What is a Sikh?
Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh.
- Daas
What is a Sikh?
To be frank, there is no real
answer that can be understood by reading or learning. The spiritual elevation
of a Sikh1 is so great that we can
only comprehend by becoming a Sikh ourselves. A phrase I prefer is that we are
merely “trying to become a Sikh”. However, I still aim to explore what it is to
be a Sikh and what steps we can take to become Sikhs of the Guru.
Sri Guru Nanak dev ji Maharaj was
very busy and active with their parchar. They spent 24 years on their famous
Udasis where they travelled by foot to all kinds of places with the aim making
people realise their false practices and teaching them the truth of naam. In
this period, it is believed they travelled over 28,000 kilometres. However,
when they returned to Panjab to settle they developed a large following of
devotees who Guru Sahib had decided to call his Sikhs. The need for a name for
these would be to distinguish them from other faiths as at the time in
Hindustan, the 2 most influential faiths were Hinduism and Islam. These faiths
would want to claim Sikhi as part of their own (and still do to this day) but
it is very important to followers of the Sikh faith that we are recognised as a
distinct and independent faith. This does not mean we hold any opposition to
these other faiths. Generally, Sikhs get on quite well with people of other
faiths and we encourage them strongly to make the most of their religions to
advance spiritually and get as close to God as possible from this life. The
teachings of Gurbani are for everyone to take inspiration from and implement
into their own lives to become better beings. Many pieces within Bani come from
interactions between the Guru and people of other faiths (e.g. Japji sahib
evolves from conversations Guru Nanak Dev Ji had with the siddhas) and other
parts speak directly to people of other faiths. Gurbani is something for
everyone and a further point to support this is the inclusion of writings of
saints of other traditions within Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. Traditionally, the
Sangat during the Gurus programmes and services would be a mix of Sikhs and
non-Sikhs. So, what differentiates between Sikhs and non-Sikhs within the
gurdwara Sangat?2
The word Sikh was chosen from the
word shishya, meaning disciple in the Sanskrit language. A disciple is someone
with a master. In the case of Sikhs, their master is the Guru. The Sikh serves
the Guru master with pure love and devotion. The difference is that the
non-Sikhs take the Gurus message, but they don’t adopt the Guru. The Sikhs
recognise what the Guru really is and decide to give themselves to their Guru
and spend the rest of their lives in contemplation and love of the Guru. For
those Sikhs, every thought they think, every word they speak, every action they
carry out, is done solely for their Guru. They live for the Guru with full
faith that the Guru will protect them and keep them fulfilled. The Guru
provides everything we need. Gurbani talks of countless praises of the Guru;
for example, on Ang 17, Guru Nanak Dev Ji says, “The
Guru is the ladder, the Guru is the boat, and the Guru is the raft to take me
across to the lord’s name”.3
A Sikh loves their Guru. they
love them more than they love themselves. In fact, in service and remembrance
of their Guru, the Sikh totally forgets about themselves. Bhagat Kabeer ji
says, “Kabeer, repeating ‘you, you’, I have become
like you. Nothing of me remains in myself.” The relationship between a
Sikh and the Guru is beyond special. It is stronger than the emotion between 2
lovers or 2 friend that go decades back. Such relationships involve a bond
where the individual thinks much of the other person. The Sikh thinks so much
of the Guru that their own identity (and any characteristics or desires
associated with that self-identity) is destroyed of any presence in the mind of
the Sikh. Without the Guru, there is no Sikh. Without the Guru, the Sikh loses purpose.
