Rimple Sanchla's Blog

BE 6: Fourth Guru – Guru Ram Das – Th... BE 8: Sixth Guru Hargobind Dev – The ...

BE 7: Fifth Guru Arjan Dev – The Martyr of Compassion

In the quiet town of Goindwal on the Beas River in Punjab, a bright soul was born on April 15, 1563, under the full moon of Vaisakh in the Hindu calendar year Samvat 1620. This was Guru Arjan Dev Ji, the fifth Guru of Sikhism, the youngest son of Guru Ram Das (the fourth Guru) and Mata Bhani. His mother, Mata Bhani, was the younger daughter of Guru Amar Das (the third Guru) and Mata Mansa Devi. Arjan grew up in a loving family with two older brothers: Prithi Chand (the eldest, born in 1558, who later looked after family business and money matters) and Mahadev (the middle brother, born in 1560, who preferred a quiet life focused on prayer and staying away from crowds). From a young age, Arjan helped his father with simple sewa—service like cleaning and sharing food—and his heart was always full of kindness, thinking of Hari’s name even as a child. Punjab was under Mughal Emperor Akbar’s rule then, who was fair to most, but his officers still collected heavy jizya taxes from Hindus and sometimes troubled villages, a hint of worse cruelty to come from later emperors like Jahangir.

Life was simple and full of learning for Arjan. At age 16 in 1579, he married Mata Ganga Devi, a kind woman from the village of Mau. They had one son together: Hargobind, born on June 19, 1595, who would later become Guru Hargobind, the sixth Guru. Arjan spent his early years in Amritsar, playing near the holy tank and learning Gurbani hymns from his father. When he was 18 in 1581, Guru Ram Das saw his true devotion and named him the next Guru, passing over the older brothers because Arjan’s service was pure and humble. Prithi Chand was unhappy about this and caused some family troubles later, but Arjan stayed calm and focused on guiding people.

Guru Arjan’s life was like a beautiful garden growing in tough soil. He completed the building of Harmandir Sahib—the Golden Temple—in Amritsar by 1589, asking a Muslim saint named Mian Mir to lay the first brick to show respect and equality for all faiths. The temple has four doors, one on each side, open to people from every direction and background—Hindus, Muslims, rich, poor, all castes—to come, pray, and eat langar together as equals. He also dug the Santokhsar tank in 1587. In 1604, he created the Adi Granth, the first version of the Sikh holy book, collecting hymns from the first four Gurus, himself, and saints from Hindu and Muslim backgrounds like Kabir and Sheikh Farid. He wrote it in Gurmukhi script at the Ramsar garden, with 2,218 hymns full of Hari’s praise. He built new towns like Tarn Taran with a big pool for sick people, especially lepers, to bathe and feel better. He sent helpers called masands to far places to teach and collect honest donations. His own 2,218 hymns in the Guru Granth Sahib are the most by any Guru, singing about compassion, truth, and living simply.

Here’s a beautiful teaching from Guru Arjan, like a soft light in the dark:

Gurmukhi: ਹਰਿ ਕਾ ਨਾਮੁ ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤੁ ਪੀਵੈ ॥ ਨਾਨਕ ਨਾਮੁ ਮਿਲੈ ਤਾਂ ਜੀਵੈ ॥
Devanagari: हरि का नामु अमृतु पीवै ॥ नानक नामु मिलै तां जीवै ॥
English: Drink the nectar of Hari’s name; Nanak says, only then one lives.

Ah, what a crystal stream it summons, bubbling from hidden earth to quench the wanderer’s deepest thirst—this doha unveils the Name as ambrosia, a golden draught that stirs the veins with vitality’s fire, where mere breath yields to living light. Hari’s whisper on the tongue becomes the soul’s true pulse, dissolving death’s dry dust into a dance of dawn, each chant a bloom in eternity’s garden, awakening us to the Divine’s endless, life-giving embrace, where survival blooms into sacred song.

And in his call to inner peace, another shabad rises like a gentle wave:

Gurmukhi: ਸੁਖੀ ਮੰਦੈ ਘਰੁ ਆਇਆ ॥ ਨਾਨਕ ਸੋ ਪ੍ਰਭੁ ਸਦਾ ਸਮਾਲਿਆ ॥
Devanagari: सुखी मंदै घरु आइआ ॥ नानक सो प्रभु सदा समालिआ ॥
English: Peace comes to the home of the humble; Nanak says, that Hari is always remembered.

This verse is like a warm blanket on a cold night, wrapping your heart in comfort. It says true happiness lives where ego is low and Hari’s name is always on the lips, like a friend who never leaves. In that simple remembering, worries fade like morning mist, and the Divine’s care fills every corner making life a cozy home of joy and quiet strength.

But compassion met great cruelty under Emperor Jahangir, who took the throne in 1605 and disliked the Guru’s growing following. Jahangir fined Guru Arjan Dev a huge amount—2 lakh rupees—for supporting his rebel son Prince Khusrau with a blessing, but it was really out of jealousy and pressure from strict Muslim leaders. When Guru Arjan Dev refused to pay or change the Granth by adding Quran verses, he was arrested and taken to Lahore. There, in May 1606, he was tortured for five days: made to sit on a hot iron sheet with burning sand poured over him, and dipped in boiling water, his skin blistering in pain. Yet he stayed calm, singing Hari’s name. On May 30, at age 43, he asked to bathe in the Ravi River to cool his body—his followers thought for relief, but it was his way to merge with the Divine forever. Before this, Jahangir’s men and local fanatics had raided villages, forcing Hindus and Sikhs to convert with swords, killing cows to hurt religious feelings, harming women, and burning homes under the name of jihad. Guru Arjan Dev had always helped the suffering—giving food, shelter, and prayers to heal the hurt, teaching people to stay strong in faith without fear.

Guru Arjan’s gifts were huge for Sikhism. His Adi Granth became the base for the Guru Granth Sahib, including voices from all faiths to show oneness. He built places like Tarn Taran in 1590 with its healing pool, Kartarpur town, and Sri Hargobindpur on the Beas. Holy spots remember him: Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, his golden creation; Gurdwara Ramsar where the Granth was compiled; Gurdwara Chheharta with its six wells he dug; and the banks of the Ravi in Lahore where he left his body. These are places of peace, where waters and prayers still echo his Sukhmani Sahib for comfort.

Before merging with Hari, Guru Arjan named his only son Hargobind as the sixth Guru, advising him to keep a sword for protection and build an army. His martyrdom was like a seed that grew the Khalsa’s strength later, rooted in Hindu ideas of compassion from the Bhagavad Gita, standing against Mughal hate. In his gentle life and brave end, Sikhism grew deeper in Hindu bhakti ways, a martyr’s love watering the tree of faith, its branches a promise: kindness will overcome cruelty’s darkness.

Also Read: