ÿþ<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>SIKHISM</TITLE> <style type="text/css"> .BODY { background-color: #EAF1F7; background-image: url('images/gtbh.jpg'); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-attachment: fixed; background-position: center; color: #0066CC;} .C1{text-align: justify;color: #0066CC;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} .BIB{text-align: center;color: #000099;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} .CONT{text-align: right;color: #FF0000;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} </style><META NAME="keywords" CONTENT="SIKHISM"> <META http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8"></HEAD> <BODY class="BODY" oncontextmenu="return false" ondragstart="return false" onselectstart="return false"> <FONT ALIGN="JUSTIFY" FACE="Tahoma"> <p class="C1">&#65279SIKHISM, the youngest of the major world religions, strictly monotheistic in its fundamental belief, was born in the Punjab in the revelation of Gur&#363 N&#257nak (1469-1539). Although it bears close affinities in its terminology and in some of its philosophical assumptions with other India-born religions and with Islam, yet in its orientation it is a separate, independent faith. The distinctive nature of Sikhism has been asserted right from its origin in the pronouncements of Gur&#363 N&#257nak, not set down as a systematic treatise but scattered throughout his numerous hymns included in the Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib, amplified by the lives and works of his nine successors and explained in the exegetical writings of Sikh scholars dating back to the late sixteenth and early seventeeth centuries. Again, Sikhism is not only a philosophical system but is also a distinct cultural pattern, a way of life signified by the term Sikh Panth.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Etymologically, the word <i>sikh</i> goes back to Sanskrit <i>&#347i&#7779ya</i>, itself derived from the root <i>&#347is</i> or <i>&#347&#257s</i> meaning to correct, chastise, punish ; to teach, instruct, inform. In P&#257li <i>&#347i&#7779ya</i>, (a pupil, scholar, disciple) became <i>sissa</i> and later, <i>sekh</i> or <i>sekkha</i> which means a pupil or one under training in a religious doctrine (Sanskrit <i>&#347iksh&#257</i> and P&#257li <i>sikkh&#257</i>). In Punjabi the term is <i>sikkh</i> usually transliterated <i>sikh</i>. "Sikh" now almost universally denotes a follower of Gur&#363 N&#257nak, his nine successors and their teachings embodied in the Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib, the Scripture. "Sikhism" denominates the faith they profess. Scattered all over the globe, the Sikhs are mostly concentrated in the northwestern part of India. According to 1991 census, of the 17 million Sikhs in India over 85 per cent live in Punjab, Hary&#257&#7751&#257 and Cha&#7751&#7693&#299ga&#7771h which till 1966 comprised a single state called Punjab. In the present state of Punjab where they number 10.2.million, they form 62.95 percent of the population.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The first date in Sikhism is 1469, the year in which the founder of the faith, Gur&#363 N&#257nak, was born. According to Janam S&#257kh&#299s, traditional accounts of his life, he from early childhood possessed a reflective mind and liked the company of holy men of different denominations. He was already a married man and a father of two sons, when, towards the close of the fifteenth century, he had a direct mystic encounter with the Supreme Reality, which he called <i>Nira&#7749k&#257r</i>, the Formless One. He then set out to preach the Word, <i>&#346abda</i>, revealed to him.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;According to Gur&#363 N&#257nak, God is One, a single Supreme Reality. He is the creator, preserver, destroyer and recreator of material existence, but He Himself is uncreated, unborn and self-existent. In fact the Creator is not different from His creation but is one with it. All material existence emanates from Him and is the manifestation of His Self. Its apparent diversity does not alter the unicity of the All-embraching whole. God as the supreme spirit permeates throughout His creation but is not limited by it. He transcends it. He, the timeless and the boundless One, transcends even time and space.