Introductory - Global Sikh Studies

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armed revolt against the Mughals and fought six battles against them,
built, on his own, a mosque when he founded the new township of
Hargobindpur. 46 It was Guru Gobind Singh who created the Khalsa to
wage a relentless struggle aganst the religious and political tyranny of
the Mughal empire, but his hymns leave no doubt about his
cosmopolitan approach: “What is a Hindu or Muslim to him, from
whose heart doubt departeth.” 46a At a period when Muslim sentiment
against the Sikhs had crystallised, many a noble spirit among the
Muslims recognized the non-sectarian character of the Guru’s mission.
Buddan Shah was a known Muslim divine. He himself, his brother,
his four sons and seven hundred disciples fought for the Guru. During
the struggle, two of his sons died fighting, 47 and he himself was tortured
to death by Osman Khan for having sided with Guru. 47a Saiyed Beg,
one of Aurangzeb’s generals, who was in command of five thousand
men, changed his mind at a critical moment in the course of the battle
and ‘threw in his lot with the Sikhs, and contributed all his wealth
towards their struggle against the Muhammadans… 48 Later, Saiyed
Beg died fighting for the Guru in another action. 49 Another general,
Saiyed Khan, sent imperial forces and voluntarily submitted himself
to the Guru. 50 By far the best instance of the cosmopolitan spirit
of the movement in the story of Kanahiya who, during the critical
battle at Anandpur, used to offer water and assistance with absolute
impartialityto the wounded both among the Sikhs and the enemy
forces. When questioned, Kanahiya, quoted the Guru’s own
instructions that one should look on all men with an equal eye.
The Guru complimented him for displaying the true spirit of a
Sikh. 51 The author of Hakikat attested to it in 1783 (i.e. after the
Sikhs had passed through the severest persecution at the hands of
the Muslim rulers) that, ‘In his (Nanak’s) religion there is very little
prejudice against any nation.’ 51a
It is important to understand that this cosmopolitan Sikh
tradition could not be born either out of Muslim exclusveness, or
the caste ideology. Only the Radical Bhaktas shared this outlook,
but they never ventured in the social or organizational field. The
Bhaktamala, the only earlier record of their lives, does not mention