Who was Guru Nanak Dev ji's guru? – Part II

Who was Guru Nanak Dev ji's guru? – Part II

Who was Guru Nanak Dev ji's guru? – Part I

I wrote the first part a long time back, where only one misinterpretation of the verses in Jap Ji Sahib was discussed. I almost forgot to write the second part and was going to include this in the Clichéd Argument series. Now, I think of having it separate, as a second part. This will be the last part and I will include everything in here. If I miss something, will add in the future in this part only. It would be better to have the major points in this part, in one post, rather than in different ones and then this we will use as another booklet for the readers.

According to me, this is the very important part of Sikhism, to know about who influenced Guru Nanak Dev ji. In these days, people want to do the analysis on the basis of Scientific Method than going through the whole history. The reason behind that is to have something that a human brain can analyse and should be rational. I am not going to have imaginary links in the sky to have a conclusion but have the doubts cleared that people have, especially non-Sikhs who follow some other guys and believe what they’d told them.

Why it is important to know who might have influenced Guru Nanak Dev ji is because it’s when the bricks were laid to make the walls on which the giant religion stood. The very walls which support Sikhism have to be known to everyone. And it should not be limited to Sikhism; all the religions around the globe should know this about their religion. For us Sikhs, though, there’re multiple evidence in the form of historical granths and gurbani to support the claims, which many people overlook while studying this very question.

At the time of the birth of the first Sikh Guru, calamity was like a widespread disease in the world. The kings and the people who were supposed to help the common people had become vile and immoral. Social fabric of the society was torn apart, not limited to the rulers but also the religions and the followers of the religions. If you know the history, you will realize that the definition of monopoly might have derived from the zealots of the time. The justice had got the wings and flown in the sky, leaving behind the innocent and zealots, where the zealots were eating up the innocents. History tells us the situation had become so dire that the rulers asked the common people not to have enough grains in their houses; only limited amount of the livestock they had to possess if they didn’t want to be prosecuted in front of the kings.

During that period of time, Guru Nanak Dev ji was born.

Now, there’re certain groups who have their reasoning on the basis of the religion or cult that they follow. Below are the major groups that I’ve encountered during debates or landed on their websites or heard in the discourses, and this is what they said about the guru of Guru Nanak Dev ji.

1.      Bhagat Kabir ji was the guru of Guru Nanak Dev ji.

2.      Sant Reinn ji was the guru of Guru Nanak Dev ji.

3.      Muslim teachers or Islamic teachings were the guru of Guru Nanak Dev ji.

We are going to talk about these one by one.

Bhagat Kabir ji: This is of course claimed by some followers of Bhagat Kabir ji. Rampal, who’s rotting in jail now, has said it and the website, which I think is his or run by some trust or people who follow him, has an article too which was shared by a follower of his while talking on Quora.

Some people claimed Bhagat Kabir ji as God. Actually, it’s common among many cult groups run by the common people to have these stories created. The guy who posted this link on our Quora account seemed so innocent and brainwashed that I’d pity on him. How these young brains are brainwashed by these fake people who call themselves gurus or ‘jagat guru’? How they come under the influence of these fakers?

These fake people play with the emotions of the poor people, like the politicians in India. Whenever the poor have any issues in their lives, they always look for a solution or solace of some kind. And these bogus gurus take advantage of that. They are so blindly following them that when I wrote that the so-called guru was in jail, the follower said even the Sikh Gurus were prisoned and we should think what they preach, not other things. What a poor soul! I hope he gets some great people in life to get on the right path.

From where this started, we have to get to that first. The Janamsakhi written by Bhai Baala ji was diluted by the Hindaliye and a follower of Kabir and others. Those demeaning stories are mentioned in the article provided above. This is like the followers of Mughals telling us that the Sikhs were bad because they fought with them.

In Meharbaan wali Janamsakhi, it’s written that Guru Nanak Dev ji was Janak Raja, Father of Sita, wife of Ramchandra, in Treta Yuga. It might be written because of the misunderstanding of the verse in Guru Granth Sahib ji.

ਤੂ ਤਾ ਜਨਿਕ ਰਾਜਾ ਅਉਤਾਰੁ ਸਬਦੁ ਸੰਸਾਰਿ ਸਾਰੁ ਰਹਹਿ ਜਗਤ੍ਰ ਜਲ ਪਦਮ ਬੀਚਾਰ ॥ - ਅੰਗ ੧੩੯੧

We are not going to talk about this verse because it’s not related to the current topic. However, you can check our video on this.

