The Four Great Journeys

Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, was born in a small town near Lahore in the year 1469; this town is now called Nankana Sahib in present-day Pakistan. The Guru’s place of birth is marked by a beautiful monument called Gurdwara Janamsthan. Nanak demonstrated a spiritual bent of mind from an early age. As a child, he would gather other kids of his village and get them to meditate on God’s name. At the age of six, in the village school, his teacher was astonished by his knowledge of the Divine. Rai Bular, the local landlord, and Nanak’s sister, Bibi Nanaki were the first people to get convinced about his Divine Powers.

Guru Nanak attained enlightenment when he was around 30 years of age. One day, while bathing in the river Kali Bein, he disappeared and was presumed to have drowned and died. However, he reappeared after three days and announced, “I am neither Hindu nor Mussalman, I walk the path of truth which is God’s path.” Guru Nanak said that he had been summoned to God’s court and had been instructed to wean people away from the path of ignorance and superstitions and connect them to the sublime name of  God. A gurdwara called Ber Sahib stands at this spot; it also has a ber tree that was planted by the Guru himself.

During the 16th century CE, the Indic region faced repeated incursions of foreign invaders. As a consequence, the polity was demoralised, confused and frustrated; ignorance and superstition pervaded everywhere. Guru Nanak was moved by the plight of the people and he embarked on a mission to spread the true word of God to all.

Guru Nanak undertook four major journeys during his life time, covering thousands of miles along with his companion, Bhai Mardana, a Muslim minstrel. The first of these journeys was to the east towards Bengal and Assam; the second was towards south as far as Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka; the third, north towards Kashmir, Ladakh, and Tibet, and the final tour west towards Baghdad, Mecca and Medina on the Arabian Peninsula. The Guru touched millions of lives in the course of his travels, imparting the message of love, compassion, forgiveness and tolerance.

After completing his travels, Guru Nanak returned home to Punjab. He settled down at Kartarpur in Gurdaspur district on the banks of river Ravi with his family and took up farming, Gurdwara Dera Baba Nanak marks this spot. Pilgrims came from far and near to seek the Guru’s blessings.The Guru set up langar (free kitchen) for the pilgrims.

The Guru was revered by both Hindus and Muslims in equal measure. Upon his passing away, Hindus wanted to cremate him and Muslims wished to bury him. There was an argument between the two factions as to how to conduct the last rites. When the sheet covering the body of Guru Nanak was lifted, it was found that his mortal body had disappeared and only a heap of flowers were there. Hindus and Muslims built two separate memorials to the Guru which still stand in the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur; this Gurdwara is two kilometres inside the Pakistan border.

By: Arvinder Singh Chopra