Guru Nanak BiographyGuru Nanak Dev was the founder of Sikhism is considered to be the first Sikh guru. Guru Nanak Dev was born on 20th October, 1469 in a place called Nankana located in the present day Pakistan. Guru Nanak is revered by both Hindus and Muslims alike and his teachings are practical and emphasize on peaceful co-existence rather than conducting rituals and performing religious rites. The life history of Guru Nanak Dev Ji is very inspiring and interesting. Read this biography of Sri Guru Nanak Dev to know more.
Guru Nanak showed extra ordinary talent since a very young age. When he was born, an astrologer prophesized that he would achieve fame as a great man and spiritual leader. When Guru Nanak Dev was just 5 years old, he surprised everyone by talking about God and high level spiritual knowledge. He was a brilliant student and was well versed in languages like Hindi, Persian, Punjabi and Sanskrit. Even though he was brilliant in studies, he preferred to seek spiritual knowledge and meditate.
Guru Nanak He had no interest in business or working to earn a living and collect money. Once his father gave him some amount to start a business of his own, but he spent the money on some hungry ascetics whom he met on the way. He married at the age of 16 and had a happy married life. Despite having a domestic life, he never left meditating and pursuing higher knowledge and level of realization. But very soon, he left home to seek out the higher truth.
Guru Nanak never differentiated between men and ate with the poor with as much pleasure as he ate with the rich. He believed that the poor man's bread was much more rich and pure than the rich man's bread. He once squeezed the bread of a poor man and a rich man. The poor man's bread oozed milk and the rich man's bread oozed blood. This way he taught that people should make a living honestly and not through unfair means.
Guru Nanak never differentiated between different religions and considered all Gods to be the same. He condemned the elaborate rituals that were performed in the name of religion. Once, Guru Nanak visited Haridwar where he saw that people were offering water to the Sun in the belief that the water would reach his forefathers. Guru Nanak started to throw water in the opposite directing saying that if water could reach dead people in heaven, the water that he offers can certainly reach crops in his field. This way he proved the ineffectiveness of these meaningless rituals.
Guru Nanak did not believe in these mindless superstitions and rituals. He always believed and taught that there was only one God who was omnipresent. He taught that chanting God's name and living life purely would free a person from the cycle of birth and death. To make it easier for people to take God's name, he prepared the Japji, which was essentially a morning prayer. He also composed a set of poems that constitute the first chapter of Guru Granth Sahib which is the holy book of the Sikhs. His teachings and philosophies continue to inspire many around the world. Guru Nanak breathed his last in 1538 when he was 70 years old. He appointed one of his disciples as the second Guru and named him Angad.
