|
|
|
|
|
||
Do Sikhs Worship GURU GRANTH? Yes, But!
- Harbans Lal
To date, Sikhs have evolved traditions in which to
worship their guru is a very enlightening experience. They go into a unique way
of reading, reciting, listening, and contemplating on their scripture. The
founders of Sikhism helped this process by laying foundation of several
institutions of exegesis and expositions as part of religious practices. These
practices inculcate intellectual deliberation, humbling wisdom and meditation,
while keeping deep faith in the institution of the Word Guru. In the religious
traditions before Guru Nanak, a guru was always a person in a human form that
was looked upon as a spiritual guide and as a deity to worship. To practice the
tradition, there evolved many rituals and formats of the initiation rituals and
practices of the guru worship. During the lifetime of ten Sikh Gurus, many guru -worship practices inherited from other religions
continued. However, in the year 1708, human or any other physical form of the
guru ended among Sikhs. Thereafter, the forms of the guru worship had to be
drastically changed. These changes turned into novel concepts and formats. The
new format had to uproot many deep-rooted practices into something having
little precedence in the annals of religious history. Previously, when a deity
was not living, an idol, painting, or a statue of the person guru was invented
and worshiped. Now the Word Guru is physically personified in the verses, the
songs, the teachings, and the inspirations. To accommodate this novel paradigm
the guru worship needed entirely novel types of rituals, religious practices,
and above all, channels of communication suitable with the Word form of the
guru. It would need to meld wisdom and faith in creating a novel culture in
spiritual traditions that people could learn to relate to and still not feel
lost or outmoded.
The sacred book of the Guru Granth is revered as Sri Guru Granth
Sahib by the Sikhs to indicate its rank of their eternal Guru. The guru in the
traditions of various spiritual disciplines is looked up to both as a guide for
spiritual knowledge and as a deity subject to worship.
The tradition of deity
worship has been engraved in all of the Eastern religions since the times of
their inception. In Christianity, there are many acceptable forms of worship in
the Body of Christ. In Hinduism, the deity worship is known as pooja and resides
among the
deepest roots of its religious culture.
Worship is Pooja in Sanskrit
meaning any form of worship, communion, or adoration of a holy object with a
purpose of fulfilling a desire. Worship is performed in a ritualistic manner to
consist of essentially four distinct components. There is a worshiper engaged
in the ritual of pooja or worship. The object of worship
varies. Usually, there is either an icon or murti (idol, statue), or any
of the other consecrated objects such as fire to worship. Alternatively, there
is a person who is acquires rank of a deity to worship, such as a person
claiming incarnation of a deity.
The purpose of the worship
is to please the deity represented by the object of the worship so that the
actual deity is invoked. The invoked deity then grants the wishes of the
worshiper. This process has been known as ver daan in the over-all process of the
worship.
The worship is performed
overtly through body postures and movements or inwardly through the process of dhyan or mentation.
Essential components of the
ancient tradition of worship are accepted and acknowledged by Sikh teachings: a
person who worships, specific rituals that constitute
worship, object of worship, and the fruits obtained as result of worship. For
example, Guru Ram Daas describes the ritual of
worship in Sri Guru Granth Sahib.
The one who worships the Guru object with dedicated mind fulfills the heart-full of desires.
Guru Ram Daas, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 303
The Guru Worship as compared
to the deity worship is relatively new in the religious history. The traditions
of Guru Worship originated among the ancient religions when the object of
worship was a living deity. Later, this deity could be a guru instead of a
living or a lifeless object representing God. In Hindu traditions a guru was
always a person in human form. During the life time of the Guru, the
conventional formats of initiation and rituals to worship the guru deity could
be easily defined, applied and ritualized.
When gurus are in the human
form, their initiates need no specific instruction to relate to their guru
except that they are dedicated and respectful to the deity. Sikhs were impacted
by these traditions as most of them were the practicing Hindus before coming to
the house of Guru Nanak. They easily
adopted those practice to the Guru worship though with gradually evolving new
formats.
For example, there is
abundant history of devotees flocking from all over the world to Gurdwara Kartarpur in order to
pay obeisance to the founder of the Sikh religion, Guru Nanak. The town of
However, with the ending of
the guruship in the human form, the guru worship was
soon to be changed into a new concept and format. Further, the new manner would
change a very deep-rooted practice of the guru worship into something having
little precedence in the annals of religious history.
