history of the sikh religion essay

Origins and development of Sikh faith: The Gurus

Gurus are central to the sikh faith. eleanor nesbitt looks at the founder of the sikh faith – guru nanak, the concept of guru in sikhism, the central principles of the gurus’ teachings and the sacred scripture – the guru granth sahib..

There are currently about 24 million Sikhs worldwide. The majority live in the Indian state of Punjab. They regard Guru Nanak (1469–1539) as the founder of their faith and Guru Gobind Singh (1666–1708), the tenth Guru, as the Guru who formalised their religion. Religions and religious teachers do not exist in a vacuum: India, in the Gurus’ time, was ruled by Mughal emperors who were Muslim. Punjabi society was a mix of Muslims and Hindus.

The Sikh religion has evolved from the Gurus’ teachings, and from their followers’ devotion, into a world religion with its own scripture, code of discipline,  gurdwaras  (places of worship), festivals and life cycle rites and Sikhs share in a strong sense of identity and celebrate their distinctive history.

A central principle of the Gurus’ teaching is the importance of integrating spirituality with carrying out one’s responsibilities. Sikhs should perform  seva  (voluntary service of others) while at the same time practising  simaran  (remembrance of God). The ideal is to be a  sant sipahi  (warrior saint) i.e. a person who combines spiritual qualities with a readiness for courageous action. Guru Nanak, the first Guru, and Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru, continue to feature prominently in Sikhs’ experience of their religion.

Who was Guru Nanak?

Guru Nanak was born in 1469 in Talvandi, a place now renamed Nankana Sahib, in the state of Punjab in present-day Pakistan. His parents were Hindus and they were Khatri by caste, which meant that they had a family tradition of account-keeping. The name ‘Nanak’, like Nanaki, his sister’s name, may indicate that they were born in their mother’s parents’ home, known in Punjabi as their  nanake . Guru Nanak’s wife was called Sulakhani and she bore two sons. Until a life-changing religious experience, Nanak was employed as a store keeper for the local Muslim governor.

One day, when he was about thirty, he experienced being swept into God’s presence, while he was having his daily bath in the river. The result was that he gave away his possessions and began his life’s work of communicating his spiritual insights. This he did by composing poetic compositions which he sang to the accompaniment of a  rabab , the stringed instrument that his Muslim travelling companion, Mardana, played. After travelling extensively Guru Nanak settled down, gathering a community of disciples (Sikhs) around him, in a place known as Kartarpur (‘Creator Town’).

A portrait of Guru Nanak (1469–1539), the first Sikh Guru, Durgashankar Pathak, Sarvasiddhāntattvacūḍāmaṇi (Crest-jewel of the Essence of all Systems of Astronomy), 19th century, traditional gouache and gold on paper ( The British Library )

Guru Nanak’s poems (or  shabads ) in the Guru Granth Sahib (scripture) give a clear sense of his awareness of there being one supreme reality ( ik oankar ) behind the world’s many phenomena. His  shabads  emphasise the need for integrity rather than outward displays of being religious, plus the importance of being mindful of God’s name ( nam ) and being generous to others through  dan  (pronounced like the English word ‘darn’) i.e. giving to others. His poems are rich in word-pictures of animals and birds and human activities such as farming and commerce.

The British Library holds a number of lithographs and manuscripts of much-loved stories of Guru Nanak’s life; these include the Vilaitvali  Janam-sakhi  and the more famous, beautifully illustrated B40  Janam-sakhi . (The word ‘ janam ’ means birth and ‘ sakhi ’ means testimony or evidence.) Some of the events recounted in the Janam-sakhis are miracles, despite the fact that Guru Nanak and his successors criticised miracle-working. The stories are written in such a way as to glorify the Guru; the anecdotes often convey a deeper message: for instance when Nanak asked a rich man to take a needle to heaven for him, so showing the futility of accumulating wealth.

Guru Nanak is seated under a tree with his travelling companion Mardana; standing before them is a rich money-lender whom the Guru had entrusted with a needle, requesting that it be returned to him in heaven. Having understood the futility of amassing wealth, the money-lender is shown with hands joined in supplication as he begs for the Guru’s forgiveness. Janam-sākhī , 1733 C.E. ( The British Library )

Guru Nanak’s importance results not just from his inspirational teaching but also from the practical basis he provided for a new religious movement: he established a community of his followers in Kartarpur and he appointed a successor, Guru Angad, on the basis of his devoted service. Guru Nanak is respected as ‘Baba Nanak’ by Punjabi Muslims as well as by Sikhs and Punjabi Hindus.

Each year Sikhs celebrate his birthday on the day of the full moon in November. Like other  gurpurabs  (festivals commemorating a Guru) it is marked by an  akhand path  (pronounced like ‘part’), a 48-hour, continuous, complete reading of the Guru Granth Sahib which ends on the festival morning. Commemorative events in 2019 celebrated the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak’s birth.

What is the concept of Guru in Sikhism?

At first Nanak was called ‘Baba Nanak’, with ‘Baba’ being an affectionate term, like ‘grandfather’, for an older man. These days he is better known as Guru Nanak. Just as the word ‘Sikh’ means learner, so ‘Guru’ means teacher. Sikhs explain ‘Guru’ as meaning ‘remover of darkness’. The Gurmukhi script that is used for the Punjabi language has no capital letters, but in English the correct practice is to use a capital ‘G’ for Guru in the Sikh sense. There have been just ten human Gurus. Their lives spanned the period from Nanak’s birth in 1469 to the passing away of Guru Gobind Singh in 1708. Since then the Sikhs’ living Guru has been the Guru Granth Sahib, the sacred volume of scripture. The Guru Granth Sahib is much more than a book: it is believed to embody the Guru as well as containing compositions by six of the ten Gurus. The preeminent Guru (Nanak’s Guru) is God, whose many names include ‘Satguru’ (the true Guru) and ‘Waheguru’ (a name which began as an exclamation of praise).

Sikhs believe that all ten human Gurus embodied the same spirit of Guruship and that their different styles were appropriate to the differing circumstances in which they lived. Guru Nanak’s first four successors, Guru Angad Dev, Guru Amar Das, Guru Ram Das and Guru Arjan Dev, were also poets. Their compositions, together with Guru Nanak’s, became the basis of the Guru Granth Sahib. While their spiritual emphasis seamlessly continued Guru Nanak’s, each made a distinctive contribution to Sikh community life. Guru Angad formalised the Gurmukhi script in which the scripture is written. It was almost certainly developed from the shorthand that accountants used for keeping their accounts, as a simpler version of the script that is still used for the older language of Sanskrit.

Guru Amar Das made the  langar  a key feature of Sikh life: a shared vegetarian meal eaten by people of all ranks sitting together regardless of their social status. His other innovations included setting up a Sikh place of pilgrimage and appointing preachers to lead local Sikh congregations. His son-in-law and successor, Guru Ram Das appointed stewards-cum-missionaries to organise worship and collect offerings and he started the settlement which in due course was renamed Amritsar. Its name, meaning the pool of immortality, referred to the pool associated with the temple, Harmandir Sahib, that was completed in the time of the fifth Guru, Guru Arjan Dev. In 1604 Guru Arjan Dev installed in Harmandir Sahib the volume of scripture, his compilation of the poems of the first five Gurus plus works by other spiritual poets such as Kabir.

Guru Arjan Dev is also remembered as the first Sikh martyr. Following his death, the sixth Guru, his son Har Gobind, became a military leader. Similarly, the tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Rai, whose father Guru Tegh Bahadar is also remembered as a martyr, assumed a high military profile. The seventh, eighth and ninth Gurus, Guru Har Rai, Guru Har Krishan and Guru Tegh Bahadar, were not military leaders – in fact Guru Har Krishan passed away as a child. Guru Tegh Bahadar championed the brahmins of Kashmir who had appealed to him for help. He was put to death when he refused to become a Muslim.

According to tradition, Guru Gobind Rai became Guru Gobind Singh in 1699, when he called his followers together and initiated five men who volunteered their lives for him. These five (known as  panj piare  or five beloved ones), and all Sikhs who have been initiated in a similar way in the years since, make up the  Khalsa , the community that owes its allegiance to the Guru. Guru Gobind Singh received the  amrit  (holy water of initiation) from the  panj piare  and, like them, took the name ‘Singh’ (lion) in place of his earlier name.

A portrait of Guru Gobind Singh (1666–1708), the last in a lineage of ten human Gurus under which Sikhism flourished. Durgashankar Pathak, Sarvasiddhāntattvacūḍāmaṇi (Crest-jewel of the Essence of all Systems of Astronomy), 19th century ( The British Library )

Khalsa  initiates (known as  amritdhari  Sikhs) accept a daily discipline which includes having five identifying marks (the ‘five Ks):  kes  (hair i.e. not allowing hair or beard to be shortened or removed),  kirpan  (sword),  kachha  (shorts – usually nowadays worn under one’s outer clothing),  kangha  (comb) and  kara  (iron or steel bangle). Female initiates take the name ‘Kaur’ (literally ‘prince’). In practice, many Sikh parents give their children the names ‘Singh’ and ‘Kaur’, so these names do not mean that someone has been initiated.

Guru Gobind Singh incorporated his father, Tegh Bahadar’s, hymns in the Sikh scripture. Shortly before his death, he instructed Sikhs to regard the Granth (volume) as their Guru – hence its respectful title, Guru Granth Sahib. Guru Gobind Singh himself was a poet and his compositions are in another volume, the Dasam Granth.

Further Reading

Doris Jakobsh,  Sikhism , (Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 2012).

Eleanor Nesbitt, (2nd edn.)  Sikhism: A Very Short Introduction  (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015).

Written by  Eleanor Nesbitt

Eleanor Nesbitt is Professor Emerita (Religions and Education) at the University of Warwick. Her ethnographic studies have focused on Christian, Hindu, Sikh and ‘mixed-faith’ families in the UK. She has published extensively on Hindu and Sikh communities. Her recent publications include:  Sikhism A Very Short Introduction  (2nd edn 2016, Oxford University Press) and (with Kailash Puri)  Pool of Life: The Autobiography of a Punjabi Agony Aunt  (2013, Sussex Academic Press). She is co-editor of  Brill’s Encyclopedia of Sikhism  and her forthcoming publication is  Sikh: Two Centuries of Western Women’s Art and Writing  (2020, Kashi Books).

The text in this article is available under the  Creative Commons License.

Originally published by The British Library .

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Sikh Heros Blog. Read through this blog about Sikh Religion and Culture

• History And Culture

Discovering Sikhism: Insights into Rich History, Equality, Doctrines, Literature and Spiritual Traditions

Sikhism is the world’s fifth biggest religion. The utterance ‘Sikh’ means ‘learner’ or ‘hunter of truth’. Sikhism advocates equality, social justice, service to humanity, and lenience for other religions.

The vital message of Sikh history is religious fidelity and respect for God at all times while practicing the ideals of integrity, kindness, humility and liberality on a daily basis in life.

Sikh males can be simply renowned for their turban, unkempt hair and beard, a steel/iron bracelet called KARA and kirpan (a small rapier more often than not carried in cloth support and worn beneath the shirt) and Sikh females from their traditional “chunni” (long scarf used for head covering) over their head and across their shoulders.

Table of Contents

Sikh History

The Sikh religion is one of the youngest world religions and was set up more than 500 years ago (1469) in Punjab, North India, by Guru Nanak Dev Ji, in reply to a spiritual exposure. Nanak and his nine successors are identified as ‘gurus’, which is a term for a saintly guide or teacher.

Guru Nanak taught factual religion consists of always being heedful of God, meditating on the name and attributes of God and reflecting on God’s Power in all actions of daily life. Guru Nanak’s followers became recognized as Sikhs.

The Holy Book, the “Guru Granth Sahib”, is the eventual holy authority for Sikhs. It consists of teachings and devotional compositions written and recorded by the Sikh Gurus and some present-day Hindu and Muslim saints. The Guru Granth Sahib is at the heart of Sikh reverence and its charisma lends holiness to the Sikh place of love, the Gurdwara. The idea of Sikhism involves

• Universal recognition of all humanity;

• Belief in one God;

• The given name of God is Truth, “Sat Nam”;

Key Beliefs of Sikh History

Sikhs think that the ten Gurus were one with the Divine Being and each had celestial attributes. The first Guru is Guru Nanak Dev Ji and the tenth Guru is Guru Gobind Singh Ji.

The tenth Guru anointed the Holy Book “Guru Granth Sahib” as the living everlasting Guru of the Sikhs. The ‘Holy Book’ is treated with extreme admiration and respect. The Sikh way of life is based on:

• Nam Japna – memorize God’s name with each breath;

• Kirat Karni – Work and earn by the sweat of the top, live a family way of life and practice truth and sincerity in all dealings;

• Vand Ke Chakna – To share and live as stimulation and support to the whole society.

