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PRELUDE TO THE SIKH PRAYER Lord! Thou art our Master, we pray to Thee Our body and soul were given by grace of Thee We art Thy children, Father and Mother are Thee All peace we enjoy, is bestowed by Thee No body can know, how great are Thee Whole creation obeys Thy command and listens to Thee Whoever is created, he abides by Thee Thy greatness is known alone to Thee Nanak, Thy pupil sacrifices his all to Thee W\\ \*VM

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by Gurbakhash Singh

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Sikh Education & Research Centre Of Windsor, P.O.Box 3415, Tecumseh, Ontario, Canada, N8N3C4 Publisher: Sikh Education & Research Centre Of Windsor, P.O.Box 3415, Tecumseh, Ontario, Canada, N8N 3C4

First Edition 1992 Singh, Gurbakhash, 1927 : UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

PRINTERS: Compute Print Copy Windsor, Ontario

n Dedicated to the who shed their blood to keep the Gurmat lamp glowing to show the path of peace to humanity. ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Born in District Ludhiana on Sept 15,1927 Dr. Gurbakhash Singh studied in Lyallpur and Khalsa College, Amritsar. In 1963, he obtained his Ph.D. degree from Ohio State University (U.S.A.). He served as a Professor and Dean at Agricultural University, Ludhiana. In 1984, he resigned his post and actively began teaching Sikh religion to the Sikh youth.

PUBLISHERS NOTE

SIKH EDUCTION AND RESEARCH CENTRE is proud of the accomplishments of Dr. Gurbakhash Singh. In particular his unselfish and dedicated service to the Sikh cause and his endless and devoted commitment to writing about the Sikh religion. His scholarly methods in teaching the Sikh religion to our youth have earned him the respect and admiration of the young Sikhs. Acknowledgments

An article, Sikhism, a Revolt against Brahmanism, written on the suggestion of S. Amarjit Singh Buttar of Vernon, CT., U.S.A., for publication in a newspaper has taken the form of this book in about three years. Mr. J.S. Ahluwalia, Windsor, CT., took the trouble of typing it and changing it again and again. The draft was sent to S. Kuldeep Singh, Toledo, Ohio, who suggested more ref­ erences after a thorough study. Dr. Manohar Singh Grewal, Hanover, MA., U.S.A., suggested some additions and reor­ ganization of the whole matter. Meanwhile, the author moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, where S. Bhupinder Singh retyped it. Sikh Education and Research Centre, Windsor, Ontario Canada, was approached to get it printed and it willingly agreed to it. The draft edited by them was sent in June, 1991 to the author attending the Sikh youth camp held in Atlanta, GA.,U.S.A., where Dr. Harbans Singh got interested to read it. He made very useful changes and suggested some addi­ tional matter.

v Canadian Sikh Study and Teaching Society, Vancouver, Canada, got the references printed for the book. The author is thankful to all these persons and many more who made their contributions and encouraged him to complete this book. The credit for getting the book printed and published goes to the Sikh Education and Research Centre, Windsor, Ontario, Canada.

vi Contents

Acknowledgments. Preface IX Power of Brahmanism i^^^^^^^^^^H xiv Introduction xv

Chapter I Brahmanism: the Despotic Ruler 1 A. Subtle and Sophisticated tools employed by Brahmans. B. Brahmans, Peace loving or violent

Chapter II Challenges to Brahmanism 13 A. Indigenous Efforts B. Non- Indian Movements

Chapter HI Stifling and Suppressing the Sikh Revolt 23 A. Tampering with the Literature and History of the Sikhs B .Gurus and Miracles C. Introduction of Brahmanical Rituals

Chapter IV Conclusion 61

Vll Sikh places of business and residence being looted and destroyed in New Delhi in 1984 PREFACE

This article will make a happy reading for many Sikhs who feel hurt to observe Brahmanical mist obscuring the real image of the Sikh faith. They will see the truth being uncov­ ered from the mounds of the Brahmanical rituals and beliefs heaped on the . However, some Sikh readers, who follow Hindu traditions, believing them to be Sikh practices, may not agree with some paragraphs. A few of the traditionalists may even get upset with some portions of this article. However, careful examination of the article under the light of the , would reveal it to be the ex­ pression of the Gurbani thought. It may instead raise a ques­ tion in their minds as to how and why these anti-Sikh rituals could at all enter the and later become popular among the Sikhs. Efforts started to get rid of the antiquated Hindu rituals during the reform movement need to be continued by the Khalsa Panth. Mahants of the British Raj period have been replaced by the stooges of the Indian government, the deceptive , the Radhaswamis, and the Pseudo- factions, etc., to muddle with Sikh philosophy and

ix Sikh Rehat. Gurdwaras in the names of Bhagat Namdev, Ramgarhias, Bhatra Brotherhood, Nanak Panthis, etc. are being built with the tacit help of the Indian government to split the Sikh community. Deras preaching Hindu rituals, but controlled by Sikh-looking Sants, are being patronized by the government to encourage their following. Dozens of splinter groups are supported directly or indirectly by the government to create schism among the Khalsa Panth and cause confusion in the Sikh philosophy. They are all working outside the Gurdwaras in collaboration with their associates working inside the Gurdwaras to obstruct the teaching and preaching of Gurmat. Recently a lot of misguiding matter has been written and distributed free of charge by such people to defame the Sikhs and lower the status of the Gurus. To give credibility and respectability to such baseless and trash writings, some of them have been written as research papers with the direct or indirect financial support of the Indian government, a bribery none the less. The present crusade of the Indian government directed by the Brahmamical forces is, thus, not limited to just the genocide of the Sikhs but is also intended to corrupt Gurbani thought. History tells us that artificial coloring of truth by falsehood, preached by those in power, gets washed away by the passage of time. The truth ultimately reveals itself. Men like Stalin and Mao now stand exposed. The lie - the Sikhs are terrorists - being preached by the Indian government is get­ ting washed off. The state terrorism against the Sikhs is getting known more and more to the world.

x Lastly, be it known to the readers that Brahmanical rituals have been grafted on to the Sikh Rehat to justify that the Sikhs are a sect of . To be accepted by the Sikhs without objection, it is popularized that Dev founded Sikh faith by choosing the good principles of Hinduism and some popular thoughts from Islam. This mischief is meant to conceal the truth that Guru Nanak Dev had a revelation and he founded an independent and sovereign faith. Sikhism totally rejects Brahmanical thought and its rituals. This attempt has been made to clear Gurmat from such corrupting thoughts. The purpose of this book will be served if the reader becomes conscious of the ominous shadows of Brahmanism keeping the Sikhs in the dark regarding the teachings of the Gurus. The Sikhs and their faith are under an intensified attack by the Brahmanical thinkers, who are now holding the reins of power. One can easily understand the severity of the attack if one knows what they did to the Sikhs even when the Brahmans were out of power during the British rule. Mr. D. Petrie of the Criminal Intelligence Department, Government of , in his report on development of Sikh politics ob­ serves: The activities of Hindus have, therefore, been- constantly directed to the undermining of Sikhism both by preventing the children of Sikh fathers from taking pahul and by reducing professed Sikhs from their alle­ giance to their faith. Hinduism has strangled Budhism, once a formidable rival to it and it has already made serious inroads into the domain of Sikhism. About a century ago, Macauliffe, an administrative officer of the British Government, working in Punjab got

xi interested in knowing Sikh faith and telling about it to the British and other English speaking people of the West. After spending long time with the Sikhs in Punjab and learning their language, in 1899, he wrote a famous book 'The Sikh Religion. In the preface of the book he very correctly pointed out, "A movement to declare the Sikhs as Hindus in direct op­ position to the teachings of the Gurus, is wide spread and of long duration." It will not be out of place to mention here briefly how and why this happened. All Gurdwaras, including Hariman- dar Sahib Amritsar were managed by Mahants since the 18th century. In 1716, the Mughal Government of India issued orders to kill Sikhs anywhere they could be seen. The Sikhs had to leave their homes to seek safety in the forests. Mahants who were basically Hindus, became custodians of the Gurd­ waras and the huge real estate attached to them. They prac­ ticed Brahmanical rituals in the Gurdwaras although they read Gurbani from the Guru Granth Sahib. Gurdwaras thus became Hinduised. The British took over Punjab in 1849. After the loss of power of the Sikhs, Mahants became owners of the Gurdwaras and had none to fear from. Instead of using the Gurdwara income for serving people and visitors to the Gurdwaras, they started spending it on themselves. They lived lavishly and viciously. Sikhs were very much hurt by it and they started a movement to reform the management of the Gurdwaras. Because of the resistance of the Mahants and their support by the government, in 1920 it was declared to be a Gurdwara Freedom Movement. After unparalleled sacrifices by the Sikhs, the British agreed to hand over the Gurdwara manage-

xn ment to the Sikhs and passed the Gurdwara Act in 1925. The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, elected under the act, published the (The Sikh Code of Conduct) after consulting all scholars and Sants (holy persons) of the Sikh Panth. Unfortunately, the apathy of the Sikh leaders did not let the Rehat Maryada become popular with the Sikh masses. This discussion is, therefore, intended to educate the Sikhs and to help them get rid of the slavery of the Brahmanical rituals. To make the booket more effective and informative, suggestions are invited for addition or deletion of any material to bring the teachings of Gurmat into lime-light for the guidance of the Western youth.

xn• • i Power of Brahmins I have aconsuming interest in castes withouthaving the slightest bit of prejudice for or against any of them. Whenever I am in a conference, seminar or a social function, I count how many of the most important belong to what castes. It has never been more than a matter of curiosity. But one conclusion is inevitable: Whatever be the sphere of curiosity-literary, scientific, bureaucratic or whatever - the Brahmin remains the top dog. It may be ethnic, or it may be the result of several generations of learning of which they held the monopoly till the last century, or both combined. Before I give details, we should bear in mind that Brahmins form no more than 3.5% of the population of our country. My statistics come from a pen friend, Brother Stanny, of St. Anne's Church of Dhule in . He has compiled figures of different castes in government employment during British rule in 1935 and as they were 35 years after Independence in 1982. During British rule, the largest proportion of government jobs (40%) were held by Kayasthas. Today their figure has dropped to 7%. Next came the Muslims who were given special privileges by the British. They had 35% jobs in 1953, in free India their representation has dropped to 3.5%. Christians likewise favoured by the English had 15%; their figure has dropped to 1 %. Scheduled Castes, tribes and backward classes, who had hardly any government jobs, have achieved a representation of 9% but the most striking contrast is in the employment of Brahmins. Under the British they had 3% fractionally less that the proportion of their population; today they hold as much as 70% of government jobs. I presume the figure refers only to gazetted posts. In the senior echelons of the civil service from the rank of deputy secretaries upwards, out of 500 there are 310 Brahmins, i.e. 63% of the 26 state chief secretaries, 19 are Brahmins; of the 27 Governors and Lt. Governors 13 are Brahmins; of the 16 Supreme Court judges, 9 are Brahmins; of the 330 judges of the High Courts, 166 are Brahmins; of 140 ambassadors, 58 are Brahmins; of 98 vice-chancellors 50 are Brahmins; of 438 district magistrates, 250 are Brahmins; of the total of 3,300 IAS officers, 2,376 are Brahmins. They do equally well in electoral posts; of the 530 Lok Sabha members, 190 are Brahmins, of 244 in the Rajya Sabha, 89 are Brahmins. These statistics clearly prove that this 3.5% of Brahmin community of India holds between 36 to 63% of all the plum jobs available in the country. How this has come about I do not know. But I can scarcely believe that it is entirely due to the Brahmin's higher I.Q.

