Guru Gobind Singh Ji 350th birth anniversary: 5 amazing facts about him

To mark the occasion, here we share 5 must-know facts about Shri Guru Gobind Singh, who was not only a Guru but a warrior too.

By: Pooja Tyagi |
January 5, 2017 4:40 pm

With India celebrating 350th birth anniversary of Shri Guru Gobind Singh today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address reminisced that the 10th Sikh guru was blessed with indomitable courage and tremendous knowledge. PM made the statement before leaving for the Prakash Parv organised in Patna by Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government to commemorate the anniversary. To mark the occasion, here we share 5 must-know facts about Shri Guru Gobind Singh, who was not only a Guru but a warrior too.

A 9-year old guru: Shri Guru Gobind Singh is the son of 9th guru ‘Guru Teg Bahadur’. He ascended after his father accepted martyrdom at the hands of Aurangzeb while protecting Kashmiri Hindus.

Multilingual personality: Guru Gobind Singh was fluent in many languages, including Sanskrit, Urdu, Hindi, Braj, Gurmukhi and Persian.

Martial art expert: He also learned martial arts to become adept in combat.

Victorious warrior: In September 1688, Shri Guru Gobind Singh emerged as a victorious warrior after defeating the forces of Bhim Chand, Garhwal King Fateh Khan and other local kings of the Sivalik Hills in a battle that lasted for a day. He was just 19-year-old at that time. The description of the battle can be found in Bichitra Natak or Bachittar Natak, a part of the Dasham Granth.

Founder of Khalsa: On March 30 in 1699, Guru Gobind Singh founded the Khalsa, it is the army of all initiated Sikhs, represented by five Sikh volunteers, named as Panj Pyaare or ‘five beloved ones’ by the Guru. The first five Sikh volunteers were Daya Ram, also known as Bhai Daya Singh; Dharam Das, also known as Bhai Dharam Singh; Himmat Rai, also known as Bhai Himmat Singh; Mohkam Chand, also known as Bhai Mohkam Singh; and Sahib Chand, also known as Bhai Sahib Singh.