Guru Arjan Dev Martyrdom

 

Guru Arjan Dev Martyrdom

Dr. Vivek Arya

Guru Arjan Dev, fifth in succession is honoured as the founder of Shri Hari Mandir, the Adi Granth and his martyrdom. Guru had good relations with Akbar but His son Salim later known as Jahangir was just opposite to Him. Salim even once tried to poison Akbar but failed. Jahangir later sat on the Mughal throne. He faced revolt from his son Khusrau. He was responsible for killing his own son.

Jahangir's hatred for the Guru

Jahangir hated Guru Arjan for several reasons. First he was opposed to all those who had been in Akbar's good books. Secondly, Shaikh Ahmad Sarhindi (Sufi) incited Jahangir against Guru Arjan when he halted at Sarhind in pursuit of Khusrau. Thirdly, Shaikh Farid Bukhari was leading the vanguard of the army which was pursuing the Prince. He was the first leader to know about Khusrau's visit to the Guru He declared that the Guru should have captured him and ought to have handed him over to the Emperor. He therefore considered the Guru a rebel. Jahangir also took the same view. He wrote in his autobiography,

"A Hindu named Arjan lived at Goindwal on the bank of river Beas in the garb of a Pir and Shaikh. As a result many of the simple- minded Hindus as well as ignorant and foolish Muslims had been persuaded to adopt his ways and manners, and he had raised aloft the standard of sainthood and holiness. He was called Guru. From all sides cowboys and idiots became his fast followers. This business had been flourishing for three or four generations. For a long time it had been in my mind to put a stop to this vain affair (dukān-e-bātil) or to bring him into the fold of Islam. In these days when Khusrau passed along this road, this foolishly insignificant fellow (mardak-e- majhul) proposed to wait on him. Khusrau happened to halt at the place where he lived. He came and met him. He discussed several matters with him and made on his forehead a finger-mark in saffron. In the terms of Hindus it is called Qashqa and is considered propitious."

In pursuit of Khusrau Jahangir halted at Goindwal while his army had gone ahead to capture Khusrau. Jahangir writes, 

"I call God to witness that while at Goindwal, at this perilous crisis, I experienced some strong forebodings that Khusrau was coming to my presence."

 Just then the news came that royal forces were victorious and Khusrau had been taken prisoner.

Jahangir summons the Guru to Lahore

Khusrau was arrested on the eastern bank of river Chenab on April 26, 1606. He was produced before Jahangir on May 1 and was partially blinded. The Emperor then summoned Guru Arjan to Lahore. The Guru had realized that being surrounded by enemies on all sides his end was near. Before his departure he consoled his wife Ganga thus,

 "This body abideth not for ever. Wherefore a wise person should not love it Whatever is born perisheth, and whatever is high falleth sooner or later. This is nature's law. . . Live thou when I am gone, mourn not for me, and make no effort of thine own to separate thy soul from thy body."

Jahangir first punish him with death. But later commuted it by a fine of two lakhs of rupees, and ordered him to efface certain verses in the Adi Granth. Guru Arjan refused to pay the fine. The Guru was imprisoned in the Lahore Fort. May-June are the hottest months there. He was chained to a post in an open place exposed to the sun from morning to evening. Below his feet a heap of sand was put which burnt like a furnace. Boiling water was poured on his naked body at intervals. His body was covered with blisters all over. In this agony the Guru used to utter. 

Terā kiyā mitha läge. Nām padārath Nanak mänge

[Whatever you ordain appears sweet. I supplicate for the gift of Name.]

The Guru's death

The Guru suffered from 'heat apoplexy.' Sewing up political prisoners in fresh hides of animals seems to be a general practice in those days. A month earlier two main supporters of Khusrau had been treated similarly. Husain Beg was sewn in a fresh ox hide and Abdur Rahim in the green skin of an ass. The same punishment was now proposed for the Guru. When the raw hide of a cow was brought before him, he shuddered at its sight. The Guru asked permission to bathe in the Ravi as he did not want to die unclean. He was sent thither with a strong escort, but the swift current owing to the melting of snow carried away his weak and emaciated body. This took place on 30 May, 1606. The Guru was only 43 years old. His smadhi was later on erected at the site on the bank of river Ravi opposite to the Fort of Lahore.

