Diwali
Diwali is a very important Hindu festival when the Lord Rama returned home after a santion of 14 years. On this same Diwali day, the Sikh celebrate the return of the sixth Nanak, Guru Hargobind from detention in the Gwalior Fort. The day when the Guru was released coincides with the Hindu festival of Diwali. This coincidence has resulted in similarity of celebration amongst Sikhs and Hindus.
The Sikhs celebrate this day as Bandi Chhorh Divas i.e., "the day of release of detainees", because the sixth Nanak had agreed to his release on the condition that the other fifty-two detainees would also be released. These other fifty-two detainees were the vassal kings who had done something to annoy the emperor.
Emperor Jahangir had imprisoned the sixth Nanak because he was afraid of the Guru's growing following and power. The Sikhs on this day, which generally falls in october-November, hold a one-day celebrations in the Gurdwaras. So in the evening, illuminations are done with Deewé (earthen oil lamps) or candles and fireworks. The celebrations are held both in the Gurdwaras and in homes.
This Shabad is by Bhai Gurdas Ji: www.sikhitothemax.com
| Vaars Bhai Gurdaas on Pannaa 19 |
| dheevaalee dhee raath dheevae baaleeani Lamps are lighted in the night of divali festival; thaarae jaath sanaath a(n)bar bhaaleeani fulaa(n) dhee baagaath chun chun chaaleeani theerathh jaathee jaath nain nihaaleeani har cha(n)dhuree jhaath vasaae ouchaaleeani guramukh sukhafal dhaath shabadh samhaaleean a |
Other Associations with Diwali
The story of Divali for the Sikhs is a story of the Sikh struggle for freedom. From the time of Guru Nanak (1469 – 1539), the founder of Sikhism, popular seasonal or folk festivals like the harvest festival of Vaisakhi, or ancient mythological festivals like Holi and Divali, or worship rituals like Aarti, began to take on a new significance for the Guru’s students, the Sikhs. The Guru used these festivals and special days e.g. first day of each lunar month, as symbols or pegs for his teaching themes. And so the Sikhs were slowly diverted from darkness of superstitious ritualism based on fear and ignorance to an enlightened ideology based on reason and belief in One Creator. The enlightened ideology of Guru Nanak gave new significance to ancient festivals like Divali and Vaisakhi..
So what about Divali, the festival of lights when, according to Indian lore, Lord Rama returned home after destroying the demon god Ravana who had taken away Rama’s wife, Sita? The story has less of a significance to Sikhs. However, in the Sikh struggle for freedom from the oppressive Mughal regime, the festival of Divali did become the second most important day after the Vaisakhi festival in April.
The Sixth Guru Hargobind, was freed from imprisonment in the famous fort of Gwalior by Emperor Jahangir in October, 1619. The reason for the young Guru’s imprisonment was no more than religious bigotry. The Guru’s father, Guru Arjan, had been martyred for the same reason. According to Sikh tradition, the Guru agreed to be freed only if the other Indian chiefs (rajahs) imprisoned with him were freed. Jahangir was under pressure from moderate but influential Muslim religious leaders like Hazrat Mian Mir, a friend of the Guru. So he relented grudgingly and ordained, "Let those rajahs be freed who can hold on to the Guru’s coat tails and walk out of prison". He had in mind no more than four or five being freed with the Guru. However, the Guru was not to be outmanoeuvred in this way. He asked for a special coat to be made with 52 coat tails - same number as the rajahs in prison with him! And so the rajahs were freed and the Guru became known popularly as the "Bandi Chhor" (Deliverer from prison). He arrived at Amritsar on the Divali day and the Har Mandar (now known as the "Golden Temple") was lit with hundreds of lamps i.e. he was received in the same way as the Lord Rama and the day came to be known as the "Bandi Chhor Divas" (the day of freedom).
Thenceforth, the Sikh struggle for freedom, which intensified in the 18th Century, came to be centred around this day. In addition to the Vaisakhi day (now in April), when Khalsa, the Sikh nation was formally established by the Tenth Guru Gobind Singh, Divali became the second day in the years when the Khalsa met and planned their freedom strategy.
