[Reader-list] In the Times of Intolerance I Invoke Tegh Bahadur

[Kabir Khan]

In the Times of Intolerance I Invoke Tegh Bahadur
<https://maleccha.wordpress.com/2015/11/27/in-the-times-of-intolerance-i-invoke-tegh-bahadur/>

Guru Tegh Bahadur- the 9th Master of Sikhs is a very important figure in
South Asian history. He stood against the rulers of his time and is
celebrated as the saviour of *chhoti- janju *(pony tail and sacred thread),
– upper caste Hindus. The rest were considered inferior and not allowed to
have these identity symbols. By calling him the saviour of one particular
religious philosophy, we are taking away the very essence of his deeds and
the message of his martyrdom.

*Rashtriya Sweyamsevak Sangh *(RSS) and *Rashtriya Sikh Sangat –*Sangh
affiliated organisation want him to look like a Hindu man, who was proud of
his religious identity i.e. ‘Hindu’, and he preferred being a ‘Hindu’ than
converting to Islam. This binary narrative is emerging even in the
historical discourse initiated by Akali Dal government in Punjab.

Let’s remember few facts;

   - Was Tegh Bahadur against Islam? No, he wasn’t.
   - Were Muslims against him? No, they weren’t.

By asking these two questions one can be able to have a better nuanced
approach in looking at his life. It is well documented that Guru Tegh
Bahadur, was in touch with many Muslim rulers and Sufi Faqirs. Eclectic
history of Punjab says that during his Malwa visit, Tegh Bahadur was hosted
by Nawab Saif ud-Din Mahmud or Saif Khan of Patiala. On the request of Guru
for providing space to meditate, Saif Khan opened the mosque for him- as it
is the *‘House of God’, *thus open to his sages.

On the eve before martyrdom, the (Muslim) Kotwal of the jail, where he was
jailed, requested Tegh Bahadur to leave and was keen to arrange his safe
passage. Tegh Bahadur refused. After the martyrdom the same Kotwal joined
Guru Gobind Singh’s army and trained Sikh generals to fight against the
tyranny of Aurangzeb.

Post martyrdom, Jaita Rangreta- a Sikh picked up the chopped head of Guru
and left for Punjab. On the way, he was given refuge and hosted by many
Sufi Faqirs in their shrines. The episodes leading to martyrdom of Tegh
Bahadur and eclectic history of Eastern Punjab has been fictionalized by
Baldev Singh, Punjabi novelist in his novel – *Panjwan Sahibzada *(Fifth
Son of Guru Gobind Singh). Apparently, later, on hearing about Tegh Bahadur
and the challenge he posed to the tyranny of state, Bullah Shah, a Sufi
Faqir, announced him to be the Ghazi of Islam. This dismisses the binary
discourse proposed by the Sangh and affiliated organizations, which is now
promoted as ‘true history’. Continued here....
<https://maleccha.wordpress.com/2015/11/27/in-the-times-of-intolerance-i-invoke-tegh-bahadur/>
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Regards

कबीर/کبیر

Phone:00-91-96-63-427-315

email: kabirkhan1989 at gmail.com

email: maleccha at live.com

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