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Sikhism, also known as Sikhi, is an Indian religion and philosophy in particular for the Sikh ethnoreligious group that originated in the Punjab region of India around the end of the 15th century CE. The Sikh scriptures are written in the Gurumukhi script particular to Sikhs. It is one of the most recently founded major religious groups and among the largest in the world, with about 25–30 million adherents.
Religious art is a visual representation of religious ideologies and their relationship with humans. Sacred art directly relates to religious art in the sense that its purpose is for worship and religious practices. According to one set of definitions, artworks that are inspired by religion but are not considered traditionally sacred remain under the umbrella term of religious art, but not sacred art.
The Guru Granth Sahib is the central holy religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and eternal Guru following the lineage of the ten human gurus of the religion. The Adi Granth, its first rendition, was compiled by the fifth guru, Guru Arjan (1564–1606). Its compilation was completed on 29 August 1604 and first installed inside the Golden Temple in Amritsar on 1 September 1604. Baba Buddha was appointed the first Granthi of the Golden Temple. Shortly afterwards Guru Hargobind added Ramkali Ki Vaar. Later, Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh guru, added hymns of Guru Tegh Bahadur to the Adi Granth and affirmed the text as his successor. This second rendition became known as the Guru Granth Sahib and is also sometimes referred to as the Adi Granth.
Guru Amar Das, sometimes spelled as Guru Amardas, was the third of the Ten Gurus of Sikhism and became Sikh Guru on 26 March 1552 at age 73.
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.
The following outline is provides an overview of Sikhism, or Sikhi.
Kaur, sometimes spelled as Kour, is a surname or a part of a personal name primarily used by the Sikh and some Hindu women of the Punjab region. It is also sometimes translated as 'lioness', not because this meaning is etymologically derived from the name, but as a parallel to the Sikh male name Singh, which means 'lion'.
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.
The principles of Sikhism state that women have the same souls as men and thus possess an equal right to cultivate their spirituality with equal chances of achieving salvation. Women in Sikhism participate in all religious, cultural, social, and secular activities including lead religious congregations, take part in the Akhand Path, perform Kirtan, perform Gatka and work as a Granthis.
The Janamsakhis, are legendary biographies of Guru Nanak – the founder of Sikhism. Popular in the Sikh history, these texts are considered by scholars as imaginary hagiographies of his life story, full of miracles and travels, built on a Sikh oral tradition and some historical facts. The first Janamsakhis were composed between 50 and 80 years after his death. Many more were written in the 17th and 18th century. The largest Guru Nanak Prakash, with about 9,700 verses, was written in the early 19th century by Kavi Santokh Singh.
Bhai Vir Singh was an Indian poet, scholar, and theologian of the Sikh revival movement, playing an important part in the renewal of Punjabi literary tradition. Singh's contributions were so important and influential that he became canonized as Bhai, an honorific often given to those who could be considered a saint of the Sikh faith.
A kangha is a small wooden comb that Sikhs usually use twice a day and part of the Five Ks. It is supposed to be kept with the hair at all times. Combs help to clean the hair, and are a symbol of cleanliness. Combing their hair reminds Sikhs that their lives should be tidy and organised. The kangha makes the uncut hair neat and keeps away tangles. Kanghas were traditionally made of wood, but many modern Sikhs employ ones made of plastic.
Nanakpanthi, also known as Nanakshahi, is a Sikh sect which follows Guru Nanak (1469-1539), the founder of Sikhism.
The Sikhs are adherents to Sikhism, the fifth largest organized religion in the world, with around 25 million adherents. Sikh History is around 500 years and in that time the Sikhs have developed unique expressions of art and culture which are influenced by their faith and synthesize traditions from many other cultures depending on the locality of the adherents of the religion. Sikhism is the only religion that originated in the Punjab region with all other religions coming from outside Punjab. All the Sikh gurus, many saints, and many of the martyrs in Sikh history were from Punjab and from the Punjabi people. Punjabi culture and Sikhism are mistakenly considered inseparably intertwined. "Sikh" properly refers to adherents of Sikhism as a religion, strictly not an ethnic group. However, because Sikhism has seldom sought converts, most Sikhs share strong ethno-religious ties, therefore it is a common stereotype that all Sikhs share the same ethnicity. Many countries, such as the U.K., therefore misconcievingly recognize Sikh as a designated ethnicity on their censuses. The American non-profit organization United Sikhs has fought to have Sikhs included on the U.S. census as well, arguing that Sikhs "self-identify as an 'ethnic minority'" and believe "that they are more than just a religion".
Followers of Sikhism do not have a preference for meat or vegetarian consumption. There are two views on initiated or "Amritdhari Sikhs" and meat consumption. "Amritdhari" Sikhs can eat meat. "Amritdharis" that belong to some Sikh sects are vehemently against the consumption of meat and eggs.
Gurū Nānak, also known as Bābā Nānak, was the founder of Sikhism and is the first of the ten Sikh Gurus. His birth is celebrated as Guru Nanak Gurpurab on Katak Pooranmashi, i.e. October–November.
