{"document_url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Writers_of_the_Guru_Granth_Sahib"}
Guru Granth Sahib (Punjabi: ਸ਼੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ ਜੀ; [ɡʊɾuː ɡɾəntʰᵊ saːhɪbᵊ]), is the central religious text of Sikhism, considered by Sikhs to be the final sovereign Guru of the religion. It contains 1430 Angs (limbs), containing 5,894 hymns of 36 saint mystics which includes Sikh guru sahiban (6 gurus, possibly as many as 7 or 8), Bhagats (15 bhagats), Bhatts (11 bhatts) and gursikhs (4 gursikhs). It is notable among foundational religious scriptures for including hymns from writers of other religions, namely Hindus and Muslims. It also contains teachings of Sikh gurus themselves.

Categorization of authors

Scholars categorize the authors of the Guru Granth Sahib into four groups:

Sikh gurus

Philosophically, Sikhs are bound to believe in Shabad Guru — the words written in the Guru Granth Sāhib ji — but the general belief is that the Sikh Gurus established Sikhism over the centuries, beginning in the year 1469. The hymns of six Sikh Gurus are in the Guru Granth Sahib:

Whilst these six guru are widely accepted as having their writings included in the Guru Granth Sahib, there are some who argue compositions of Guru Har Rai and Guru Gobind Singh are also included. A Salok Mahalla Satvan (7) and Dohra Mahalla Dasvan (10) have been attributed by some to the seventh and tenth gurus, respectively.

Bhagats

In the below list, the Bhagats (Punjabi: ਭਗਤ, from Sanskrit भक्त) were holy men of various sects whose teachings are included in the Sri Guru Granth Sahib ji. Their bani[clarification needed] come under the title Bani Bhagtaan Ki. The word "Bhagat" means devotee, and comes from the Sanskrit word Bhakti, which means devotion and love. Bhagats evolved a belief in one God that preceded Kabir's selecting the writings of the great Hindu Bhaktis and Sufi saints.

The 15 Bhagat authors were:

Bhatts

Many Hindu Saraswat Brahmins who started to follow the word of Guru Nanak Dev were known as Bhatts, meaning bards. The 11 Bhatt authors were:

Gursikhs

Bhai Sundar Ji, Bhai Mardana Ji, Bhai Satta Ji, Bhai Balwand Ji

Individuals and their contributions

Controversial authors

Mardana and Tall

Two more writers of the present recension of Adi Granth are a matter of debate among scholars, namely Bhai Mardana and Bhatt Tall.

According to different scholars:

Sri Chand
According to a sakhi, when Guru Arjan had finished composing sixteen astpadis (cantos) of the Gauri Sukhmani composition, popularly known as Sukhmani Sahib, Sri Chand, the son of Guru Nanak, visited him. During this visit, it is said that Guru Arjan requested him to continue the composition he was compiling and complete the seventeenth canto of the Sukhmani Sahib. Sri Chand humbly recited the verse of his father following the Mul Mantar in the Japji Sahib. Thus, it became the seventeenth canto of the Sukhmani Sahib.