Another important Sikh event associated with Divali is the martyrdom in 1734 of the elderly Sikh scholar and strategist Bhai Mani Singh, the Granthi (priest) of Harimandar Sahib (Golden Temple). He had refused to pay a special tax on a religious meeting of the Khalsa on the Divali day. This and other Sikh martyrdoms gave further momentum to the Khalsa struggle for freedom and eventually success in establishing the Khalsa rule north of Delhi
- Above is an account from allaboutsikhs.com
Quotes supporting this View
www.sikh-history.com
Among the Sikhs, Diwali came to have special significance from the day the town of Amritsar was illuminated on the return to it of Guru Hargobind (1595-1644) who had been held captive in the Fort at Gwalior under the orders of the Mughal emperor, Jahangir (1570-1627).
www.bbc.co.uk
Diwali is also a Sikh festival. It particular it celebrates the release from prison of the sixth guru, Hargobind, in 1619. Sikhs had celebrated Diwali for many years before that and the foundation stone of the Golden Temple at Amritsar, the holiest place in the Sikh world, was laid on Diwali in 1577.
www.sikhstudy.com
The Third Sikh Teacher, Guru Amar Das institutionalized this as one of the special days when all Sikhs would gather to receive the Gurus blessings at Goindwal. In 1577 the foundation stone of The Golden Temple was laid on Diwali. The Diwali festival took place during the life of the sixth Sikh Guru Hargobind Sahib.
www.sikhworld.co.uk
The Indian festival of lights held around October 25th. Guru Amar Das institutionalised this as one of the special days when all Sikhs would gather to receive the Gurus blessings at Goindwal. In 1577 the foundation stone of The Golden Temple was laid on Diwali. On Diwali 1619 the Golden Temple was illuminated with many lights to welcome home and celebrate the release of Guru Hargobind from imprisonment in Gwalior fort. Sikhs have continued this annual celebration with lamps being lit outside gurdwaras and sweets distributed to all. The largest gathering happens at The Golden Temple which is lit up with thousands of lights.
www.sikhnet.com
A Sikh Lighting candles along the side of the marble walkway around the Golden Temple on Diwali.
Alternative View
Diwali is a Hindu festival, and is based around the story of Ram returning to his captial after 12 years of exile. Hindus worship Fire and the Goddess of Wealth on this day and celebrate it by playing with fireworks, eating sweets and drinking alcohol, the last one being strictly prohibited by Sikhism. Diwali is wrongly celebrated by a number of Sikhs: it is NOT a Sikh festival.
How did the mistake come about? • Sikhs have nothing to do with Diwali, and never celebrated it until the first decade of the Nineteenth Century, under Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s reign
• It was the impact of his Hindu advisors, notably ministers like Khushal Chand and Dhian Singh Dogra, that influenced Maharaja Ranjit Singh into celebrating Diwali, betraying his own Sikh faith
The LIE: • The Brahmins convinced Maharaja Ranjit Singh that when Guru HarGobind Dev Ji reached Amritsar after his release from Gwalior jail, it was the day of Diwali, and as a result, the Sikhs lit earthen lamps to celebrate it
Maharaja Ranjit Singh did not know much about Sikh history or philosophy, so he was easily manipulated by his advisors, who wanted Hinduism to creep back into Sikhism.
The TRUTH: • Guru HarGobind Dev Ji actually reached Amritsar on December 28th 1620, NOT on Diwali. • It is true that Sikhs did light earthen lamps on that day but December 28th 1620 was not a Hindu Diwali Day. • Furthermore, to highlight just how much this lie was a lie, Guru HarGobind Dev Ji left Amritsar for Keeratpur Sahib in 1634-5. After he moved, Amritsar remained in the control of the Pirthi Chand Mina family, who didn’t like the Guru.
Question: If they didn’t like Guru HarGobind Dev Ji, why would they have celebrated his release from jail? Answer: They never did! It was ALL a lie!
The Sikhs used to gather outside Shri Akal Takhat on each Diwali and Vaisakhi day simply because in those days, there was no calendar other than the Hindu calendar. The Sikhs, who at this time were being persecuted, were living in hideouts in the hills and plains. As a result, it was easy for the Sikhs, even in their hideouts, to know about these dates and hold gatherings.
Otherwise, there was no question of celebrating Diwali or even Vaisakhi, which only became important after Guru Gobind Singh Ji formed the Khalsa Panth in 1699.
So you see, celebrating Diwali was an attempt by the Hindu ministers of Maharaja Ranjit Singh as well as the Hindu managers of Shri Darbar Sahib to bring back Hinduism, despite our own Gurus warning us against it!
The power that the Brahmins held over Maharaja Ranjit Singh was so immense, that in his later days, he made no decision without their approval, therefore laying the seeds of defeat of Punjab in later years. The chief priest of Darbar Sahib, Sant Singh, was more Hindu than Sikh: he even had a statue of Ganesh in his entrance!
These elements were successful in fooling the Sikhs to celebrate Diwali at Darbar Sahib and carrying on with the tradition even now. Let’s be clear: Sikhs have nothing to do with Diwali.
Be proud to be Sikh, be proud in the accomplishments of your Gurus and your forefathers, and be proud of your glorious history: don’t ever betray it! Let us stand shoulder to shoulder and celebrate Sikhi like it should be celebrated!
United We Stand, Divided We Fall
Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh!
(Facts taken from Dr Harjinder Singh Dilgeer, Publishers: Singh Brothers, Amritsar)
