Guru Har Krishan

Guru Har Krishan
ਗੁਰੂ ਹਰਿ ਕ੍ਰਿਸ਼ਨ
Painting of the eighth Guru of the Sikhs, Guru Har Krishan, seated on a platform and leaning against a bolster
Personal life
Born
Kishan Das Sodhi

7 July 1656
Died30 March 1664(1664-03-30) (aged 7)
Delhi, Mughal Empire
Cause of deathSmallpox
Parents
Other names
  • Bal Guru ("Child Guru")
  • Eighth Master
  • Eighth Nanak
  • Bala Pritam
  • Guru Hari Krishan
Signature
Religious life
ReligionSikhism
Religious career
Period in office1661–1664
PredecessorGuru Har Rai
SuccessorGuru Tegh Bahadur

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.