• Control of Kaam (wish), Krodh (annoyance), Lobh (greediness), Moh (affection) and Hankar (conceit).

Sikhs believe that rebirth – (the cycle of life-death-rebirth) – is for those who do not achieve attachment to God throughout the human life cycle.

Sikh History and Doctrines

Sikh in Punjabi means “beginner,” and those who joined the Sikh society, or Panth (“Path”), were people who sought religious supervision. Sikhs assert that their tradition has always been detached from Hinduism.

But, many Western scholars squabble that in its initial stage, Sikhism was a movement in the Hindu tradition; Nanak, they point out, was raised a Hindu and finally belonged to the Sant tradition of northern India, a group linked with the immense poet and mystic Kabir (1440–1518).

Like the followers of bhakti, the Sants whispered that loyalty to God is vital to freedom from the cycle of rebirth in which all human beings are trapped; unlike the followers of bhakti,, the Sants maintained that God is nirgun (“without form”) and not sagun (“with form”).

For the Sants, God can be neither incarnated nor presented in concrete terms.

Sikh literature

The adi granth and the dasam granth.

There are two granths that stand out on top of all others in the Sikh religion: the Adi Granth (First Book) – undeniably the bigger of the two and the Dasam Granth (Tenth Book).

The Adi Granth is alleged by the Sikhs to be the dwelling of the perpetual Guru, and for that cause, it is recognized to all Sikhs as the Guru Granth Sahib – in full, the Adi Sri Guru Granth Sahibji (The Most valued Granth which Is the Guru).

The Dasam Granth is notorious in the Panth because of the questions about its authorship and work of art. No such queries distress the Adi Granth. Cautiously compiled by Guru Arjan in 1603–04, it’s all about  1,430 pages in its up-to-date printed edition.

The focal point of the Adi Granth is the memory of the divine name, and there is little explanation of the past events, not together from some allusions to the life of Guru Arjan.

The Adi Granth is alienated into three parts and prearranged as per the precise ragas, a sequence of five or more notes upon which a piece of music is based.

The short first section (pages 1–13) contains liturgical works. The extensive second part of the Adi Granth is dedicated to 31 ragas (pages 14–1353), and the third and final part is a small epilogue containing assorted works (pages 1353–1430). 

The other main work of Sikh history , the Dasam Granth, was, before the appearance of the Tat Khalsa, supposed to be a work of Guru Gobind Singh, and so Sikhs treated it as a piece of the Guru Granth Sahib. As per tradition, the unique version of the Dasam Granth was composed by the Guru’s authentic follower Mani Singh.

One more version is believed to have been assembled by Dip Singh, and a third was compiled in Patna at the end of the 18th century. The three versions are considerably the same, and none of them contains the Zafar-Nama (“Epistle of Victory”), Guru Gobind Singh’s rebellious message to Emperor Aurangzeb. In 1902 Sanatan Sikhs of the Amritsar Singh Sabha published an authorized version that included the Zafar-Nama and gave it the title Dasam Granth.

The modern printed work amounts to 1,428 pages.

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Sikhism: Religion and Theology

Introduction.

Sikhism is a practical religion which does have merely words or any certain set of beliefs. This religion does not involve visiting shrines and tombs or following Yogis. This religion believesthat a life should be lived in some patterns.it’s main asset is its simplicity. It does not have any kind of supernaturalism or mythology where it keeps its feet up. It does not have any concepts of devils, angels or heavenly spirits (Sikhism, n.d., Para 1).

Sikhism is a universal religion and it objects all ritualism and formalism. It does not nourish any blind faith. It discourages blind follow to any external authority. Sikhism believes in Karma and it identifies the modification of one’s karma with the grace of God (Sikhism, n.d., Para 2-5).

Historians in Eastern religions normally believe that Sikhism is a syncretistic religion that can be related to Bhakti movement within Hinduism. They associate Sikhism with Hindu religion. But many Sikhs disagree on this point; they believe that Sikhism is direct revelation from God and does not originate from any religion like Hinduism or Islam (Robinson, 2006, Para 2).

Marriage and Family: Marriage is sacred and it’s a bond not only between the man and woman but also in the whole families. Normally Sikhs have arranges marriages where the partners are chosen by the parents for their children which is based on mutual interests and similarities in culture. Divorce is against the lessons of the guru (Sikh family life, 2007, Para 7).

During the wedding ceremony, the couple sits before the Guru ranth sahib where the Granthi reads certain wedding hyms from the holy book. The couple takes round of the it slowly and friends and family shower their blessings by throwing flowers on them. The bride wears red wedding costume that represents health and wealth and after ceremony prashad, sweets are distributed (Sikh family life, 2007, Para 8 & 9).

Childhood and the naming ceremony: Just after the birth of the baby, parents go to the gurudwara with the baby where Guru Granth Sahib is opened and a random reading is done. The first letter of reading becomes the first letter of the baby’s name (Sikh family life, 2007, Para 1-3). A Sikh child starts learning the language of Guru Granth Sahib when he is just seven years old. The Children are supported by the family. There is no discrimination between sexes.The girls are expected to achieve same as boys (Sikh family life, 2007, Para 1-3).

Getting old and death: Older people of this community get lots of respect. When athere is a death in a Sikh family, they are cremated wearing the five Ks. They believe in incarnation and union with God (Sikh family life, 2007, Para 10).

Foundation of Sikhism: Sikhism is the youngest religion which is just five hundred years old (Introduction to Sikhism, 2009, Para 1). Shri Guru Nanak Dev ji was the person who satrted this religion. He got the vision to preach the way to God (Robinson, 2006, Para 3). At this time India was being segrated on the basis of castes, religious factions and sectarianism. He respected all religions (Introduction to Sikhism, 2009, Para 1).

He preached, “There is no Hindu and Muslim” which became one of the pillars of Sikhism (Robinson, 2006, Para 3). Guru Nank and his followers who were called Panth built a temple at Kartarpur (Robinson, 2006, Para 3). He showed a real path to God by saing that God is Truth, “Sat Nam” (Introduction to Sikhism, 2009, Para 1).

A succession of nine Gurus who were considered as reincarnations of Guru Nanak guided the movement during the period from Guru Nanak’s dealth until 1708. During that course, the activities of the Guru were passed on to the Panth and to the holy text (Robinson, 2006, Para 4).

Philosophy and Teachings: The word Sikh means a diciple. A true Sikh is not attached to wordly things but he must do his duty towards his family and community. They believe in Bhagti which is possible after fullfing following conditions (Sikhism, Main Principles, n.d., Para 1):

• Faith in God
• Following Truth
• Conrol over world and deed
• Unattachment and desirelessness
• Association with holy men which is Satsang
• Humanity and submission to Hukam

Salvation: it is also called Mukti. According to Guru, “The man of God rejects salvation. He just wants love. The happiness lies only in merging in Divine Spirit. A man can have Mukti only when he medidates on God (Sikhism, Main Principles, n.d., Para 3).

Khalsa: The Khalsa is about worshiping one God and meditating daily on his name. A Sikh has to keep the symbols (Panj Kakar) whole life. He should not believe in one caste instead he should believe in brotherhood. He should not be involved in any of the four offenses (Kurahat) as cutting of hair, eating Halal meat, adultery and the use of any intoxicant. He should not commit any of the social offences (Tankhah) like, giving dowry, using liqours, raising monuments over graves and associating with traitors (Sikhism, Duties of the Khalsa, n.d., Para 3).

He must donate one-tenth (daswand) of his income for religious purposes. He must practice arms and should be ready o protect the weak (Sikhism, Duties of the Khalsa, n.d., Para 3).

Renunciation of the world: Sikhism does not favour that one leaves his family and live away from it. The Gurus conveyed that married life is the best mode of life. Escaping from the realities of life is a saintly act (Sikhism, Main Principles, n.d., Para 12).

The 5K’s of Sikh:

Sikh’s who have done Amrit Cermony or public commitment to the faith, are called Khalsa. They have accepted 5 symbols. These symbols are called 5 K’s. They not only prove the Sikh identity, but also have spiritual meanings (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 1). They are powerful symbols of faith. Most Sikhs follow the traditions of Khalsa (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 1).

Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru, gathered together the first members of Khalsa on Baisakhi in 1699 and gave them the five items of dress, which had uniformity (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 2). These items of dress or appearance are (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 2):-

Kesh – uncut hair & beard, as given by God, to sustain him/her in higher consciousness and a turban, the crown of spirituality.

Kangha – a wooden comb to properly groom the hair as a symbol of cleanliness (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 2).

Kachera –specially made cotton underwear as a reminder of the commitment to purity (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 2).

Kara – a steel Band, worn on the wrist, signifying bondage to Truth & freedom from every other entanglement (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 2).

Kirpan – the sword, with which the Khalsa is committed to righteously defend the fine line of the Truth (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 2).

Meaning of these 5 K’s:

It is a bangle, which is generally made of iron or steel and it is worn on the right wrist. The steel represents strength and the circular shape represents unity and eternity (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 4). It shows Sikhs’ belief that God is eternal (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 4).

A Kangha is a wooden item to keep the hair clean and tidy. Guru Gobind Singh stressed on cleanliness while performing Khalsa (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 5). After washing and then combing their hair, Sikhs tie a topknot and then they keep Kangha in the topknot which is covered with a turban (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 5). Kangha represents discipline in all facets of life (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 5).

Guru Gobind Singh told Sikhs to wear short trousers which was to depict Khalsa uniform (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 6).There are many explanations to the use of this Kachera. One of them is that it made Sikhs move easier to move in battle. Many Sikhs believe that it represents modesty (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 6).

It is a sword that is worn by the Khalsa (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 7). The Kripan is worn as a memento of the bravery of the first five Sikhs, who were keen to sacrifice their lives for the sake of their religion. The Kripan is therefore a symbol of bravery and of faith in God. For many, the most important meaning is that the kripan stands for the commitment to fight ‘one’s own internal enemy’ that is weakness in one’s own character & behaviour (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 7).

By tradition, Sikhs both men or women do not cut their hair and male Sikhs should not cut their beards The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 8).This natural condition shows devotion in god. Guru Gobind Singh encouraged that Sikhs grow their hair, which is to follow ‘as God intended’ (The 5 K’s, n.d., Para 8).

Scriptures: There are two main sources for the Sikhs: The Guru Grinth Sahib and the Dasam Granth (Sikhism, n.d., Para 9). The Adi Granth means ‘The First Volume’. It is referred to the version the sripture which was created by Arjan Dev in 1604. The Guru Granth Sahib is the final version of the scripture which was developed by Guru Gobind Singh (Sikhism, n.d., Para 9).

Adi Granth: The compilation of Adi Granth was done by Bhai Gurus under the guidance of Arjan Dev in 1963 and 1964. Its script is Gurmukhi, which was standardised by Arjan Dev for using it in Sikh scriptures.It was created to protect the hymns and teachings of the Sikh gurus (Sikhism, n.d., Para 10-11).

The original version of Adi Granth is expected to bemantained by the Sodhi family of Kartarpur. Actually, the history says that original version of this scripture was burned by Ahmad Shah Durrani’s army in 1757 when they burned Kartarpur (Sikhism, n.d., Para 10-11).

Guru Granth Sahib: It has the original version of Adi Granth with some addition of Teg Bahadur’s hymns. Guru Gobind Singh’s verdict was that Guru Granth Sahib will be the eternal guru for all the Sikhs (Sikhism, n.d., Para 12).

It consists of the composition of the first five gurus, Teg Bahadur and just one ‘Salok’ from Guru Gobind Singh (Sikhism, n.d., Para 13).

Dasam Granth: The Dasam Granth is also called The Book of the Tenth Master. It is an eithteenth-century collection of poems, which are written by Gobind Singh (Overview of Sikh Scriptures, n.d., Para 9). It was given a shape of book by Bhai Mani Singh (Overview of Sikh Scriptures, n.d., Para 9).

Janamsakhis: They are the biographies of the first Sikh guru, Guru Nanak. It is the proof of amazing acts and mystic conversations. The composition of new Janamsakhis was the result of three great schisms of the Sikh religion: the Minas, the Handalis and the Udasis (Overview of Sikh Scriptures, n.d., Para 11, 12 & 14).

The Ten Gurus and their teachings: The word “GURU” in Sanskrit means person having great knowledge, wisdom and authority, a teacher, a soul who can dispel darkness. In Sikhism, Guru, means the divine guidance provided through their ten Enlightened Masters (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 2). Starting with Guru Nanak in1469 & ending with Guru Gobind Singh in 1708, their wisdom, preaching’s have been compiled in the Holy Scripture “The Guru Granth Sahib” (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 2).

First Guru – Guru Nanak Sahib

Guru Nanak was born to Tripta, a simple religious woman and wife of Mehta Kalyan Das, on April15, 1469 in Shekhpura (Pakistan), now Nanakana Sahib (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 1).