Among Hindus, when their
deity of worship was not living, an idol or a statue of the person deity was
invented and worshiped; Guru Nanak wrote about this practice which continues to
be popular till today.
The Hindus praise the Praiseworthy God through His countless visible forms. They bathe at sacred shrines of pilgrimage; make offerings of flowers, and burn incense before idols of those forms.
Guru Nanak, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 466
For the Sikhs the departure
of their last guru in human form presented a time of resolution, even though
the Sikh gurus encouraged worship of the formless in their life periods.
After Guru Gobind Singh, the Guru would not be in human form that lent
to a formation of any image, idol, painting or a picture. It would not look like
any figure that the devotees were accustomed to worshiping in their past. It
would not have a flowing white beard, sparkling eyes, or colors and icons of a
holy man such as a mark on the forehead or knots in the hair. Their gurus did
not leave any picture or painting of themselves. Thereafter, the Guru of the
Sikhs would be in the form of the Word that is physically personified in the
verses, the songs, the teachings, and the inspirations. None of them would lend to any statue
formation.
Adoption to a formless guru
in contrast to a background of a human guru was expected to change the
tradition drastically. The process of evolution would become an unusual
tradition that would need entirely novel types of religious practices,
procedures for worship, and above all, channels of communications suitable with
the Word form of the Guru. It would need to meld both wisdom and faith in
creating a novel culture of worship in spiritual practice that people could
learn to relate to and still not feel outmoded.
In the unique way that the
Sikhs evolved the traditions in which to worship their guru is a very
enlightening narrative. The purpose of this paper is to present a number of
aspects of this new tradition to clarify the Sikh ways of worshiping their
deity.
The institution of worship
or pooja with its traditional vocabulary and
expressions is to continue in Sikh tradition. There is plenty of acknowledgement in the Guru’s sayings. Guru Ram Das and Guru Arjan
acknowledge this as follows.
Sikhs have love for their Guru in their hearts and they come to worship the Guru.
Guru Ram Das, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 490.
It is good fortune to be able to worship the Guru’s feet.
Guru Arjan, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 395.
Thus there is a clear evidence
of the Sikh tradition accepting the institution of pooja.
Further, as described before, the Sikh tradition accepts four recognized
components of the pooja ritual. For example, Guru Arjan narrates these components while refereeing to the pooja this way.
Whosoever (worshiper) through mentation (ritual) worships (act of pooja) on Guru Moorat (Guru Deity) receives the heart-full desired fruit (fulfillment of desires).
Guru Ram Das, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 303.
However, the actual details
and paradigm of the pooja practice was totally
shifted away from details of the pre-Sikh era.
Although Sikh traditions
kept the format of pooja they replaced the traditional objects
of pooja or worship. Several examples can be
quoted here to show that the conventional objects of worship were rejected.
Stone worship was considered
a mis-guided practice.
The ignorant dense pick up stones and worship them.
Guru Nanak, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 556.
Similarly, lifeless objects
were considered unwise to worship.
You murder living beings and worship lifeless things; at the end you shall endure heavy consequences.
Kabir, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 332.
Why worship gods and goddesses, O Siblings of Destiny? What can we ask of them? What can they give us?
Guru Nanak, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 637.
I am not torn by duality, because I do not worship any other than the Sustainer; I do not visit tombs or crematoriums to worship.
Gur Nanak, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 634.
By great good fortune, such a Yogi is met, who cuts away the bonds of Maya[2]. Nanak serves and worships this wondrous personality, and kisses his feet.
Guru Arjan, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 208.
Worship and adoration of the Pure, Primal Lord comes by worshipping the True Guru, O Siblings of Destiny.
Kabir, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 1340.
Only Guru deity
was accepted as an object of worship in the Sikh teachings.
I worship the True Guru; forever and ever, I surrender to Him.
Kabir, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 1158.
In Sikh tradition the
practice of worship is replaced by the institution of the paath deedar (Lal,
2000). Although we define worship as those practices that invoke the Spirit of
the Deity, the Sikh deity and its spirit was redefined by the new Sikh
traditions, which required a new type of worship. They called it as paath deedar in
their daily prayer.
