Late Sirdar Kapur Singh ExI.C.S & National Professor of Sikhism

The following rules and regulations have received the formal approval of the premier statutory body of the Sikhs for managing the historic Sikh shrines in the Punjabi, and they also have the general approval of the theologians (head priests of Sikh seats of authority called the thrones) and congregations in various parts of India and other parts of the world, such as Malaysia, Canada, Burma, the USA and Africa. the amrit is administered to a Sikh when he is knighted a Singh enrolled as a member of the Khalsa in accordance with the procedure laid down in these rules, which substantially represent procedure formulated and adopted by Guru Gobind Singh, on March 30, 1699 when he enrolled the first Five Beloved Ones as the Khalsa.

  1. For administering amrit, a specially enclosed, separate place should be reserved for the occasion, which is not a public thorough fare, or otherwise public.
  2. The Guru Granth should be formally enthroned and opened their which due ceremony and wrapped in ceremonious robes. There should be present at least six Singhs as officiates all and the six must be certified being not guilty of any unexpatiated breach of Sikh discipline and formularies. One of these six should sit on the throne in attendance of the Guru Granth and the other five should cooperate in preparation of the amrit. They all should have had a full bath including the washing of head hair and should be dressed in clean and proper clothes. These Singhs may be of either sex, male or female.

“Every sane human being of adult mind, irrespective of caste, creed, country, climate race or sex is entitled to be administered the Amrit (whenever he makes such a voluntary request), and to be enrolled into the Brotherhood of the Khalsa.”

  1. None of the five, who have to prepare and administer the amrit should be physically defective such as one eyed, lame, blind, paralytic or suffering from any serious or long standing disease. They should be of good physique, good health and good bearing.
  2. Every sane human being, of adult mind, irrespective of caste, creed, country, climate, race or sex is entitled to be administered the Amrit (whenever he makes such a voluntary request), and to be enrolled into the Brotherhood of the Khalsa.
  3. Such a petitioner should have had a full bath, including that of the head hair, should be neatly and properly dressed in possession of the five symbols of the Khalsa, uncut hair, comb duly tucked up in the tress knot of the head hair, the iron bangle on the right wrist, a sword in the belt and a pair of shorts up to his knees. He should wear a turban on his head and stand in front of the Guru Granth with due respect.
  4. One of these five officiates then should put the following question publicly to the petitioner or each of the petitioners: “Sikhism enjoins love and worship of the One Creator in contradistinction to the creatures. This worship must be implemented through selfless service of humanity and compassion towards all living creatures. Such selfless service and compassion must be inspired by continuous and progressive understanding of the Guru’s Word as recorded in the Guru Granth, broad based on the discipline of the Name. Holy congregation is the context of this great discipline and the Khalsa is the Society pledged to propagate and perpetuate this holy Way of Life, through which the Universe shall be blessed in the beginning shall be blessed in the middle, and shall be blessed in the end, without end and forever. Do you, after due consideration and voluntarily accept this way of life?
  5. When the petitioner has answered, “I do,” then one should be obtained. Then, one of the five officiates should stand up and addressing the holy congregation in its capacity as the Acting Guru should ask: “Have we the permission of the Guru to prepare and administer amrit to the petitioner?” On receiving the assent of the holy congregation which is usually given by some or all members of the holy congregation, saying in unison, “The Guru gives the permission,” all the five officiates, the five beloved ones who now are transubstantiated into the original Five Beloved Ones to whom Guru Gobind Singh first administered amrit on March 30, 1699 and

“After these recitations are over, the bowl should be covered with a clean cloth, and one of the officiates should carry the bowl in both of his hands, and he should then again lead the congregational prayer”

who are now «under the miraculous Captaincy of Guru Gobind Singh himself, should sit in a circle on the already appointed place, where a round bow! of pure steel full of pure water is placed in the center. In this bowl of water should be rest, handle upward a double-edged sword of pure steel, and sugar puffs or pure sugar should be added to the contents of the bowl. All the five officiates should then assume the hero posture which consists of placing the right knee points heavenwards, and left is firmly planted on the ground. Then all the five officiates should visualize in their minds the archetypal form of Guru Gobind Singh tall, erect, dark blue clad, ‘wearing an aigrette of pure dazzling gems on his turban, with a white hawk on the his left hand and a pure steed at his vehicle. They should then concentrate their minds within as the tortoise withdraws his limbs and underneath his shell. Thus, firmly postured and self-controlled, one of the officiates should firmly hold the handle of the double edged sword in his right hand and place the tips of the five fingers of the left hand on the edges of the bowl while the remaining four officials should place the fingertips of both the hands on the edges of the steel bowl. All the five officiates should fix the gaze of their eyes into the water of the bowl, while the first officiate should then recite the Jap of Guru Nanak, all the while stirring the contents of the bowl with the sword. In a similar manner, the Jap of Guru Gobind Singh should then be recited by the second officiate. And then the Sudha Swayyiyas and then the Bainti Chaupi of Guru Gobind Singh and then the Anand (first five and the last stanza) of Guru Amar Das should be recited in a similar manner, in a firm and clear voice, by the third, fourth and the fifth officiate respectively. The reciter should keep on stirring the contents of the steel bowl with the double edged sword all the while, as a fore mentioned.