The Guru doesn’t need the Sikh, but the Sikh needs the Guru. “Chanting the Name, I live; forgetting it, I die.”4 I would like to refer to Bhai Arjan, the son
of Sri Guru Ram Das Sahib Ji Maharaj (later to become the 5th Guru
Sri Guru Arjan Dev Sahib Ji) who was sent away to Lahore by his father (Guru
Ram Das Ji). Reading the story of Bhai Arjan5,
we can see their bairaag, their pain of separation, the state of depression of
being without their Guru. This longing to be reunited with the Guru was much
highlighted within the sakhi. Another aspect of a Sikh which we can learn from
the sakhi is obedience. Remember, a Sikh is a disciple, or a slave, they have a
master (the Guru) who they obey. We call this hukam. The Sikh lives in hukam
and always abides by the Gurus instructions. Bhai Arjan was instructed not to
return from Lahore until Guru Sahib called them back, even though Bhai Arjan
was desperate to return, he still had to ask permission from their Guru. This
was just one example, it goes without question that to understand what a Sikh
truly is, we should look at the lives of our Gurus before they became Gurus as
well as some of the highly renowned Gursikhs6
that have done immense seva for the Guru during the time when Guru ji was in
their human forms. Our itihaas is full of countless stories Gursikhs who we can
learn from to progress on our own journeys on the path of Gursikhi.
A common part of what we see in
history is that the Sikhs see the greatness of the Guru and they do not
question the Guru anymore. We might notice that on discovery of Sikhi we
question why certain things are done in this way or why certain things are done
at all but once someone accepts Sikhi after experiencing the greatness of the
Guru then their only answer to why they do certain things is simply that they
are the Sikhs of the Guru and the Guru says to do this and so they do it. Bhai
Jagraj Singh has described Sikhi in their videos to very much be like a cult
centred around the Guru. There is no free will for the Sikh and this links to
hukam. The Sikh has submitted their free will to their Guru and they put the
Gurus command before their own interests. A great and simple example is
amritvela. The Sikh doesn’t care if they are tired because they wake up anyway because
the Guru says to. Sikhs don’t question the Guru and we can see this when Bhai
Lehna spent the whole night building up and breaking down a wall for Guru Nanak
without question. On the other hand, Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s own sons questioned
why they couldn’t wait until the morning and so they walked away from Guru ji. If
we follow this example, Bhai Lehna went on to become the next Guru of the
Sikhs. A true Sikh is one with the Guru. “The
Guru's Sikh, and the Sikh's Guru, are one and the same; both spread the Guru's
Teachings.”. We can see the Guru
through their Gursikhs. Sant Baba Nand Singh Ji Nanaksar wale was said to have reminded
people of Guru Nanak Dev ji and Sant Baba Jarnail Singh Ji was said to have
reminded people of Sri Guru Gobind Singh ji. The Sikh is one with their Guru
and we should really take whatever we can from these Sikhs. If you should steal
anything, it should be the qualities held by such Sikhs.
Personally, if the Guru is so
highly respected, then I feel the state of that Gurus disciples (Sikhs) is also
very high. These are the people who know the Guru, the people who associate
with the Guru. If we want to know the Gurus message of Sikhi, we can be sure
that the Gurus Sikh can help us. This is the importance of doing saadhsangat,
we should spend time with Sikhs or other people trying to advance themselves on
the path to becoming true Sikhs. Whenever we meet with these likeminded
individuals, we should ask them to teach us something and we should pose our
questions and we should accept what we are told without too much criticism.
It’s easy to associate with those who we might think to be Sikhs, but it is a waste
of time if all parties do not engage in veechar (contemplation) or Simran. I
don’t believe that we are born Sikh. It is something you become after falling
in love with the Guru and there is a lot of work to be done to turn away from
our manmukh ways so that we can transform ourselves into Gurmukhs. It is quite
rare for someone to be born a Sikh unless they are some sort of Sant sent here
to do seva of the panth. The rest of us are born with our deeds gathered from all
our previous lives and we have come here to erase those deeds and absorb
ourselves into naam by giving ourselves to the Guru and their way of life. Sikhi
is a game of love. We are here to fall in love with God but instead we fall
into the trap of falling in love with the pleasures of the world. The Guru
teaches that all these worldly pleasures will always lead to some form of pain
in the future. We shouldn’t put our
hopes into our desires. The reason being that the world we perceive as real is
an illusion7 which
can only bring short term fulfilment since the world itself and everything we
associate with it (i.e. The things we can see, taste, touch, hear etc.) is
temporary and therefore once gone, nothing can really prove its existence in
the first place. The Sikh recognises that attachment to this world and the
identity we associate ourselves with are a disease of ego (haumai) and the Guru
is the doctor who prescribes the naam to eradicate the “I” and “me” so that we
can attach ourselves to the permanent Waheguru instead which will give us everlasting
bliss (anand).
