Guru Arjan, the fifth Guru of the Sikh Religion, was the embodiment of godly devotion, Selfless Service and Universal Love. He was the treasure of celestial knowledge and spiritual excellence. He substantially contributed towards the welfare of the society. He stood steadfastly for the principles he believed in, sacrificed his own life, and attained a unique and unparalleled martyrdom in the history of mankind.

Guru Arjan was born on April 15, 1563, in the house of Guru Ram Das, the fourth Guru. He was the youngest of the three sons of the Guru Ram Das.

The eldest son, Prithi Chand was very astute in social and worldly affairs. He managed all the affairs of the Guru's household. He administered the running of the Langar, common kitchen, most diligently. He had realised that it was the service, not lineage, which had bestowed Guruship on the previous preceptors, Guru Angad and Guru Amar Das. This in view he indulged in the service most ardently. But his emotive intentions were quite perceptible to the father, Guru Ram Das.

The second son, Mahadev was captivated with reclusive tendencies. He wanted to lead the life of an ascetic. His attitude, full of fierce towards the congregants, was contrary to the modesty of the Guru's teachings. Moreover he himself displayed no inclination for the acceptance of the Guruship.

Guru Ram Das envisioned heavenly qualities in his youngest son Arjan. From the very childhood he found him imbued with the Name, and immersed in tranquillity. The Guruship was destined to be bestowed upon Guru Arjan; baby Arjan one day crawled up on the Divine Throne of his maternal grandfather, Guru Amar Das the third Guru, and sat there comfortably. The Guru smiled and prophesied," Maternal Grandson will ship the Name across."

The elder brother, Prithi Chand suspecting the consequence of the above prophecy, indulged in numerous means to disrupt the life of Guru Arjan but failed. Even though Guru Arjan was consecrated as the fifth Guru by his father himself, before he left for his heavenly abode, he showed no remorse to his elder brother and inundated him with reverence and honour; Guru Arjan was a born apostle of peace.

Although he ascended the throne of Guru Nanak at a young age of 18, he was far more advance in wisdom and angelic quality. The letters he wrote to his father from Lahore, not then even a teen-aged boy, stand testimony to the fact (Majh M.5 G.G.S. Page 96). (He was sent there to attend a wedding. Due to the cunning manipulations of his elder brother, Prithi Chand, he was detained there unjustifiably for a long time).

The Basics of the new religion had been defined by Baba Nanak, and the groundwork was carried out by three of his successors. Guru Arjan set upon a mission of putting it on a solid footing. As ordained by his predecessors, Guru Nanak through Guru Ram Das, he took the task of the completion of the place for Panthic Articulation (Mehma Parkash). Soon after the demise of fourth Guru he moved to the place where his father had constructed a clay tank of Nectar. In the true spirit of "I am neither Hindu, nor Muslim..." Guru Arjan invited Mian Mir, a Muslim Saint from Lahore and through him laid the foundation of Hari Mandir, the present Golden Temple. The doors on all four sides of the building signified its acceptance of all the four castes. Contrary to the requests of the congregation, the seat of the edifice was kept much below the surrounding area; as the water flows downward so would the seekers of the God's blessings. Along with the God's House came the existence of the City of Amritsar with all its reverence, amenities, and gaiety.

The preparation of the Holy Book has been the most valuable achievement of Guru Arjan Dev. With three things in his mind he initiated the compilation of the Holy Book, the present Guru Granth Sahib.

The Hymns revealed through the first four Gurus were getting amalgamated and distorted by a few importers. He wanted to preserve the original treasure.

In the second place he wanted to bestow the Panth with an ever-lasting guiding light, a physical and spiritual phenomenon.

And most of all he wanted to establish the credibility of the Sikh Religion as a casteless and secular society. Side by side the Hymns of Sikh Gurus, he blended the Holy Book with the celestial utterances of Sheikh Farid and Bhagat Kabir, Bhagat Ravi Das, Dhanna Namdev, Ramannand, Jai Dev, Trilochan, Beni, Pipa, Surdas, etc. all belonging to different Beliefs, Sects, and Castes, both high and low.

The poetic revelations to Guru Arjan himself are of greatest aesthetic calibre. More than half of the Guru Granth Sahib is constituted of his own holy renderings. The Granth Sahib is not only a collection of the revelations but also it throws considerable light on the contemporary political and social life; the physical being and spiritual awareness are fused into one.

Among his other equally important accomplishment we can add the creation of new cities at Kartarpur, Tarn Taran with its magnanimous Tank of Salvation, and the construction of Baoli at Lahore.

