Full Sikh Art Collection

Guru Nanak Dev Ji founded the Sikh faith in rural Punjab during the mid 15th century. Discontent with the elusive values and hollow rituals of the Brahamanic Hindu tradition, he set forth on many journeys throughout his life to achieve a true union with God. He sought to spread the divine message of the Almighty and bring healing to a world stricken by the fires of Kalyug. The Guru's travels were accompanied by Mardana and Bhai Bala. He traveled throughout India, conversing with religious sages of the age and visited innumerable centers of Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Jain, Sufi, Yogi and Sidh learning. His mission knew no boundaries or borders and he even completed the Muslim Hajj by traveling to Mecca.

“Far from wife and son am I, far from land and wealth and other notions of that kind. I am the Witness, the Eternal, the Inner Self.” - Guru Nanak

Guru Nanak Dev Ji founded the Sikh faith in rural Punjab during the mid 15th century. Discontent with the elusive values and hollow rituals of the Brahamanic Hindu tradition, he set forth on many journeys throughout his life to achieve a true union with God. The Guru’s travels are known to us as Udasis, in which he sought to spread the divine message of the Almighty and bring healing to a world stricken by the fires of Kalyug. He was accompanied by a Muslim bard named Mardana and a Hindu named Bhai Bala. It is recorded that four great Udasis were undertaken by Guru Nanak and his companions throughout the Guru’s life. He traveled throughout India, conversing with religious sages of the age and visited innumerable centers of Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Jain, Sufi, Yogi and Sidh learning. His mission knew no boundaries or borders and he even completed the Muslim Hajj by traveling to Mecca.

At the Battle of Chumkaur, Baba Jujhur Singh watched his brother Baba Ajit Singh attain Shaheedi. He desired to fight in the battlefield as well, though doing so meant certain death. He asked his father, Guru Gobind Singh, "Guru Sahib, permit me, dear father, to go where my brother has gone. Don't say that I am too young. I am your son. I am a Singh, a Lion, of yours. I shall prove worthy of you. I shall die fighting, with my face towards the enemy, with the Naam on my lips and the Guru in my heart."

Guru Gobind Singh ji finally rested in the Machhivara jungle after many days of battle at Chamkaur, in 1705. It looks as though Guru ji might be asleep with his eyes closed and his body in a state of deep repose, but all around him we see that the world is alive with flowing energy, with the play of light and shadow, trees moving in the wind and a storm moving by. The storm of battle is passing and the clouds are clearing. In this moment of rest and repose, Guru Ji is fully aware of and completely connected to his surroundings, and the viewer is transported into the swirling motion of nature, while at the "eye of the hurricane" the Master lies, in the deep peace that surpasses all understanding. He rests, not upon a rock, but in the comforting arms of the eternal, Waheguru.