From the earlier child hood Nanak was an extraordinary child. He learnt Hindi & Sanskrit at the age of seven and by thirteen learned Persian too. He got married to Mata Sulakhni, who gave him two sons: Sri Chand and Lakhmi Das. (Ten Guru, n.d., Para2)

In August 1507, while bathing in ‘Vain Nadi’, at the age of 38, Guru Nanak dedicated himself to the service of humanity.” There is no Hindu, no Musalman” were his first divine words (Ten Guru, n.d., Para3). He started long travels and preached his unique and divine doctrine that is Sikhism (Ten Guru, n.d., Para3). The preaching’s during these tours are compiled as Char Udasis of Guru Nanak Sahib (Ten Guru, n.d., Para3).

In the year 1522 Guru Nanak Sahib founded the city of Kartarpur (now in Pakistan) and spent the rest of his life there (Ten Guru, n.d., Para5). There he pioneered the Langar or free kitchen. In 1539 he established Bhai Lehna ji (Guru Angad Sahib) as the second Nanak. On Sept 22, 1539 he left for the heavenly aboad. He was a good poet and musician. He wrote approximately 947 hyms comprising Japji Sahib, Asa-di-Var, Bara-Mah, Sidh-Gosht and, Onkar. Guru Arjan Sahib compiled all these in Guru Granth Sahib (Ten Guru, n.d., Para5).

Second Guru – Guru Angad Sahib

Guru Angad Sahib (Bhai Lahna ji) was born on March 31, 1504 to Mata Ramo ji wife of a petty trader Pheru ji in a village named Sarai Naga (Matte di Sarai) in district Muktsar (Punjab). (Ten Guru, n.d., Para1)

Bhai Lahna was a worshipper of Goddess Durga and use to go to pilgrimage to Jwalamuki Temple. During one such pilgrimage he heard the hymn of Guru Nanak Sahib and decided to meet him. He got fully changed after this meeting. He became a follower of Guru Nanak Sahib and became his Sikh (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 2 & 3).

Guru Angad Sahib introduced Gurumukhi Script, a new alphabet modified from old Punjabi Script (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 5). He started Mall Akhara were physical as well as spiritual was given to the youth. He also wrote the first biography of Guru Nanak Sahib (Bhai Bale Wali Janamsakhi) (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 5).

At the age of Forty eight on March 29, 1552 Guru Angad Sahib breathed his last but before that he nominated Amar Das Sahib as his successor. (Ten Guru, n.d., Para7)

Third Guru – Guru Amardas Sahib

Guru Amardas Sahib was born on May 5, 1479 in the village Basarke Gillan in Amritsar, to mother Bakht Kaur and father Tej Bhan Bhalla, who later became the Third Nanak (Ten Guru, n.d., Para1).

Influenced by Guru Angad Sahib and preachings of Guru Nanak Sahib he converted to Sikhism and adopted Guru Angad Sahib as his spiritual Guru. In 1552 he was made the Third Nanak by Guru Angad Sahib (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 2). Establishing his headquarter in Goindwal, he propagated the faith in a planned manner (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 2).He added 869 self composed verses to Guru Granth Sahib (Ten Guru, n.d., Para6).

He transferred the Guru ship to his son-in-law, Guru Ramdas Sahib, making him the Fourth Nanak. On September 1, 1574 at a ripe age of 95 Guru Amardas Sahib passed away for heaven (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 7)

Fourth Guru – Guru Ramdas Sahib

Guru Ramdas Sahib was born on September 24, 1534 at Chuna Mandi, Lahore (Pakistan).His father Baba Hari Das ji Sodhi Khatri and mother Mata Daya Kaur were too poor and he use to sell boiled grams to earn his bread (Ten Guru, n.d., Para1).

Guru Amardas Sahib married his daughter Bibi Bhani ji to Guru Ramdas Sahib. Due to his dedication, energy, saintliness and eloquence Guru Amardas Sahib found him apt for the Guruship and made him the Fourth Nanak on September 1, 1574. Foundation of Ramdas Pur or Chak Ramdas (now Amritsar) was laid by Guru Ramdas (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 3).On September 1, 1581 he passed away to heaven but before that he nominated his youngest son Guru Arjan Sahib as the fifth Guru (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 2).

Fifth Guru – Guru Arjan Sahib

Guru Ramdas Sahib and Mata Bhani ji’s youngest son Guru Arjan Sahib was born on April 15, 1563. He learnt Gurmukhi script and was also taught Persian, Hindi and Sanskrit languages. He became Guru at the young age of 18 years. (Para1)

Guru Arjan Sahib commissioned two sacred Tanks Amritsar and Santokhsar. He also laid the foundation of a town (Taran Sahib) near Goindwal Sahib and created a large tank and Gurdwara (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 2 & 3).

He contributed 2000 verses for the same. He also institutionalized the tradition of Daswandh and Masand system that helped in attracting large number of followers to Sikhism from far distant places from Punjab (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 4 & 5).

Guru Arjan Sahib was also called as “Sacha Patshah”. The fast paced spread of Sikhism during his period made the orthodox Hindus and princely Muslims very jealous. He was tortured for 3 days, he was made to sit on the hot iron plates and burning sand was poured on his naked body (Ten Guru, n.d., Para6).Later he was thrown into river Ravi. May 30, 1606 is celebrated as the day of Martyrdom of Guru Arjan Sahib (Ten Guru, n.d., Para6).

Sixth Guru – Guru Hargobind Sahib

With the sudden demise of Guru Arjan Sahib, his father and fifth Nanak, Guru Hargobind Sahib succeeded and became Sixth Nanak at the age of eleven years in 1606. He was the only child of Guru Arjan Sahib and Mata Ganga ji, born on June19, 1595 at village Guru Ke Wadali. He had one daughter Bibi Viro ji, he had five sons. His fifth son Tegh Bahadur became the Ninth Nanak in 1664 (Ten Guru, n.d., Para1).

Guru Hargobind Sahib popularised the idea of “Saint – Soldier” which was the need of that hour. He used to keep with him two swords Piri – Miri. The first one was supposed to have the Spiritual Power and the second one was supposed to have Military Power. He also encouraged Sikhs for participating in Martial Arts and military Trainings (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 3). During his life time he fought many wars with the Mughal Emperor and always stood victorious (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 3).

He breathed last on February 28, 1644. Before his demise, he nominated his grandson Har Rai Sahib as the Seventh Nanak (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 23).

Seventh Guru – Guru Har Rai Sahib

At the tender age of 14 Guru Har Rai Sahib was nominated as successor and Seventh Nanak by his Grand Father Guru Hargobind Sahib. He was son of Baba Gurdita Ji and Mata Nihal Kaur (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 1).

Guru Har Rai Sahib was a believer of non –violence or “Ahimsa Parmo Dharma” but he never disbanded the Saint Soldiers. In Kiratpur Sahib, he founded an Aurvedic Herbal Hospital & Research Centre. Ha also established 360 Manjis (missionary seats) (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 2 & 3).

Guru Har Rai Sahib left for heavenly abode on October 6, 1661, but before that installed his younger son Har Krishan as the Eighth Nanak (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 10).

Eighth Guru – Guru Har Krishan Sahib

He was born on July 7, 1656 at Kiratpur Sahib, and was the second son of Guru Har Rai Sahib and Mata Krishan Kaur (Ten Guru, n.d., Para1). Before the death of Guru Har Rai Sahib in 1661, at an earlier age of about five, Guru Har Krishan Sahib was made Eighth Nanak by his father (Ten Guru, n.d., Para1).

In his short span of three years as Eight Nanak, Guru Har Krishan Sahib took over the masses with his simplicity and humanitarian deeds. He was nicknamed Bala Pir (Child Prophet) by the local Muslim population (Ten Guru, n.d., Para5).

During his last days when he was seriously ill, he was asked to name his successor, t which he said Baba Bakala, which referred to Guru Teg Bahadur. Finally, Guru Har Krishan Sahib passed away on March 30, 1664 (Ten Guru, n.d., Para6).

Ninth Guru – Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib

Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib was born on April 1, 1621. He was the youngest son of Guru Hargobind Sahib (Seventh Nanak) He was a great swordsman, horseman and shooter (Ten Guru, n.d., Para1 & 3).

With the untimely demise of Eight Nanak, Guru Har Krishan Sahib without declaring his successor there was a situation of uncertainty for some time. Then in August 1664, some prominent Sikhs from Delhi, acknowledged Guru Teg Bahadur Sahib as the Ninth Nanak (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 5).

During 1674-75 the Muslim state forcefully converted people to Islam. To fight this nefarious act with peaceful means Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib sacrificed himself. On November 11, 1675 he was executed, his head was severed from his body at Gurudwara Sis Ganj in Chandi Chowk, Delhi. Before his execution in July 1675 he installed, his son Guru Gobind Sahib as the Tenth Nanak (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 27).

Tenth Guru – Guru Gobind Singh Sahib

Guru Gobind Singh Sahib, the tenth and the last Guru of Sikh faith, was born on December 22, 1666 (Ten Guru, n.d., Para1 & 2).His name was Gobind Rai Sodhi. After the execution of his father and ninth Nanak, Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib, Guru Gobind Singh was formally made Guru on November 11, 1675 (Ten Guru, n.d., Para1 & 2).

Guru Gobind Singh fought many wars during his period. On October 7, 1708, he passed away in Nanded. With this Guru Gobind Singh ended the line of personal Gurus and passed on th succession to the Holy Book “The Guru Granth Sahib” (Ten Guru, n.d., Para 13).

Sikhism in History: The time period of all the ten gurus lasted for more than 239 long years. The Sikh religion prospered very well during this period, which could be possible under the guidance of the Gurus (Sikh History, Gurus Period, n.d., Para 1).

Banda Singh Bahadur whose real name was Madho Das possessed spriritul powers. He was the follwoer of Guru Gobind Singh. Under Guriji’s direction, he collected an army from Punjab and started fighting against tyrants. After winnig Surhind he established the first Sikh kingdom and a new fort near Nahan which was called Lohgarh. Later Bandha Singh was prisoned by the emperor of Delhi and he was killed in 1716 (Sikh History, Gurus Period, n.d., Para 1-4).

After martyr of Banda Singh, the religious persecution of the Sikhs started soon after that (Sikh History, Religious Persecution Era, n.d., Para 1-3).They were attacked and robbed. They stayed alive on vegetables and fruits but they were not discouraged. Having faith in Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s prediction that the Sikh would rule the country one day, they continued their mission of religious persecution which went for 50 years. Then Sikhs regrouped got ready to fight tyrants and after gathering strength they were ready to defeat the tyrants and then they started ruling around 1760s (Sikh History, Religious Persecution Era, n.d., Para 1-3).

Maharaja Ranjit Singh became their leader and conquered Lahore in 1799. He ruled Punjab for 40 years. His Kingdom was so big that he had to divide it in 4 different states. He died at the age of 59 in 1839 (Sikh History, Sikh Kingdom Era, n.d., Para 1 & 2).

The British bought then the generals of the army and attacked the Sikh kingdom (Sikh History, Colonial Era, n.d., Para 1 & 2). In 1849 they finished the Sikh kingdom era and controlled Punjab with other parts of India. As the British knew that the Sikhs are brave warriors, they appointed them with jobs in their army (Sikh History, Colonial Era, n.d., Para 1 & 2).

The Sikhs proved themselves very useful for the British in many wars wherever they fought for them (Sikh History, Colonial Era, n.d., Para 1 & 2).The British awarded the Sikhs with portions of lands after their retirement from the army. This action of British encouraged lots of sikhs to join the British army. The Sikhs had covered about 80 percent of the army population by the time the British left India after Indian independence (Sikh History, Colonial Era, n.d., Para 1 & 2).

The Indians’ struggle for freedom began in 1920s and it lasted in 1947. The Sikhs played a major role during that struggle by participating in this mission enthusiastically (Sikh History, Colonial Era, n.d., Para 5). The Gurudwara movement of the sikhs was the starting of the national struggle for freedom (Duggal, 2008, Para 4).

The Battle of Saragarhi was fought between the fourth Battalion of the Sikh Regiment of British India and approximately 10,000 Afghan and Orakzais tribesman on 12 September 1897 (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 1).This battle has been noted as the exampe of exceptional bravery. UNESCO has portrayed the battle of Saragarhi as one of the legends of joint bravery (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 1).

The British rulers of india had built many forts in the North West Frontier Province to strengthen their position and to control the hostile activities of the local tribal groups who were living in the north western frontiers of undivided India (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 2 & 3). Fort Gulistan and Fort Lockhart are the examples of such forts (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 2 & 3). They were built on the ranges of Hindukush and Sulaiman ranges (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 2 & 3).

As the two forts were situated a little bit far from each other, a signal post called Saragarhi was created to have interations between the two forts. In 1897 Afridi tribes attacked Fort Gulistan and later the troops of Orakazai and Afridi made fresh attacks and seiged Fort Lockhart and Saragarhi (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 2 & 3). The strength of Afghani force was about 12000 to 14000 who were fully armed tribesman.

