Golden Temple
The place was unbelievably beautiful. You step into the complex and you feel the peace of the place, and the peace and devotion of all those that are in the complex. We went straight from the train station to the Golden Temple at 4 am, and we were expecting not that many people there, but there were so many! Just as many as there were in 4 in the afternoon! It is THE place of pilgrimmage for Sikhs, and one of THE places to visit in India for tourists and spiritual seekers.
We ended up spending our whole day at the Golden Temple, trying to learn a little bit about Sikhism through the museum, reading in the library, and talking to people (although it was quite difficult to understand the Punjabi-Hindi mix of most folks). Guru Nanak, one of the Great Indian Saints, was the founder of the guiding principles of this "religion". To me and to many "Hindus" (I don't like using this term, which I'll explain why at some point... but for now, I'll use it), Sikhism is within the same philosophical family as "Hinduism". However, if they want a separate identity, then who are we to say that they aren't different? Where did this desire for a new identity come from? According to Guru Nanak, there were many aspects of the "Hindu" way of life that didn't see right, especially the way it was being practised.... the caste system was rigid and oppressive, people were reciting verses without any thought, rituals were being done without understanding, sadhus would leave all their worldy responsibilities and go off into the mountains, idols were being worshipped not as a path to God but as God themselves -- all of these things, he disagreed with. He believed that people should do their worldy responsibilities and commit to God that way. He desired to rid barriers of the caste system.
The Guru Granth Sahib was compiled by the 5th Guru, Guru Arjan Dev - and includes many verses from the first 5 Sikh Gurus, and other Indian saints and poets that coincide with their beliefs. From what I read, the attempt was to rid the glorious Indian culture of the aspects that were making it degenerate, and attempt to "perfect" Indian culture paying respects to great Indian saints and rishis of the past.
As I looked back at the Golden Temple one last time, before we left that night... I prostrated myself and put my forehead to the ground... and bowed down to all the Indian saints, avators, and mahatmas that have enriched our culture, and, personally, my life -- from Ram and Krishna, to Buddha and Mahavir, to Guru Nanak and Kabir, to Gandhiji and Tagore, to Dadaji (Pandurang Shastri Athawale).
some questions:
1) To me, Sikhism seems to negate a lot of things that were being practice by Indians in their religious life... but are there any NEW beliefs that weren't already included within the Indian spiritual philosophy?
2) As much as Guru Nanak didn't want ritualistic reciting of scriptures, and didn't want worship of any person or inanimate object... doesn't it seem that the "Guru Granth Sahib" is now being worshipped? (instead od only being a guide to living)
3) The Sikhs have always fought very valiantly for their faith and religion, and the Mughals and the British realized that the Sikhs were forces to reckon with. This seemed to continue after independence... at least for a minority of Sikhs, who attempted (and, some continue to attempt) to from a separate nation-state of Khalistan. However, is this the common desire of Sikhs? And anywhere in the teachings of the Gurus or the Guru Granth Sahib does it indicate that Sikhs should be separate from mainstream Indian spirituality?
We ended up spending our whole day at the Golden Temple, trying to learn a little bit about Sikhism through the museum, reading in the library, and talking to people (although it was quite difficult to understand the Punjabi-Hindi mix of most folks). Guru Nanak, one of the Great Indian Saints, was the founder of the guiding principles of this "religion". To me and to many "Hindus" (I don't like using this term, which I'll explain why at some point... but for now, I'll use it), Sikhism is within the same philosophical family as "Hinduism". However, if they want a separate identity, then who are we to say that they aren't different? Where did this desire for a new identity come from? According to Guru Nanak, there were many aspects of the "Hindu" way of life that didn't see right, especially the way it was being practised.... the caste system was rigid and oppressive, people were reciting verses without any thought, rituals were being done without understanding, sadhus would leave all their worldy responsibilities and go off into the mountains, idols were being worshipped not as a path to God but as God themselves -- all of these things, he disagreed with. He believed that people should do their worldy responsibilities and commit to God that way. He desired to rid barriers of the caste system.
The Guru Granth Sahib was compiled by the 5th Guru, Guru Arjan Dev - and includes many verses from the first 5 Sikh Gurus, and other Indian saints and poets that coincide with their beliefs. From what I read, the attempt was to rid the glorious Indian culture of the aspects that were making it degenerate, and attempt to "perfect" Indian culture paying respects to great Indian saints and rishis of the past.
As I looked back at the Golden Temple one last time, before we left that night... I prostrated myself and put my forehead to the ground... and bowed down to all the Indian saints, avators, and mahatmas that have enriched our culture, and, personally, my life -- from Ram and Krishna, to Buddha and Mahavir, to Guru Nanak and Kabir, to Gandhiji and Tagore, to Dadaji (Pandurang Shastri Athawale).
some questions:
1) To me, Sikhism seems to negate a lot of things that were being practice by Indians in their religious life... but are there any NEW beliefs that weren't already included within the Indian spiritual philosophy?
2) As much as Guru Nanak didn't want ritualistic reciting of scriptures, and didn't want worship of any person or inanimate object... doesn't it seem that the "Guru Granth Sahib" is now being worshipped? (instead od only being a guide to living)
3) The Sikhs have always fought very valiantly for their faith and religion, and the Mughals and the British realized that the Sikhs were forces to reckon with. This seemed to continue after independence... at least for a minority of Sikhs, who attempted (and, some continue to attempt) to from a separate nation-state of Khalistan. However, is this the common desire of Sikhs? And anywhere in the teachings of the Gurus or the Guru Granth Sahib does it indicate that Sikhs should be separate from mainstream Indian spirituality?
posted by Raj Kanani | 5:51 PM
1 Comments:
1) Sikhism was created to protect all the people of India from one of the Muslim king who was forcing all the Indians to become Muslim. Yes, it carries most of the spiritual values of the Hinduism. Its emphasis is on treating everyone equal. In Hindu religion men are treated superiors to women but Sikhism doesn't allow that. In order to visit most of the big Hindu temples you have to be a Hindu but Golden temple has its doors open to everyone.
2) That is a really good question. Guru Nanak Dev ji was the first saint but did not start Sikhism. He tried to teach people that God resides in you but people had difficulty understanding that. People needed someone to guide them so Guru Gobind Singh ji got all the writings together from all the previous saints and put it together in one book, and said that this will be your guide, your teacher to guide you through life. Guru Granth Sahib is a guide, a Guru, a teacher not God, but people misinterpret it.
3 Khalistan is not a common desire of Sikhs. No, nowhere in Guru Granth Sahib it says that Sikhs should be separated. It’s politics. Sikhs believe that they have not been treated fair in a Hindu dominating country and that is their reason for asking for Khalistan. Like you said it's minority of Sikhs, for political reasons and has nothing to do with the religion.
Just like any other religion, religion is one thing people tend interpret in a way they seem fit to fulfill their selfish desires. Religion is made to help us lead a better life not to make someone's life miserable.
I really like your writings; it makes me question myself on some of the same issues. Thank you for sharing your experiences.
HG
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