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;In the Sikh Scripture, the concept of the supreme reality is not only dynamic and reverberating but many pluralities such as <i>nirgu&#7751a-sagu&#7751a</i> and transcendent immanent are subsumed in it. He is <i>nirgu&#7751a</i> or without attributes. Yet He is <i>sagu&#7751a</i> or with attributes, too, because in the manifested state all attributes are His. At the same time the ultimate reality of God never binds Himself to any specific forms of image. Sikhism clearly rejects <i>avat&#257rv&#257d</i> or belief in divine incarnation and idol worship.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;God was a palpable reality for the Gur&#363s. They were so imbued with divine love that hey never imagined there could be any doubt about His existence. It is true, though that as an infinitesimal part man can never know the Whole. The supreme reality in its totality is unknowable. Gur&#363 N&#257nak in his long hymn, Japu, which forms early morning prayer for the Sikhs, says : <i>je hau j&#257&#7751&#257 &#257kh&#257 n&#257h&#299 kaha&#7751&#257 kathanu na j&#257&#299</i>---Even if I knew, I could not describe (because he) is indescribable" (GG, 2). Elsewhere using a poetic image he elaborates : "You are the All-knowing, All-seeing Ocean ; how can I, a (humble) fish measure (your) immenseness ?<i>--- (t&#363 dar&#299&#257u d&#257n&#257 b&#299n&#257 mai machhul&#299 kaise antu lah&#257</i>"(GG, 25). Yet the individual self, being a tiny ray of the illimitable source of light that God is, is ever connected to that source and may feel and even comprehend its existence, however vaguely. The Gur&#363s have often used the image of the sun and the ray to define the relation of God and individual self. They accepted the universal term <i>&#257tm&#257</i> or soul as the spark or ray through which the <i>param&#257tm&#257</i> or the Ultimate Spirit permeates individual selves. To comprehend the latter, the former is to be awakened and ignited. This is to be done through self-effort under the guidance of the Gur&#363 but, above all, with God's grace, <i>nadar, mihar</i> or <i>karam</i>. Knowing God is meeting God, becoming one with Him, merging of the individual soul <i>&#257tm&#257</i> in the supreme spirit, <i>param&#257tm&#257</i>, realization of God is a spiritual experience. It is a revelation which comes through intuition and divine grace. Logic or any other kind of reasoning is of no avail here, for against one kind of reasoning another can be advanced. Hence for the seeker is to try in a spirit of humility in prayer, and devotion, and in meditating upon <i>n&#257m</i>, the divine name, or <i>&#347abda</i>, the Divine Word. For such effort, Sikhism does not favour asceticism or renunciation. It preaches humility, prayer, devotion and meditation to be cultivated and practised within the worldly life of a householder. Renunciation or rejection of the world as false would be to falsify God's handiwork.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The material world of time and space is God's creation. It is as real as the creator Himself. As says Gur&#363 Arjan, N&#257nak V : "True is He and true is His creation (because) all has emanated from God Himself-- <i>&#257pi sati k&#299&#257 sabhu sati; tisu prabh te sagal&#299 utpati"</i> (GG, 294). In Sikhism, why, when and how of universe is not considered a matter for logic and reasoning nor of historical and scientific research. God creates it when he pleases and he destroys when he so wills. To quote Gur&#363 Arjan again <i>"karate k&#299 miti na j&#257nai k&#299&#257, n&#257nak jo tisu bh&#257vai so vart&#299&#257</i>-- The created cannot have a measure of the creator; What He wills, O N&#257nak, happens" (GG, 285). Again <i>"&#257pan khelu &#257pi kari dekhai, khelu sa&#7749kochai tau n&#257nak eka&#299</i>-- He watches His own sport; when, O N&#257nak, He winds up His sport, He the one, alone remains" (GG, 292). Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh calls this process of expansion and reversion or dissolution as <i>udkarkh</i> (Sanskrit <i>utkar&#7779a&#7751a</i>) and <i>&#257karkh</i> (Sanskrit <i>&#257kar&#7779a&#7751a</i>), respectively. "When you, O Creator, caused <i>utkarkh</i>" he says, "the creation assumed the boundless body ; whenever you effect <i>&#257karkh</i>, all corporeal existence merges in you ("<i>Benat&#299 Chaupa&#299"</i>). As to the time of the creation of the Universe, Gur&#363 "<i>thiti v&#257ru na jogi j&#257&#7751a&#299 ruti m&#257hu n&#257 ko&#299 j&#257 kart&#257 sira&#7789h&#299 kau s&#257je &#257pe j&#257&#7751ai so&#299</i> (of creation) no <i>yog&#299</i> knows the date or day, none knows the season or month; the Creator alone who made the Universe knows" (GG, 4). Elsewhere, Gur&#363 N&#257nak in a 16-stanza verse describes his vision of the Pre-Creation state thus : "For countless eons there was a state of semi-darkness. There was no earth or sky but only the boundless <i>hukam</i>. There was neither day nor night, no moon nor sun. He was in a <i>sunn sam&#257dh&#299</i> (Sanskrit <i>&#347&#363nya sam&#257dh&#299</i>) or trance in nothingness. There were neither any sources of production, nor language, air, nor water. Neither were the processes of creation and dissolation, nor transmigration of souls. There were no upper or nether regions, nor the seven oceans, or rivers, nor water flowing in them&#8230 (and so on). He was all by Himself (until) when it pleased Him, He created the Universe which he sustains without any prop..." And he concludes, "The perfect Gur&#363 makes one understand. None knows His bounds. Those blessed ones, O N&#257nak, who are imbued with the love of the true one enjoy the bliss and sing his praises" (GG, 1035).</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The created world is not <i>m&#257ya</i> or illusion. It is not only real, it is sacred because in Gur&#363 A&#7749gad's words, <i>"ih jag sachai k&#299 hai ko&#7789har&#299 sache k&#257 vichi vasu</i>-- This world is the abode of true one who is present in it" (GG, 463).</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Gur&#363 Amar D&#257s, N&#257nak III, identifies it with God Himself. "This (so-called) poisonous world that you see," says he, "is (the manifest) form of God ; it is his form that you see" (GG, 922). Elsewhere, however, the world is described as false and likened to an illusion, dream or bubble. The seeming contradiction is resolved by considering the word <i>sat</i> (Sanskrit <i>satya</i>) or true in its double nuance. <i>Sat</i> means true, real, actual, verifiable, genuine : not counterfeit, spurious or imaginary; it also means constant, sure, secure, steadfast, not subject to variation. The material or created world meets the former set of characteristics, but not the latter. It is true in so far as it is not imaginary or illusory, and is in fact a reflection of the supreme spirit. So are the souls which are nothing but the microcosmic bits of the Macrocosmic Spirit transcending even the macrocosm. But the bodies, the abodes of these bits of the True One, are transitory, changeable and ever-changing. It is in this sense that Gur&#363 N&#257nak, in a hymn declaring the world, its dwellers, its wealth, and human relations as false, laments : <i>kisu n&#257li k&#299cha&#299 dost&#299 sabh jagu chala&#7751h&#257r</i>--- whom to befriend ? The whole world is in flux" (GG, 468). Elsewhere in the Sikh Scripture, the world is described as falsehood, illusion, dream, bubbles, a wall of sand, destructible. Thus, according to Sikhism, the world may be considered as a dialectical truth lying between the Absolute Truth and the Buddhist-&#346a&#7749kar&#257ch&#257ryan <i>m&#257y&#257</i>.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The world came into being through God's Will and is ever subject to His <i>hukam</i>, a Persian term meaning command, decree, verdict, order, fiat, rule, law, control, direction; authority, jurisdiction, etc. <i>Hukam</i> as a concept in Gur&#363 N&#257nak&#8217s message is both Divine Will and Divine Law. In fact, Divine Law has its origin in Divine Will, and the sanction behind it <i>bhai</i> or <i>bhau</i> Sanskrit <i>bhaya</i>), the fear or awe of God. According to Gur&#363 N&#257nak, the whole creation is under <i>bhau</i>, fear of God (GG, 464). Other terms used synonymously with <i>hukam</i> are <i>amar</i> and <i>farm&#257n</i> (Divine fiat or command); <i>bh&#257&#7751&#257</i> and <i>raz&#257</i> (divine pleasure) and <i>qudarat</i> (divine power). But God, unlike God in some Semitic religions, is no <i>jabb&#257r</i> (tyrant, oppressor) or <i>gahh&#257r</i> (wrathful, avenger), and <i>hukam</i> is not a blind impulse of the supreme spirit; it is regulated by order and justice. The universe being the play of his pleasure, God enjoys it. He, of course, dispenses divine justice but it is tampered by his <i>mihar</i> (mercy) and <i>nadar</i> (grace). God in relation to his creation is benign and compassionate.