Guru Arjan Dev and his sacrifice
Dr. Vivek Arya
Whenever the history of the tradition of sacrifice is
written, the name of the Sikh panth will be included in it in golden letters.
Suffering from inhuman atrocities of Islam, the Sikh panth was established as a
reaction. Guru Nanak Dev witnessed with his own eyes the atrocities of Babur.
Babur received the title of “Mujahid” when, in 1519 AD, during the initial
phase of his conquest of India, he attacked the small state of Bijaur in the
North-West Frontier Province. In his autobiography Baburnama, he described this
event with great delight and jubilation:
“Since the inhabitants of Bijaur were enemies and rebels
against Islam, and heretical and hostile customs and traditions prevailed among
them, they were massacred. The women and children were taken captive. According
to an estimate, three thousand persons were put to death. After conquering the
fort, we entered it and inspected it. Along the streets, in the houses, in the
lanes and passages, countless Hindu bodies lay scattered. All who came and went
had to pass over the corpses… On the ninth day of Muharram, I ordered that a
tower of the heads of the Hindu dead be erected in the field.”[i]
Babur had a fondness, like his ancestor Timur, for building
towers of the heads of kafirs. Reflecting upon the indescribable sufferings
inflicted upon the Hindus by Babur, Guru Nanak was so deeply moved that he
questioned the Creator of the universe, the Supreme Father, saying:
“O Lord! How can You endure such massacres, such tortures,
and such suffering? “
He said:
“God has placed Khurasan under His protection (i.e.,
remained absorbed in samadhi) and has left Hindustan open to Babur’s
atrocities. O Giver of Life! You never take any blame upon Yourself; You ever
remain detached. Was it death itself that came in the form of the Mughal to
wage war against us? When such terrible slaughter was taking place, when such
dreadful cries were arising, did You not feel pain?”[ii]
In the Cambridge
History of India, Sir Jadunath Sarkar wrote:
“Guru Nanak condemned
the Muslims of his time and called them low, fallen, and misguided.”[iii]
The words of Guru Nanak stand as testimony to history
revealing sectarian mentality. It was this same mentality of which Guru Arjan
Dev Ji became a victim. His father, Guru Ram Das, had bestowed upon him the
Guruship on 1 September 1581 at the age of eighteen. The establishment of Sri
Harmandir Sahib and the compilation of the Adi Granth are credited to him.
Akbar respected him. After Akbar, Jahangir ascended the throne. He was addicted
to wine and opium and was licentious. He had Guru Ji arrested. The reasons
behind this were:
“First, Guru Arjan Dev was honoured by Akbar. Second, the
bigoted Shaykh Ahmad Sirhindi instigated Jahangir against the Guru. Third,
Shaykh Farid Bukhari informed Jahangir that his brother Khusro had sought
assistance from the Guru, whereas the Guru should have arrested him and
presented him before Jahangir.”[iv]
In Jahangir’s autobiography, Tuzuk-e-Jahangiri, it is
written:
“A Hindu named Arjun, who resides at Goindwal on the bank of
the River Beas, has become a pir or shaykh. Under his influence many Hindus,
ignorant people, and even some foolish Muslims have adopted his ways. He has
declared himself a saint and a siddha. From all sides some horsemen and fools
have become his disciples. This business has been going on for 3 or 4
generations. I had long desired to put a stop to this and to bring him into
Islam. When Khusro passed by his place, he made him stay, met him, and at the
time of departure applied a mark of victory upon his forehead.”[v]
Jahangir summoned the Guru to Lahore. The Guru sensed the
coming difficult time. He said to his wife Ganga:
“This body will not remain forever. A wise person never
takes pride in the body. That which is born must end. And the pride that one
carries will, sooner or later, certainly be destroyed. This is the law of
nature… After I depart, you must continue to live. Do not lament for me, nor
should you ever think of taking your own life.”[vi]
He was presented in Jahangir’s court at Lahore. A fine of
two lakh rupees was imposed upon him in the name of assisting Khusro. He said:
“ Whatever I possess has been received in charity. You may
take it whenever you wish. But if you desire to take it as a fine, I will not
give even a shell, because fines are imposed upon the corrupt and sinners, not
upon saints.”
He refused to pay. He
was imprisoned. In the scorching heat of May–June, in the Lahore Fort, from
morning till evening he was kept in chains in the open burning sun. Beneath him
was hot sand. At intervals, boiling water was poured upon his body, which
became scorched. While enduring these tortures, Guru Ji uttered:
“Tera kiya meetha
lage; Naam padarth Nanak mange.” (Sweet is Thy Will, O Lord; Nanak seeks only
the gift of Thy Name.)
On the final day, when the tyrants came to kill him by
sewing him into a cowhide, Guru Ji said: “I am a saint. I will not embrace
death with an impure body. I wish to bathe before I accept death.” Under heavy
guard he was taken to bathe in the River Ravi. There, in the river itself, he
relinquished his life and became a traveller upon the path of martyrdom. On 30
May 1606, at the age of forty-three, he attained martyrdom.[vii]
He accepted being scorched upon burning sand, but did not
accept the invitation to Islam. Salutations to such a great Guru Arjun Dev Ji.
(Reproduced from book ‘Dharam Balidaniyon ko Janen in Hindi,
Published from Suruchi Prakashan, Keshav Kunj, Jhandewalan, Delhi.’
[i] Baburnama,
trans. A. S. Beveridge, New Delhi, reprint 1979, p. 370–371.
[ii] Guru
Nanak, p. 125, Publication Division, Government of India.
[iii] Vol.
4, p. 244.
[iv] Hari
Ram Gupta, History of the Sikhs, Part I, Munshiram Manoharlal, Delhi, 1984, p.
148.
[v] Ibid.,
p. 148–149.
[vi] Ibid,
p. 149.
[vii] Ibid,
pp. 149–152.
