UNIVERSE: A legacy of compassion and kindness

In popular culture, as well as in the world of scholarship, Guru Gobind Singh is perceived mostly as a great warrior. Representations of the Guru usually depict accoutrements like a sword, a bow and a quiver full of arrows and a white falcon that perches on his arm. The reputation for valour is well deserved, as is the respect that he gets for championing the rights of the downtrodden and his fierce opposition to tyranny.

There is, however, much more to the persona of Guru Gobind Singh than this somewhat one-dimensional view. A study of his writings reveals his deep personal connection with the divine as well as his unequivocal commitment to the universal worldview of Guru Nanak. Even as the Guru navigated a life replete with strife, his compassion, humility and kindness had a profound impact on both the character and the conduct of his followers.

As a young man, he presided over a fledgling community at Anandpur, established on land purchased from the family of Raja Bhim Chand of Kahloor. Bhim Chand and his fellow Rajput kings, whose kingdoms surrounded Anandpur, grew extremely resentful of the young Guru, disturbed by his rising power and the adoration of his followers. The Guru tried to reason with them through his magnificent composition, ‘Tav Prasad Sawaiye’, which appears in the ‘Dasam Granth’. It is telling that after several verses that delineate the ephemeral nature of temporal power, and glorify the divine, the Guru addresses the kings thus:

‘Sach Kaho Sun Leho Sabahi, Jin Prem

Kiyo Tin Hee Prabh Payo’

The emphasis on love even in a time of struggle was not just hyperbole. It was emblematic of the Guru’s core belief in the universal power of love.

Following the demise of the Guru, his followers were to be severely tested again and again, as their homeland was constantly buffeted by strife as a weakened Mughal court in Delhi tried to hold on to Punjab in the face of repeated invasions by Ahmad Shah Abdali of Afghanistan. In these trying times, the character of the Sikhs was truly forged and they emerged as the protectors of the defenceless with a reputation of honour and chivalry, acknowledged even by their worst enemies. This was a direct consequence of the values imparted to them by Guru Gobind Singh.

Aurangzeb had been directly or indirectly responsible for the calamities that had befallen the Guru during his lifetime — be it the brutal beheading of his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, a lone voice protesting for religious freedom, the death of his four sons, the decimation of his court and the terrible violence that his followers were subjected to. The Guru famously upbraided him in his epistle, the ‘Zafarnama’, and yet, after Aurangzeb’s passing, when he was petitioned by his son Moazzam during the internecine war of succession, the Guru unhesitatingly supported him, viewing his claims as legitimate.

A commitment to justice while rejecting vengeance, an abiding belief in the oneness of mankind, a gaze that saw no difference between the temple and the mosque; these were the ideals that Guru Gobind Singh lived by. Ideals that would shape the lives of the many that chose to walk the trail he blazed.

— The writer is a US-based author