Hind Di Chadar

On 24^th November 2009 is the 334^th Martyrdom Anniversary of GURU TEG BAHADUR JI who sacrificed his life for the protection of Hinduism in India at Chandni Chowk,Delhi

An extremely important event in Sikh history that had a profound impact on the future direction of Sikhism, the religion of the Sikhs,Guru Teg Bahadur undertook the supreme sacrifice for the protection of the most fundamental of human rights - the right of a person to freely practice his or her religion without interference or hindrance. In the modern day we tend to take this freedom for granted – but in 1675, millions of people were denied this basic right in India under the Mughal Rular Auranqzeb.

However, what is even more astonishing is the fact that the Guru was not protecting the right of the Sikhs to practise their religion but instead the rights of non-Sikh peace-loving people from Kashmir. These people from Kashmir were very respected Hindus who were being converted to Islam under the threat of death by the Muslim Emperor, Aurangzeb. In 1669, the Mughal ruler Aurangzeb departed from the policy of tolerance practised by his predecessors and unleashed instead a policy of religious persecution against non-Muslims. This caused large-scale demoralisation, fear and panic among the people.

The commitment by the Sikh Guru to protect and support the liberty of all the people of a country was unprecedented. This type of supreme sacrifice had never previously been recorded in human history. On May 25, 1675 in reply to an appeal of a large group of revered Kashmiri Pandits, Guru Tegh Bahadur made the momentous decision that has forever changed the level of moral commitment, dedication and sacrifice required by followers of God. The Guru made this critical decision to risk laying down his life if necessary to protect the right of the Hindus to follow their religion freely without interference or duress.

The Guru was put in chains and ordered to be tortured until he would accept Islam. When he could not be persuaded to abandon his faith to save himself from persecution, he was asked to perform some miracles to prove his divinity. On his refusal, Guru Tegh Bahadur was beheaded in public at Chandni Chowk on 11 November 1675. Guru Ji is also known as "Hind Di Chadar" ie to save Hinduism, Guru Ji gave his life