The second reason might be to degrade Guru Nanak Dev ji and show how great the others were. Bhai Santokh Singh ji mentioned about it in the Nanak Parkash how these unpopular figures tried to change the life story of Guru Nanak Dev ji.

ਚੌਪਈ
ਗੁਰ ਅੰਗਦ ਜੀ ਜੋ ਲਿਖਵਾਈ । ਬਹੁ ਨਹਿਂ ਲਿਖੀ ਰਹੀ ਇਕ ਥਾਈ ।
ਇਕ ਕਬੀਰ ਬੰਸੀ ਮਿਲਿ ਤਾਂਹੀ । ਸੋ ਪੋਥੀ ਪਢਿ ਗੁਨ ਮਨ ਮਾਂਹੀ ॥੨੨॥
ਕਰਿ ਕੁਕਰਮ ਅਨਸੋਧ ਬਨਾਈ । ਅਪਨ ਵਡਿਨ ਕੀ ਕੀਰਤਿ ਪਾਈ ।
ਬਚਨ ਅਨੁਚਿਤ ਲਿਖੇ ਸਮੁਦਾਏ । ਜਿਨਕੇ ਪਢਨ ਸੁਨਨਿ ਅਘ ਪਾਏ ॥੨੩॥
ਅਪਨਾ ਵਡਾ ਜਾਨ ਹਿੰਦਾਲੂ । ਤਿਹ ਕੀ ਕੀਰਤਿ ਲਿਖੀ ਬਿਸਾਲੂ ।
ਸ੍ਰੀ ਨਾਨਕ ਤੇ ਵਡੀ ਬਨਾਇ । ਮਹਿਮਾ ਲਿਖਤ ਭਯੋ ਬਹੁ ਭਾਇ ॥੨੪॥
ਦੋਹਰਾ
ਉਕਤਿ ਜੁਗਤਿ ਕਰਿ ਅਨਿਕ ਬਿਧਿ ਸਾਖੀ ਕਰੀ ਅਸੋਧ ।
ਸੁਨਿ ਕਰਿ ਭਰਮੇ ਨਰ ਬਹੁਤ ਜਿਨਕੇ ਮਨ ਨਹਿਂ ਬੋਧ ॥੨੫॥

This was the historical reference of who and how the original Janasakhi was diluted by the anti-Sikh forces of the earlier times. In many historical granths where the lives of the Sikh Gurus are written, you can find few stories which are not believable because they seem to be not according to gurbani or gurmatt. Those stories can be ignored, but the essence of the Sikhi, the rules, how to live life, and life-stories of the Sikh Gurus should be read and listened, to avoid any challenges that come while talking to someone, or you encounter the articles which are spread on the Internet like a disease.

The next part is the verses of gurbani. This is my favourite part – people trying to bend the meanings for their own benefits. This cult’s followers are same as the BHs who’re defining the words Gobind, Ram, etc., as the deities that they follow. They all just love to use their tiny brains to prove themselves fools. I just love them so much. If I had not encountered them in my life, I wouldn’t have known the different types of nincompoops. So just stand in the line of all those illiterate dilettantes who are termites, so that I can debunk your claims also.

For the purpose of their confirmation of the claim, they use the verses of Guru Nanak Dev ji and mistranslate them for their own benefits.

ਸਿਰੀਰਾਗੁ ਮਹਲਾ ੧ ਘਰੁ ੪ ॥

ਏਕੁ ਸੁਆਨੁ ਦੁਇ ਸੁਆਨੀ ਨਾਲਿ ॥ ਭਲਕੇ ਭਉਕਹਿ ਸਦਾ ਬਇਆਲਿ ॥

ਕੂੜੁ ਛੁਰਾ ਮੁਠਾ ਮੁਰਦਾਰੁ ॥ ਧਾਣਕ ਰੂਪਿ ਰਹਾ ਕਰਤਾਰ ॥੧॥

ਮੈ ਪਤਿ ਕੀ ਪੰਦਿ ਨ ਕਰਣੀ ਕੀ ਕਾਰ ॥ ਹਉ ਬਿਗੜੈਰੂਪਿ ਰਹਾ ਬਿਕਰਾਲ ॥

ਤੇਰਾ ਏਕੁ ਨਾਮੁ ਤਾਰੇ ਸੰਸਾਰੁ ॥ ਮੈ ਏਹਾ ਆਸ ਏਹੋ ਆਧਾਰੁ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥

ਮੁਖਿ ਨਿੰਦਾ ਆਖਾ ਦਿਨੁ ਰਾਤਿ ॥ ਪਰ ਘਰੁ ਜੋਹੀ ਨੀਚ ਸਨਾਤਿ ॥

ਕਾਮੁ ਕ੍ਰੋਧੁ ਤਨਿ ਵਸਹਿ ਚੰਡਾਲ ॥ ਧਾਣਕ ਰੂਪਿ ਰਹਾ ਕਰਤਾਰ ॥੨॥

ਫਾਹੀ ਸੁਰਤਿ ਮਲੂਕੀ ਵੇਸੁ ॥ ਹਉ ਠਗਵਾੜਾ ਠਗੀ ਦੇਸੁ ॥

ਖਰਾ ਸਿਆਣਾ ਬਹੁਤਾ ਭਾਰੁ ॥ ਧਾਣਕ ਰੂਪਿ ਰਹਾ ਕਰਤਾਰ ॥੩॥

ਮੈ ਕੀਤਾ ਨ ਜਾਤਾ ਹਰਾਮਖੋਰੁ ॥ ਹਉ ਕਿਆ ਮੁਹੁ ਦੇਸਾ ਦੁਸਟੁ ਚੋਰੁ ॥

ਨਾਨਕੁ ਨੀਚੁ ਕਹੈ ਬੀਚਾਰੁ ॥ ਧਾਣਕ ਰੂਪਿ ਰਹਾ ਕਰਤਾਰ ॥੪॥੨੯॥ - ਅੰਗ ੨੪

Their focus is on the word Dhanak. The meaning of Dhanak and how they interpret is will be discussed later. Right now, let’s get into the history to know where and how this shabad was uttered by the Guru Sahib.

I have already written the story on Quora, so will copy and paste here, with minor changes.

This story that I am going to tell you is in Nanak Parkash Utara Adhyai 50, written by Bhai Santokh Singh ji. I am not sure if it’s there on other books or not because I didn’t check.

Guru Nanak Dev ji, and the other Sikh Gurus, tested the Sikhs many times if they really were with him because they wanted to achieve Oneness and follow the guru or just to get boons. This was in Kartarpur Sahib. Many Sikhs were coming and having langar two times in a day. To check if they were following the command or not, Guru Sahib said to have langar only once in a day and go and start ploughing. Some Sikhs left as they couldn’t control the hunger.

The ones who were with him, Guru Sahib ordered them to have langar by skipping a day and continue the work in fields. That command left more people in dismay and they left the place. After few days, Guru Sahib said to eat every day.

When the crops were ready, the people who were still with Guru Sahib asked what to do now. He said to cut the crops. He went to the fields and was happy to see them working and told them to do whatever you wanted to do with the crops. The Sikhs showed so much humility and asked Guru Sahib to tell them what to do with that. Again, Guru Sahib did a thing to test them. He asked them to burn the crops.

Many people who’d been starved and still were with the Guru Sahib couldn’t agree to his command. They thought differently about him. This is the Sikhi. Sikhi is not just getting a body in a Sikh family and then doing nothing. Guru Sahib tests you every single time to know how much hardship you can endure. Anyways, they didn’t burn their crops, but those who were just doing what the Guru Sahib was asking burned the crops.

Because of the dried crops, they turned into ashes quickly.

Few days passed and then Guru Nanak Dev ji tied a knife around his waist and clothed into a hunter-looking person. Many dogs were around Guru Sahib and he went outside the town. Now Sikhs were really scared and started saying all types of things about him. They started leaving.

Only few Sikhs were left with the guru, Bhai Lehna ji one of them. Then Guru Nanak Dev ji said the above shabad. So how Bhagat Kabir ji came into this I am not able to understand.

According to the followers of Rampal, the word Dhanak in shabad means a weaver, so that means it’s for Bhagat Kabir ji because he’s born in a weaver family. Let’s move according to this man’s followers and see if it’s going to give a clear message or not because just saying Dhanak here is for Bhagat Kabir ji is not enough.

The catch here is the central message of the shabad which’s that the whole world is going astray from the righteousness. People do the bickering day and night, and look at other’s houses and doing the work like bad people. Lust and anger filled the body. Like this the people are doing the ill things, God. Now a very important question is, while talking about the vices of the people, how saying Bhagat Kabir ji was God or someone Guru Nanak Dev ji followed makes sense? It doesn’t add up. The verse into consideration gives the pattern of the society which has undermined the good deeds. For that reason, Guru Sahib said that the world had become bad. And the usage of the word ‘bhagat’ before the bani of Bhagat Kabir ji is evident to prove he’s not considered as God in gurbani. If it were true, Guru Arjan Dev ji would have asked Bhai Gurdas ji to write God Kabir or Satguru Kabir, but it’s not the case here.

