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Introduction to Sikhism:The
Sikh Philosophy
(Besides the absolute value of the Divine
itself the Sikh Value System comprises
the following.
(I) Physico-economic values : A Sikh
treats body as the sacred abode of the
Spirit. There is no place for austerities
and torturing of the body as a way of
salvation.
(2) Intellectual Values : Knowledge
and wisdom are the key concepts;
reason plays the pivotal role and truth
is the highest value to be cherished.
(3) Aesthetic Values : Loving devotion
to the Lord, generating ecstatic state
of bliss leading to the enjoyment of
the grandeur and beauty of His creation.
(4) Ethical Values : Virtue as reflected
in valor, purity of conduct, realization
of the Divine presence in all the human
beings and service of the mankind.
(5) Spiritual Values : Mukti and Nirvana
in Sikhism is emancipation in life through
Divine Grace.
The three pillars of the Such way of
life are -
a) Naam-Japna: Meditation of God
Sikhs are directed to concentrate their
minds on God, to reflect on God's virtues
such as love, benevolence, and kindness.
Sikhs practice this to inculcate such
virtues into their own character. This
can be done by reciting Gurbani, by
listening to the singing of hymns from
Gurbani, or by sitting in a quiet place
and attentively thinking of God, forgetting
all else.
Through this constant meditation, and
not simply the repeating of a mantra,
Sikhs develop a feeling of affection
and love for humanity. Such a person
does not merely talk about the brotherhood
of humanity but actually tries to feel
it continuously throughout their life.
The thought of being a member of this
human family becomes stronger and stronger
and soon this fact is reflected in the
daily behavior of the devotee. Such
a Sikh derives immense pleasure and
satisfaction by observing the presence
of God in every human being.
This achievement or realization changes
the thinking and behavior of such persons
and instead of hurting others, they
enjoy utilizing their life serving society.
They cannot think of doing any act to
harm others, because they "see"
the living God inside every human being.
This is why Nam is given the highest
priority in the Sikh faith.
b) Kirt Karni: .Earningwith hard labor.
Sikhs are advised to earn their livelihood
by honest means. They are not supposed
to be a parasites on society. Non-earners
become dependent on others and because
of this, are influenced to think and
act as their benefactors expect. Such
a person is unable to think or act independently.
Furthermore, a Sikh's earnings, however
large or small, should come from honest
means. If a person is dishonest, and
takes what is not justly his, the Gurus
declare these earnings as the 'blood
of the poor'. They are prohibited to
Sikhs, just as beef is prohibited to
Hindus and pork to Muslims.
There is temptation to live a comfortable
life by earning money through unfair
means. The Gurus want us to resist this
desire by keeping in mind that such
earnings pollute the mind in the same
way that blood stains our clothes. Only
honest earnings are like "milk"
and hence "nourishing".
Kirat Karni is one of three primary
pillars of Sikhism. The term means to
earn a honest, pure and dedicated living
by exercising ones God given skills,
abilities, talents and hard labour for
the benefit and improvement of the individual,
their family and society at large. This
means to work with determination and
focus by the sweat of your brows and
not to be lazy and to waste your life
to time. To do these things without
'personal gain' becoming your main motivation
- Make Simran and dedication of the
work to God your main motivation. To
perform Kirat is like saying a prayer
or performing meditation. It is equal
to your Sunday Service attendance at
your place of worship.
On page 8 of SGGS, Guru Ji says: Those
who have meditated on the Naam, the
Name of the Lord, and departed after
having worked by the sweat of their
brows
-O Nanak, their faces are radiant in
the Court of the Lord, and many are
saved along with them! ||1|| And again
on page 317
Deep within the hearts of His GurSikhs,
the True Guru is pervading. The Guru
is pleased with those who long for His
Sikhs.
As the True Guru directs them, they
do their work and chant their prayers.
The True Lord accepts the service of
His GurSikhs
c) Wand Chhakna: Sharing one's earning
with the needy.
The recitation of Nam helps disciples
realize that they are members of the
human brotherhood. This thought creates
in them feelings of kindness and love
for those who need their help. As a
consequence, they enjoy sharing their
earnings with those less fortunate.
The Guru advises them that it is their
duty to share their earnings with the
needy just as it is the duty of parents
to supply their children with clothing
and other necessities.
This sharing must be done out of a
sense of responsibility, and not of
pride. A person can judge their closeness
to God by sharing their bread with the
needy. If this can be done without feeling
as if they are doing someone a favor,
then they are on the right path and
are close to God.
