There may not be more harrowing examples in the history of world of killing persons mercilessly, who thought differently from the rulers of their times, by perpetrating multiple tortures, than ruthless Mugal emperor Jahangir, who brutally ended the life of Sikh saint and 5th Guru of Sikhs, Arjan Dev.
Born on April 15, 1563, at Goindwal Saheb, he was the youngest son of Guru Ram Das. He was a great visionary Guru who started the construction of Golden Temple. Interestingly his Muslim devotee had laid the foundation of the holy shrine. He also completed the Nectar Sarovar and Harmandir Sahib in 1604. He was an ardent preacher of universal brotherhood, forgiveness, humility and freedom of worship.
Guru Arjan Dev compiled the Adi-Granth, Guru Granth Saheb up to his time in which in added many writings of Muslim and Hindu saints.
Irked by his popularity, Mugal emperor Jahangir summoned him and tried to prevail upon him to accept Islam. He was asked to embrace Islam to escape death. He preferred martyrdom.
On the fateful day of June 16, 1606, the tyrant Jahangir ordered the arrest of Guru Arjan Dev and punished him with death. The manner in which he was killed has no parallel in the history. The only charge against him was that he had refused to stop the preachings of Guru Nanak Dev of worshipping God.
On the first day of persecution, he was starved and not a drop of water was given. In the previous night he was kept awake and made to sit on a red-hot thick iron sheet and red hot sand was poured on his head and body.
The brutal ruler was intrigued and shocked to observe that Guru Arjan Dev bore the brunt of pain calmly without showing any shriek of pain. He kept on murmuring the name of God and chanting the verses from the holy book Granth Sahib. One Chandu, a villain and traitor, was doing it to please the king.
On the second day, Chandu directed Guru ji to sit on a large copper caldron of boiling water. Guru sat silently on the boiling caldron without showing any sign of pain. He only said, “My lord, all this is happening in accordance with thy will, which is very sweet to me.”
On the third day of torture, again red hot sand was poured on his head and body. On the fourth day of torture, he was again asked to sit on the red hot thick iron plate and was subjected to suffocation on the fifth day. Thousands of his weeping followers watched the ghastly scene helplessly and desperately.
Then the solders of Jahangir took Guru Arjan Dev to river Beas on the sixth day for a bath where he entered it never to come back.
During the course of torture, his Muslim devotee, Mian Amir, rushed to Arjan Dev, to see his plight. It was believed at that time that Amir possessed supernatural powers. Seeing his horible condition, he cried out, “ Master, I cannot bear the horrors inflicted on you. Allow me to demolish this tyrant regime.” Guru smiled and ordained him to look at the sky. It is said that he saw the angels in the sky begging for the permission to destroy the tyrannical and ruthless regime of Jahangir.
It may not be out of place to reproduce briefly some lines from the diary of Jahangir, “Tuzuk-i-Jahangir” to analyse mental perversity of the Mughal emperor who broke all records of cruelty and barbarity in known history. He wrote, “There lived a Hindu Arjan, an insignificant man, dressed in garments of sainthood and sanctity. He had captured simple-hearted Hindus and even ignorant and foolish followers of Islam who loudly beat the drums of his holiness. Stupid people crowded him to worship and manifest faith in him. Four generations of spiritual Sikh successors had kept his shop warm. It occurred to me to put a stop to it and bring him round to the fold of Islam….”
He has also mentioned in his personal diary that once Khusrau passed from the hermit of Guru Arjan Dev, who was widely adored and loved by people of all religions and faiths. He halted there to pay obeisance to Guruji and seek his blessings. Guru put a saffron finger sign (Tilak) on his forehead. I was furious to learn it. “ I ordered to produce him before me and directed to forfeit all his property and put him to death.”