Guru Ram Das introduced the institution of Masands (representative of the Gurus at various places). Guru Arjan added to it the principle of Tenth of individual income payable for the Guru's Langar (Common Kitchen) and for other acts of benevolence of the poor.

Professional bards, who sang the hymns at the Guru's Darbar, became the victim of their ego. With his love for music and expertise in the Ragas Guru Arjan introduced the tradition of singing by the congregants themselves.

During his incumbency Punjab was very badly effected with a famine. By dint of his influence he gained Mughal Emperor Akbars's consent to eliminate land revenue, to some extent, for that year.

But Jeth Sudhi 4 Smt. 1663 corresponding to May 30, 1606AD, is the most momentous date in the Sikh chronology.

Mughal Emperor Akbar had already been convinced of the piety of the Sikh Gurus. During one of his campaigns he had come to Goindwal. He partook of the Langar; sitting on the floor he ate course meal, and paid his obeisance to Guru Amar Das. A Muslim Pir, the Saint, Mian Mir of Lahore had great affinity with the Guru's domain. The Pir was immensely revered by Akbar. Consequently, the charges levelled against Guru Arjan in the Akbar's Court by a few impostors (Prithi Chand and his son Meharban) and some jealous Hindu Priests (Brahmins), were totally disregarded. The complainants were virtually thrown out of the King's Court.

Immediately after the death of Akbar, the Muslim clergy captured the thought of Prince Saleem and helped him to regain the throne as Emperor Jehangir. He was assisted with the understanding that he would reinstate the Shariyat (Orthodox Muslim Law) in the country. Akbar's grandson, Khusro was a pious man and was as liberal as his grandfather. Akbar had designated him next in line to head the kingdom. But the domination of Muslim clergy made him to run for his life. While passing through Punjab he visited Guru Arjan at Tarn Taran at the time and sought his blessings.

The House of Baba Nanak had gained enormous popularity under the guiding light of the Guru Arjan. Both the Hindu and Muslim populace flocked to the Guru's house in equal intensity to pay their homage. To the dismay of Orthodox Muslims, Guru Arjan Dev's popularity increased to their sore point.

It was heightened by the malicious manipulations of Chandu Shah, Hindu Revenue Official at the Provincial Court of the Emperor at Lahore. He had once offered his daughter in marriage to Guru Arjan's only son, Hargobind that was not accepted.

Sheikh Ahmad Sarhindi was very much revered by Muslims. He presented himself to be the Prophet of second millennium; the first millennium belonging to Prophet Muhammad. He asserted that his status was higher than the Sikh Gurus. This was emphatically rejected by Guru Arjan. Sheikh Ahmad had great influence on Jehangir. Citing the Guru's blessings bestowed upon Prince Khusro he instigated the Emperor against Guru Arjan. Jehangir wrote in his biography, "A Hindu named Arjan lived at Goindwal.... simple minded Hindus and ignorant and foolish Muslims have been persuaded to adopt his ways.... This business (shop) has been flourishing for three generations. For long time it had been in my mind to put a stop to this affair or to bring him into the fold of Islam...."

Khusro was `captured and blinded in punishment'. Thereafter `Jehangir summoned Guru Arjan to Lahore'. With preconceived ideas, Jehangir showed dissatisfaction with the Guru's explanation of Khusro's shelter. He labelled the Guru as a party to rebellion and `wanted to punish him with death'. But on the `recommendation of Pir Mian Mir he commuted it by a fine of two lakh rupees' plus `an order to erase a few verses' from the Granth Sahib. Guru Arjan refused to accept. The Sikhs of Lahore wanted to pay off the fine but the Guru desisted them.

The Guru was imprisoned and excessively tortured. His body was exposed in the scorching heat of May-June sun. He was made to sit on the red-hot sand, and boiling hot water was poured on his naked body. Pir Mian Mir approached him and offered to demolish the whole city of Lahore with his ecclesiastic power in punishment but the Guru refrained him to take such an action; as, he believed in, "Thine doings seem sweet unto me, Nanak craves for the wealth of God's Name." (Rag Asa M.5 P.394).

And on this day of May 30, 1606, he enveloped his blistering body in the cool waves of the River Ravi and journeyed to his heavenly abode.

Bhai Gurdas, a contemporary of Guru Arjan and the pioneering scribe of Guru Granth Sahib, summed up:

, "Like a rain-bird, thirsting only for a drop of rain and no other water, Guru Arjan abandoned all worldly opportunities offered to him and desired but an abiding repose in the love and will of God. So deeply was he absorbed in the undisturbed and unbroken vision of the Lord, that his enlightened and elevated spirit conquered all sorrow and pain and his soul rested peacefully in the eternal embrace of God's love. I am a sacrifice unto Guru Arjan, the Perfect one."