Gurus
Guru Nanak Dev
Guru Nanak was the founder of Sikhism
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Gurū Nānak (15 April 1469 – 22 September 1539; Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ[a]), also known as Bābā Nānak (Father Nanak),[11] was an Indian spiritual teacher, mystic and poet, who is regarded as the founder of Sikhism and is the first of the ten Sikh Gurus.
Nanak is said to have travelled far and wide across Asia teaching people the message of Ik Onkar (ੴ, 'One God'), who dwells in every one of his creations and constitutes the eternal Truth.[12] With this concept, he would set up a unique spiritual, social, and political platform based on equality, fraternal love, goodness, and virtue.[13][14][15]
Nanak's words are registered in the form of 974 poetic hymns, or shabda, in the holy religious scripture of Sikhism, the Guru Granth Sahib, with some of the major prayers being the Japji Sahib (jap, 'to recite'; ji and sahib are suffixes signifying respect); the Asa di Var ('Ballad of Hope'); and the Sidh Gosht ('Discussion with the Siddhas'). It is part of Sikh religious belief that the spirit of Nanak's sanctity, divinity, and religious authority had descended upon each of the nine subsequent Gurus when the Guruship was devolved onto them. His birthday is celebrated everywhere.
Biography
Birth
Nanak was born on 15 April 1469 at Rāi Bhoi Dī Talvaṇḍī village (present-day Nankana Sahib, Punjab, Pakistan) in the Lahore province of the Delhi Sultanate,[16][17] although according to one tradition, he was born in the Indian month of Kārtik or November, known as Kattak in Punjabi.[1] He was born into the Khatri Punjabi clan like all of the Sikh gurus.[18] Specifically, Guru Nanak was a Bedi Khatri. According to Arvind-Pal Singh Mandair, it is more likely that Nanak was born in his mother's home village, known as Nanake, hence why him and his elder sister were named Nanak and Nanaki, respectively, although the Janamsakhis claim he was born in his father's village.[18]Kapur Singh notes that Guru Nanak was born in the Bar region of Punjab, historically an alluvial barren tract of the Punjab.[19]: 1
There are many supernatural narratives surrounding the birth of Nanak, such as that he was greeted by various Hindu deities after birth. Another tale claims he had that laugh of a full-grown adult, which surprised the Muslim mid-wife Daultan. Furthermore, it is claimed that astrologers predicted the child's future greatness.[18
Kattak Birthdate
Most janamsakhis (ਜਨਮਸਾਖੀ, 'birth stories'), or traditional biographies of Nanak, mention that he was born on the third day of the bright lunar fortnight, in the Baisakh month (April) of Samvat 1526.[1] These include the Puratan janamsakhi (puratan meaning "traditional" or "ancient"), Miharban janamsakhi, Gyan-ratanavali by Bhai Mani Singh, and the Vilayat Vali janamsakhi.[20] Gurbilas Patashahi 6, written 1718, also attributed to Bhai Mani Singh, contradicts Mani Singh's Janamsakhi as it instead says Guru Nanak was born on the full moon of Katak.[21] The Sikh records state that Nanak died on the 10th day of the Asauj month of Samvat 1596 (22 September 1539 CE), at the age of 70 years, 5 months, and 7 days. This further suggests that he was born in the month of Vaisakh (April), not Kattak (November).[22]
In as late as 1815, during the reign of Ranjit Singh, the festival commemorating Nanak's birthday was held in April at the place of his birth, known by then as Nankana Sahib.[20]However, the anniversary of Nanak's birth—the Gurpurab (gur + purab, 'celebration')—subsequently came to be celebrated on the full moon day of the Kattak month in November. The earliest record of such a celebration in Nankana Sahib is from 1868 CE.[23]
Bhai Gurdas, having written on a full-moon-day of the Kattak month several decades after Nanak's death, mentions that Nanak had "obtained omniscience" on the same day, and it was now the author's turn to "get divine light."[25]
According to eyewitness Sikh chronicles, known as Bhatt Vahis, Guru Nanak was born on the full moon of Katak.[26] Gurbilas Patashahi 6 written 1718[27] attributed to Bhai Mani Singh says Guru Nanak was born on the full moon of Katak.[21] Meham Parkash written in 1776 also says Guru Nanak was born on the full moon of Katak.[21] Kesar Singh Chibber’s Bansavalinama Dasan Patashahia Ka meaning genealogy of the ten emperors, written in 1769,[28] says Guru Nanak was born on the full moon of Katak as well.[21] Gurpurnali written in 1727 and Guru Tegh Bahadur Malwe da Safar written in 1716 both mention Guru Nanank being born on the full moon of Katak.[21]
Nanak Chandrodaya Sanskrit Janamsakhi from 1797 and Janam Sakhi Baba Nanak by Sant Das Chibber from the 18th century both mention Guru Nanak being born on the full moon of katak.[21]
Gurpur Parkash Granth written by Sant Ren Singh based on a granth written by Binod Singh states Guru Nanak was born on the full moon of Katak.[29]
According to Max Arthur Macauliffe (1909), a Hindu festival held in the 19th century on Kartik Purnima in Amritsar attracted a large number of Sikhs. The Sikh community leader Giani Sant Singh did not like this, thus starting a festival at the Sikh shrine of the Golden Temple on the same day, presenting it as the birth anniversary celebration of Guru Nanak.[30]
Macauliffe also notes that Vaisakh (March–April) already saw a number of important festivals—such as Holi, Rama Navami, and Vaisakhi—therefore people would be busy in agricultural activities after the harvest festival of Baisakhi. Therefore, holding Nanak's birth anniversary celebrations immediately after Vaisakhi would have resulted in thin attendance, and therefore, smaller donations for the Sikh shrines. On the other hand, by the Kattak full moon day, the major Hindu festival of Diwali was already over, and the peasants—who had surplus cash from crop sales—were able to donate generously.[31]
Family Life
The Birth of Guru Nanak, by the artist Sardul Singh, son of Kapur Singh. Amritsar, circa 1910.