According to Ungar (1999) “a good worship is when the Spirit is seen in
front of you and touches your passions. Passions are touched when we dare to
admit the truth, when we opt for the depth of love over the little lies (of
ego) that seek not to rock the boat. Passion lets loose when ideas come
together, when someone says something that you knew, but couldn't articulate,
when the separate pieces fall into places. Passion lets loose when people are
called to remember their truest selves, when we break out of the little boxes
that define and separate us. And, of course, passion lets loose when we sing.
Really sing, not reading ahead for the words sung”.
The concept of Guru Worship
is the most basic of the Sikh tenets today and is one of those tenets of
Sikhism, which make this revealed religion distinctive. The very prescription
of the paath deedar in the Sikh Code of Conduct implies that the
most significant worship of his/her Holy Mentor, the Guru, must be through the paath deedar and
this is a must conduct for a committed Sikh.
Further, even though the
invocation of the Deity is supported among the Sikhs, their Deity worship
consists of the enlightenment of one’s consciousness. It is explained by Guru Arjan, that the purpose of worship is to invoke one’s deity
through the religious practices. These practices are Sikh meditation on Naam or nomenon.
I have become a worshipper of the One Name (nomenon); the guru has shown me this pat as an amazing wonder. Resulting from my worship the Divine Light has been invoked, and everything in my mind is illuminated as its result; the guru has revealed this spiritual wisdom to my mind as a reward.
Guru Arjan, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 209.
In this verse, Guru Arjan accepts all elements of a classical definition of
worship which consists of four components. However, he redefined those
components into entirely new concepts. In his narration of the act of worship,
he includes the worshiper (poojari) the deity (One Naam or Name), invoking the deity and the fulfillment of
the desire (all pervasive enlightenment). Thus, Guru Arjan
did not change the ancient tradition but brought out a metamorphosis to give
birth to an entirely new paradigm. Let
us discuss various components of this paradigm in a greater detail.
Various religious traditions
prescribe a wide range of worship objects suitable to cultivate quiescence,
receptivity, and mindfulness during the meditative processes. They laid down
elaborate rituals and their explanations with regards to focusing on physical
and spiritual qualities of a deity. It is under the influence of these
practices that innocent Sikh devotees are found to focus their eyes on either
physical or mental images of the physical body of either one of the ten gurus,
holy person of their choice, or even the body of the Guru Granth
Sahib (including decorations).
Many self-styled gurus in
human form go as far as asking their followers to focus their eyes into the
eyes of the spiritual instructor or another spiritual leader for meditation.
When the holy man is not available, the devotees fix their sight on the
mentor’s images in photographs or paintings. Their religious mentors argue that
these practices are merely tools that are meant to gain initial familiarity
with the features of the guru's body or the body of their other human mentors;
but during the actual meditation, one would focus purely on a mental image of
their form. This approach of mindfulness in worship is rejected in the
contemporary Sikh traditions.
Those who worship idols as instructed by Naarad (an ancient vedic scholar) blind and mute, the blindest of the blind.
Guru Nanak, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 556.
Hindu worshipping their idols to their death; the Muslims perish while bowing their heads.
Kabir, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 656.
Others, who believe, the
Guru Granth to be the eleventh Guru, promote the use of the physical form of
the Guru Granth for worship. They include the body of the Guru Granth or its
decorations, a statue or painting of the guru’s portraits, a written word or a
verse from Sri Guru Granth Sahib, or similar other objects displayed in the
Sikh places of worship. The mentors allege them to be aids in the preliminary
stages of focusing on meditation. Many devotees in their ignorance fall for
this argument and indeed begin to focus on the book (and sometime its
decorations) in which Guru’s verses are inscribed. Many more focus on the
Gurbani verses as printed in the book or on the posters.
All those who follow the
above described rituals and their reasoning are actually mislead by deeply
ingrained traditions from their past; these traditions may blind any individual
who is seeking spirituality from the clergy class rather than from their
eternal guru, the Guru Granth.
Sikh tradition launched a
fresh concept of the guru for worship when their last Guru in human form
ordained to seal the old tradition of the human guru in favor of the new
tradition of the Word Guru for eternity. He installed the scripture as the
living Guru for the Sikhs.
Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth
and the last Guru in human form staged the most significant event of the Sikh
history on October 20, 1708, a day before he left for his heavenly abode (H.
Lal, 2003). He assembled the congregation for what looked like only to make
known his divine plans for leaving his human body. Instead he used this
occasion to make the most profound proclamation of his life.
In annals of history this
event of cannon formation is recorded as the pivotal one. The most contemporary
record, Bhatt Vahi
Bhadson Parganah Thanesar, records it this way. The relevant portion is reproduced in Punjabi language and then
translated below.
Guru Gobind Singh ji, .., buddhvarke dibun, Bhai Daya Singh se bachan hoya, Sri Granth Sahib lai aio, bachan pai Daya Singh Sri Granth Sahib lai aye: Guru ne panch paise ek narial age bheta rakha, matha teka, sarbat sangat se kaha, mera hukam hai, meri jagah Sri Granth ko janana, jo Sikh janega tis ki ghal thaen paegi, Guru tis ki bahuri karega, satt kar manana.
On Wednesday, Guru Gobind Singh
called for the holy congregation. The cantor party of Bhai Nath Mal, a
Sehaj-dhari Sikh (for more information see H. Lal, 1999), sang sacred hymns.
The Guru asked Bhai Daya Singh to bring Sri Granth Sahib. Upon hearing Guru’s
order, Daya Singh brought Sri Granth Sahib: Guru placed five coins in front of
the Granth and bowed. Then he addressed the congregation and said. This is my
instruction. Accept Sri Granth in my place and seek from it whatever guidance
you need. Any Sikh who would realize
this, his/hers efforts would be rewarded and the eternal Guru would take care
of the seeker. Take it as a truth.
The Guru Granth (Lal, 2002a)
is a compilation of hymns of the Sikh gurus and other holy persons, thirty six
in all. They are believed to contain the revealed messages from the divine
inspirations to the holy minds (Lal, 2003a). They were lastly bounded in a
volume by Guru Gobind Singh. This volume was installed as the Eternal Guru of
Sikhs on October 20, 1708, and the knowledge contained in the hymns were made
as the object of the Sikh worship.
The image of Guru Granth for
the purpose of worship or meditation must not be any physical configuration or
any image formed either as a product of the imagination, painting, drawing,
printing or formed in any other way. Rather, when a seeker brings an actual
image of the guru to mind, it always means attention to and recall of some
adjectives the seeker recalls regarding the divine entity or manifestation.
They are compassion and contemplation. They can be the meaning of the Guru’s
verses that touch one’s heart at that very moment, or other qualities of the
Infinite Wisdom as being imminently present. We may call this practice as the
guru worship or sabad parmaan.
According to the Sikh
theology, the sabad parmaan
or Gurubani is the objective of meditation and not
any physical form of the Guru. This is emphasized and re-emphasized in the Guru
Granth in many places. Let us examine some of the evidence in this light as
below.
The compiler and the author
of Guru Granth, Guru Arjan writes about the mentation
and worshiping of the guru in this way.
Meditate on the image of the Guru within your mind by letting your mind recognize the Word of the Guru's Sabad, as a Mantra.
Guru Arjan, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 864.
Because of the significance
of considering Guru’s Word as the Guru’s body, Bhai Gurdas
took great pains to explain the concept of Guru Sabad
as either the object of sustained mentation or that
of worship. Bhai Gurdas was deputed by Gur Arjan as the first exegesist
to expound guru’s philosophy to the masses through speaking to the congregation
about the scripture. Here are a few citations from this theologian of the
highest repute in the Sikh annals.
Bhai Gurdas
resounded Guru Arjan’s
teachings in this way.
You should practice sustained mentation (dhyan) on the Word of the Guru, and consider it alone to be the image or statue of the Guru who is always with you. The seekers who are Guru-oriented acquire the knowledge of the Guru’s Word. This way they do not leave any space or distance between them and the Guru.
Bhai Gurdas, Vaar 3, Pauri 10.
The true Guru is Truth Personified. The Guru oriented people know this Truth to be the basis of their dhyan (sustained mentation) in meditation.
Bhai Gurdas, Vaar 6, Pauri 19.
