US US fsSof’3 tfl U "f tf •. k SHORT HISTORY OF THE NIRANKARI MOVEMENT Prof D" H 'f ir t i S n jh Shan l y * .# i 4, -* + ’r f Pn •- ' A * » .X vt»F' J.**> SiWW“‘1 U ° 0 „ ^ 60S. Sector 16: wDdodi*i»fB- r - fW '' i i j *». s £ Prof. SHER SINGH ‘SHER1 - /t’rrtf* . * ■#,■ ,i ■ * ■ '• , " t - , , . .. '-1 r fc\- - > r ■ *s, Youngmen’s Nirankari Association CHANDIGARH. Printed at : BHATIA PRINTERS 1276, Sector 21-B Chandigarh-22 Published by : Secretary, YOUNGMEN'S NIRANKARI ASSOCIATION Sri Nirankari Darbar (Rawalpindi) Buildings Sector 21-B, Chandigarh-22 1st Edition: 31st January 1972 Price : Rupee one only. SATGURU SAHIB RATTAJI NIRANKARI 25th March 1830—3rd. January, 1909 Photo by Allah Bakhsh. I i* ft 1 I r I 1 4 i tis fcgej’a tfl NIRANKARI MOVEMENT By Sher Singh ‘Sher ? Historical Background : The Nirankari movement is the foremost organi- A sed and messianic struggle in Sikhism which is the youngest religion of the world. The salient contribu­ tions of this movement to Sikhism cannot be under­ stood in the proper perspective without a brief account of its historical background. Being the youngest in age, the Sikh religion has imbibed ail the good points of the religions which have preceded it. Like the all round awakening of the Europe of the Renaissance period, Sikhism is the product of the Indian Renaissance called 'Bhakti Movement'. It is a striking symbiosis of militancy, spirituality, service \ and sacrifice. If the Historians consider it to be the out- 4 come of the persecution^^ the Hindus by the MusNm rulers, in my opinion, it is equally the result of the religio-social atrocities committed by the Hindus on the millions of the downtrodden people of India. All the Sikh Gurus fought for social justice, attacking caste system, untouchability and religio-social superio­ rity and segregation, inculcated in the Hindus by the 1 Digitized by Panjab Digital Library I www.oaniabdiailib.ora sacerdotal Brahamins. Hence, the Sikh Gurus rightly realized that India could never be streghtened and united as a free nation, unless the society was emanci­ pated from the cluthes of Brahaminism. That is why, Guru Nanak’s first attack was on caste system and religious bigotry as under the influence of these evil forces, no society could be established on the bases of justice, equality and fraternity. The Guru period of the Sikh pontificate began with the birth of Guru Nanak in 1469 A. D. and ended with the death of Guru Gobind Singh. All of the Sikh Apostles contributed to the uplift of the Indian society in general and that of Punjab in particular. The land of Punjab had been the door-mat of India, to be tramp­ led first by the North-Western invaders since the very inroads of the Aryans. Therefore, the Sikh Gu rus had to perform an uphill task, as the society was to be purged of numerous disintegrating beliefs and practises from within and was to be invigorated and vitalised with virility to resist and rout the raiders and the invaders from without. The struggle and sacrifices of the Sikh Gurus culminated in the Khalsa of Guru Gobind Singh, known as 'Sant-Sipahi' (Saint-Soldier), / two opposite forces blended, balanced and melded in the same personality. The Sikh Gurus had to bravely face the injustice, intolerance, callous orthodoxy and outrages at the hands of the Moghul rulers, but none­ theless, they had to measure the strength of their ’ struggle with the reactionary, superstitious and caste- ridden Brahmanism. The society was not only to be 2 reformed but also was to be transformed to be comple­ tely extricated from the Brahaminical sandwich of caste and caprice. So, the personal participation and precedents of the Sikh Gurus, were needed to estab­ lish the new ideology, but the lineage of the Gurus terminated after Guru Gobind Singh. He had boldly and openly challenged the empty Brahmanical ecclesi- asticism and the tyranny of the political power of the Muslims, by founding the Khalsa Panth in 1699 A. D.; the society in which there was no room for castism, untouchability, inequality, superiority and inferiority complexes, use of dissipating intoxicants and narco­ tics, cowardice and cunning. As history bears it out, all the social and religious rites and ceremonies of the Khalsa became separate and distinct from those of the Hindus and doctrinally a new social order was established, absolutely different from the Hindus and the Muslims, though the majority of conservative Sikhs remained under the influence of Hinduism. Guru Gobind Singh, the unique personality of world history, died at a very young age, hardly 42, but he also remained engaged in wars, confronting the Moghul and the Hindu enemies and had to sacrifice his father, mother, 4 Sons, thousands of Sikhs and eventually himself. The period of the Sikh History after his death, became rather more