Sikh sect
Gangushahi is a Sikh sect that is mostly found in the Shivalik Hills region.
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Gangushahi is a Sikh sect that is mostly found in the Shivalik Hills region.
The Gangushahi sect that can be traced back to Gangu Shah, also known as Gangu Das, whom was a manji preacher assigned by Guru Amar Das to the Shivalik Hills region, being given a seat in the Sirmur region. [1] [2] [3] Gangu Shah had been born into a Basi Khatri family in Garhshankar. [2] According to Sikh lore, Gangu had presented four pice weight of gur, all of his material possessions, to Guru Amar Das before the guru dispatched him to on the preaching mission to the Shivalik Hills. [4] Over-time, his preaching attracted many followers, with the group growing into their own order. [2] The great-grandson of Gangu, Javahar Singh, consolidated a new sect of Sikhs based on the following of Gangu. [note 1] [1] [2] During this time, the Gangushahi leader Javahar Singh commanded a large force in the hills region. [1] The Gangushahis constructed their own shrines at Daun (near Kharar in Ropar district), which had been built under Gangu Shah, and Khatkar Kalan (near Banga in Jalandhar district), which had been built under Javahar Singh. [2] These shrines are still places of veneration to this day by followers of the sect. [2]
The Gangushahis were ex-communicated by the Khalsa when their incumbent gaddi , Kharak Singh, in circa 1708 (around the time of Guru Gobind Singh's death) said the rest of the Sikhs congregations were "widowed" since no Sodhi was on the gaddi, implicitly implying that he is left to lead the Sikhs as a guru . [2] [5] Furthermore, there are claims he performed miracles. [2] The Gangushahis under Kharak Singh were against the khande di pahul ceremony, insteading advocating for the original charan amrit initiation ceremony. [2]
Gangushahis still exist today, albeit in small numbers, inhabiting the Shivalik Hills region, particularly in the areas of Jauharsar, Pinjaur, Dagshai, and Nahan. [2] They maintain their own deras and they do not strictly adhere to mainstream Sikh customs nor rehat (codes of conduct). [2]
Sikhism, also known as Sikhi, is a monotheistic religion and philosophy that originated in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent around the end of the 15th century CE. Sikhism is classified as an Indian religion or Dharmic religion along with Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism. It is one of the most recently founded major religious groups and among the largest in the world with about 25–30 million adherents.
Guru Gobind Singh was the tenth and last human Sikh Guru. He was a warrior, poet, and philosopher. In 1675, at the age of nine he was formally installed as the leader of the Sikhs after his father Guru Tegh Bahadur was executed by Emperor Aurangzeb. His father was the ninth Sikh Guru. His four biological sons died during his lifetime – two in battle and two executed by the Mughal governor Wazir Khan.
Khalsa refers to both a community that considers Sikhism as its faith, as well as a special group of initiated Sikhs. The Khalsa tradition was initiated in 1699 by the Tenth Guru of Sikhism, Guru Gobind Singh. Its formation was a key event in the history of Sikhism. The founding of Khalsa is celebrated by Sikhs during the festival of Vaisakhi.
Dasvandh is the one tenth part of one's income that one should donate, both financially and directly in the form of seva, according to Sikh principles.
Udasis, also spelt as Udasins, also known as Nanak Putras, are a religious sect of ascetic sadhus centred in northern India who follow a tradition known as Udasipanth. Becoming custodians of Sikh shrines in the 18th century, they were notable interpreters and spreaders of the Sikh philosophy during that time. However, their religious practices border on a syncretism of Sikhism and Hinduism, and they did not conform to the Khalsa standards as ordained by Guru Gobind Singh. When the Lahore Singh Sabha reformers, dominated by Tat Khalsa Sikhs, would hold them responsible for indulging in ritual practices antithetical to Sikhism, as well as personal vices and corruption, the Udasi mahants were expelled from the Sikh shrines.
Jainism (/ˈdʒeɪnɪzəm/), traditionally known as Jain Dharma, is an ancient Indian religion. Jain dharma traces its spiritual ideas and history through a succession of twenty-four leaders or tirthankaras, with the first in current time cycle being Lord Rishabhanatha, whom the Jain tradition holds to have lived millions of years ago, the twenty-third tirthankara Parshvanatha whom historians date to 8th or 7th century BCE, and the 24th tirthankara, Mahāvīra around 500 BCE. Jains believe that Jainism is an eternal dharma with the tirthankaras guiding every cycle of the Jain cosmology.
Anandpur Sahib, also referred simply as Anandpur, is a city in Rupnagar district (Ropar), on the edge of Shivalik Hills, in the Indian state of Punjab. Located near the Sutlej River, the city is one of the most sacred religious places in Sikhism, being the place where the last two Sikh Gurus, Guru Tegh Bahadur and Guru Gobind Singh, lived. It is also the place where Guru Gobind Singh founded the Khalsa Panth in 1699. The city is home to Takhat Sri Kesgarh Sahib, the third of the five Takhts in Sikhism.
Panj Pyare refers to a gathered ad hoc quintet of five baptised (Amritdhari) Khalsa Sikhs who act as institutionalized leaders for the wider Sikh community.
Bhai Mani Singh was an 18th-century Sikh scholar and martyr. He was a childhood companion of Guru Gobind Singh and took the vows of Sikhism when the Guru inaugurated the Khalsa in March 1699. Soon after that, the Guru sent him to Amritsar to take charge of Harmandir Sahib, which had been without a custodian since 1696. He took control and steered the course of Sikh destiny at a critical stage in Sikh history. He was also a teacher of the Gianian Bunga, later becoming known as the "Amritsari Taksal", currently located in Sato Ki Gali.
Guru Nanak founded the Sikh religion in the Punjab region of the northern part of the Indian subcontinent in the 15th century and opposed many traditional practices like fasting, Upanayana, idolatry, caste system, ascetism, azan, economic materialism, and gender discrimination.
Nirankari is a sect of Sikhism. It was a reform movement founded by Baba Dyal Das in northwest Punjab in 1851. He sought to restore the practices and beliefs of Sikhs back to what he believed were prevalent when Guru Nanak was alive. This movement emerged in the aftermath of the end of Sikh Empire and the Sikh history after Ranjit Singh's death.
The Battle of Bhangani was fought between Guru Gobind Singh's army and Bhim Chand (Kahlur) of Bilaspur on 18 September 1686 or 1688, at Bhangani near Paonta Sahib. An alliance of Rajput Rajas of the Shivalik Hills participated in the engagement on behalf of Bhim Chand of Bilaspur State's side, including the states of Garhwal and Kangra. It was the first battle Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, fought at the age of 19.
Guru Gaddi, alternatively spelt as Gurgadi, Gurgadhi, or Gurgaddi, means "seat of the guru".
Banda Singh Bahadur, was a Sikh warrior and a general of the Khalsa Army. At age 15, he left home to become an ascetic, and was given the name Madho Das Bairagi. He established a monastery at Nānded, on the bank of the river Godāvarī. In 1707, Guru Gobind Singh accepted an invitation to meet Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah I in southern India, he visited Banda Singh Bahadur in 1708. Banda became disciple of Guru Gobind Singh and was given a new name, Gurbaksh Singh(as written in Mahan Kosh), after the baptism ceremony. He is popularly known as Banda Singh Bahadur. He was given five arrows by the Guru as a blessing for the battles ahead. He came to Khanda, Sonipat and assembled a fighting force and led the struggle against the Mughal Empire.
Amrit Sanskar also called Amrit Parchar, Amrit Sanchar, Khande di Pahul, or Khande Batte di Pahul is one of the four Sikh Sanskaars. The Amrit Sanskar is the initiation rite introduced by Guru Gobind Singh when he founded the Khalsa in 1699.
A Manji was a Sikh religious administrative unit, similar to a parish or diocese, for the propagation of Sikhism. It was part of the Sikh missionary administrative organization founded by Guru Amar Das, the third Guru of Sikhism.
Sikh sects, denominations, traditions, movements, sub-traditions, also known as sampardai in the Punjabi language, are sub-traditions within Sikhism that believe in different approaches to practicing the religion. All sampradas believe in the One Creator God typically rejecting both idol worship and caste systems. Different interpretations have emerged over time, some of which have a living teacher as the leader. The major historic traditions in Sikhism, says Professor Harjot Oberoi, have included Udasi, Nirmala, Nanakpanthi, Khalsa, Sahajdhari, Namdhari Kuka, Nirankari and Sarvaria.
The Mīnās were a heretical sect of Sikhs that followed Prithi Chand, the eldest son of Guru Ram Das, after his younger brother Guru Arjan was selected by the Guru to succeed him. Prithi Chand would vigorously contest this, attracting a portion of Sikhs to his side who followers of Guru Arjan referred to as ਮੀਣੇ mīṇe, meaning "charlatans," "dissemblers," or "scoundrels." They sustained their opposition to the orthodox line of Gurus through the seventeenth century, and upon Guru Gobind Singh's founding of the Khalsa in 1699, they were declared by him, as well as by Khalsa rahitnamas, as one of the Panj Mel, or five reprobate groups, that a Sikh must avoid. They are occasionally referred to in the more neutral terms Sikhān dā chhotā mel or as the Miharvān sampraday in scholarship.
A dera is a type of socio-religious organization in northern India. Jacob Copeman defines the deras as "monasteries or the extended residential sites of religious leaders; frequently just glossed as sect".
Prithi Chand, also spelt as Prithia, was the eldest son of Guru Ram Das – the fourth Guru of Sikhism, and the eldest brother of Guru Arjan – the fifth Guru. He founded the heretical Mina sect of Sikhism.
