Sikhism....

[Gauracandra]

I was wondering if anyone could enlighten me as to the origin and beliefs of the Sikh faith. Several months ago I visited a large Sikh temple in the San Francisco Bay Area. It was very nice and they served out free prasadam. I have been told that their scriptures consider Govinda to be God(though they don't mention Krsna). Based on my limited knowledge I believe the faith started around the 15th Century at the same time as Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Are there any parallels between Sikhism and the Bhakti movement? As I understand, both were reform movements against the caste system and both helped to unite Hindus and Muslims. Caitanya for instance had many Mohammedan followers. So any information on this topic would be of great interest to me.

 

Gauracandra

[animesh]

Well, I have read on Sikhism from verious sources and also have sikh friends from whom I have aquired some knowledge of this religion. Like hindus, sikhs recogniz God as the one not affected by space and time. This is the same as is mentioned in Gita. But they do not talk about avatars. Also, they do not talk about innumerable gods and goddesses. Also, there is no place for asceticism in Sikhism. Everybody is expected to earn his living.

Now let me talk a little about the history of Sikhism: -

 

As is well known Sikhs consider Guru Nanak as their first guru. The advent of Guru Nanak (in 15th century) was as a result of politico-social evil. He raised voice against the tyranny of Babar's army in India. He stressed that everybody should follow three-fold discipline: physical, moral and spiritual. Physical discipline means acts of service to humanity and also living the life of a household at the same time; moral discipline means rising above selfishness, and spiritual discipline means the faith that there is only one Almighty God and is timeless. Guru Nanak asked people to dedicate themselves, day and night to the remembrance of God and His Name. All the ten gurus opposed caste system, discripancy against women and untouchability. They also opposed sati system.

[animesh]

God in Sikhism

Guru Nanak describes the attributes of God in the prayer: "There is but one God. His name is True and Everlasting. He is the Creator, Fearless and without Enmity, the Timeless Form, Unborn and Self-existing." Sikhs do not believe in God for muslim or God for Hindus etc. There is the "Only One God" and is called Waheguru by the Sikhs (wonderful enlightener and wonderful Lord). Gurus have called God by the names like Ram, Rahim, Allah, Mahakal etc. God is present in all things and yet they do not cover His limitless expanse. God is the Whole. Sikhs believe that nobody can know God fully. According to Guru Nanak , "Only one who is as great as He, can know Him fully." By His order, all forms and creatures came into existence. It is the duty of man to study the laws of the universe and to realize the greatness and glory of the Supreme Being. He has created an infinite number of worlds and constellations. The world in which we live is a very-very small as compared to the complete universe.

 

God put His divine spark in man which is called "The Soul". The soul enters bodily forms according to individual's actions. The wall of ego separates the soul from God. This leads to the cycle of birth and death. This can only be ended through meditation or the acquisition of divine grace.

Man is made of spirit and matter: shiv and shakti. The spirit is subtle, while the body is gross. The body has to be cared for, because it houses the soul.

 

Union with God is our goal. Hiw great qualities, Truth, Goodness, Beauty, Love, Purity, Peace, Wisdom, Justice, Mercy etc. are the ladder to Him.

 

[animesh]

In posting the above comments, I have just relied on my memory. So, please correct me if I have missed something important or written something wrongly. In the next comment, I will write about the creation of universe according to sikhism.

[animesh]

Creation of Universe According to Sikhism

This is very much similar to what one can find in Vedas. Guru Nanak said (it is also recorded in Adi Granth): -

 

"There was darkness for countless period.

There was neither earth nor sky; there was only His desire.

There was neither day nor night, neither sun nor moon.

He was in deep meditation.

Only He was present.

Then He willed the creation and world was created."

 

He became manifest: Sargun. He diffused Himself in nature. (Isn't it same what we have read about Kshiridakshayi Vishnu?)

 

God created the three 'gunas' Satv, Rajas and Tamas (again we see parallel with Vedas and Puranas). The universe is made up of five elements ether, air, fire, water, earth and these three gunas.

 

Sikhism gives very much importance to human body.

 

Soul in Sikhism

Sikhism believes in soul, heaven and hell and reincarnation. These belieifs are exactly same as in hinduism.

Heaven and hell

In one of my comments above, I have mentioned that sikhs do not believe in numerous gods and goddesses. I am sorry that I did not make myself very clear. In reality, sikhism also assumes that there are many gods and goddesses. But it does favour worshipping of them. It favours worshipping of only one Supreme God (called as Waheguru, Ram, Rahim, Allah). Sikshism believes that there is Yamaraj who gives people what they deserve as per their karma. As per his actions, a person will go to heaven or hell. But there is conflict among sikhs in this respect. Some belive that heaven and hell are just conditions of mind. Sikhism does not belive that a person can escape punishment at the time of judgement because of intervention of some prophets. It is also belived that if you are sinful in this birth, you will take lower life forms in the next birth. Human form is recognized as the most important form.

 

[Gauracandra]

Animesh,

 

Wow. Thanks for the great reply.

 

Gauracandra

[animesh]

Dear Gauracandra Ji,

Because of some problem it was not possible for me to use internet yesterday. Now only I read your comment. I am happy that you liked my contributions in this forum. First I was thinking that you might be getting bored by so many comments from me. :-)

 

As you may have noticed, sikh gurus have been very much influenced by vedas and puranas. For a lay person they may seem to be completely different from hindus because of difference in rituals, difference in the way they pray, difference in dress etc. etc. But their beliefs are same as those of hindus. In fact, it is not at all surprising that they believe in things in which people of sanatan dharma believe. Because the advent of sikh gurus was to protect citizens against the cruelty of Mughal emperors. Especially guru Tegh Bahadur used his sword for this purpose and hence he is known as Tegh Bahadur (a person who is very brave when it comes to using sword).

 

Correction: In my previous comment, I wrote:

 

"In reality, sikhism also assumes that there are many gods and goddesses. But it does favour worshipping of them."

 

I should have written "But it does NOT favour worshipping of them." This is because sikhs favour worship of only one supreme God whom they call by various names (mostly Waheguru). I have met some of my friends who are under impression that they use this word for their ten gurus. But that is not the truth. Waheguru is used for Supreme God. "guru" is a part of this word because according to sikhism, Supreme God is considered as the ultimate Guru. The first four letters are "Wahe" to express wonder (wow) regarding the creation of Supreme God. The word "Wah" in Hindi means "marvellous".