Concepts Of Sikh Religion

2007·1.6 MB·English

by  G S Sidhu

Concepts of Sikh Religion

G.S.Sidhu M.A

Publisher: Gurmat Bhawan Mandi Mullan Pur (Ludhiana)

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INDEX

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...............................................................................6
INTRODUCTION..............................................................................................7
FOREWORD......................................................................................................9
OPINIONS........................................................................................................12
CHAPTER ONE...............................................................................................15
GENESIS.............................................................................................................15
CHAPTER TWO..............................................................................................22
HUKAM...............................................................................................................22
2.1 NAAM............................................................................................................25
CHAPTER THREE.........................................................................................27
ANHAD SHABAD.................................................................................................27
3.1 THE MYSTICAL WORD...................................................................................28
3.2 WAHEGURU...................................................................................................29
3.3 SURT –SHABAD:............................................................................................32
CHAPTER FOUR............................................................................................33
KHAND...............................................................................................................33
4.2 THE YOGI’S WAY:.........................................................................................34
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4.3 THE PREDICAMENT........................................................................................35
4.4 THE GURU’S WAY:........................................................................................37
4.5 NIRBAN (SALVATION)....................................................................................42
4.6 DASAM DUAR...............................................................................................42
CHAPTER FIVE..............................................................................................45
SHABAD (WORD)................................................................................................45
5.1 SHABAD GURU?............................................................................................48
5.2 GURU............................................................................................................49
5.3 NEED OF A GURU...........................................................................................51
CHAPTER SIX.................................................................................................55
GURU NANAK’S GURU.......................................................................................55
6.1 SAYYAD HUSSAIN.........................................................................................56
6.2 ZINDA PEER..................................................................................................56
6.3 BHAGAT KABIR.............................................................................................58
6.4 RAMANAND / SANT REIN..............................................................................61
6.5 CONCLUSION.................................................................................................61
CHAPTER SEVEN..........................................................................................63
IS GRANTH SAHIB A GURU?..............................................................................63
7.1 THE PROOFS...............................................................................................64
7.2 AKHAND PAATH........................................................................................66
7.3 MERIT (MHWQM) OF AKHAND PAATH.................................................................68
CHAPTER EIGHT..........................................................................................71
THE LIVING GURU.............................................................................................71
8.1 LIVING GURU................................................................................................74
8.2 THE HOLY BOOK...........................................................................................75
8.3 PRINTING AND DISTRIBUTION OF THE GRANTH..............................................77
CHAPTER NINE.............................................................................................79
MEERI PEERI.....................................................................................................79
9.1 GURU GOBIND SINGH AND MILITANCY?........................................................87
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9.2 TANTRIC CONCEPT UNACCEPTABLE IN SIKHISM............................................93
9.3 MEERI PEERI IN MODERN TIMES....................................................................93
CHAPTER TEN...............................................................................................95
CASTE.................................................................................................................95
10.1 WHAT THE GURUS DID TO OPPOSE CASTE PREJUDICE..................................97
10.2 CASTE TODAY...........................................................................................100
10.3 THE GURUS ACCUSED...............................................................................101
10.4 CONTRIBUTION OF SIKHISM......................................................................102
10.5 GOTRAS.....................................................................................................103
CHAPTER ELEVEN.....................................................................................106
SIKH TO KHALSA.............................................................................................106
11.1 SIKH..........................................................................................................106
11.2 SINGH........................................................................................................108
11.3 KHALSA....................................................................................................108
11.4 GUR MATTA..............................................................................................112
CHAPTER TWELVE....................................................................................115
MIRACLES........................................................................................................115
CHAPTER THIRTEEN................................................................................121
WORSHIP..........................................................................................................121
13.1 GODS AND GODDESSES..............................................................................121
13.2 DID THE SIKH GURUS WORSHIP GODS AND GODDESSES?...........................123
13.3 CONCLUSION:............................................................................................126
CHAPTER FOURTEEN...............................................................................132
SANT.................................................................................................................132
14.1 MODERN DAY SANTS................................................................................134
14.2 SANTS OR SWINDLERS?.............................................................................138
CHAPTER FIFTEEN....................................................................................140
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REVELATION....................................................................................................140
ORIGINALITY OF SIKHISM...............................................................................144
16.1 ORIGIN OF THE WORD HINDU?...................................................................145
16.2 DEFINITION OF HINDUISM?.......................................................................146
16.3 IS SIKHISM A COPY OF HINDUISM?............................................................146
16.4 VIEWS OF WESTERN WRITERS...................................................................157
16.5 A RELIGION IN ITS OWN RIGHT...................................................................158
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN.............................................................................163
THEY GAVE THEIR HEADS................................................................................163
17.1 WHAT DOES IT MEAN?...............................................................................163
17.2 THEIR HEADS WERE CHOPPED OFF.............................................................167
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN................................................................................169
QUESTIONS.......................................................................................................169