The Word of the Guru is the image for worship; the Guru-oriented Sikhs listen to it and make use of the holy congregation as the metaphoric seat of the formless Creator.
Bhai Gurdas, Vaar 2, Pauri 11.
You must be fully cognate of the Word of the Guru and must not permit the mind to go into delusions. Absorption of your consciousness into the Word will make you vigilant and you will get across the ocean of life this way.
Bhai Gurdas, Vaar 3, Pauri 19.
The one who learns a relationship between the Word and the consciousness is divine. Bring this vision in your dhyan or sustained mentation that will constitute an idol or form of the Guru for your worship.
Bhai Gurdas, Vaar 13, Pauri 2.
Word of the Guru is the idol of Guru and the time of the holy congregation in the ambrosial hour.
Bhai Gurdas, Vaar 24, Pauri 11.
The Word of the guru is the physical body of the Guru. It becomes perceptible in the holy congregation.
Bhai Gurdas, Vaar 24, Pauri 25.
When as Guru oriented seeker contemplates on the soothing Word of Guru, the true Guru becomes manifest in the consciousness.
Bhai Gurdas, Vaar 20, Pauri 29.
The seekers accept equally the Guru’s Word and the holy congregation as the Guru’s body. They adore the ONE with quiescence and after destroying the duality they rejoice the Will of God.
Bhai Gurdas, Vaar 32, Pauri 2.
Thus, all evidence goes to
suggest that there is a definite distinction between a traditional worship or
meditation promoted in ancient
As seen from the textual
analysis, the teachings of the Guru Granth promote the tradition of worship but
reject the physical forms of the deity guru as objects of that worship or
meditation. Both human form and the book
form are forbidden to meditate on. Thus, the true Sikh practices, rather,
promote a novel idea of the Paath Deedar meaning mentation of Sabad Parmaan. They
make a clear distinction between the meditative vision of Sabad
Parmaan contained in the Guru Granth and the
physical forms of Guru Granth as the objects for the meditative practices.
For Guru Grant worship or shabad deedar,
knowledge of the meaning of the verses of Sri Guru Granth Sahib is a
pre-requisite. First of all, we need to comprehend the literary meaning of the
verses. Then to follow them by contextual meaning and interpretations, and
their implication in life that make sense to each one of us. To accomplish this
all Sikh gurus laid foundation of exegesis as an important religious
institution. The very first day of its installation the Guru Granth translation
was done in the form of exegesis.
Guru Arjan completed the
first edition of the Guru Granth Sahib in 1604. When he installed it in the
holy precincts of Sri Harimandir at the Golden
Temple of Amritsar, the Guru instructed the Sikhs to read the Granth with full
wisdom of their mind. He asked to imbibe the meaning with the faculty of full
understanding as opposed to a mere ritualistic reading. A great Sikh historian of eighteenth century,
Bhai Santokh Singh (translated in 1984) while reporting the Guru’s instructions
wrote as follows.
All of you should read the
Granth with full wisdom of mind, and your age old problems will be resolved.
Similarly, the Sikh
theologian, Bhai Gurdas, accepts only that person as
worth of the Guru’s religion who is guru oriented and who obeys the guru’s will
in accordance with the deep deliberation of the Guru’s verses.
The Way of the Guru-oriented is defined as adoption to the wisdom of the Guru and also to live in the way of the Divine and to contemplate upon the Word of the Guru.
Bhai Gurdas, Vaar 9, Pauri 2.
Gurbani knowledge will begin
with the true meanings of the verses. The true meaning of scripture is
difficult to standardize because the actual meanings must touch the hearts and
lives of a seeker who may comprehend the concepts specific to the personal
situations. Thus, over time, one expects the meaning to be a continuum of
actual meanings to different cultures.
We have many schools that
employ many approaches to the translation of the Guru Granth (Gurbani) verses.
Gurbani contains knowledge on relationship between divine and humans, creator
and creation, and, between infinite wisdom and human mind. They may not be so
easily understood or described in human language. It is often likely to be
interpreted into what may not be apparent from its literary meanings or sounds.
As Guru Arjan said,
Theology is profound and unfathomable. It is heard in one format but understood in different formats. It is beyond usual descriptions.
Guru Arjan, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 498.
Guru Nanak further explained
the universality of the meanings of Gurbani throughout ages in this way.