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;God's creation does not exist in a lump. "The indestructible Lord, <i>ekank&#257r</i> (the one God) has spread himself in several ways, in several forms, several colours and several garbs" (GG, 284). He is immanent in all these diverse beings, in that <i>&#257tm&#257</i>, the divine spirit, pervades through all. Of these the sentient beings, <i>j&#299vas</i>, are endowed with individual souls, <i>j&#299v&#257tm&#257. J&#299va, j&#299u</i> and <i>j&#299o</i> are the terms used in the Sikh Scripture both for an individual being and for the soul while <i>j&#299a</i> signifies both the individual being and man or mind. <i>J&#299va</i> takes birth under God's <i>hukam</i> through the fusion of the formless soul with some material form or body. While the former, being a part of the supreme spirit, <i>param&#257tm&#257</i>, is immortal, the latter, conditioned by time and space, is transient and temporary, and is liable to laws of growth, decay and death. <i>J&#299va</i> dies when <i>j&#299v&#257tm&#257</i> or individual soul sheds its elemental body. Death like birth is also subject to <i>hukam</i>, God's will. <i>Hukam</i> prevails even between birth and death, but there it operates primarily in the form of <i>karma</i>, the divine law of cause and effect.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Sikhism accepts the laws of <i>karma</i> and transmigration of soul, but according to it heaven and hell have only symbolic significance. The term <i>karam</i>, as it is spelt in Punjabi and as it appears in Sikh Scripture, has three connotations. As an inflection of Sanskrit <i>karman</i> from root <i>kri</i> (to do, perform, accomplish, make, cause, effect, etc.) it means an act, action, deed, etc. It also stands for fate, destiny, predestination inasmuch as these result from one's actions and deeds. Thirdly, as a word of Arabic origin, <i>karam</i> is a synonym of <i>nadar</i>, that is divine grace, kindness, clemency. Under the law of <i>karma</i>, popular in several eastern religions, <i>j&#299v&#257tm&#257</i> on leaving one body transmigrates to another body to take birth as another <i>j&#299va</i> which may belong to any one of the 8,400,000 species that exist. Whether the new body shall belong to a species higher or lower than the one lately cast off by the <i>j&#299v&#257tm&#257</i> depends upon the good or bad deeds, respectively, perfomed during the previous birth or births. It is as result of good actions performed during successive births especially during human births, that, subject to <i>nadar</i> or God's grace, a <i>j&#299v&#257tm&#257</i> attains <i>mokh</i> (Sanskrit <i>mok&#7779a</i>), that is final liberation from the cycle of births and deaths. <i>J&#299v&#257tm&#257</i>, a mere drop, then merges finally with the Unfathomable Ocean that is <i>param&#257tm&#257</i> or God, and becomes undistinguishable from Him. But as long as such merger does not come about, the soul must wander enveloped in gross matter through various bodies and different species that form the cycle of transmigration.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Of all the species, human is the highest and the most privileged. Gur&#363 Arjan says, <i>"lakh chaur&#257s&#299h joni sab&#257&#299, ma&#7751as k&#257u prabhi d&#299&#299 v&#257&#7693&#257&#299</i>. Of all the eighty-four lacs of species, God gave superiority to man (GG, 1075) ; and <i>"avar joni ter&#299 panih&#257r&#299, isu dhart&#299 mahi ter&#299 sikd&#257r&#299</i>-- All other species are your (man's) water-bearers; you have hegemony over this earth" (GG, 374). Man's superiority arises from his superior intelligence, keener understanding, self-knowledge and a fine moral instinct. Human birth is, therefore, the most appropriate for trying to attain <i>mok&#7779a</i> or <i>mukt&#299</i>. It is a rare chance for <i>J&#299v&#257tm&#257</i> to seek union with <i>pararm&#257tm&#257</i>. To quote Gur&#363 Arjan again, <i>"bh&#257&#299 par&#257pati m&#257nukh dehur&#299&#257 ; gobind mila&#7751 k&#299 ih ter&#299 bar&#299&#257</i>--- (now that) you have got a human body, this is your turn to meet God" (GG, 378). Gur&#363 N&#257nak himself had warned : "Listen, listen to my advice, O my mind ; only good deeds will endure, and there may not be a second chance--<i>su&#7751i su&#7751i sikh ham&#257r&#299; sukritu kit&#257 rahas&#299 mere j&#299a&#7771e bahu&#7771i na &#257vai v&#257r&#299'</i> (GG,154).