They tried to make the Sikhs surrender but the Sikhs were determined to fight against them and they continued fighting. For this reason it became the famous battle of Saragarhi. Sepoy Gurumkh Singh was the person who continued giving every detail of the battle through heliographic signal until the enemy set the place near Saragarhi on fire. When the enemay were close Sepoy Gurumukh Singh took out his rifle after closing heliograph and he killed 20 people of them before dying (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 2 & 3).

Every soldier who defended Saragarhi died in this outstanding action of bravery. When this courgeous deed was narrated in the Parliament of the United Kingdom, the memebers gave standing applause to it. Even Queen Victoria also came to know about this incident. It was annouced in the Parliament that the army having the brave Sikhs cannot loose any war (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 2 & 3).

All the Sikh officers and soldiers who died in this battle were honoured as the Indian Order of Merit, which was the highest bravery award of that time (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 4 & 5). The current Sikh Regiment now celebrates the day of the Battle of Saragarhi on every 12 th September as the Regimental Battle Honours Day (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 4 & 5). The British also built tow Saragarhi Gurudwaras one in Amritsar and another in Ferozepur to respect those soldiers (Battle of Saragarhi, Sikh Regiment, 2009, Para 4 & 5).

Observances: Sikh Culture: Sikh culture is the mixture of many asects, including many festivals and ceremonies. There are songs which are many religious as they are sung in praise of God. For that reason they are different from other songs (Sikh Culture, n.d., Para 1).

Sikh festivals are time for these people to rededicate themselves to the faith (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 1). Even they take death anniversaries of their Gurus as festival since it reminds them the value of sacrifice for a good cause(Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 1). Some of the main Sikh festivals are (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 1):

Baisakhi: it is a New Year festival in the Sikh calendar. The Sikh new years starts with Chet 1 (Sikh Calendar, 1998, Para 2). On this day in 1699 Khalsa was created by Guru Gobind Singh Ji. It generally falls on 13 April. Nishan Sahib, the Sikh flag is replaced with a new one (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 3 & 4). The flag post is cleaned. The flag cloth which is Chola is rehoisted. This ceremony is completed by Ardas. A Bhog, which is completion of ceremony, takes place on the morning of Baisakhi and the singing of divine hyms takes place. Also all the Sikh men, women and children participate in Sewa that is Langar which remains open for the worshipers for three days (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 3 & 4).

Diwali: Sikhs celebrate Diwali since Guru Hargobind reached Amritsar on this particular day after he got released from Gwalior jail (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 5). It is the festival of lights. On this day the Golden Temple complex is decorated with lights and magnificient displays of fireworks occur. The historic weapons of the Gurus are displayed (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 5).

In 1577 the Golden Temple’s foundation was kept on Diwali itself (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 6).Sikhs have continuedthis yearly celebration with lighting up lamps and distributing sweets. The largest gathering takes place at the Golden Temple on this day (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 6).

Hola Mohalla: This is an annual festival which takes place at Anandpur Sahib (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 7). Guru Gobind Singh started this festival to exercise millitary practices. Mock battles are also fought on this day which is just after Holi festival. Music and poetry competitions follow mock battles (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 7). On this day kirtan and religious lectures are performed in number of durbars where Sri Guru Granth Sahib is present (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 7).This festival generally falls on March 17 (Sikh Festivals, n.d. Para 7).

Ceremonies: There are many events like birth, marriage and death in any family but in a Sikh family there are special ceremonies for such events, which are done to receive blessings from God (Sikh Ceremonies, n.d., Para 1). All Sikh ceremonies are done in the presence of the Guru Granth Sahib Ji that involves singing of hymns, Ardas, Hukamnana and distribution of Karah Prashad. Langar is provided for all the guests (Sikh Ceremonies, n.d., Para 1).

Following are some of the main Sikh ceremonies:

Nam Karan: After the birth of child the mother and the child go to the Gurudwara with relatives and friends for the naming ceremony (Sikh Ceremonies, n.d., Para 2 & 3). The Granthi stirs water and sugar crystals in a bowl that is kept in front of Guru Granth Sahib and read the ‘Mool Mantra’ and first few lines of the ‘Japji Sahib’ (Sikh Ceremonies, n.d., Para 2 & 3).

First few drops are put into child’s mouth and the rest is given to the mother to drink (Sikh Ceremonies, n.d., Para 2 & 3).Hymns are spoken publicly to bless the child. The child name is chosen from the first letter of the ‘Hukam’ (Sikh Ceremonies, n.d., Para 2 & 3).The title of Singh (Lion) is given to male and Kaur (Princess) to the girl (Sikh Ceremonies, n.d., Para 2 & 3). Prashad is distributded afer that (Sikh Ceremonies, n.d., Para 2 & 3).

Dasar Bandi: This is a very important and exciting moment in the life of a Sikh hen he starts tying the turban. Sometimes family celebrates this occasion which is called Dastar Bandi (Sikh Ceremonies, n.d., Para 4).

Marriage Ceremony: The wedding takes place in the morning in a Gurudwara.After the both family of the boy and family of the girl greet each other then they enter the Gurudwara congregation hall where bride sits alonside with the bridegroom facing the Guru Granth Sahib Ji. The ragees sing the hymn of ‘palla’ that is bridegroom’s scarf. Then the couple walk gracefully around the Guru Granth Sahib where the bride folow the bridegroom. Later prashad is distributed and lunch is provided by the bride’s family (Sikh Ceremony, n.d., Para 5).

Amrit Sanchar: This ceremony is done for the initiation into the Khalsa brotherhood (Sikh Ceremony, n.d., Para 6). The initiate can be done by a man or a woman of any caste or religion (Sikh Ceremony, n.d., Para 6). Before seeking baptism, they start behaving, acting or looking like a Sikh (Sikh Ceremony, n.d., Para 6). It is done at a quiter place where Guru Granth Sahib is installed. The initiate will wash his hair, cover his head, wear clean clothes and the 5K’s (Sikh Ceremony, n.d., Para 6). Hymns are recited. If a person does not have a Sikh name, they keep a new name at this time (Sikh Ceremony, n.d., Para 6).

Funeral Ceremony: At the ime of death loud wailing is discouraged (Sikh Ceremony, n.d., Para 6). Cremation is preferred for the dead body but if it is not possible then burial or submergence at sea are also acceptable (Sikh Ceremony, n.d., Para 6). The body is usually washed and clothed by the family members and then hymns are recited. A continuous reading of Sri Guru Granth Sahib is done till ten days. It concludes the end of mourning period (Sikh Ceremony, n.d., Para 6).

Gurupurbs: Following are the major Gurupurbs celebrations (Sikh Ceremony, n.d., Para 8):

• Birth of Guru Nanak Dev Ji
• First installation of Sri Guru Grath Sahib Ji
• Martyrdom of Guru Arjan Dev Ji
• Birth of Guru Gobind Singh Ji
• Martyrdom of Guru Teg Bahadur Ji
• Martyrdom of the Sahibzadas

Sikh Art and Culture: Maharaja Ranjit was an ardent lover of art. For that reason he bacem the first patron of Sikh paintings. He made the painters decorate the walls and the panels of the Golden Temple (Sikh Paintings, n.d., Para 1, 2& 9). Sikh paintings show the historical events and characters.

They give us complete understand ing of the political struggle of Sikhs and the roles of some unforgettble heros of that struggle. There are three different schools of Sikh paintings: Guler School, Kangra School and Lahore School (Sikh Paintings, n.d., Para 1, 2& 9). Some famous paiters are Gian Singh, S.G. Thakur Singh, Sobha Singh and S. Kripal Singh (Sikh Paintings, n.d., Para 1, 2& 9).

Sikh Music and Musical Instruments: Sikhs developed their own instruments like Rabab, Dilruba, Taus, Jori and the Sarinda (Sikh Music and Musical Instruments. n.d., Para 1). The Sarangi was also promoted by Guru Har Gobind (Sikh Music and Musical Instruments. n.d., Para 1).Rabab was first used by Bhai Mardana and Jori and Sarinda were designed by Guru arjan Dev (Sikh Music and Musical Instruments. n.d., Para 1). The Taus was made by Guru Har Gobind. The Dilruba was made by Guru Gobind Singh (Sikh Music and Musical Instruments. n.d., Para 1).

Sikhs in the Western World: Sikhs arrived in the United States and Canada in the late 1800s (Sikh Community, 2006, Para 1). Sikhs who have migrated to this region are generally tensed of maintaining their identity when adapting to the Western culture. Those educated in the United Kingdom or Other British Commonwealth countries, this change to life in North America is easy (Being Sikh in a Western world, 2006, Para 1).

In recent years, the conflict between the values of Sikh beliefs and Western culture has created difference at the work place. The employers are demanding that they cut tehir hair and remove their turbans. Sikhs performing in sports have shown their capabilities of doing well with their turbans on the fields (Being Sikh in a Western world, 2006, Para 2).

Regardless of these stresses, Sikhs have maintained their religious beliefs. They have demonstrated excellence in the football, basketball and boxing etc (Being Sikh in a Western world, 2006, Para 3).

Notable Sikhs in the modern era: Sikhs are very well represented in Indian Politics like recent Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the Chairman of the Indian Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia and the former President, Giani Zail Singh (Sikh, 2009, Para 5 & 6).

Indian millitary services include Sikhs like General Joginder Jaswant Singh, who is the General of the Indian Arrmy. The highest ranking general in the history of the Indian Air Force has been Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh (Sikh, 2009, Para 5 & 6).

Sikhs can be seen in various kinds of professions like scientists, engineers and doctors. Some of these are Professor Piara Singh Gill, a famous Nuclear Scientist who has ben associated with American Manhattan Project; Dr. Narinder Singh Kapany who is a famous Scientist and gets the credit of the father of fiber optics; Simon Singh, physicist and Science writer and Professor Baldev Singh Dhillon, a famous Agricultural Scientist (Sikh, 2009, Para 6).

Sikhs can be found in industrial ventures as UK based New Look, which is women’s clothing fashions and Thai based JASPAL. Both are started by Sikhs only. India’s biggest pharmaceutical company Ranbaxy Laboratories is leaded by the Sikhs only (Sikh, 2009, Para 7).

Writer Khushwant Singh, Singer Daler Mahendi, Jaspal Bhatti, Milkha Singh former world record holder, Bishen singh Bedi, cricketer and Parminder Nagra, English actress all are distingushed sikhs (Sikh, 2009, Para 8).

Conclusion: Sikhism is a beautiful religion. It offers meaning, peace and divine bliss. It shows the path to realisation of Akaal, a timeless god (Why I choose Sikhism, n.d., Para 1). Due to unawareness many youth are being unused to this rich and amazing heritage (Why I choose Sikhism, n.d., Para 1).

Why join Sikhism: As it is a beauiful religion, which shows the path to truth and believes in one God, I have become passionate about this religion. It has selfless love in it. It has bravery and treats everyone similarly. It has its unique scriptural canon, ceremonies and traditions (Sikhs: A distinct religion, panth and nation that welcome all, n.d., Para 1). For that reason I join Sikhism.

Sikhism 101: Facts, History, Beliefs, Gurus, Traditions, And Signs Of The Faith

(RNS) Sikhism is the world’s fifth-largest religion, a monotheistic faith founded in the Punjab region of India about 500 years ago. Most of the world’s 25 million Sikhs live in India, but more than 500,000 make the U.S. their home.

Here are some facts about what Sikhs believe and Sikh culture.

* Sikhs believe everyone, men and women, has equal status before God, who created the universe and all faiths. Human beings are encouraged to develop their moral character through generosity, humility and self-reliance. * Sikh means “seeker of knowledge” in Punjabi, the language of India’s Punjab region and of Sikhism’s holy books. * Sikhism was divinely revealed to its first guru, or prophet, Guru Nanak, who died in 1539. Nine gurus followed him, the last of which, Guru Gobind Singh, died in 1708. * Sikhs keep their hair uncut, or natural, as a sign of living in harmony with God. Men — and some women — cover their hair with turbans as a mark of their faith. Boys start wearing a patka over their hair when it is long enough to tie into a topknot. * The kara is a steel bracelet worn by Sikhs to remind them of the unity of God. The kirpan is a ceremonial dagger (though not a weapon) that is meant to remind Sikhs of the duty to fight injustice. * The Sikh place of worship is known as a gurdwara, and it is where the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib is kept, though copies are also found in Sikh homes. In a gurdwara, all remove their shoes, and women cover their heads.

* The central Sikh shrine is the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, India, which is also known as the Golden Temple. * After services, Sikhs partake in the langar, a communal meal, typically of Punjabi food, cooked and served by volunteers. * The first Sikhs came to the U.S. about 100 years ago. They are most concentrated on the coasts, with a large Sikh population in Queens, N.Y. * Sikh is properly pronounced “sik” but you will likely not be corrected for saying “seek.”