tumultuous and turbulent. Right from the time of the attack of Banda Singh Bahadur on Sirhind in 1710 A. D. to 1799 A. D., the year in 3 Diaitized bv Paniab Diai which Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahore, the Sikhs had to fight battles almost everyday. They were hunted for their heads* by the Moghuls and had to give up their homes and hearths, for far-flung hide­ outs in marshes, jungles, mountains and deserts. So much so that history described their then Homeland as 'the saddle of the horse'. Politically, the Sikhs rose from the plight of homeless wanderers and absconders, peregrinating from place to place, to the position of the rulers of Punjab by 1799 A. D. But what about their religious, moral and social life ? All the Sikh scholars who were the contemporaries of Guru Gobind Singh, were either killad in battles or were martyred by the Muslim rulers. No enlightened Sikh was left to write factual history, preach and practise the Sikh way of life among the Sikh masses. Even the Sikh King, Maha­ raja Ranjit Singh, though known to be uniquely the humble servant and donor to the Sikh Gurdawaras, upto their magnificient construction with gilded beautification, was much more under the influence of the Brahamins than under the Sikh priests or granthies and even the fact and date of his baptism according to the Khalsa tenets are not recorded anywhere in history-whether he was actually baptised or not ? The Sikh shrines fell into the hands of the Hindu Sadhus, afterwards called Mahants who led perverted life. So, the Sikhs relapsed to Brahaminsism from which the Sikh Gurus had extricated them after very tough, rough and sacrificial struggles. Their socio- 4 www^paniabdiqWb^om i U i M l i t e ft SATGURU SAHIB GURDIT SINGH Jl NIRANKARI 21st August, 1868-26th April, 1947 Photo by Sharma Photographer Jan., 1940 religious and ethical life was on the lowest ebb. Darkness of superstitions had re-enveloped the Sikh society. The so-called, Akalis, Nihangs, Jathedars and granthies were apparently laden with iron-brace­ lets, quoits, iron-rosaries and simrnas, with somnifer­ ous jingle and clang, but none dared challenge the Brahamins to reinstate 'Gurmatt' or Sikh Maryada' or the codified Sikh conduct of life, as enunciated by Guru Gobind Singh. Hence, some revolutionary 1 luminary was badly needed to dispel the darkness of ignorance and supertition of idolatry and worship of numerous gods and goddesses. Advent and Evolution of Nirankari Movement : The Nirankari Movement was named after the epithet of Guru Nanak who was called 'Nanak Nirankari', for being the worshipper of the Formless God. The word 'Nirankar' has been used many times in the Guru Granth Sahib and even in the Japji, the most known and widely read composition of Guru Nanak, • the word 'Nirankar' is used 5 times, 4 times from pauri 16-19 in the w ords,'Jo Tudh bhavai saee bhali kaar. Toon sada salamat Nirankar/ (0 Lord, whatever you will is good. O Formless God, you are Eternal). It is used for the 5th time in the 37th pauri. as 'Sach Khand wasai Nirankar'. (The Formless God dwells in the world of Truth). This is how the term 'Nirankar' has been used in Japji with which the Guru Granth Sahib begins. The name of this Movement is self- evident and tells that it began to repudiate the endless forms of Hindu pantheon in which God is worshipped 5 A through innumerable, empty and expensive rites and rituals involving phisiolatry, idolatry, zoolatry, geolatry, plantolatry, ophiolatry and anthropolatry, on which the Brahamins fattened themselves, but the poor and guileless votaries were robbed of their hard-earned money and other va uable necessaries of life. The Sikhs also became as much easy victims to the Brhamamanical priesthood as the Hindu laity was. From birth to death, no ceremony could be performed without the mediation of Brahamins and that also with large and compulsory donatious and offerings as service-fees. None could dare violate the celebrations of the age-old rites and expensive festivals. Thus the poor were born, lived and died in debt, upto pouring the ashes of their dead in the Ganges, at Haridwar. The idols of Hindu gods and goddesses were installed in the circumambulatory passages (Prakarma) of Golden Temple, Amritsar, Darbar Sahib Tarn Taran, and many other historic Sikh shrines. Baba Dayal was born on 17th May, 1783 A. D. at Peshawar in Ward Asiyan, Street Kakkaran. So, he was only three years younger to Maharaja Ranjit Singh who was born in 1780 A. D. at Gujranawala. Baba Dayal inherited spiritual devotion and lofty Sikh Ideals from both paternal and maternal sides. His great grand-father named Devi Sahai, grand-father named Gur Sahai and father named Bhai Ram Sahai, originally hailed from Kabul (Afghanistan), and were the scions of Malhotra dhai ghar Khatris.