o Guru Har Krishan ji
G
Guru Har Krishan born in Kirat Pur, Ropar (Punjabi: ਗੁਰੂ ਹਰਿ ਕ੍ਰਿਸ਼ਨ) (7 July
1656 - 30 March 1664) was the
eighth of the Ten Gurus of Sikhism,
becoming the Guru on 7 October
1661, following in the footsteps of his father, Guru Har Rai. Before Har
Krishan died of complications of Smallpox, he nominated his granduncle, Guru Teg Bahadur, as the
next Guru of the Sikhs. The following
is a summary of the main highlights of
his short life: “ Sri Guru Harkrishan
Ji was the epitome of
sensibility,
generosity and
courage. There is a
famous incident from his early age.
Once on the way to
Delhi from Punjab he
met an arrogant Brahmin Pundit called Lal Chand in
Panjokhara town.
The Pundit asked
him to recite Salokas
from the Geeta since
his name was similar to that of Lord
Krishna. Guru Ji
invited a mute
person called
Chhajju Mehra and
placed his stick on his head. He
immediately started
interpreting salokas
from the Geeta.
Everybody around
was dumbstruck. Lal Chand's arrogance
too was shattered
and he asked for
Guru Ji's forgiveness. ” When Har Krishan stayed in Delhi
there was a smallpox epidemic and
many people were dying. According
to Sikh history at Har Krishan's
blessing, the lake at Bangla Sahib
provided cure for thousands. Gurdwara Bangla Sahib was
constructed in the Guru's memory.
This is where he stayed during his
visit to Delhi. Gurdwara Bala Sahib
was built in south Delhi besides the
bank of the river Yamuna, where Har Krishan was cremated at the age of
about 7 years and 8 months. Guru Har
Krishan was the youngest Guru at
only 7 years of age. He did not make
any contributions to Gurbani.