</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;According to Gur&#363 N&#257nak, <i>mukt&#299</i> or attainment of union with God is the ultimate purpose of man. In human mind, endowed with superior cognitive, affective and cognitive faculties, the spiritual spark shines the brightest. But <i>haumai</i>, or egoism, the sense of "I-amness" bedims the divine spark within him and hampers his understanding of the primal reality. <i>Haumai</i> or self-concern creates a wall around man's understanding, separates him from his original source and leads him to <i>agi&#257n</i> (spiritual blindness, nescience). <i>Haumai</i> gives rise to the five passions, i.e. <i>k&#257m</i> (sensuality), <i>krodh</i> (anger), <i>lobh</i> (avarice), <i>moh</i> (attachment), and <i>ha&#7749k&#257r</i> (pride). Led by these passions, he becomes <i>manmukh</i>, a self-centred, self-willed, unregenerate individual, unresponsive to instruction. His salvation lies in overcoming his <i>haumai</i> and understanding his true self, which is a spark of the light eternal. "Recognize yourself, O mind," says Gur&#363 Amar D&#257s, N&#257nak III, "You are the light manifest." And he goes on in the same verse to show the way : "Rejoice in Gur&#363's instruction that God is (always) with (in) you. If you recognize your Self, you shall know Lord and shall get the knowledge of life and death" (GG, 441). The seeker is advised to follow <i>gurmati</i>, Gur&#363's instruction, and be a <i>gurmukh</i>, Gur&#363-oriented, rather than a <i>manmukh</i>. Gur&#363 in Sikhism means, besides God Himself, the ten Sikh Gur&#363s from Gur&#363 N&#257nak (1469-1539) to Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh (1666-1708) and, after them, their <i>shabad</i> (Sanskrit <i>&#347abda</i>) preserved in the form of Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib, the Holy Scripture of the Sikhs. <i>Gurmati</i>, therefore, means tenets and doctrines of the faith as revealed in the Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib. The Gur&#363 is the voice of God and Gur&#363's <i>shabad</i> is his divine self-expression.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;According to <i>gurmati</i>, the means to overcome <i>haumai</i> lies in understanding <i>hukam</i>, the fundamental principle of God's activity, and in living one's life wholly in accord with it. This understanding or <i>gi&#257n</i> (Sanskrit <i>jñ&#257n</i>) comes not through rites and rituals, nor through the study of voluminous tomes or discursive discussions. It is not attained through renunciation, austerities and penances, either. Sikhism recommends <i>grihastha</i> or normal life of a householder, but without falling in love with worldly life as if it would always endure. The only true love is devotion to God. Gur&#363 N&#257nak set forth devout love as the truest virtue. Love of God consists in immersing oneself in <i>n&#257m simaran</i>, i.e. constant and loving remembrance of His Name, meditating upon His immeasurable immenseness in awe and wonder, and in singing His praises. Such loving devotion helps one to free oneself from <i>haumai</i> and to attain <i>mokhdu&#257r</i> or threshold of <i>mukt&#299</i>, i.e. liberation from the circuit of birth, death and rebirth. At the same time as a householder one should earn one's living by <i>kirat karn&#299</i>, i.e. by hard work and honest means. The third virtue is <i>va&#7751&#7693 chhak&#7751a</i>, to share one's victuals with others. Besides these Gur&#363 N&#257nak laid special emphasis on sev&#257 or self-abnegating deeds of service. "One who performs selfless service," says N&#257nak V, "finds the Lord" (GG, 286). <i>Sh&#299l</i> (good conduct), <i>sa&#7749gam</i> (moderation), <i>santokh</i> (contentment) and <i>gar&#299b&#299</i> (in the sense of humility, not of poverty) are the individual virtues a Sikh is instructed to cherish.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;On the social plane, Gur&#363 N&#257nak preached equality of all human beings. He especially denounced distinctions and discriminations based on caste, creed, sex and worldly possessions. Humanism, universalism tolerance and <i>sev&#257</i> are the pillars of social ethics of the Sikhs.