[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]
ARTICLE : Khalsa & 5K's not an outdated idea
[Moderator's Note : Posted with explicit permission of original poster by
rajwi@otto.bu.edu]
For SRH readers' information only.
---------- Forwarded message ----------
>Date: 31 AUG 96 16:06:54 GMT
>From: Sandeep Singh Brar <sandeep@io.org>
>Subject: Khalsa & 5K's not an outdated idea
Sat Sri Akal
I would just like to say that the founding principles of the Khalsa - honour,
integrity, morality, willing to be different from those around you are as
valid in 1996 and will continue to be as valid in 2096 as they were in 1699.
The justification that the Khalsa was only created for 'special military
purposes of that time which are no longer applicable today' is a lame excuse.
Just look at history, before Guru Gobind Singh had even created the Khalsa he
had fought the following battles without any Khalsa:
1) Battle of Anandpur, 1682, Bhim Chand - Guru victorious
2) Battle of Anandpur, 1685, Bhim Chand - Guru victorious
3) Battle of Bhangani, 1688, Combined Hill Rajas - Guru victorious
4) Battle of Nadaun, 1690, Alif Khan - Guru victorious
5) Battle of Anandpur 1691, Rustam Khan - Guru victorious
6) Battle of Guler, 1693, Husain Khan - Guru victorious
7) Two Battles of Anandpur, 1694-1696, Mughal forces - Guru victorious
8) Battle at Bhalan, 1697, Jujhar Singh (rajput) - Guru victorious
9 wins out of 9 battles, not a bad record, Guru Ji did not need any Khalsa to
desprately win any battles. In fact after the creation of the Khalsa, Guru
Gobind Singh fought 12 more battles losing some of the famous ones that we
know, battles fought with the Khalsa army this time.
So this lame excuse that Guru Gobind Singh just created the Khalsa as an army
to fight the mughals is just that, an excuse. Guru Gobind Singh did not create
the Khalsa because he needed to win battles or needed soldiers. The Khalsa was
created because Guru Gobind Singh wanted Sikhs who loved their religion more
than anything else including life itself or 'fitting in' in society. Khalsa in
1699 stood out from everyone around them like a sore thumb, Khalsa in 1996
stands out from everyone else around them like a sore thumb.
Society may have changed but the relevance of the 5K's or Guru Gobind Singh's
Khalsa have not. If we as Sikhs can not live up to Guru Gobind Singh's high
standards, that is our own personal weakness, but we should not try to lower
those high standards in order to justify our personal weaknesses.
Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh
Sandeep Singh Brar
The Sikhism Home Page
http://www.io.org/~sandeep/sikhism.htm
Historical Gurdwaras of Punjab
http://www.io.org/~sandeep/gurdwaras/
Sikh Memories: Photographs from Another Era
http://www.io.org/~sandeep/photos.htm
