Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji  (1595-1644)

Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji was the sixth Guru of the Sikhs and like all the others, he was God in the form of a human. Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji was at Amritsar in 1595. His father was Guru Arjan Dev Ji and his mother was Mata Ganga. At birth his name was Bhai Hargobind.

Bhai Hargobind was Guru Arjan Dev Ji's only son, and therefore seemed to be a likely candidate to ascend to the Guruship. This was partially due to the fact the 'Gur Gaddi', or Guru's seat, had stayed in the family lately. Once again, it did. Bhai Hargobind became Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji in 1606, a few days before Guru Arjan Dev Ji was martyred. At the enthronement ceremony, Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji asked for two swords. One of the swords was called Miri and it was the mark of being the leader and guide of the Sikhs in worldly matters. The other sword was called Piri and it was the mark of being the leader and guide of the Sikhs in religious matters.

Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji contributed many things to the Sikh cause. He was the first Guru who emphasized that Sikhs be Saint-Soldiers in order to protect the downtrodden. For this purpose, Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji trained his followers in military ways. These steps caused the Emperor to get jealous and he had Guru Ji imprisoned. However, the Guru was released because the Emperor started to get sick. When the Guru was released, he also had 52 imprisoned rulers released with him. Due to this, Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji became to be known as Bandi Chhor, or the liberator.

Even though Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji put a emphasis on Sikhs being Saint-Soldiers, his first priority was that Sikhs should be saints and always remember God. After having spread the message of Guru Nanak Dev Ji as well as having fought many battles against the Mughal forces, Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji went to his heavenly abode in 1644 at the age of 49.