In The Prophet-Martyr (Speaking Tiger) authored by Harbans Singh offers a contemplative and poetic exploration of Guru Tegh Bahadur's spiritual teachings through his bani-the 59 sabdas and 57 slokas that are included in the Guru Granth Sahib.

Being the last of the Sikh Gurus whose compositions were canonized in the scripture, Guru Tegh Bahadur's voice comes through as a sustained meditation on the human condition, the nature of reality, and the path to liberation.
His bani may be small in bulk, but it carries a weight of philosophy and poetics. Spread over fifteen ragas, these sabdas and slokas constitute the last part of the Guru Granth and are read ceremoniously at the end of congregational readings. Yet, ritual familiarity does not stale their freshness or urgency as they speak straight to the seeker's soul.
At the core of the teachings of Guru Tegh Bahadur is the affirmation of Reality-the ultimate ground of all existence-and the seeking after mukti, or liberation from the cycle of birth and death.
The path to such emancipation does not rely on renunciation or ritualistic austerity; rather, it comes with nam-simran, or the continuous and loving remembrance of the Divine Name. It is an approach of devotion, not dogma, through which transcendence is achieved. The bani insists that spiritual perfection is attainable in this life, and that human existence, though transient, is a priceless opportunity for self-realisation.
The unity of mood and motif is the hallmark of Guru Tegh Bahadur's bani. It does not represent mere fragments of loose thinking but a well-integrated philosophy expressed in a uniform spiritual key.
None of his verses bears the stamp of being didactic or mystic in the abstract-the outcome of direct experience, disciplined introspection, and deep compassion for man's moral and spiritual bondage, the poetry is at once simple yet profound, austere yet melodious, always formed in the rhythm of lived truth.
One of the recurring themes is the transitoriness of life. Guru Tegh Bahadur uses vivid imagery to underscore the fleeting nature of worldly existence: life is like a cracked vessel leaking water, a bubble on water, a wall of sand, a night s dream. Human relationships wife, son, friend are temporary. This is not a lament. The Guru does not advocate withdrawal or asceticism. On the contrary, he affirms life as a divine gift, urging man to awaken to its purpose and use it to cultivate virtue and attain liberation.
The bani is essentially concerned with the causes of bondage. The foremost amongst them is haumai the ego which separates man from Reality and clouds the divine spark within. This haumai results in spiritual blindness and bondage to the five noxious passions: kama (lust), krodha (anger), lobha (greed), moha (attachment), and ahankara (pride).
Ego-intoxicated and self-centred, the manmukh runs after phantoms and worldly pleasures, heedless of the truth. Such a mind is compared by the verses to the dog's tail-incorrigible and unstraightenable.
Yet, the Guru offers hope. Liberation is not reserved for ascetics or yogis. It is not found in rituals, fasts, or pilgrimages. True enlightenment begins with the realisation that the transcendent is the only ultimate truth. This awakening must be accompanied by intense love of God, utter surrender to His will (hukm), and absorption in nam. Through devotion, the mind is stilled, ego is dissolved, and true knowledge dawns.
The concept of God according to Guru Tegh Bahadur is vast and non-anthropomorphic. He invokes the Divine by many names Ram, Hari, Gobind, Gosain, Prabha, Murari, Brahma each name subtly evoking different aspects of grace, compassion, and transcendence.
God resides not in distant realms but within the seeker, as fragrance in the flower or reflection in the mirror. The bani repeatedly exhorts the reader to remember God, to sing His praises, and to cherish Him as the fish cherishes water.
Nam is unmistakably the utmost spiritual priority of the Guru; it is the full formula for liberation. Through nam, one abandons all bodily and mental impurities, crosses the worldly ocean, and achieves jivanmukti-release while yet alive.
And the following stanzas articulate: "Mother mine, I have attained the wealth of nam Chaste discernment hath dawned In its native joy it now abideth." Nam leads to nirban pada-liberation-and nirbhai pada-fearlessness. The one who embodies nam becomes undistinguishable from God.
Three factors, according to the Guru, aid the seeker s journey: sangat (holy fellowship), the Guru s guidance, and Divine grace. The gurmukh one who is committed to the Divine and the giani one who has attained true knowledge are the exemplars of this path. For them, pleasure and pain, praise and blame, gold and dust are alike. They live in fearless equanimity.
Fearlessness is an important ideal in the bani of Guru Tegh Bahadur, not only in the spiritual sense but more so in the existential realm.
In one of his slokas, he writes: "He who holds none in fear, nor is afraid of anyone. acknowledge him alone as a man of true wisdom." This was a vision not merely poetic but lived in the life and martyrdom of the Guru himself. His words were not abstract ideals but lived truths, confirmed in history.
In a hymn in raga Sorath, the Guru describes the qualities of the liberated soul: one who is unmoved by suffering or pleasure, free from fear, detached from praise and blame, and untouched by passion and anger. Such a person merges into the Divine like water into water. This sublime vision is not a distant goal it is a call to action, a challenge to awaken, and a promise of grace.
The Prophet-Martyr is something more than a book: a spiritual compan ion, a philosophical guide, and a poetic testimony to the relevance of Guru Tegh Bahadur's teachings even today.
It affirms that liberation is possible, life is meaningful, and the path to truth lies within. For readers seeking depth, clarity, and inspiration, this volume offers all three in abundance.

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