Guru Granth Sahib: Unique and universal message
The Guru Granth Sahib, besides being the holiest scripture of Sikhism and the unique scripture revealed in India, is also the universal scripture of the world. This is so, because it is the fountain-head of the universal message of love, truth and harmony; and also because its universality, profundity and out-reach has a distinct universal significance. Hence said Prof. T.L. Vaswani in 1922, “It is a wonderful scripture, the Sikh Granth. I regard it a World-Scripture. This scripture was completed in 1604. After three (now nearing four) centuries, it still has a message for us, a message for the world. Out of the World-Soul it rolled.”1
Guru Granth Sahib is a unique repository of the Revealed Word. It is a record of the Voice of God and echoes the Divine Truth. “It remains unique in consisting solely of the meditation of God-inspired men, who have communicated the Divine Word in a spirit of deep humility and compassion for mankind.2 Moreover, it is “a compendium on spiritual science” and “a symbol of spiritual synthesis... AS the movement of the Siddhas was a vast social synthesis, so the religion contained in the Guru Granth was a vast spiritual synthesis.”3 Prof. Toynbee has, therefore, aptly claimed it to be a “part of mankind’s common spiritual treasure.” Hence he stated, “It is important that, it should be brought within the direct reach of as many people as possible… A book that has meant, and means so much to such a notable community as the Sikh Khalsa, deserves close study from the rest of the world.4
Toynbee also prophesied in 1960: “Mankind’s religious future may be obscure; yet one thing can be foreseen: the living higher religions are going to influence each other, more than ever before, in these days of increasing communication between all parts of the world and all branches of the human race. In this coming religious debate, the Sikh religion and its scripture, the Adi Granth,5 will have something of special value to say to the rest world.”
This will, of course, be so, because this Holy Granth enshrines the ideals and institutions of a modern and universal religion as well as of an excellent and comprehensive ethical system which has the entire human race, its welfare and uplift, in view; and “gives the healing outlook on life.”6 It has brought forth a new conception of Ultimate Reality, a new vision of the Universal Man, a new ideal of democratic polity and a new pattern of non-discriminatory society, based on equilitarian and pluralistic concepts, as expressed, for instance in its following verses - the first being by Bhagat Kabir (1398-1448) the second by Guru Arjan Dev (1563-1606) and the third by Guru Nanak Dev (1469-1539):
ਅਵਲਿ ਅਲਹ ਨੂਰ ਉਪਾਇਆ ਕਦਰਤਿ ਕੇ ਸਭ ਬੰਦੇ ॥
ਝਕ ਨੂਰ ਤੇ ਸਭ ਜਗ ਉਪਜਿਆ ਕਉਨ ਭਲੇ ਕੋ ਮੰਦੇ ॥੧॥
ਲੋਗਾ ਭਰਮਿ ਨ ਭੂਲਹ ਭਾਈ ॥
ਖਾਲਿਕ ਖਲਕ ਖਲਕ ਮਹਿ ਖਾਲਿਕ ਪੂਰਿ ਰਹਿਓ ਸਰਬ ਠਾਂਈ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥ 7
God, at first, created His Light;
then all the people were made from it.
As the entire world
has come from that One Light,
then who are superior, who inferior?
(or whom shall we call good, whom bad?).
O folk, brethren !
be not strayed by illusion;
For, the Creator is in the created
and the created in the Creator,
who pervades all, everywhere.
ਸਭ ਕੋ ਮੀਤ ਹਮ ਆਪਨ ਕੀਨਾ ਹਮ ਸਭਨਾ ਕੇ ਸਾਜਨ ॥
ਦੂਰਿ ਪਰਾਇਓ ਮਨ ਕਾ ਬਿਰਹਾ ਤਾ ਮੇਲ ਕੀਓ ਮੇਰੈ ਰਾਜਨ ॥੩॥ 8
Neither is any my foe,
Nor am I enemy of any...
I have made all and sundry my loving friends,
And I am a friend of one and all.
ਆਈ ਪੰਥੀ ਸਗਲ ਜਮਾਤੀ (ਮਨਿ ਜੀਤੈ ਜਗ ਜੀਤ) ॥ 9
The highest aspiration of your religious order.