Shaikh Ahmad of Sarhind expressed utmost delight at Guru Arjan's murder. In a letter written to Shaikh Farid Bukhari entitled Murtza Khan, the Governor of Panjab, he said,

"The execution at this time of the accursed Kafir of Goindwall with whatever motive. . . is an act of the highest grace for the follo- owers of Islam."

 He added that the Hindus should be treated as dogs. Jazia should be imposed upon them and cow slaughter should be allowed in the open.

Trumpp says that,

 "Guru Arjan's death is the great turning point in the development of Sikh community, as from that time the struggle commenced that changed the entire character of reformatory religious movement."

Guru Hargovind was appointed after his father martyrdom. He was imprisoned in the Gwalior fort for 12 years by Mughals. His Son Guru Teg bahadur was beheaded in Chandni Chowk. All these atrocities enabled the need for armed struggle and later for the establishment of Khalsa and downfall of cruel Mughals. 

(Hariram Gupta, vol.3 p.148-153)

Krishna of Puranas versus Krishna of Mahabharat

 

Krishna of Puranas versus Krishna of Mahabharat

Authored by Dr. Vivek Arya

Translated by Atul Sehgal

The famous social reformer and profound scholar of Vedas Swami Dayanand writes about Shri Krishna in his immortal text Satyarth Prakash. He states that throughout the epic of Mahabharat, you are unable to find any flaw in the character of Shri Krishna and so he is called Apta (superior or superhuman) person. Swami Dayanand regards Shri Krishna as a great scholar, person of sublime personality, accomplished politician and utterly spotless of character. Even then, in regard to Shri Krishna, to say that he was a thief, a flirt who courted Gopies, one who had sex with Kubja and a battlefield deserter amounts to his serious insult. What is the basis of such false allegations against the character of Shri Krishna? The basis of these dirty allegations is Puranas. Let us establish our viewpoint through evidences.   

False account of Krishna’s romantic dalliance with Gopies

In Vishnu Puran Section 5, Chapter 13, verses 59 to 60 state—

Those Gopies, who never stopped even at the instance of their husbands, fathers or brothers, indulged in nightly escapades with Krishna to satisfy their lust. Even Krishna, in keeping with his youthful desires, indulged in night time adventures with them.   

Puranic literature has left no stone unturned in defiling the character of Shri Krishna through account of his so called sexual escapades.

Bhagwat Puran Skand 10, chapter 33, verse 17 states—

 

Krishna sometimes touched their bodies with his hands, at other times looked at them lustfully and sometimes playfully joked with them. He indulged in escapades with the beautiful Gopies similar to the way a child, who out of fun, plays with his own shadow.  

Bhagwat Puran Skand 10, Chapter 29, verse 45-46 says—

Krishna arrived at river Jamuna’s bank full of sand glistening like camphor. That place had coolness of water streams and fragrance of Kumudini. There, Krishna embraced the Gopis by spreading arms, pressing their hands, holding their hairlocks, caressing their thighs, pulling the strings of their pants, fondling their breasts, joking with them, scratching and injuring their organs with nails, staring at them with flirtatious humour and smiling. Through these acts, he aroused them with desire and then during the night made love with them.  

Such indecent acts have been ascribed to Shri Krishna to vilify him by the author of Bhagwat in Skanda 10, Chapter 29, 33. I cannot describe in more detail these acts because of the need to observe social moderation for maintaining decency and dignity.  

Description of Radha and Krishna in Purans

Radha’s and Krishna’s names appear together. The Mahabharat gives no account at all of Radha. Radha’s most undignified and obscene account appears in Brahmvaivart Puran.