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The founder of the faith, Gur&#363 N&#257nak, not only determined the principal truths and doctrines of Sikhism, he also took care to ensure that his teaching would endure. Wherever he went he advised his followers to join together in <i>sa&#7749gat</i>, i.e, holy fellowship or community, to establish <i>dharams&#257ls</i> or houses of congregation, and <i>la&#7749gar</i> or community refectory (for themselves and for the needy). At the end of his <i>ud&#257s&#299s</i> or travels, he himself had such a community established at Kart&#257rpur on the right bank of R&#257v&#299. It was not a monastic order, but a fellowship of ordinary people engaged in ordinary occupations of life, congregating for prayer and sitting together to share a common repast, overruling distinctions of caste and creed. To carry on his work he himself nominated a successor, a devout Sikh Bh&#257&#299 Lahi&#7751&#257, who he renamed A&#7749gad, a limb of his own body, and to whom he passed on a book containing his teachings, and his own light, transmitted further from one to the next succeeding Gur&#363 so that, the Sikhs believe, all the ten Gur&#363s were of equal spiritual rank sharing the revelation of Gur&#363 N&#257nak, whose message they elaborated and preached and whose social institutions of <i>sa&#7749gat</i> and <i>pa&#7749gat</i> they expanded and consolidated into a well-defined community of believers which ultimately blossomed into the Sikh Panth.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Gur&#363 A&#7749gad (1504-52) popularized the Gurmukh&#299 script among Sikhs, and Gur&#363 Amar D&#257s (1479-1574) introduced a well-knit ecclesiastical system based on <i>mañj&#299s</i> or dioceses and organized regular congregational fairs for the Sikhs at Goindv&#257l, which became their special centre of pilgrimage. Gur&#363 R&#257m D&#257s (1534-81) established yet another centre by founding the town of Amritsar, now the religious capital of the Sikhs. Under Gur&#363 Arjan (1563-1606) Sikhism was more firmly established. He constructed in the middle of the pool of Amritsar, the Harimandar, Golden Temple of today. He also founded new towns of Tarn T&#257ran, Kart&#257rpur and Sr&#299 Hargobindpur, and further, consolidated the <i>mañj&#299</i> system by appointing <i>masands</i> to the outlying preaching districts.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;More significant was his collection and canonization of the compositions of the Gur&#363s and some other saints in the form of the &#256di Granth, which he installed in the Harimandar. The provision of a central place of worship and the Scripture proved to be of great significance in moulding Sikh self-consciousness and in the reification of Sikh life and society. Sikhs were now a community distinct enough to attract the spite of the heir-apparent to the throne of Delhi who, soon after his accession as Emperor Jah&#257&#7749g&#299r in 1605, had Gur&#363 Arjan executed. Gur&#363 Arjan's martyrdom, the first in the eventful history of Sikhism, gave a martial turn to the community's orientation. His son and successor, Gur&#363 Hargobind (1595-1644), instead of donning the rosary and other saintly emblems, wore a warrior's equipment for the ceremonies of succession and encouraged his followers to train as soldiers. He set the principle of <i>m&#299r&#299</i> and <i>p&#299r&#299</i>, combination of worldly strength with spiritual faith; and devotion or, to use modern terminology, coalescence of religion and politics. Not that the earlier Gur&#363s had been oblivious of the political happenings around them. The fusion of the worldly and the other-worldly was inherent in the basic teachings of Gur&#363 N&#257nak. The Gur&#363s preached active participation in life rather than running away from it. What Gur&#363 Hargobind did was to consciously prepare the community to defend the faith against wilful oppression of bigoted state power. His task was made easier by the awakening brought about by the teaching of his predecessors. He was able to forge the instruments of a mighty revolution which he duly tested in his lifetime. His successors, Gur&#363 Har R&#257i (1630-61) and Gur&#363 Har Krishan (1656-64) kept the style he had introduced and were attended by armed followers. But although summoned to imperial presence, they were left in comparative peace by the ruling power. Gur&#363 Te<u>gh</u> Bah&#257dur (1621-75), the ninth Gur&#363, again bore the cross. He laid down his life to defend the people's right to their religious belief. His son, Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh (1666-1708), created the martial order of the <u>Kh</u>&#257ls&#257, a classless commonwealth of self-abnegating Sikhs, now surnamed Si&#7749ghs, devout and peaceful worshippers of the One God but irreconcilable opponent of injustice and tyranny.