Sources: The Sikh Coalition, Sikhism At A Glance; the Sikh Studies Unit from the Kaur Foundation; Singh Mann, Gurinder, et al. Buddhists, Hindus, and Sikhs in America. Oxford University Press, 2001.

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Before You Go

The Golden Temple

Popular in the community, from our partner, more in religion.

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The word Sikh is derived from the Sanskrit word Shishya , meaning disciple or learner . The Sikh religion originated with the advent of Guru Nanak , the founder of the Sikh Religion. It was developed through the successive Gurus who appeared in the form of the same divine light and reached its climax with the creation of Khalsa by the tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh.

This article will give information about Sikhism – one of the important religions of India, in the context of the IAS Exam. 

This topic will be useful for the GS Paper 1 and GS Paper 4 section of the UPSC Syllabus. 

The candidates can go through the relevant topics useful for their upcoming exams from the links provided below:

History of Sikhism

• Sikhism was born at a time when there was a growing conflict amongst the two dominating religious traditions of Hinduism and Islam in India. 
• Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh faith, is generally depicted as a reconciler of the two conflicting traditions.
• Guru Nanak got his enlightenment in Sultanpur in 1496 . 
• After enlightenment, he travelled extensively to spread the message of love and brotherhood.
• The number of Guru Nanak’s followers increased through the sixteenth century under his successors. 
• They belonged to a number of castes, but traders, agriculturists, artisans and craftsmen predominated. They were also expected to contribute to the general funds of the community of followers. 
• By the beginning of the seventeenth century, the town of Ramdaspur (Amritsar) had developed around the central Gurdwara called Harmandar Sahib (Golden Temple). It was virtually self-governing, and modern historians refer to the early seventeenth-century Sikh community as ‘a state within the state’.

About Guru Nanak

• Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh faith, was born in Talwandi (near Lahore in Pakistan), now known as Nankana Sahib in Pakistan and belonged to Bedi gotra in 1469.
• Guru Nanak received his early education in Sanskrit and Persian .
• He was one of the greatest saints of the Bhakti movement.
• Guru Nanak (1469–1539) was the first Guru. 
• He travelled widely before establishing a centre at Kartarpur (Dera Baba Nanak on the river Ravi). 
• Regular worship that consisted of the singing of his own hymns was established there for his followers. 
• Irrespective of their former creed, caste or gender, his followers ate together in the common kitchen ( langar ). 
• The sacred space thus created by Guru Nanak, known as dharmsal . It is now known as Gurdwara . 
• Contemplation of One God (nam- japna); 
• Earning one’s livelihood (kirat karna) and 
• Sharing one’s earnings with others (vand chhakna). 
• To practise his teachings of equality, Guru Nanak started the twin institutions of Sangat and Pangat , emphasizing that all sit in a congregation and while partaking food from the community kitchen should sit in one line without distinction of high and low or rich and poor. 
• Guru Nanak preached through kirtans, bhajans and ragas. 
• Before his death in 1539, Guru Nanak appointed one of his followers as his successor.
• His name was Lehna, but he came to be known as Guru Angad, signifying that he was a part of Guru Nanak himself.

Teachings of Sikh Religion

The teachings of Sikh Religion are as follows:

• God – Sikhism believes in the monotheistic concept of One God, who is Transcendent and Immanent; Impersonal and Personal; Nirguna and Sarguna.
• Soul – There is an identical relation between God and soul, which is mentioned as ‘the Lord abides in the soul and the soul in the Lord.’ The aim of man’s life is to rediscover the real nature of the self which is in no way different from God, but indulgence in mundane aspirations reinforce his ego and strengthens this false notion of separateness.
• Divine Will – In the Sikh religion, the concept of Divine Will (hukam) as an imperative has a specific metaphysical significance. Divine Will is all-pervasive and immanent and manifests itself in different ways which are incomprehensible to the human mind. Not only the creation but also the sustenance of the universe is in accordance with the Divine Will. 
• Divine Grace – It is often referred to in the scripture as kirpa, karam, Prasad, mehar, daya or bakhsis. One cannot understand God through cleverness, but He can be realized through Grace. 
• Salvation – The immortality of the soul is also conceived in the sense of realization of the eternity of values in the temporal world.  Karma and rebirth are closely related to the moral life of man.

The Ten Sikh Gurus

There were a total of ten Sikh Gurus. Guru Nanak was followed by nine successive Gurus who not only continued his precepts and ideals but made significant contributions in evolving different institutions for the Sikh community. 

11th Sikh Guru

• Nine gurus followed Guru Nanak and there is no living human successor, but the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy book, is considered the 11th Sikh Guru and eternal. 
• Apart from the hymns of the Sikh Gurus, the Guru Granth Sahib also contains the composition of the Muslim and Hindu saints, some of them belonging to the so-called lower caste of the Hindu society. 
• Therefore, the Sikh Holy Book can be considered as a unique example of the ecumenical spirit of the Sikh faith. 

Sikh Institutions

The disciples of Sikhism come to the sacred places to take the blessings of Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book and eternal Guru of Sikhs.

The most sacred Sikh Shrines and Heritage are listed and briefed below:

• The worship places of Sikhs are known as the Takhts which literally means ‘the seat of the divine power’. 
• There are only five Takhts. 
• It is said that ‘Takhts’ are places where various social and political settlements were done by the Gurus.
• Gurudwara stands for ‘the doorway to the master’. 
• In India, there are several Gurudwaras but only five Takhts. 
• Lakhs of people, particularly the Sikhs, visit the Gurudwaras to commemorate the Gurus. Therefore, Gurudwaras hold significance from a pilgrimage point of view. 
• It is called the Golden Temple owing to the gilded dome that adorns the crown of the Gurudwara.
• It is the most sacred for the Sikhs. 
• The town was founded by Guru Ram Dass, the fourth Sikhs Guru in 1577 on the land gifted by Akbar. 
• The fifth Guru Arjun Dev completed the temple. 
• When Maharaja Ranjit Singh covered the upper half of the temple, first with copper and then with pure gold leaf, it came to be known as the Swarna Mandir.
• It is one of the most impressive and fascinating edifices in India and is intricately linked with the history of Sikhism. 
• Gurudwara Paonta Sahib, Himachal Pradesh
• Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Sahib, New Delhi
• Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib, Delhi
• Hemkund Sahib, Uttarakhand

Sikhism – UPSC Notes:- Download PDF Here

FAQ-about-Sikhism

FAQ about Sikhism

What are the 5k’s that sikh men are required to possess.

The 5K’s that Sikh men are required to possess are Kangha (comb), Kesh (long hair), Kada (iron bracelet), Kachcha (underwear) and Kirpan (sword or dagger).

Who is a Guru in Sikhism?

What is langar and its significance.

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Adamah, which means “ground” or “earth” in Hebrew, is the largest Jewish environmental organization in North America, with headquarters near Baltimore, Maryland. A result of the merger of nonprofits Hazon and Pearlstone in 2023, Adamah promotes connections between Jewish life and nature through immersive retreats, farm fellowships, farm apprenticeships, education, summer camp, climate action, and leadership development.

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24 Sikh Philosophy

ARVIND-PAL SINGH MANDAIR is an Associate Professor and holder of the S.B.S.C. Endowed Chair in Sikh Studies at the University of Michigan, USA. His earlier books include: Religion and the Specter of the West: Sikhism, India, Postcoloniality and the Politics of Translation (2009), Teachings of the Sikh Gurus (with Christopher Shackle, Routledge, 2005), Secularism and Religion-Making (Oxford University Press 2009), and most recently Sikhism: A Guide For the Perplexed (Continuum Bloomsbury, 2013). He is a founding editor of the journal Sikh Formations: Religion, Culture and Theory.

• Published: 13 January 2014
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This article discusses the relevance and viability of ‘Sikh Philosophy’ to the study of Sikhism. The term Sikh philosophy can be regarded as conceptually synonymous with terms central to the Sikh lexicon, such as gurmat (the teachings and practice of the Sikh Gurus). It refers on the one hand to internal discourses such as the variety of exegeses of Sikh scripture and related literature. On the other hand Sikh philosophy points towards the possibility of an external engagement with concepts of other cultures, a process that is materialized today not only through modes of public reasoning by Sikh thinkers and exegetes but through the everyday lived experience of cultural encounter of that ordinary Sikhs must undergo. Based on the degree of their repetition in Sikh literature and praxis, as well as their potential applicability to universally human themes, the chapter outlines a selection of key concepts for any future Sikh philosophy.

Introduction

W hy ‘Sikh philosophy’? What exactly does the term ‘Sikh philosophy’ designate? It is almost never used by Western scholars of Sikh studies, whose preference has been for the cognate term ‘Sikh theology’ ( McLeod 1990) . By contrast one almost never hears of ‘Buddhist theology’ or ‘Hindu theology’. This may be because for Buddhist and Hindu traditions there are indigenous categories ( darśanas and śastras or dhamma / dharma ) that broadly correspond to the Western category of ‘philosophy’. Yet the Sikh lexicon also possesses similar categories such as dharam (signifying moral order) and especially the term gurmat (teaching of the Guru) which can claim correspondence to ‘philosophy’. This raises two questions. First, why the preference for ‘Sikh theology’ in much of modern Sikh studies scholarship? Second, is ‘Sikh philosophy’ anything other than a secularized version of Sikh theology?

To answer the first question, categories such as gurmat , dharam etc., took on a theological signification in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century in the Singh Sabha attempt to erect definitive boundaries between an emergent and politically active Hinduism and the Sikh tradition, by constituting Sikhi (sm) as an entity that corresponded to the Western definition of proper religion. They did this by reformulating the idea of direct inner experience that is so central to the teaching of Sikh scriptures, in terms of a revelation from a personal God. No doubt there are secondary sources such as the Purātan Janam-sākhī which present Guru Nanak’s attainment of spiritual perfection in terms of the revelation model. The Singh Sabha scholars Christianized the janam-sākhī version of the Sultanpur experience by formulating extensive written commentaries on Sikh scripture in the form of proofs for the existence of God. The purpose of these commentaries was to ideologically separate what they considered as Sikh ‘revelation’ from the impersonal Vedic revelation based on an eternal cosmic sound. The problem with the janam-sākhī /revelation model is twofold, however. First, while Guru Nanak himself says nothing about this pivotal experience at Sultanpur, he does say a great deal about how direct experience and spiritual perfection can be attained by anybody and at any time. It is a theme that is repeatedly stressed in the Adi Granth (AG) by his successor Gurus, and their emphasis is not on hearing voices from God, but on changing the orientation of the human mind. Secondly, the Puratan Janam-sakhi is itself not at all consistent about the revelation model. Read closely, one can find strong suggestions of other, non-theological (philosophical) ways of explaining direct experience or attainment of perfection that are far more consistent with the teachings of the Sikh Gurus. The emphasis here is on explaining or better still interpreting , which should give us a hint as to why I prefer the term ‘Sikh philosophy’ over ‘Sikh theology’, even though both have inherent limitations. As a mode of explanation or interpretation Sikh philosophy does not remain in thrall to its ‘original’ context, nor, paradoxically, does it ever lose sight of that ‘original’ context. ‘Sikh theology’ could not do this because it worked within the constraints of the peculiarly Western discourse of ontotheology, whose logic effectively subsumed much of modern Sikh thinking and practice. After its encounter with the West, modern Sikhi (sm) could therefore only develop in one direction—culturally, politically, and intellectually.

In answer to the second question, the simple answer is that ‘Sikh philosophy’ is far from a secularized theology. Unlike other disciplines philosophy has the capacity to self-reflexively engage with its own categories in such a way that it is able to refuse the very distinction between religion and the secular that is so entrenched in the Western system of thought. My contention is that there is already a living system of Sikh reasoning and thought. It is not difficult to show that this indigenous mode of thinking has, and continues, to resist the religion-secular distinction, despite the Singh Sabha’s religious apologetic. Many Sikh writers or prominent kathākars exemplify this tendency towards the ‘philosophical’ defined primarily through concepts and categories inherent within the teachings of the Sikh Gurus. Because of its inherent self-reflexivity Sikh philosophy has much greater potential for evolving conceptual frameworks for interpreting the teachings of the Sikh Gurus, adapting them to the lived experience of individual Sikhs, to different cultural environments and for conceptually engaging non-Sikh cultures.

But before turning our attention to what these concepts might look like, we need to consider two further objections to the term ‘Sikh philosophy’. The obvious one is that philosophy is a Western discipline and therefore unsuited both for the study of Sikh literature and of the Sikh life-world. This may be rebutted on the grounds that philosophy is no more Western than sociology, history, anthropology or other disciplines whose presence is now well established in Sikh studies. In fact the field of Sikh studies can itself be considered a form of ongoing engagement with the West, one that began in the colonial period and whose mark is firmly imprinted in all literature influenced by Singh Sabha scholarship. This encounter with Western thought and its categories is as much a reality for those who think and write in Punjabi as it is for those who write in English. If anything, ‘philosophy’ provides better access to understanding the framework and mechanisms of this encounter.