(Khushwant Singh) xiv SIKHTSM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

INTRODUCTION

The Khalsa, the army of God for protection of human rights of the weak and the poor, was formally founded in 1699. This was the climax of the revolution initiated by Guru Nanak Dev (1469 - 1539) to protect innocent and helpless people from the slavery of religious and political leaders. The mission assigned to Guru Nanak by God is men­ tioned by Bhai Gurdas, the scriber of the Guru Granth Sahib. He writes: The evil infected society the day it was divided into superior and inferior castes. Evil grew in volume and in strength when society was split into mutually hating different sects and religions i.e. Hindus, Muslims, Yogis, Sanyasis, etc. The Brahmans and Muslim priests wasted time in futile arguments; one claimedRam alone can save people while the other believed Allah is the only Almighty. One advised people to take a dip in the holy Ganges to wash their sins while the other advised them to go to Mecca on Hajfor cleansing themselves. Both had forsaken the truth that God is the Creator, the Operator and the Destroyer.

xv SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

The Guru was sent by God to explain the Truth that all people are equal, being children of the same Father, the Creator. ?€\ ferfc H3IH fefo ^fa ^3?) W^H fy^ll.... ^T MA'dfa fflfrf W cfW yHHWII TH tot 3fa ^TfenF, yftr >ratT TOHS" ^Ott'AII v*r 1- Bhai Gurdas

The Guru himself described the situation of his time as thus: (i) W Hfa M3EH §3" II Guru Granth P.1288 (ii) op^t ff gfe >ra" yifen ^UHS; TJ^ 7ft»r ujrffe-n H^ft ^Tfe 3 TT^" >)?gil 31£ tTFFf oT tfgn Guru Granth P.662

(7) AjAzgs and their agents rule like bloody beasts, (ii) Judges and religious leaders ,who should have op­ posed the despotic rulers, have joined hands with them to suck the blood of the common man.

The Guru observed that the most powerful enemy of the masses is Brahmanism, the doctrine of division of society into four castes by birth to serve the interests of the Brahmans and their allies.

Ht feofT 3fr t&t oWT^tn ufg gtft fraiH ofH'tflll Guru Granth P.471

The Guru set himself to release people from their religious and political slavery. He told them that there is only one God, of course, with many names. All humanity has been created by Him as equal. People will be judged by their actions and not merely by the beliefs they hold.

xvi SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE Earlier, Buddhism rejected the philosophy of Vedas and Brahmanism. It preached human equality and provided the needed relief to the caste-ridden society for about 1000 years. Brahmans lay low till Shankaracharya during the 7th century A.D. came on the scene. He cunningly defeated Buddhists in religious debates and thus obtained political sup­ port to force them to give up their faith or leave the country. Any Buddhist, who did not leave India, was forced to become a Hindu or was murdered. All liberal movements, which originated in India, soon found their graveyard in Brahmanism. It is Sikhism which now is under its attack. With political authority in the hands of the Brahmans, they aim to economically weaken Sikhs or physically eliminate them. For the purpose of relig­ ious muddling, increased Brahmanism is being injected into the Sikh philosophy and the Sikh code of conduct (Rehat Maryada). The purpose is to keep Sikh masses ignorant of their great philosophy and not let them free themselves from the shackles of retrograde caste-system and idol- worship.Thereby, they want to slowly absorb Sikhs into Brahmanical system to make them its slaves. Under the Indian constitution, Sikhs are listed as a sect of Hindus. The Hindu Code Bill applies to all sects of Hindus and also to the Sikhs but not to the Muslims or the Christians living in India. This may, of course, be the last battle of Brahmanism against liberalism and humanity. Devices to assert the superiority of a race or of a caste exist or existed in almost all countries in many different forms. Color, caste or profession have been responsible for consider­ ing some members as second class humans. This is why,

xvii SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE today, all humanity is in trouble and is suffering from strife everywhere. In the Middle East and the West, rich people bought poor helpless persons as their slaves. In these cases, the relationship was that of a master and a servant on individual basis. Keeping not only the existing generation of the whole community but also their future generations to be social slaves under the caste system is unique to Brahmanism alone. The people, however, have now been awakened through education and have rejected the doctrine of considering human beings as low class or as high class just because of their birth, or worth. The modem philosophy is that it is the character as re­ vealed by the actions of a person which makes him good or bad. Goodness is not related to one's caste, intellect, physical features or wealth, all of which, quite often, have been misused to harass common people rather than help them. The final battle has already started and is in full swing all over the globe. Some people want to take away the basic human rights of the weaker sections of society, and force their own culture or beliefs on them or to make them subservient for economic exploitation. The weak want to assert their human rights as given by God, and have laid their lives at stake. They have decided to live as equal human beings or die instead and bring an end to the slavery along with them. It is heartening to read the proceedings of the World Conference of Religions for Peace in which they decided to stop the exploitation of helpless people by the people in power. In their meeting of 1979 at New Jersey, U.S.A., they observed: "Too often the names and practices of our relig­ ions have been associated with warfare and strife. Now we

xviii SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE must reverse this by: a) Breaking down the barriers of prejudice and hostility between religious communities and institutions. b) Confronting the powers of the world with the teach­ ings of our religions rather than conforming to them when they act contrary to the well being of humanity. c)Building inter-religious understanding in our local communities, particularly where prejudices run strong." This endorsement of human rights by the representa­ tives of the major world religions is going to encourage a lot and provide the necessary confidence to the weak and the deprived people for their struggle against Brahmanism. These representatives also confirmed their unequivocal support to the philosophy of Miri Piri, the unique Khalsa doctrine. It directs that the religious leaders, instead of joining hands with despotic rulers, should confront them with the principles of justice and equality, whenever they commit a crime against any section of humanity. This is a great morale booster for the Sikhs in their struggle to help people get rid of the Brahmani- cal yoke and the political slavery. Brahmanism, wrongly claimed to be Hinduism (Hin­ duism is not a faith but a collective name given to many faiths contradicting each other), is secretly and silently working to destroy the basic principles of Sikh philosophy or to change them to fit into Brahmanical thinking. Before discussing the influence of Brahmanism on the Sikh faith and the Sikhs, let us first know what Brahmanism is, and study how old liberal movements were modified to be absorbed into Brahmanism.

xix SINGLED OUT SIKH PASSENGERS BEING MASSSACRED BY ORGANIZED MOB. SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

CHAPTER I

BRAHMANISM: THE DESPOTIC RULER

Injustices done by the caste-system to a large section of people in India are too many to narrate. The agony of slavery through which the low-castes1 are passing in India, even today, can be understood only when one himself undergoes that treatment at the hands of the high castes or at least listens to the woes of the downtrodden from their own lips. One cannot comprehend the real feelings of the so called untouch­ ables, now called Harijans, just by reading about their fate. To quote one recent example, a minister, who hap­ pened to be born to the so-called low-caste parents inaugu­ rated the building of a Hindu religious place. After the inauguration the building was ceremoniously washed with

1 Because of the political power in the hands of the believers of Brahmanism, now Muslims and Sikhs are being tortured and even murdered with the help of army and police. Amnesty International Report on India 1987-1988

1 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE milk by Brahman priests to cleanse the desecration of the temple caused by the presence of a low-caste. Earlier, Mr. Jagjivan Ram, a senior minister in the cabinet of Mrs. Indra Gandhi, was publically insulted for being a low-caste. When Mr. Ram inaugurated a statue of Mahatma Gandhi, the high caste Hindus raised a hue and cry claiming that the statue had been defiled by the presence of a low-caste. They brought Ganga Jal2 to wash the statue to remove its pollution and sanctify it with great fanfare. This ceremony was well adver­ tised in the press to remind people that low-castes are untouch­ ables, even if they receive good education and occupy one of the highest offices in the country. Please note that this hap­ pened to a senior central government minister in India, claimed by Hindus to be the holy land where practicing untouchability is unconstitutional. With the authority of the ancient Brahmanical scrip­ tures, said to be the word of God but actually written by cunning Brahmans, the majority of the people were and even now are, treated as low class humans, sometimes worse than animals. Not to talk of permitting them to join any social or religious functions, even their shadow is not acceptable to a Brahman. A Brahman can be defiled not only by the touch or nearness of a low-caste but also by the sight of such a person. Satpatha Brahman classifies Shudras and dogs to­ gether and describes them as falsehood. Both are considered equal for their treatment, even their killing is equated, i.e., it

Water from the river Ganges, considered holy by Brahmans. It is heavily polluted with sewerage and industrial waste. The Government of India has recently sanctioned millions of rupees to clean it.

2 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE is no sin to kill a dog or a Shudra. Manu's code gives complete control of women to their husbands including their physical handling or even their total discarding. Moral code for a Brahman was different. If he was caught stealing, the King was to be punished because he failed to provide sufficient money to meet the needs of that Brah­ man, thus forcing him to steal. Further if a person is robbed by a Brahman, it is nothing less than a heavenly favor for the person robbed. On the other hand, a Shudra is not permitted to get rich lest he may feel like throwing away the yoke of the Brahmans. Can the modern thinkers, with all the scientific theories and technological advances available to them, sug­ gest to the Brahmans a "better" philosophy or a system of "superior" social justice to be delivered to the low-castes. In short, low-caste people were and are living a life of degradation and slavery worse than the one experienced by the Blacks in South Africa today. The government there, has been condemned by the people all over the world. No country, however, has raised any voice against India where a section of society is being treated worse than the slaves and criminals for such a long time.

A. Subtle and Sophisticated Tools employed by Brahmans

1. Avtar Theory

Vedas make no mention of Avtars at all. Avtar theory was coined later to facilitate linking of the mythological deities and popular historical personalities to those of the

3 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Vedic ones and thus assimilate them (Bhagvatism, Vaisnav- ism, Jainism, etc.) into Brahmanism. Popular heroes of the epics, , , etc., were described and worshipped as Avtars of Lord . has also been linked with Rama. The purpose is to preach that he was great because he was a Khatri and belonged to the lineage of Rama. This is an anti-Sikh thought but because of the Brahmanical influence, it is often preached from the Gurdwaras. Non-Vedic rituals, including the worship of idols, were adopted to catch the followers of the popular movements into the net of Brahmanism. This was to absorb them into Brahmanism and destroy their individuality and independ­ ence. One thing was, however, always assured that the Brah­ man was accepted as the Purohit (minister) for performing even the anti-Vedic rituals for the newly acquainted people.

2. Karma Theory

It lays down that sufferings (being born as a poor and/ or low-caste) in this life are the unavoidable * fruit' of the deeds done in the previous life. As the actions of the previous life cannot be undone in this life, one has to suffer their consequences. According to the Brahmans, there is, however, a silver lining to all these troubles. If one wants to enjoy the next life, one should perform good acts and give charity in this life. Charity can, of course, be given to, and through a Brahman only. In exchange for this, the Brahman reserves a seat for the donor in 'swarg' (heaven), where he will enjoy a pleasant life totally free from worries. This way the Brahmans fooled people, the rich and the

4 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE poor alike, to extract money from them. They assured them that if not in this life, the givers will have pleasures in the next life for having given donations to the Brahmans. The people are told that anything given to a Brahman in this life, gets multiplied a hundred times and is returned to the giver in the next life. Just think, who will not be tempted to benefit from such a high rate of interest and that too, to be given in the next life, where one cannot carry a penny from this life. Study the other side of the picture also and see how this theory justifies blood sucking of the common man by the Brahmans, immoral people and other antisocial elements. According to it, such people are living a comfortable life even while doing nothing but committing crimes and sins in this life because they did good deeds in their previous life. To silence any protests against such people, it is preached by Brahmans, that bad people will suffer later on, if not in this life, but surely in their next life. According to the principle of Ahinsa (Non-violence), preached by the Brahmans, it is sinful to kill or ill-treat any animal or even an insect. For fear of committing sins, people under the Brahman's influence are seen not even killing bugs. But the same Brahman approves torturing and killing of a 'Shudra' with impunity and without any sin because the Shudra earned torture and death as a result of bad deeds done in his previous life. This great standard of delivering justice is practiced only under the Brahmanical system.

5 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

3. Dharam Shastra

Injustice, cloaked as justice, is delivered by the Brah- mans under the doctrine of Varan Ashram Dharma as well. According to it, the prime duty (Dharam or Dharma) of a person is to perform the ritualistic responsibilities of his caste. One cannot ignore his Dharma (deny to do his caste duties) whatever his religious belief (Faith, Mat) may be. In other words one can choose his religion (Mat) but not his Dharma (caste duties). To confuse the modern thinkers, the Brahman often quotes references from his scriptures to prove that his religion permits equal opportunities to all. Such mention of equality and justice to all people in the ancient literature refers to religious opportunity but not to social equality. To a Brahman, it does not matter whether one is a Vedanti, Sanatni, Jain or anything else but what he insists is that one cannot change his caste duties. In other words, a low-caste and his coming generations will remain low-caste, whatever their religious belief. They have to do the dirty duties assigned to them by the Brahmans. It is this foundation on which Brahmanism is standing and which has to be shaken to get rid of its tight age- old yoke on non-Brahmans particularly the low-caste people. Not doing one's caste duty (Dharma) is a sin which cannot be excused. Brahmans' sins are, however, washed if he happens to go around a temple three times even while he is attempting to chase a dog away. Albracht Weber has com­ mented on this unique justice by observing, "It is certainly astonishing, how with a general forgiveness of sins that could be so easily earned, a model life can still exist among Hindus."

