Guru Tegh Bahadur

Guru Tegh Bahadur Biography

Guru Tegh Bahadur was the 9th Guru of Sikhs who preceded his grand-nephew, Guru Har Krishan, when Kishan died due to small pox at the tender age of 7. Guru Tegh Bahadur was executed on the orders of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in Delhi on 11 November 1675. He was 54 then.

Tegh Bahadur was born in Amritsar at the time when this town was the centre of Sikh faith.  He was born as the youngest of the five sons of Guru Hargobind, the sixth Sikh guru. His mother was Nanaki. He was given the name by his father after he had shown his valour in a battle against the Mughals. According to Sikh tradition, he learnt martial-arts of archery and horsemanship, and old classics. He married Gujri on 3rd February 1631. During 1940’s, Guru Hargobind moved to his ancestral village, Bakala with his family. Bakala was a prosperous town then. Tegh Bahadur meditated at Bakala for about twenty years (1644-1664) and led a family life. He spent a holy life and spent most of his time in meditation, yet did his family responsibilities. He also visited the eighth Sikh guru Guru Har Krishan.

Just before the death of Guru Har Krishan due to smallpox, he spelled Baba Bakale, meaning his successor was to be found in Bakala. Many pretenders took advantage of the situation and about 22 such people called themselves as guru. He was later identified by a wealthy trader Baba Makhan Shah Labana, who was in serach of real guru. Tegh Bahadur travelled in different parts of the country preaching Sikhism. As had been the custom, Tegh Bahadur kept a splendid lifestyle. The Mughal Emperor, Aurangzeb dreamt of converting the whole Empire to Islamic country. For not embracing Islam, he was arrested on July 1675 and he was kept in custody for over three months. He was asked to perform some miracles to prove his divinity. Refusing to do so, Tegh Bahadur was beheaded at Chandni Chowk on 11 November 1675.

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Updated: January 08, 2014