Let universal brotherhood be.10
The religion projected in Guru Granth Sahib is concerned, thus, with the creation of a just, liberal, cosmopolitan and altruistic social order; and is committed to mutual love, moral conduct, social equality and peaceful co-existence in the world.
The basic principles, enunciated by the Divine Masters for the achievement of this ideal, are astonishingly similar to those recently mentioned, for example, in the following statement and declaration of the Third World Conference on Religion And Peace held in 1979 at Princeton in New Jersey, United States of America:
- “We believe that, as religious people, we have a special responsibility for building a peaceful world community and a special contribution to make.
- We realize that far too often the names of our religions have been used in warfare and community strife.
- Now we must reverse this, in short, by:
- a. Breaking down barriers of prejudices and hostility between religious communities and institutions;
- b. Confronting the powers of the world with the word of the teachings of our religions rather than conforming to them when they do wrong and act contrary to the well-being of humanity;
- c. Building inter-religious understanding and community among ourselves on local level, particularly where prejudices run strong.
- We all acknowledge restraint and self-discipline in a community of giving and forgiving love as basic to human life and the form of true blessedness. We are all commanded by our faiths to seek justice in the world in a community of free and equal persons. In this search, conscience is given to every person as a moral guide to the ways of truth among us all.11
- The prophet-preceptors of the Sikh religion demonstrated these ideals during their life-times (1469-1708) both through their oral and written utterances, as preserved in original, in Guru Granth Sahib. They visualised, preached and practised such a religion which initiated and successfully pursued the performance of all those functions in the best interests of humanity at large. They proved, both by precept and practice, that it knows no ethical, racial or regional limitations; recognised no distinctions on account of birth, sex, caste, creed, calling, colour or country; and embodies, on the other hand, universal respect and concern for all, regarding all as equal and respectable. Its Founder, identifying himself with, the lowliest of the creatures, advised all and sundry: -
- G e' T{uk nkyhn? Bhu[ B dh;? e'fJ ..
fJeBk GKv/ ;kfin? fJe[ ukBD[ fsj[ b'fJ ..12
Call everyone high (noble), for, none seems low (mean);
As God, the Only ‘Potter’ (Maker), has fashioned all ‘vessels’ alike.
And it is His Light alone that shines in all creation.
Guru Arjan Dev, the holy compiler-cum-editor of this Sacred Volume underlining such a radical concept or unity, fraternity and universality, went to the extent of asserting:
B e' p?oh Bjh fprkBk ;rb ;zfr jw eT[ pfB nkJh ..13
None is our enemy, Nor is anyone stranger to us.
We are in cordial accord with one and all.
Thus, they broke down centuries ago the said “barrier of prejudice and hostility,” not only “between religious communities and institutions” but also between all individuals who constitute these.
Keeping such catholic aspirations and universal convictions in view, the Sikh Gurus also “confronted the powers of the world with the word of the teachings of their religion rather than conformed to them when they acted contrary to the well-being of humanity” as exhorted in the above statement of the said World Conference on Religions and Peace. Guru Nanak Dev, founder of the Sikh religion, not only ‘confronted’, in 1521, the invading Emperor Babar, founder of the Mughal Empire in India, but also called him the ‘regent of death.’; condemned the tyrannical deeds of his hordes and voiced the agony of the oppressed humanity in some of the most heart-rending hymns contained, as below for instance, in Guru Granth Sahib:
gkg eh izR b? ekpbj[ XkfJnk i'oh wzr? dkB t/ bkb' .. y{B e/ ;'fjb/ rkthnfj BkBe os[ ek e[zr{ gkfJ t/ bkb' ..14
Babar, the Mughal, has rushed from Kabul
with the wedding party of sins;
And demands, in forced marriage,
the surrender of our womanhood…
The paeans of blood are being sung,
And blood is being sprinkled
for saffron on the wedded ones.
- u eh pkDh BkBe[ nky? ;u[ ;[DkfJ;h ;u[ eh p/bk .15
Nanak utters the word of truth; He utters the truth,
for, now is the time to utter the trutb.
y[ok;kB y;wkBk ehnk fjzd[;skB[ vokfJnk .. ...... J/sh wko gJh eobkD/ s? eh dod[ B nkfJnk .. eosk s{z ;GBk ek ;'Jh .. i/ ;esk ;es/ eT[ wko? sk wfB o';[ B j'Jh ..16
You, O God! saved Khurasan from Babar’s invasion and have let loose terror on Hindustan. The people were tortured so ruthlessly that they, in agony, cried to heaven. Did it not awake any compassion for them in You, O Lord: You, O Creator, Who belongs to all, pray listen! If the powerful one smites another equally powerful, our mind is not much grieved over it. But when a tiger falls upon a herd of kine, then the Master of the herd must answer for it.