Narratives surrounding the birth and early-life of Nanak show similarities to those told about Buddha, Jesus, and Krishna, although Nanak's birth was a natural one and not to a virgin.[32][page needed] A common theme is Nanak's father wishing for his son to live an ordinary life marked by financial and social success, not understanding that the deeply contemplative young Nanak was more interested in spiritual affairs, which causes conflict between them.[32][page needed] Meanwhile, Nanak's mother Tripta differs in her approach and recognizes early-on the uniquness of her son.[32][page needed] Two persons are claimed in Sikh lore as recognizing the spiritual qualities of Nanak early-on in his life, namely his elder sister Nanaki and the local Muslim landlord, Rai Bullar.[33]
Nanak's parents, father Kalyan Chand Das Bedi (commonly shortened to Mehta Kalu)[b] and mother Mata Tripta,[35][32][page needed] were both Hindus of the Khatri caste who worked as merchants.[36][37][18] His father, in particular, was the local patwari (accountant or revenue overseer[19]: 1 ) for crop revenue in the village of Talwandi.[38][18] Nanak's father worked for Rai Bullar, who was a recent Bhatti Rajput convert to Islam from Hinduism.[19]: 1 Nanak's paternal grandfather was named Shiv Ram Bedi and his great-grandfather was Ram Narayan Bedi.[39][34] Nanak's mother, Tripta, had a Muslim mid-wife named Daulat who cared for her during her pregnancy, showing an affinity of Nanak's family to Muslims.[32][page needed] Nanaki, Nanak's only sister, was four or five years older than him.[18] At Talwandi, Nanak had a childhood friend named Mardana, who was a Muslim rababi.[18]
Odysseys (Udasis)
During first quarter of the 16th century, Nanak went on long udasiya ('journeys') for spiritual pursuits. A verse authored by him states that he visited several places in "nau-khand" ('the nine regions of the earth'), presumably the major Hindu and Muslim pilgrimage centres.[45]
Some modern accounts state that he visited Tibet, most of South Asia, and Arabia, starting in 1496 at age 27, when he left his family for a thirty-year period.[40][53][54] These claims include Nanak's visit to Mount Sumeru of Indian mythology, as well as Mecca, Baghdad, Achal Batala, and Multan, where he would debate religious ideas with opposing groups.[55] These stories became widely popular in the 19th and 20th century, and exist in many versions.[56][55]
In 1508, Nanak visited the Sylhet region in Bengal.[citation needed] The janamsakhis suggest that Nanak visited the Ram Janmabhoomitemple in Ayodhya in 1510–11 CE.[57]
The Baghdad inscription remains the basis of writing by Indian scholars that Guru Nanak journeyed in the Middle East, with some claiming he visited Jerusalem, Mecca, Vatican, Azerbaijan and Sudan.[58]
Disputes
The hagiographic details are a subject of dispute, with modern scholarship questioning the details and authenticity of many claims. For example, Callewaert and Snell (1994) state that early Sikh texts do not contain such stories.[55] From when the travel stories first appear in hagiographic accounts of Guru Nanak, centuries after his death, they continue to become more sophisticated as time goes on, with the late phase Puratan version describing four missionary journeys, which differ from the Miharban version.[55][59]
The abandoned Gurudwara Chowa Sahib, located near the Rohtas Fort in Pakistan, commemorates the site where Guru Nanak is popularly believed to have created a water-spring during one of his udasis.[60]
Some of the stories about Guru Nanak's extensive travels first appear in the 19th-century Puratan janamsakhi, though even this version does not mention Nanak's travel to Baghdad.[55] Such embellishments and insertion of new stories, according to Callewaert and Snell (1993), closely parallel claims of miracles by Islamic pirs found in Sufi tadhkirahs of the same era, giving reason to believe that these legends may have been written in a competition.[61][55]
Another source of dispute has been the Baghdad stone, bearing an inscription[clarification needed] in a Turkish script. Some interpret the inscription as saying Baba Nanak Fakir was there in 1511–1512; others read it as saying 1521–1522 (and that he lived in the Middle East for 11 years away from his family). Others, particularly Western scholars, argue that the stone inscription is from the 19th century and the stone is not a reliable evidence that Nanak visited Baghdad in the early 16th century.[62] Moreover, beyond the stone, no evidence or mention of his journey in the Middle East has been found in any other Middle Eastern textual or epigraphical records. Claims have been asserted of additional inscriptions, but no one has been able to locate and verify them.[63]
Novel claims about his travels, as well as claims such as his body vanishing after his death, are also found in later versions and these are similar to the miracle stories in Sufi literature about their pirs. Other direct and indirect borrowings in the Sikh janamsakhis relating to legends around his journeys are from Hindu epics and puranas, and Buddhist Jataka stories.[56][64][65]