On the Baisakhi day of 1999 the Khalsa Panth will complete 300 years of its eventful life. We can take genuine pride in this short span of history. Ours is the latest among the higher religions of man and is eminently suited to the modern age of Science. Those who have studied this religious system have wondered why the Sikhs have not made efforts to share their great heritage with the rest of the world since it is a universal religion for all mankind that knows no racial ethnic or geographical boundaries Its founder Guru Nanak not only propounded a new Philosophy but also demonstrated it in practice himself and through his nine successors who carried the divine light he received from the Creator.
Some of the salient features of the Sikh faith in the Gurus own words are briefly recalled below:
Concept of God:
Ik onkar sainam karta purkh nirbhau nirvair aka Murat ajuni saibhang gurparsad
(He is the Sole Supreme Being of eternal manifestation Creator immanent Reality; Without Fear Without Rancor Timeless Form; Self-existent; Realized by uh Grace of the holy Preceptor.)
- Fatherhood of God:
Tu mera pita tu hain mera mata Thou art my father Thou art also my mother.)
iii. Cosmology:
Patalan patal lakh agasan agas
(Of nether worlds and heavens has He created many.)
- iv. Living with Honor:
Je jivay pat lathi jaye sabh haram jeta kichh khaye.
(If one lives in ignominy All his gains are illegitimate.)
Jin jivandeyan pat nahin Mayan mandi see.
(Those who possess no honor while alive In death too foul is their repute.)
- Labor and charity:
Ghaal khaye kichh hathon dey Nanak rah pachhane sev.
(He who cams his bread with earnest labor and from his hand gives something in charity.
He alone sayeth Nanak truly recognizes the Way.)
- Cherish Higher Values of Naam:
Nanak duniyan kinn vadiaian aggin seti jai.
Eni jaliein naam visaria ik na chalian nal.
(Nanak burn into flames such worldly glories as have caused neglect of Naam and at departure go not with man.)
vii. Scholarship Alone is not enough:
Parheya murakh aakhie jis labh Jobh ahankar
(A scholar who harbors greed avarice and pride or vanity
Should be reckoned a foot.
vii .A parasite Cannot be a Guru:
Gur pir sadaye mangan jaye taake mool na lagiye paye. (Fall not thou ever at the feet of him who claims to be a guru or spiritual preceptor but unable to support himself goes out to beg.) ix. The Divine Message is common to all:
Updesh chahun varna kao sanijha.
(There is only one common spiritual message for the four varnas viz khatns Brahmins Shudmas and Vaishyas.)
- Immanence of God:
Sidak kar sijda man kar makhsud jeh dhir dekhan teh dhir maojood.
(Let faith be they obeisance and such a mind thy aim As would see His presence in whatever direction you took.)
xi-Entire mankind is one race:
Koi boley Ram Ram koi khudaye Koi seve gosian koi Alahe.
Manas ki jat sabe ckaye pahechan bo
(Some utter His name as Ram others as Khuda Some serve the Lord of the universe others Allah.) (Recognize the entire human race as one.)
Xi The Game of Love:
Jao tao prem khelan ka chao Sir dhar tali gali meri aao.
(Shouldst thou seek to engage in the game of love step into my street with thy bead placed on thy palm.)
The tradition of Martyrdom was unknown in the history of mythology of India before the Guru period No such word exists in the vocabulary of Sanskrit or any other Indian language. It was the Fifth Nanak who courted martyrdom to teach this lesson. A single case of such supreme sacrifice could perhaps be mistaken as an accident of history therefore the Ninth Nanak confirmed the tradition by offering his head for the cause of righteousness human rights and freedom of faith to leave no doubt in the minds of people that martyrdom was an essential component of Sikh tradition. The Baisakhi of 1699 was the last great lesson from the 10th Master on martyrdom Simultaneously he presented to the world the unique form Of the Khalsa After that historic event the Khalsa went through an unprecedented Lest of extreme rigor. During the period 1699 to 1705 the young soldiers of the Khalsa Army had to confront the combined forces of Hill princes and the Moghul Empire and become martyrs. Guru Gobind Singh fully availed of the situation to impart (ruining to the initiates in the Khalsa organization. The guru did not fight these battles: to establish a kingdom for himself. His object instead was w sec how fir the mighty efforts of his predecessors extending over 3 period of 200 years in the game of love which demanded total commitment Including offer of ones head had succeeded. Above all he wanted to put the spirit so generated to the service of Lie d and dispossessed thus to carry Out the Will of the Lord. The Guru blessed his two elder sons also along with other Singh’s to fight and lay down their lives for the noble cause. His two younger sons also became child. Martyrs upholding the same principles thus the Guru Completely identified himself with disciples just as he had earlier demonstrated by taking the Amrit pahul himself from the panj Payaras.
The lows of Anandpur his entire family large part of his any bulk of his literary works his hearth and home did Pet daunt Guru Gobind Singh Any moral would have broken down under such extreme hardships and suffering and Written an instrument of surrender. But the Gurus Spirit was triumphant. He wrote a letter to the Moghul emperor Aurangzeb the famous Zafar namah or Epistle of Victory itself a masterpiece of Persian literature exposing the treachery of the imperial forces symbolizing the ultimate moral victory of the forces of Truth. He was Jubilant because the movement launched by Guru Nanak and nurtured by the succeeding Gurus involving concerted affairs and unprecedented sacrifices had reached such a successful conclusion. The spirit of sacrifice courting death for the cause of the weak and the down trodden and upholding the truth had been kindled never to die the Guru was so pleased with the performances of the Khalsa that in ecstasy he showered blessings on the True Soldier of God. Sample in following:
i.Khalsa mero roop hai khas. Khalsa men haun karon niwas
(Khalsa is my own form. I myself dwell in the Khalsa.)
ii.Khalsa meri jaat arpa
(Khalsais my own family and honor.)
iii.Khalsa mero mittar sakhai.
