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Humanism, Theism & Sikh Faith

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Humanism, Theism & Sikh Faith Humanism, Theism & Sikh Faith ISSN 0972-116923 July 2000, Vol. 1/I Humanism, Theism & Sikh Faith — Dr. Wazir Singh t is customary with scholars to pose humanism as a system of belief opposed to theistic faith. For Ithem, one could either be a theist or humanist; that is, if one is convinced of the existence of a Divine Power controlling the affairs of the world, one is obliged not to treat man as of primary significance. Those of the thinkers who place man at the centre of the universe, or for whom man is the measure of all things, forfeit the claim to be believers in the god-head, according to this line of thinking. Such a rigid stand pushes the conflict between God-centered and man-oriented ideologies to the extreme, invoking the posture of exclusivism. The question arises: Why cannot a humanist believe in God? And what prevents a theist from subscribing to humanism as a philosophy, ideology or faith? In order to arrive at an answer to these questions, it seems necessary to understand the meaning and implication of humanism. It would be helpful, in the first instance, to distinguish humanism from humanitarianism. The former term simply means the highest expression of human values and devotion to the interests of human beings. This view duly acknowledges its debt to the dictum of Alexander Pope: The proper study of mankind is man. The philosophical and literary forms of humanism seek to keep man at the centre; for Man is the common denominator of all such studies. The central point is welfare of man and the promotion of human values through man’s own effort, whether sided by a belief in the need of God’s grace or not. At any rate, humanism must embrace the whole of mankind. It must reaffirm the spirit of cosmopolitanism and brotherhood of man. Tradition of Humanism “The Indian philosophical tradition is man’s oldest as well as the longest continuous development of speculation about the nature of reality and man’s place therein”, observes Dr. S. Radhakrishnan. The history of over three thousand years of Indian philosophy combines cosmic speculation with appraisals of man and his destiny, and formulations of social structure. The central theme of the various strands of thought in India has been the spiritual emancipation of man. All speculation, all morality and religious teachings are geared to human welfare. In the West, the genesis of humanism is found in Greek philosophy. The phrase “Man is the measure of all things” is attributed to Protagoras, who flourished in the fifth century B.C. Even though the Western philosophy has been characterised as a ‘child of wonder’, mainly interested in Global Religious Vision, Vol. I/I 24 Dr. Wazir Singh metaphysical speculations about the nature of cosmic reality, it has also evolved humanism in its various forms. Socrates’ dictum ‘Man, know thyself’, Plato’s philosophy of ‘human culture’, and Aristotle’s view of ‘virtue’, all focus upon Man and human affairs. The medieval age threw up thinkers like Augustine and Thomas Aquinas, who shaped ‘theistic humanism’ of Christian variety. Later, the Renaissance gave rise to the movement of literary humanism, in Europe of the fifteenth century. Its major contribution was the secularisation of life and its ideals. One man who made bigger contribution to the movement of Humanism than any other individual, was Erasmas (1466-1536), a Western contemporary of Guru Nanak (1469-1539). Erasmas was bracketed with Thomas More, the author of Utopia. On the whole, Humanism was seen as a protest against authority, and a revolt against Absolutist philosophy. Modern philosophy aims at inspiring a ‘way of life’, its logical analysis and other forms notwithstanding. As put by P.T. Raju, “Man and his values are primary; their primacy has to be acknowledged by any philosophy”. To this, Dr. Radhakrishnan adds another note—“When the humanist admits the ultimateness of the values, he is implicitly accepting the spiritual view of the universe. “Contemporary movements of Existentialism, Marxism and Pragmatism all owe allegiance to Humanism, as they do not depart from Human truth and Human values. Perhaps, a satisfactory reconciliation between the cosmic and human points of view would soon be attempted. The Sikh Approach to Humanism The Sikh is committed to Man and God. The outlook of the Sikh is marked by inclusivism; both theism and humanism find favour with him. It is not an approach of either this or that, of accepting one at the cost of the other. Faith in God to the exclusion of concern for man has never been the forte of the Sikh. The Sikhs have imbibed a spirit of service to humanity as well as contemplation of the Divine. As a religion