Of the ten Gurus, six have their bani included in the Guru Granth. Guru Tegh Bahadur was the last of them. Guru Gobind Singh added his compositions to the canon, as codified by the Fifth Guru, but forbore from entering his own. His extensive writings comprise a separate volume, called the Dasam Granth, i.e. the Tenth Guru’s Book, but this was not given scriptural status. Guru Tegh Bahadur’s bani is small in bulk – 59 sabdas and 57 slokas in all. The sabdas are distributed over 15 ragas or musical measures. The slokas or couplets form the concluding portion of the Guru Granth. As such, they are ceremonially intoned as part of the epilogue when concluding an open congregational reading of Scripture on a religious or social occasion and should thus be the most familiar fragment of it, after Japuji, the Sikhs’ morning prayer.

Totally, these sabdas and slokas essentialise the same spiritual experience and insights as does the bani of the preceding Gurus. The central theme is the affirmation of Reality, the ultimate ground of all that exists. The main quest is for mukti or release. Loving devotion is set forth as the truest virtue– the fundamental disposition for one seeking liberation. By immersing oneself in nam, i.e. by constant remembrance of the Divine Name, one attains moksha or mukti. This is freedom from self-bondage, from the circuit of birth and death. It is this stage of spiritual perfection which is the end of all religious striving. Life in this world is conditioned. Temporality is an essential trait of human existence. One can go beyond this contingent state, can transcend samsara – the sphere of temporality, the finite world of becoming – by concentrating on God’s Name. Guru Tegh Bahadur bears witness in his bani to these truths revealed by Guru Nanak and preached by his successors. Yet his expression has its individual qualities.

The most striking one is the unity of mood, the singleness of motif which pervades his compositions. They are all of a piece. They are in the same key, spiritually. They have the same tone of voice and, despite variation of prosodic measures, have the same harmony and the same rhythm of thought. It is a coherent view of life, a coherent philosophy. Guru Tegh Bahadur’s entire bani is one sustained meditation on the human state. In image after image, it illustrates its imperfections and limitations. It reflects on the shackles which bind man and obstruct his moral and spiritual understanding. It is full of concern for his condition and indicates the way to amelioration. It sharpens and vivifies the meaning of life for him. Stanza after stanza summons him to discerning reality from illusion, to overcoming his disabilities and realising his higher potential. This poetry of extraordinary simplicity and beauty is the bearer of intimations urgent and meaningful. Its sense of concern gives it intensity and immediacy. It is not didactic or moralistic, nor of an effervescent temper. It is not born of the rapture of cloudy mysticism, but of the very experience of Reality, of spiritual discipline of the highest order, of philosophic wisdom and enlightenment. It discloses the true meaning and purpose of life.

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In spite of its involvement with a single theme, it does not become a stereotype. It is fresh and alive, instinct with the innermost mystery of existence. It is as vital and dynamic as life itself. Its rolling rhythm is subtly captivating, its lilt deeply touching. This quality of harmony underlines the mood of Guru Tegh Bahadur’s verse. Highly skilled in music, he was especially sensitive to the mellifluence of his lines. This was melody hatched in the soft silences of his soul. The language, unlike that of the rest of the Guru Granth which is generally in Punjabi, is Braj – unembellished, easy and smooth. The diction has classical restraint and economy. In austere decor, but in sharp thrusts, Guru Tegh Bahadur’s bani brings home to man truths he must acknowledge unless he has completely lost his spiritual sensitivity.

One persistent concern is for man’s letting his opportunity slip by. Life is short; life is hastening away. It is transient, yet man could make it worthwhile, but he has not. The transitoriness of human existence is emphasised in many a vivid figure. The world is no more than a hill of smoke. It is as a mirage. It is like the shadow of a cloud, like a wall made of sand. Moment by moment, life is leaking away like water from a cracked vessel. It is but a bubble on water, a night’s dream. Human connections of wife, friend, son are tentative, temporary. But man perceives not the reality and continues to be engrossed in delusion. He is ruled by worldly attachment and passions. Attachment keeps him in bondage and he is prevented from cultivating the higher element in his nature. The real pity is this. Otherwise, the world is not deprecated, nor is renunciation recommended. Nowhere does Guru Tegh Bahadur applaud the hermitic state. Nor does he belittle human life.

On the contrary, he calls it a priceless gift. It confers on man the chance to discover his real essence and achieve union with the Creator. He has obtained it after countless wanderings and he may not have it again. This human body is preciously obtained. The life is an opportunity. It is meant for good-doing (janamu pae kachhu bhalo na kino), for acquiring merit, for gaining liberation. Death will one day strike. Its inevitability is stressed, not to instil fear, but to make man aware of the immortality that lies beyond it. The conquest of fear is in fact the ultimate ideal laid down.

Guru Tegh Bahadur’s perspective is life-affirming, not life-denying. The imagery of transience in his poetry does not create a static effect. Nor does it encourage quietistic withdrawal or retreat from the world. It arouses man to an awareness of what he is capable of achieving in spite of the limitations of his earthly existence. He is made conscious of his negative propensities and of the lusts and illusions of his personal life. He is reminded of how he is wasting away his opportunity, of how he can yet make a fresh start. He is challenged for a verdict, challenged to make his decision. He is under no determinist fate. The choice is his. Life should be lived for a purpose, for an ideal. It is impermanent, but not false. Man should participate in it, but not allow himself to be entangled in it. He should utilise it to affirm and enact the eternal values. It is never too late for him to turn to the spiritual path. Nothing is lost yet, says Guru Tegh Bahadur (ajhu kachhu bigrio nahi). There is still time for man to rescue himself. He can yet get across this worldly ocean unscathed. Only if he would care and awaken to the truth. There is still hope for him.

Excerpted with permission from The Prophet-Martyr: Guru Tegh Bahadur, Harbans Singh, with translations of the Guru’s hymns by Nikky-Guninder Kaur Singh, Speaking Tiger Books.