Sikh gurus
{{Short description|Spiritual leaders of Sikhism}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}
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| image1 = Sikh gurus.jpg
| caption1 = A miniature painting, dated 1890, depicting an "imaginary portrait" of the
ten gurus and others.{{cite book |title=The Sikhs |publisher=E.J. Brill |isbn=9004095543 |page=38}}
| image2 = Gurus of the Sikhs. Fresco from Dera Nirmala, Tanda-Hoshiarpur.jpg
| caption2 = Gurus of the Sikhs. Fresco from Dera Nirmala, Tanda-Hoshiarpur.
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}}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.{{Cite book |last=Sen |first=Sailendra |title=A Textbook of Medieval Indian History |publisher=Primus Books |year=2013 |isbn=978-9-38060-734-4 |pages=186–187}} 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.{{cite book |title=The Sikhs: faith, philosophy & folk |year= 1998 |url=https://archive.org/details/sikhsfaithphilos0000gurb |url-access=registration |publisher=Lustre Press |isbn=978-8174360373}} 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.{{Cite book |last=McLeod |first=W. H. |title=The A to Z of Sikhism |date=24 July 2009 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=9780810863446 |pages=84–86 |quote=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.}}{{Cite web |title=Sikh Reht Maryada - Other Rites and Conventions: Guru Panth (Panth's Status of Guruhood) |url=https://old.sgpc.net/sikhism/other-rites.asp |access-date=18 December 2024 |website=Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee}}
Etymology and definition
{{Main|Guru}}
Guru ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɡ|u|r|uː}}, {{small|UK also}} {{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɡ|ʊr|uː|,_|ˈ|ɡ|ʊər|-}}; {{langx|sa|गुरु}}, Punjabi: ਗੁਰੂ, IAST: guru) is a Sanskrit term for a "teacher, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field.Stefan Pertz (2013), The Guru in Me - Critical Perspectives on Management, GRIN Verlag, {{ISBN|978-3638749251}}, p. 2–3. 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.{{cite book |last1=Singh |first1=Veer |title=Sri Guru Granth Kosh |date=1964 |pages=122}} 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{{cite book |title=World religions : from ancient history to the present |isbn=978-0-87196-129-7 |last1=Parrinder |first1=Geoffrey |date=30 August 1983 |publisher=Facts on File }} (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).{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/47024480 |title=Sikh History from Persian Sources: Translations of Major Texts |date=2001 |publisher=Tulika |others= Indian History Congress. Session |editor-first1=J. S. |editor-last1=Grewal|editor-first2=Irfan |editor-last2=Habib |isbn=81-85229-17-1 |location=New Delhi |pages=5 |oclc=47024480 |quote=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.}}
The gurus
=Timeline=
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Period = from:1469 till:2023
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ScaleMajor = increment:100 start:1469
BarData=
bar:Nanak text:"Guru Nanak Dev (1469–1539)"
bar:Angad text:"Guru Angad Dev (1504–1552)"
bar:Amar text:"Guru Amar Das (1479–1574)"
bar:Ram text:"Guru Ram Das (1534 –1581)"
bar:Arjan text:"Guru Arjan Dev (1563–1606)"
bar:Hargobind text:"Guru Hargobind (1595–1644)"
bar:Har text:"Guru Har Rai (1630–1661)"
bar:HarK text:"Guru Har Krishan (1656–1664)"
bar:Tegh text:"Guru Tegh Bahadur (1621–1675)"
bar:Gobind text:"Guru Gobind Singh (1666–1708)"
bar:Granth text:"Guru Granth Sahib (1708–present)"
PlotData=
bar:Nanak from:1469 till:1539 color:1
bar:Angad from:1504 till:1552 color:2
bar:Amar from:1479 till:1574 color:3
bar:Ram from:1534 till:1581 color:4
bar:Arjan from:1563 till:1606 color:5
bar:Hargobind from:1595 till:1644 color:6
bar:Har from:1630 till:1661 color:7
bar:HarK from:1656 till:1669 color:8
bar:Tegh from:1621 till:1675 color:9
bar:Gobind from:1666 till:1708 color:10
bar:Granth from:1708 till:end color:11
= Pedigrees =
See also
{{Portal|Sikhism|India|Biography|Punjab}}
Notes
{{reflist|group=note}}