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Guru Tegh Bahadur
गुरु तेग बहादुर
The ninth Guru — who gave his head for the freedom of faith
Years
1621 – 1675
Known as
The ninth Sikh Guru; martyr for religious freedom
Birthplace
Amritsar, Punjab
Field
Saints & Sages
“Dheera hohi na teero — the brave man fears nothing, least of all death for dharma.”
— Guru Tegh Bahadur
The Story
The son of Guru Hargobind, Tegh Bahadur spent years in meditation before being called to lead the Sikhs as the ninth Guru. He travelled widely, preaching a message of inner peace, and his hymns of courage and trust in God were later included in the Guru Granth Sahib.
When the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb began a campaign of forced conversion, Kashmiri Pandits came to the Guru for protection. Tegh Bahadur told them to tell the emperor that if he could convert the Guru himself, the Pandits would follow — and he went to Delhi to face the emperor's court.
He was tortured and asked to embrace Islam or perform a miracle. He refused both. On 11 November 1675, he was beheaded in Chandni Chowk, Delhi. His disciples carried his body away in secret, and his martyrdom — for another community's freedom to worship — made him the very symbol of religious liberty.
Core Ideas
The Martyr of Faith
He died defending others' freedom to worship.
The Ninth Guru
His hymns enrich the Guru Granth Sahib.
The Delhi Test
He went to the emperor's capital and refused.
The Beheading
Executed in Chandni Chowk, 1675.
Father of the Tenth
His son Gobind Singh created the Khalsa.
Why it matters today
Guru Tegh Bahadur is honoured at the Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib in Delhi, on the site of his martyrdom, and in Sikh history as the defender of dharma. His life answers, with blood, the question of how far one should go for another's freedom of conscience.