Guru Ram Das was the fourth Sikh Guru of the 10 Gurus of Sikhism. He is founder of Ramdaspur, later known as Amritsar, the centre of Sikhism and the site of the Sikhs’ principal place of worship—the Harimandir Sahib, or Golden Temple. Guru Ram Das composed 638 hymns or about 10 percent of hymns in the Guru Granth Sahib. While Guru Amar Das introduced the manji system of a religious organization, Ram Das extended it by adding the Masand institution.

The masand were Sikh community leaders who lived far from the Guru, but acted to lead the distant congregations, their mutual interactions, and collect revenue for Sikh activities and temple building.

Born as Bhai Jetha on 9 October 1534 — according to the Nanakshahi calendar — in Lahore, he lost his parents at the age of seven and was brought up by his grandmother, who later took him to Goindval in Punjab’s Tarn Taran district. It was here that he met Guru Amar Das and decided to become the latter’s disciple. He quickly rose in the ranks to emerge as his Guru’s favourite, and even married the latter’s younger daughter — Bibi Bhani — and eventually, was appointed Ram Das, the fourth Guru of the Sikhs. His bani, or set of songs, contained more than 600 hymns that held various teachings for followers of the faith. But his teachings went far beyond the books. When a group of Brahmins in Goindval raised objections to langar — that ostensibly ignored distinctions of the four castes — Amar Das dispatched his son-in-law to meet Emperor Akbar and address the grievances. Ram Das’s strikingly simple statement at the royal court, that all were equal in the eyes of god, led Akbar to dismiss all objections.

In the years to come, Ram Das also stepped up efforts to strengthen the practice of commensality and even proclaimed that “kings and emperors are all created by God; they come and bow in reverence to God’s humble servant”.

But he had to leave Goindval soon after his coronation in 1574 when he was faced with rivalry from Amar Das’ sons. As advised by his father-in-law, Ram Das and Bibi Bhani then moved to a new place.

An ‘autonomous’ Amritsar

It is this new place, the chief feature of which was its human-made sarovar (tank), that was to become Amritsar in the years to come. Guru Ram Das had laid the foundations of Ramdaspur, later renamed to Amritsar, when he inaugurated the pool’s excavation in 1577. The sarovar later became the nucleus of Amritsar when Ram Das’ youngest son and successor, Guru Arjan Dev, built a temple complex around it and placed a copy of the Adi Granth at Harmandir Sahib in 1604.

Ramdaspur or Amritsar was also perhaps one of those few towns that remained autonomous in the context of a larger Mughal rule. Arjan Dev’s proclamation that the town had no collector of taxes was a testimony to this fact. He had pointed toward a reality that the town was under the “authority of the Guru, not the Mughal state”.

Charting roadmap for a marriage law

Among Guru Ram Das’s most famous compositions, the most well-known is his wedding hymn that formed the basis of the Sikh wedding ceremony called Anand Karaj. This ceremony is centered on the laavaan — four stanzas that the fourth Guru had composed. The hymn also emerged to be the focal point on which the British-era Anand Marriage Act of 1909 was later formed. In the years after Independence, however, the Act garnered controversy when Sikh marriages were brought under the fold of the Hindu Marriage Act. After years of protests, in 2012, several states, including Delhi, decided to allow Sikhs to register their marriages under the Anand Marriage Act.

As Bhai Jetha grew up, he began to appreciate the simple things in life. He wanted to know more about God and the different religions of the world. He would often ask his parents all sorts of questions about things he could not understand such as the racist hindu caste system, the scriptures, the creation of the world and the like.

When his parents were unable to provide satisfactory answers, Bhai Jetha would turn to the learned men who could. The search for answers led Bhai Jetha to priests, to scholars, and other holy men who happened to pass Chuna Mandi. He began finding their discourses so intersting that he would spend more and more time with them.

At first his parents encourged him hoping that he would become a better person through his association with holy men. But as he grew up they began to get worried. They realised that Bhai Jetha was spending more time with these men than on his vocation. They feared that he would become an reclusive sadhu, if he continued mixing with the holy men. Thus, they asked him to take up some work so that he could earn a living, and get involved in household affairs.