A second objection may be that one of the primary sources for Sikh philosophy, the Adi Granth, is not set out as a philosophical treatise or legal codes to be read silently, but as poetry intended to be sung or recited individually or in groups. While the range and power of these teachings are immediately evident to those who participate in devotional practices such as kīrtan and nām simaraṇ , the aesthetic framing of the hymns in the classical rāga and tālas of North Indian music, poses some resistance to any formal systemization, for example, in the form of philosophical conceptualization. This is especially the case when we try to render the content of these teachings in modern English, although modern Punjabi is no less problematic. It could therefore be argued that there is nothing to think about since the literature is purely devotional. If so, then surely the term ‘Sikh theology’ is the most suitable frame whether one likes it or not?

The rebuttal to this argument is relatively straightforward. The source literature is indeed poetic in nature, but there is a vast body of secondary literature that expounds and explicates the teachings of the Adi Granth through modes of reasoning that happen to be current in any social context. Moreover, there are well established and vibrant living traditions of oral exegesis of the Adi Granth (often simply referred to as gurmat vichār , or gurbāṇī viākhiā ) that also expound its core teachings, again, using modes of reasoning that are conventional at any particular time and social context. While these traditions are not doing ‘philosophy’ in the strictly academic sense of the term, they do perform a certain kind of conceptualization that helps ordinary Sikhs to think about, to reflect upon, important aspects of the Gurus’ teachings, and to relate them to the everyday world that they live in, that is to their lived experience. This work of thinking about ( vichār , viākhiā ), which inevitably involves forms of public reasoning, suggest that an implicit philosophical endeavour has always been under way since the time of the Sikh Gurus, one that became more explicit in the work of modern Sikh scholars. Sikh philosophy is therefore superior in that it links Sikh subjectivity or lived-experience directly to the task of interpreting Sikh scripture on a daily basis.

The Authority of Experience

Having raised and answered these objections, we are in a better position to gauge what the basic elements of Sikh philosophy might be, including, of course, a possible starting point. The problem of finding a starting point is no trivial matter, for it is connected to the question of authority of a particular discourse, in this case, the discourse of Sikh philosophy. Fortunately the question of authority is fairly well established in the writings of the Sikh Gurus and especially in Guru Nanak’s most important composition, the Japji. As early as the first few stanzas of this hymn, it becomes obvious that it is nothing less than Guru Nanak’s own testimony about the nature of his authority and the direct experience that authorizes it. Thus any discourse going by the name ‘Sikh philosophy’ would have to ground itself in relation to this direct experience and the possibility that others today can experience something similar, here and now. In other words Sikh philosophy would have to locate its authority within an existential as opposed to an epistemological (= transcendental) perspective. Which means that what the Sikh Gurus directly experienced, and what they exhorted their followers to try and achieve, was not the experience of a transcendental deity, but first and foremost, an experience of living within this world—an experience that is strictly within the horizon of life and death, or mortality. This is not to get rid of a personal ‘God’. Indeed reference to a ‘personal God’, who takes infinite names, abounds in the hymns of the Gurus. Rather, it is to suggest that the notion of personal deity is the result of an experience that comes up against the limits of language and should therefore be understood in a radically different way. It means that the object of the Gurus’ teaching (hence the subject matter of what we call Sikh philosophy) is existence itself, and that this existence, which is identical to non-existence, is neither different from, nor the same as, what we ordinarily term by ‘God’. The perspective that I am seeking should not only be suited to Sikh and non-Sikh sensibilities alike (it could not be otherwise), but more importantly it should allow readers to connect their own lived experiences today to the poetry of the Sikh Gurus, to begin to understand why they felt it necessary to produce such writings, and to apply these to the contemporary world.

Perhaps the best way to explain this is to reconsider Guru Nanak’s own testimony on the matter in the first few stanzas of this hymn, where he succinctly outlines the foundational elements of his teaching and any future Sikh philosophy. He begins by elaborating on the nature of the One, which is depicted as a symbol expressive of the nature of reality. His main point about the One is that in order to achieve a perfected awareness of the nature of reality as One, it has to be experienced all the time, rather than simply comprehended. Paradoxically, however, the very experience of this One disorients the functioning of what we call ‘reality’. The experience of the One reveals a gaping hole in our knowledge of the One. In fact, knowledge and experience cannot be in the same place. To speak about this in conventional language, to bring experience into words, something has to give way. What gives way is our self, or ego, which has to shatter and be reformed but not in the place where it was before. This is the point that Guru Nanak is trying to make in the five stanzas that follow the mūl mantar , where he goes on to articulate some of the key concepts that become foundational to Sikh philosophy.

Evidently then, the work of ‘Sikh philosophy’ cannot simply be located either in the realms of epistemology or ontology in the sense that Western philosophy demarcates these terms. The discourse of ‘Sikh philosophy’, insofar as we conduct this discourse through Anglophone categories, must therefore be grounded in the encounter between concepts, Sikh and Western, and, as we shall see in the following interpretation of the first five stanzas, it points to a mode of thinking in which conceptuality is intrinsically linked to affect. In what follows I will try to outline how the basic ‘philosophical’ move made in the first five stanzas—a move which it needs to be stressed is at once affective and conceptual—orients the relationship between key terms (such as hukam , nām , shabad , gurū , anhad nād , etc.) and gives rise to themes (such as temporality, the nature of consciousness, action and grace, etc.) within the teachings of the Sikh Gurus that are existential-affective as opposed to merely conceptual and therefore speak to a lived existence.

The One: Experiencing Reality As Univocal

The Japji is recited daily by pious Sikhs and its opening formula, the mūl mantar or foundational statement, is repeatedly invoked in shortened form on almost every page of the Guru Granth Sahib. For Sikhs the mul mantar serves as a kind of creedal statement that expresses through rich symbolism the experience undergone by Guru Nanak. Of special importance is the opening phrase ik oankār (lit.: One, whose expression emerges as Word) which consists of the numeral 1, a figure that is universally recognizable across cultures and languages and stands for the Absolute. This is followed by the sign oan (lit. the unfolding or emergence of the Word), and completed by the extended sign— kār which connects oan to the next two words in the mūl mantar : sat(i) (from the Sanskrit satya meaning existence or being) followed by nām (lit. the Name). The verse following the mūl mantar further elaborates the nature of the Absolute One as:

Repeat: True in the beginning, true before time began True even now, Nanak, ever will be true. (AG: 1)

However, an important question arises here. If, as Nanak claims, the truth of this Absolute One can be experienced here and now, what is it that stops each and every person from realizing this all the time ? What stops us repeating such an experience of the One or of being One? More importantly, how could such an experience be repeated?

The answer for Guru Nanak is relatively straightforward. From the standpoint of someone who has actualized Oneness in his or her own existence, the Absolute is One ( ik ) and the One is Absolute. But our normal, everyday consciousness is such that it keeps us fundamentally separated from this One. Our everyday consciousness, which also generates our sense of normality, creates a wall or barrier that prevents us from actualizing Oneness in our lived existence (AG: 24–5, 250). The cause of this barrier is that we are fundamentally deluded about the true nature of Oneness.

What does this mean? What Nanak seems to be suggesting is that the numeral One is not a numeral amongst other numerals. Rather, One is simultaneously the most unique and the most deceitful. One is most unique in the sense that there is no other like it insofar as it names the truth of existence itself ( satnām ); it is a ‘1’ that cannot be owned or appropriated and thereby made part of a series of numbers (1+ n ). On the other hand, ‘1’ is the most deceitful (AG: 33, 1080). This ‘1’ is the basis of knowledge as calculation which evaluates, measures each ‘1’ against every other ‘1’ and thus sets up a difference between them based on this evaluation. It is the ‘1’ that we regard as everyday normality but which is in fact mediated through the structure of the ego, the self which asserts its being on the basis of individuation ( haumai or self-attachment as the mechanism of a subject which returns the self to self, generating the sense of ‘I am my own self’ or ‘I am self-existent’). This oneness makes ego the prior basis of all relationality. The fundamental problem with this ‘1’ is that it projects itself as an infinite proximity between the numeral ‘1’ as the signifier of unity and identity, and the word ‘I’ as the signifier of the self’s identity. For Nānak, the correspondence between numeral and word, ‘1’ and ‘I’, is deceitful insofar as it reproduces this self as an identity that sets itself up in opposition to anything that is different. The ego thereby maintains its existence by erecting barriers against the outside world. It sees itself as a subject fundamentally separated from everything else which becomes an object for it. Nanak likens the subject–object mode of relating to delusion ( bharam ) created by duality ( dubidā: seeing the ‘1’ as two) (AG: 226, 943, 1051).

But the problem, as Nanak sees it, goes much further than the simple assumption that the ego is the source of duality/deceit. For as he explains in the first stanza of Japji, from the standpoint of ego, the Absolute ‘1’ cannot be attained either through conceptual thought or through ritual purity no matter how much one repeats such thinking or ritual. Nor can the Absolute ‘1’ be obtained by practising silent austerities since these too fail to silence the ego’s constant chatter, nor indeed by satisfying one’s innermost cravings. The ego works by routing our experience of the Absolute ‘1’ through all manner of repetition: concepts, rituals, or austerities. Consequently the Absolute ‘1’ always fails to be experienced as such; the nearest we get is to re-present it as an object or an idol to constantly gratify the ego’s desire for permanence. How then does one overcome egotism? How can the ego’s illusory barriers be broken? How does one become self-realized?

Nanak answers this in the first and second stanzas of Japji. The ego’s boundary is broken by orienting the self towards an imperative that is always already inscribed with(in) the self and within the nature of all existence. Nanak’s name for this imperative is hukam —a very simple word that ordinarily means literally ‘an order or command’. But is one to recognize this imperative? Where is it located? And if it could be located, how does one go about actualizing it? Nanak’s answer to these questions is deceptively simple. He states:

O Nanak, to recognize this imperative ( hukam ), for it to take effect, Let the ego not say: ‘I am myself.’ (AG: 1)

Let the ego not say ‘I am myself’. Notice here how Nanak insists on two things simultaneously: (i) the emphasis on a certain kind of speech (not saying, the need to avoid saying something), and (ii) a psychic structure, the ego or ‘I am’, corresponding to a certain kind of language use centred around self-possession, so that the psycho-linguistic structure in question can be described as an ‘I am my-self’ ( haumai ). But what exactly does this imperative mean: that one should not say I am myself? Is this then an imperative to stay silent, to stop speaking altogether? If so, why would Nanak and other mystics like him want to say so much, as is evident by how much they wrote? In any case Nanak has already mentioned in an earlier stanza that silence is not the answer to his problem. Rather, what Nanak seems to suggest is that there is a different way of speaking. To better understand this, it may be helpful to rephrase the imperative as: ‘Let ego say I am not’ which might then be interpreted as: speak/think/act in such a way that your existence stops revolving around, and therefore inscribing, the psychic formation ‘I am my-self’, but instead inscribes a different psychic formation: ‘I am not’. In other words, the ego must become silent so that one can resist saying ‘I am my- self’ even as ego continues to be formed. For Nanak this silencing of the ego is not to be understood literally. Silence refers to a process of ego-loss, a self-enforced withdrawal of ego at the very moment that the self names itself as ‘I’ and thus starts to become an origin or absolute centre in relation to all other existing things including others.

So humanity’s fundamental problem, according to Nanak, lies in not understanding the nature of the ego and its intrinsic connection to language. Interestingly, though, he suggests that the remedy to this problem also lies in the very constitution of the ego (AG: 466). If, as we have seen, ego constructs itself by a certain kind of language use (in the form of self-naming or the assertion of one’s existence as the centre of all reality: ‘I am my-self’), Nanak argues that it is also possible for ego to re -construct itself by perfecting its relationship to language, thereby perfecting the potential that all humans have for speech/thought/action. A question immediately arises here. How do we go about changing the way we normally relate to language in order to bring about the required change in the constitution of the ego? Note that this is a chicken-and-egg question. For we could equally well ask: how to bring about ego-loss in order to effect a change in our relationship to language?

Answers to these questions are not given directly by the Sikh Gurus. More often than not references to language and ego-loss are woven into the fabric of dense poetic verse. Nevertheless, because of the sheer repetition of these two themes it is possible to formulate the beginnings of a response—a response that will enable us to highlight and briefly discuss some of the leading themes in the teachings of the Sikh Gurus. It will be helpful for me to start with the question of ego-loss and rejoin the question of language when we discuss the themes.