Universal is my God and, therefore, his Lingua franca is universal. His word is written in a book of the time.
Guru Nanak, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 421.
While translating the Guru
Granth verses one must be cognitive of one important reality; Guru Granth
verses teach mostly in metaphors, allegories, similes, and fables, spoken in
natural languages of the time. Thus many terms in its natural language acquire
different meanings in different contexts. Metaphorical processes allow natural
languages to transcend many of the limitations of a formal language resulting in
greater flexibility of expression.
Sikh gurus lived and
traveled in Hindu and Muslim worlds so they used the metaphors of their time
and places. This is not unique to Sikhism. Jesus was a Jew and spoke about
Moses, Abraham and Isaac. And Buddha was raised Hindu and he referred to Hindu
symbols and gods in his teachings as well. But it isn't those parts of what
Nanak, Jesus or Buddha said that gave birth to Sikhee, Christianity or Buddhism respectively. Rather these
religious leaders were preaching serious reforms and doctrinal breakthroughs.
They preached a new way for their times.
So what if the Gurus spoke
of Hindu gods in poetry or if Buddha was born from the seed of Ganesha or Christ
thought himself the Jewish Messiah? They and their companions were speaking in
the poetic metaphors of their times.
It is for these reasons that
translation of Gurbani using a merely literary grammar and literary meaning
often do not suffice. Liberal use of
metaphors, similes, and fables were used purposely in the Guru Granth verses to
allow the literary meanings and structures to alter with time. These expansions
are often beyond the alterations possible within only the literary meaning.
To comprehend properly, the
Guru’s verses must be first analyzed in formal languages, and then must follow
its metaphoric meaning or the intrinsic meaning that transcends time and
history. This is a very critical
consideration while meditating on the eternal teachings of Guru Granth in the
new world.
The actual process of the
worship begins with dhyan on the paath deedar or the
sustained mentation on the discourse between the
human mind and Gurbani where concentration and intellect of mind are spent to
the spiritual understanding to be attained through the vehicle of Sabad Parmaan. As
the Guru said,
Within my heart, I meditate with sustained mentation on the Word of the Guru's Teachings. With my tongue, I chant the Song of the Creator.
Guru Arjan, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, P. 740.
Through the sustained mentation and reverberation of Sabad Parmaan,
a Sikh invokes many forms of spiritual practices including a mentor worship or
meditation. In this process, spiritual theology and its applications in life
are instilled into the consciousness through the light of the Guru’s
teaching. Through this process, we make
the Gurbani alive in our mind. When we keep the Word alive in our consciousness
by dwelling on its meaning during our prayers, we shall find that we are
worshiping in its highest form. We are letting the Word of truth abide in us
and Guru becomes the activity of our consciousness.
According to Sikh
theologian, Bhai Gurdas, the actual worship or mentation process is to seek the vision of Guru and then
equip ourselves to conquer all of the mind’s evils. Thus, Bhai Gurdas describes sustained mentation
on the Guru as:
To focus sustain mentation on the Guru’s portrayal is to dwell on the comprehension of the Guru’s sabad. This comprehension of the Sabad (and its Parmaan) becomes a powerful weapon to conquer the five evils.
Bhai Gurdas, Kabit 135.
This practice of Guru
Worship begins with pondering over a scriptural verse for our mindfulness and
meditative mentation. It can be practiced by ways not
too difficult for a beginner or too simple for an advanced student.
In the beginning, a verse
with a central thought is brought to mind in a manner to chant silently or
reverberate on its inner meaning. To start with, some character of the verse is
practiced through the tongue in silence as a line of poetry or as a
metaphysical cliché. Use this as an exercise in a simple form of meditation of
mindfulness in which we begin with a central idea, theme, or quotation and
ponder towards revealing its inner meaning. Then it is replaced by its inner
meaning that is revealed to us from within the inner depths of mind. We drink
it like a thirsty traveler who finds cold water from the depth of a well. The
Guru described this practice as:
Taste with your tongue the subtle essence of the Almighty by dwelling on and contemplating the True Word of the Sabad. The Lord's Ambrosial Nectar is overflowing in the depth of your heart; as the water-carrier, you may draw and drink the divine nectar through the Sabad.