Guru Nanak not only “confronted” the invaders and appealed to the Creator-of-all in such touching verses, but also rebuked the then rulers (viz. Lodhi Pathans) of Hindustan for their not putting up a stiff fight for it, and allowing such a precious gem (i.e. India) to be ravaged and snatched away so easily. It was because they –
- kjk ;[ofs rtkJhnk ozfr swk;/ ukfJ ..
pkpopkDh fcfo rJh e[fJo[ B o'Nh ykfJ .. 17
The rulers had lost their senses
in the pursuit of sensuous pleasures.
Now, when Babar’s command has gone abroad,
even their own princes go about without a crust.
The Guru not only exposed their betrayal of trust and moral degradation, but also, their administrative set-up in no less forceful terms, such as these :
oki/ ;hj, w[edw e[s/ ikfJ irkfJfB p?m/ ;[s/ .. ukeo Bjdk gkfJfB xkT[ os[ fgs[ e[fsj' ufN ijj[ ..18 The rulers are turned tigers and their officers hounds. they do not let people to rest in peace. Their servants wound them with their claws. And lick up all the blood and marrow that is split. Guru Arjan Dev, whose own contribution to the content of Guru Granth Sahib is the largest, pronounced the following ‘Divine Manifesto’ when, during his time and pontificate, people were threatened with another onslaught on their life, honour and fundamental rights:
j[fD j[ew[ j'nk fwjotkD dk g? e'fJ B fe;? otkDdk ..
- G ;[ykbh t[mhnk fJj[ j'nk jb/wh oki[ ihT[ ..19
The gracious Lord has now
promulgated His Ordinances;
“None shall domineer over others
or cause pain to them.
All shall abide in peace and joy,
as the governance shall be gentle and compassionate.”
While preaching their message of amity, unity, equality, love and truth on the one hand, and also confronting the native and. foreign “powers of the world” so candidly and, courageously, on the other; the Sikh Gurus also roused the conscience of the people to make them fearless, good and true; and endeavoured to take them on the path that led to God’s presence. But denial of freedom and suppression of human dignity by the government of the day, obstructed that peaceful common path. In order, therefore, to safeguard that path, to uphold the ‘freedom of conscience; and to defend human rights on the one hand, and to uproot intolerance, indignity and tyranny on the other, two of its holy contributors – Guru Arjan Dev and Guru Tegh Bahadur (1621-1675) - laid down their lives in 1606 and 1675, respectively, under specific orders of the then Mughal emperors - Jahangir (1569-1627) and Aurangzeb (1618-1707) - of the Indian subcontinent. Mentioning the cause and effect of the unique and supreme sacrifice made by the latter for this very purpose, the contemporary evidence tells:
fsbe-izR{ okyk gqG{ sk ek ehB' pv' eb{ wfj ;kek ..
- kXfB j/fs fJsh fifB eoh ;h;[ dh
- k go[ ;h B T[uoh .
Xow j/s ;kek fifB ehnk ;h;[ dhnk go f;oo[ B dhnk BkNe u/Ne ehJ/ e[ekik gqG b'rB ej nkts bkik .. mheo c'fo fdbh; f;fo gqGg[fo eh:k g:kB .. s/r pkjd[o ;h fenk eoh B feBj{z nkB ..20
The Divine Master (i.e. Guru Tegh Bahadur)
protected their religious right to apply frontal
caste-marks and wear sacred threads.
He performed thereby
a great feat in this Age of Darkness.
He went to the utmost limit.
for the sake of the men of faith.
He gave away his head
without uttering even the whisper of a groan.
He endured this unique martyrdom
for the cause of truth and protection of Faith.
He readily offered his head for sacrifice,
but didn’t give up his ideal and conviction.
