Today is the Guru Granth Sahib's first prakash purab (illumination day). On this day in 1604, the Guru Granth Sahib was inaugurated and ceremoniously opened within the revered Harimandar Sahib in Amritsar. It took the form of the Adi Granth Sahib.

Throughout the lineage of the Gurus, the Sikh community upheld a robust tradition of scribal practices. This tradition's significance is evident from secondary sources such as the writings of Bhai Gurdas ji. Bhai Gurdas ji references a book (kitab) that Guru Nanak Sahib carried during his udasis (travels). This strong scribal heritage was pivotal in safeguarding the Sabad, the Divine revelation, and disseminating it across distant regions as the Sikh panth expanded.

The Janamsakhi, a tradition of biographical narratives about Guru Nanak Sahib, informs us that the Guru would sing Sabads to congregations of Sikhdevotees. Certain dedicated Sikhs would then transcribe these Sabads. Guru Nanak Sahib often asked Guru Angad Sahib to write down the Sabads he had revealed. This established a tradition of preserving and transmitting the revealed Bani to successive Gurus.

Ultimately, under the supervision of Guru Arjan Sahib, the compositions of previous Gurus, Bhagats, and Sikhs were compiled into the Adi Granth Sahib, with the scribing overseen by Bhai Gurdas ji. On Guru Arjan Sahib's instruction, Baba Buddha ji inaugurated the Granth Sahib and shared its first Command (hukam). This marked a significant milestone in the Sikhcommunity's evolution, signaling its definitive journey towards embracing the Guruship of the Sabad as its guiding principle.

Later, Guru Gobind Singh Sahib prepared the current recension of the Guru Granth Sahib by adding the composition of Guru Teghbahadar Sahib to the Adi Granth Sahib and conferring Guruship upon it in 1708. To this day, the SikhPanth holds the sweet profound utterances of the Guru.

May the Sabad permeate every heart, guiding and enlighting all!

ਹਮਾਰੀ ਪਿਆਰੀ ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤ ਧਾਰੀ ਗੁਰਿ ਨਿਮਖ ਨ ਮਨ ਤੇ ਟਾਰੀ ਰੇ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਦਰਸਨ ਪਰਸਨ ਸਰਸਨ ਹਰਸਨ ਰੰਗਿ ਰੰਗੀ ਕਰਤਾਰੀ ਰੇ ॥੧॥
ਖਿਨੁ ਰਮ ਗੁਰ ਗਮ ਹਰਿ ਦਮ ਨਹ ਜਮ ਹਰਿ ਕੰਠਿ ਨਾਨਕ ਉਰਿ ਹਾਰੀ ਰੇ ॥੨॥

The ambrosial stream (of Nam-Bani) is sweet to me, which the Guru has not held back from my mind, even for an instant.1. Pause.
Through it, I behold and experience the Divine presence; I am sweetened and delighted. It is imbued with the love-color of the Creator.1.
Reciting it even for a moment, I rise to the Guru; staying absorbed in it every moment, the Messenger of death is not encountered. Nanak! The Remover of suffering has garlanded the neck and heart with it.2.

     Guru Granth Sahib, 404

‍