Post 5

post five: Briefly discuss the "evolution" of Sikhism from Guru Nanak to present day.

There is a three-fold historical breakdown on Sikh history. We will discuss the first where Nanak found the religion as he synthesizes Hindu and Muslim ideas. Sikhism began in the early 16th century when Guru Nanak founded it. Nanak was a philosopher who had influences to an older tradition that dates back to the 13th century in Southern India called the Sant tradition. During this time it was taught that God did not have a specific form (nirguna), and through meditation and mysticism one can experience this mystery for themselves. The goal of reaching Sach Khand (Realm of Truth), which is considered the highest spiritual realm, could be reached through meditation. This philosophy inherited Native American concepts such as karma and reincarnation. Nath, Sufi, and bhakti have seemed to influence Santism. They (Sants) were also interested in social reform because they clearly rejected the caste system. There are many popular Sants. One being a guru from Northern India during the 15th century named Kabir. He wanted to liberate India from superstitions and idolartry. He challenged ideas such as performing elaborate rituals, asceticism, polytheism, and the caste system. Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs have all claimed him to be one of their own however his background is Muslim. Even with a Muslim background he seemed to deviate significantly from orthodox Islam. Sikhs have tried to link him to their religious head, Nanak. None of these things are for certain even the years of Kabir’s life are uncertain, which could have either been between 1380 – 1460 or 1440 – 1518. Kabir did write in Adi Granth (541 hyms), Bijak, and Kibir-Granthvali however they are not free of alterations. The Sikhs were trying to present him as a sort of spiritual brother of Nanak and might have made small changes to his writings to have him fit with this idea. Scholars however question whether his writings were actually written by him. The story illustrating Nanak’s view of God as permeating all existence I particularly like. It is said that one day he was taking a nap and did not pay attention to the direction of his feet. Some Muslims that were passing by expressed their disapproval of the fact his feet were not in the direction of Mecca. Nanak then asked them to place his feet in the direction where God is not. At this moment the Muslims realized his wisdom and went on their way. Nanak said, “There is no Muslim and there is no Hindu” fueled the debate over whether Nanak was combing the two or stating that neither one was sufficient for spiritual enlightenment. A lot of biographers claim that Nanak tried to merge the Hindu and Muslim faiths however, W.H. McLeod has claimed that he did not try to combine the two but rejected both.

The second part of our historical journey is that of the sixth guru turning to militancy in light of oppression. There are ten gurus that traditional Sikhs acknowledge which are (in order from 1-10): Nanak, Angad, Amar Das, Ram Das, Arjan, Har Gobind, Har Rai, Har Krishan, Tegh Bahadur, and Gobind Singh. There are some, what are referred to as, splinter gurus within Sikh history. Such as: Sri Chand son of Nanak who rejected Angad the second guru and started the ascetic group the Udasis, Prithi Chand who was the son of Arjan who protested the guruship of Har Gobind the sixth guru and developed the Minas, Dhir Mal who was the grandson of Har Gobind whom challenged the succession of his younger brother Har Rai the seventh guru, and Ram Rai who was the son of Har Rai who would not accept the leadership of his younger brother Har Krishan the eighth guru. These splinter gurus usually are not acknowledged within the Sikh history. During the 19th century the organization called the Singh Sabha presented a glossy version of the Sikh history. Basically stated that the religion has never revolved and the Nanak teachings are equal to modern Sikhs. This however is not true. If you compare Nanak’s soteriological message to Gobind Singh’s social one proves this point. Sikhism has moved from a peaceful movement that was in line with Sant teachings to a religious institution with military concerns and political aims. During Nanak’s time it was peaceful and continued to live as such for about 100 years. However the Mughals had entered India and had taken over the Lodi Sultanate by Bubur’s Mughal army.

Amar Das, the third guru implemented significant changes for the Sikhs. One was where he established the langar (caste free dining). He also created a Sikh administration that was called the Manji system, a sort of governing method that over saw certain locations and specific tasks.

The fourth guru was Amar Das’ son-in-law, Ram Das who had three sons however chose the youngest, Arjan, to be the fifth guru. Arjan created the Adi Granth in 1603. He also organized the construction of Hari Mandir, also known as the Golden Temple. After Akbar’s death Jehangir, an emperor who had extreme intolerance and also disliked the Sikhs, had been considered a martyr of the religion. This was due to the fact that Arjan had been arrested by him and died while in his custody.

The sixth guru was Arjan’s eleven-year-old son, Har Gobind. He has organized a Sikh army, which shifted the Panth’s to militancy. While the oppression was going Har Gobind wore two swords, signallying spiritual strength, around his waist. Jehangir tried to order the disbandment of the Sikh army and then put the guru in prison for one year. Shan Jahan was the next Mughal ruler forced Har Gobind to relocate. In 1634 they seeked refuge in the Himalayan foothills (Sivalik Hills).

Har Rai was Har Gobind’s second grandson and the seventh guru. He continued to live in the mountains for several decades where he and the Sikhs experienced peace.

Har Rai’s son, Har Krishan was the eight guru. The peace that the Sikhs continued because the threat of the Mughals continue to recede, however returned with the reign of the ninth guru, Tegh Bahadur who was the grand uncle of Har Krishan. At that time the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb tried to exterminate all religions other than Islam, which led to Tech Bahadur’s death. His son at age nine, Gobind Singh, assumed being the Sikh’s tenth guru. During his reign he created the five K’s which were: Kesh (uncut hair, Kangha (a comb placed inside the turban), Kara (abracelet), Kirpan (a sword), and Kaach (short cotton briefs). These were created so all Sikhs could recognize each other and have a sense of community in the time of political tension.





What does the evolution of this religion tell us about religion in general?

The followers of a particular religion are there normally for the same reason, which is to seek guidance. If a religion offers this guidance through a living guru and that guru dies there is a chance that the group will decrease in size and later die out if there is not an appointed successor. However because the tenth guru Bobind Singh of the Sikh religion assigned guru ship to the Guru Granth Sahib, which are the group’s religious writings it gave the group permanent stability and constant spiritual direction. We can also learn that a lot of religions mix with government control factors such as the British gaining control in the Punjab from 1849 – 1947. The British was not well received at first during the 1850s. However because Sikh’s could serve in British army, they allowed and even encouraged to observe the Khalsa and wear the five k’s. This strengthens the British army and helped keep Sikhs from going back into Hinduism and because Khalsa Sikhism evolved it continued to grow. Through this evolution of religion come different sects of the main religion. Sikhism for example has different groups of the main religion such as: Khalsa Sikhism, Amritdhari Sikhism, Sahaj-dhari Sikhism, Keshdhari Sikhs, Mona Sikhs, 3HO Sikhs, Nirankari Sikhs, Namdhari Sikhs, and Udasis Sikhs. The evolution of religion is necessary for their survival. If the religion does not evolve with the times the religion is sure to not exist any more.