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Acknowledgements

I am obliged to Mr. Haredev Singh Shergill editor Sikh Bulletin, Professor
Balwinderpal Singh Editor Sada Virsa Sada Gaurav, and Mr. Karamjit
Sigh Aujla editor Sirjanhara for reading the manauscript and sending in
suggestions. My grateful thanks go to Principal Ram Singh and Dr. Sarbjit
Singh for suggesting valuable changes in the text. I am deeply indebted to
Professor Gurmel Singh of U.S.A for reading the manuscript and adding a
concise foreword to it.

As usual Mr Bakhtawar Singh Sehra deserves my grateful thanks for
typesetting the text and for preparing a suitable title for the book. I am
also grateful to him for arranging the distribution of the books and for
storing the stock.

Dr. Amarpreet Singh Deol and the staff of Gurmat Bhawan Mandi Mullan
Pur (Ludhiana) usually arrange the printing and transportation of the
books throughout the world which is by no means an easy task. I am
extremely obliged to them for undertaking so much work as a labour of
love.

G.S.Sidhu
June 1, 2007

Abbreviations

AGGS stands for Aad Guru Granth Sahib (The Holy book of the Sikhs)
SGPC stands Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee Amritsar
SRM stands for Sikh Rehat Maryada

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Introduction

I received my preliminary education in Urdu and Persian because in my
school days they were the only languages taught in schools other than
English, which was introduced at Secondary level. Whatever information
about Sikhism or the Sikh Gurus reached us was through hearsay or
through traditional Gianis and Saints. It was mostly mythical and we liked
it because it eulogized our Gurus as the miracle performers. We had no
access to the original sources, which were in Gurmukhi script. In 1947,
when I was to appear in my matriculation examination, the country was
divided into India and Pakistan. Panjabi and Hindi took the place of Urdu
and Persian as official languages of the Panjab and India, respectively.
With Urdu and Persian as my background languages I stood no chance of
getting an employment and became virtually illiterate overnight. It was
then that I learnt Panjabi and Hindi at home through my own efforts.
Although I had learnt to read and write in these languages, my
comprehension had not developed much.

At college we studied all our courses in English. In the first two years I
had ample time to spare so I started reading books in Panjabi and
eventually appeared in Giani (Hons.in Panjabi) as a private candidate
obtaining 13th position in the Panjab University. Later I passed the
Bhushan Examination in Hindi. Soon I started doing my M.A. in Panjabi
and passed obtaining first class marks. These successes not only
encouraged me to pass my M.A. in English in good second class but also
resulted in putting me in touch with Gurbani. Now I had the opportunity
to equip myself with Gurbani through Panjabi and English sources and to
rationalize the interpretation of concepts imbibed over the years.

In 1965 I resigned from my job as a Languages Officer in Punjab and
settled in Britain. It was then that I felt the need to clarify the Gurmat
concepts for my own sake and to pass them on to my children. I founded
the Sikh Missionary Society and started learning Gurbani concepts side
by side explaining them to the next generation. This book is an attempt to
express how I have internalised some of the concepts myself. The reader
has every right to differ with my expositions. Since it is an expression of
my own understanding of beliefs; I remain open to constructive
suggestions and appropriate corrections by the more knowledgeable
people.

