ÿþ<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>SIR&#298 R&#256GA K&#298 V&#256R</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 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">&#65279<i>SIR&#298 R&#256GA K&#298 V&#256R</i> by Gur&#363 R&#257m D&#257s is one of the twenty-two v&#257rs entered in the Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib. It occurs in Sir&#299 <i>r&#257ga</i> from which it derives its title. This <i>r&#257ga</i>, known for its musical grace and delicacy, is sung both in winter (January-February) and in summer (May-June) just before the rains set in, the time for recitation being a little before sunset. The <i>V&#257r</i> comprises twenty-one <i>pau&#7771&#299s</i> or stanzas, each preceded by two <i>&#347lokas</i> except the fourteenth which is preceded by three <i>&#347lokas</i>. Each <i>pau&#7771&#299</i> comprises five lines whereas <i>&#347lokas</i> vary in length as well as in authorship. All the <i>pau&#7771&#299s</i> of the <i>V&#257r</i> are by Gur&#363 R&#257m D&#257s whereas of the total forty-three <i>&#347lokas</i>, seven are by Gur&#363 N&#257nak, two by Gur&#363 A&#7749gad, thirty-three by Gur&#363 Amar D&#257s and one by Gur&#363 Arjan.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The <i>V&#257r</i> pays homage to the One Supreme God, the sole creator and preserver of all that exists in this Universe. It is by His grace that men take to the remembrance of His name and thus swim across the worldly ocean. God created this earth, the sun and the moon and, the fourteen worlds. Some are blessed to earn profit and they become <i>gurmukhs</i>, i.e. those with their faces turned towards the Gur&#363. Such persons become liberated and suffer no more in the cycle of transmigration. Belief in the existence of God, love for Him, recitation of His Name and realization of God as the ultimate end of human life are some of the points on which the <i>V&#257r</i> lays emphasis. Love other than that of God is transient and it leads one to disappointment. Apart from the spiritual and theological problems that this <i>V&#257r</i> takes up, it refers to some social problems as well. Equality of men is the basic value. What determines man's social status is not his birth in a particular caste but his good or bad deeds. Pride in caste is sheer vanity. God protects all irrespective of their caste or creed.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Gur&#363 N&#257nak denounces untouchability as well as hypocrisy of the so-called 'twice-born' who draw a line around their kitchen to exclude pollution but have not cleansed their hearts of the vices. A man who pretends piety and carried evil in his heart is severely condemned. Man is adjured to choose the moral path. Thus will one overcome ego, the main stumbling block in the way of the realization of Truth. The last stanza of the <i>V&#257r</i> affords a revelatory glimpse. The Gur&#363, who calls himself a <i>&#7692h&#257&#7693&#299</i> or bard engaged in penegyrizing God, has visited the Divine Portal and there received from Him the gift of True Name.</p> </font> <p class="BIB"> BIBLIOGRAPHY<p class="C1"><ol class="C1"><li class="C1"><i>&#346abad&#257rth Sr&#299 Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib</i>. Amritsar, 1959<BR> <li class="C1"> Amole, S.S., <i>B&#257&#299 V&#257r&#257&#7749 Sa&#7789&#299k</i>. Amritsar, 1944<BR> <li class="C1"> Narai&#7751 Si&#7749gh, Gi&#257n&#299, <i>B&#257&#299 V&#257r&#257&#7749 Sa&#7789&#299k</i>. Amritsar, 1975<BR> <li class="C1"> Bishan Si&#7749gh, Gi&#257n&#299, <i>&#7788&#299k&#257 B&#257&#299 V&#257r&#257&#7749</i>. Arnritsar, n.d.<BR> </ol><p class="CONT">Harn&#257m Si&#7749gh <br></p><BR> </font><img src="counter.aspx" width="1px" height="1px" alt=""></HTML></BODY>