6 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Some men were strong enough and watchful enough to tear off that net and feel liberated. Bhagat is one such person whose hymns are included in the Guru Granth Sahib (the Sikh Holy Scripture). How strongly he felt about the in­ justices done to the low-castes and the insults heaped on them can be judged from his hymns.3 The Mauryas, who were rulers, but non-Brahmans, had to adopt Buddhism to free themselves from the slavery of the Brahmans and the stigma of being low-caste. Dr. Ambedkar, the father of the Indian Constitution, wanted to become a Sikh to remove his low-caste label but was opposed by the so-called

3 "O Brahman, you claim superiority because of your birth. Then why were you born from the mother's womb as all of us are born? You should have come by some other way. Agreed, we are low- caste because blood flows in our veins. But O Brahman, is there milk flowing in your veins to prove that you belong to a superior caste?" Guru Granth P. 324 Bhagat goes to the extent of chiding him humorously that a Brahman is actually not equal to a low- caste. The logic adopted is very interesting and unique. Agreed, we are the weavers, always working with the thread. Lo! the thread (Janju) is actually worn by you (not by us being low -caste weavers). Yes, you are the reader of the holy scriptures. Lo! God lives in our hearts(not in your heart because you are proud of your high caste and you hale His people, the low -caste born persons). Guru Granth P. 482 Further, Kabir says "Those who love God, don't care for the Brahman at all. Yes, Brahman is the Guru but only of the naive people. He wastes his life remaining entangled in four Vedas." Guru Garanth P. 1377 Like Kabir, other Bhagats, too, very strongly rejected the superi­ ority or inferiority of a person by birth. They saw the reflection of the same God in every human being.

7 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi wanted him to become anything but a Sikh. Opposed by the bogus Mahatma, Dr. Ambedkar adopted Buddhism and died as a Buddhist.

B. Brahmans, Peace Loving or Violent ?

Brahmans claim that Hinduism has grown over the ages to be a universal religion and that they are peace loving people. This statement is made to conceal the reality that they infected the casteless faiths with casteism to bring them under the yoke of Brahmanism as will be discussed later. This is smartly mentioned by Brahmans as a historical proof that they did not hate peace loving people even if they were of different faiths. When the continuous hatred in the minds of the north Indian Hindus for the Muslims is mentioned, they have a very shrewd explanation for that. They say that their dislike for the Mus­ lims is not because of their faith but because of the cruelties committed by the Muslim rulers over a long time. Agreed, the Muslims oppressed and suppressed the Hindus causing them to nurse a strong hatred for them genera­ tion after generation. But look! The British, more recendy, killed thousands of Hindus to take over India and many more during the 1857 rebellion. Further they rained bullets on peaceful people gathered at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar as late as 1919. We see no hatred for the British today in the minds of the Hindus in India. Why hate Muslims only who tortured Hindus centuries ago and not the British who killed them more recently? The explanation given above by the Hindus actually

8 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE has been cooked up to cover, rather to justify the disrespect and hatred for the Muslims. It does not stand the test when the facts are put together. If Brahmanism, as we are told to believe, has great tolerance to let people profess other faiths, then why were Buddhists killed or hunted out of India by the trident- carrying Hindu youths? Buddhists strictly followed Ahinsa (Non-violence) and were highly peace loving people. Further, Buddhism was not a foreign faith. It took birth in India, and was practiced for centuries without the sword, repression, or even the use of any harsh words by the Buddhist monks. More recently, in 1986, when the Pope visited India, his effigy was burnt because his mission was perceived as a conspiracy to liberate the low-caste from the slavery of the high-castes. This behavior of the chauvinistic Hindus re­ vealed the true color of Brahmanism, i.e., highly intolerant towards any thought which is liberal and preaches human equality. Peaceful settlement of non-Hindus in the south took place only because the settlers accepted to respect the caste system more strictly than even the Hindus. As mentioned earlier, it is not the Mat (Faith) which is objected to by the Brahmans but it is the challenge to their caste system which they cannot tolerate. The Muslims in the north earned their hatred and were given the title of 'Malechh' (dirty foreigners) only because they, then being the rulers, did not yield to the caste system imposed by the Brahmans. Muslims have even more to say on this. Downfall of the started the day Akbar permitted Brah- manical influence not only in his court by inducting Hindu ministers but also in his harem by marrying Hindu women.

9 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Hindu queens accepted Brahman as their Purohit (priest) which started the downfall of the great kingdom of Islam in India. Mullahs (Muslim priests) were displeased, when Akbar once performed Hindu rituals in his palace to please his Hindu queen. The Emperor is said to have murdered one of the highest Muslim priests to take revenge on him because he had disapproved the performing of Hindu rituals by the Emperor. The degree of hostility of Brahmans towards other faiths and sects depended, not upon their theological beliefs but on how big a threat they were to the caste system. Buddhism and Jainism were both new doctrines. Whereas the followers of Buddhism were murdered or forced to leave India, the followers of the latter faith suffered no or little persecution at the hands of the Brahmans. While Buddhists totally rejected casteism, Jains did not resist the forcing of the caste duties (Dharma) on the people. The flexibility of Jainism helped the Jains to live peacefully without facing any violence but without coming out with a distinct identity. This facilitated Jainism to slowly drown in the sea of Hinduism. The rigidity of Buddhism against caste theory helped them to attract many scholars and masses wishing to get rid of their low-caste stigma. However, it also forced them to face violent attacks by the Brahmans resulting in the extinction of Buddhists from India. Today Buddhism is accepted as a world faith and Jainism lays dead in the Brahmanical rituals. To permanently stall the re-emergence of genuine Buddhism in India, Buddha has been admitted into the long list of Hindu Avtars4.

4 Guru Gobind Singh, the founder of the Khalsa, has also been mentioned by a few Sikh writers to be a disciple of the Devi who gave the

10 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Similarly Vaishnavism came into limelight pushing caste-op­ posing Saivaism into the dark corner. The former was liberal enough to agree to the Brahmans being the Purohits (priests). All ancient and later literature was written by the Brahmans to promote their caste theory. Whenever any liberal thoughts emerged, their scriptures were modified to promote and sanctify the caste system or at least approve it. Brahmans had the monopoly on teaching and learning. They completely controlled the educational system. Before a scripture was permitted to reach the masses, it had to be accepted by the Brahman priests. The text was changed to enable them to extract money for performing meaningless and hollow rituals. Non-submission to this Brahmanical philosophy by any movement invited the worst kind of violence from them to destroy that movement. The fate of some important move­ ments which challenged Brahmanism and attempted to get rid of its yoke, is mentioned in the following pages. miraculous , the one used for making Amrit by the Guru. Guru Granth Sahib is being cleverly preached as the fifth Veda, extract of Vedas, Veda of the Kaly ug etc. When these thoughts, preached day in and day out, find a firm root in the Sikh psyche, then who can stop the idols of the Devi from being installed in the Gurdwaras and worshipped by the Sikhs. This is not a farfetched idea. Let the Sikhs not close their eyes to the growing effect of these thoughts in the Sikh masses and Sikh preachers. Gurus' pictures and their statues (some in glass enclosures with lights), of course, all imaginary, have occupied a very respectable and venerable place in Sikh homes and even in a few Gurdwaras. In some deras even "Bhog" ritual is performed. Once orders were issued by the Commanding Officer at the Air Force Colony, Delhi Cantonement, that pictures of Hindu gods should be displayed on walls in the Gurdwara there. The only step left to be taken to assimilate the Sikh philosophy, hence Sikhism, is to place the statues of the Gurus in the Gurdwaras and pack the Guru Granth Sahib in locked safes so that Gurbani becomes as much unknown as the Vedas.

11 ART BY JOHN SPf

DESTRUCTION OF SIKH LIVES AND PROPERTY FOLLOWING ASSASSINATION OF INDIRA GANDHI IN 1984 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

CHAPTER H.

CHALLENGES TO BRAHMANISM

In this chapter we will discuss the fate of the efforts made by different faiths to get out of the net of Brahmanism.

A. Indigenous Efforts

1. Upnisads and Puranas

The earliest challenge to the supremacy of the Brah­ mans was from the Khatryas who fought wars at great risk but were rated second to the Brahmans. A Khatri, even when a king, had to obey and respect a Brahman as superior to himself. He could be installed a king only by a Brahman. A king had to do what the Brahman wanted him to do. Upnisads marked the ideological break from the Vedic religion of sacrifice, mantras and rituals. They are said to be

13 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE authored by Khatryas or hermits who were not connected with the priestly class. The Upnisadic philosophy preached that the value of a person depended not on his caste or the rituals he performed, but on the sincerity of love for God. Considering it to be a likely challenge in future to their superior status, Brahmans adulterated this thought before it could reach the masses. The Upnisads were modified to preach what the original text actually challenged. Their current versions con­ tain nothing but vedic mantras and rituals or something which is irrelevant to the Upnisadic thought. The Puranas were re­ written at different times to endorse or at least not to contradict the Brahmanical thought. The proof of this is that the Puranas written earlier contain names of and references to those scriptures written much later.

2. Buddhism and Jainism

Buddhism ruled India politically and religiously till the seventh century. Brahmanism remained dormant during this period. When the opportune time came, Shankaracharya5

5 "The title for the leadership of the proponents of Brahmanism." Recently according to the press reports, in 1987, one young girl was motivated (rather forced) to commit Sati, i.e. burning alive of a widow on the pyre of her husband. This custom was prohibited by the Sikh Gurus and later on Anti-Sati Law was passed by the British Government. The law is still in force in India. The Brahmans remained mum for three centuries and now suddenly, judging that the political climate is favourable to them, came out with a strong protest against Anti-Sati Law. The Shankaracharya declared that the government has interfered with the Hindu religion by agreeing to hold an enquiry into the case of performing Sati by a Hindu widow. To please Hindus, the Government has restricted the social, political and religious rights of the Sikhs, Muslims and low-castes. State

14 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE misled the political rulers by fixing religious debates with Buddhist monks and cunningly declaring himself the winner. After winning the debates, he got orders passed by the gov­ ernment that Buddhists should either give up their faith or leave the country. Alternatively, the army of Shiva, the trident-carrying Hindu youths, would come into action. Young men were told to dip into Ganga (River Ganges) and come out naked, Ganga Mai (Mother Ganges) was their cover and protector. They were provided with Trisul (The Trident arm held by Shiva, the God of Death) as their identity and a symbol of their duty. They were let loose in gangs, with the authority of god Shiva, to go to the houses of the Buddhists to rape their women, loot their property or do anything else to them. Their duty was to convert the Buddhists, hound them out of the country or kill them. The very sight of these roaming bands of naked youth frightened and scared the Buddhists. Most of them left the country or changed their faith. No figures are available as to how many were killed and how many left India terrorism against the Sikhs, including the army attack on the in 1984, and the genocide of the Sikhs in November 1985 after the murder of Indira Gandhi, won the maximum votes for Rajiv Gandhi, the kind never obtained by his mother Indira Gandhi or his grandfather, Nehru, during their hey days. Taking over control of centuries old Muslim mosques by Hindu mobs with the tacit support of the law and justice departments of the government, is a clear signal which way the government is moving. Killing of about 1000 Muslims every year in communalriots and torturing of low- castes all over India, is a proof that the tide of Brahmanism is again on the rise to replace the "Ghost" of secularism preached by Gandhi and Nehru to obtain votes during the British rule. Brahmans know too well that the present government is caught well in their grip. For fear of losing votes, the government cannot dare disregard Hindu stand on religious issues, hence the revival of inhuman burning of widows by the Brahmans to obtain their ornaments and other gifts when committing them to Sati.

