The whole episode of Dara Sikoh, however, had turned Aurangzeb against the Sikhs. Since he had become king by unfair means he was over protective and insecure about the throne. After he had gotten rid of Shah Jahan and Dara Shikoh, he turned his attention to the Sikhs, who, he had been informed, maintained a reasonably large and powerful army. He immediately saw this as a threat not only to his kingdom, but even to his religion. Aurangzeb was a very devout Muslim, who followed the religious principles strictly, and demanded that everyone show the same respect and devotion. He was already made aware of Guru Har Rai�s power and was afraid of the popularity the Sikhs religion was gaining everyday.

Aurangzeb, who was the most intolerant amongst all Mughal rulers in terms of religion, wanted to convert everyone to the Muslim faith. He did not want any other religion, besides Islam, to exist. He was totally against the Hindu religion and had ordered most of the temples and idols in sacred and religious places like Mathura, Varanasi, Brindavan, Ajmer to be demolished and desecrated. Moreover, when he saw the popularity of Guru Har Rai he feared that the Sikh religion would soon spread throughout the country. At first, he wanted to attack the Guru and have him killed. But he was aware of the strength and courage of the Sikh army. He also realized that it would turn all the Sikhs against the Mughal empire. On the other hand, he thought that if he could convert Guru Har Rai to his Muslim faith, then he would gain the whole Sikh population in his Islamic fold. He already bore a grudge against the Guru for helping his rival Dara Shikoh, and now he decided to work on a plot by which he could either exterminate the Guru or convert him to the Muslim faith. Either way, he decided to end the Sikh religion during his lifetime.

So, he decided to invite the Guru to his court. He had also been informed by his men of the miracle-making power of the Guru. This gave him a valid reason for inviting him to his court. Aurangzeb had it all planned out.

He had decided to ask the Guru to perform some miracles in his court. If the Guru succeeded then he would accept him as a man of god and try to convert him to Islam, and if he failed then he would have him imprisoned for helping Dara Shikoh and hence going against the emperor�s orders. This would give him a legitimate reason to execute him. He then quickly dispatched his men to Guru Har Rai with the invitation.

When the Guru received the royal summons he read it very carefully and perceived that there was some mischief involved in it. He had a long debate with his Sikhs about it in his court. Some were of the opinion that the Guru should go otherwise the king would definitely take an offence if he refused. The others, however, smelt something fishy in the invitation. They reminded the Guru that it was Aurangzeb himself who had usurped his father and imprisoned him, Dara Shikoh, who was the rightful heir to the throne. They also told him that the king might want to avenge the aid that the Guru gave to the prince and so they warned him against going to his court. It was like going straight into a trap. Most people agreed to this except Ram Rai, the Guru�s eldest son. He strongly suggested that the invitation by the emperor should be definitely accepted. He was also of the opinion that friendship with the Mughals would prove to be beneficial for the whole Sikh community.

Guru Har Rai heared everyone�s views, and although he agreed with his son he also felt that it could be a plot of some kind. But Ram Rai was persistent, and finally, it was decided that Ram Rai himself would go to the Mughal court instead of the Guru. This was to serve the purpose of honouring Aurangzeb�s invitation, and at the same time to find out what his real intentions were, without endangering the Guru�s life.

Before Ram Rai left for Delhi, Guru Har Rai called him to his chamber. There he gave him strict instructions of how and what to do once he got there. He told him strictly not to indulge in miracle-making was strongly against the Sikh faith, and also told him how Guru Hargobind had reprimanded his sons Baba Atal and Bhai Gurditta for interfering with god�s ways. He also stressed strongly that he was going to the Mughal court not just as his son, but as his representative and that of the whole Sikh community. His other instructions to Ram Rai was to carry himself with dignity, to uphold his religion with respect, and to keep the sanctity of the Holy Granth intact. He particularly told Ram Rai to interpret the holy scripture in no other way than what was originally meant.

When Ram Rai finally reached the Mughal court, he was asked to read the Holy Granth and explain it to the people in the court. So Ram Rai began reading the holy scriptures. Soon he came upon a line in the scripture that read : �The ashes of the �Muslim� got into a potter�s clod�. Immediately, there was an uproar in the court as all the courtiers objected strongly to it. Ram Rai who wanted to cause no displeasure to the Mughal king, quickly pacified the court by saying that it was a mistake made by the calligraphist. He went on to say that the original line was: �The ashes of the �faithless� got into a potter�s clod�. Aurangzeb was so pleased with him for this, that he presented a �jagir� (piece of land) to him in return. This thrilled Ram Rai so much that when Aurangzeb asked him to perform some miracles eor them, he immediately obliged. He forgot all about Guru Har Rai�s instructions, and performed one miracle after another for the pleasure of the king and his courtiers. He was then presented a robe of honour by Aurangzeb, which pleased Ram Rai to no end.

The news of all these events soon reached Guru Har Rai, and he was extremely upset. He was not distressed that Ram Rai had not obeyed his instructions, but he was more hurt by the fact that his son had compromised the Holy Granth in such a shameful manner. For days, Guru Har Rai felt ashamed that Ram Rai was his son, and because of him the whole Sikh community and all the Guru�s had been put to shame. He recalled how angry Guru Har Gobind had been when his son had performed a miracle, even for the good of his community. And here, Ram Rai had gone and made a big mockery of it before the Mughals. He refused to think of Ram Rai as his son anymore, and openly declared that he was alienating him forever from the Sikh community for the cowardice and lowliness he had shown in the Mughal court. He even sent a message to Ram Rai asking him to never return to the Sikh community.

Some felt that the Guru was being very harsh on his son, but gradually they released that for him his religion was more important than anything or anyone else. He could bear all sort of pains, but he could not bear any blemish on the Sikh religion and especially on the Holy Granth which he equated with Guru Nanak himself. When the Sikhs saw this they began to respect him more and hold him in greater reverence than before.

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