(Khalsa is dearest friend and constant companion.)
iv.Khalsa mero bhavan bhandara.
(Khalsa is my dwelling and my treasure.)
v.Khalsa mero satgur pura.
(Khalsa is my perfect Satguru.)
vi.Atam ras jeh janhi so hai Khalsa Dev.
Prabha meh mo meh ins meh ranchak nahin bhev.
(Khalsa is the angel that has realized the spiritual bliss. Between the Lord myself and him no distinction is possible.)
viiSey kari inhi ki bhavat_..
Daan diyo inhi ko bhalo ar aan ko daan na lagat niko Mo greh mai tan te man tc sir lao dhan hai sabh hi inhi ko. (I favor the Services rendered to them (Khalsa) alone; Serving others pleases me not. Gifts made to them only are approvable;. Those made to others are of no value. My body my mind my head and all the wealth in my house I dedicate to them completely.)
vill. Judh jite inhi ke parsad. Inhi ki kripake saje hum hain nahin mo so garib karor pare.
(Through their grace have. I won the battles. Lowe my all to their grace Otherwise there are millions of poor people like me.)
The Khalsa earned such a treasury of blessings when it measured up to the test of Guru Nanak in his game of love.
History of the Sikh people during the last three centuries is replete with sacrifices. They are a part of the history of Indian subcontinent. Although they account for 85% of the total sacrifices in the cause of liberty they have been ignored and relegated. The repression let loose on the Sikhs after 1947 is subtly aimed at the roots of Sikhism to destroy their faith by the turn of the century There are hardly any means at our disposal by which we can place the true picture before the world. The assault on Harmandir Sahib in 1984 (Bluestar Operation) was a great setback and its aftermath still continues. This is indeed one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century. The world scarcely understands its implications. The truth of the matter is that while the rulers in Delhi embarked upon the army assault after a preparation of L to 1 1/2 years a single Sikh leader prepared 40 to 50 Singhs during the same period. All of them followed the truck Sikh tradition and became martyrs defending the Darbar Sahib for three days against 4 full-scale invasions which employed armored carriers tanks and other artillery and military hardware. Not one of these brave defenders surrendered. The world history does not offer another example of such dedication valor and fearlessness. The adversary had hoped that these handfuls of Singhs would be overawed by sheer superior numbers and armaments and surrender. Their expectations were belied. A complete assessment of the fall-out of Bluestar attack is yet to be made. However it has aroused the curiosity of the people everywhere. The world eagerly wants to know more about Sikhs and Sikhism.
The above brief account has been given to draw the attention of the reader to the great Sikh heritage. We can justifiably feel proud of it. The approaching Baisakhi of 1999 has raised the question: What can we offer as a token of gratitude to the Guru for his countless blessings? The bani says: surrender all your body soul and wealth unto the Guru and submit to His Will thus shall you obtain the Lord.
It is an occasion for every Sikh man woman and child « to think what services and sacrifices have been offered buys lo express our gratitude to the Guru for his in numerable blessings. Everybody cannot become Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Maharaja Ranjit Singh Baba Ram Singh Sant Attar Singh Bhai Vir Singh etc. But is it not possible for us to make some small sacrifice or render some service however insignificant it may be in the name of the Guru and our people? Today we are surrounded by adversaries and we face heavy odds We are victims of disinformation vilification and character assassination all over the world. This has a demoralizing influence and has seriously affected our image as a community. It is the duty of every Sikh to make every endeavor to restore the due image to the Khalsa. We have to demonstrate that Sikhism is not just a philosophy it is a Way of life in perfect harmony with the Altruistic Will of the Lord It is what Guru Nanak calls the game of Love which demands total commitment and sacrifice. It is only the Sikh character and conducts which Can trying about universal understanding and ascendancy of the Khalsa. For spreading the message of the Gurus and to improve the Image of our community the writer ventures to make a few practical suppositions for consideration and adoption by the Khalsa in the following paragraphs
The Khalsa Fund 1999 Every Sikh who has a bank account should Open an exclusive Daswand in his her name e.g.. Manjit Singh Dalbir Kaur Tejwant Singh chats 1999 Ace count in Which maximum possible amount should be deposited taking into consideration all members of the family (from grandfather the grandsons) and the amount of tithe (Daswand) dire during the last 50 years. The intention is to make an offering to the Guru in this fund. On this basis there should be about 100.000 positions to offer Rs100,000 each in the Gurus cause. In fact there should be at least 1000 Sikhs who can afford between Rs.200,000 and Rs. 100,0000 of even more In this way the Panth can have at its disposal Rs.2000-3000 crores for collective projects to be formulated for all states in India and all countries abroad wherever there is a population of Sikhs. Information on the collections made can be gathered and made available at a central place for planning purposes this will take the form of a movement and people will begin to think of projects and determine priorities. Some of the projects which spear urgent are listed below.
Article extracted from this publication >> April 8, 1994