15 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE to settle in the neighboring countries. But one fact is known that no Buddhist was left alive in India. This is how Buddhism spread in other Asian countries but could not survive in India, the land of its origin. The Buddhism now followed and preached in India is of imported brand. It is surprising and also frustrating to the liberal think­ ers that many Buddhists of today prove authenticity of their scriptures and thoughts by tracing their origin to the ancient Brahmanical literature which Budha had rejected. LordBudha preached overcoming ego to attain peace and solace rather than reading mantras and performing vedic rituals. How unfortunate it is that many Sikh writers and preachers fall victim to the same craze. They run to the Brahmanical ancient literature to prove the greatness and genuineness of Sikh philosophy and Sikh Rehat (Code of Conduct). Whenever they want to emphasize some point or need to prove that whatever the Gurus said was right, they quote with pride that the same idea is mentioned in the Vedas, Puranas, Geeta, etc. In other words, they have a faith, and want us to believe the same, that whatever is mentioned in the Vedas, written by cunning Brahmans, is true and final because they are the words of God. One example needs to be men­ tioned here. Kendri Singh Sabha, founded in 1973 to preach genu­ ine Sikh principles, published a book 'Kesh Philosophy' to justify the keeping of uncut hair by Sikhs. The book is filled with quotations from ancient literature (mosdy mythologi­ cal), including Vedas, which were all totally rejected by Gurmat.

16 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

ife" KB1" # feftf ^>f II ^fe ~$& UK ofg" 7> Eft**1 II Guru Granth P. 1159 The naive reader draws a wrong conclusion from this. He thinks that keeping long hair is the right practice, not only because the Guru ordered it, but also because ancient literature tells that uncut hair makes a man brave, holy, and healthy. The question arises whether the Sikh philosophy is weak or incomplete, that it has to depend upon Brahmanical literature for answering such simple enquiries? It is not only surprising but also disappointing that most of the contributors to that book, did not find the required strength and logic in the orders of the Guru but had to quote mythological literature (which is quite self contradictory and is rejected by modern man) to prove that the Guru was right. This trend is highly dangerous and can lead to the erosion of the Sikh faith and must be checked forcefully. Many Sikh writings and Gurd- waras are heavily infected with Brahmanism as will be dis­ cussed later. The very purpose of this booklet is to point out Brahmamical incursions on Sikhism and Sikh practices.

3. Bhagvat Geeta

Bhagvatism is alien to old Brahmanism. Hindu gods are said to have found it superior than all the four Vedas put together. However, Shankaracharya declared Bhagvat Geeta to be anti-Vedic. Later on, the text of Bhagvat Geeta was modified so that it could be preached that the philosophy of Geeta was based on the Vedic principles. The modifications were made to use its (Geeta's) popularity to fight Buddhism, which rejects the caste system. According to Geeta, there is

17 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE repeated stress on Dharma, i.e,. doing the duties of one' s caste. Mahabharta mentions that Parjapati created Shudras as the slaves of the other castes. Lord Krishna is mentioned to have said, "It is a sin to leave the duties of one's caste." Thus even the future generations of the low castes cannot claim equal human rights. They have to ever remain the slaves of the high caste. The same Lord, however, observed at another place that good people are those who remember God and bad people (irrespective of their caste) are those who forget God. Such contradictory statements, one endorsing the caste sys­ tem and the other denigrating it, are considered internal proof of the changes made in the original text by the Brahmans.

4. Mystics, Sidhs, Yogis, Holy men

Mystics, Sidhs, Yogis and other holy men who did not believe in caste system, but they did not stand firmly against it. They were, therefore, not opposed by the Brahmans. Rather, they were considered holy people because they sacri­ ficed their worldly life, gave up all comforts of home and suffered in forests in love of God. Such individuals or groups of people did not protest against casteism and therefore were not a challenge to the hegemony of the Brahmans. Hence Brahmans themselves preached the greatness of such mendi­ cants and thereby indirectly strengthened the thought that common people were inferior persons. By supporting the su­ periority of such home-deserters (Yogis, Naths, Sidhs) over the people earning their livelihood by the sweat of their brow, Brahmans felt more secure and justified to do nothing but get every comfort of life.

18 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Sikh Gurus, however, did not approve of such a life or consider such people superior to those leading a family life and earning their livelihood through honest means. There is a reference in Gurbani to a very interesting dialogue between Guru Nanak and Sidhs living deep in the Himalayas at places extremely difficult and dangerous to reach. When Sidhs saw Guru Nanak there, they asked him in surprise, "Lo! How have you come here ? Do you possess miracles ?" Guru Nanak replied, "Greatest miracle is the Name of God which I love. I possess no other miracle." When the Sidhs asked the condition of the people living below in the plains, Guru Nanak reminded them of their irresponsible and selfish behaviour by telling them, "People wonder where have the Sidhs gone? Whom should they ap­ proach for guidance ? You left them to their own fate with the excuse of meditating on God. You cheat those naive people. You go there only to beg food and money from them without giving any guidance or religious advice to them." The Sidhs did not believe in the caste system. However they did not preach against it and nor did they do anything to awaken the people to get rid of that unholy thought. Brah- mans, therefore, did not utter a single word against such 'blood suckers' of society, rather, they endorsed their actions and respected them.

B. Non-Indian Movements

Islam and Christianity both consider all believers to be equal. All members of the faith sit together and eat together without discrimination due to the original caste or religion of the convert. These faiths (Islam and Christianity) were not

19 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE allowed to have a foot-hold in India, unless of course, both of them respected the caste system. This will not surprise those who have lived in the Brahmanical environment. Muslims in southern India were obliged to recognize two major castes - Ashrafs and Ajlafs or commoners. Ashrafs included Muslims of foreign origin, hence genuine, and con­ verts from high-caste Hindus. Ajlafs consisted of Muslims originally belonging to the low-caste or ordinary people. An Ashraf did not consider an Ajlaf a Muslim of equal status (an anti-Islamic thought), hence, did not permit his daughter to marry an Ajlaf, even when he was a person of good character. The early Christian immigrants, too, were forced to bow to this caste system. Some of the churches in southern India were designed to provide naves (separate sections) for the low-caste Christians because the upper castes would not sit with them on the same benches. All would sing the same hymns and listen to the same sermon, of course, sitting in their own caste-allotted compartment (an act against Christian philosophy) in the church. Caste pride was so strongly in­ grained in the mind that the Christian converts were more vocal about their caste than even the high caste Hindus. They did so, lest they lose their higher social status after embracing Christianity. Even when the British ruled India, they could do nothing to the caste system. The low- caste converts to Chris­ tianity, instead of getting rid of their stigma because of the social and economic patronage provided by the British, 'pol­ luted' the White man. Along with the low-caste Indian Chris­ tians, they (White Christians) were also addressed as Chuhras - the scavengers, menial job workers. Chuhras are the un­ touchables of the inferior-most status in India. During the late

20 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE thirties of this century, the author himself heard people men­ tioning British medical doctors of the Miss Brown Hospital (Christian Medical College, Ludhiana, Punjab, India) as Chuhras. They accepted the low caste Christian converts as equals in churches, hospitals and public functions. The Brah- mans preached that the White Christians by the touch of Chuhras have also become Chuhras. After receiving treat­ ment in the hospital, even a middle caste person used to undergo a ritual of cleansing himself. The touch of the White doctor was supposed to have polluted the patient. Brahmans thus won the battle by forcing the Hindu caste system on both Muslims and Christians in a subtle way. The assertion that people can choose their religious philoso­ phy (Mat), but cannot give up their Dharma (caste duty), had the upper hand both on local and foreign thoughts. The caste system is so strongly stressed and valued in the Brahmanical environment that no religious movement including the Sikh faith6 could protect itself from its impact.

6Sanatni Sikhs believe Guru Nanak as Kalyug Avtar and Vedas as Sikh literature. Baba Khem Singh Bedi, their leader, claimed himself to be a holy man for being a Bedi. The holiness of a person because of his caste, of course, is against the tenets of Gurbani and the Sikh faith. Khem Singh used to wear Janju thread, something totally rejected by Guru Nanak himself. The fact is that Sanatni Sikhs under the influence of the Brah­ mans, had taken the statues to the Parkarma of the Golden Temple. If it had not been for the orders in 1905 of Mr. King, the Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar, to remove them form the complex, they would have been there by now, and installed in the sanctum in place of the Guru Granth Sahib. Khalsa ji, be vigilant. The imaginary guru pictures and statues are there again in the complex waiting for an opportunity to enter the sanctum. The first step has already been taken - the Gurdwara committee is displaying them and popularizing them. The second step is to ceremoniously install them in the sanctum there and remove the Guru Granth Sahib to the locked rooms as a sacred relic of the Gurus, not to be touched or "defiled" by

21 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMAN1CAL SIEGE

Such erosion of the faith could not take place without persis­ tent and well-planned efforts by the Brahmans. The routine change in human values by the passage of time cannot be held responsible for such reactions to the liberal movements on the Indian soil.

human hands. Wrapped respectfully in valuable clothes (rumallas) it will be exhibited for "darshans" only on special days along with other relics. That would be the day when Brahmanism blacks out its strongest enemy, Sikhism. The order of the Guru "Puja Akal Ki" will be completely replaced by'Tooja Pather (stone) Ki"

22 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

CHAPTER HI

STIFLING AND SUPPRESSING THE SIKH REVOLT

Let us, now, discuss the response and reactions of Brah- manism to the founding of Sikhism. How a simple yet mis­ chievous suggestion of Purohits (priests) kept the large com­ munity of hill people away from the light of the Sikh faith needs to be told first. They did not let the down-trodden Shivalik Hill people breathe free air as equal human beings by throwing away the old Brahmanical yoke. When the Mughal Governor of Kashmir came in 1689 to forcibly collect revenues from the Hill Rajas, they had no choice but to request Guru Gobind Singh for help against this aggression. The Guru agreed and went into the battlefield. After the defeat of the Governor, the Hill Rajas extended a royal welcome to the Guru at Rawalsar, a place known for its beauty and hot water springs in the Kulu valley. They ex­ pressed their desire to become his disciples. In this move,

23 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Brahmans saw the doom of their ancestral priesthood. They torpedoed it by telling the Rajas: You may become the disciples of the Guru because he too is a high caste Khatri. But before becoming his Sikhs, please see that the Guru discards all his low caste disciples. If Khatris sit with the low caste, their own Dharma will be polluted and their strength as brave warriors will be gone.

The Rajas informed the Guru accordingly and requested him to reject his low caste companions so that they could agree to become his disciples. With brave Khatris as his disciples, they said, the Guru would no more need the low caste disciples for his mission. The Guru, in unmistakable words, told them that the purpose of his life was to help the down-trodden, the so called low castes. He had decided to free their minds and bodies from the slavery of the Brahmans and the despotic rulers. He would create a body of people who will treat all humans as equals and who will worship truth and nothing else. This incident took place about a decade before the formal ceremony of the founding of the Khalsa in 1699. Establishment of the Sikh center in 1665 at Anandpur near the hill kingdoms should have made the Rajas feel protected but the Purohits (Brahman priests) misled them and planted a false fear of Sikhs in their minds. They warned the Rajas of the impending danger and instigated them to throw the Guru out of Anandpur, lest, he becomes strong enough to conquer them all. The army soldiers started harassing the Sikhs and even violently attacking them on minor pretexts. The Sikhs knew how to defend themselves. Every attack by the soldiers re­ sulted in their own defeat and the loss of many lives at the

24 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

hands of the defending Sikhs7 The outcome of these clashes created a general ill-feeling about the Sikhs in the minds of the hill people. This is what the Brahmans were aiming for. They wanted to keep the influence of the Sikh thought away from the hill people who were their slaves for generations. Regarding the misdeeds of the Hindu Rajas, committed on the advice of their Purohits, to tease and harass the Sikhs and kill their Guru, Mr. Daulat Rai Arya commented, about a century ago, in his book on the life of Guru Gobind Singh as below: "Ah! Hindu Nation, who can be more ungrateful than you? Who can be more unthankful than you? Who other than you, can be a greater savage and more inhuman to torture and oppress a true patriot? For you, Guru Gobind Singh was planning to sacrifice

7To reduce tension between the people of Bilaspur and the Sikhs, the Guru took advantage of the invitation of a distant raja, the ruler of Sirmur, and left Anandpur. In Sirmur he stayed on the banks of the river Jamuna at a place which became know as Paonta. The smart Brahmans in pursuit of the aim to finish the Guru, continued to nurse enmity for him. In 1688, some Rajas had gathered for a marriage ceremony in a nearby town located on the opposite side of the river Jamuna. They were instigated to join together and attack the Guru. The resulting battle of Bhangani saw many generals of the army and a couple of rjas dead. There were severe Sikh losses as well, but they came out victorious. After the battle, the Guru returned to Anandpur. About a year after that, the Rajas had to face the army of the Governor of Kashmir or agree to pay tribute to him. The Purohit advised the rajas to apologize before the Guru for attacking him at Bhangani and to request for his help. They thought the brave Muslim army would defeat the Sikhs. If they didn't succeed in killing the Guru, at least they would destroy the image of the Sikhs as great fighters. The Mughal army fought and lost the battle, and the Sikhs added another victory to their credit. The mischie­ vous plans of the Brahmans misfired. However, at the Rawalsar meeting, they successfully employed caste-ego of the Rajputs and Khatris to keep them away from the Guru and Sikhlsm.

