Sikh Stories

During battle, Bhai Kanhaiya gave water to wounded enemies as well as allies. When accused of treason, he explained: 'I see the Guru's face in everyone.' Guru Gobind Singh gave him medicine to also dress enemy wounds. Seva at its most radical: serving all without discrimination, regardless of return.

When Mughal Emperor Akbar came to meet Guru Amar Das, the Guru insisted he must first eat in the langar with everyone else, sitting on the floor with the poorest people. Akbar was so impressed by the equality demonstrated that he offered a large estate, which the Guru declined.

Pandit Lal Chand questioned the young Gurus ability to understand the Bhagavad Gita. Guru Har Krishan called an illiterate water-carrier named Chhaju Ram who, with the Gurus grace, was able to expound the philosophy of the Gita perfectly. The humbled Pandit became a Sikh.

When Mughals desecrated Harmandir Sahib in 1757, 75-year-old Baba Deep Singh vowed to liberate it. In battle, his head was severed, but he held it on his palm while continuing to fight, reaching the temple to fulfill his vow of service unto death.

Two prized horses meant for the Guru were confiscated by Mughal authorities. Bhai Bidhi Chand, a former thief turned devoted Sikh warrior, used clever disguises - first as a grass-cutter, then as an astrologer - to infiltrate Lahore Fort stables and rescue both horses in daring night escapes.

Emperor Jahangir imprisoned Guru Hargobind at Gwalior Fort along with 52 Hindu Rajput princes. When offered release, the Guru refused to leave unless all prisoners were freed. He had a special chola made with 52 panels, allowing each prince to hold on as they walked to freedom together.

After years of fighting Mughal tyranny, Banda Singh Bahadur was captured with 700 Sikhs. Tortured for months in Delhi, his four-year-old son was killed before his eyes, his heart placed in his hands. When offered conversion to save his life, Banda refused. He was tortured to death with red-hot pincers, his eyes gouged out, maintaining his faith until the end. His steadfastness inspired generations.

Guru Nanak established sangat (fellowship in prayer) and pangat (eating in rows together). For the first time, all people - rich or poor, high or low caste, Hindu or Muslim - would sit as equals sharing food.

At his succession ceremony on June 24, 1606, Guru Hargobind asked Baba Buddha Ji to adorn him with a sword rather than the Seli of Guru Nanak. He donned two swords: Miri representing temporal power and Piri representing spiritual authority. This established the Saint-Soldier concept in Sikhism.

After the Battle of Chamkaur where Guru Gobind Singhs two elder sons were martyred, their bodies lay unclaimed as Mughal forces patrolled. Bibi Sharan Kaur, a young woman, risked her life to collect their bodies at night, cremating them with proper rites. She was caught and martyred for this act of devotion. Her courage ensured the Sahibzade received proper last rites.

At Mecca, Muslims objected to Guru Nanak sleeping with feet toward the Kaaba. He asked them to turn his feet where God is not. When they tried, the Kaaba moved with his feet. God is omnipresent.

On April 13, 1699, at Anandpur Sahib, Guru Gobind Singh drew his sword before 80,000 Sikhs and asked for volunteers willing to sacrifice their heads. Five men from different castes came forward one by one. After a dramatic test in a tent, all five emerged alive as the first Khalsa (the Pure Ones).

Bhai Taru Singh was a young farmer who sheltered Sikh fighters during Mughal persecution. When his hair could not be cut by barbers (said to have become hard as iron), Governor Zakariya Khan ordered a cobbler to scrape off his scalp with an axe. Before dying, he cursed Khan saying he would be killed by his own shoes.