The Sikh gurus (Punjabi: ਸਿੱਖ ਗੁਰੂ; Hindi: सिख गुरु) are the spiritual masters of Sikhism, who established the religion over the course of about two and a half centuries, beginning in 1469.[1] The year 1469 marks the birth of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism. He was succeeded by nine other human gurus until, in 1708, the Guruship was finally passed on by the tenth guru to the holy Sikh scripture, Guru Granth Sahib, which is now considered the living Guru by the followers of the Sikh faith.[2]
See main article: Guru.
Guru (; Sanskrit: गुरु, Punjabi: ਗੁਰੂ, IAST: guru) is a Sanskrit term for a "teacher, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field.[3] Bhai Vir Singh, in his dictionary of Guru Granth Sahib describes the term Guru as a combination of two separate units: "Gu;(ਗੁ)" meaning darkness and "Rū;(ਰੂ)" which means light.[4] Hence, Guru is who brings light into darkness or in other words, the one who enlightens. Bhai Vir Singh's definition provides further insight about Sikhi itself and explains why Guru Granth Sahib is considered the living Guru. The word Sikh is derived from the Sanskrit term shishya[5] (Punjabi: ਸਿੱਖ) which means a disciple or a student. Thus, Sikhs have a student–teacher relationship with their Gurus since their teachings, written in Guru Granth Sahib, serve as a guide for the Sikhs.
According to Sikh beliefs, all the Gurus contained the same light or soul and their physical body was a vessel for containing the same essence. When one Guru passed, the successor inherited this light and that is why the Gurus are also referred to as mahalla (house).[6]
No. | Name | Portrait | Birth date | Guruship | Birthplace | Clan | Father | Mother | Date of death | Reason | Place of death | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Guru Nanak | 14 April 1469 [7] | Since birth | Nankana Sahib, Punjab, Delhi Sultanate | Bedi Khatri | Kalyan Das Bedi | Mata Tripta | Natural causes | ||||
2 | Guru Angad | 31 March 1504 | 7 September 1539 | Muktsar, Punjab, Mughal Empire | Trehan Khatri | Baba Pheru Mal | Mata Ramo | Natural causes | ||||
3 | Guru Amar Das | 5 May 1479 | 26 April 1552 | Amritsar, Punjab, Mughal Empire | Bhalla Khatri | Tej Bhan Bhalla | Mata Lachmi | Natural causes | ||||
4 | Guru Ram Das | 24 September 1534 | 1 September 1574 | Lahore, Punjab, Mughal Empire | Sodhi Khatri | Baba Har Das | Mata Daya | Natural causes | ||||
5 | Guru Arjan | 15 April 1563 | 1 September 1581 | Goindval, Punjab, Mughal Empire | Sodhi Khatri | Guru Ram Das | Mata Bhani | Execution by Mughal Emperor Jahangir | ||||
6 | Guru Hargobind | 19 June 1595 | 25 May 1606 | Amritsar, Lahore Subah, Mughal Empire | Sodhi Khatri | Guru Arjan | Mata Ganga | Natural causes | ||||
7 | Guru Har Rai | 16 January 1630 | 3 March 1644 | Kiratpur Sahib, Lahore Subah, Mughal Empire | Sodhi Khatri | Baba Gurditta | Mata Nihal Kaur | Natural causes | ||||
8 | Guru Har Krishan | 7 July 1656 | 7 October 1661 | Kiratpur Sahib, Lahore Subah, Mughal Empire | Sodhi Khatri | Guru Har Rai | Mata Krishan Kaur | Smallpox | ||||
9 | Guru Tegh Bahadur | 1 April 1621 | 20 March 1664 | Amritsar, Lahore Subah, Mughal Empire | Sodhi Khatri | Guru Hargobind | Mata Nanaki | Execution by Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb | ||||
10 | Guru Gobind Singh | 14 February 1666 | 11 November 1675 | Patna Sahib, Bihar Subah, Mughal Empire | Sodhi Khatri | Guru Tegh Bahadur | Mata Gujri | |||||
11 | Guru Granth Sahib | 29 August 1604 | 20 October 1708 | Amritsar, Lahore Subah, Mughal Empire | The central holy scripture of Sikhism, regarded as the final, sovereign and eternal Guru. |
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