My Midterm

Discuss the history and beliefs of Sikhism. In discussing the history and beliefs of Sikhism make sure that you compare and contrast the "Singh Sabha" (define) view of Sikh history with the work of "W.H. McLeod." Offer several "specific differences" of "historical interpretation."

Answer:

Sikhism began in the sixteenth century India with the teachings of Nanak. Since his death there have been nine more human gurus. The principle belief within the Sikhism is faith in one God (who was without a specific form) and the pursuit of salvation through a disciplined from of personal meditation by repeating the name of God. Sikhs have their roots in the traditions of naive Indian concepts such as karma and reincarnation.

The Sikhism religion was credited as starting with Nanak. However Nanak had only added his own creative thought to Sant traditions. While many biographers had written about Nanaks’ attempt to blend Hindu and Muslim ideas, W.H. McLeod’s study indicated that Nanak actually shunned both indicating that neither was acceptable as a means for spiritual understanding. Instead McLeod mentions that Nanak was more closely related to his Sant relationships.

Angad was the next guru leader succeeding Nanak in which the specific teachings of Nanak were carried on. The next guru leader, Amar Das, however, implemented significant changes. He established caste free dining, which allowed all Sikhs to challenge the social hierarchy of Hindu caste culture. He also set up established certain festivals and rituals, as a way of creating a sense of community for the people. Later as the number of followers grew, Amar Das instituted a form of administration (group leaders/deputies) that became responsible for overseeing locations and or tasks. Amar Das was one of the first to begin collecting any sayings from the prior gurus (which became input for the Adi Granth sacred writings.)

Next in line was his son-in-law, Ram Das. Ram set up the city of Amritsar to become the group’s center, (this land had been previously granted by the Mughal Emperor Akbar as a sign of peace and respect.) Out of Ram Das' three sons, Ram Das had chosen the youngest, Arjan to lead after his death. This created resentment from his oldest Prithi Chand. In response Prithi decided to develop his own religious writings. Arjan reacted to this by further collecting the govindval pothis and the Adi Granth (sacred book of saying of the Sikh gurus and Sant teachers.) Arjan build the groups first religious site known as the Golden Temple.

During this period the Sikhs began to experience their first strong form of persecution from the Mughal Emprire. Eventually the Mughal Emperor Akbar was succeeded by Jehangir who was extremely intolerant of the Sikhs. His resentment toward them peaked when his son Khusrau, ran away and sought the guidance of Arjan. Akbar has Arjan arrested, however while in custody Arjan died. Thus the Sikhs made Arjan a martyr of the religion.

Arjan's eleven year old son, Har Gobind, became the next successor. Har Gobind organized a first Sikh army signaling the shift in the group from being peaceful into a military force. The use of martial arts by the Sikhs can be traced back to influx of Jats to the religion (Jats were a farming caste with a strong military tradition.) Har Gobind was noted for wearing two swords around his waist, one a sign of temporal and the other for spiritual strength. The next Mughal ruler, Shah Jahan was even more intolerant than Jehangir. Har Gobind and his group then left to seek refuge in the Himalayan foothills.

Har Gobind appointed his second grandson Har Rai to succeed him. During his time the Sikhs were still living in the seclusion and returned to peace. Har Rai five year old son, Har Krishan became the next Sikh leader. Following Har Krishan was Tegh Bahadur. Tegh Bahadur was the grand uncle of Har Krishan. In his time he organized resistance against the then Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb's had a strong determination to exterminate all religions except Islam. Tegh Bahadur was eventually arrested and publicly beheaded. The next leader Gobind Singh was Tegh Bahadur's son. He was only nine when his father was executed. During his reign the Mughal tyranny became too much for the Sikhs to endure and thus felt their duty to fight. Gobind Singh reestablished the martial arts exercises and promoted the utilization of arms to defend themselves. During one of the battles with the Mughals all four of Gobind Singh's sons were killed.

With no family heir left to pass the torch, Gobind passed the role of guru onto the sacred writings themselves. Gobind Singh is also credited with implementing the community of the pure (Khalsa) in 1699. Khalsa members followed a certain code of behavior (no smoking, no eating Muslim hala meat, observes the wearing of the five ks (uncut hair, a comb placed inside the turban, a bracelet, a sword and short cotton briefs.) The five ks gave the Sikhs and important tool for social cohesion as they could easily recognize each other while building a feeling of comradeship. Even though Gobind Singh was credited for it the code of behavior actually evolved over three centuries. After Gobind Singh's death Sikhism actually grew larger to that of one of the major world religions today.

In 1880 the Singh Sabha movement instituted a more orthodox view and stance of the Sikhs. Improvements made by the British (roads, canals, hospitals, schools, etc...) won many Sikhs over to their administration. In 1850 there were some British sentiments which lead to sporadic acts of violence leading to a Mutiny in 1857. However a vast majority of the Sikhs actually sided with the British and even volunteered in the British army. Because the Sikhs were a strong martial race Sikhs were often recruited to the British army and encourages observing the Khalsa. Thus in a way the British helped crystallize the Sikh identity as the promoted the Khalsa standards in the military along with the use of the title Singh. The advantage of being a Sikh helped keep Sikhs from falling back into Hinduism.

In 1873 the Singh Sabha society was officially established. This move led to the rise of the Khalsa Sikhism. This society was organized to revive interest and preserve the identity in the Sikh tradition. The Singh Sabha (later becoming the true Khalsa) institutionalized the view of Sikhism as a separate religion. It requested that Sikhs follow the ways of the Khalsa by wearing the five ks. Via written media it clarified the Sikh ideas which helped to establish the Sikh orthodoxy.