A Sikh is known to be a sant
sipahi. The order of this phrase is very important. The Sikh is a sant first
and then a warrior. The inner sant is far more important to the Sikh than the
outer sipahi. The sant side can be interpreted as being one with the Guru and
living off Sat (truth) and naam. In fact, it is this oneness with naam that the
Sikh gets the strength for their warrior abilities. Looking into our history,
it is quite clear that even those who train hours upon hours each day are no
match for the Gursikhs of the khalsa. The likes of Baba Deep Singh, who fought
with their head in their hand, or Bhai Mani Singh, who was chopped up limb by
limb. Bhai Mati Das, who was sawed in half. These Sikhs could only have got
their strength from their Guru. Therefore, it is vital for a Sikh to
incorporate naam abhyaas into their lives because only then can they truly
represent their Guru in the battlefields. For this reason, Sikhi can be viewed
as a path of the saints. A transformation from attachment to detachment. By
following the prescribed lifestyle based upon naam, the Sikh leaves behind the
false qualities of lust, anger, greed, attachment, and pride. Instead they
become absorbed into naam and by merging with God, the God like qualities of
truth, contentment, compassion, humility and love all run after the Sikh.
Compassion is a big one. The Sikhs care for everyone and pray for the wellbeing
of all regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation. Guru Gobind Singh says
to “recognise the entire human race as one” and
the Sikh serves all of humanity without discrimination because they see Gods
light within all. Such a Sikh who is an embodiment of this teaching would be
Bhai Khaneiya who even during the battles with the Mughals would distribute
water and medical aid to all injured soldiers, whether they were Sikhs or
Mughals. Guru Gobind Singh themselves would put gold on the tips of their
arrows to allow the family of the soldier struck with the arrow to pay for any
medical fees (or a funeral if the soldier lost their lives to the arrow). It is
important to recognise that Sikhs don’t abandon the world to lead their
spiritual lives in forests and mountains. The unique thing about Sikhs is that
they live like monks by devoting their whole life to spirituality, but they do
it while leading the lives of a householder. The Guru recognises that the human
race survives through reproduction and social interaction so the term used is
Grist Jeevan which today is interpreted as conforming to social expectations of
how we should lead our lives (i.e. Going to university and developing highly
successful careers) but it’s actual meaning would be to live within a
civilisation and uphold a household by getting married and having children but
not getting too engrossed into the worlds systems as you still centre your
daily life around the Guru and naam. It certainly doesn’t mean ambition, we
don’t need to aim for the top jobs (though there is use for Sikhs being
“successful” too), if we are able to maintain and support a family then we are
able to live in Grist Jeevan. The point
is that we all have our own individual roles in society, and not all of us are
required to be overly ambitious. Generally, a Sikh would lead a humble life
where the point of focus is their Guru.
The key part of a Sikhs lifestyle
is meditation. The Sikhs of the true Guru wake up every morning before the
sunrise. Many prominent Gursikhs have been known to wake up as early as 1:00 in
the morning. It is in the early morning where our sleep is most enjoyable, but
the Sikhs love the Guru more than their sleep. The early morning hours are very
special and blissful for the Sikh. It is the known as the amritvela because at
this time, the Sikh can access and experience the Amrit from the Bani more easily.