Some broadcast their contributions
and feel proud of their "benefactor"image.
It is this ego (ahankar) that denies
them the spiritual benefits obtained
by remaining humble.
d) Worshipping the Eternal God (Puja
Akal Ki)
The Guru advises us to worship only
the one almighty God and not to worship
forces of the universe or mythical beings.
It is the Creator, and not the creation,
that is important. Hinduism encourages
its followers to venerate many different
mediators. It differs from Sikhism in
this fundamental issue and because of
this, Sikhism cannot be considered a
sect of Hinduism.
How do Sikhs worship God? By thinking
of Him and by believing in the brotherhood
of mankind. For Sikhs, God does not
reside in the seventh or fourteenth
sky, or any other place far from the
earth. God lives in the hearts of humans.
There is no place without Him. He expresses
Himself through His creation. In other
words, worship of God is accomplished
by meditating on Him, His virtues and
His grace.
e) Understanding Gurbani (Paricha Shabad
Ka)
Sikhs are required to regularly read
and understand the Gurbani written within
the Guru Granth Sahib. Gurbani teaches
God's virtues and how they can be revealed
to us.
The daily recitation of hymns reminds
us repeatedly of the pitfalls of egotism,
anger, lust, attachment, and greed.
The hymns encourage readers to develop
good character by constantly reminding
that these virtues bring peace.
Sikhs accept the word of the Guru as
their guide. They regard the Guru Granth
Sahib as their living Guru because from
Gurbani, they obtain the spiritual guidance
they need.
f) Appreciating the Sikh Reht (Didar
Khalsa Ka)
Sikhs do not worship pictures or idols
of God or the Gurus. Nor do they honor
any living individual as their Guru.
They respect the decision of the corporate
body of the Singhs, the Khalsa, since
the tenth Guru bestowed the authority
of Guruship on this body.
g) Working and wishing well for all
of humanity (Sarbat ka bhala)
The importance that Sikhs attach to
working and wishing well for others
can be seen in the fact that Sikhs pray
aloud at least twice a day:
"O God, in Your Name, shower Your
blessings on everyone."
In other words, Sikhs pray not only
for themselves alone but also for all
of humanity.
This belief in the oneness of humanity,
and the insistence on working for the
welfare of all people, whether Sikhs
or not, at the cost of sacrificing one's
life, is what sets Sikhism apart from
religions. In a world, which is torn
by strife because of differing beliefs,
Sikhism is unique. Sikhs treat all people
with equal respect, irrespective of
their faith. All people are offered
free meals and other facilities in Gurudwaras.
Sikhs do not harbour ill will against
any person, including adversaries.
There are numerous examples of Sikhs
helping foes in need. After battle,
Bhai Kanahya, a water-carrier of Guru
Gobind Singh at Anandpur Sahib, used
to give water and first aid to ALL wounded
persons, Sikhs and non-Sikh alike. Three
centuries ago, Guru Gobind Singh made
arrangements to take care of and help
all the wounded after battle, whether
they were his own men or his opponents.
It has been explained in the discussion
of Nam Japna that Sikhs respect all
persons. People may appear different
because of their language, color, social
habits but these variations are superficial
and the result of different cultures
and climates. Internally, we all have
the same spirit. Just as gold can be
made into ornaments of different designs
but it remains gold, so people's outward
appearances can be different but still
they remain human beings created by
the same God.
h) Maintaining ethical behavior (Sacha
Achar)
For Sikhs, as for the followers of
many other faiths, lying, cheating,
stealing etc. are forbidden. Sexual
relations are restricted to married
couples only. Recognizing that during
the medieval ages, after battle women
of the defeated side were often raped
as an expression of power over the enemy,
Guru Gobind Singh ordered that any person
guilty of rape would be expelled from
the Khalsa Panth.
The moral character of Sikhs, in war
and in peace, was praised highly by
Muslim historians of those times. Nur
Mohammed, though he expresses extreme
hatred for Sikhs, still cannot help
admitting their high character. In his
book, "Jang Nama" he writes:
In no case would they slay a coward,
nor would they put an obstacle in the
way of a fugitive. They do not plunder
the wealth or ornaments of a woman,
be she a well-to-do lady or a maidservant.
There is no adultery among these 'dogs'
nor are these mischievous people given
to thieving. Whether a woman is young
or old, they call her a 'buriya' and
ask her to get out of the way. (The
word "buriya" in the Indian
language means "an old lady.")