The second shabad which’s provided in that article to support the claim is the below one.

ਯਕ ਅਰਜ ਗੁਫਤਮ ਪੇਸਿ ਤੋ ਦਰ ਗੋਸ ਕੁਨ ਕਰਤਾਰ ॥ ਹਕਾ ਕਬੀਰ ਕਰੀਮ ਤੂ ਬੇਐਬ ਪਰਵਦਗਾਰ ॥੧॥ - ਅੰਗ ੭੨੧

Let’s have the premise of this shabad.

This shabad was said by Guru Nanak Dev ji in his young age, in childhood to be precise. The article says that Bhagat Kabir ji was the guru of Guru Nanak Dev ji. Going by that notion, we see that Guru Nanak Dev ji had not met Bhagat Kabir ji until then. Then how Guru Sahib ‘knew’ that Bhagat Kabir ji was God? Shouldn’t it be like this that firstly Guru Sahib would have met Bhagat Kabir ji and talked to him, understood everything, got enlightened, and then eventually had gotten that Bhagat Kabir ji was God? Of course, yes. This is how it should have happened. But the history doesn’t tell in that way.

So what does Kabir mean? Kabir means Big/Supreme. The word Kabir comes for Waheguru, not for Bhagat Kabir ji. Even in the bani of Bhagat Kabir ji, you can see him using the word Kabir for Waheguru:

ਕਬੀਰਾ ਤੁਹੀ ਕਬੀਰੁ ਤੂ ਤੇਰੋ ਨਾਉ ਕਬੀਰੁ ॥

ਰਾਮ ਰਤਨੁ ਤਬ ਪਾਈਐ ਜਉ ਪਹਿਲੇ ਤਜਹਿ ਸਰੀਰੁ ॥੩੧॥ - ਅੰਗ ੧੩੬੬

It’s like the devotees of Ramchandra and Krishna who have been trying so hard to have their deities’ validations and supremacy in Guru Granth Sahib. The same has been adopted by the followers of this brainless Rampal. History is a tricky subject, especially when it comes to the Sikh history. You should be qualified first by knowing the very basic rules of Sikhism before start exploring the historical granths. Gurbani is harder than the history. On his video, Rampal could be seen reading Bhai Baale wali Janamsakhi. And by seeing him struggling with the Punjabi language, it asserts my conclusion that he’s not qualified enough to know the Punjabi language; gurbani is beyond his scope.

Thirdly, the meeting of Bhagat Kabir ji with Guru Nanak Dev ji is mentioned in Twarikh Khalsa happened on 1563 B.C. (1506 A.D.) In other words what I am trying to say is there’re many shabads which’re already uttered by the guru. If the influence of Bhagat Kabir ji was there on Guru Nanak Dev ji that transformed his life, it should have been before 1563 B.C. because without comprehending the essence of the One who’s omnipresent, he would never have taught or enlightened the Qazi and the pandit who were his teachers in the young age.

This is a very clever method used by Rampal and his followers to misguide the Sikhs. And it’s not the first time that it happened. It had been happening for years, but the thing is it couldn’t change the Sikhs at all; Khalsa Panth stood where it’s before these brainless cult leaders were born. The blind and brainless followers of this cult and others are really wasting their time on these people rather than following what’s written, even if we think that they believe Bhagat Kabir to be their guru, in the bani of Bhagat Kabir ji.

So, no, Bhagat Kabir ji is neither Waheguru, nor the guru of Guru Nanak Dev ji.

Sant Reinn ji: I don’t think many people have heard this name before. Even I was not aware of this until I heard it in the discourse of Nanak Parkash. The situation here is same like it’s there in the first group that we discussed. There we’d the followers of the so-called guru, who follows Bhagat Kabir ji; here we have the people who follow Sant Reinn ji.

But who was Sant Reinn ji?

In our childhood we listened many stories about the lives of the Sikh Gurus. The story of Guru Nanak Dev ji giving 20 rupees to the hungry saints was very popular. There shouldn’t be any Sikh who’d not heard this story but others. I will narrate that soon. Before that, let me say this that in this story we’ve Bhai Baala ji who’s been brushed under the carpet by the ‘scholars’ of the Sikh religion. It’s not only limited to the non-Sikhs but also the Sikh historians/scholars who planted this doubt among the minds of the Sikhs that Bhai Baala ji didn’t exist – he’s just a fictitious character made by the anti-Sikh forces of the early period. I will not discuss about the existence of Bhai Baala ji here because I’m planning to dedicate one whole post about it with all the questions that are asked by these scholars with their limited knowledge.

