Amar Das (1479-1574)

Indian religious leader, third guru (teacher) of Sikhism 1552-74. He laid emphasis on equality and opposed the caste system. He further institutionalized the custom of the langar (communal meal), and called for Sikhs to gather during traditional Hindu festivals.

The three Sikh melas (annual festivals) - Baisakhi Mela, Diwali, and Hola Mohalla - were established through his encouragement; the first Baisakhi gathering of Sikhs was held in his own village.

In his struggle for the equality of women, Amar Das protested against both purdah (the seclusion of Muslim and some Hindu women, and the envelopment of their whole bodies, except for their eyes, in a black garment), and suttee (the Hindu tradition that a widow should perform ritual suicide on the funeral pyre of her dead husband).

His successor was Ram Das.