Authority in the post-Khalsa period.
Authority in the post-Khalsa period. reprinted from the paper 'Problems of Defining Authority in Sikhism', by Dr. Sewa Singh Kalsi - Dept. of Theology and Religious Studies, University of Leeds, UK.
According to the Sikh tradition, Guru Gobind Singh died at Nanded in 1708. Before his death he is believed to have transferred his authority to the Adi Granth and the Khalsa brotherhood. Shortly before his death he also nominated Banda Singh Bahadur to lead the Sikhs in the Punjab against the Moghal rulers. Banda Singh Bahadur was a great military genius; within two years with the support and loyalty of the Punjabi Sikh peasantry he established Sikh rule in the Punjab. Some Sikh scholars claim that he was revered by his followers like a guru and this created disunity and confusion among the Sikhs, which resulted in the emergence of two factions within the ranks of Banda's followers; Tat Khalsa and Bandai Khalsa. Bandais were those Sikhs who refused to accept the authority of the Guru Granth Sahib as the Guru of the Sikhs and revered Banda Singh Bahadur as their eleventh Guru (Madanjit Kaur, 1983:33).
Commenting on the rivalry between the Tat Khalsa and the Bandai Khalsa, Madanjit Kaur writes:
- "The atmosphere was highly charged and both the rival groups seemed ready to come to blows. But the situation was saved and a settlement was reached through the intervention of Bhai Mani Singh. The dispute was settled by casting lots. Two pieces of paper with the slogans of the factions inscribed thereon, were floated in the Holy Tank at a place known as Har Ki Pauri. The slip containing the slogan of Tat Khalsa (Fateh Wahguru ji ki) kept floating while the other sank down. So, the decision was given in favour of the Tat Khalsa." (1983:36-37)
- Analysis of the manner of settling the dispute between two contending factions, only a few years after the death of the tenth Guru, Gobind Singh, clearly demonstrates that the doctrine of the Guru Granth as a living Guru had not emerged as the final source of authority within the Panth. In fact, the dispute was settled by casting lots through the intervention of Bhai Mani Singh, the nominee of Guru Gobind Singh.
- After the death of Banda Bahadur twelve misls (armed bands) of Sikhs emerged in the Punjab. The leaders of these misls evolved a new institution called the Sarbat Khalsa (literally, the whole Khalsa Panth) to resolve their differences. In practice it was composed of the leaders of all the misls gathered at the Akal Takhat, who would approve resolutions called gurmata (guru's intention) in the presence of the Guru Granth Sahib. It seems to be the first indication of the beginning of the doctrine of Guru Panth in Sikhism. In 1799, after Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahore and laid down the foundation of the Sikh rule in the Punjab he liquidated all the Sikh misls and brought them under his control, disbanding the institution of the Sarbat Khalsa and taking all decisions personally. In 1805 he captured the city of Amritsar, took over the control of the Harmandir Sahib and appointed his own administrators to manage the Temple affairs. As Sikh ruler of Punjab, Ranjit Singh exercised both political and religious authority. This implies that the institution of the Sarbat Khalsa did not last long and was killed in the embryo by Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who exercised de facto authority over Sikh affairs."
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