| (171) Question:- |
Who were the persons, who were in occupation of Harmandir Sahib at time of visit of the Guru, and had not allowed him to enter the holy precincts. |
| Answer:- |
After Guru Hargobind Sahib had left Amritsar, Harmandir Sahib went under the control of the descendants of Prithi Chand, elder brother of Guru Arjan Dev Ji. Guru Har Rai Ji and Guru Harkrishan Sahib did not visit Amritsar and as such the control of Prithi Chand's family became established. When Guru Tegh Bahadur visited, Harmandir Sahib was under the control of Shri Har Ji, grandson of Shri Prithi Chand. The other prominent priest was Meharban. These persons did not want that the real Guru should come as they feared that they will lose the visitors on the arrival of the real successor to the throne. |
| (172) Question:- |
Describe Guru's life after his departure from Amritsar. |
| Answer:- |
After leaving Amritsar, the Guru went to Bakala and from there he reached Kiratpur, where he wanted to establish his headquarter for the propagation of the Sikh Religion. However, the family of Baba Suraj Mal, who was the elder brother of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji was also jealous of him and at that time Gulab Rai and Siam Chand, the grandsons of Suraj Mal staying at Kiratpur did not welcome the Guru's arrival. The Guru did not stop his efforts of preaching the people the teachings of the Great Masters. He visited several places in this connection, mainly the areas falling in the Malwa Region including Zira, Moga and Darauli. He went up to Dhamdhan near Jind. While making another tour, he went to Bilaspur, and it was at this place that Rani Champa offered him a piece of land for his stay. The Guru accepted the offer but bought the land by making a payment of Rs. 500/-. This land was comprised of the village Maakhovaal, the name of which was then changed by the Guru as Chakk Nanaki, after the name of his mother, Mata Nanaki. It was in May 1665 that this new town was founded, which is presently known as Anandpur. |
| (173) Question:- |
Name the other places visited by Guru Tegh Bahadur for the purpose of propagating the message of Guru Nanak. |
| Answer:- |
Guru Tegh Bahadur undertook long journeys for imparting the message of Guru Nanak to the followers of this faith residing in different parts of the country. One of the journeys covered Ropar, Banur, and Rajpura. There are shrines associated with this tour at Patiala and Bahadurgarh. It may be mentioned here that at Bahadurgarh, Nawab, Saif-ud-Din Mahmud, who was earlier Governor of Agra, had served the Guru with devotion. Similarly, Rani Pushpa Devi of Amber residing at Delhi was also a devotee of the Guru. While going further from Delhi, the Guru travelled through Mathura, Agra, Etawah, Kanpur, and Banaras. After passing through Sasaram and Bodh Gaya, the Guru reached Patna, where he had to leave his family with some relation as his wife was on the family way. The Guru proceeded further towards the east and he was at Monghyr on his way to Dhaka when he received the news of the birth of his son at Patna. Further journey from Dhaka included the areas of Bhagalpur, Sahibganj. Malda up to Chittagong as the places covered by the Guru. |
| (174) Question:- |
Who was Raja Ram Singh? What was his enmity against the ruler of Kamrup in Assam? What was the role played by the Guru in sorting out the disputes? |
| Answer:- |
The ruler of Kamrup Pargana was not paying the dues of the revenue to the Mughal Government. Emperor Aurangzeb, therefore, deputed Raja Ram Singh of Amber to lead the expedition against the defaulter ruler. Raja Ram Singh was a devotee of the Guru and when he reached his destination, the Guru was already there on his tour. The Raja sought his blessings and they together proceeded further towards Assam. After crossing Brahmaputra, they reached a place Dhubri. The Guru stayed at this place, whereas Raja Ram Singh clashed with the ruler of Kamrup. It is recorded in the Sikh chronicles that the Guru intervened and brought peace between the warring forces.
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| (175) Question:- |
Give a brief description of the backward journey of the Guru from Assam to Anandpur. |
| Answer:- |
The homeward journey began late in 1669. The Guru's first important halt was at Patna, where his family was staying at that time. He saw his son for the first time at this place only. After leaving Patna, the Guru stayed for some time in Delhi, where a Dharamsala was established at the residence of Bhai Kalyana. The Guru also stayed at Lakhnaur, Which place was his mother's ancestral home. After leaving Lakhnaur, the Guru traveled through Malwa Region and reached Anandpur before the Baisakhi festival of 1672. His family had also reached Anandpur separately before him.