Brahmvaivart Puran Krishna Janma section, chapter 3, verse 59-62 states that in Goloka Krishna’s wife Radha caught Krishna red handed with another woman and cursed him saying –O Krishna, the beloved of Braj, go away from my sight. Why do you trouble me? O mischievous, languid debauch – I have understood you. Leave my house. You are engrossed in pleasures of the flesh like humans. May you get the birth of a human; you go away from Golok to Bharat. “O virtuous, O dignified, O Padmavati, O Madhavo! This Krishna is cunning. Drive him out. He has no business to be here.”  

Brahmvaivart Puran in Krishna Janma Khand, Chapter 72 renders a very vulgar description of Krishna’s dalliance with Radha which I am unable to describe in detail for reason of sheer modesty.  

In Brahmvaivart Puran, Krishna Janma Khand, Chapter 72, the cohabitation of Krishna with Kubja has also been depicted in the most obscene manner.  

Radha’s relationship with Krishna is also illusory. Being born out of Krishna’s left organ, she was his daughter or being spouse of Rayan was Krishna’s daughter in law. Since Rayan was born out of Krishna’s left body part, he is Krishna’s son while on the earth, Rayan was the brother of Krishna’s mother Yashodha and hence was Krishna’s maternal uncle while Radha was Krishna’s maternal aunt.   

Who were Krishna’s Gopies? 

The Padam Puran Uttar published from Khand Kolkata) Chapter 25 says that when Ramchandra ji arrived in dandak aranya van, the inhabitants of that place—rishis were turned on by his elegant and beautiful persona and desired to cohabit with him. All those rishis were born at the end of Dwapar age as Gopies and Ramchandra ji incarnated as Krishna to make love with them. This act led to the salvation of the Gopies. Otherwise, they could never be able to cross the worldly oceans for their liberation.  Can the account of birth of Gopies be accepted by the normal intellect? 

The real face of Shri Krishna

Till now, we were talking about the Krishna who is described in Puranas as the beloved of Gopies, husband of Radha and flirtatious and this description is definitely false. 

Now we will talk about Shri Krishna -– the accomplished yogi, strategist, and great tactician and will get to know the truth about him.  

The author of Anandmath and Vande Mataram, Bankim Chandra Chatterji who did research on Mahabharat for 36 years and wrote an excellent book on Shri Krishna has said that according to Mahabharat, Shri Krishna had only one wife, Rukmini. The question of his having 2 or 3 or 16000 wives does not arise. After marrying Rukmini, Shri Krishna went to Badrik Ashram alongwith Rukmini and did penance for 12 years, observing sexual continence. After that, a son was born to him whose name was Pradyumna. Associating Shri Krishna’s name with 16000 Gopies is doing grave injustice to his character. A supernatural human like the Shri Krishna of Mahabharat who did not commit any sin descends on this earth on rare occasions. Swami Dayanand writes in Satyarth Prakash the same account as given by Bankim Chandra Chatterji. When Rajasuya Yagya was performed by Pandavas, Shri Krishna was chosen as the first honoured guest at the yagya, although many great sages and seers were present there.  Look at the greatness of Shri Krishna that he washed clean the feet of all those assembled guests. Shri Krishna is called the greatest strategist also because he destroyed the entire Kaurav army without lifting a weapon and also got the righteous Pandavas victory in the battle.  

To call such a great personality thief, debased, battlefield deserter, vicious, characterless, cohabiter with Kubja is doing great injustice and nothing else. Puranas are credited with all falsities.  

Therefore, none should put any unnecessary allegation against Shri Krishna. To present the true persona of Shri Krishna to ordinary folks, it is necessary to boycott the Puranas and propagate the Vedas.  

And still, if someone doesn’t agree, then the following adage applies to him. 

When the owl cannot see during the day, where is the fault of the sun?

What Pauraniks have made of Shri Krishna. 

Thief 

Vicious 

Immoderate

Timid 

Characterless

Deceitful

Unrighteous

Immoral

Butter stealer

Paramour of Gopies

Lover of Radha

Cohabiter with Kubja

Enjoyer of sex with 16000 queens

How Arya Samajis regard Shri Krishna ji

Great

Master strategist

Self restrained

Righteous

Yogi

Learned

Valiant

Visionary

Scholar

Capable politician

Worthy of emulation

You decide who is right?