25 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMAN1CAL SIEGE everything, even his life. He was devoted and committed to take you out of disgrace and raise your status to the skies. You, in spite of all this, built a front against him, based on your selfishness, hatred and jealousy. Because of this you continue to suffer under the yoke of slavery." And that is not all that the Brahmans did to oppose and suppress the Sikh faith. It is wrong to think that the anti-Sikh activity started in 1984 when Indra Gandhi drove tanks into the Golden Temple. Neither was the killing of the 13 Sikhs at Amritsarin 1978 the first attack on them in Punjab. Thedenial of the Punjabi speaking state was not the first discrimination to hurt the Sikhs after the Brahmans came to power in India. Actually it started during the life of Guru Nanak himself, but remained dormant. It surfaced during the time of the second Guru when a yogi at Khadur Sahib tried to cheat and mislead the Sikhs away from the Guru. The third Guru organized the Sikhs into a community with its roots established all over the north-west India. There were 22 formal centers for preaching Sikh faith. A Tapa started an anti-Sikh movement and criticized the Sikh institution of Sangat and Pangat. Sikhs visiting the Guru were harassed and teased by his hired agents. The Guru exposed this greedy person to protect the masses from his propaganda. The Tapa organized a deputation against the Guru to lodge a complaint with the rulers, but he badly failed in keeping the people away from the Guru. Thus, the attacks on the Sikhs have been going on since the faith was founded by Guru Nanak. The use of political power by the Brahman-controlled government of India to economically weaken Sikhs, to physically kill them and to lower their image all over the world is a topic for

26 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE another book. How the Brahmanical influences had been and are work­ ing today to destroy the Sikh faith are discussed below:

A. Tampering with the Literature and History of the Sikhs

1. Fabricated Sakhis

a) Tampering with the literature and history of the Sikhs was done by all those who wanted to mislead the Sikhs. Let us first take the most recent example of a very popular yet fabricated sakhi written by the British.

When Guru Teg Bahadur was imprisoned in Delhi, he used to go to the houses of the disciples because of his super­ natural powers. One day the Guru washed his hair and went up on the roof of the Kotwali (police-station) to dry his hair. He was spotted by the watchman on duty and charged with the crime of looking at Begums (queens) in the Red Fort. The Guru replied that he had gone up to look for his topi-wala (hat wearing) Sikhs, who, after crossing the sea, were coming to Delhi to rule India. The Mughals had committed enough crimes to destroy their dynastic rule.8 Through this sakhi, the British were able to make the Sikhs believe that they were ruling India because the Guru

8 There are many such fake sakhis written by Brahmans and the British to mislead the Sikhs.

27 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE wished so. Any opposition to their rule will be an opposition to the wishes of the Guru. Miracles were attributed to the Guru so that the whole sakhi becomes acceptable and popular with the Sikhs. Telling of this sakhi during the British rule, can be under­ stood because somebody might be interested in pleasing them. But why it is being told even now, particularly by the Sikh preachers, does not make sense. It merely reveals the intellect of such preachers. The miracle part of the sakhi is so overwhelmingly stressed that the listeners forget to ask the obvious question. How could the Guru be charged for looking at the Begums beyond those high walls of the Red Fort, when it is not possible to identify a man even outside the Red Fort from that distance?

b) In the Bachittar Natak, it is written that , on his way to the eastern states of India, visited the Hindu places of worship to obtain the benefit of bathing there:

>ra to yra oftafo VCPOT Wfo-Wfc $ 3te <5WII Bachittar Natak-VII-1 By taking full advantage of this statement, the Granthi Sahib of the Gurdwara at Varanasi, standing near the well in the compound, narrated to the visitors the following anti-Sikh Sakhi:

One day when the Guru took off his clothes to take bath, one of his disciples reminded the Guru, "It is a sacred Sankrantday, you were to take a dip in the holy Ganga river." The Guru responded, "You are right. We should have gone to

28 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE the sacred Ganga, however, I have already removed my clothes. But it does not matter. I can tell the Ganga river to come to us". Lo! The water in the Ganga started rising and reached the Guru* sfeet. People got scared and began to run from there for fear of drowning. The Guru assured them, "You should not worry, rather be obliged to Ganga. Today it is Sankrant. The Ganga has come to us so that we can take a holy dip without going to it. Don't delay, be quick and do Ashnan (have a dip) before it goes to its original level." The river Ganga as a respect to the Guru, left its sacred water in the well for his disciples before it receded to its original level.

After telling this Sakhi, the Granthi Sahib offered each of them a handful of water (Ganga Jal) from that well. The Granthi expected some money in return for the 'valuable gift' which was to wash the sins of the visitors and make them holy. The water of the shallow well there is virtually sold to the simple-minded Sikh visitors. This is pure Brahmanism, incorporated in the Sikh litera­ ture by shrewd people with ulterior motives for bluffing the Sikhs. Alas! This is preached to the naive credulous Sikhs not by Brahmans but by the Sikh preachers. Their main aim is to make a living rather than understand the Sikh faith and be proud as a Sikh. It could be likened to feeding sugar continuously to a diabetic patient. It tastes sweet but kills the body. A vigilant Sikh asked the Granthi Sahib, "77ze Ganga obeyed the Guru. Why should not the Sikhs also obey the

29 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Guru? We should read Gurbani and become Guru's Sikhs rather than becoming Ganga Bhagats." The Granthi Sahib was visibly upset probably because these remarks had ex­ posed the hoax he was playing on the visitors to the Gurdwara.

2. Dilution of the Sikh philosophy

Every effort has been made by the Brahmans to keep the Sikhs ignorant of their unique philosophy; Atma Granth Wich, Deh Panth Wich, i.e,. Soul in the Granth and Body in the Panth.

>>fW 3fe t%^, tt tfs 1^11 A Common Phrase It means that Guru Khalsa Panth (corporate body of the Khalsa) is the body of the Guru and Guru Granth is the soul of the Guru. In other word, Granth-Panth jointly are the everlast­ ing Guru of the Sikhs. To explain it in modern terminology, the nearest statement which may be made is that Guru Granth is the constitution and Khalsa Panth is the parliament of the Sikh community. In unison, they provide the directions to the Sikhs to achieve the religious goal of their lives and serve society. Unfortunately, many naive Sikhs and some Sikh-looking 'saints' have been misguided by the prevailing Brahmanical influence all around. They are, of course, unknowingly prac­ ticing and preaching many rituals against this philosophy. Here are a few examples: a) Khalsa used to sing some important rhymes to remind them of the basic and unique principles of their faith and the goal of their life e.g.

30 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

m w&w MIOT ymz m oft $u\\ ff fotf H fe^ ^, UFT ffe >T £cTI24 II Rehat Nama Bhal Prahlad Singh This was reworded during the British Raj. Giani Gian Singh, a famous Sikh writer, has given the following rhymes in his book (Panth Parkash) on the life of the Gurus.

F ^ f fetf ^T tfff H9F ft OTII Panth Parkash 71-91 The slight modification of replacing 'Khalsa' with the word 'Granth' changed the whole context. The original stress was that Guru Khalsa Panth is the Guru-in-body-form (body of the Guru) forever. The change in the core word of the rhyme lowered the status of the Khalsa from the Khalsa as Guru to the Khalsa as an organization of the Sikhs. The revised version was popularized to the extent that the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, Amritsar approved not the original but the revised version for singing it after the daily prayer in the Gurdwara. The three original rhymes are to remind the Sikhs of the Guru Granth, Guru Panth and Raj of the Panth. To further dilute the strength of even the revised rhymes and to confuse the philosophy of 'Soul in Granth, Body in Panth', more rhymes were later added to the original three rhymes. Additional rhymes such as:

(t) ^'fddjd ?m OTFT t ^f, H §3t Wll H Hair era" H^F ma w Od'd^ u^n (ll) *& W ct U^ ft oR5gft H5" TftHII H UH3t Bfem1 oft Jp dttdflUd HdkflHH

31 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMAN1CAL SIEGE continue to be sung in many Gurdwaras in total disregard to the practice followed at the Akal Takhat. b) These modified wordings (Granth is the physical body of the Guru) had another highly negative side effect on the Sikh Rehat as well. It helped the so-called Sanatni Sikhs to in­ troduce and popularize an anti-Sikh practice of sanctifying food by 'feeding' it to the Guru Granth Sahib before distrib­ uting it to the Sangat. 'Feeding' of to the Guru by touching it with Kirpan, before it is served to the Sangat, can be seen all over America. No amount of logic and explanation of Sikh principles can convince them to give up this practice of getting the langar 'sanctified' by the Kirpan. The followers of such anti-Sikh practices get stuck with the thought that if they don't do that, it could be an omission and hence a sin. On the other hand, they argue practicing the ritual does no harm to them or the food, rather it reminds them of the Guru and also God. Hence the practice continues. In some Gurdwaras, even the approved practice of distrib­ uting Parsad first to the five Sikhs and then serving it to the Bhai Sahib (the minister of the Guru) attending the Guru Granth Sahib has been changed. Parsad is first 'fed' to the Guru Granth Sahib (an anti-Sikh practice) and later it is distributed among the Panj Pyras and the Sangat. The belief that Guru Granth is to be treated as the physical body (instead of the living spirit) of the Guru has become very strong. Many Sikhs use warm clothes, even heaters to keep it warm during winter. During summer they keep fans running all the time over the Guru Granth Sahib. Further, satisfaction is obtained by massaging the four legs of the throne (Cot) believing them to be the legs of the Guru. All these are anti-Sikh rituals intro-

32 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE duced under Brahmanical influence. Things have gone too far. Khalsa spirit must rise up to shake off all the Brahmanical practices. Sikhs are required to respect the directions given in the Gurbani and obey the same as the orders of the living Guru. The treatment of the Guru Granth Sahib as an idol is definitely against the Sikh prin­ ciples. Guru Granth Sahib is the living spirit of the Guru and not the physical body of the Gurus which needs food and drinks. Guru Granth Sahib has to be obeyed, respected and treated as living spirit of the Gurus but not to be fed as the body of the Gurus.

3. Caste pride re-introduced

The Brahmanical caste system was strongly challenged by Guru Nanak. He founded the institutions of Sangat and Pangat to equate all people. Guru Gobind Singh made it a requirement for every Sikh to sip Amrit from the same bowl so that God's Naam and equality of humanity goes into his blood. In his writings, the Guru very emphatically preached that "All People are human beings and equal."

HWT oft rPfe fit £oT Ufcwo*ill Akal Ustat - 85 It is, however, very much surprising that such statements "I will fight because I am the son of a Khatri and not of a Brahman" are attributed to the Guru.