Sikhism was founded in Punjab in 1469 by Guru Nanak on the foundations that everyone is equal, regardless of caste, age, or gender. Both men and women are supposed to follow the Five Ks: Kesh, Kangha (comb), Kara, Kachera and Kirpan, and there was never a distinction between what a woman should be allowed to do versus a man at theological level. Men and women are treated equally in the temple (gurdwara), and everyone eats and prays side-by-side. Both men and women are meant to carry the Kirpan with them as they are responsible for their own physical protection, and should not depend on others. Sikhs are strictly against the caste system and many chose to use Kaur or Singh as a last name to push against the problematic caste system in India. There is only one god (Waheguru) in Sikhism and they are without form or gender, and everyone is equal in the eyes of God. Many Sikh women believe that this absence of assignment of code of conduct for a woman versus a man proves that their religion is historically committed to gender equality. Presently, the culture does not always follow these traditions and equality is often more true in ideals rather than daily practice. According to Kiman Kaur: "It is essential to take into account the diverse Kaur narratives in order to critically understand the violence Sikh womxn experience due to religious, ethnic, and gender minoritization through enabling more intersectional conversations."
Harbans Singh was an educationist, administrator, scholar and the editor-in-chief of the Encyclopaedia of Sikhism. He was respected for his contributions to Sikh scholarship and Punjabi literary studies and had a vital and pervasive influence in the field of religious studies, with special reference to Sikhism.
Rama, known as Ram Avatar or Raja Ram, is considered an important figure in Sikhism, due to his inclusion as one among the 24 incarnations of Vishnu in the Chaubis Avtar, a composition in the Dasam Granth traditionally and historically attributed to Guru Gobind Singh. The discussion of Rama and Krishna is the most extensive in this section of the secondary Sikh scripture. The composition is martial, stating that the avatar of Vishnu appears in the world to restore good and defeat evil, but asserts that these avatars are not God, but agents of the God. God is beyond birth and death. The famous Savaiya and Dohra from the Rehras Sahib, read daily be devout Sikhs, comes from Ram Avtar Bani. However, it is not to be confused with Sikhs believing or worshipping Raja Ram or Krishan. It is clear from Guru Gobind Singh's verses in Chaupai Sahib, a part of Sikh Nitnem, or daily prayer.
Sulakhni (1473–1545), also known as Choni and often referred as Mata Sulakhni, was the wife of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism.
References
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- ↑ Repstad, Pål; Furseth, Inger (2013). "11. Religion and gender". An Introduction to the Sociology of Religion: Classical and Contemporary Perspectives. Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 183. ISBN 978-0-7546-5653-1.
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- ↑ Mandair, Arvind-Pal S.; Shackle, Christopher; Singh, Gurharpal (2013). "Contributors". Sikh Religion, Culture and Ethnicity. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. p. viii. ISBN 978-0-700-71389-9.
- ↑ Nesbitt, Eleanor M. (2016). "7. Attitudes to caste, gender, and other faiths". Sikhism: A Very Short Introduction (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 103–105. ISBN 978-0-19-874557-0.
- ↑ Ruprai, Sharanpal Kaur (August 2013). Being Sikh, Being Women: Negotiating Religion and Gender in South Asian Women's Cultural Productions (PDF). Toronto: York University.
Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of graduate studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of doctor of philosophy
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- ↑ Clary, Randi Lynn. "'Sikhing' a husband: Bridal imagery and gender in Sikh scripture." (2003) Master’s Thesis, Rice University. https://hdl.handle.net/1911/17645, p. 58
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- ↑ Fenech, Louis E. (2014). "2. The evolution of the Sikh community". In Singh, Pashaura; Fenech, Louis E. (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies. Oxford University Press. p. 40. ISBN 978-0-19-969930-8.
- ↑ Mann, J. S. (2015). Review Of Doris R. Jakobsh 'Relocating Gender In Sikh History'. University of British Columbia. pp. 4–6.
- ↑ Thursby, Gene R. (2013). "Review of Sikhism: An Introduction" . International Journal of Hindu Studies. 17 (1): 120–123. ISSN 1022-4556. JSTOR 24713573.
- ↑ Hunt, Stephen (2017). "Preface". Religions of the East. Routledge. p. 25. ISBN 978-1-351-90475-9.
- 1 2 Singh, Jaspal Kaur (November 2019). "Negotiating Ambivalent Gender Spaces for Collective and Individual Empowerment: Sikh Women's Life Writing in the Diaspora". Religions. 10 (11): 598. doi: 10.3390/rel10110598 . ISSN 2077-1444.
- ↑ "Nikky-Guninder Kur's 'Janamsakhi' gives a peek into rich Sikh art". The Tribune. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
- ↑ Boivin, Michel (2024). "4. Khwaja Khizr in iconographic translation: the changing visual idiom of a complex figure from South Asia". In Boivin, Michel; Pénicaud, Manoël (eds.). Inter-religious Practices and Saint Veneration in the Muslim World: Khidr/Khizr from the Middle East to South Asia. Abingdon: Routledge. p. 89. ISBN 978-1-032-47864-7.
- ↑ "California city honors Waterville resident, Colby professor". Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel. 6 April 2022. Retrieved 2 January 2024.