(He, Guru Teg Babadur, refused to perform any miracle as,
according to him),
display of such miraculous powers
or performance of bogus tricks and petty
practices would be a shame for the men of God.
He smashed the potsherd of his life
on the head of the king of Delhi
and departed for the Abode of God.
None else bas ever performed a feat
as noble and great as Tegh Bahadur.
The former martyr-Guru, viz. Guru Arjan Dev’s valiant son, Guru Hargobind (1595-1644), the sixth Divine Master, had even to take up arms for defending human rights and protecting the dignity and liberty of Humankind. His grandson, Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708), the Tenth Divine Master, had to create in 1699 an indomitable force of martial and self-sacrificing saint-soldiers, called The Khalsa (i.e. God’s Elect) and to have recourse to arms to fulfil his mission of upholding Dharma and smashing the wicked and tyrants, unequivocally proclaiming:
jw fJj eki irs w'I nkJ/, Xow j/s r[od/ft gmkJ/ ..
ijK sjK s[w Xow fpXko', d[FN d'yhnfB gefo gSko' ..
- kjh eki Xok jw iBwz, ;wM b/j[ ;kX{ ;G wBwz ..
Xow ubktB, ;zs T[pkoB d[FN ;GB e' w{b T[gkofB ..26
I have come into this world
for this avowed purpose:
The Supreme Lord has sent me here
to uphold dharm (Righteousness).
He has commanded me
to spread true faith everywhere; and
seize and smash the wicked and tyrants.
Understand this in your hearts, O pious people!
I have taken birth only for this purpose.
To promulgate true religion;
to exalt the virtuous and uproot all evildoers.
u{ eko n} jwj jhbs/ dor[}Fs
jbkb n;s p[odB pFwFho d;s ..27
When an affair is past beyond all other means.
It is just and righteous to draw the sword.
Guru Gobind Singh, the creator of the Khalsa and the installer of the Holy Granth as his successor and the Guru Eternal for the Sikhs, sacrificed his own father, mother, all the four sons and even his ownself in his colossal and beneficent efforts to defend the dignity and fundamental rights of the people.
The Sikh prophet-teachers did all that, thus, to promote those lofty ideals which, as projected in Guru Granth Sahib, equate the Supreme Lord with Truth and Love of Him with service of Humanity. They also enjoined upon all human beings mutual love and understanding on the one hand, and truthful living and social responsibility on the other, invoking thereby both social service and social action. They believed, as is stated thus in Guru Granth Sahib, that –
A. Love for God and Humanity:
1. i' os/ ;fj nkgD/ fsB Gkt? ;G e'fJ ..28
They who love God,love everybody.28
2. nzdo[ ykbh gq/w fpB[p, Yfj Y/oh sB[ Sko[ ..29
A man or woman without true love is an empty shell
which soon crumbles and is reduced to dust.
fiBh B gkfJU gq/w o;[, ezs B gkfJU ;kT[l
- [zR/ xo ek gqkj[Dk,
fiT[ nkfJnk fsT[ ikT[ ..30
They who do not cherish loving emotion,
do not know the taste of the Beloved.
They are as a guest visiting a deserted house
and returning empty and disappointed.
B. Devoted Service to God and Humanity:
i/s/ ihn s/o/ ;fG s/o/
ftD[ ;/tk cb[ fe;? Bkjh ..31
All living beings are Your own creatures.
But none can obtain any reward
without rendering devoted service
to You and to Your created ones.
ftfu d[Bhnk ;/t ewkJhn? sk dorfj p?;D[ gkJhJ? ..32
A resting place at the Divine portal can be found only
through the devoted service of the people in this world.
Envisioning and preaching, thus, a new cultural ethos and an ideal social order; and emphasising social justice, obligations and service to humanity, Sikhism, the latest world-religion, as projected in Guru Granth Sahib, has all along been exhorting and asserting for the liberation of the human kind from all kinds of degrading bondage - mental, spiritual, social, political and the like. “Long before the modern kind of idea of social freedom was evolved in the West, it has brought to mankind the message of freedom. In its social aspects, it was a freedom movement from formalism and caste-tyranny; while spiritually it brought to man freedom from suppression and those false beliefs which enslaved man to a selfish or ignorant priesthood, whether the priest was called a Brahman, Yogi or Muslim.”33
Not only its history and heritage (whether in its principles, doctrines and pronouncements or in the practical lives of its founder, his successors and followers), its sacred writings also present impeachable evidence to the aims, impact and beneficence of that radical and dynamic movement, initiated by the Sikh Gurus in the 15th century for the liberation and well-being of all human beings. Thus spoke Guru Arjan Dev, the founder of its holiest shrine, called Harimander Sahib, the Golden Temple, at Amritsar, while summing up its impact and influence:
c{N' nKvk Gow ek, wBfj GfJU gork;[l
ekNh p/oh grj s/, r[fo ehBh pzfd ykbk;[ ..34
The egg-shell of doubt has shattered
and the mind is illumined.”
