A Muslims Account (1718) On Guru Nanak In Abstract

[DalbirSingh]

Guru Nanak, Guru Gobind Singh and the Revolt under Banda Bahadur 1709-1710 & 1713-16

From Muhammad Qasim ' Ibrat', Ibratnama

Translated by Irfan Habib

Sikh History from Persian Sources Page 110-130

[He refers to Banda Singh and his heritage as the evil guru and starts with the background of the Sikhs]

To give the main particulars: In old times in a particular year, there was a dervish by the name of Nanak, clothed in Reality, rooted in Knowledge, endowed with spiritual perfections, rising above physical repute and name. He regarded following the constraints of the threads of Infidelity as absolute Infidelity, and held [full] obedience to the faith of Islam as Islam.

On the one hand, he conversed on the secret [virtues] of fast and prayer with [Muslim] mystics, scholars and learned men, and, on the other, went in step with Veda-reading, Reality-comprehending Brahmans. In the midst of [the prevailing] Duality he maintained uniformity in his relations with all people; and amidst the mass of contradictory elements, he was in every way free from [matters of] peace-and-strife. Sometime he would engage in building an idol temple (deora) of the Hindus and [at other times devote] himself to laying the foundations of a mosque, in accordance with the law of Islam. Some time he would circumambulate the House of God [Kabba] in accordance with the customs of the mystical and spiritual people; and some times, he would go to visit the tower of Jagannath and Kashi. He had travelled to all the four quarters of the world, and owing to his travels and journeys, his entire legs up to the knees were worn down.

In every land there was an uproar over his words, and in every country there was tumult from his Reality-surveying compositions. He had been in the company of God-Knowing saints and obtained favours from the assemblies of masters of spiritual truths. For a while he conversed His Holiness Shaikh Farid Shakar-ganj, obtaining thereby a treasure of sweetness, and from attending for a time on His Holiness Shah Abdur Rahman Bakhtyar he drew vernal favours. He put his body under severe austerities. This great man of the visible world and beautiful one of the spiritual, following the custom of the people, left behind his natural offspring in this temporal world.

But his own eye favoured more the group of seekers and disciples, one of whom was Angat [Angad] Khatri. As he was favoured by his [Nanak’s] knowledge-laden eyes, he became cognizant of spiritual truths and the foundations of the commonwealth of faith. Some generations after him, Har Rai came into the world [and became his successor]. Group upon group of people bent their necks to follow and obey him, and glorified him through a thousand ways of giving him respect and honour.

After him Guru Tegh Bahadur, his son (!), rose further in status in comparison with his father. He spent much time in sport and game, but because of the effect of the attention and pleasing ways of acceptance of that accepted one, the inclinations of the people and the flow of worldly things [towards him], such as petty items and valuables, money and goods, elephants and horses, did not decrease, so that instead of himself [doing so], his followers from time to time claimed sovereignty from him. A long he spent in this way in the mountainous country in the proximity of Sahrind [sirhind] and Bajwarea. At last, the seat of sovereignty received lustre by being occupied by his majesty Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir, who, owing to his passionate nature and regard for royal power, did not like such meaningless tumult.

….