This story was the first time when we see Bhai Baala ji with Guru Nanak Dev ji going on an excursion to have a profitable business as asked by Baba Mehta Kalu ji, Father of Guru Nanak Dev ji. Baba Mehta Kalu ji didn’t want to send Guru Nanak Dev ji alone, so asked Bhai Baala ji to go with him. The reason behind that could be the incidents in the childhood of Guru Nanak Dev ji when he started giving the household things to the poor and needy in the town.

To do the business 20 rupees were given by the father. On the way to do something profitable, Guru Nanak Dev ji found a group of sadhus doing the penance with the asanas and other techniques which were popular in the Hindu scriptures. He told Bhai Baala ji that there couldn’t be more profitable business than giving food to these sadhus. Bhai Baala ji was hesitant lest the outcome when they tell about the money spent on. But Guru Nanak Dev ji had made his mind.

He talked to the sadhu whose name was Sant Reinn ji. Guru Nanak Dev ji talked to him for some time to get to know him, what they were doing, how they were doing, why they are doing, etc., these questions were asked and answered. Then Guru Nanak Dev ji gave the money to the sadhu, who was reluctant to accept and asked if his father knew about this or not. Eventually, when Guru Nanak Dev ji told him what his father had asked him to do, Sant Reinn ji asked the guru to give them grains instead of the money.

Guru Nanak Dev ji and Bhai Baala ji went to the near market and bought the grains and gave to the sadhus. With so much humility, the guru asked that he could make food for them. Sant Reinn ji refused that politely.

Later, when Sant Reinn ji was with his group, they asked their guru why he sent off Guru Nanak Dev ji. Sant Reinn ji told them that he couldn’t sit in front of Guru Nanak Dev ji because of the parkash. So asked him to go.

This is the story behind the meeting of Guru Nanak Dev ji and Sant Reinn ji. The followers of Sant Reinn ji had given it a completely different angle. I will not be shocked if I find it written in a book that because of Sant Reinn ji Guru Nanak Dev ji was enlightened. These people really should have some shame before conjecturing these types of stories without any base. It’s always good to read the books of the followers of the religion or at least get in contact with some good Singhs and clear the doubts rather than spreading misinformation everywhere, including the books too.

The guy who gave the link in the first point told that there’re other books where it’s written Bhagat Kabir ji was Guru Nanak Dev ji’s guru. The same what is mentioned by the followers of Sant Reinn ji. Books was the only source of information which was there in the earlier era. And in that era too erroneous articles, opinions and conclusions were drawn to elevate the image of the guru that these people followed. Most importantly these people do not know that we’ve gurbani for the history validation, which they’ve not read; and if they’ve, they misinterpreted it so badly that the real meanings they never heard in their life. Ram-Ramchandra conclusion is the best example here.

They didn’t stop it here. They also have the verses from gurbani to prove their point. I think they’re somehow learning that for Sikhs gurbani is very vital to prove something. But the issue that I find in their way of proving something is that they do not know much of anything about gurbani. Had they read only Jap Ji Sahib from a well-read Sikh, not even an iota of doubt would have arisen in their heads. Alas, this they can never do!

Following is the verse as proof.

ਜਨ ਨਾਨਕ ਕਉ ਇਹੁ ਦਾਨੁ ਦੇਹੁ ਪ੍ਰਭ ਪਾਵਉ ਸੰਤ ਰੇਨ ਉਰਿ ਧਾਰੀ ॥ - ਅੰਗ ੪੦੧

Here, they claim the guru of Guru Nanak Dev ji is Sant Reinn. Firstly, this shabad was of Guru Arjan Dev ji, not Guru Nanak Dev ji. Here sant reinn doesn’t mean the name of the person. It means the dust of the feet of the saints, or in other way in the company of the saints.

By sitting in the Sadh Sangat or saints, a human can do the Naam Simran, listen to gurbani. When a person sits among the saints, only the talks of Akaal are discussed, not the worldly matters. It’s important to sit among the saints or Sadh Sangat, where only the One is discussed, to set yourself on the path to the One, to kill the vies, to be polite, to do good to everyone, spread the message of Akaal, and eventually achieve the Oneness where there’s no you or no Him; wherever you see there’s Him only.

Muslims: At the time of the Mughal rule, there’d been multiple conflicts between the Sikhs and Mughals/Muslims, can be of the theological level or the swords. As the Mughal king Aurangzeb was trying to change the whole of the countries into a Muslim country, the outbreak especially after the martyrdom of Guru Teg Bahadur ji, which was for the Hindus, proved to be the end of the dynasty. After the death of Aurangzeb, the Mughal Kingdom was not as strong as it used to be and soon crumbled.

