Guru Nanak
Guru Nanak (20 October 1469 - 7 May 1539),is the founder of Sikhism and the first of the ten Gurus of the Sikhs. He was born in the village of Talwandi also called Rai Bhoeki Talwandi, now known as Nankana Sahib, near Lahore in present-day Pakistan.
His father was Kalayan Das Mehta also known as Kalu Mehta and mother was Matta Tripat or Tripta ji. They were both Hindus and belonged to the merchant caste. Guru ji had an older sister called Bibi Nanki, who was the first to recognise Nanak as an enlightened Soul. Guru Nanak was fascinated by religion from an early age and refused as a child to wear the ritualistic “sacred” thread and instead said that he would wear the true name of God in his heart for his protection, as the thread could not offer any security at all.
Nanak married Sulkhni, of Batala, and they had two sons, Sri Chand and Lakhmi Das. Guru ji brother-in-law, the husband of his sister Nanki, obtained a job for him in Sultanpur as the manager of the government granary. One morning, when he was twenty-eight, he went as usual down to the river to bathe and meditate. It was said that he was gone for three days. When he reappeared, filled with the spirit of God, he said, "There is no Hindu and no Muslim." It was then he began his missionary work.
As a householder, Guru ji continued to carry out the mission of his life – To lead people to the true path of God; to dispel superstition; to bring people out of ritualistic practises; to lead them directly to follow Gurbani – without the need for priests and clergy; restrain and guard against the five thieves within – Pride, Anger, Greed, Attachment and Lust. (PAGAL)
It was here that Guru Nanak formalised the three important pillars of Sikhism:
1. Guru ji led the Sikhs directly to practise Simran and Naam Japna – meditation on God and reciting and chanting of God’s Name - Waheguru
2. He asked the Sikhs to live as householders and practise Kirat Karni – To honestly earn by ones physical and mental effort while accepting Gods gifts and blessing.
3. The Sikhs were asked to share their wealth within the community by practising Vand Chakna – “Share and Consume together”
History states that he made four great journeys, travelling to all parts of India, and into Arabia and Persia; visiting Mecca and Baghdad. He spoke before Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, Parsees, and Muslims. He spoke in the temples and mosques, and at various pilgrimage sites. It was during this period that Nanak met Kabir (1441-1518), a saint revered by both Hindus and Muslims. Wherever he went, Guru Nanak spoke out against empty religious rituals, pilgrimages, the caste system, the sacrifice of widows, of depending on books to learn the true religion, and of all the other tenets that were to define his teachings. Never did he ask his listeners to follow him. He asked the Muslims to be true Muslims and the Hindus to be true Hindus.
After the last of his great journeys, Guru Nanak settled in the town of Kartapur (in Punjab) on the banks of the Ravi where he taught for another fifteen years. Followers from all over came to settle in Kartapur to listen, and sing, and be with him. During this time, although his followers still remained Hindu, Muslim, or of the religion to which they were born, they became known as the Guru's disciples, or sikhs. It was here his followers began to refer to him as teacher, or guru. The Guru told his followers that they were to be householders and could not live apart from the world—there were to be no priests or hermits. Here is where the Guru instituted the common meal; requiring the rich and poor, Hindu and Muslim, high caste and low caste, to sit together while eating. Here is where Lehna, later to be Guru Angad, came to be with Guru Nanak.
| Preceded by: Sikh Bhagats (1100 - 1469) |
Guru Nanak | Followed by: Guru Angad Dev (31 March 1504 - 29 March 1552) |
| These are the Ten Gurus of Sikhism |
|
Guru Nanak | Guru Angad Dev | Guru Amar Das | Guru Ram Das | Guru Arjan | Guru Hargobind | Guru Har Rai | Guru Har Krishan | Guru Teg Bahadur | Guru Gobind Singh |
See also
External links
- Max Arthur MacAuliff, The Sikh Religion, Vol 1, (The Life of Guru Nanak), Oxford University Press, 1909.
- Eternal Glory of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji
- Video on Guru Nanak Dev Ji
- Allaboutsikhs.com
- Sikhs.org
- A wealth of information about Guru Nanak Dev Ji
- Sikh-History.com
- JargSahib.com
Audio:
de:Guru Nanak ja:グル・ナナク hi:गुरु नानक nl:Nanak pl:Nanak sv:Guru Nanak
