GURU RAMDAS KHALSA

Guru Ram Das, the fourth Manifestation of Nanak, established the Holy City of Amritsar, which became a center of activity. He invited tradesmen and merchants (fifty-two professions in all), to set up shop side-by-side casting aside the strict rules of discrimination which defined the Hindu caste system. The faithful flocked to pay homage and worship there. Guru Ram Das sent out missionaries to all parts of the Panjab and beyond, spreading the Word. His Banis are drenched with the devotional love and adoration of the soul bride for her Husband Lord. Amritsar literally means "the pool of nectar", the name derived from a pool constructed at the sacred site in the 16th century, gifted by the Mughal Emperor Akbar to Guru Ramdas, the fourth preceptor of the Sikh faith.

Under instructions from Guru Amar Das Sahib, this city was founded by Guru Ram Das Sahib in 1574, on the land bought by him for an amount of rupees 700 from the owners of the village Tung. (Earlier Guru Ram Das Sahib had begun building Santokhsar Sarovar, near erstwhile village of Sultanwind in 1564 {according to one source in 1570}. It could not be completed before 1588). In 1574, Guru Ram Das Sahib built his residence and moved to this place. At that time, it was known as Guru-Da-Chakk. (Later, it came to be known as Chakk Ram Das). Guru Ram Das Sahib began excavation of the Amritsar Sarovar (tank) in 1577. It was ready by 1581.