakhi Shah, a Lubana contractor of the Mughal Court, came with a huge caravans of bullock carts and carried away the body, under the cover of darkness. They drove past the Red Fort arriving at their home in Raisina Hill. Lakhi Shah's house were set on fire to offer an honorable cremation. Today, the site of the house which was set on fire is marked by Gurdwara Rakabganj located opposite the Indian parliament.

The Cremation - Gurdwara Rakab ganj

Event III: The Support

Bhai Jaita wrapped the Guru’s severed head in a cloth and ran towards Anandpur Sahib in the Punjab hills throgh Haryana. On his long journey, he took rest in the Rai Garhi village in Sonipat, Haryana. He was being pursued by the Mughal soldiers who soon reached village looking for him. Bhai Kushal Singh Dahiya, an elder of this Haryanvi Jat village assessed the situation and offered his head to fool the Mughals as his face bore resemblance to the Guru, Bhai Jaita managed to escape with the help of the villagers and reached Anandpur Sahib and the Mughal soldiers mistakenly took the severed head of Kushal Singh Dahiya back to Delhi. The village was destroyed by the Mughals in retribution for this act of deceit. The villagers fled and years later, some families came back and the village's name was changed from Rai Garhi to Badh Khalsa.

Memorial Bhai Kushal Singh Dahiya - Sonipat, Haryana

Event IV: The Response

Upon receiving the head of his father and the 9th Guru, the young Gobind Rai hugged Bhai Jaita and honored him as his brother, "Rangretta, Guru ka Beta".

Twenty four years later, on the Vaisakhi of 1699, the Tenth Nanak initiated Khalsa, the saint soldier by baptizing five Sikhs with Amrit, the nectar immortalized by sword. Khalsa, the brave one vowed to liberate the people of India from the barbaric Mughal regime.

Initiation of Khalsa - Vaisakhi 1699

Event V: The End

Guru Gobind Singh led from the front in this endeavor for liberty. He not only laid down his life, but also sacrificed his four sons to set an example for the people of India. His disciple, Baba Banda Singh Bahadur decimated the Mughal empire in North India and liberated the farmers of Punjab, Haryana, and Western UP. 

Dal Khalsa under the leadership of Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia, Baghel Singh, and Jassa Singh Ramgarhia captured Red Fort, the Mughal castle in Delhi on 11 March 1783. They established monumental Gurdwaras at the sites of Guru's execution and cremation. The Sikhs broke the Mughal throne and dragged it all the way to Amritsar to install it at the floor of Ramgarhia Bunga.

Sikh Capture Red Fort - 1783

Not many people know this, but Sikh soldiers of Hodson's Horses defeated the mutiny against the British in 1857 and captured Bahadur Shah Zafar, the great grandson of Aurangzeb and the last Mughal emperor of India. It is said that the two sons of Bahadur Shah were beheaded on the streets of old Delhi.

Hodson with Last Mughal Emperor