SIKH WOMEN; EQUALITY AND SPIRITUALITY BE FORE GURU NANAK: By the first millennium of the Christian Era the Punjab (the Land of Five Rivers) had earned the description of “Cradle of Indian Civilization”. The Aryans settled here, the Vedas were compiled on the bank of the Jamuna River.
Strangely, the “Cradle of Indian Civilization” had no respect for womanhood.
There were many derogatory terms used for woman, She was referred 10 “as a man’s shoe, the root of all evil, a snare, a temptress, and having her intelligence in her ankles or behind her neck.
In the 10th century, the inhabit ants suffered crushing blows from wave after wave of invaders, and the area came to be known as the “door mal of India.”
“The plight of women was made miserable by the invaders.” many of whom were just slave hunters that abducted women for sale Advent of Guni Nanak:
Into such debased society Guru Nanak Dev was born in 1469. Very early he showed clear signs of being a social revolutionary. He commenced 4 movement to develop men and women who would be physically distinctive, mentally after and spirituality enlightened, Over 10 generations, covering a period of 330 years, Guru Nanak’s successors and disciples. Distinguished themselves in every field of endeavor. 11699 Gunr Gobind Singh applied the final touches, by the institution of the Khalsa Brotherhood. They after an ardent struggle for a century they established their own rule in 1799, during this period also the status of worn began to Change for better.
Guni Nanak condemned the system of celibacy for salvation or whatever other purposes. He advocated “Ekanari sadajati” (With one wife be celebrate forever.)
Taking a wife it was the man’s physical, mental and spiritual responsibility 10 protect her. The Sikhs learned 16 consider all other women as “mothers, sisters or daughters”; they learned to protect them, on numerous occasions Sikhs relieved the invaders of groups of women being herded on their way northward and sent them back to their homes. Such high moral standard has been maintained by Sikhs that, even the enemy‘s women were never molested.
Guru Nanak condemned the man created notion of the inferiority of woman, He protested against her long subjugation, He challenged the unjust customs and practices prevalent,
The composition called “As a di Var” has scathing criticism of the Brahmanical practices. In it is a Stanza reserved for woman in particular.
“WHY CALLHER BAD, FROM WHOM ARE BORN KINGS? FROM A WOMAN, A WOMAN IS BORN: WITHOUT WOMAN, THERE CAN BE NONE.
Nanak, only the one True Lord is without a woman.”(AG p473)
The Guru’s message is for all men as well as for women.
Guru Amardass influenced Emperor Akbar to issue a directive to stop the callous practice of sati”.
Gumi Amardas also raised his against the practice of Pardah system, He forbade Sikhs to have any association with families indulging in daughter infanticide,
Guru Hargobind respected woman by saying: “Woman is the conscience of man”.
At the initiation of the Khalsa on Baisakhi in 1699, Gur Gobind Singh’s wife, Sahib Kaur, publicly participated in the preparation of Amrit, by adding sugar crystals. Initiation is carried out together for men and women, there being no distinction between men and Women in the injunctions for maintenance of the five Ks or the four cardinal prohibitions.
FAMOUS EARLY SIKH LADIES:
“Out of 22 Manjis (dioces) established by Guru Amardas for preaching Sikhism four were held by women. He also appointed 52 missionaries including women to educate women and men in the three Rs and also to spread the message of Sikhism”.
Bebe Nanaki, elder sister of Nanak Dev, had gained eminence. Being spiritually unlighted, she was perhaps the first to recognize the spiritual potential of the young Nanak.
Successive ladies in the Line of Nanak played an important role to help in their husbands* missionary work. They also set examples for Sikhs (disciples) to emulate. The names of the ladies often heard during sermons included Mata Khivi, the wife of Guru Angad Bibi Bhani daughter of Guru Amardas, is often cited during wedding ceremonies she participated in the establishment of Ramdaspur, which later became Amritsar. Ever since then women have participated in Kar Seva (labor of love) at the construction or renovation of temples and Sarovars(wattrpools), MataGanga the wife of Guru Arjan Dev, who received the blessings of Baba Buddha for the birth of their only, son Hargobind Sahib did not wince when her husband suffered martyrdom at Lahore in 1606.
Mata Gujri, the wife of Guru Tegh Bahadur Jee,saw husband suffered martyrdom while her son was so young.
She saw her four grandsons grow from babyhood to boyhood and then attain martyrdom. She stoically accepted that her grandsons had followed her husband’s ex ample.
After Gur Gobind Singh’s demise, Mata Sundn, the Widow of Guru Gobind Singh, then in Delhi, firmly handled an important crisis when she ordered the separation of the Tait Khatsa from Banda’s forces, Mata Sundni also arranged for the compilation of poetic com positions of Guru Gobind Singh and of some poets in his Court to be published, The collection mainly by Mani Singh came to be known as the Dasam Granth,
These early Sikh Jadics set an example of spiritual strength required by subsequent Sikh Women. Sardami Sada Kaur, mother-in-law of Ranjit Singh was at the head of her forces to help Ranjit Singh consolidate the Punjab. Rani Sahib: Kaur lead the Patiala forces, when the Slate was invaded by Marhatta Anta Rao, and she successfully put him to flight,
Our ancestors saluted the Sikh women of the 18th century by erecting & special memorial called Shahid Ganj Singhnian in Lahore
SINCE SIKH RAJ:
George Thomson, a soldier of fortune, who had established a small state in the Punjab, wrote in his memoirs that; “Instances in deed have not infrequently occurred in which Sikh women have actually taken up arms to defend their inhabitants from the desultory attacks of the enemy and throughout the contest behaved themselves with the intrepidity of spirit highly praiseworthy”.
Following the Gurdwara Reform Movement, Schools for girls were established by the community’s own efforts from the Second De cade onwards. The response of Sikh families to educate their girls was stupendous, as it was appreciated that educated women would improve the general standards of families.
During the War period, Sikhs participated in large numbers in the Indian National Army. In a unit called Rani Jhansi Regiment in which Sikh women participated with equal enthusiasm.
After World War I, just as Sikh men, from commonplace activities exploded into the professional qualifications and executive employment in public and private sectors, so did Sikh women. Sikh women have also entered some professions that were considered men’s reserves before the War accountancy, soldiers and police work.
Sikh women are among accountants, architects, banking executives, journalists and educationists at all levels They are doctors, dentists and in the nursing service as well, . Sikh women’s activities in Punjab are well matched by Sikh women’s activities outside Punjab,
Sikh women have a fair Share in the military, police and civil de fence activities.
CONCLUSION.
In Sikh homes daughters are adored; the word BIBI is frequently changed to BIBA. It may not be strange as the word is still the same, though made to sound masculine, 10 promote equality with sons. In the Semitic religions Judaism, Christianity, Islam as well as Zoroastrianism, the father figure of God is supreme. The Sikh Gurus too accepted the father figure of God, but because this is not the biological father, they sometimes referred to God also as mother, Our congregational prayer opens with the singing of a Stanza of Guru Arjan Dev beginning with “Toon Thakur tum paiardas” You are the Lord, to you we pray, In the second line we sing: “Tum maat pita ham barak tere” You are mother and father, we are your children. Here we have clearly the Mother figure of God as well. We are taught to have intimate communications with God, our Gurus taught us to treat our mothers (and hence all women) with godly respect.
Article extracted from this publication >> October 1, 1993
