by SS SatSundri Kaur Khalsa, Espanola NM
Spring 2013

Wahe Guru Ji Ka Khalsa. Wahe Guru Ji Ki Fateh. I pondered the thought of writing about Guru Hargobind Ji, his life and lessons to us, and then took a Saturday and spread my resources around me, including Macauliffe’s history of the Sikhs, as well as Bhai Gurdas Ji’s Vaars, Bhai Nand Lal Ji’s ecstatic poetry and the Siri Singh Sahib Ji’s lectures.

By the end of a day of immersing myself in dates, events, imagination, relationships, poetry and Gurbani, I was completely elevated, with my sixth center swirling from research. Guru Hargobind’s life portrays such a beautiful example of a life well-lived with His Divine splendor and a charismatic personality.

Guru Hargobind Ji, the sixth river of Divine light, heart of Justice, numerologically represents the arcline with the quality of one-pointedness and one who loves to meditate. The Siri Singh Sahib taught that the first five Gurus brought us the bhakti (devotion) and the second five brought the shakti (power).

Shakti and Bhakti, Miri and Piri, temporal and spiritual—Guru Har Gobind Ji was the cusp channel to further reveal the way of Ek Ong Kar. “The Infinite God who sustains us all” is Guru Hargobind Ji. To meditate on his divine life brings understanding of the actions of manifesting complete balance between the earthly and spiritual worlds.

Guru Hargobind Sahib (b.1595— d.1644) was a benevolent, serene and splendorous profile of an incredibly energetic, active Divine Soul who assumed the sovereignty of his divine destiny in complete sahej—effortlessness. He maintained his brilliant countenance through constant contemplation of Akal Purkh and chardi kala—sadhana and simran.

He immediately identified himself through his bana and so represented himself with royal grace and bearing, displaying complete tenacity in his outreach to the growing community of Sikhs and community-at-large from Kashmir to Kabul. He is a powerful model for our busy, immersed daily lives of how to live a balanced life.

Shining Like the Sun

Bhai Gurdas Ji, who served the third through sixth houses of the Guru (whose writings Guru Arjan called the key to understanding the Siri Guru Granth Sahib) declares Guru Hargobind the Sixth Pir—Holy Guide. Guru Hargobind Ji’s destiny was set before he entered the earthly realms.

Baba Buddha Ji, who had the capacity to answer the prayer of Mata Ganga Ji (Guru Arjan Dev Ji’s wife) for a child, granted the boon of a son who would be handsome and shine like the sun and “would crush heads of an enemy as easily as he could crush an onion.”

As an only child of Mata Ganga and Guru Arjan Dev Ji, Guru Hargobind’s presence was challenging from his very conception to those with evil intent and he experienced a number of attempts on his life as a child (an elder jealous brother of Guru Arjan Dev, Prithi Chand schemed to make the Guru’s seat and seal his own by sending a poisonous snake to kill the young Hargobind.)

Upon Guru Arjan Dev’s martyrdom, the Divine Light passed to Guru Har Gobind Ji at age 11 and he became blessed with the Spiritual Crown. He assigned the Guru’s traditional seli (a woolen cord worn as a necklace or twisted round the head by the former Gurus) to the archive treasury, instead declaring that his seli would be his sword-belt, and he would wear a royal dastaar and a kalgi (turban jewel).

When Baba Buddha placed Guruji’s gatra (sword scabbard) on the wrong side, Guru Hargobind Sahib asked for a second one, in order to wear two swords, signifying his stewardship would be of both worlds—earthly and spiritual, Miri and Piri—the Soldier and the Saint.

About the Author

SS SatSundri Kaur Khalsa became a Sikh Dharma Minister in the mid-1970s, and is a certified Kundalini Yoga Teacher. She brings professional skills and love of the Guru into all her endeavors. She is mother to two grown children who spent their early years in school in India, and she has a beautiful granddaughter. She has served on a variety of non-profit Boards including our legacy Boards, other Sikh Board of Trustees, interfaith, and school advisory boards, and in other volunteer endeavors, and feels giving back to the community in service has been a gift in her life.