  1. After these recitations are over, the bowl should be covered with a clean cloth, and one of the officiates should carry the bowl in both of his hands, and he should then again lead the congregational prayer, everybody standing, facing the throne in which the ratification of God Almighty should be asked for the amrit thus prepared.
  2. Then the amrit should be administered to the petitioners in the following manner. The petitioner or petitioners should sit in the hero posture in a straight line, keeping throne of the Guru Granth to their right. Then one of the five officiates should carry the bowl of amrit on both hands and another efficient should dip his right hand into the bowl and pour about an ounce of amrit in to the cupped right hand of the petitioner, which the petitioner should hold up with the outstretched left hand at its base. The petitioner should then raise his cupped right hand to his lips and drink the amrit while the efficient who poured the amrit into his cupped palm Khalsa is of the Wondrous God. Victory to God.” This process should be repeated five times in the case of each petitioner. Then each petitioner should be required to fix his gaze, with open unwinking eyes into the open un. winking eyes of the amrit administering efficient while the efficient should throw a few drops of amrit into the eyes of the petitioner, with some force to cause the shut reflex and this should be repeated five times, accompanied by the bidding and repetition of the formula: “the Khalsa is of the Wondrous God. Victory to God” as aforesaid. Then five times, five drops of amrit should be sprinkled into the tress knot of the hair of the head of each petitioner again accompanied by the bidding and repetition of the abovementioned formula, If then some amrit is left over, it should be sipped by all the petitioners one after the other from the same bow! till it is drained off, All this while when two officiates are administering amrit one carrying the bowl the other passing it on the remaining three officiates should stand two steps behind in a straight line, facing the petitioners and in the

“The petitioner should then raise his cupped right hand to his lips and drink the amrit while the efficient who poured the amrit into his cupped palm should bid: “Say the Khalsa is of the Wondrous God”

attention posture.

  1. When the amrit is thus administered to the petitioner the two officiates should step back to join the other three officiates and all the five in unison then should say:

Waheguru Ik Onkar Sat Nam Karta Purakh Nirbhau Nirvair, Akal Murat, Ajuni Saibhang Gurparsad.

”Wondrous God, One, Numinous Phenomenon, Truth, name, Creator, Person Without Fear, Without malice, Timeless Form Unbom, Selfexistentsubsistent, Light, Through Grace (known).” And the petitioners should then respect, in unison the same formula. This should be done five times.

  1. Then one of the officiates should address the petitioner or the petitioners thus;

Today you take a new birth in the House of the Guru. You have become a member of the Khalsa Brotherhood Guru Gobind Singh is the father, and holy Sahib Kaur, the Mother, of the Khalsa brotherhood. Your birthplace is the Blessed Fort of the Uncut Hair (Keshgahr) and you are a citizen of the Town of Peace (Anandpur) Your previous race, name, genealogy, country, religion, customs and beliefs your subconscious memories and your personality have today been burnt up and annihilated. Believe it to be so, without a doubt and with whole of your soul. You have become the Khalsa a sovereign man today, owing allegiance to no earthly person or power. One God Almighty, the Timeless is your only Sovereign to whom you owe allegiance, and He alone is entitled to your devotion and worship. The Way to final fulfillment of human destiny is laid down in the revelations of the Guru Granth and the teachings of the Ten Gurus. Follow this way and no other, Learn Gurumukhi if you do not already know it and read or hear, readout and explained, the Guru Granth daily as far as practicable and recite the five compositions of the Gurus, the first three in the morning, the fourth at sunset, and the last before retiring for the night, viz, the Jap the Japu the ten ‘Swayyias the Rahiras and the Sohila. Keep intact five symbols of the Khalsa the five K’s on you, the uncut hair (Kesh), a sword (Kirpan) and short drawers (Kachha) Do not commit these four grave breaches of discipline. (1) To trim or shave the hair of the body. (2) To eat Kosher meat or that prepared in a similar manner as by Muslims, (3) To have sexual relationships outside the marital bond and (4) to use tobacco. Any of these grave breaches of disciplines results in automatic suspension from the membership in full is then necessary, after penance, for restoration of his original status. Till such reenrollment he is a patit, a fallen limb of the Brotherhood. Association with such of these patits, who have committed the first and the last of these four grave offenses, is forbidden to the Khalsa, till expiration and reinitiating. Remain ever ready to serve the Khalsa Panth, and through it the whole humanity. Whatever you earn as your livelihood which must be lawful and through creative effort, one tenth of it must always be given away to further common wealth, to the Central Treasury of the Khalsa, and all your life must be lived in a Sikh like manner, which means the discipline of Name, earning of livelihood through legitimate and creative effort and sharing the fruits thereof with others. Be a disciplined member of the Khalsa always, and if you commit an error, confess it before an assembly of the Khalsa and accept the penance they impose upon you and be careful in future.

  1. The following five groups of men are basically hostile to the organizational purity of the KhaIsa. Do not enter into any permanent social relationship with any of them, such as marriage, till the individual duly joins the Khalsa Brotherhood and undertakes to observe its discipline. A disregard of this precept entails culpability (literally, makes a defaulter, a salaried servant).

Article extracted from this publication >>  April 14, 1989