Guru Amar Daas, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, P. 570.
If we are earnest, this
practice of worship or paath deedar shall
mean to take one or the other verse from Gurbani and use it for the act of the
dhyan into the consciousness. Then, we will
practice to abide in that statement of truth so that we shall be meditating on
it. Soon we will be in the state of sustained mentation.
We will be exhilarated and grateful for achieving mindfulness in our meditation
with one of the most important teachings that has ever been given to the human
race. We will appreciate the Guru’s testimony of this state as quoted below.
I am a sacrifice; my soul is a sacrifice, to those who enshrine the Word from the Guru's verses within their minds. In the midst of the darkness of the world, they obtain the Immaculate One, and their human light merges into the Cosmic Light.
Guru Amar Daas, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, P. 112.
Another verse from the Guru
Granth says,
The Immaculate Ambrosial Nectar is obtained from the Guru. When selfishness and conceit are eradicated from within, then there is no attachment to Maya (Note 1). Immaculate is the spiritual wisdom, and totally immaculate is the meditation, of those whose minds are filled with the Immaculate Verses of the Word.
Guru Amar Daas, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, P 121.
Essentially, what the Guru
is saying is that, if your efforts in paath deedar lead you in the paath deedar so that your consciousness so that it abides in
the Word and the Word abides in you, you shall reach the heights that are most
exhilarating. All of this is achieved
through the Grace of the Guru in the worship process.
By Divine Will the Infinite makes us happy. The Infinite shows Mercy to us, the seekers. The Perfect Guru makes everything perfect. Guru implants the Ambrosial Naam, the Name of the Lord, in the heart. My Guru did not take into consideration the past history of my actions, or my Dharma, my spiritual practice. Guru has rid me of my filth, and made me stainless and pure. I have sought the Sanctuary of the Perfect Guru. God does and causes everything to be done. By God’s Grace, Says Nanak, Guru saves us.
Guru Arjan, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, P. 1184.
Sikh worship must be
continually practiced using any first opportunity after the Morning Prayer, and
to repeat the process during the day and again in the evening. According to
Guru Ram Das, a Sikh is the one who gets up every morning to worship, and then
to continue this practice all day.
One who calls oneself a Sikh of the True Guru, shall rise in the early morning and worship on the numenon. Upon arising early in the morning, a Sikh is to bathe the body, and cleanse the mind. Through the Instructions from the holy mentor, a Sikh is to worship on the Creator and Sustaining force. All sins, misdeeds and negativity shall be erased. Then, at the rising of the sun, a Sikh is to sing Gurbani; whether sitting down or standing up, one is to worship. The Guru is pleased with one who worships with every breath and every morsel of food. The Guru's Teachings are bestowed upon that person, who becomes the favorite of the Creator through worship, kindness and compassion. The humble Nanak seeks for the dust of the feet of that Sikh, who himself recites the Naam and inspires others to do the same.
Guru Ram Das, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, P. 305.
The day begins with reciting
the Sri Guru Granth Sahib into one’s contemplation. Then a Sikh seeks inner
meanings of the verses followed by asking one’s mind: Why did this particular
verse was written for me? Does it have an inner meaning for me? What is its
significance to me at this time and how will it touch my life in near future?
As you continue
contemplating and brooding on a verse another thought may come to your
attention. Consider both of these thoughts: Is there any relationship between
them? Is there any coherence? Why did this quotation follow the first one? By
this time probably a third idea and then a fourth would have come, and all
these thoughts would have inspired out of your awareness, out of your consciousness.
In this short period of the reading worship that may have been of only a few
minutes' duration, you have experienced spirituality revealing itself; you have
opened yourself to divine Intelligence and Love. You worshiped the Word of God,
which is quick, sharp and powerful. You now realize that, the Guru worship does
not consist of just bowing before the Guru Granth or even just reciting the
verses from the Guru Granth. It is much more.
I continuously sing the Glorious Praises of the ONE, day and night; singing the ONE's Praises, I cannot find the limits. The mind of the Guru-oriented returns home; it meets the God of the Universe to the beat of the celestial drum. I see the Divine with my eyes, then my mind is fulfilled; with my ears, I listen to the Guru's Bani, and the Word of His Sabd. By listening, my soul is softened, delighted by the realization of subtle essence, chanting the Name of the God of the Universe. In the grip of the three qualities (Note 2), they are engrossed in love and attachment to Maya; only as Guru oriented do they find the absolute quality, absorption in bliss. With a single, impartial eye, look upon all alike, and witness God pervading all."
