A miniature painting, dated 1890, depicting an "imaginary portrait" of the
ten gurus and others.[1]
Gurus of the Sikhs. Fresco from Dera Nirmala, Tanda-Hoshiarpur.
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.[2] The year 1469 marks the birth of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism. Nine other human gurus succeeded him 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.[3] The guruship was also passed onto the Guru Panth, consisting of the Khalsa; however, this form of guruship went into decline following to rise of Ranjit Singh.[4][5]
Guru (/ˈɡuruː/, UK also/ˈɡʊruː,ˈɡʊər-/; Sanskrit: गुरु, Punjabi: ਗੁਰੂ, IAST: guru) is a Sanskrit term for a "teacher, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field.[6] 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.[7] 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[8] (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).[9]
Whilst prevalent in the 18th century, this manner of guruship went into decline following the rise of Ranjit Singh and is seldom evoked today, being overshadowed by the Guru Granth.[4]
Guru Nanak founded Kartarpur (Narowal) in the 1520s and remained there until his death in 1539.[17] Nanak's successor, Guru Angad, made his native Khadur his headquarters and remained there throughout his guruship from 1539 to 1551.[17] Guru Amar Das founded Goindwal and resided there from 1551 to 1574.[17] Guru Ram Das established Ramdaspur (now called Amritsar) and remained there from 1574 to 1581.[17] Guru Arjan also resided at Amritsar but also founded the settlements of Kartarpur (Jalandhar), Hargobindpur, and Tarn Taran.[17] Guru Hargobind had Amritsar as his base from 1606–1628 but shifted to Kartarpur between 1628–1634.[17] Guru Hargobind founded Kiratpur in 1634, where he remained until his death in 1644.[17] Guru Har Rai resided at Kiratpur during his guruship, as did Guru Har Krishan.[17] The next Sikh guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur, founded Anandpur in 1664 and remained there until 1675, yet also travelled to distant areas, such as Dhaka and Patna in eastern India.[17] The tenth Sikh guru, Guru Gobind Singh, remained at Anandpur from 1675–1704.[17] He founded the settlements of Paonta (1685) and Damdama (Bathinda) in 1705, where he remained for two years until he journeyed down south to Nanded, dying in 1708.[17]
^Listed names and relations might vary from source to source since different aspects of Sikh history have been written by many individuals over the course of past six centuries
^ abcdMcLeod, W. H. (24 July 2009). The A to Z of Sikhism. Scarecrow Press. pp. 84–86. ISBN9780810863446. Guru Gobind Singh is traditionally believed to have announced that the personal transmission would end at his death, but that the mystical Guru would remain embodied in the scripture and the corporate Panth. ... GURU PANTH. The Guru Panth was a doctrine particularly suited to the circumstances of the 18th century, providing an effective means of decision making for Sikhs who were divided into several misls. When unification was achieved under Ranjit Singh the practice of eliciting corporate decisions from the Panth was discarded. The doctrine is still maintained today, and efforts are occasionally made to seek the Guru's will by this means. It is, however, seldom invoked. The voice of the Guru is much more commonly sought through the words of the Guru Granth.
^Stefan Pertz (2013), The Guru in Me - Critical Perspectives on Management, GRIN Verlag, ISBN978-3638749251, p. 2–3.
^Singh, Veer (1964). Sri Guru Granth Kosh. p. 122.
^Parrinder, Geoffrey (30 August 1983). World religions : from ancient history to the present. Facts on File. ISBN978-0-87196-129-7.
^Grewal, J. S.; Habib, Irfan, eds. (2001). Sikh History from Persian Sources: Translations of Major Texts. Indian History Congress. Session. New Delhi: Tulika. p. 5. ISBN81-85229-17-1. OCLC47024480. The author of the Dabistan refers to the belief of the Sikhs in the unity of Guruship. The spirit of Guru Nanak entered the bodies of his successors - Guru Angad, Guru Amar Das, Guru Ram Das and Guru Arjan. That was why each Guru was referred to as mahal: Guru Nanak as the first mahal, Guru Angad as the second mahal, and in this way Guru Arjan as the fifth mahal. A Sikh who does not regard Guru Arjan as Baba Nanak is not a true Sikh. The firm belief of the Sikhs is that all the Gurus are Nanak. Indeed, Bhai Gurdas underscores the unity of Guruship from Guru Nanak to Guru Hargobind in one of his Vaars. This is reiterated in another Vaar in which the metaphors of light and water are used to emphasize that they all are the same.The idea of the unity of Guruship emphasized by Bhai Gurdas legitimized the succession of Guru Hargobind to face the rival claim of Prithi Chand and his descendants.
^Singh, Sikandar (2012). Sikh heritage : ethos & relics. Roopinder Singh, Paul Michael Taylor. New Delhi. pp. 21, 23. ISBN978-81-291-1983-4. OCLC828612294. The ten Gurus organised their disciples into sangats and infused their personality again into the Sikhs. This led to a remarkable development in the institution of 'Guru-ship', which eventually became the Guru Panth, thus bestowing divinity on the people. ... The Sikh assemblies also acquired great sanctity, owing to the belief that the spirit of the Guru lived and moved among them collectively, the whole body being called the panth. This panth follows the path shown by the way the Gurus lived their lives, as also the precepts laid down by them. In turn, it is regarded as an embodiment of the Guru—Guru Panth. In 1699, Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru, himself received baptism from the five Sikhs he had first initiated. The panth, the assembly and the Guru became one. After his demise, there was no living Guru for the Sikhs. The Shabad, in the presence of the sangat, became the Guru, the guiding light and in presence of Akalpurakh, the Timeless Being. The panth thus was invested with the personality of the Guru, and the incorporated Word became Gyan Guru (knowledge). This panth, called the Khalsa, was to be the Guru in spirit, and was authorised to work with collective responsibility, with Guru Granth Sahib as its guiding spirit.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^Tatla, Darsham Singh (8 August 2005). The Sikh Diaspora: The Search For Statehood. Routledge. p. 281. ISBN9781135367442.
^Dowley, Tim (1 June 2019). A Brief Introduction to Jainism and Sikhism. Fortress Press. p. 102. ISBN9781506450391.
^Singh, Nikky-Guninder Kaur (2004). O'Brien, Joanne; Palmer, Martin (eds.). World Religions: Sikhism. Infobase Publishing. p. 87. ISBN9781438117799.
^Dowley, Tim (1 July 2018). Partridge, Christopher (ed.). A Short Introduction to World Religions. Fortress Press. p. 308. ISBN9781506446028.
^Singh, Nikky-Guninder Kaur (1 February 2012). The Birth of the Khalsa: A Feminist Re-Memory of Sikh Identity (illustrated ed.). State University of New York Press. p. 37. ISBN9780791482667.
^ abcdefghijkMann, Gurinder Singh (3 May 2001). "Table 1. Towns Associated with the Sikh Gurus". The Making of Sikh Scripture. Oxford University Press. p. 9. ISBN9780198029878.