The Master has freed us from bondage
It by putting off fetters from our feet.
As regards the third postulate of the above statement of the World Conference on Religion and Peace, the Ten Sikh Gurus, Guru Granth Sahib and their teachings have always been striving to “build inter-religious understanding in our local communities, particularly where prejudices run strong.” Sir Arnold Toynbee tells us:
“The Indian and the Judaic religions are notoriously different in spirit; and where they have met, they have sometimes behaved like oil and vinegar. Their principal meeting-ground has been India, where Islam has impugned on Hinduism violently. On the whole, the story of relations between these two great religions on the Indian ground has been an unhappy tale of mutual misunderstanding and hostility. Yet, on both sides of this religious barrier, there has been a minority of discerning spirits who have seen that, at bottom, Hinduism and Islam are each an expression of the same fundamental religious truth, and that these two expressions are therefore reconcilable with each other and are of supreme value when brought into harmony.”
“The Sikh religion”, he adds, “might be described, not inaccuraely, as a vision of this Hindu-Muslim common ground. To have discovered and embraced the deep harmony underlying the historic Hindu- Muslim discord has been a noble spiritual triumph; and Sikhs may be proud of their religion’s ethos and origin.”35 According to Dr. Sir Radhakrishnan too, the blessed founder of their religion, Guru Nanak, “strove to bring Hindus and Muslims together. His life and teachings were a symbol of the harmony between the two communities. A popular verse describes him as a ‘Guru for the Hindus and a pir for the Muslims’:
Baba Nanak Shah Faqir. Hindu Ka Guru, Musalman Ka Pir.
This was in spite of the glaring fact that he “was critical of the formalism of both the Hindus and the Muslims”36 and his historic thunder blast, when he took up the mission of his life, was:
Bk e' fjzd{ j? Bk e' w[;bwkB j? ..37
There is neither a Hindu Nor a Muslim.
(All are human beings, born of the One Supreme Being).
It was Guru Arjan Dev, the holy compiler of this Sacred Volume, who in a single hymn, indicative of his cosmopolitan attitude and universal goodwill, using a good number of the attributive names of God, drawn from both the Hindu (e.g. Jagannath, Rishikesh, Narhar, Gopal, etc.) and the Muslim (e.g. Maula, Allah, Khaliq, Khuda, etc.) traditions, and shattering the age-old doubts and illusions about His names, declared at its end:
ej[ BkBe r[fo y'J/ Gow, J/e' nbj[ gkopqjw ..38
The Master has lifted my illusion (about the name of God and has enabled me to realise) That Allah (Muslim name of God) and Par-Brahm (Hindu name of God) are one and identical.
It was he, again, who transcending all sectarian and parochial limits, and using a composite name, Allah-Rama, for God, also proclaimed unequivocally:
tos B ojT[, B wj owdkBk, fs;[ ;/th i' oy? fBdkBk .. J/e[ r[;kJh nbj[ w/ok, fjzd{ s[oe d[jK B/p/ok .. ji ekp? ikT[ B shoE g{ik, J/e' ;/th, nto[ B d{ik .. g{ik eoT[ B fBtki r[ikoT[, J/e fBozeko b? fod? Bw;ekoT[ .. B jw fjzd{ B w[;bwkB, nbj okw e/ fgzv gokB ..39
I neither observe fasting (like a Hindu) nor keep the fast during Ramdan (like a Muslim); for, I serve only Him who saves at the last. The Gosain of the Hindus and Allah of the Muslims are one and the same to me; for, I have found release from the rituals of both. I neither go to Kaaba to perform the Hajj nor to Hindu pilgrim-stations for ritual bathing and worship for, I serve only the One God, and no other. I neither worship in the Hindu Way, nor say prayers like the Muslims, for, I bow, within my heart, only to that One Formless Lord We are neither Hindus nor Muslims for, our body and soul belong to the One Supreme Being, who alone is both Rama and Allah for us.
