ARTICLE : Ram in Sikh Thought
Posted By N. Tiwari (ntiwari@rs3.esm.vt.edu)
24 Apr 1997 14:36:13 GMT
This post of mine is an attempt to higlight the
bhakti of 10 Gurus, of the saguna aspect of God.
Quite often, the modern SIkh clergy has claimed,
incorrectly in my opinion, that God and form, do
not go together, as per the Sikh thought. One of
the key arguments of the clergy has been that on
the basis of the Sikh scriptures, (the Guru Granth
Sahib), it cannot be shown that the Sikh Gurus
in any way were worshipping Gods, who possessed
form. It has also been claimed, that whenever,
Nanak et al allude to Ram, Shiva, etc., they allude
to them as mere names of the Nirguna Bramha, and
not Ram the person, who is supposed to be an avatar
of Vishnu, as per the Hindu thought.
What I produce below are 5 verses, from the Sikh
texts themselves, which refute this theological
stance of modern SIkh clergy. The five verses are
taken from the compostions of Nanak et al, and
clearly show, that the person being alluded as
God, atleast in these verses, do possess form,
In short, the Sikh Gurus, atleast in these verses
are offering their prayers to Saguna Bramha. It
is not that there are only 5 such verses, which
prove this assertion of mine. A careful study of
Sikh scriptures will reveal that the number of
such verses, runs into several hundreds.
1. pitaa prahlad siu guraj uthaai, kahan tamaaraa jagdees gusian
jagjeevanu daataa anti sakhaai, jah dekha tah rahia ramaai
(Bhairav Mahla)
This verse alludes to the Narmiha avatar. The demonic father
of Prahlad, Hiranyaksha threatened his son and was trying to
kill him. He wanted to see if Lord could come out of a pillar
to save him. And the Lord did come out of the pillar, in form
of a half lion, half man, and killed the demon. Poet here is
calling Narsimha as Jagadeesh (God), and further says that He
exists, where ever you can see Him. He pays obessiance to a form
(Narsimha) which in Hindu thought is a manifestation of Vishnu.
2. raam kathaa jug jug atal, jo koi gaavey neta
swarga vaas dashrath kiyo, saglee puri sameta
(Dasham Granth)
In this composition, Govind Singh alludes to the
greatness of Lord Ram and His story. He calls him
as Raghuvar (the best among the line of Raghu, an
obvious reference to Ram, the son of Dashrath). He
calls him so great, that upon his death, he took
along with himself the entire people of Ayodhya to
the heavens.
3. man mahi jhoorey ramchandu, sita lachman jogu
hanvantaru aaraadhiaa, aaiaa kari sanjogu
bhoola daitya na samjhai, tini prabha kiye kaam
nanak beparvaahu so, kiratu na mitai raam
(Vara te Vadhik Mahla)
In this verse, Nanak essentially says that Ravan
(the ignorant daitya) did not undestand that Hanuman
and Sugriv were serving the Lord without expecting anything
in return. He, unlike Hanuman and Sugreeva did not realize
the divine nature of the Lord. And Lord Ram is above worries.
He does not have any worries. But, thru his life, he showed
to the average people, that every act is associated
with definite consequences. In this verse, Nanak is calling
Ram as Prabhu, and this Ram is the same, to whom Hanuman
(Hanvantaru aaraadhiaa) worships.
4 kahu nanak iha vipati mein, teka eka raghunaath
(Salok Mahla)
Here, Nanak says that the Lord of Rahhus (Lord Ram)
(here called Raghunath) is the only source of support
during bad times. He relates Ram to Raghu, the ancestor
of Lord Ram, the incarnation of Vishnu.
5. ramchandi maario ahi ravanu, bhedu bibheeshan gurmukhi parchaainu
gurmukhi bandhio setu bidhaatey, lanka lootee daita santaapey
ramchandi maario ahi ravanu, bhedu bibheeshan gurmukhi parchaainu
gurmukhi saain pahan taarey, gurmukhi koti taintees udhaarey
(Ramkali Mahla)
The Gurmukh (here Lord Ram) kiled Ahiravan (brother of Ravan).
He looted Lanka, bridged the ocean, and killed Ravan with
the help of Vibhishan. He caused the stones to float over
the oceans, and liberated (gave moksha) 33 crore souls.
(Here, we are clearly hearing about the exploits of Ram,
the Vishnu avataar, who is credited as having liberated
33 crore souls, and who caused miracles as floating stone
over water.)
--
Nachiketa Tiwari