Sikhism aims at humanisation of man. The essential core of the Guru’s teaching is telling man to be more humane, to be more and more human. The philosophy of Sikh religion unfolds the values that inspire its adherents to be guided by the light of reason in their search for perfection. The supreme value termed Brahman Gyan, enunciated in Gurbani, is verily the vision of the Supreme Reality itself. It affords absolute knowledge to the human seeker, raising him to the level of the Divine. In a sense, it is experience of ‘merger’—that of the individual into the ground of his being. The disciple taking to the path indicated by the Gurus, is firmly convinced of the divine nature of his origin. In his endeavour to evolve as a better human being, he is guided at each step by the beatific vision of the seers whose word is enshrined in the Guru Granth. His humanistic pursuit is tempered with his theistic make-up. The Sikh, true to his salt, cannot run away from either theism or humanism. Both are ingrained in his being. To be Sikh means to have faith in the teaching of the Guru Granth, which leaves little scope for rejecting theism. It also means self-transcendence, which implies a progressive inculcation of all-embracing values, that is, intimate involvement in the promotion of human welfare. The Sikh way of life prescribes or at least takes in its stride, an attitude of prayerfulness. The Sikh prayer, addressed as it is, to the Supreme being, affirms the theistic faith of the disciple, on the one hand, and reminds him of his obligation to the community, with its enunciation July 2000 Humanism, Theism & Sikh Faith 25 of the principle, of Sarbat-ka-bhala, on the other. Evidently, the Sikh approach to humanism combines its value-oriented core with an enlightened faith in the cosmic support to human endeavours. To say that Guru Nanak and his nine successors were humanists does not mean that they held Man to be primary and the Divine, secondary. In the world-view of the Gurus, man is an emanation from the spiritual Essence, and as such cannot claim primacy over his divine source. He, however, is the over-lord of this earth, the rest of the creatures “slaving” for him. All the teachings of the Gurus, all their pious exhortations are addressed to Man; they are meant to raise him to higher and higher levels of perfection. Even the realisation of his own divine origin and the rekindling of faith in the divine dispensation serve the interest of Man and not of God. In fact, the whole problem of religions is problem of man. God, as the Tenth Guru says, is above all religions. The appeal to God is made for the benefit of man. A divinely oriented soul, a gurmukh, is surely a better specimen of humanity, since he is endowed with a willingness to serve human causes. His devotion to God in effect means service to mankind. His theism and his humanism converge to each other, the end- product of this convergence being the merger and identify of the two. Theistic Humanism of Guru Nanak That the humanism of Guru Nanak is replete with faith, is indisputable. The Guru clearly asserts that his utterings are inspired by the revealed word of his Master. What he utters is for the consumption of men and women of his land, of humanity at large. He shakes the people out of their slumbers of ignorance, superstition and formalism, he makes them aware of the hollowness of casteism, asceticism and renunciation; he warns them against defeatism, hypocrisy and covetousness. On the positive side, Guru Nanak advocates a life that ‘wears’ the finery inside, even though it has coarse outside. Elegance of the heart is preferred to the false elegance of apparel and ostentation. The real worth of the individual is measured in terms of the values he cherishes, the virtues he practises, the duties he performs. One who fails to promote in one’s life neither harmony nor wisdom (naad and veda), develops neither sensibility for music nor aesthetic taste, possesses neither awareness and intellect, nor basic intelligence and secret of the alphabet—such a one is rated by Guru Nanak as no better than the poor ass. Misplaced pride in one’s acquisitions without real virtues, is despised by the Guru in no uncertain terms. Human salvation is as much a concern of Guru Nanak as of any other spiritual mentor and/or humanist. The way of life recommended by the Guru combines the elements of salvation by faith and knowledge and salvation by divine grace. If we approach his philosophy from the mystical angle, we find him supporting the case of inner illumination, of absolute consciousness or brakman- gyan. If we take into consideration the stress he lays on divine grace, the pathway of devotion and faith qualifying the individual for the final blessing, would commend itself.
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