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<i>Sev&#257</i> or selfless service had always been a laudable ideal for the Sikhs. It implied some measure of sacrifice. With the martyrdom of Gur&#363 Arjan, sacrifice even in its most difficult form, sacrificing one's life for a worthy cause, became a desirable goal for them. To die fighting in defence of righteousness was something to be sought after. "Grant me this boon, O Lord," sang Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh, "that I may not turn away from good deeds : may I not be afraid to fight the enemy (of faith) and may l assure my victory : may I instruct my own mind to greedily sing Thy praises; and when the end comes, may I fall fighting in the thick of the battle."</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh transformed the Sikh <i>sa&#7749gat</i> into <u>Kh</u>&#257ls&#257 <i>panth</i>, giving it a distinct identity in form as well as in spirit. Before he passed away, he put an end to personal Gur&#363ship and bequeathed the spiritual leadership of the community to the Holy Book, Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib, in perpetuity and the temporal leadership to the Panth itself who was to fashion its own destiny in future under the guidance of the Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib, the perpetual repository of fundamental principles, spiritual and moral, as revealed by Gur&#363 N&#257nak in ten corporeal frames. Within half a century of Gur&#363 Gobind Si&#7749gh's decease, Sikhism had turned into a political force and in another forty years it had become a state. In the process the Panth had to undergo the worst state persecution and genocide in human history, but the courage, tenacity and faith with which it reacted to and overcame the suppression was equally unprecedented. The ultimate emergence of Sikhs as the ruling power in northwestern India, however, was accompanied by some loss on the doctrinal side. The Sikh doctrine is not a single reasoned statement but lies scattered in the Scriptural verses and in traditional institutions of the Panth. The preservation of doctrinal purity, therefore, largely depends on correct interpretation of Scripture and tradition. Unfortunately during the turbulent eighteenth century, while the <u>Kh</u>&#257ls&#257 were fully involved in the grim struggle for existence and, later, in conquest and political administration, theological affairs fell almost completely in the hands of Ud&#257s&#299 and Nirmal&#257 priests highly influenced by Hindu scholasticism. They brought in priesthood, ritualism and at places even idol-worship, all strictly forbidden in Sikhism. The rise of aristocracy and later of monarchy, on the other hand, put an end to such democratic, republican institutions as Sarbatt <u>Kh</u>&#257ls&#257, <i>gurm&#257t&#257</i> and Dal <u>Kh</u>&#257ls&#257.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;After the conquest of the Punjab by the British, there was a sharp fall in the Sikh population. Two early attempts for the preservation of doctrinal purity were the Nira&#7749k&#257r&#299 movement of B&#257b&#257 Dy&#257l (1783-1855) and the N&#257mdh&#257r&#299 movement under B&#257b&#257 R&#257m Singh (1815-85). The real renaissance commenced with the Si&#7749gh Sabh&#257 movement launched in 1873. It touched Sikhism to its very roots and made it a living force once again with a renewed search for separate Sikh identity. It opened for the Sikhs doors of modern progress, and ushered in a period of vigorous educational and literary activity. The Si&#7749gh Sabh&#257 gave place to Gurdw&#257r&#257 Reform movement of the early 1920's which resulted in the removal of the influence of the priestly class and the establishment of a democratically elected statutory body, the Shiroma&#7751&#299 Gurdw&#257r&#257 Parbandhak Committee, to look after the religious affairs of the Panth and the management of Sikh shrines. For political leadership, bulk of the Sikh population looked up to the Shiroma&#7751&#299 Ak&#257l&#299 Dal. At the national level, their commitment to the cause of Indian freedom was total and their contribution to it was noteworthy.