So how does one go from ego to ego-loss? Is it even practical or useful to ask such a question? Logically speaking, would it not lead us into self-annihilation? Fortunately there is a time-honoured way of asking this question without falling into the abyss. The way to do this would be to introduce a modicum of self-doubt into the overconfident assertion of haumai (I am my-self), so that one asks instead: Why do I exist? For Guru Nanak, to ask the question why about one’s own self, is to have accepted the working of the imperative ( hukam ) that had been inscribed within the self from the moment it came into existence. Indeed, this hukam is inscribed in the very nature of existence itself in the form of a universal law: everything that exists must eventually fall into non-existence. As the law of existence hukam governs both cosmos and consciousness at the same time. To recognize and imbibe hukam into one’s existence in the form of the question ‘Why do I exist?’, as Nanak suggests, begins the process of decentring the ordinary ego-centric standpoint from where we give meaning to and evaluate all things in relation to our own individual consciousness and our own lives. To recognize hukam is to recognize the shortness of life and the ever-presence of death in life.

As the law of impermanence, the inevitability of returning to one’s origin, hukam is a central category in the teachings of the Sikh Gurus reminding us not only of the mutual imbrications of macrocosm and microcosm, of cosmos and psyche, but also of the ego’s confrontation with time. Hukam comprises a structure-without-structure around which revolve all other themes in the teachings of the Sikh Gurus.

Time and Finitude

The recurrent message in Guru Nanak’s Japji, indeed throughout the Adi Granth, is to experience Oneness by reuniting the ego with non-ego, by recognizing and imbibing hukam —the law of impermanence. Hukam reminds us that the very element in which separation and unification can take place is time. Not surprisingly the theme of time is one of the most pervasive in Sikh scripture. However, the Gurus do not treat time as a category or entity distinct from the phenomenal world and from existing beings. The reason for this is that time can only be ‘known’ as aporia , an irresolvable contradiction, where each moment disappears in the very moment that it appears. As such time itself escapes the subjective versus object opposition that is generated by ego-centrism. By itself time is simultaneously subjective and objective.

For example, ordinarily we think of time as a static grid or a screen on which subjects appear to move between set coordinates, e.g. from past to future. From this dualistic perspective, time is perceived as always out-there, someone else’s time, but never ‘my time’. To collapse this dualism Guru Nanak adopts the well-rehearsed strategy of shrinking the entire passage of human life into a single night, depicting the night’s progression in terms of infancy, childhood, youth, and old age (AG: 74).

To the person who refuses to confront the true nature of time as impermanent here and now, the Gurus project the true nature of time as one’s own mortality that is always already there and cannot be deferred. Through this depiction one is existentially confronted with the presence of death here in this very moment of my existence. Reversing our normal everyday understanding, the Gurus show how, from the perspective of finitude, the usual secure optimism of daylight and the waking state turn out to be illusions, whereas night and the dreaming state are better indicators of reality. The nature of time as the ultimate equalizer of fortunes is evident in many hymns which show that if one rises, one must ultimately fall, irrespective of whether that happens in one’s own lifetime, as shown by the plight of the princesses who fell victim to Babur’s marauding army (AG: 417) or whether it occurs after one’s life has been lived, as portrayed in Shaikh Farid’s austere verse (AG: 1380).

Time, however, is nothing if not paradoxical. According to the Gurus, it is neither real nor illusory, yet it is both; neither subjective nor objective, yet both. On the one hand time is the matrix in which the self is forged but ultimately trapped. Having forgotten its true nature as impermanent and becoming attached to worldly projects, beauty, youth and wealth; it suffers and grieves when these things are lost. On the other hand given that the locus of one’s existence in time is the body, time is a gift. Likening the temporal body to a full blooded mare, the Guru urges man to saddle up and ride life in order to cross the sea of existence (AG: 575).

While ordinarily people lament the passing of time, grieving for things lost, and suffering pain when attachments are broken, the Guru teaches that attachment and suffering result only from the ego’s habitual obstruction of the natural flow of time. By accepting time as the essence of our being and seeing every attempt to control time as ultimately illusory like the waves of the sea, which are here one moment, gone the next, one can be released from suffering which the Gurus refer to through the metaphors of the cycle of births and death. But if one learns to cultivate a mindfulness of hukam through the practice of constant remembrance of the Name, one can learn to renounce self-attachment as the insidious obstacle to the flow of time. With the obstruction removed the mind is freed from its self-imposed bindings, from its immersion in the cycle of birth and death and from the anxiety of being born into one life-form after another.

Mind, Consciousness, Ego

If all of existence is sustained by hukam , the law of infinite finitude, then human consciousness (or mind) too is subject to this inexorable law. But as the Sikh Gurus constantly remind us, humans develop a tendency to resist this natural law. Instead of aligning our consciousness with hukam , we become attached to worldly things including our own egos, in the process increasing the separation of ego from its source. For Nanak this is humanity’s fundamental problem. Nevertheless, he suggests that the solution to this problem also lies in the very nature and constitution of the ego. How can this be possible?

To grasp what Nanak is saying here it is helpful to look more carefully at the term man which refers to the totality of consciousness prior to its being split through the function of the self-conscious ego, and for which the corresponding English terms would be psyche, mind, memory, consciousness, heart, etc. Man (or mind) has two aspects for the Sikh Gurus. There is on the one hand the mind-as-ego which causes the split or separation in the first place. As self-conscious, mind-as-ego possesses a discriminatory awareness, a sense of duality which grasps or rejects something external. Fundamentally, it is that which falsely posits an ‘other’ ( dūjā ) as the basis of external reference and projects itself as the basis of normative reality. From Nānak’s perspective, this mind-as-ego is afflicted by a chronic sickness ( dīragh rog ). This happens to be the aspect of mind that calculates, desires, manipulates, flares up in anger and indulges in negative emotions. It needs to constantly assert and reaffirm its existence by fragmenting, conceptualizing, and solidifying our experience of the temporal world. In fact Nanak refers to the mind-as-ego as man pardesī —my mind that has become a foreigner to itself. By creating a defensive boundary around itself it becomes estranged from what Nanak refers to as its true home ( ghar ), its beloved ‘object’, the mind-as-non-ego, or simply mind-as-other. Yet even though it is the one estranged from its beloved, the mind-as-ego disavows its own estrangement by positing that from which it is separated as stranger, as the other. In other words it projects its own activity and its guilt onto its other. Though separated by ego activity, however, the two aspects are intimately drawn to each other like lover and beloved. Together these aspects comprise a psychic whole.

The split (but ultimately unified) nature of man raises questions about the ‘standpoint’ from which Nanak enunciates and particularly to his signature (the proper name ‘Nānak’) which accompanies all of his hymns. Who is it that speaks in these invocations? Precisely to whom is Nanak’s utterance addressed? Who is the other of Nānak’s speech? Is it God? Is it the reader? The answer to both of these must be an emphatic no! Rather Nanak almost always speaks to his own mind, addressing it at times through tender love as when he says ‘my beloved mind’, at times by cajoling it ‘my foolish mind’ or at other times beseeching it as a lover beseeches her beloved not to leave her. However, because almost every hymn in the Adi Granth ends with the invocation ‘O Nānak’ the impression may be given that through the use of his proper name, Nanak is signatory to his own words, that these words belong to the person Nanak, thereby marking them with a seal of authority? Closer scrutiny shows that Nānak’s speech is primarily directed to himself, to his own mind. More specifically Nānak’s enunciation is invariably directed towards the ego-mind, and comes from his unconscious mind (the mind which is at home) as a form of supplication which beseeches his conscious ego-mind (the mind which has become a stranger to itself) to join together in union.

If the ego-mind responds to the supplication of the unconscious mind, it can do so only through the gesture of renunciation. By renouncing its self-naming as ‘I’, it can unite with its (beloved) other from which it has come to be separated. This gesture of withdrawal is deeply traumatic for the ego-mind, for it requires the ego to cross the very barrier which it has erected as its own defence. Such a crossing constitutes a death (ego-loss). However, what is absolutely clear in the Gurus’ teachings is that they do not advocate any kind of annihilation of the ego or its repression through excessive discipline, for as Nanak says, the ego contains its own cure (AG: 466: dārū bī is mahi )! Its cure is contained within it as its most intimate kernel, namely its beloved other. Because the nature of ego is intrinsically time, the cure involves a struggle not against the world but a struggle to exist within the world while being connected to the Unconscious mind. This struggle, however, can only be waged through the language of love (‘Beloved mind, come back to me’ etc.). If ego-mind is to come back it must cross its own boundary, and in so doing it must die to itself.

Action and Grace

Once the nature of ego and time are understood to be intrinsically linked, a rather more interesting and complex picture of ethical action emerges than the stereotypical opposition between a passive karma and an active notion of divine grace. For as Guru Nanak states in the Japji, ‘Through deeds we’ve done we get this garment [of human existence], through grace we reach the door of liberation’ (AG: 2). The Punjabi term for karma , as it occurs in the writings of the Sikh Gurus, is karam . It has three central connotations. First, it means to do, to perform, accomplish, make, to cause or effect. Second, when associated with the term ā vāgavaṇ (lit. coming and going, the cycle of births and deaths) it stands for fate, destiny, predestination, transmigration, insofar as all of these result from one’s actions or deeds. The third meaning of karam , which happens to be derived from Arabic sources, is conceptually synonymous with the terms nadar and kirpa (implying grace) and the Perso-Arabic term hukam (order/command/will/call etc.). Indeed, the difference between the Brahmanic concept of karma and the Sikh articulation of it, encapsulated within the linked terms karam/nadar/hukam , boils down to very different concepts of time. Accordingly the interlinked notions of karam , nadar , and hukam often appear in the same hymn, underscoring the essentially paradoxical unity between them (AG: 898).

In the writings of the Sikh Gurus, the Vedic notion of karma is replaced by the term hukam , the imperative that is inherent within the nature of existence. Instead of karma the Gurus speak of karam , deeds or actions that are aligned either with or against the working of hukam . Existence itself is depicted by the Gurus as an unfolding of the One, a writing ( lekh ) that is held in place by a fabric of space, time, and cause (the so-called three qualities or tin gun ). The metaphor of writing signifies the nature of the One as a non-static or continually flowing action. Thus any action committed by an individual ego, which by definition is already separated from the One, works against the flow of nature, effectively creating eddies that attempt to freeze the flux of existence. By working against the flow of hukam , every egotistical action leaves traces of its signature ( kār , karnī ) within the temporal fabric. Instead of simply arising and passing out of existence as would be required by hukam , these karmic traces accumulate and prolong the separation between ego and the One.

As the context in which actions are performed, the operation of hukam can be likened to the law of conservation of energy, with the proviso that it is not limited to physical nature but includes the non-physical or psychic aspect of sentient beings such as thoughts, speech, desires, and feelings. Thus ‘good’ and ‘bad’ rebirths are not rewards or punishments but are consequences of specific actions. An action is like a seed which must bear fruit either in this life or the next (AG: 730).

What determines the nature of a karmic seed, however, is the nature of a particular action. Moreover, each and every action, even when this action is intentional as in thought, speech, desire, or feeling, is imprinted into the temporal fabric of the self through the work of memory. These imprints are confirmed tendencies which can be regarded as being somewhat like psychic genes. Actions repeated over time turn into tendencies or habits carried by an individual through this life into the next, unless a way is found to secure release from the imprinting process. Indeed there are certain meritorious actions, such as self-surrender, ego-loss, dying to the self, which, if performed, stop the imprinting process (AG: 420).

As the most meritorious of all actions, self-surrender, requires the intervention of a satguru either in person or in Word. The person who surrenders his or her mind to the Guru is called a gurmukh (‘one whose being is turned toward the Guru’) who no longer performs actions from the standpoint of ego (AG: 1414).

In contrast to the gurmukh stand the self-centred ( manmukh ) who continue to act from the standpoint of ego. The actions of a gurmukh arise spontaneously.

The intertwined nature of karam and nadar , of the gurmukh and manmukh , is perhaps best illustrated by references in the Gurus’ hymns to transmigration and the cycle of births and deaths. Insofar as both the gurmukh and the self-willed must perform actions in time, the cycle of births and deaths provides a mythical perspective on time and life which gives rise to sympathy and respect for all living beings. That all existing things are subject to birth, death, and passage between different forms means that everything is absolutely interconnected. This interconnectedness of all existence is the only proper starting point for ethical thinking.

Viraha : The State of Fusion–Separation

An important consequence of the concept of mind as Nanak elaborates it is that it at once refines and negates the monotheistic concept of self/God as a relationship between inside and outside. In Nanak’s teaching this relationship is played out as the movement of love between lover (mind-as-ego) and beloved (unconscious mind as non-ego). Monotheism in the strict sense becomes almost redundant in the movement and crossings of love. Or when this love relationship is consummated (fusion), its outward manifestation is as an existence in the world that is radically interconnected to all others. This death of ego-mind, or its capitulation to the embrace of the lover (unconscious mind), is constituted as a realization that our singularity is punctuated by the presence of other existing beings, not simply humans. A fact which opens up the possibility of ethics and politics based on a state of mind that keeps its two halves fused together in a state of balance.

