BACK
Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur: The Defender of Democratic Values
Sri Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji was born to the sixth Sikh Guru, Guru Hargobind, and his wife, Mata Nanaki on Vaisakh Vadi 5, (5 Vaisakh), Bikrami Samvat 1678, (1st April, 1621) in the holy city of Amritsar (Punjab). He was trained as a warrior by his father and he participated in most of the battles fought by Guru Hargobind Sahib. He composed 116 shabads (Divine hymns) in 15 ragas, and his Divine compositions have been included in the Sri Guru Granth Sahib. From the life, divine hymns and teachings of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur, we come to realize his great passion, his enduring efforts and hope for the creation of free, fair, pluralistic, secular and harmonious society. After Guru Nanak, it was Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur who undertook extensive preaching tours of India. Along with his prominent Sikhs, he covered Majha, Doaba and Malwa regions of Punjab and some areas of present day Haryana, known as Bangar. He also undertook a long tour of North-Eastern India and preached Sikhism in far-flung areas of present day Bangladesh and Assam state to create awareness among the masses about the significance and indispensable need of human rights, individual liberties, respect for human dignity, social justice, secularism, national unity and peaceful coexistence.
At a time, when modern concepts like, democracy, human rights, liberty, equality, fraternity, secularism and right to religious freedom etc. were not yet in vogue in the West, similarly, in an authoritarian and bigoted regime of Mughal Emperor in India (31 July 1658 – 3 March 1707) Aurangzeb where speaking out for one’s rights was considered an invitation to death and at a time when the oppressed and innocent masses had no say, Sri Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur had come forward to defend the righteousness, and showed an unparallel and exemplary courage to speak out against oppression and injustice and vociferously expressed his democratic concerns. The life, teachings and philosophy of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur not only reflects his democratic aspirations but also conveys the message to the masses to make the basic tenets of the democratic way of life a part of their practical life. He travelled extensively to awaken the fear-stricken conscience of the people, to make them aware of their rights, to encourage them to raise their voice against socio-economic injustice and political tyranny, and to uphold moral and democratic values in their practical life. By sacrificing his life, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur urged Indians to live with dignity, to fight for their rights, not to tolerate oppression under any circumstances and to live fearlessly without intimidating anyone. He was indeed a great liberator and savoir of mankind. He was also champion of the right to religious freedom in era of religious fanaticism. He laid down his life in the defence of human dignity, justice, socio-religious harmony, religious freedom, socio-religious and cultural pluralism, secularism, humanism, freedom of choice, freedom of expression and right to resist. He taught his disciples to protect the ones who needed protection, even if it comes at the cost of one’s own life. He taught liberation from worldly attachments, fear and dependence. He believed that strength should be gained through cultivation of truth, worship, sacrifice and knowledge.
Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur was also a multifaceted genius, great visionary and an embodiment of enlightenment, tolerance, love, courage, compassion and justice. He was much ahead of his times. When human civilization was ignorant of the concept of human rights, when human life depended on the will and mercy of autocratic kings, when people were not even allowed to worship according to their own religion, when social structures were based on discrimination, when superstitions and ignorance were rampant, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur was practically teaching people to adopt a democratic way of life for the betterment of mankind and a brighter future.
Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur through his teachings and divine message in the 17th century tried to inculcate the democratic values among masses and encouraged people not only to adopt democratic values but also to strive for democratic way of life. He worked tirelessly to remove the obstacles that stood in the way of creation of just and democratic social order as well as defended the democratic values by sacrificing his life. He taught the masses to raise their strong voice against political oppression, to make any sacrifice to live with dignity, to fight for their rights and to do good to humanity by forgetting personal interests. He had professed, practiced and propagated the democratic values. He was a true protagonist of national integration and secularism. He was a strong critic of political oppression, religious chauvinism and socio-religious discriminations. He had preached the idea of equality, freedom, fraternity, justice, harmony, unity, peace, secularism through his divine compositions to the entire world.