Though Bhai Jetha was not interested in establishing a trade, he nevertheless obeyed his parents. He asked them what he was supposed to do. His mother thought hard. It so happened that their neighbour used to peddle roasted grams in the nearby market, and earn reasonably well from it. Daya Kaur decided that her son could do the same. When they told Bhai Jetha about it, he agreed dutifully.

Helping The Needy

On the very next day, Daya Kaur prepared a bagful of roasted grams and gave it to Bhai Jetha to sell. After leaving home, Bhai Jetha went on his errand with his food. But as he passed by the bank of the river Ravi he happened to see a group of holy men. Pleased to see them he decided to stop by, and pay his respects. During the course of their conversation he gathered that none of them had eaten anything since the morning, and had no hope of finding anything to eat for the rest of the day. Bhai Jetha was so pained after hearing this that he decided not to go to the market at all. Instead he offered the holy men his bag, of grams. As the hungry holy men began eating the grams they thanked young Bhai Jetha, and blessed him. It pleased Bhai Jetha to have fed the hungry holy men who otherwise would have gone to sleep on an empty stomach. But then he suddenly realised that his parents would be very upset when they would hear that instead of selling the grams, he had donated it to a group of holy men. He was still wondering what to do when he spotted a group of Sikhs passing. He learned that they were heading towards Goindwal to pay their respects to Guru Amar Das, who was the third Guru of the Sikhs.

When Bhai Jetha heard this he was so thrilled at the prospect of meeting the Guru that he immediately decided to join the group, instead of going back home. To him, nothing seemed more important than seeing the Guru in person, and seeking his blessings. He left Lahore without giving it a second thought, and eagerly looked forward to meeting the Guru in search of God.

Selfless Service

Bhai Jetha used to be either cleaning the utensils in the kitchen or sweeping the house or something else. He was always around to help other people. He was loved by one and all, including the Guru and his family. Soon, Guru Amar Das became so fond of him that he began guiding him spiritually. When he realised that the young boy was truly a slave of God, he began to dote on him. Bhai Jetha, on the other hand, took it upon himself to serve Guru Amar Das in every way, and he began looking after the Guru’s personal comforts by himself. He would clean the dharamsala, serve the food, press the Guru’s feet, massage his body, and sometimes even wash his clothes with great pleasure. All this endeared him greatly to Guru Amar Das, and he grew really fond of Bhai Jetha. The boy too felt very happy and content when he was with Guru Amar Das, in his service.

When the whole party returned to Lahore, Bhai Jetha stayed back in Goindwal to serve the Guru. He knew his parents would initially be upset at his decision, but he also knew that with time they would accept his decision, and even appreciate it. They were as religious minded as he was, and lived by the teachings of the Gurus. He decided that one day he would go himself and explain his decision to them, but for now he had to stay by his Guru’s side.

He continued to perform all sorts of tasks without any consideration for himself. He was always doing something either for Guru Amar Das or for the other people, and also the dharamsala. It was not long before he actually became part of their family.

The Necklace

One day, a very rich banker arrived in Goindwal to visit Guru Amar Das. As a mark of respect he presented a very expensive pearl necklace containing precious stones to the Guru. The man wanted to put the necklace on Guru Amar Das, but the Guru said he was too old for such ornaments. Instead, he asked the man to put it the necklace on one who was the Guru’s image, that resembled him the most. The puzzled devotee did know what to do so he handed the necklace to Guru Amar Das asking him to give it to the one he thought was his mirror image. The gathered Sangat started speculating whether it would be one of the Guru’s two sons, Mohri and Mohan, others again thought of other faithful and obedient Sikhs.

Guru Amar Das surprised them all when he asked Bhai Jetha to approach him. Then, placing the necklace, with all its beauty and splendour on him, he declared that no one resembled him more in looks and nature than Bhai Jetha. This was an open indication to the people that Bhai Jetha would succeed Guru Amar Das.

