by: ALICE BASARKE,NEPEAN, ONT
Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru of the Sikhs was a well-educated man, His education came from the best available teachers of the time. His mother Mata Gujari, who was also the regent supervised every step of thought several languages, hi five religions. In addition to these was also taught how to swim and tide a horse, the art of wrestling, archery, and swordsmanship. As he ‘grew to manhood, he developed great love of learning. He himself wrote poetry that was meant to inspire valor. While he trained his followers in the martial arts, he also employed 52 writers and poets in his court with the expressed purpose of educating his ever growing congregation of Sikhs. A very real literacy campaign was in progress.
On April 13, 1699 the tenth guru of the Sikhs initiated the establishment of the order of the Khalsa which liter ally means the brotherhood of the pure. In front of the largest gathering of Sikh followers ever assembled, he ‘stood sword in hand and asked for a head. No one knew what to make of it. No doubt there would have been some who thought he had taken leave of his senses, a hushed murmur spread through the crowd. Some were afraid, others simply could not understand what was happening. Again, the guru asked for a head, and again. Then one man stepped forward. One man who was willing to give his head to the guru. The process was repeated five times, five men stepped out of the crowd, willing to lay down their lives for the guru’s cause. The guru was pleased, He called them his “Panj Piaras “of the five beloved ones. In recognition of their commitment and understanding of his cause, he gave them “amrit’, initiating them to the order of the Khalsa. Instruction was given, and a code of conduct was made mandatory. Members of the Khalsa all received new names. “Singh” for men, and “Kaur” for women. Gobind Rai then asked the five beloved ones to give him the same “amrit’ so that he too could be part of the new brotherhood, thus becoming Gobind Singh. Sikhs around the world follow the same observance in every Gurdwara to this day, the five beloved ones represent the community on all important occasions, leading them in prayer and inspiring. Them to move forward with dignity and grace.
Today, the five beloved ones are always men, we are told that the Guru “selected” five men, so how can we ‘be so presumptuous as to change his intent.
It is strange that in a religion that professes equality of both genders, men would try to disqualify women from becoming one of the “panj piaras”. This is the highest honor given to a Sikh. Why are women kept out?
If one looks carefully at the above story, there is no indication of the Guru selecting anyone. He asked for a head. It so happened that out of a crowd of thousands, five: ne forward, Five men who were willing to lay down their lives if the guru asked for them. Five men who volunteered of their own free will. They ‘were not selected or coerced in any ‘way. Why is it that no women stepped forward? One has to look at the situation from a sociological point of view, This event happened almost three hundred years ago. In those days, women seldom travelled outside of their homes, Even in a gathering of Sikhs, it is not likely that the crowd had very many women in it. More ‘over, these were hard times when Sikh were being persecuted by the Muslim rulers. The gathering was in the guru’s court, where men were being trained in martial arts, There may have been a literacy campaign ‘on, but the main purpose of this assembly was to learn the art of defending one’s property and person. Under the circumstances, one cannot imagine too many women being there at all. Now, if you can imagine, had a woman wanted to step forward in answer to the guru’s call, would her husband or father permit such a thing to happen, when he himself was afraid to do the same? Consider the male ego before you draw any conclusions, Even if the first “Panj Piara” were all men, women were never meant to be excluded from the institution, In any democratic organization, all members are equal. If the first were men, that is historic fact. However that does not legitimize in any way the dis crimination Sains inure members if they should happen to be female, It ‘was on that very first day that the guru gave all anew name; “Singh” foremen ‘and “Kaur” for women. Had the guru meant to exclude women, “Kaur” ‘would never had been mentioned, It is also historical fact that the guru gave “Amrit” to women on other occasions. Mai Bhaq Kaur who led the 40 deserters into battle at Chamkaur was given “Amrit” by Guru Gobind Singh. It is said that the guru tied the turban on her head himself, thus indicating that not only was she a member of the Khalsa, but the “form” of the Khalsa, that is the wearing of the turban is to be observed by Khalsa women as well as men, After the battle of Chamkaur, where the Sikhs suffered great losses and were obliged to retreat, it was another woman, Gurdevi who sup plied the ways and means for the guru to escape into safety. She wove some cloth, had it dyed a deep royal blue, a color favored by the Moghul rulers, the guru put on the dress of a Muslim fagir and made his exit without too much further trouble. Bibi Sharan Kaur performed the last rites on the battlefield, for the guru’s sons who died in battle, No one else dared to return to the killing field, indeed, she lost her life when the Moghuls dis covered her there. Deep Kaur is another individual who took Amrit from the guint, she served as a spy and go between in the guru’s era. There is evidence of many women being actively involved in the early days of Sikhism, In the case of Gira Gobind Singh Ji, who became the Guru at the age of nine, it was his mother, Mata Guiari who was left in charge not only of him but the entire fledgling congregation. She served.as Regent until he came of age, The first “Amrit” was sweetened by the gurus wife. After is death, Mata Sundari was the leader of the Sikh congregation for a period of forty years. In that period of time, she officiated at many “Amrit” Ceremonies. She gave “Amrit” to both men and women. How then can anyone conclude that the “Panj Piara *, the five beloved ‘ones of any Gurdwara today, should be men only?
Article extracted from this publication >> April 10, 1996