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It is not possible to discuss all concepts in a small book like this. I have
therefore taken up only a few that needed attention. If this book finds
favour with the readers, I will feel encouraged to write about other
concepts, which equally need clarification for my own spiritual benefit as
well as for others. I invite criticism from the Sangat and seek help in
correcting any mistakes that I may inadvertently have made in these
pages. Suggestions and corrections will be gratefully acknowledged.

G.S.Sidhu
January 3,2007
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Foreword

A sudden rise in fundamentalism among the world religions has become a
dilemma for future generations. It is often exercised by the people whose
existence and subsistence are dependent upon the orthodoxy of their
respective religions. The root cause of conflicts is more often economical
than religious in nature. Whatever the causes may be, the fact remains that
fundamentalism has endangered the lives of common and innocent people
of all walks of life. Therefore, it becomes imperative and important to
enlighten people, particularly the younger generation, about the basic
tenants of various world religions in this postmodern era of confusion and
chaos. Mr.Gurbachan Singh Sidhu took up this gigantous task some years
ago. His current book, “Concepts of Sikh Religion”, is a timely step in the
right direction.

Mr. Sidhu is not a novice in the field of religious studies, he has already
written books such as Sikh Religion and Science, Sikh Religion and
Women, and a conceptually related book, Panjab and Panjabi. The
contents of these books are thoughtfully planned and presented in such a
way that even the common reader can grasp them with ease. In Sikh
Religion and Science, Mr. Sidhu argues that, “Science and religion in
tandem can become a greater force to liberate the mind and help the
humans to a fuller and better understanding of reality. It is therefore
imperative that knowledge of both is imparted to our next generation and
nurtured with equal enthusiasm.” In this age of feminism and women
liberation, he remarked, “A society owes much more to its women than to
men, and it is commonly believed that ‘behind every successful man is a
woman’. Therefore, a society that does not value its women does so at its
peril and is likely to suffer sooner or later.” (Sikh Religion and Women)

The contents of the present book, Concepts of Sikh Religion, are selected
with meticulous care, and arranged in a coherent sequence. The thoughtful
presentation of subject matter helps the reader to grasp the evolution of
Sikh philosophy with clarity and ease. Such a deep religious subject
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matter is made interesting and understandable with the usage of practical
and simple language. The author begins with the relatedness of science
and genesis of religious thought and then directly indulges into the
explorations of the core of Sikhism called Naam. Sikhism is the religion
of Naam employing the self-sustained expression of God’s existence. In
other words, God cannot be personified; Naam is the symbol of God’s
immanent manifestation through Shabad (word). In a figurative language,
the “Word” becomes reincarnation of God in Guru Granth Sahib--the
Holy Scripture of Sikhs. The author extends at a great length the
discussion about the interrelationship of trilogy of Sikh philosophy
inherent in the maxim, God-Word-Universe, and thus charts the essence of
religiosity of Sikhism.

The evolution of Naam into Shabad and Shabad into Shabad Guru brings
out the genius of Sikh Gurus in developing Sikhism. The author reinforces
the Sikh religious ideology that “the Guru is the source of Shabad or
spiritual knowledge, ‘the Word is the Guru and the Guru is the Word’ as it
is said in Gurbani”. The Great Guru Nanak (1469 A.D.) was the
primordial manifestation of God’s Word that laid down the tenets of
Sikhism.Mr. Sidhu’s book beautifully relates the role of all the Sikh
Gurus in developing and codification of Sikh philosophy embodied in
“Guru Granth Sahib”. Importantly, it explains the process of
transformation of a ‘Sikh’ of Guru Nanak into the ‘Singh’ of Guru Gobind
Singh, and their interrelatedness in carving the evolution of Khalsa.

Guru Nanak’s spiritual ideology of Piri ( ) is depicted in the following
pIrI
couplets.

jau qau pRym Kylx kw cwau[[ isru Dir qlI glI myrI Awau[
iequ mwrig pYru DrIjY[[ isru dIjY kwix n kIjY[[ gurU nwnk (pMnw 1412)

“If you yearn to play the game of love, step on to my path carrying your
head on the palm of your hand. And, once you set your foot on this path,
you lay down yur head, and never flee from your duty”. (GGS. P.1412)

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