But the Sikh forms were not conceived in a spirit of exclusiveness, or as essential to the advancement of individual souls. They were simply appointed to serve as aids to the preservation of the corporate life of the community, and any man who likes to serve humanity through the Sikh Panth can wear them.
It is possible for a man to love God and cultivate his individual soul without adopting these forms; but if he wants to work In a systematic manner, not only for his own advancement but for the good of others as Well in the company of Sikhs, he must adopt these disciplinary forms of the organization, The Sikhs, who are the soldiers of Guru Gobind Singh and whose religion is surcharged with his personality, find the uniform worn and ordained by him as a real help in playing their part as units of the Panthic organization. This help comes from the appeal made to sentiment by the process of association and not through any inherent efficacy of the forms themselves. This association is not with places or things, but with an ever-living personality that is itself a symbol of the Highest Personality.
Article extracted from this publication >> August 12, 1994