Part of the problem of monotheism is that it remains within a standpoint from which reality is perceived dualistically in terms of either/or oppositions: One/Many, existence/non-existence, form/formlessness, good/evil, etc. Such a standpoint, however, replaces the immediate experience of the One with the dualistic representation of that experience. For Nanak the One cannot be attained by simply annihilating such oppositions or by elevating one term over another. Rather the unity proper to the Absolute must remain a paradox, that is, as the minimal coincidence of self with other. Nanak’s term for this coincidence of self and other is birhā . Resisting all description except through paradox, birhā signifies a link between self and other that exists only in erasing itself. Birhā is a point at which self and other touch and fuse but are ever in danger of separating (AG: 637, 1378). In birhā separation is the same as union and vice versa. To speak of this state the Gurus invoke the intensely emotional imagery of the virgin bride who anticipates the embrace of her husband on her wedding night, or the wife’s longing for her husband’s return from a far-off land. Bride, virgin, wife are simply metaphors for a self which is individuated and which pines for the union with the other. The emotion invoked here is that of intensely painful longing combined with the ecstasy of fusion. The pain signifies the minimal link to the self which cannot be broken for otherwise fusion would mean annihilation of self and world. Hence, self and therefore separation always remain but within ecstasy. Alternatively, the ecstasy of fusion is always there but tinged with the pain of separation. This state of fusion–separation where knowledge becomes non-knowledge is not a metaphysical ideal but a lived reality, a state of liberation, in which the liberated person instinctively avoids relating to everything else in terms of subject–object duality. Such a realized person no longer re-presents the Absolute since the conscious distinction between self and other, I and not-I, lover and beloved, nirguṇ (non-existence or a being that cannot be predicated) and sarguṇ (existence or a being that can be predicated) has disappeared leaving an ecstatic and purely spontaneous form of existence ( sahaj : literally equipoise).

In the writings of the Sikh Gurus, a person who maintains this state of birhā and its attendant balance of separation–fusion, self–other, action–inaction, attachment–detachment in the course of daily life is known as gurmukh (literally one whose speech is centred on the Guru-Word, the Unconscious Word, the satguru ). The gurmukh lives in stark contradiction to the manmukh (one whose existence is self-centred). The distinction between gurmukh and manmukh is more than just an ethical one since ‘ethic’ implies some minimal binding to some norm or duty. Rather the distinction implies a freedom from the bindings of the self, which gives rise not to an annihilation of self but to a spontaneity of speech-thought-action. Whether this transition is viewed epistemologically as a shift from duality to Oneness or existentially from manmukh to gurmukh , the transition itself revolves around the efficacy of the Name ( nām ) which is both the object of love and the means of loving attachment to one’s beloved. The term nām names the impossible point of contact between self–other, separation–fusion. Attunement to nām constitutes a wordless communication between self and other which corresponds to the primordial love through which all existent things relate to each other before individuation takes over.

In Guru Nanak’s hymns nām is not a particular word or mantra. It is inscribed within, yet manifests as speech in which traces of ego are constantly erased as they arise. As the constituting link between interiority and worldly action, nām arises involuntarily in the gurmukh ’s speech through the practice of constantly holding in mind the remembrance of death ( nām simaraṇ ). But nām cannot be obtained through self-effort alone. Its attainment depends on the grace or favourable glance ( kirpā , nadar ) of a spiritual preceptor or a Guru.

Guru as Word: Śabda, Nām, Satguru

As one of the central terms in the Sikh lexicon, the term ‘guru’ takes on theologico-political connotations that go well beyond its meaning and application in the broader South Asian context, where it is limited to a teacher of worldly knowledge or a conveyor of spiritual insights. In Sikh tradition the term guru automatically incorporates this earlier meaning, referring thereby to the personality of Guru Nanak and his nine successor Gurus. Metaphorically it refers to the same principle of spirituality manifested in all ten Gurus; practically it serves to indicate the authority vested in the name ‘Nanak’. Thus the hymns of the different Gurus in the Adi Granth are cited according to their respective composers as sequential locations ( mohalā ) for the manifestation of the name ‘Nanak’. Just before the death of the tenth Nanak, Guru Gobind Singh, spiritual authority was vested in the Adi Granth (henceforth Guru Granth Sahib), leading to the doctrine of scripture or Word as Guru ( śabda-gurū ).

The logic of this doctrine notwithstanding, the question arises as to who was Nanak’s guru? Who or what was his source of ultimate authority? It may be helpful here to look at several ways in which Nanak himself answers this question:

The Word is my guru, my mind attuned to it is its disciple . I stay detached through the Unspoken Word . (M1, Siddh Gosht 44, AG: 943)

I narrate the Word of my Beloved as it comes to me. (M1, Tilang 5, AG: 722)

Elsewhere Nanak says: ‘I myself do not know how to speak, for as I am commanded, so I speak’ (AG: 566). What is interesting here is that despite speaking much, Nanak says categorically that he cannot speak, he himself is silent; rather, he claims, it is the Word that speaks not Nanak. As we have noted in the discussions above, in order to be vested with authority, Nanak must silence the speech of his ego (the faculty that says ‘I am’) by renouncing his claim to authority over what is spoken. Nanak’s renunciation of authority is indicative of the fact that his own preceptor was not a human guru but an impersonal principle: the Word ( śabda ) which Nanak also calls satgurū (lit. the true authority) a term that implies a personal relation to the Word. Personal or impersonal, only the Word speaks truly about the nature of existence.

As anhad śabda the Word itself speaks or resounds without being spoken. This sounds like a tautology but actually indicates a mode of communication in which ego is no longer from the grasp of ego, words are no longer given value according to their degree of correspondence to things, but instead arise from an internalized mode of speech that occurs between conscious (ego) and Unconscious (non-ego) mind. The unspoken Word arises from a mode of communication in which the mind speaks with itself, giving the impression of a departure from the standards of everyday social reality in which speech is meaningful if it makes sense to everybody. The point of this seemingly impossible communication is to rejoin the two aspects of the dualistic mind separated by ego sense. Devoid of ego-traces the Word that is so minted in the mind appears as an expression of wonder ( vismād ) at the nature of existence, that things exist at all rather than nothing. Just as all creation simply happens without asking why, so the unspoken Word arises without connection to intention, desire, or will.

Thus Guru Nanak’s authority, what makes him Guru or gurmukh , is derived from the satgurū = śabda . But satgurū as śabda-gurū manifests only when the ego erases its own traces but without annihilating itself. This self-erasure is another name for the love between self and other that enables them to be One even in separation. Thus Nanak’s authority is derived from his own experience of the One.

This experience is authoritative in as much as it entails a radical reorientation of consciousness which constitutes what is normally understood as liberation. Thus the liberative reorientation of consciousness that the Sikh Gurus are looking for must happen primarily at the level of language or Word ( śabda ), such that one’s ordinary relationship to language, which is based on self-naming where the ‘I’ is attached to a primary identification to its own image and name, is transformed by its attunement to the Word as nām (the Name). Nām is the link by means of which all existing things acknowledge their non-existent source, as well as the means by which each self acknowledges its link to its voided other.

Nām : Beyond the Personal and the Impersonal

As the Sikh Gurus articulate it, nām cannot simply be reduced to God’s Name: it illustrates the paradox of the One and the Many. Throughout the Adi Granth, nām serves to replace what is named in other traditions as ‘God’, whose name is no more than a tool for calling this entity to mind at will. For the Gurus, any ‘God’ or ‘god’ that is outside of the ego is to remain subject to the operation of māyā , the veil of illusion. Although ‘God’ is referred to as the highest or ultimate etc., these superlatives still only refer to a highest or ultimate entity which remains within a scale determined by man. Thus nām signifies that divinity can only be experienced through the meeting of eternity and time, absolute and finite. Nām is therefore not so much an indicator of transcendental experience as it is of the possibility of all possible experience. The term nām is as much theological as it is political. To see how this might be the case, it is helpful to relate our discussion of nām to two other terms used by Guru Nanak to refer to his experience of the One: the terms nirguṇ and sarguṇ .

Nirguṇ : the experience of the divine as ineffable, without qualities, beyond naming, signifies the divinity’s detachment or non-existence; hence either ‘God’ has no Name or God’s Name is the signifier of emptiness. Sarguṇ : ‘God’ has infinite names, corresponding to infinite attributes, and insofar signifies absolute fullness, or a full involvement of the divinity in all things. Yet for Nanak these two opposing terms are also the same: nirguṇu āpi sarguṇu bī ohī (being absent the same One is also fully present (AG: 287)). So ‘God’ is beyond, yet ‘God’ actualizes himself through the relation of equivalence, and therefore substitutability, between all names and things. As there is equivalence between all things, so God’s ineffability/absence and his fullness/presence are different aspects of the same formless one: sarguṇ nirguṇ niraṇkār (AG: 290).

Nām therefore names this equivalential connection ( sarguṇ-nirguṇ ) as an ineffable fullness, which is to say that nām is a signifier of emptiness, an empty signifier. So what we regard as an entity called ‘God’ is better termed nām , such that nām implies an entity that is involved in the world but is at the same time absent. Only nām can signify this impossible relation between absence/presence, non-existence/existence, empty/full, etc. And nām can do this precisely because it is part of an already existing discursive network of signifiers, a symbolic order that we call language. Nām , in other words, is part of the fabric of ordinary and everyday experience. Nām therefore helps us make sense of the divine paradox ( nirguṇ-sarguṇ ) by putting the impossible, the beyond, the absent, to play in the context of finitude (AG: 387). I can only experience the Absolute as utterly empty ( nirguṇ ) if I can project it into the contingent, everyday experience of particulars ( sarguṇ ) and therefore be involved in the world. Consequently nām , as experience, is to experience the detachment ( nirguṇ ) while living, speaking, and being involved in ordinary worldly experience ( sarguṇ ). If something is experienced by the mystic, then this experience, if it is not to remain abstract or detached, must actualize itself through attachment to a particular, to that which is finite and, therefore, to contingent events. If nām names the mystical experience that desires ultimate fullness, then nām must accompany all positive experience. This is also the condition of all authority, of all sovereignty and consequently of the political. Authority or sovereignty is such only if it is radically empty or represented through the empty signifier that is nām .

This is why the Gurus prefer nām , a term which names the intricate link or experience between self and other. In contradistinction to the ‘I’ generated by the ego’s cravings, which operates an economy of narcissism precisely to gain a return to oneself, hence self-ownership as the beginning of ownership of the other, Name is the only capital that cannot be reduced to the status of a thing and circulated in an economy of exchange. Nanak’s instruction in this regard is very pragmatic: one cannot simply escape the economic nature of one’s existence in the world driven by the self’s desire to make everything its own property. But it is possible to change the very nature of this economy by transforming narcissistic self-love into a love of the Name.

Moreover the Gurus suggest a practice for transforming the ego-based economy of ordinary life in which we accumulate knowledge, exchange entities, transact commerce, reasonable rules, plans and projects, rites and rituals. This practice is nām simaran : the constant holding in remembrance of the Name, which goes beyond mechanical repetition to become a spontaneous form of love between self and other. The paradoxical dialectic here between appropriation of nām and disappropriation of ego becomes more evident from the etymology of the word simaran . Derived from the Indo-European root sṃr - (to remember, hold in mind) the term has traditionally been understood to resonate with the Sanskrit terms mr - and maraṇā , to die or pass away, suggesting that simaraṇ is a form of remembrance which automatically lets go or renounces. Stated differently, simaraṇ is first of all remembrance of one’s own mortality, of the ego’s death, remembering which one awakens to the Name. Nām simaraṇ is therefore the condition of experience of finitude. Alternatively, the experience of finitude is the condition for the experience of nām . Because nām simaraṇ is not a metaphysical concept but a concrete sacrificial practice for transforming memory, as that function of mind which weaves time into the structures that manipulate our existence and thinking, it can also be viewed as a way of transforming worldly time and existence. It provides a means for the individual to participate and make changes in the world. Nām simaraṇ is as inherently political as it is spiritual. As a result such conceptual dualities as those between religion and politics, mysticism and violence become superfluous. This is evident in the lives of the Sikh Gurus for whom there was no contradiction between mystical experience and the life of a soldier, householder, or political leader.

McLeod, W. H. ( 1990 ). ‘A Sikh Theology for Modern Times’. In Joseph T. O’Connell et al. (eds.), Sikh History and Religion in the Twentieth Century . New Delhi: Manohar Publications for South Asia: 32–43.

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Mandair, A. S. ( 2009 ). Religion and the Spectre of the West: Sikhism, India, Postcoloniality and the Politics of Translation . New York: Columbia University Press.

Mandair, A. S. ( 2013 ). Sikhism: A Guide for the Perplexed . New York: Continuum.

Shackle, Christopher , and Arvind-pal Singh Mandair (eds. and trans.) ( 2005 ). Teachings of the Sikh Gurus: Selections from the Sikh Scriptures . London and New York: Routledge.

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