Many Gursikhs also meet up in these hours to meditate together. There are several
forms of Sikh meditation; the recitation of Gurbani, the chanting of Waheguru
(either solo or in the saadhsangat), the swas swas Simran (Wahe is inhaled and
Guru is exhaled) which is taught at the Amrit Sanchar, and finally the singing
of Gurbani (known as kirtan). Meditation is a way of communicating with God who
the Sikh understands to be present within all forms of life, including
ourselves. Meditation allows the Sikh to remain detached from the world and
absorbed into the love of God. Remember that they are disciples, not only do
they have a master, but they are intoxicated with the love of their master. Meditation
is how they express their love and amplify their blessings. “One who calls himself a Sikh of the True Guru, shall
rise in the early morning hours and meditate on the Lord`s Name.”. When
Sant Baba Nand Singh Ji was around the age of 4, he was discovered not to be in
his room in the middle of night. When he was found, he was found sitting on the
edge of a well in deep meditation. Out of worry, his parents asked why he
cannot meditate and remember God in his room for he could die if he fell into
the well and this blessed child’s response was simply that he might fall asleep
in his room and in his sleep, he might
forget God but if he falls asleep on the well then he will fall and die before
he gets the chance to forget his master. This is the Sikhs love for the lord.
The Sikh would rather die than forget their Guru.
Rehat is also a key part of a
Sikhs lifestyle. The tenth master Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji said that they love
the Rehat not the Sikh. The Guru loves what the Sikh does so the Sikh lives to
please the Guru by following the discipline set out by the Guru. The Sikh
should wake up in the early morning and partake in a cold bath (traditionally
this would be in a local river) and some Sikhs say that soap or shampoo should
not be used on the body or hair at this time. During their bath they should
recite Waheguru over and over. After bathing they change their kachere by
taking one leg out of the wet kachera and placing it into the dry one and then
following with the other leg. This ensures that the kachera has never left
their legs. During their ishnaan, they should tie their kirpan around their
heads. Sikhs strictly follow the discipline of the panj kakkars as Guru Gobind
Singh Ji says it is unforgivable to remove them from the body. However, in
extenuating circumstances, it is acceptable for a Sikh to remove a kakkar after
having done an ardas for forgiveness. After their morning ishnaan, the Sikh
partakes in Simran and nitnem consisting of 5 compositions; Japji sahib by Guru
Nanak Dev Ji, Jaap Sahib, svaiye, and chaupai sahib by Guru Gobind Singh Ji,
and Anand Sahib by Guru Amar Das ji. The Sikh doesn’t stop here, they also add
extra Bani of their own choice. Anybody on the path to becoming a Sikh should
at the very least recite Japji Sahib in the mornings. Memorisation of Gurbani
is also important. Japji Sahib should be memorised at the very least. Rehraas
sahib is recited in the evening and Kirtan Sohila is recited before going to sleep.
All Sikhs can read Gurmukhi and traditionally they would read it in the larivar
form.8 Many
Sikhs like to learn kirtan or tabla too or they attend as many kirtan
programmes as they can in their local areas. This is because the benefit of
meditating in the saadhsangat (the congregation where the praises of God are
sung) is far greater than the benefit of meditating alone. The Sikhs greatly
enjoy listening to kirtan and any other forms of music don’t appeal to them.
Anything that isn’t Gurbani is just a noise. The Sikh tries to maintain their
health by consuming healthy foods which are prepared by themselves. Many Sikhs
follow a sarbloh diet where they eat only out of iron utensils so that they can
obtain the iron their body requires but doesn’t get from a vegetarian diet.
Every Sikh gives daswandh. They donate a tenth of their earnings and a devote a
tenth of their time to the panth. They also partake in parchar, to continue
Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s mission of spreading the message of this truth all over the
world.9 Finally,
Sikhs only marry Sikhs and they do it through the anand karaj ceremony.
Marriage in Sikhi means a couple who will make the Guru the centre of their
married life and they will help each other become closer to the Guru while
bringing their children up in a Gurmat based household.