33 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

E^t of UH t, WH5 ct 7&J, oT 3U ^M^o7 3 rT off II Krishnavtgar - Swaya - 513 Unfortunately even the Sikh preachers stress that the Guru belonged to the superior Sodhi caste. Gurbani, however, all through challenges the pride of the caste and deprecates it in the strongest terms.

feH 3OT t ^HfcT ^53 fecTWII GuruGranthP. 1128 "O fool, don't boast of your high caste. Casteism is re­ sponsible for many evils and sins." The hymns written by the low-caste Bhagats have been included in the Guru Granth Sahib. This should convince Sikhs and others that the caste has no value in Sikh philoso­ phy. Because of the emphasis on caste distinctions in Gurd- waras, the author experienced its effects at Paonta Sahib in 1949. A person of a low caste was told by the incharge of the langar (free-food community centre) to leave the 'Pangat' and sit separately for eating langar. When objected to by a Sikh, the response was,"They can sit anywhere in Sangat but not in Pangat where we eat."

ifcTTH te tT, 1W3 #F Txffll Common Phrase The same was experienced by another Sikh at Goindwal Sahib in 1944 and a so called "Chautha Paura" person was allowed to sit in langar only after his protest. Bachitar Natak said to be authored by Guru Gobind Singh contains the legendary history of Bedis and Sodhis.

34 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

There was a fight among the Sodhis. The defeated Sodhis went to Varanasi and learnt the Vedas, got 'enlightened', hence became a superior caste, the Vedis, in Panjabi pro­ nounced as Bedis. The victorious Sodhis gave up the old enmity and invited the Sodhi-turned-Bedis back to their king­ dom to listen from them the recitation of the Vedas. Having listened to the three Vedas they also got enlight­ ened. During the recitation of the fourth Veda, they decided to go to the forests for meditation after handing over their kingdom to the Bedis. In appreciation of this great offer by the Sodhis, the Bedis promised to do them a similar favor during Kalyug when the Bedis will rule as Guru NanakDev. Accord­ ingly, the fourth Gurus hip of the Nanak raj was passed on to the Sodhis through .

It makes the Sikhs believe that: * Vedas are sacred scriptures and listening to them enlightens the soul. * Guru Nanak Dev was great because his ancestors had studied Vedas. * Guru Ram Das was selected Guru because his ancestors during Kalyug offered raj to the ancestors of Guru Nanak.

All this is Brahmanism being preached not from the Hindu temples but in the Sikh Gurdwaras and that too as a word of the Guru. The agony is why the Sikh scholars cannot stand up and explain to the Sangat that this thought destroys the real values of Sikhism. It makes us wrongly believe that the Gurus were great because their ancestors recited Vedas and the Gurus

35 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE were the recipients of the 'Gyan' from there. If it were so, then why Guru Nanak's own father was so naive that he did not understand the greatness of his son. Further why Guru Nanak's own sons instead of being the holiest persons became men with crooked mind and rebellious attitude. life $£ »foft feafc *, wz Q^fefe, s^Wn Guru Granth p- 967 According to the Sikh philosophy, it is the grace of God (Hukam or Bhana), not the effect of caste, that one is a holy person or an evil guy. We have to be very clear that Guru Nanak Dev was a great spiritual personality and a Guru, not because he was a Bedi, but because he was graced by God to be that. The spiritual achievement of Bhagat Ravi Dass, a shoe­ maker is recorded in Guru Granth Sahib. It again, has cleverly been attributed by the Brahmans to the high caste of his previous birth, rather than his devotion to God and service to people. According to Bhagat ji himself:

6'dldHcV >^t rTfe fefWH Wtfll

3t 7PH H^fc 3f%t*H FTFII Guru Granth P. 1293

"I am a poor chamar, a shoe maker. All the people in the city know it very well. Today I do what my elders did earlier, i.e,. remove dead animals to get their skinfor making shoes Now, even the chief Brahmans bend before me in great respect because I have in my mind inscribed the name of God"

36 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Not minding all these statements of the Bhagat himself permanently secured in the Guru Granth Sahib, Brahmans cooked a story to justify their stand. According to them low- caste can not be holy people. Bhagat Ravi Das became a holy man because he was actually a Brahman in his previous birth. The story given in the Bhagat-mal runs like this:

There was a Brahman bachelor who cooked food and did other services to the holy man, Rama Nand. One day he accepted food from a low-caste for the dinner of the holy man. That night Rama Nand could not concentrate his mind on God. His regular meditation got disturbed. He asked his disciple, the young Brahman, from where he brought the food for the previous evening. The Brahman named the low-caste person. Bhagat Rama Nand was enraged and rebuked the Brahman for going to the low-caste and accepting the polluted food from him. As a punishment to his disciple he cursed him to take birth in a low-caste chamarfamily. The Brahman took birth as a chamar but he would not drink the milk of his low-caste mother, he being a high caste Brahman. The baby remained hungry without milk.

The story goes on and on. The lesson it teaches us is that Ravi Das realized God not because he loved Him but because he really was a Brahman bom to a chamar mother. This is totally against what the Bhagat tells about himself in his hymns. What an imagination a Brahman can have! He is trying to conceal the truth which destroys his claim that only Brahmans can achieve holiness. Thus the life history of the Bhagat,

37 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE instead of encourging low-caste to love God, tells them that they and the food touched by them are polluted. Further, not the low- caste but only the Brahmans can become holy men. A great discouragement to the so-called low-caste to become good and holy people. This malicious story has been made popular both among the Sikhs and the chamars who never wondered to know why God or Rama Nand (no third person knew about it) told the story only to the author of the book Bhagat-Mal, and not to RaviDass himself. Incidentally the author of Bhagat-Mal was born long after the death of Rama Nand. Such fabricated Sakhis in that book mention holy men, the Bhagats, to be worshipping idols and doing other acts which they themselves have opposed in their hymns. The aim of muddling with the life history of the Gurus and the Bhagats was to prove that either their high caste or the practice of idol worship helped them to become holy and great. This philosophy was totally rejected by the Gurus and the Bhagats. However, it is preached by the Brahmans to keep people as their slaves. Idol-worship and casteism has re-struck its roots among the Sikhs. Some Sikhs feel more proud of being a high caste than being a member of the Khalsa Panth. Today we see the caste-virus growing among the Sikhs when we see Gurdwara Ramgarhian (Gurdwara belonging to the carpenter Sikhs) or Gurdwara Ravdasian (Gurdwara belonging to the shoe-maker caste). This has thrown Sikhs in the ditch of Brahmanism from where the Gurus had taken them after making many supreme sacrifices. Such shadows of Brahmanism, as mentioned here-

38 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE after, are quoted not by the Hindus but also by the Western scholars to justify that the Sikhs are an off shoot of the Hindus. The goal of the Brahmans is to keep Sikhs under their control and not to let them preach against the caste system. Regarding idol worship - see section C-l

4. Lowering the Guru image

Many Sikhs, particularly the scholars, have been put in a great dilemma recently by the building of a Gurdwara at Hem Kunt, deep and high in the Himalayas, beyond Joshi Math. The region is associated with legendary Pandavas. Mass pil­ grimages are organized by the Sikhs to that place every year. Again, it is the writing in the Bachitar Natak which had formed the basis for building the Gurdwara at that place. According to it, Guru Gobind Singh in his previous life, while doing meditation there, became one with God. God adopted him as His son and deputed him to go to the earth and found the Khalsa Panth. (Don't forget the Guru is sitting on this very earth where he is being deputed to go). Therefore, the Guru took birth at Patna. It is preached that Hem Kunt is sacred to the Sikhs because the Guru worshipped God while sitting at that place in his previous life. One wonders why this principle is not applied to the Devi Temple where Bhai Lehna Ji ( Dev) worshipped God. All Sikhs should also go there, rather with greater reverance than to Hem Kunt because the latter is connected to the previous birth of the Guru whereas the former is connected with the life of Bhai Lehna Ji. Similarly the river Ganga where used to go regularly for 20

39 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE years, before being appointed the third Guru, should also be visited by the Sikhs in very large numbers. If these places are not considered sacred because they were related to them be­ fore they became Gurus, then it is less logical to sanctify a place by connecting it with the previous life of a Guru. Two other Sakhis connected with the life of Guru Gobind Singh need to be critically examined: a) A rishi while meditating at Hem Kunt, was continu­ ously disturbed by the devils. He created a brave man from the dust and asked him to keep the devils away. The brave man destroyed the devils. He was named Dushat-Daman and asked to sit there and meditate on God. This meditating Dushat- Daman was sent by God to earth as Guru Gobind Singh. The conclusion, which one cannot miss, is that the Guru was created from dust by a Hindu rishi. b) Guru Gobind Singh worshipped Devi at . She appeared with dazzling effect on the Guru. She left a Khanda which the Guru later used to prepare Amrit and found the Khalsa Panth. This Sakhi leaves the impression that all the powers of the Guru were given to him by the Devi. These are the subtle ways to lower the image of the Guru by describing him as a disciple of a Devi or a rishi

B. Gurus and Miracles

To prove that the Gurus were genuinely holy men, per­ forming of miracles by them is repeatedly stressed in Gurd- waras. This approach has shadowed Gurmat teachings which Sikhs are required to learn to achieve the goal of human life. Gurbani teaches us that performing miracles to impress other

40 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE people is the wrong path.

faftr Ml r>F^T TFFII Guru Granth P. 6 fgfuMTHfHU-tr.^H^^rMfe Wfell Guru Granth P.593 There are many famous people who perform miracles in India. This art is being practiced all over the world. Recently the Vancouver Sun mentioned the visit of a yogi to America in 1987; he lifted more than 1300 lbs. just by one hand. Earlier, a Maharishi demonstrated in Washington, D.C., that he could teach people to fly with yoga power. A yogi im­ pressed and stunned the university scientists in U.S.A by walking bare-foot on 60 feet long pile of red hot coal. An ordinary man demonstrated to the scientists his ability to get out of his body, go to another room, come back into the same body and tell everything that happened in that room. There are many such documented cases of miracles mentioned in 'Into the Unknown ' published by the Reader's Digest Publication. The point in question is that none of those, who performed miracles, is respected even as a holy man by the Sikhs, let alone equating him with a Bhagat or a Guru. It is, however, surprising why the Sikhs are made to believe that miracles performed by the Gurus prove them to be holy and genuinely great. A person is a Guru because he teaches Gurmat (Truth) and not because he performs miracles. Gurbani says, "Ridh Sidh Awra Saad"—In Japji. (To perform miracles is not the path of God) In this context, read "Miracles and Gurmat" by Dr. Shamsher Singh - Gurmat Parkash, Aug 1987. The Sikh Gurus taught people the purpose of life and how to achieve it. The Gurus, having successfully achieved that greattask, did not need to impress people with miracles.

41 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMAN1CAL SIEGE

A Sikh is required to live his life according to Gurmat, the teachings of the Gurus. Strangely, Sikhs themselves keep the teachings of the Gurus in the background and bring the miracles performed by them into the limelight. A large num­ ber of petty miracles added by the Sikhs of Brahmanical thinking don't serve any cause of the Sikhs or the Sikh faith. Rather, they obstruct the light of Gurmat and the greatness of Gurus' lives, thus keeping the Sikhs ignorant of what they are supposed to believe and practice. Moral lessons drawn from some miracle Sakhis are against the tenets of the Sikh faith and clash with historical facts. It should not be misunderstood from this that the Gurus did not have the powers to perform miracles. When ordinary yogis and sidhs are known to perform miracles like walking over fire, the Gurus sure could do much more than that. The Gurbani refers them to be no different from God.

Guru Granth P. 273

Guru Granth P. 864 w eft >rfcj>rr few CKF ws tggcT m m\\ 7 &i wfe" tjdM B^r OT y^ vg>teii Guru Granth P. 397

Having accepted the Gurus as representatives of God, we automatically believe in their ability to perform any miracles and doing things impossible for others. The greatness of the Gurus and the Guru Granth Sahib is not because they could perform miracles, but because they teach us Gurmat. It is no honor for a person holding a Ph. D. degree in

42 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

English Literature to be recognized and respected for being able to read the first letter of the alphabet.Similarly it is no honor to our Gurus that they performed this or that miracle. It rather lowers their status from being God-men to Sidh-me or miracle-men. The Brahman, however, gives undue stress on the miracle performing powers of the Gurus to conceal the Gurmat they preached to the people. The reason is simple. Gurmat releases people from the slavery of the Brahmans. In the end, it must be emphatically told that the greatness of the Gurus lies in the Gurmat they taught and not in the miracles they could perform.

