Sikh Guru in the context of "Saints"

In Christian belief, a saint, also known as a hallow, is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term saint depends on the context and denomination. Official ecclesiastical recognition, and veneration, is conferred on some denominational saints through the process of canonization in the Catholic Church or glorification in the Eastern Orthodox Church after their approval. The saints are honored in the liturgical calendars of Evangelical Lutheranism and Anglicanism. In other nonconformist denominations, such as the Plymouth Brethren, and following from Pauline usage, saint refers broadly to any holy Christian without special recognition or selection.

While the English word saint (deriving from the Latin sanctus) originated in Christianity, historians of religion tend to use the appellation "in a more general way to refer to the state of special holiness that many religions attribute to certain people", referring to the Hindu rishi, Sikh bhagat or guru, the Shintoist kami, the Taoist immortal or zhenren, the Jewish tzadik, the Islamic walī/fakir, and the Buddhist arhat or bodhisattva also as saints. Depending on the religion, saints are recognized either by official declaration, as in Roman Catholicism, Oriental Orthodoxy or Eastern Orthodoxy, or by popular acclamation (see folk saint).

Guru Maneyo Granth (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਮਾਨਿਓ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ or ਗੁਰੂ ਮਾਨਯੋ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ, gurū mānio granth) refers to the historic statement of the 10th Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh (1666–1708) shortly before his demise on affirming the sacred scripture Adi Granth as his successor, thereby terminating the line of human Gurus. Installed as the Guru Granth Sahib, it is now the central holy scripture of Sikhism, and the eternal living Guru of all Sikhs. It is central to Sikh worship as it is said to imbibe the one light of the creator manifested in the Ten Sikh Gurus‐one spirit in ten forms.

The event on 20 October 1708 at Nanded (in present-day Maharashtra), when Guru Gobind Singh installed Adi Granth as the Guru of Sikhism, was recorded in a Bhatt Vahi (a bard's scroll) by an eyewitness, Narbud Singh, and is now celebrated as Gurgaddi (Guru Gaddi Divas). Guru Gobind Singh's statement is part of the central chant "Sabh Sikhan ko Hukam Hai, Guru Maneyo Granth." October 2008 marked the tercentenary year of Guruship of Guru Granth Sahib and was marked by major celebrations by Sikhs worldwide. Nanded especially saw yearlong celebrations the same year at Takht Sri Hazur Sahib.

Guru Amar Das (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਅਮਰ ਦਾਸ, pronunciation: [gʊɾuː əməɾᵊ d̯aːsᵊ]; 5 May 1479 – 1 September 1574), sometimes spelled as Guru Amardas, was the third guru of Sikhism and became Sikh Guru on 26 March 1552 at age 73.

Before becoming a Sikh (Shishya from Sanskrit), on a pilgrimage after having been prompted to search for a guru, he heard his nephew's wife, Bibi Amro, reciting a hymn by Guru Nanak, and was deeply moved by it. Amro was the daughter of Guru Angad, the second Guru of the Sikhs. Amar Das persuaded Amro to introduce him to her father. In 1539, Amar Das, at the age of sixty, met Guru Angad and became a Sikh, devoting himself to the Guru. In 1552, before his death, Guru Angad appointed Amar Das as the third Guru of Sikhism.

Guru Har Krishan (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਹਰਿ ਕ੍ਰਿਸ਼ਨ, pronunciation: [ɡʊruː həɾ kɾɪʃən]; 7 July 1656–30 March 1664) also known as Bal Guru (Child Guru), or Hari Krishan Sahib, was the eighth of the ten Sikh gurus. At the age of five, he succeeded his father, Guru Har Rai, and became the youngest guru in Sikhism. He contracted smallpox in 1664 and died before reaching his eighth birthday, with the shortest reign as guru, lasting only two years, five months, and 24 days.

He is remembered in the Sikh tradition for saying "Baba Bakale" before he died, which Sikhs interpreted to identify his grand-uncle Guru Tegh Bahadur as his successor.