I have tried to read all the installments published by W.S.N. under the title “Understanding Sikhism: An open forum for discussion.” The learned author has attempted to present his ideas on Sikh religion in a cogitate fashion. I have also reviewed the letters written by Dr. Rajpal and Bhai Manmohan Singh, and Baldev Singh in mild criticism or in appreciation of his efforts. Dr. Chahal should be congratulated for undertaking such a stupendous task. He has made an excellent effort to present pragmatically on such a broad topic. He has shown his true scholarship by openly inviting comments from his readers.

Any Philosophical interpretation of Sikh religion and translation of Guru Granth Sahib from Punjabi to English will evoke some different opinions. Dr. Chahal is very well versed in the scientific method because of his background in microbiology. He has raised some fundamental questions which have been pushed aside in the past and has caused some controversy among the readers. He has clarified some issues and made some profound statements in regard to Sikh religion. He has done a great service to the Sikh community and Sikhs elsewhere.

I agree with his ideas in some respects but I have some reservations in relation to some of his statements. I still endorse his writing on the whole because it provokes thinking about Gurbani and our history. I would like to make some suggestions to Dr. Chahal in all humility and hope he will take them into consideration for future writing. I hope these recommendations if put into practice might make his ideas and writing more acceptable, receptive and appealing.

My suggestions are my personal ideas on writing and do not represent any authority.

  1. My first recommendation is that the learned author should not make too broad and general statements which can be misconstrued or misinterpreted, For example “It is a pity that if we Sikhs cannot deliberate on Gurbani in Gurdwara calmly and sensibly, then we are living in society of Savages.” Statements like this one do not serve a useful purpose. The scholarly author should not make his readers indignant.
  2. The words should be carefully selected to convey our thoughts or ideas. It is always wise to utilize words which are familiar, common and easy to understand. The use of bombastic or unfamiliar words causes confusion and misunderstanding. English being a second language to us, it is essential that our vocabulary is easy to comprehend. The use of “deliberate” is somewhat hard as compared to think, ponder, or to consider. The choice of words should be done after great thought. 3. In an open forum we present our ideas and philosophy for the readers to think about. It should nga. Our mandate to change people ideas. If we can make our people to think about these issues than the goal of the forum has been accomplished.

I’d like to comment on some of the writings especially the Janamsakkis and other which have been questioned from time to time. In Sikh History Panth has devoted more time in fighting the enemy the Moslem rulers or invaders. The fight was for survival. The scholarship for history, literature and other writings did not develop well. Survival was more important for the Khalsa Panth. The early writings about Sikh religion or Sikh History were done by Moslem, Hindu. Parsi or English write.

The learned author is aware about the other sects in Sikhism such as Nirankaris, Udasis, Nirmalas, Radhaswaimis and Hindus. Authors from these sects who tend to distort or misinterpret the Sikh point of view. These writings are colored by mythology and Vedantic philosophy. There have been attempts made by these authors to distort the true, direct and simple message given to us through Guru Granth Sahib. They have tried to paint Sikhism as a branch of Hindu religion even though we have fundamental differences over unity of God, Brotherhood of man, Caste system, Status of women, and’ Equality and Democracy in Sikh Panth.

Dr. Chahal is a scholar and has good understanding to these points. He should realize these in 16th, 17th, 18th centuries it was open forum for all the writers and some were not loyal to Sikh religion. We cannot put our writing a shell and protect them from critics and historians or other scholars. The Gurus based their philosophy on truth and pragmatism. It was simple, direct, easy and common approach to relate to God, We should focus on Shabad and should not lose sight of our goal. Ethics set by Guru Nanak. Nam Japna, Vand Shakna and Kirat Karna should be practiced. We should concentrate on Shabad Guru and practice in our daily life. We should try to make them think or ponder about Shabad Guru. Kirpal Singh Grewal Merced, Caledonia.

Article extracted from this publication >>  October 30, 1996