Hukamnamas of Guru Tegh Bahadur

Hukamnama is an important source of the Sikh history. Most scholars consider it a valuable source of evidence on the life and works of the Gurus. It throws light on the organization of the Sikh congregations and also provides invaluable insights on a number of issues related to the Sikh Panth. The present work aims at studying critically the hukamnamas of Guru Tegh Bahadur. Evaluation of studies undertaken by scholars on the subject would determine the justification and scope of the study. The history of the scholarly interest in hukamnamas is not very old. It started in the second decade of the twentieth century by G B Singh a dedicated scholar of Punjabi language and the Sikh religion. In 1915-16, he wrote two articles in Decca Review giving translated versions of a few hukamnamas including the one of Guru Tegh Bahadur. He had come across these documents during his research visits to Decca Sangat. His comments on the hukamnamas were critical and underlined the significance of the documents for the reconstruction of the Sikh activities in the eastern part of the country.