Guru Ram Das, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, P. 833.
In the Sikh traditions, guru
worship is an essential part of the religious practices as is the case with
other world religions. However, there is a drastic departure from the
conventional view of the worship. The worship in the Sikh traditions is unlike
from others both in theory and in practices. Where as the object of worship
representing a deity in the annals of religions has always been a human figure
of the deity or its physical replica, the Sikh practices forbid the use of any
human figure or a physical object for this purpose. Rather, it substitutes the
Word Guru as an object of worship.
The Sikh worship is simply a
process of seeking mentation on Sabad Parmaan (Lal,
2002) to first imbibe the concepts of
truth in the mind and then to experience the truth in the real life. Should the
Sikhs worship faithfully and regularly, it should groom their human mind to
permit the divine consciousness to function, and to permit the sense of the
Word Guru to live in their heart.
Sikh worship is evoking the
Guru within. Here, faith in the person of the Word Guru is essential but
intellectual acceptance is also necessary and in-escapable prerequisite for
this experience. But more importantly the
worship is an affirmation of an otherwise un-affirmable relationship between
one’s consciousness and the Word of the Guru. This is a state of invoking the
deity or the witness consciousness in worship. At this stage of worship, one
witnesses the Guru reflected in the consciousness in stages like the reflection
of moon on the lake water; first on a wave, then on ripples, and finally on a
quiet and unruffled expanse of water. For example, Guru Ram Das says,
The life-giving word of the Guru is very sweet. Rarely some Guru-oriented seekers may witness and taste it. If they do, then the Divine Nectar would shine within their heart and they will drink the supreme essence. Then they are at the gate of the Truth, which vibrates to them like a musical instrument.
Guru Amar Daas, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, P. 113.
This stage is essential to
derive full benefit of worship. It is to actually witness the truths of the
Guru’s teachings within the consciousness. It is to make the darkness of
ignorance disappears.
"When the lamp is lit, the darkness is dispelled; through reading the scriptures, sinful intellect is destroyed. It is like when the sun rises, the moon is not visible. Wherever spiritual wisdom appears, ignorance is dispelled."
Guru Nanak, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, P. 791.
One may conclude this
discussion of Sikh worship by citing a verse from the Sikh theologian, Bhai Gurdas.
To focus meditatively on the Guru’s portrayal is to dwell on the comprehension of Guru’s sabad. This comprehension of the knowledge becomes a weapon to harness the five evils.
Bhai Gurdas, Kabit 135.
Lal, (Bhai) Harbans. Boundless Scripture of Guru Granth Sahib,
Studies in Sikhism and Comparative
Religion, 21 (2): 47-56, 2002a
Lal, (Bhai) Harbans. Guru
Granth Paath: The Sacred
Lal, (Bhai) Harbans. Guru Granth: A Unique Approach to Eternalize Revealed Theology,
Studies in Sikhism and Comparative
Religion, 23 (2): 2003.
Lal, (Bhai) Harbans. Sehjdhari Sikhs: Their Origin and Current Status
in the Panth, In: SIKH IDENTITY:
Continuity and Change, Eds. Pashaura Singh and N. Gerald Barrier, Manohar
Publications,
Lal, Harbans. We
must be Truly Inspired, Akal J. of Spiritualism, 1: (4, January-March), 27-33, 2003.
Oberoi, Harjot., The Construction of Religious Boundaries,
Singh, Santokh. Sri Gur
Surj Prakash, Raas 3,
Page 50, 1-12 (2180-41), Reprint Khalsa Smachar,
1984.
[1] For an
earlier version of this paper see, Guru Granth Worship the
[2] Maya is the phenomenal world or materialism that is deceptive and illusory and that lures human souls away from the Divine reality. Under its influence the Creator is forgotten, worldly attachments take root and the duality becomes the object of interest. (Guru Amar Das in Sri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 921.)
Copyright©2007 Harbans Lal. About the author
Print this Article
Email this Article
Comment on this Article