Following the teachings of his predecessors, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur not only carried forward their mission but also set a new benchmark in the Sikh way of life in tune with democratic values by putting them into practice. Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur performed the mighty deed under the inspiration of high human ideals and values. Some of these may be mentioned as: (i)Compassion (karuna) for suffering humanity, for oppressed and exploited people; (ii)protection of dharma (Moral Law) recognized in Sikh tradition as the basis of human society; (iii)resistance to tyranny resulting from a breach of the norms of dharma; (iv)respect and tolerance for modes of living and thinking other than one’s own, what is today termed as the ideal of pluralistic society.1 He raised a strong voice against a theocratic state, racial arrogance, sectarian communal divisions, religious extremism and despotic rule of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. He had a firm faith in the idea of common Fatherhood of God and Universal Brotherhood of mankind. When he learnt about Aurangzeb’s intentions of building India into an Islamic state, he decided to vouch for the simeltancous existence of other existing religions of Sikhism, Islam and Hinduism. Sikhism believes in a plural and fair society. Therefore, diversity is an obvious and natural phenomenon. God has created his kingdom of living beings in multiple names, forms and colours. This multiplicity is the beauty and grandeur of nature and is created by God himself. Therefore, it must be maintained. No individual, however high he may be on earth, has the right to dictate anyone else to follow his way of life. Freedom and equality for all, is the fundamental principle of Sikhism.2
With the passage of time, Emperor Aurangzeb intensified his policy of persecution of Hindus and the use of force for conversion of people to Islam particularly in Panjab and Kashmir. He asked the local Governor of Kashmir to put pressure on the Hindu Pandits to embrace Islam. Overcome by panic, they came in a delegation to Anandpur to seek the protection of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur. He patiently listened to their tales of repression and consoled them. He felt that the sacrifice of a holy man only could restrain the idea of forcible conversion of the masses to Islam. At this moment his nine-year-old son, Gobind Rai, told his father that he was the fittest man to uphold the freedom of faith and conscience. So Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur decided to stand up for the right of freedom of worship and told the delegation that he was ready to sacrifice his life to protect the Hindus from mass conversion.3
When a delegation of Kashmiri Pandits came to Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur for help, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur helped them unconditionally without considering their caste, religion, race, region, language, etc. He had just focused only on the fact that those who were seeking his help were victims of political oppression, no one was ready to help them and they did not have the sufficient strength to fight against the tyrannical ruler. Recognizing the Kashmiri Pandits as an integral part of the entire human race, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur carried forward the Guru Nanak’s mission to help the needy, helpless victims of oppression. In order to defend the centuries-old knowledge traditions of Brahmins and to counter Aurangzeb’s policy of religious fanaticism, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur set an unparalleled and ultimate example when he laid down his supreme sacrifice to defend the righteousness, right to religious freedom and human dignity of every section of society. He resisted strongly the forcible religious conversion and stated that if Aurangzeb was able to convert him successfully then all the Hindus would follow suit. Soon, Guru Ji was arrested along with his followers and was subjected to physical torture for many days. He was publicly beheaded in the year 1675 on the orders of the emperor as he had refused to embrace Islam. He made the supreme sacrifice for the sake of religious freedom so as to ensure the establishment of a world order based on harmony, peace and unity. He was of the view that the goal of social solidarity and religious harmony can only be established when nobody would be forced to change religion under pressure tactics.
Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur had a firm belief that state had no right to coerce people into changing their religion. He advocated an idea that rulers should not impose their whims or unjustified will over the masses and should give due regard to the universal moral values. He thus defended dharma, which is righteousness, under a regime which had taken to the path of oppression and tyranny. He stood for those values and traditions which the soul of India has evolved and cherished over millennia, and which are some of the noblest ideals held by humanity. His sacrifice, therefore, was for a cause which was of the highest order. It is a fact that Guru Nanak had raised his voice against the Hindu ritualism and symbolism. He did not appreciate the externalia (like the frontal mark and the sacred thread) of Hinduism, but still when the freedom of religion had been thwarted by a despot, Guru Nanak would have also gone to its rescue. In 1675, it was his successor Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur who did, what none else could do.4
Guru Tegh Bahadur’s martyrdom was unique and unparalleled in the annals of human history. He laid down his life in defence of religious tolerance, of freedom of worship, and freedom of conscience. In practical parlance, this meant defence of the ritual sacred thread and frontal mark signifying the Brahminical way of life, which Sikhism had discarded now for two centuries. Here was a martyrdom, which was self sought for the defence of basic human values, which centuries later were incorporated by the U. N. General Assembly in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in December 1948.5 After the martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the history of the Sikhs assumed a new dimension. The Sikhs waged open struggle against the organized oppression of the Mughals. The masses thought that in order to face the various challenges, they would have to be more resolute and determined to fight for their freedom in all spheres of life. The people from all sections of the society thought Sikh religion alone was the only way to get liberation from the suppression. So more and more people were attracted towards Sikhism. Thus Sikhism came to the forefront with its own distinctive character. And years later, on Baisakhi Day of 1699, when Guru Gobind Singh created the Khalsa institution with the call for a “head,” he must have been unconsciously remembering his father’s gift to humanity. The demand that stunned the Baisakhi congregation of 1699 was but what Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur had already set forth in his lifetime. The pluralistic motivations of his father must have resonated deep within the son and eventually led to his ideal of the Khalsa, which would valorously defy all sorts of religious and social exclusions.6
In the current scenario, there is an immense need to uphold and emulate high ideals of democracy, secularism and humanitarianism embodied by Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur. His divine compositions, which are included in Sri Guru Granth Sahib, preach the message of unity of mankind, universal brotherhood, righteousness, courage and compassion, which need to be followed by one and all. He died not while protecting any particular religion but while protecting the right of everyone to religious freedom, right to resistance and human dignity. He was perhaps the first martyr of mankind for human rights, who attained the martyrdom for defending the right to religious freedom. This event happened long before the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) guaranteed every one’s right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. It was also much before the establishment of Western democracies. He lived at a time when even personal laws were oppressive and the right to worship as per one’s choice was denied, culminating in an atmosphere of fear and severe backlash. His supreme sacrifice as defender of the ‘dharma’ is unparalleled in the history of mankind and stands out as a landmark for humanity. In today’s world, scarred by religious fanaticism and intolerance, he is truly a hero to be revered and emulated. Our real homage to the great Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur would be to follow his teachings in true spirit and dedicate ourselves to serve society, especially the poor and downtrodden, with dedication and missionary zeal by rising above the parochial considerations of caste, colour, creed and religion. There is also an immense need to spread his socio-religious philosophy and message of respect for human rights, individual liberties, social harmony, national integration and religious tolerance for the entire world.
~~~
Refernces
1. Fauja Singh. “Guru Tegh Bahadur and Human Rights.” In Guru Tegh Bahadur Background and Supreme Scarifice, edited by Gurhachan Singh Talih. Patiala: Punjabi University, 1999. p. 59
2. Darshan Singh. “Dr Oberoi’s Journey into Obscurity’.” In Invasion of Religious Boundaries, edited by Surinder Singh Sodhi and Gurbakhsh Singh Gill Jasbir Singh Mann. Chandigarh: Institute of Sikh Studies, 1995, pp. 139-140
3. Ramesh Chander Dogra and Gobind Singh Mansukhani. Encyclopaedia of Sikh Religion and Culture, Missouri: South Asia Books, 1995.
4. Surinder Singh Kohli. “Guru Tegh Bahadur-The Ninth Nanak (1621-1675).” In Fundamental Issues in Sikh Studies, edited by Jasbir Singh Mann and Gobind Singh Mansukhani Kharak Singh. Chandigarh: Institute of Sikh Studies, 1992. p. 167.
5. Sangat Singh. The Sikhs in History: A Millenium Study with New Afterwords. New Delhi: Oscar publications, 2001, p. 46.
6. Nikky-Guninder Kaur Singh, The Birth of the Khalsa, Albany: State University of New York Press, 2005. p. 25.
¤