References
- 1. Vaswani, Prof. (Sadhu), T.L., In the Sikh Sanctuary, Madras-1922, pp.36-37.
- 2. Talib, Gurbachan Singh (transl.), Sri Guru Granth Sahib (in English Translation), Patiala-1988, Introduction, p.xxi.
- 3. Arora, Dr. R.K., The Sacred Scripture - Symbol of spirituality Synthesis, New Delhi - 1988, pp. v & 188.
- 4. Toynbee, Prof. Sri Arnold, in his foreword to UNESCO’S Selections from the Sacred Writings of the Sikhs, Lonon - 1960, pp.9, 10-11.
- 5. That is, Guru Granth Sahib.
- 6. Bittencourt, Edward A. de in his ‘foreword’ to The Sikh Way of Life by S. Ranbir Singh, New Delhi- 1968, p.vi.
- 7. Bhagat Kabir, Guru Granth Sahib, Rag Parbhati, p.1349.
- 8. Guru Arjan Dev, Guru Granth Sahib, op.cit., Rag Dhanasri, p.671.
- 9. Guru Nanak, ibid., Japu, st.28, p.6.
- 10. Alternative rendering: You shall belong to the Ayee order (highest order of Yogis known for their spirit of accomodation), if you associate yourself with all humen as your equals.
- 11. Homer, A. Jack, Religion in the struggle for world Community, New York - 1980, pp. ii- iii.
- 12. Guru Arjan Dev, Guru Granth Sahib, op.cit., Rag Siri, p.62.
- 13. Ibid., Raga Kanra, p.1299.
- 14. Guru Nanak Dev, Guru Granth Sahib, Tag Tilang, p.722.
- 15. Ibid., Rag Tilang, p.723
- 16. Guru Nanak Dev, Guru Granth Sahib, Rag Asa. p.360.
- 17. Ibid., Rag Asa, p.417.
- 18. Ibid., Rag Malar, P.1288.
- 19. Guru Arjan Dev, Ibid., Rag Siri, p.74.
- 20. Guru Gobind Singh, Siri Dasam Granth Sahib, Compiled in 1734 by Bhai Mani Singh Shaheed at Amritsar; edited by Bhai Randhir Singh, Patiala, vol. I-1985, Bachittar Natak, Anandpur - c.1698. Ch. V, Chaupai st. 13, p.45.
- 21.
- 22. That is, of the Hindus.
- 23. That is, made such a unique and supreme sacrifice.
- 24. In the freedom of conscience and worship for everyday.
- 25. That is, the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.
- 26. Guru Gobind Singh, Dasam Granth Sahib, op.cit.,p.174, Bachittar Natak Anandpur - 1696, canto VI, chaupai, St.42-43.
- 27. Ibid, Zafarnamah, Dina Kangar - 1706, Vr.no.22.
- 28. Guru Nanak Dev, Guru Granth Sahib, op.cit., Rag Wadhans, p.557.
- 29. Ibid., Rag Siri. p.62.
- 30. Ibid., Rag Suhi, p.790.
- 31. Guru Nanak Dev, Guru Granth Sahib, op.cit., Rag Asa, p.394.
- 32. Ibid., Rag Siri, p.26.
- 33. Talib, Gurbachan Singh, Sikhism as a Liberating Force, Patiala - 1979, pp.46-47.
- 34. Guru Arjan Dev, Guru Granth Sahib, op.cit., Rag Maru, p.1002.
- 35. In his ‘foreword’ UNESCO’S Selections from the Sacred Writings of the Sikhs, London - 1960, p.10.
- 36. Ibid., pp.21 & 23.
- 37. Prachin Janamsakhi, ed. by Mr. M.a. Macauliffe, Rawalpindi - 1885, p. 37
- 38. Guru Arjan Dev, Guru Granth Sahib, op. cit., Rag Ramkali, p. 897.
- 39. Guru Arjan Dev, Guru Granth Sahib, Rag Bhairo, p. 1188.
