Parkash Purav Sri Guru Har Gobind Singh Ji

Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji was the first Saint Soldier among Sikh Gurus. Took up 2 swords of Miri and Piri, constructed Akal Takht – a symbolic of Raj Satta and Throne of the Eternal God. Guru Hargobind (1595-1644) The son of Guru Arjan Dev, ascended the throne of Sikh Guruship on the martyrdom of his father when he was only 11 years old. He was trained in the art of horsemanship, swordsmanship, hunting, and wrestling. Guru Hargobind built Akal Takht as the temporal seat of authority opposite the Golden Temple in Amritsar. He built a small fort, called Lohgarh and kept a small army (cavalry). The Guru ordained his Sikhs to bring offerings of weapons and horses. So Jehangir (Mughal ruler) imprisoned the Guru in the fort of Gwalior for about 12 years, though later on the Emperor tried to befriend him. Guru Hargobind traveled far and wide including Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh. He fought four battles against the Mughal ruler Shah Jahan and inflicted heavy casualties on the enemy. The Guru lived the last year of his life in meditation, leading a simple life. Finally, he appointed his grandson Har Rai as his successor. Concept of Miri Piri The concept of Miri-Piri laid by Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji can be understood as follows; ‘Pir’ means sainthood and ‘Miri’ denotes sovereignty. The sequence has been placed as such that sainthood is mentioned first and then temporal making it clear that the prerequisite to bear arms is knowledge and spirituality. This concept has also been utilized by Guru Gobind Singh Ji multiple times under a similar context but as a different name where Miri=Tegh and Piri= Degh. The Degh and Tegh are Persian words, meaning kettle and the sword respectively. Death literally means cooking-pot where it symbolizes the free kitchen (Langar) and sainthood. Whereas, Tegh means sword which symbolizes dignity, power, and sovereignty.