In the mid-20th
century, the panth formed the Sikh Rehat maryada which is a code of disciple
for Sikhs. In this document, a Sikh is defined as someone who believes in one
eternal God, accepts the teachings of all ten human Gurus and has full faith in
Guru Granth Sahib Ji. They shouldn’t follow any Guru except for the eleven
Gurus. they shouldn’t follow any other religion and they should aim to take
Amrit at some point in their lives. The three golden rules of a Sikh are naam
japna, vand ke chakna, and kirat karna. They should meditate on God, share with
the needy and lead an honest life.10
To become a Sikh is the aim of
this journey. Taking Amrit is the first step of this journey, anything prior to
that is primarily discovering the faith but becoming an initiated Sikh is to
say that you will commit to this path and even though mistakes will be made11 and even though you may slack at some points,
you will dedicate the rest of your life to becoming a Sikh of the Guru. Hopefully
this article has given you an idea of what the goal is and what state of
spirituality and lifestyle we are aiming for. The steps to get there are
simple, experience Sikhi through meditation, love Sikhi by learning daily. I
encourage everyone to adjust their lives to help them on the path. Follow
Gursikhs online instead of celebrities. Listen to kirtan instead of noises.
Watch Katha clips instead of tv. Go to the gurdwara instead of the clubs. And
most importantly, make the effort to wake up in the morning and do your Simran.
Remember that the Guru loves and supports us. Taking just one step towards the
Guru will bring Guru sahib millions of steps towards us. Please forgive me for
not referring to Gurbani as often as I should have and for all the other
mistakes that were consistent throughout the article. Waheguru ji ka khalsa
Waheguru ji Ki Fateh.
1 please
note that I am not referring to anyone who claims to be a Sikh. I am referring
to those true Sikhs that we are trying to become and attempting to discover
throughout the article.
2 we shouldn’t use this to judge who is a Sikh or
non-Sikh. Anything taken from this article should be used purely for the
readers own benefit.
3throughout
the article, Gurbani references will be to the English translations of those
references but it is important to recognise that the original Gurbani was
written in Gurmukhi and has a much deeper meaning beyond the translations.
4 chanting naam is a way that we can connect to the
Guru (it’s a whole other topic to understand what the Guru is but it can be
said that the shabad and naam is the Jot which makes our Guru the Guru or it
can also be said there is no difference between Guru and God so naam jap is a
way of connecting to God through the Guru but the point I make while referring
to the quote is that the Sikh lives only when the Guru is present in their
conscious and in their life)
6a
gursikh is another word for Sikh. Many people ask what the difference between a
Sikh and a gursikh is but once you understand the meaning of a Sikh (a disciple
who gives their head to their Guru) then it becomes quite clear that, there is
no difference. You cannot be a Sikh unless the Guru is the centre and sole
purpose of your life. The Guru is the only thing the Sikh has time for.
7an
interesting point here can be said about those who criticise religious people
for not looking at their beliefs and questioning them. It can be said that the
people who don’t believe in religion do the same thing by not looking at the
world they have accepted as real and questioning whether it is real and if it’s
possible for there to be more to life than we perceive.
8a
form of Gurmukhi where all the words in a sentence are joined up,
9sikhs
do not believe in conversion but they still feel the need to make people aware
of this path because it is something that appeals to many people. Sikhi doesn’t
need Sikhs to convert people, the message itself is very appealing to many who
hear of it. The Sikhs duty is simply to spread that message and let the message
do its own work.
10i
do not intend to go into the Rehat maryada in too much detail but please do
check out a three-part explanation by basics of Sikhi on YouTube.
11these
mistakes do have a limit. The act of consuming drugs, meat (debatable), having
an affair, or disrespecting the hair are four sins which leads someone to
betray their Guru. one must go through the Amrit ceremony again to be forgiven
and permitted back into the khalsa.
Bhul chuk maaf karni (forgive me for my many mistakes).
- Daas
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