Baba Budha occupies a unique position in Sikh history. He applied tilak of guruship to five Gurus, saw seven Gurus and remained in close association with first six Sikh Gurus from 1521 to 1628 for over one hundred years. He was the first granthi (priest) of Harmandir, and laid the foundations of Dera Baba Nanak and most of the holy buildings at Amritsar.

Baba Budha's original name was Bura. He was born on October 22, 1506 A.D. His father's name was Sugha Randhawa and mother's Gauran. They lived in Kathu Nangal village of Amritsar District. After some time they settled down in Dhalla village not far away from river Ravi opposite Kartarpur.

In 1524 A.D. Guru Nanak along with Bala was returning to Kartarpur on the western bank of river Ravi where he was living. On the way in the jungle the Guru sat under a tree to take rest. Near-by he saw a boy grazing cattle. The Guru called him, and asked him about his village and parents, etc. Then he told him to go and look after his cattle. The boy enquired if he could do him any service. The Guru said there was nothing to be done by him at the time.

Bura found out the name of the village where the holy man lived. Next morning he took a pot full of butter-milk with a lump of butter floating in it to the Guru. He presented his humble gift in all reverence and humility, and listened to the Guru's sermon with care and attention. At the end Bura asked the Guru to tell him the way to attain salvation. Nanak remarked that such a problem did not concern a boy at that young age. As Bura insisted, the Guru remarked that he was young in age but great in wisdom and was not Bura but Burha or Budha, because he talked like an old man. Since then Bura came to be called Baba Budha. He became a sincere devotee of the Guru, spent a good deal of his time with him, and lived like a hermit.

At Guru's house Baba Budha served with utmost devotion. He rose early under the light of stars, cleaned the house, polished the hearth with sticky mud, filled the pitchers with water, milked cows and buffaloes, worked in the fields and served in the langar. He attended all the sermons of the Guru, and was always at the Guru's beck and call. Whenever Guru Nanak went on a preaching tour in the neighbouring villages, Baba Budha took care of the Guru's household, and served Mata Sulakhani, Sri Chand and Lakhmi Das like a true devotee.