The Faqir’s Slander

On an occasional afternoon Guru Amar Das used to go with his retinue to the bank of the river Beas. On the way a filthy naked muhammadan faqir, who was almost always under the influence of intoxicants, took up his position. The faqir wanted to maliciously slander the Guru.

As Guru Amar Das passed, he said, in a voice loud enough for the Guru to hear, “He consumes the wealth of the whole world. The older he grows the more miserly he becomes. He only makes gifts to those from whom he desires something in return. He takes no notice of faqirs, and has never remembered me who am a beggar like others. I take opium and bhang, and he never offeres me any, though he ought sometimes to think of the poor. I care for no one, be he king or emperor; I speak the truth to his face. When a man gives me anything I pray for his welfare.”

The faqir often used such offensive language in reference to the Guru. The Guru, who was patience incarnate, used to remain silent and pass on. One day Bhai Jetha accompanied the Guru, and on hearing the graceless faqir spluttering and discharging, as it were, the sediment of his bhang, said to the faqir, “Why participate in sin by slandering the true Guru?”

The Faqir’s Gratitude

The faqir replied, “Why should I not? He has never given me alms. Give me the necklace you wear.” On this Bhai Jetha took off his precious necklace, and put it on the faqir. Upon this the faqir began to sing aloud the Guru’s praises, “You are more generous than Raja Harishchandra, than Raja Karan, and than Raja Vikramadit (these Rajas were renowned for their generosity).”

As the party returned from the river in the evening, and while the Guru was still distant, the faqir began to shower further praises and blessings on him. “You save the world; may your sons and grandsons prosper and flourish!” The Guru on hearing this remarked that somebody must have been generous to the faqir, otherwise he could have altered his tone and language so quickly. After making enquiries, Guru Amar Das learned what had occurred. Bhai Jetha confessed, “Guru Sahib, I gave the faqir my necklace. You have given me God’s name as a necklace; I keep it by me. This perishable necklace, I offered in your name.” On hearing this the Guru Amar Das was very pleased and blessed Bhai Jetha.

Ramdaspur

The City of Amritsar (literally “pool of nectar”) was originally called Ramdaspur (Guru Ram Das’s city) and Chakk Ramdas, or Chakk Guru, or simply Guru Ka Chakk. The habitation was started by Bhai Jetha (the future Guru Ram Das) when Guru Amar Das asked him to establish a new colony of Sikhs.

Guru Nanak’s Visit

At that time there was no habitation nearby Ramdaspur. A few kilometers away were the villages of Sultanwind, Tung, Chattiwind and Khaparkheri. Guru Amar Das knew that Guru Nanak stayed at the bank of the small natural lake and the berry trees. Guru Nanak rested at night and in the early morning throughout the day, sang Gurbani (kirtan). Guru Nanak sang of his thirst only for the nectar of the God’s Name, to be engrossed in devotion to Waheguru. After staying near the pond for sometime, Guru Nanak then travelled towards the west. Bhai Jetha was tasked with finding the location that Guru Nanak had visited. Bhai Jetha searched, and found an open uninhabited tract of country some twenty-five miles from Goindwal, and there he established himself.

Santokhsar Sarovar

Bhai Jetha, with the help of Sikhs and labourers began to excavate the earth for the construction of a sarovar (tank or pool of water). This first sarovar was not Amritsar, it was Santokhsar. When Bhai Jetha began the work on digging Santokhsar sarovar, he found a yogi, meditating nearby. After sometime the yogi opened his eyes and told Bhai Jetha that he had been meditating here for a long time, waiting for a Guru to give him salvation. He disclosed his name as Santakha and then breathed his last. The sarovar was then named as Santokhsar however Bhai Jetha was not sure the location of Santokhsar was the correct site that Guru Nanak had visited.

Return To Goindwal

After some time, when a portion of the work was accomplished and several people had built huts for themselves on the new site, Bhai Jetha, suffering from the pain of separation from the Guru, returned to Goindwal to report the extent of the work he had performed.