Throughout the period of the Sikh Gurus, from Guru Nanak Dev ji to Guru Gobind Singh ji, Muslims fought with the Sikhs in battlefields. They never, ever, tried to change the Sikh history or the interpretation of gurbani. (In the case of Ram Rai, the verses were changed by him, not the Muslims, when asked by them about the bani of Guru Nanak Dev ji.) I’ve never heard of any Muslims of that period who did that. If you find any in some books, I believe its proportion can be negligible. Many of them were not on good terms with the Sikhs, but at least they didn’t interfere into the religious matters directly, especially the manipulation of gurbani.

This was not true in the case of BHs. Even in these days, you see them showing their unintelligent behaviour and shallow intellectualism on the Internet. Recently, I was going through a post of a BH who said the Sikh Gurus didn’t go hard on the doctrine of the Islam because they feared the consequences that might come out of that. This BH has spread most of the litter on Quora about Sikhism. Had he read some quality books on Sikhism, he would have grasped the truth i.e. in the core of the Islam, in Mecca, Guru Nanak Dev ji challenged the beliefs of Muslims. Since his childhood whenever Guru Nanak Dev ji encountered any Muslims, starting from his teacher, to the lands that he travelled to, including Baghdad, he showed them the True Path. Even his interaction with Babur, which the so-called class of Sikh intellectualism is denying meeting him, showed how fearless the guru was. Babur, from whom the whole Mughal Dynasty started, even his presence couldn’t start a panic in the guru. This’s the stage of the spiritualism of Guru Nanak Dev ji.

Anyways, coming back to the point. These days, some Muslims have also joined the club of BHs who are manipulating the gurbani in a wrong way. From stating Guru Nanak Dev ji to be a Muslim, they are covering up much of the ground but they can never be on par with the BHs to wrong the right.

What got into the Muslims is hard to understand. It might be the debate of the Basics of Sikhi vs Dawah Man. It’s hard for me to pinpoint. There can be more videos before that especially one sect of Muslims who call Guru Nanak Dev ji a Muslim, and their conclusion might be based on the teachings of the guru about the One God that they also believed in. Still it’s wrong by the way. But the misinterpretation of gurbani is one of the cardinal sins. Like there’s one website where you can see an article written by them stating how the bani of Guru Granth Sahib ji is not 100% true because someone added raagmala at the end. The ‘issues’ that some of the ‘scholars’ raised in the 20^th century are used by these Muslims, which have been answered by many Sikhs, from Raagmala to Dasam Guru Granth Sahib. Everything has been cleared out by the Khalsa Panth. But this is not valid to them because they need to have a theory to show how the Sikhism is not the right religion to choose.

 The ex-Muslims can be seen praising the Sikhism for its beliefs. It can be the bewitchment or the admiration of the religion by the non-Sikhs that makes few Muslims to take the steps towards the pit. In these days also, these Muslims’ presence can’t be ignored even if they’re very miniature.

Like Guru Nanak Dev ji didn’t wear the janeu and showed the True Path to the pandit Hardayal, likewise the circumcision was talked by the guru that the circumcision should be your sharam.

ਮਿਹਰ ਮਸੀਤਿ ਸਿਦਕੁ ਮੁਸਲਾ ਹਕੁ ਹਲਾਲੁ ਕੁਰਾਣੁ ॥

ਸਰਮ ਸੁੰਨਤਿ ਸੀਲੁ ਰੋਜਾ ਹੋਹੁ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਣੁ ॥

Guru Nanak Dev ji’s teachers were both Hindus and Muslims when Baba Mehta Kalu ji sent him to school. The guru didn’t get the information of the Divine from his teachers but gave them the wisdom that these worldly educations would not hold any significance in afterlife. All of his school teachers were dumbstruck by the words of the guru.

There is not even a shred of legitimate evidence to support the knowledge of the guru came from the Muslim sources or Quran. The earlier sketches of the Sikh Gurus were shown by the Englishmen/European with a completely different theory. Guru Nanak Dev ji, according to them, was trying to conciliate the relations between the Hindus and Muslims. There is no doubt that the guru didn’t want them to fight over the religious matters and wanted to have a harmonious society where all the people from different creeds could live and prosper. But this was not the only aim of the guru. Sharing of the Divine Message in this world was his main motive, which had everything from the harmony between the religious groups to the forsaken of the superstition to show the bigotry of the rulers and priests to the ultimate goal of life – Oneness.

