Guru

Nanak Biography
Guru Nanak was a great Indian saint who founded Sikhism. This biography of Guru
Nanak provides detailed information about his childhood, life, achievements, works &
timeline
Quick Facts
Also Known As

Na n ak Guru, Guru Nanak Dev

Famous as

Sikh Guru

Nationality

Indian

Born on

15 April 1469 AD

Zodiac Sign

Aries

Born in

Nankana Sahib

Died on

22 September 1539 AD

Place of death

Kartarpur, India

Father

Mehta Kalu

Siblings

Bebe Nanaki

Spouse:

Mata Sulakhni

Children

Sri Chand, Lakhmi Das

Im age Source :
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00routesdata/1500_1599/sikhism/gurus/gurus.html
Guru Nanak was an Indian saint who founded Sikhism and became the first of the Sikh
Gurus. A visionary and a great soul, he was an original spiritual thinker. His religious
ideas draw on both Hindu and Islamic thoughts, but are also unique in their own right.
Born into a Hindu family in 15th century India, he started displaying signs of his
greatness early on in childhood. Even as a boy he used to spend long hours in
meditation and was deeply spiritual. He questioned the meaningless rituals his family

performed in the name of religion and refused to participate in them. His radical
spirituality shocked his parents and they tried to involve him in worldly matters. The
kind-hearted young boy distributed his fathers money to the poor and needy thus
greatly angering his pragmatic father who hoped that his son would one day become a
businessman. Even an arranged marriage at an early age did not prevent Nanak from
venturing further on the spiritual path. Eventually he went on to found Sikhism, a
monotheistic religion that advocates the concept of the oneness of God. He traveled far
and wide, mostly on foot, spreading the message of oneness of God who dwells in all
living beings.
Childhood & Early Life
Guru Nanak was born on 15 April 1469, in Ri Bhoi K Talva (present day
Nankana Sahib, Punjab, Pakistan) near Lahore, into a Hindu family. His father
Mehta Kalu and mother Mata Tripta belonged to the merchant caste. His father
was the local patwari (accountant) in the village of Talwandi. He had one elder
sister, Bebe Nanaki, to whom he was very close.
From a young age he started displaying his brilliance. He became interested in
spirituality and divine subjects when he was just five.
He started attending school when he was seven years old. Legend has it that he
described the symbolism of the first letter of the alphabet in Persian, which
resembles the mathematical version of one, to represent the unity or oneness of
God.
When he attained the age of 11, his father arranged for him to participate in the
sacred thread ceremony, a Hindu ritual symbolizing mans connection with God.
But the boy rebelled and refused to participate in this ritual as he felt that it was a
meaningless one.
When he was old enough, his father told him to graze cattle. But instead of
watching the cattle he would slip into meditative trances and get into trouble
because of his carelessness. T his made his father angry with him.
He was very spiritual and philosophical even as a young boy and denounced idol
worship. He also did not believe in the Hindu caste system. In spite of being born
in a Hindu family, he interacted with Muslims and was interested in reading the
religious texts of both the faiths.
His father tried to get Nanak engaged in business and gave him money for making
purchases. Instead of buying the materials required for the business, Nanak spent
the entire money in feeding homeless and hungry people.
Late r Ye ars
When Guru Nanak was around 16, he started working under Daulat Khan Lodi,
under whom his brother-in-law also worked. T his marked an important period in
his life as he would make numerous allusions to the governmental structure in his
future hymns.
He performed well in his job as he was a very hardworking and sincere employee.
He also proved to be a very kind and generous person. In spite of being a married
man and father now, he was not distracted from his quest for spiritual knowledge.
He became friends with a Muslim minstrel named Mardana with whom he used to
pray and meditate. One morning he went to bathe in the Kali Bein or Black River

with Mardana. He walked into the river and disappeared beneath the water. T here
was no sign of him and everyone believed that he had drowned in the river.
T hree days later he miraculously appeared out of the river and told everyone that
he had been taken to Gods court. He was spiritually reawakened by this incident
and was completely enlightened. From this point onwards, people stared calling
him Guru Nanak .
He lost all interest in worldly affairs like family and work and soon quit his job. He
left his wife and children in the care of his parents and told his family that God
had called him to spread His divine message and he had to abide with the
Almightys wish.
T hus he founded the religion of Sikhism which emphasizes the principle of
equality of all humans and rejects discrimination on the basis of caste, creed, and
gender. T he central teaching in Sikhism is the belief in the concept of the
oneness of God
Along with Mardana, he traveled far and wide spreading the holy message of
peace and compassion to all of mankind. Even though there are no exact
accounts of his travels, he is believed to have made at least four major journeys,
spanning more than 28,000 kilometers during the period from 1500 to 1524.
He returned home after his long travels and settled in Kartarpur where he
continued his ministry till the very end. Towards the end of his life he appointed
his disciple Bhai Lehna as his successor. Lehna was then renamed Angad and
designated as Guru Angad, the second Sikh Guru, after Guru Nanaks death.
Major Works
Guru Nanak founded Sikhism which is now the fifth-largest organized religion in
the world, with approximately 30 million adherents. He also established the
system of the Langar, or communal kitchen, in order to demonstrate the need to
share and have equality among all people.
Pe rsonal Life & Le gacy
Guru Nanak married Sulakkhani, daughter of Ml Chand and Chando R , on 24
September 1487. T he couple had two sons, Sri Chand and Lakhmi Chand.
He died on 22 September 1539 in Kartarpur, at the age of 70.