C. Introduction of Brahmanical Rituals l.Fake pictures of the Gurus

According to the Sikh principles, not the physical features of his body, but the words said by the Guru are the 'Guru'

WU Tfalfe HHHfe ^d^'d'IRII ^ 32 Var- Bhai Gurdas

W&\ m 3J| % W&\ fefe W&\ *>?f>£J Wll djdy'dl oftr H^ *?> >f& V33fo ^jf foHd'dll Guru Granth P. 982 Hence the holy hymns spoken by the Gurus, Bhagats, and other contributors, were compiled and installed as the living spirit of the Guru in the Golden Temple, Amritsar. No pictures or idols of the Gurus were allowed to be made. For making the environment aesthetic and soothing to the mind, flowers, geometrical figures and other art work is seen engraved on the walls of the Golden Temple. Pictures of the Gurus are con-

43 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE spicuous by their absence. One wonders, how the fake pictures of the Gurus and even their idols appeared not only in the houses of the Sikhs but also in many Gurdwaras. This is nothing but Brahmanical philoso­ phy displacing the Sikh faith from Sikh houses and their places of worship. It can be easily explained how pictures and statues of the Gurus entered the Golden Temple and Sikh houses, because it is a matter of recorded history. However, what appears to be extremely difficult now, is how, to throw them out of the Gurd­ waras and the Sikh psyche. Not only credulous Sikhs, but some educated Sikhs also keep pictures of the Gurus in the house to obtain their blessings. Readers may be hurt to know that some Sikhs have been seen garlanding the Guru pictures and serving food to them, i.e., performing the 'Bhog ritual'. The most unfortunate aspect of this is that certain new pictures are being popularized by the Shromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, Amritsar itself as 'better' pictures of the Gurus. It is because they have been made by some famous painters based on their high class imagination and great artistic skills. Not all Sikhs, of course, have reached the stage of wor­ shipping Guru pictures as Hindus worship their idols, but a large number of them are on their way to do that. Some scholars want these pictures to be destroyed whereas others suggest that only their worship be prohibited and not their "Darshan". They argue seeing a picture of the Guru reminds them of the life of the Guru. Dear Sikhs, ask yourself who is there to protect the Sikh principles from being destroyed under the influence of the

44 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Brahmans? Well, the author thinks the correct answer is 'YOU', who reads Gurbani, understands its spirit and prac­ tices it in his/her daily life and does not just talk about it. To learn Sikh philosophy, Gurbani is the only source without dilution, distortion or damage by the Brahmanical influence. We have to study Gurbani and understand its message to know facts about the Sikh faith. Naturally the question arises why imaginary pictures and statues of the Gurus were accepted by the Sikhs when they were not there during the Guru period. Here is the history of their creation and their march into the Sikh Gurdwaras and the Sikh houses. Keshdhari Sikhs during the 18th century were forced to leave villages and live in the forests. The non-keshdhari dis­ ciples took care of the Sikh Gurdwaras and historical places. These disciples did not board the Ship of Sikh faith but only held it by their hands and kept their feet stuck in the Hindu Boat. These Sanatani 'Sikhs' called Mahants, continued to believe in Brahmanical rituals even after associating them­ selves with the Sikh faith. Not only non-Sikh but also anti- Sikh rituals were introduced by them in the Gurdwaras. Their Brahmanical thinking made them to depict popular mytho­ logical scenes from Hindu scriptures on the walls of the Gurdwaras as they were traditionally depicted on the walls of the Hindu temples. When the pictures of the Hindu gods ap­ peared on the Gurdwara walls, the pictures of the Gurus had also to appear as a natural sequence.The pictures of the Hindu Gods along with those of the Sikh Gurus can still be seen in the Gurdwara at Manikaran (Himachal). The mythological scenes from Ramayna and Mahabharat and the Hindu gods painted

45 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE on the walls of the historical Gurdwara Dina Kangar (where Guru Gobind Singh wrote Zafar Nama)were a surprise to the author when he visited the village in 1978. Gurdwaras at Dera Baba Nanak have also many such paintings along with those of Guru Nanak. Until recently colored paintings of Ram, Hanuman,Karishan and his Gopies, and Mahabharat battle could be seen on the walls of many village Gurdwaras. All pictorial depictions of the Gurus, of course , differed and were subject to the imagination of the painters. The pictures from the walls moved on to the paper and then were printed for mass production to reach every Sikh home and Gurdwara. Some vigilant managers, however, did not permit any kind of pictures, howsoever genuine or superior they were claimed to be, to come even near the boundary of the Gurd­ waras. Once the pictures of the Gurus were accepted as true and good by the masses, how then could anyone stop them from taking the form of idols and statues? They are, it appears, here to stay, even though making Guru's picture or idol is against the Sikh philosophy.When the Sikhs lost their Raj in 1849, they had time to turn their thoughts towards their faith. They were surprised to find Sikhism already pushed out of the Gurdwaras by the Mahants believing in Brahmanical rituals. The worship of any kind of idols, whether of Hindu gods, or of Sikh Gurus, is prohibited for a Sikh. However, under the guidence of the Mahants both were worshipped by the Sikhs in the precincts of the Golden Temple. What kind of faith the Sikhs were told to believe and which anti-Sikh rituals were practiced there, have been described by Dr. Oberoi. In a seminar at the University of British Columbia,

46 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Vancouver, Canada, on November 9, 1987 he stated:

Having accepted Nanak as an avtar, it is hardly surpris­ ing that many among Sikhs took to idol worship, for that was a time-honoured Indian custom to honor avtars. Ac­ cording to a contemporary pujari of Golden Temple, one of the first large sized idol to be installed at this premier shrine of the Sikhs, was a metal casting of , gifted by the Raja of Chamba during the reign of . This was followed by another gold image of the sixth master below the Akal Takhat and a minor idol of Guru Nanak within the inner sanctum of the shrine. Large sized idols were also housed at Baba Atal, a well known shrine neighbouring the Golden Temple. In the 1880s the management of the Golden Temple mooted the idea of installing the idols often Sikh Gurus at the main entrance to the Sikh Mecca9 Already within the precincts of the Golden Temple, pujaris sat with stone idols instructing pilgrims to worship them. Similarly at the Akal Takhat, the supreme seat of Sikh ecclesiastical au­ thority, some pujaris publicly worshipped idols. In every­ day life the Sanatanist paradigm resulted in paradoxical mixtures and produced a kaleidoscopic Sikh society that is hard to focus on by today's standards. A Sikh contributor to an English weekly paper, The Khalsa Feb 21,1900, had to say this about it:

"Have not our people relapsed into idolatory? Are they not seen worshipping hideous images of Hindu Gods? Still more horrible is the fact that they are allowed in the precincts of the temple, which every Sikh holds dear to him. Are not our people seen worshipping Satis, Bhairon, 9 Emphasis by the author.

47 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Sheetla, Sakhi Sarvar, Gugga Peer and company? Are not our people sunk grossly in the Mantras (incantations), Jantras (horoscopes) and similar beliefs? They listen to the stories of Krishna, see Ram Lila and pictures representing acts of Karishna . They also worship the lingam, hear the story of this peculiar form of deity, with other stories like that of Mohini. They hear the story of how Indra was cursed by Gautam and got thousands of marks upon its body, which were subsequently transformed into eyes". Sanatan culture exhibited a similar attitude in handling matters concerning sacred scripture, doctrines and social practices. While they considered the Guru Granth Sahib to be the most sacred among the text, they also accorded an analogous status to the Vedas. Gulab Singh in a public lecture at the Guru Ka Bagh in Amritsar announced, "Sikh faith is the true Sanatan religion. The four Vedas are also the religious books of the Sikhs." Similarly, alongside the janam sakhi and gurbilas literature, the puranas and the two epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharta, formed a common pool of history, knowledge and sacred tales for the Sikh masses. The janam sakhi stories about Guru Nanak were read with the same felicity as the exploits of Krishna from the Mahabharta. Avtar Singh Vahiria, a close associate of Baba Khem Singh Bedi, counted Guru Nanak among a long line of Avtars which included Ram and Karishna.

Hindu rituals and beliefs were thus preached by Mahants among the Sikhs under the garb of Sikh practices. Singh Sabha was founded in 1873 and it was the first organized body of the intellectual Sikhs after the loss of then- power to the British in 1849. By the end of the century it had become quite strong and had developed into a mass move- 48 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMAN1CAL SIEGE ment. In the next 25 years it was able to take over the management of the Gurdwaras from the Mahants and Sanatni Sikhs. The Sikhs achieved it only after making great sacri­ fices, and suffering great oppression at the hands of the foreign rulers. In 1905, the Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar was con­ vinced, after hearing the translation of hymns from the Guru Granth Sahib, that worship of idols is strictly prohibited in the Sikh faith. He ordered the removal of all idols, whether of Hindu gods or of the Gurus, thanks to the British Raj and the right use of authority by the Deputy Commissioner. However, the Sikh leaders today don't dare stop anti-Sikh practices, lest they may lose their popularity. Instead, they don't hesitate to endorse them if it means getting more votes from a section of the community or the credulous Sikh masses. One example of this is the preaching of the sanctity of the horses in the stable of the Gurdwara Sach Khand, Nander, Maharashtra, to an extent that some innocent Punjabi Sikhs collected their dung as Parshad to eat. From Nander, the horses were brought to Punjab when Giani , then Chief Minister of Punjab, staged the vote-catching drama of opening the Guru Gobind Singh Marg. This name was given to the road going from Anandpur Sahib to Mukatsar repre­ senting the path on which the Guru travelled after leaving An­ andpur Sahib. First it was preached that they were the horses of Guru Gobind Singh and later it was said that they were not the Guru's horses but they belonged to the same lineage. That statement too, was false and the leaders knew it. But even if it was true, how does it sanctify a horse or its dung?

49 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMAN1CAL SIEGE

Only God knows how some of the leaders think. Instead of objecting to the collection and eating of dung by the naive Sikhs, the leaders were feeling happy to observe their craze for obtaining horse dung. They were hoping that the Sikh masses would return that "favor" with votes. They knew, of course, that many Sikhs were being fooled by their political stunts. Let us not remain under the illusion that our leaders will preach against the harmless-looking act of making, selling, or worshipping of our Guru's imaginery pictures. They did not stop simple-minded credulous Sikhs from eating dung. Because of the ignorance of the leaders, or because of their hesitancy to speak the truth, the idols thrown out during the British Raj have returned with a bang. One can find not only new pictures or paintings of the Gurus but also their idols which are made to look more impressive than those of the previous years. For the sake of patronizing some selected painters, and simultaneously making the unwary Sikh masses happy, the Shiromani Committee Amritsar itself started print­ ing and selling Sikh Gurus' paintings. If the reading of these pages hurts your feelings, it is a proof that the Sikh spirit is alive in your heart. In Sikh homes, of course, with a few exceptions, we find today, fake pictures being respected and in some cases virtu­ ally worshipped. Guru Nanak's Birthday issues of Sikh news­ papers of North America usually carry his big picture on the front page with many more inside, almost with every adver­ tisement. Out of sight is out of mind. Shabad Guru gets out of sight with the glare of these pictures. People decorate their houses with Guru Nanak's pictures but not by his Gurbani

50 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMAN1CAL SIEGE hymns. The picture psyche is so strong now that anybody who protests against the (fake) paintings of the Gurus or their exhibition is considered anti-Sikh. The majority of the Sikhs turn against him. The approval and acceptance of the Guru pictures by the Sikh masses means losing on one more front to Brahmanism. The author wrote many letters to the Shromani Committee Amritsar to stop patronizing the pictures and idols of the Gurus. During individual discussions, they confessed that they knew making Gurus' pictures/statues is against Sikh phi­ losophy, but they won't say it publicly for fear of losing their popularity with the masses. After receiving no response, the letter was released to the press during the late seventies.In response, the President of the Committee made a very mild statement that the making of Gurus' statues (did not mention pictures) is against Sikh faith. Instead of being an order, the press statement was a sort of half hearted request to the idol makers to avoid making these statues. As expected, no one cared to listen to his request. From the wording, they under­ stood he did not mean the making of statues should be stopped. Businessmen knew, being the President of the Committee, he had to make that statement as a matter of compulsion just for the record. That is why statues of the Gurus are being made and sold today in greater numbers than before. The Akali Chief Minister of the Punjab Government was reminded in 1978 to take action against the misuse of the Gurus' pictures. One Amritsar Company advertised tobacco with the pictures of Guru Nanak Dev. A brewery from Solan printed a calendar with the pictures of Guru Gobind Singh to advertise their alcoholic beverages. A responsible Sikh made