Guru Nanak Dev ji’s life is filled with so much thought-provoking discussions with both the Muslims and Hindus that it seems meaningless to assume the guru was inspired by any of the religious books of the other religions. Muslims were as close to the guru as the Hindus, even when the guru dissented with them on multiple occasions about the rituals of both the religions. If the guru was not in accord with the popular beliefs of both the religions, then how he happened to be inspired by them?

Muslims use two theories very often on this topic.

First one is the One God belief of the Sikh religion. They said if the guru was bewitched by the rules of the Hindus, he would never have said there’s one God because the Hindus worshipped multiple demigods, which they somehow call to be inseparable with the One God. Anyway, the Muslims believe that the guru was surrounded by both the Muslims and Hindus, and the effect of the Hindu philosophy was not to that extent because he preached to worship only One; so that belief of the One God must have come from the Muslims because they were not worshipping the demigods.

This theory is as good as the Ram-Ramchandra conclusion. It goes on and on and is not permissible to be believable. By going with that, it proves two things wrong. First one is that Guru Nanak Dev ji was a God-sent person (although there is no difference between the guru and Waheguru. The Sikhs do not go calling people to believe the guru to be God, but we believe in that.) Secondly gurbani came from Waheguru. If the influence theory has to be believed then it changes the definition of the religion. Sikhism has no effect of the Islamic texts or Puranic texts. There’re many similar beliefs but it doesn’t prove the one to be the influencer.

Before the origin of Islam, there’s already One God theory available. Christians believed in one God. There’s a concept of the Trinity in Christians. Some Muslims take it as the One God divided into three. Let’s not get into that. What I am saying is that people believed in One God before Islam started on the Earth. So can it be portrayed that the Islamic texts are not original ones but copied from other cultures and religions? There’re some online articles which suggest that but I do not incline myself to that. Neither I believe the Sikh texts to be copied from the other religions.

From his teachers to the Qazis of the lands to Babur to Mecca to Baghdad, Guru Nanak Dev ji talked to them, guided them; not get the ideas from them. Both the groups that call the guru to be enlightened on some year and influenced because of a religious book neglect the talks of the guru in his school days with the teachers. The teachers were teaching him the mathematics or the alphabets of the language, but the guru taught them about the Divine. If he got the basic information about the Divine from the Muslims, who can be his teacher, then he didn’t agree to them. Like we have the shabad about what the circumcision could be. The guru could have accepted the circumcision and other practices of the Muslims, if he really had the influence of the Quranic teachings. In the following shabad, it clearly dictates the contradiction between the teaching of the guru and the Muslims.

ਸਲੋਕੁ ਮ: ੧ ॥ ਮਿਹਰ ਮਸੀਤਿ ਸਿਦਕੁ ਮੁਸਲਾ ਹਕੁ ਹਲਾਲੁ ਕੁਰਾਣੁ ॥

ਸਰਮ ਸੁੰਨਤਿ ਸੀਲੁ ਰੋਜਾ ਹੋਹੁ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਣੁ ॥

ਕਰਣੀ ਕਾਬਾ ਸਚੁ ਪੀਰੁ ਕਲਮਾ ਕਰਮ ਨਿਵਾਜ ॥

ਤਸਬੀ ਸਾ ਤਿਸੁ ਭਾਵਸੀ ਨਾਨਕ ਰਖੈ ਲਾਜ ॥੧॥ - ਅੰਗ ੧੪੦

ਮ: ੧ ॥ ਪੰਜਿ ਨਿਵਾਜਾ ਵਖਤ ਪੰਜਿ ਪੰਜਾ ਪੰਜੇ ਨਾਉ ॥

ਪਹਿਲਾ ਸਚੁ ਹਲਾਲ ਦੁਇ ਤੀਜਾ ਖੈਰ ਖੁਦਾਇ ॥

ਚਉਥੀ ਨੀਅਤਿ ਰਾਸਿ ਮਨੁ ਪੰਜਵੀ ਸਿਫਤਿ ਸਨਾਇ ॥

ਕਰਣੀ ਕਲਮਾ ਆਖਿ ਕੈ ਤਾ ਮੁਸਲਮਾਣੁ ਸਦਾਇ ॥

ਨਾਨਕ ਜੇਤੇ ਕੂੜਿਆਰ ਕੂੜੈ ਕੂੜੀ ਪਾਇ ॥੩॥ - ਅੰਗ ੧੪੧

Second one is the travelling of the guru to Mecca. There’re few sites that emphasise so much about this incident to prove the guru went for Hajj. They completely ignore the reason of his visit. By going through this reasoning, then the Hindus would claim it too that the guru went to their holy places to dip in the holy water. There’re some logics that Muslims follow and Hindus don’t when it comes to Sikhism, and the vice-versa is also true.