There is no thief at all among these
'dogs' nor is there any house-breaker
born among these miscreants. They do
not make friends with adulterers.
i) Accepting the Will of God (Bhana
Mannana)
We sometimes suffer from the misconception
that we alone are responsible for the
benefits we gain from our labors. Sikhs
believe that these benefits are gifts
from God and we are mere actors on stage.
God rewards us and whether our efforts
are successful is determined by His
will. If we accept this philosophy,
we will always be in peace with ourselves
and with our environment and we will
stop worrying about the 'failure' of
our efforts
God has given us life, an expression
of His Will. He has created the sun,
the moon, vegetation, animals and everything
else without which we cannot survive.
When we plant a fruit tree, it grows
naturally, with the help of sun and
rain, and it bears fruit all without
our help. Laws of nature govern the
smallest seed and the largest plant.
The philosophy, that everything happens
according to God's will, can be explained
by another example. A person driving
on a road finds an old woman walking.
She stops the car, picks up the woman,
and drops her at her home. Although
it appears that the driver's body has
carried out these actions, in fact,
these actions originated in the mind
due to a desire to help. Hence, actually
it is the mind, controlled by the nature
of the soul that helped the old woman.
The body of the driver was merely an
agent, which executed the decision for
the 'mind.' Similarly it is the bigger
soul, God, who motivates us to act.
We are the executors of His Will.
If we choose an action, which we think
is right, only to discover that it does
not eliminate the situation we set out
to abolish, we should not consider that
our right action was useless. We should
trust that in God's larger plan, which
we cannot understand, our right action
has meaning and effort. We must believe
that every righteous action will eventually
lead to a favorable result.
The faith that our right actions are
part of God's great design, even if
we do not see the results, dispels worries
about our failures and brings us peace.
We will realize God's presence in ourselves;
there is no higher goal in life than
that.
Thus Sikhism was not the 'transvaluation'
of the existing faiths and cults; it
ushered in a new spiritual as well as
social and political matrix of conduct
for mankind.
Violence and peace as concepts for
the social behavior are conspicuous
to the Sikh way of life.
Sikhism does not support militarism
or glorification of war and yet wielding
the sword is warranted in extenuating
circumstances. Sikhism upholds war against
oppression and aggression. The sword
is a symbol of power both temporal and
spiritual in Sikhism. A Sikh doesn't
frighten anyone nor is he afraid of
anyone.
Technically, the first date of Sikhism
is 1469, the year of Guru, Nanak's birth,
but ideologically its origins may well
he traced in the twelfth century, when
the celebrated poet Jaidev and Sufi
saint Sheikh Farid flourished on the
soil of India. Their hymns find a place
of honour in the Guru Granth, compiled
in 1604.
The fact that Oamkar in the Mantra
is preceded by I (one) shows that in
spite of the many-ness of the revealed
world, its oneness is not to be lost
sight of. It is rnonistic in character,
though pluralistic in content. It is
many, yet one.
In this I-Thou relationship of love
between man and God, the pole of human
love is expressed in terms of loving
devotion, and the other pole, of God's
love for man, in terms of his Grace.
On one side is bhakti or loving devotion,
on the other side is. moral act. Both
are complementary to each other; both
taken together constitute the make-up
of ideal person of the Guru's conception.
Gurbani commends the blending of simran
and voluntary service called sewa; both
are essential for a balanced life.
The Sikh ideal of salvation is jivan-mukti
which is composed of two components-'jivan'
(life) and 'mukti' (emancipation). It
refers to the highest spiritual state
of the individual, in tune with the
Ultimate and at peace with human society.
One. who attains to such a state of
liberation in his or her lifetime, is
called jivan-mukta.,
The foremost was the institution of
Guruship itself. The second was langar
or the community kitchen serviced by
the Guru's disciples for the benefit
of visitors and inmates alike. Another
was sangat: or congregation of the Guru's
followers sitting in audience and singing
hymns to the accompaniment of music
(kirtan).
Gurbani also refers to kings (patshahs),
but indication of panchayati raj and
spirit of democracy is available in
plenty. It clearly says-Takht bahai
takhta ki layik-that is, a ruler should
occupy the throne only if he is qualified
and deserves todo so. Guru Arjan Dev
refers to the ideal state which guarantees
comfort and welfare of the people, calling
it 'Halemi Raj'. Sense of humility and
justice are its hall-mark.
Faith in God to the exclusion of concern
for man has never been the forte of
the Sikh.
Spiritualism has value, not for God,
but for man.
if ethico-spiritual is one major theme
of the thought-content of Gurbani, socio-cultural
is the other. Both share a common objective,
namely, welfare of man.
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