Great sage-

Guru Nanak was the first of the Sikhs. He was born on 15 April 1469 at the village Talvadi, near Lahore. This place now called Nanakna Sahib. Nanak’s father Mehta Kalu, was a farmer, his mother’s name was Tripta. His sister, Nanak, was five years older than him.

Even as a child Nanak was different from other children. He did not want to play with the other boys of his age, nor did he want to work in his father’s field. He kept dreaming all the time. He was always thinking about god.

When Nanak was only 14, his father found a wife for him. He thought it would bring a change in the boy. ``now he will start working’’, said Kalu to his wife.

For some time Nanak took interest in his work as a cattle grazer. But soon he grew tired of it. He would spend most of his in the woods. There he sat dreaming for hours. He thought and thought about God. His mind was full of many questions, but nobody could give him the answers.

Mehta Kalu was much worried about his son. ``Nanak is not interested in farming or cattle grazing’’, he thought. ``Maybe he will do well in trading’’.

So he gave Nanak some money and said, ``Take this money and buy some goods from the town. Then, like a peddler, go from village to village and sell your goods at a profit’’.

Nanak set out from home with the money. He had gone only a short distance when he met some sadhus. They looked very weak and thin. They said that they had not eaten anything for many days. Nanak at once gave them all the money he had. The sadhus blessed Nanak that he would be a great man in his life.

Nanak came back home. He told his father what he had done with the money. He said that he had done a true bargain, a sacha sauda, as he called it.

The father was very angry. He was fed up with the strange actions of his son. He sent him away to Nanak who was living at Sultanpur with her husband.

Nanaki’s husband found a job for Nanak. Now Nanak did his job well. Everyone was pleased with him.

Mardana was a Muslim. He was a good singer. Nanak used to write songs in praise of God. Every morning he and Mardana sang these Hymns together. Bala, a Hindu peasant, became Nanak’s follower. He, too, joined them in singing hymns. Many men and women came to listen to them.

Nanak saw that the Hindus hated the Muslims, and the Muslims hated the Hindus. ``this is not good’’, he would say. God is one and he is our father. Thus we are all brothers and sisters. We should love each other.

Nanak put all his ideas in poetry. Soon his songs of God became very popular. People sang them at their daily prayers.

Nanak travelled far and wide to speech his message of love. He visited many holy places.

Mohammed

Nobody could ever imagine that an ordinary man serving in the house of a window would one day have divine intuition and crores of people would bow their heads in reverence and follow his path treating him as messenger of god. This great man later on came to be known as Hazrat Mohammed.

Mohammed was born in A.D. 570 in an ordinary family in Mecca. His father died before he was born and his mother also died when he was hardly six years old. He was brought up by his paternal uncle. At the age of 20 he began to serve a rich distinguished and comely widow named Khadija. It proved to be a turning point in his life.

He married Khadija tough she was fifteen years older than he in age, yet she was a source of inspiration to him. Not only did she solve his financial problems but also inspired him in his religious experiments. Seven children were born to them but there was son who could be his successor. He did not take another wife during the life-time of Khadija.

Mohammed was one of those spiritual masters who professed that they got divine messages from god. He used to get messages through the angel `Gabriel’. The angel gave him the messages to establish a new religion and to be God’s messenger.

Mohammed began to relate his divine experience to the people but they appeared very strange to them. People with traditional religious belief did not feel attracted to him. They began to oppose him and as a result of it he was forced to leave Mecca. He fled Medina in A.D. 662.

He had to leave Mecca but the people of Medina welcomed him. The number of devotees began to increase. `Hijri’ year also starts from here. `Hijri’ literally means leaving one place.

He emerged as a religious leader. Initially he commanded his followers to perform their `Namaz’ twice a day. Later it began to be performed five times a day. He believed in one God. Before Mohammed, Arabs were divided into small sects. Some of them believed in ghosts and some others worshipped other gods and goddess. He opposed such worship and established the concept `One God’.

Islam means `submission to God’. The word Muslim is derived from Islam. Almost all Arab countries embraced Islam. The Arab counties, which were scattered into castes and clans, were welded into a single administrative unit before the death of Mohammed. Then Islam spread to other countries. They came to India and brought Islam with them. Islam spread to India. middle East, Far East and Europe by the 11th century. The Muslim scholar of middle ages made important contributions in the field of philosophy and medicine etc.

Hazrat Mohammed passed away in Medina in A.D. 632. After him a dispute arose among his followers. Mohammed was an emotional man. He did not like spilling blood. He did not like cowardice. When he went to offer prayers at the grave of his mother after 53 years he burst into tears. Once when he was in Medina, his nurse came to meat him. He stood up and cried `mother, mother’ and spread his precious `chadar’ on the ground for her to sit on. Once a person asked him, ``Hazrat what is the dearest thing to you?’’

Mohammed answered, ``Truth-And out of the worldly things, children, flowers and prayers’’.

Great Goutam Buddha-

Lumbini was the near Kapilavastu in Nepal, where the boy was born. His mother was Maya Devi, who died soon after the birth of her son. Therefore he was brought up by his step-mother Gonmati. Initially he was named Siddhartha.

He spent his childhood like a prince. He got his education as a prince would get. But the worldly pleasures did not attract him. He got into the habit of brooding and reflecting. He saw an old man, a dead body and a sick man. He was shocked. His servant told him that this all usual in the world. He came to know that the world is full of pain and misery. He wanted too know its secret. He was 29 years old when he felt his home. He spent 6 years in forests meeting various saints and seers but to no avail. Then he underwent great hardships by offering prayers and observing fasts. But his questions were not answered.

One day sitting under a peepal tree on the bed of straws, he suddenly felt that there was a divine light and his mind was enlightened. A new reality dawned on him and he realized that he was wandering for nothing; the real peace was dwelling in his own heart. Peace and happiness came to him at once. He began to be called the Buddha.

After getting enlightenment he went to Sarnath and delivered his first sermon. it is there that he got five disciples who were impressed by his sermons, then for 45 years he went from place to place to spread his religious views. All –high and low listened to him. Nobody remained unimpressed by his message. The rulers and the ruled alike began to follow him.

In fact it was no religion or sect the he preached. He talked of a new way of life, following which one could get `nirvana’. He rejected the authenticity of Vedas. He did not enter into the discussion pertaining to philosophical relationship between god and man. He did not answer certain questions because he believed that it was purposeless to do so. He preached that man should rid himself of his desires.

Mahatma Buddha never accepted social inequality. None was high or low in his eyes. To lead a pure life, one need not have been born in a high family. The doors of salvation were open to all people irrespective of their caste, color and creed. That is the reason why he was so popular.

The last sermon that he delivered to his disciples was like this:-

``o Bhikshus! Live life as enlightened begins. Follow your own light do not depend on others. Follow only Dharma submits only to Dharma’’.

He breathed his last the ripe age of 80 years at Kushinagra in Gorakhpur district India. This is called ``Maha Parinirwana’.