By Brig Tarlochan Singh (retd)

It appears that the inadvertent association of some tribal and primitive values and their subsequently becoming current in Sikhism is at the bottom of the recurrent and formidable difficulties faced by the Sikhs today.

A great change has occurred in connection with the practice of social and spiritual concepts even in our life time. That something which made Sikh religion highly meaningful in our younger days seems to have diminished The sense of pride in belonging to the most modem and select religion is not so dominantly visible now. A forward looking spiritual religion has been almost converted into a medieval cult due to the ignorance and misunderstanding of the preachers as well as the followers.

A great harm has been done on account of mismanagement of Sikh affairs by the leaders Dals Gurdwara Committees and the so called Sikh intellectuals Many of them who were paupers a few years back have become rich by using religion. To achieve their selfish ends they have tom the fabric of Sikh Society with caste and status fissures; thus presenting insuperable difficulties in its unification. The erstwhile Gursikh Camaraderie has vanished. A visitor to a Sikh home is confronted with questions about his caste and status; initiating a note of dissentient discord.

The leadership religious as well as political has proved to be amoral and have deceived the masses. It is high time that community should ponder over the great threat to the Sikh faith posed by the ineptitude of these leaders and Jathedars. To make matters worse the ruling party has fully exploited these drawbacks and has almost relegated the Sikhs to the level of second class citizens. Derisive remarks are cast on Sikhs outside Punjab. Even travelling with Sikh emblems has been made unsafe in the so-called ‘secular’ India. It is but necessary that the present Sikh leadership both religious and temporal should quit. Let us hope that a younger leadership will emerge and reassert the true values of Sikhism.

Stabilization of the Sikh Society

Recently the Sikh society has been shaken violently. It is therefore foremost that it should once again develop its firm stability i.e. the capacity to withstand misfortune overcome them successfully and be fully in control of the events effecting it. There is a need to increase its internal as well as external strength. It is a common knowledge that two main scourges inflicting the Sikhs at present are internecine disunity and lack of collective wisdom.

It is an acknowledge axiom that education reforms the man as well as society The spread of education has benefited Sikhs individually to raise their standard and status but it has still to make a dent in the social structure of Sikh society regarding the removal of social and religious ignorance’s. Social evils like caste and status prejudices to drinking and general apathy q wards Sikh affairs are more common in the so-called educated sections.

There is a need to change some fundamental psychic attitudes prevalent in the society today. This change can best be brought about by the combination of general and religious education. The Sikh religious education at present is rudimentary and narrow. It has to be raised to a higher and modem level. ‘The present primitive precepts have to give away to advanced motions. This can be achieved only by the enlightened and well informed preachers. Hindu and Muslim philosophers and poets did this job for their religions in the beginning of this century. Men _ like Rnmakrishana Param Hansa, Vivekanandad, Mohammed Iqbal, etc, made valiant efforts to revitalize and reinterpret the old cultures. This inspired some fine minds and made religion meaningful to many intellectuals of their faiths. Unfortunately, Sikh religious movement has not attained any great heights. Revitalization of Religion:

It may be clearly understood that if Sikhs do not revitalize their religion they will be badly caught by the advance of modem education which is inevitable. At present the social fabric of Sikh society is tenuously sustained by religious rituals and outdated social conventions. But modem rational education is bound to render these conventions and rituals look useless. Persons with enlightened beliefs will not reconcile with primitive beliefs and practices. To satisfy the cravings of future educated generations modernism is to be incorporated in the interoretation of Sikhism This is possible because the true structure of this religion is such as to be always modern in any age. Only its interpreters and followers have to raise their standards higher up in accordance with the advancement of the age.

Another aspect of education will be its effect of the so-called lower castes. As and when they become aware of their social inequality practiced by the higher Sikh castes they are bound to be attracted to join those circles where their self-esteem and honor are respected. The drift will be away from the present type Sikh religion. These frustrated persons suffering from the gnawing’s of alienation as well as Caste inequality are likely to be pushed towards left because the leftists believe in reason and the world here and now. This situation is knocking at the doors. But our religious leaders, smug in their ignorance continue to follow the paganistic practices detriment to the Sikh society.

Strengthening the Society:

In order to increase their social influence Sikhs should develop loyal friends so that they can be on their side in trying circumstances In addition their own society should be a compact entity to assure all round strength and support. At present both these things are missing. Thanks to the lack of diplomatic sense to talk tactfully and intelligently with representatives of other parties Sikh leaders have not been able to win friends. Internally by following caste and tribal distinctions they have made Sikh society a divisive heterogeneity and a weak entity. These tendencies must be reversed and Sikhs must develop the ability to conduct themselves and control their behavior in accordance with the Sikh principles and ethics.

The present scenario is pitas. No two Sikh MPs or M.L.A.s who are representatives of the community can act together. No two Sikh leaders or Jathedars can form a united team. Jathedars are forcibly capturing Takhts and priesthoods Sikhs willingly enroll in secret force for the annihilation of militants and others. Sikh officials go out of the way to enact encounters to please their seniors. Informers and traitors can be found everywhere in the society Even intelligent Sikhs in metropolitan cities who understand the situation are reluctant to initiate any concrete action to face the crisis unitedly Many from the well-off sections like Govt. servants professionals businessmen etc. smugly drown their senses dally in gallons of liquor They neither possess nor project any intelligent idea about Sikh affairs. They have forgotten the insults. The words of Guru do not ring in them.

The situation is sliding towards the point of no return. Only rational thinking can deliver Sikhs from this gloom. As a preliminary step let every Sikh cast away the social evil of professing divisive casteism like Jat and Khatri which has corroded our thoughts and practices. The Gurus urged the Sikh to rise above petty divisions Let us try to reach at least the half way state i.e. thinking as decent human beings.

Brig. (Retd)) Tarlochan Singh House No.111. Sector 28-A Chandigarh-160 002.

Article extracted from this publication >> August 30, 1991