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;In 1940, the Muslims of India represented by the Indian Muslim League made a bid to have a separate country of their own, Pakistan, comprising predominantly Muslim territories culled out of India. The Sikhs were both alarmed and motivated. The Punjab, which to them was their only home, was a Muslim majority province. Its transfer to Pakistan would greatly jeopardize their interests, and threaten their newly re-discovered identity. They made a bid for an independent homeland of their own, but they were too few in numbers (1.47 per cent of the total population of India and 13 per cent of that of the Punjab according to the 1941 census) and too thinly spread to justify their claim to a viable territorial unit.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The partition of the Punjab in 1947, which divided the Sikh population into two almost equal halves, was a severe blow to them. Those left in districts assigned to Pakistan had to migrate to the Indian side of the Punjab and the Sikh states of cis-Sutlej region. But, by their native tenacity and enterprise, they soon rehabilitated themselves in independent India. Yet fresh doubts and misgivings soon arose about the preservation of their jealously guarded identity and cultural heritage. The framers of the new Constitution of India declined to grant to them special rights as a minority community, and a bulk of the non-Sikh Punjabis disowned Punjabi as their mother tongue with the result that while the whole of India was reorganized on linguistic basis, the Sikhs had to launch a prolonged struggle to secure a Punjabi-speaking state. Language being one of the most important factors of any culture, the Sikhs are highly sensitive about it.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;On the theological plane, modern Sikhism is a continuation of the Si&#7749gh Sabh&#257 restoration. While it retains its creedal unity and its adherence to its original metaphysics and symbolism, it has found enough resilience in the framework it has inherited to adapt itself to the modern course of progress without compromising on the fundamentals. Deeply conscious of its eventful history, its outlook is essentially forward-looking. Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib, the Holy Scripture, is the continuing spiritual authority and is venerated as the living presence of the Gur&#363s. It gives form and meaning to the Sikhs' religious style and social customs. It is the integral focus of their psyche and the regulative principle of their belief and practice. Through their sacred book and through their 500-year old history, they maintain a strong attachment to their religious inheritance. Yet their deep allegiance to it creates no exclusivism. Their faith has a broad humanitarian base. Si&#7749gly in their homes and collectively in congregations in their places of worship, the Sikhs conclude their morning and evening prayers, or prayers said at any other time as part of personal piety or of a ceremony, with <i>ard&#257s</i> or supplicatory prayer which ends with the words : <i>N&#257nak n&#257m cha&#7771hd&#299 kal&#257 tere bh&#257&#7751e sarbatt k&#257 bhal&#257</i>-- May Thy Name, Thy Glory be forever triumphant, N&#257nak, and in Thy Will, may peace and prosperity come to one and all.</p> </font> <p class="BIB"> BIBLIOGRAPHY<p class="C1"><ol class="C1"><li class="C1"> Jodh Singh, Bh&#257&#299, <i>Gurmati Nir&#7751ai</i> [Reprint]. Patiala, 1990<BR> <li class="C1"> Harbans Singh, <i>Guru N&#257nak and Origins of the Sikh Faith</i>. Patiala, 1969<BR> <li class="C1"> Nirbhai Singh, <i>Philosophy of Sikhism</i>. Delhi, 1990<BR> <li class="C1"> Sher Singh, <i>The Philosophy of Sikhism</i>. Lahore, 1944<BR> <li class="C1"> Kapur Singh, <i>Par&#257&#347arapra&#347na</i>. Amritsar, 1989<BR> <li class="C1"> Jodh Singh <i>The Religious Philosophy of Guru Nanak</i>. Delhi, 1983<BR> <li class="C1"> Harbans Singh and Lal Mani Joshi, <i>An Introduction to Indian Religions</i>. Patiala, 1973<BR> <li class="C1"> Talib, Gurbachan Singh, <i>An Introduction to Sri Guru Granth Sahib</i>. Patiala, 1991<BR> <li class="C1"> Dharam Singh, <i>Sikh Theology of Liberation</i>. Delhi, 1991<BR> <li class="C1"> Avtar Singh, <i>Ethics of the Sikhs</i>. Patiala, 1970<BR> </ol><p class="CONT">Gurbachan Si&#7749gh T&#257lib<br></p><BR> </font><img src="counter.aspx" width="1px" height="1px" alt=""></HTML></BODY>