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| (176) Question:- |
Describe the meeting of Kashmiri Pandits with Guru Tegh Bahadur. What was the purpose of their visit? |
| Answer:- |
When Aurangzeb had started converting Hindus to Islam, his Lieutenants at all the places started committing atrocities on the minority community. In Kashmir also, the Mughal Governor Iftikhar Khan was highly bigoted and his this attitude had made the life of Pandits quite miserable. Some of the Kashmiri Pandits led by Shri Kirpa Rani came to Anandpur at the court of Guru Tegh Bahadur with a view to tell him the tale of their woe. Guru Tegh Bahadur, on hearing the story of their woes, started thinking. His son, the young Gobind Rai, 9 years old only, asked his father what made him think so deeply. It is learned from Gurbilas Patshahi 10 that when the 9th Master told his son that for the redemption of the difficulties of these afflicted persons, some noble person had to sacrifice his head, the young son replied in innocence as who could be worthier than the Guru for such a noble act. This reply of Gobind Rai relieved Guru Tegh Bahadur from his thought and he immediately took the decision to lay down his life for this cause. Kashmiri Pandits were told to go and convey to the emperor that they will all become Muslims if he could convert the Guru to Islam.
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| (177) Question:- |
What was the immediate cause for which the Guru had to sacrifice his life? How did he give the martyrdom? |
| Answer:- |
When Aurangzeb came to know of the attitude of the Guru, he ordered his arrest. Thus, immediately after leaving Anandpur on 11th July 1675, the Guru was taken into custody on the next day at the village of Malikpur Ranghrari falling under the Police charge of Ropar. The Guru was kept in Jail for over 3 months and was given the harshest treatment. After that, he was taken to Delhi in an Iron Cage. The emperor wanted him to become either Musalmaan or show some miracle. The Guru did not accept any of these two things. It was on 11th November 1675 that the Guru was beheaded in public at Chandni Chowk, Delhi, where now stands a memorial in the form of Gurdwara Sis Ganj. |
| (178) Question:- |
What was the fate of the Sikhs who had accompanied the Guru to Delhi? |
| Answer:- |
There were three Sikhs who were with the Guru at Delhi. Their names were Bhai Matti Dass, Bhai Sati Dass, and Bhai Dyala. They were also required to become Muslims, but none of them accepted the condition. With a view to punish them and overawe the Guru. these three Sikhs were martyred sometime before the Guru was beheaded. Bhai Mati Dass was sawn into two pieces Bhai Sati Das, brother of Bhai Mati Dass was wrapped up in cotton wool and was set on fire, Bhai Dyala, elder brother of Bhai Mani Singh, was boiled to death in a heated cauldron of water.
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| (179) Question:- |
(a) What does Guru Gobind Singh record about the martyrdom of his father?
(b) How was the head and body of the martyr Guru cremated? |
| Answer:- |
(a) Guru Gobind Singh, while writing his autobiography, has paid a glowing tribute to his father. He says in Bachitra Natak that in this age of darkness, his father for the protection of tilak and janeu performed a grand deed.
He writes:-
ਧਰਮ ਹੇਤ ਸਾਕਾ ਜਿਨਿ ਕੀਆ।। ਸੀਸੁ ਦੀਆ ਪਰੁ ਸਿਰਰੁ ਨ ਦੀਆ।।
Dharm het saaka jin keeaa. Sees deeaa par sirar na deeaa.
He made the supreme sacrifice for the sake of faith.
He gave his head but uttered not a groan.
(b) Guru Tegh Bahadur's head was carried away by one Bhai Jaita who took it to Anandpur Sahib. Bhai Jaita was appreciated by Guru Gobind Singh who embraced him and called him the son of Guru. At a later stage, Bhai Jaita had taken Amrit of the Guru and had become a Sikh with the name Jeewan Singh. He remained with the Guru throughout his life. The service of removing the body of the Guru from the place of martyrdom was undertaken by the family members of Makkhan Shah Labana. In that stormy night, escaping the attention of the soldiers, the Labana family had taken away the body in their cart. When the Mughal soldiers chased them, the family decided to put their house on fire and it was therein that the body of the Guru was cremated. It is at this spot that Gurdwara Rakabganj reminds us of that great family which had performed this noble task by making a sacrifice of their own house. |
| (180) Question:- |
What is the significance of martyrdom of the 9th Master? |
| Answer:- |
This incident was one of the most important events of Sikh history as it strengthened the resolve of the Sikhs to destroy the ruthless Mughal empire. The Guru's sacrifice along with the other 3 Sikhs opened a new chapter of bravery which ultimately became an asset of the Sikhs. Such like incidents led to the transformation of Sikhs from Saints alone to the position of Saint Soldiers. The Guru's sacrifice also enlightened the Indian people of their right to profess the religion of their choice. It involved the larger issues of human rights and freedom of conscience. It is on the basis of such events that independent India chose to be a secular democratic republic. The very cause for which the Guru sacrificed his life is now enshrined as one of the fundamental rights in the Constitution of India. This is a tribute to the memory of the Great Master and an acceptance of the fact of his being the protector of religion and the savior of the country.
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