The Ten Gurus
Ten lives in succession, 1469–1708 · 10 stops
The line of human Gurus, from Guru Nanak's founding vision to Guru Gobind Singh's decision to end the line and vest Guruship in scripture forever. Read in order — each life hands the story to the next.
Guru Nanak Dev Ji
1469–1539The founder. One God, equality, honest work, and the first community at Kartarpur.
The founder of Sikhi, whose teachings on the oneness of God, equality, honest living and service form the foundation of the faith. He travelled widely across Asia before settling at Kartarpur.
Guru Angad Dev Ji
1504–1552Standardised the Gurmukhi script the scripture would be written in.
Successor to Guru Nanak, who standardised and popularised the Gurmukhi script in which Sikh scripture is written, and organised the early community and its langar.
Guru Amar Das Ji
1479–1574Strengthened the langar and challenged the social inequities of his day.
Who strengthened the institution of langar, opposed practices such as sati and purdah, and established a network of preaching districts (manjis) to spread the teachings.
Guru Ram Das Ji
1534–1581Founded Amritsar around its sacred pool.
Who founded the city of Ramdaspur — later Amritsar — around the sacred pool that would become the site of the Harmandir Sahib, and composed the hymns sung at Sikh weddings.
Guru Arjan Dev Ji
1563–1606Compiled the Adi Granth, built the Harmandir Sahib — and became the first martyr.
Who compiled the Adi Granth and installed it in the Harmandir Sahib in 1604, completed the Golden Temple, and became the first Sikh martyr when he was executed under the Mughal emperor Jahangir in 1606.
Guru Hargobind Ji
1595–1644Answered martyrdom with miri-piri: spiritual and temporal authority together.
Who introduced the doctrine of miri-piri — temporal and spiritual authority — built the Akal Takht opposite the Harmandir Sahib, and first took up arms in defence of the community.
Guru Har Rai Ji
1630–1661Kept the community steady through imperial suspicion.
Who maintained the community and its armed retainers during a period of Mughal tension while becoming known for his work in healing and herbal medicine.
Guru Har Krishan Ji
1656–1664The child Guru, remembered for service during a smallpox epidemic.
Who became Guru as a child and, remembered for his service to the sick during a Delhi epidemic, died of smallpox at the age of seven or eight.
Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji
1621–1675Executed in Delhi for defending another community's freedom of faith.
Who founded the town of Anandpur and was executed in Delhi in 1675 for defending the right of Kashmiri Hindus to practise their religion — a martyrdom for freedom of conscience.
Guru Gobind Singh Ji
1666–1708Created the Khalsa, and ended the human line by vesting Guruship in the Guru Granth Sahib.
The tenth and last human Guru, who created the Khalsa in 1699, gave the Sikhs their distinctive form and code, and before his death in 1708 vested eternal Guruship in the Guru Granth Sahib.