Guru’s visit to Mecca was not to pay respects at the holy place. It’s to guide them that the One God is present everywhere. The story of the changing of the direction of Kaaba is an example of his teachings and the reason behind his visit to the holy place. Muslims present at the place was shocked to see the Kaaba moving.

These days it’s become the habit of the FICOS to deny any miracles associated with the Sikh Gurus. In the story of Mecca, they say they turned the minds of the people, the place actually didn’t move. It’s not the first time that it happens the Sikhs thought in that way. Macauliffe in his book wrote the same. ‘Upon this the priest seized the Guru’s feet and dragged them in the opposite direction, whereupon, it is said, the temple turned round, and followed the revolution of his body. Some understand this in a spiritual sense, and say it means that Guru Nanak made all Makka turn to his teaching. Those who witnessed this miracle were astonished and saluted the Guru as a supernatural being’

So no teacher was the guru of Guru Nanak Dev ji. He didn’t have any religious book or some saint who influenced him. He didn’t go to Mecca for Hajj.

Then who was the guru of Guru Nanak Dev ji?

Truth: Guru Nanak Dev ji was Waheguru Himself. He’s the sargun form of Waheguru, who’s not under the influence of Maaya. When Guru Nanak Dev ji went to Sachkhand, there Waheguru ji said He’s Parmeshvar, and Guru Nanak Dev ji is gur-Parmeshvar.

God doesn’t need anyone to teach him anything. Throughout the lives of the Sikh Gurus, you see them doing all the daily chorus even when they were not needed. There were people who were their teachers in young age, but the abundance of the knowledge that the Sikh Gurus had didn’t require anyone to add something to it. If they had the teachers in young age, that teaching doesn’t add anything; if they didn’t have teachers in young age, that didn’t exclude anything.

The gurus were complete.

Both the religions, Islam and Hinduism, talk very proudly and profoundly about the origin of their holy scriptures. The Gita is said to be the dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna in the battlefield. The Vedas are said to be written by multiple Rishis with the knowledge that they possessed. The Quran is said to be revealed to Mohammad by an angle. They claim how the scriptures that they follow are authentic and are God-revealed.

In the case of Sikhism, they totally deny it. They want the Sikh Gurus to be like common people who neither had independent wisdom, nor were God-sent. They want the Sikh Gurus to rely on something. They want to glorify their deities or pirs and pull down the image of the Sikh Gurus to like ordinary human beings who were just reformer, nothing more. To some extent, FICOS plays an important role in it. They want it to be scientifically true.

I heard a Sikh say few months back that if we say gurbani is according to science that means we give priority not to gurbani, but the science which has to tell everything right or wrong. Because of this science they deny the miracles because they don’t make sense to unenlightened people. Once we bring a parameter to validate the authenticity of gurbani, we lower the level of the holy scripture. We’re trying to tell the world how our scripture is logical. By going with that notion, the logic or rationale cannot let us see God. Some people try to go back to the beginning of the world and talk about cause-and-affect theory. Even if we understand that, or any other method, then it might prove the existence of God, but never how and what he is, with pure logic and reasoning. If I want to see God, if I want to see soul, there’s no scientific apparatus to show us (some talk about some glass-breaking thing, don’t know much about it, but you got the point, I guess.) That has to be experienced with spirituality. And to prove the spirituality, people are using science.

Like Krishna is said to have the profound knowledge that made the Gita possible, like revelation of the verses to Mohammed made the Quran, likewise the Sikh scriptures revealed by Waheguru. There’re many examples in gurbani which say that it’s Waheguru who’s making it possible to write gurbani, or in other ways He’s the one who’s giving the verses to write down. How can we deny the inner verses of the holy scriptures to build an irrelevant theory about the dependence of the gurus’ knowledge on other religious scriptures?

ਅਪਰੰਪਰ ਪਾਰਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਪਰਮੇਸਰੁ ਨਾਨਕ ਗੁਰੁ ਮਿਲਿਆ ਸੋਈ ਜੀਉ ॥੫॥੧੧॥ - ਅੰਗ ੫੯੯

So, no, Guru Nanak Dev ji didn’t have any guru from some sect or religious scriptures of others. Waheguru is the guru of Guru Nanak Dev ji. Once we deny this, we are near the line that some religions want us to cross, which is to prove the Sikh Gurus nothing more than reformers and common people who did everything for India, especially the battles. This new theory is building up on the Internet these days.

Be careful. Be smart. Read history. Read gurbani. Do nitnem. Listen to katha.