51 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE a written complaint to the Chief Minister protesting those advertisements. Even during the Akali rule in Punjab, the only response was the visit of a policeman to the house of the Sikh to get a copy of the calendar mentioned in his letter. No action was taken even though he brought the matter to the knowledge of many Sikh leaders whom he knew personally. This explains the absence of the knowledge of basic Sikh principles and the lack of commitment on the part of the then Sikh leadership. What religious lessons can a person learn from the 'darshans' of the imaginary pictures of a Guru when the darshan of the Guru himself or even being born to him is no assurance of becoming a religious person? Pirthi Chand was Guru Ram Das' s son. He also watched Guru Amar Das closely and also played in his lap. It did not have any useful effect on him. He remained a crook and an evil person.

feS" Hctfe 7i U^t frw HHfe" ?> oft ^k^ll Guru Granth P.594 It means, not looking at the Guru but understanding Gur- bani can relieve a man from the cycle of life and death. When seeing the Guru himself and playing in his lap or even being his son does not benefit a person, then how can looking at his pictures, be useful to anyone. Gurbani argues: "The stone image of God neither speaks nor gives you anything. Remem­ ber, its worship is a futile act and without any benefit"- Guru Granth p. 1160. It is, therefore, still more futile to respect or worship fake paper pictures of the Gurus. Gurbani preaches Shabad Guru philosophy, that is, the word of the Guru is the Guru and is to be respected and followed. It also removes any doubt that there can be any

52 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

picture of the Guru other than the word of the Guru. Bhai Gurdas says,

m H3fe ^ HH£" ft\\ Var. Bhai Gurdas "Word of the Guru is his true picture" and not the painting showing the physical features of his body. One wonders why then the Sikh leaders recognize picture-Guru or idol-Guru instead of the Shabad-Guru. The cuscuta9 (Amarbel) of Brahmanism has infected the body ofSikhism, its history and its Re hat Maryada. The only safe thing is Gurbani in the Guru Granth Sahib. There too, fabricated Sakhis are often extensively used to distort the meaning and spirit of Gurbani by placing it in a totally different context. Such conclusions are drawn for adoption from a shabad, which it actually rejects. Khalsaji, beware of the net of Brahmanism around you. Tear it off to enjoy the glow ofGurmat. Not only the Sikh nation, but the whole world will be obliged to you.

2. Worship of moon and sun

a) Is Sunday a sacred day?

Obviously, the answer is 'yes' for Christians. They be­ lieve that God made the world in six days and rested on Sunday. For Christians, therefore, Sunday is a Church day and 9 A plant parasite common in Punjab. It cannot root directly in the soil. It grows only on other plants by sucking their sap, retarding their growth and finally causing their slow death. Cuscuta is to plants what cancer is to human beings and Brahmanism is to Sikhism.

53 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE must be a holiday from the daily work. For Jews, Saturday is a sacred day. Friday is a prayer day for Muslims and is a holiday in Muslim ruled countries. But why do the Sikhs go in large numbers to Gurdwara on Sunday ? They do so not because it is a sacred day for the Sikhs, but because it is a convenient day, being a holiday from daily work. Sikhs are supposed to go to the Gurdwara every day and those who can, do go there regularly throughout the week. Most of the Sikhs, being busy with their jobs, can go only on Sundays but that does not mean that it is a sacred day for the Sikhs. They merely take advantage of it being a holiday. If the weekly holiday is moved to Friday, then the majority of the Sikhs will go to the Gurdwara on Fridays, as is the case in Muslim countries in the Middle East. According to the Sikh beliefs, all days are equally good; no day is more appropriate, less appropriate, auspicious or in­ auspicious on account of any religious considerations. Names of the days have been assigned by man and are considered sacred or un-sacred by man, not by God. That day and that time is good and sacred which is spent in remembering God. Con­ versely, when one forgets God and commits evil, the day and the time is bad and un-sacred for him. Gurbani describes it in the following hymns:

H^t h&) Tr&HS} fa>m 3fa ^HII Guru Granth P. 819 feoT ^t 7) tms ^ offeOT ^"H Guru Granth P. 96 Unfortunately, in some Gurdwaras, it is mentioned in the ardas (prayer) that the Sangat has celebrated the sacred day of Sunday. Sikhs don't go to the Gurdwara for celebrating

54 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

Sundays, they go there to sing praises of God. Therefore there should be no mention of Sunday in the ardas. If some Sikhs believe that Sunday is a sacred day they sure are under the influence of Brahmanism. b) Are Sankrant, Puranmasi, or Amavas sacred days?

Yes, if one is a Hindu who believes that the moon and sun are demi-gods. However, these days have no significance for the Sikhs. Sankrant is the day when the sun enters in a new Rashi (new month). Amavas is no-moon day and Puranmasi is full-moon day. Then why do Sikhs go to the Gurdwara on these days and why are special Sikh gatherings held in important Gurdwaras on these days? Sikh gatherings were (are) fixed on these days, not because they are sacred, but simply because it is hard to miss a full-moon or no-moon day. Just by looking at the sky, one can know as to when he should expect these days to occur. Similarly Sankrant, the first day of the month (Indian calendar), can be easily known and remembered. However it would not be easy to remember 3rd., 7th.,23rd. or any other date, particularly by the uneducated masses. Secondly, even if they remember the date of the function or gathering, they miss it, unless they remain alert to count the dates regularly. Change of the moon or the month is an important date, and is easily remembered. Hence, it was (is) fixed for such gather­ ings. Sikhs, as a matter of their faith, cannot accept that a par­ ticular day is holy or unholy and therefore, suitable or unsuit­ able for performing any religious or social function. Rejecting

55 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANTCAL SIEGE the idea of giving sanctity to some days of the week or some dates of the month, Gurbani says; "Days and dates are wor­ shipped by idiots and uncultured people."

fast ^3" fl^fa mu 31^11 Guru Granth P. 843 By having attended Sikh gatherings on the first day of the month for generations, some Sikhs developed a wrong belief that it is a sacred date for them. They assumed that performing any religious act on that day - a visit to the Gurdwara, doing some service there, giving money for religious purposes, reciting Gurbani, bathing in the pool attached to a Gurdawara, etc., - brings more and better fruit than performing the same acton any other day. Because of the strong Brahmanical influ­ ence, they have, therefore, come to accept that going to the Gurdwara on that day is a must for a Sikh. If going to the Gurdwara on the first date of a month (according to Indian calendar) is obligatory in India, then the Sikhs in North America must also do so for the months of the Gregorian calendar (January to December) which is followed in the West. They don't agree to it because the Brahman told them it was the Indian calendar which is sacred and not the Western calendar or the Muslim calendar Another argument given in favor of Sankrant being a sacred and hence a more suitable day than other days, is that a Gurbani composition, Bara Maha, is included in Guru Granth Sahib. Such Sikhs need to be told that literature was (and is now also) written by using months, days, dates, seasons, alphabets of a language, etc., to give sequence to the parts of a composition. It is not because there is any sanctity

56 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMAN1CAL SIEGE in their use but because they are common experiences of men and help them to remember and understand the thought better and easily. Many such methods have been employed for writing Gurbani with the same purpose. For example, there are such compositions in Gurbani as 'Waar Sat' Seven days of the Week. Sunday is the first day (beginning) of the week; God is the beginning of the universe and He alone, is prevailing every­ where.

WfeH ^fe Wfc" V3¥ t M\11 Guru Granth P. 841 Gurmat philosophy is, thus, made simple and easy to understand by connecting week days with it. The directions or the lessons of Gurbani, as the readers know, are beyond time, date and space. They can be read and enjoyed on any day and in any country. The purpose is to learn the philosophy and not get stuck with the words, numbers, or names which them­ selves have no sanctity. They are included for rhyming and for easy understanding of the meaning of Gurbani. Let us study some more Gurbani shabads to explain it further:

£oJH 8c?d'd f&d'tt'll yHHB" >Mfl?fl Hfe 7) HWII Guru Granth P. 838 The first date has been used to explain that there is only One God and he is unique. Second date teaches us that except God there is no second in the world. It is a sin to think there is a second person equal to Him. Similarly in the Bara Maha, the names of the 12 months have been used to preach Gurmat to the readers.

Ws «? >wnM fit »fcfe- ^n Guru Granth p'133

57 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

'Chet' means to remember. The hymn says that the month of Chet tells you to remember God, to enjoy happiness and peace in abundance. The study of Gurbani reveals that the names of the months, days and dates were used to give sequence to the hymns, and rhyme the spiritual lesson with these names. Otherwise the lesson mentioned is applicable to every day, all through life and everywhere. Limiting the teachings of Gurbani for some particular day or a particular month is undermining the mes­ sage of Gurbani. It is meant for all mankind for practicing all over the globe and every day. Nowhere it is hinted that Sankrant or any other day is more appropriate than other ordinary days for any religious practice. It is the prevailing dark and dense shadow of Brah- manism on the Sikh beliefs which makes Sikhs think that Sankrant is a sacred day and has to be celebrated.

3) Social ceremonies and fasts

Sikhs have picked up many ceremonies from the Hindu society introduced by the Brahmans for their personal inter­ ests. In many Sikh homes ladies are seen keeping fasts and giving charity to the Brahmans. Gurus have rejected this thought of remaining hungry for spiritual benefits.

^33 3V?> offer >f?> 3^ft #f^l mi TW flfrnr^f o ?> yfhi....

Guru Granth P. 905 Many rituals performed at birth , marriage or death of a

58 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE person are merely the "gifts" of Brahmanism to Sikhism to keep the Sikh masses ignorant of their true, magnificent, rich, and glorious philosophy. Rakhri, Saradh (feasting Brahmans annually for the well being of the deceased parents), Barsi (death anniversary), etc., are anti-Sikh practices and must be ignored and abandoned. The reader is suggested to carefully study the bulletin Sikh Rehat Mayyada for this.

4) Gurdwara rituals

In many Gurdwaras, one or the other kind of Hindu rituals are followed because the visitors to the Gurdwara like it. Some anti-Sikh rituals are practiced because of the local tradition. At Gurdwara Sach Khand (Hazoor Sahib) Nander, the old practice of sounding Tal (bell) and performing Arti in the fashion of Hindu temples is still being continued.

59 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

60 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

CHAPTER IV

CONCLUSION

An attempt has been made in the previous pages to make the Sikhs aware of the great philosophy introduced by Guru Nanak and nurtured by his successors. An unprecedented high price was paid to carry this thought to the people and to educate them of their rights and responsibilities. Accordingly, today a Sikh is supposed to lead a life of love and share this philosophy with other people. For this we need to know the true Sikh thought. The problem is that with the passage of time, the Sikh thought has been distorted and muddled by Brahmans and politicians for their vested interests. They have made many inroads in Sikhism. Even though it is a repetition, it has to be stressed that Brahmanism has been making subtle moves during the 18th century to absorb Sikhism. These efforts, though slow yet constant, continued during the British period, who recorded them in the classified papers (see introduction). In this book,

61 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE therefore, in the light of Gurmat, Sikh practices and beliefs have been sifted from the bundles of Brahmanical rituals loaded on the Sikhs. The big task ahead is educating Sikhs about it. Great courage is needed to give up something which has been practiced for generations, and considered as a Sikh ritual. To provide this courage, Gurbani has been quoted in each case discussed in this book. We Sikhs have to be watchful to protect ourselves from the subtle moves of Brahmanism to absorb us. Its strategy is to make us believe that we are an improved sect of Hinduism. We must realize that Sikhism is a sovereign faith and must remain free from Brahmanical, Vedic or Sanatanic thoughts. Let us end this discussion with an appropriate quote from Dorothy Field,

"Pure Sikhism is far above dependence on Hindu rituals and is capable of a distinct position as a world religion so long as Sikhs maintain their distinctiveness. The religion is also one which should appeal to the occidental mind. It is essen­ tially a practical religion. If judged from the pragmatical standpoint which is a favorite point of view in some quarters, it would rank almost first in the world. A reading of the Grant h strongly suggests that Sikhism should be regarded as a new and separate world religion rather than a reformed sect of Hinduism."

62 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

NOTES

63 SIKHISM: UNDER BRAHMANICAL SIEGE

NOTES

64