Scholarship and Damdami Taksal
Born on January 26, 1682, in Pahuwind village (Tarn Taran district), Baba Deep Singh was initiated into the Khalsa Panth in 1699 by Guru Gobind Singh Ji. He was a master of Gurmukhi, Persian, Arabic, and Sanskrit. When Guru Gobind Singh finalized the Damdami Bir of Guru Granth Sahib at Talwandi Sabo in 1706, Baba Deep Singh was appointed its supreme custodian, founding the prestigious center of learning known as Damdami Taksal. He hand-scribed four monumental handwritten volumes of Guru Granth Sahib, dispatching them to the four historic Sikh Takhts.
Defending Harmandir Sahib
In 1757, Afghan ruler Ahmad Shah Durrani (Abdali) invaded Punjab, demolishing Sri Harmandir Sahib and filling its sacred sarovar with debris and slaughtered animals. Hearing this sacrilege, the 75-year-old Baba Deep Singh took a solemn oath at Damdama Sahib:
"I shall liberate Sri Harmandir Sahib and celebrate Diwali there, or lay down my life in the attempt!"
The Battle of Gohalwar
Leading a legion of 5,000 Khalsa warriors from Shaheedan Misl, Baba Deep Singh clashed with a 20,000-strong Afghan force under General Jahan Khan near Amritsar at Gohalwar. Wielding an eighteen-pound double-edged sword (Khanda), Baba Deep Singh fought with superhuman valor.
During the ferocious hand-to-hand combat with Afghan commander Jamal Khan, both generals dealt fatal blows, severing Baba Deep Singh\'s head. According to eyewitness accounts, a fellow warrior reminded him of his sacred vow. Defying mortality, Baba Deep Singh supported his head with his left hand, fighting his way through enemy ranks to reach the parikrama of Sri Harmandir Sahib, where he breathed his last.