2017-12-22 Fri

Guru Gobind Singh was the last of the ten Sikh Gurus. He was the only son of the ninth Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur who was executed by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.

He was born on December 22, 1666, in Patna in present-day Bihar. During his adolescence, he learnt Sanskrit, Hindi, Punjabi, Persian and Arabic. Gobind was formally made the Guru on the Baisakhi day (the annual harvesting festival) in 1676. He was a very intelligent and brave boy who in spite of the great tragedy he had just suffered assumed the responsibility of Guruship with prudence and maturity.

Keeping in view the strained relations with the Mughals, he focused on creating a strong army of dedicated warriors who would happily sacrifice their lives while fighting for the noble cause of protecting the dignity of all humanity.

In 1699, Guru Gobind Singh formed the Khalsa sect and all male Sikhs were given the name ‘Singh’ meaning lion and females were given the name ‘Kaur’ meaning princess. Guru Gobind Singh organized Sikh army to defend their kingdom from persecution under the Mughal government. The Guru and his Sikh army won numerous battles against opposing forces.

Guru Govind Singh was severely injured in 1708 and died. Before he died, Guru Gobind Singh declared that the holy book Guru Granth Saheb would be the future Guru to the Sikhs hereafter.

India Post has issued a special commemorative postage stamp in honour of this great son of India on the 17th January 1967, the occasion of his third birth centenary.