Baba Gurbaksh Singh Nihang, martyred for protecting the Darbar Sahib

He sacrificed his life to protect the Golden Temple during the seventh attack of Ahmed Shah Abdali. Baba Gurbaksh Singh was born on April 10, 1688 AD to Bhai Dasundha Singh in the village of Lil in Amritsar district (now Pakistan) from the womb of Mata Lakshmi. Baba Ji’s family settled in Sri Anandpur Sahib in 1693. Here Baba Ji took Amrit from the group of Bhai Mani Singh. After taking Amrit, he joined the group of the then great Sikh general Baba Deep Singh. After the martyrdom of Baba Deep Singh in 1757 AD, Baba Gurbaksh Singh established his new group and started living in Sri Amritsar to serve Sri Harmandir Sahib and Sri Akal Takht Sahib (Akal Bunge).

After failing in several campaigns to eliminate the Sikhs, Ahmed Shah Abdali In 1764, he attacked India with his army. During this time, he quickly moved towards the center of the Sikhs, Sri Darbar Sahib, Amritsar. Hearing the news of Abdali’s policy of attacking Sri Darbar Sahib, the brave warrior Baba Gurbaksh Singh and 30 other Singhs present with him formed a front at Sri Akal Takht Sahib. During this time, Ahmed Shah Abdali’s army, numbering thirty thousand, entered the vicinity of Sri Darbar Sahib. History is witness that in December, 1764 AD, when Abdali attacked Sri Darbar Sahib, Baba Ji along with his companions stood guard and guarded Sri Harmandir Sahib, firmly adhering to the great verse of Gurbani, ‘Siru Deejay Kaani Na Keejay’. Only 30 Singhs attacked 30,000 Giljas (according to Dr. Ganda Singh, 18 thousand Afghans and 12 thousand Balochs) so fiercely that hundreds of Giljas died on the spot. In this fierce battle, some Singhs were martyred, but a few Singhs had put Abdali’s army in trouble. They were attacking from a distance with bullets and arrows. They did not have the courage to come close to the Singhs, despite such a large number, they did not have the courage to fight the Singhs hand to hand.