Guru Arjun Dev Martyrdom day in 2024

When is the Martyrdom Day of Sri Guru Arjun Dev Ji?

Martyrdom Day of Sri Guru Arjun Dev Ji is a regional Gazetted holiday in the Indian state of Punjab on the 24th day of Jeth, the third month in the Sikh calendar. This means it takes place in May or June in the western calendar.

Also spelt as Martyrdom Day of Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji, this holiday commemorates the first Sikh martyr, killed in 1606.

Martyrdom Day of Sri Guru Arjun Dev Ji

Guru Arjun Dev was born in April 1563 in Goindval, India. His father was to become Guru Ramdas and his mother's name was Mata Bhani. Arjan Dev’s maternal grandfather was Guru Amardas and his father Guru Ramdas were respectively the third and fourth Gurus of the Sikhs.

In 1581, he became the fifth Guru of the Sikhs after the death of his father.

Guru Arjun laid the foundation of the Golden Temple (Harmandir Sahib) in Amritsar. He also designed the four doors in a gurdwara - the Sikh places of worship - proclaiming that "My faith is for the people of all castes and all creeds from whichever direction they come and to whichever direction they bow."

He also declared that all Sikhs should donate a tenth of their earnings to charity.

His enduring legacy to the Sikh faith was to compile all of the past Gurus' writings into one book - the holy scripture: the Guru Granth Sahib.

Guru Arjun Dev included the compositions of both Hindu and Muslim saints which he considered consistent with the teachings of Sikhism and the Gurus.

In 1606, the Muslim Mughal Emperor Jahangir imposed a fine of 200,000 rupees and demanded that Guru Arjun erase some of the hymns in the text that he found offensive. According to the Sikh tradition, the Guru refused to remove the lines and pay the fine, which led to his torture and execution.

This holiday is usually celebrated with a full reading of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib.  There is also sometimes a procession with the Sri Guru Granth Sahib, and sweets are offered to the general public outside gurdwaras.