Jonah Patel
Sikhism's primary canon is the Guru Granth Sahib, also known as the Adi Granth, which is considered the religion's living Guru. The text contains the actual words spoken by the Gurus of the Sikh religion, as well as the words of various saints from other religions, including Hinduism and Islam. The Adi Granth was compiled and published by Guru Arjan in 1604, with the assistance of Bhai Gurdas, to counter heretical sects attempting to circulate their compositions as sanctified Sikh writings. The Guru Granth Sahib is not just a scripture but is revered as a sacred Guru by Sikhs, who interpret and appropriate its teachings in their daily lives.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Sikh holy book | Guru Granth Sahib, also known as the Adi Granth |
| Other names for the holy book | The Granth as the Guru, First Volume |
| Number of pages in the holy book | 1430 |
| Contents of the holy book | Actual words spoken by the Gurus of the Sikh religion and the words of various other Saints from other religions including Hinduism and Islam |
| Other important scriptures | Dasam Granth |
| First composition of the founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak | Japji Sahib |
| Other names for Japji Sahib | First Bani in Nitnem |
| Number of stanzas in Japji Sahib | 38 |
| Purpose of Japji Sahib | Individual meditative recitation and as the first item of daily devotional prayer for the devout |
| Other important figures | Guru Angad, Guru Arjan, Bhai Gurdas, Guru Gobind Singh, Maharaja Ranjit Singh |
| Number of Sikhs worldwide | Nearly 25 million |
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What You'll Learn
The Guru Granth Sahib
The vision in the Guru Granth Sahib is of a society based on divine freedom, mercy, love, belief in one god, and justice without oppression of any kind. It acknowledges and respects the scriptures of Hinduism and Islam but does not imply a moral reconciliation with either religion. The Guru Granth Sahib includes suggestions on how a Sikh should perform constant Bhakti, or loving devotion to a divine without qualities or physical form.
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The Adi Granth
The first version of the book was compiled by the fifth Sikh Guru, Guru Arjan, in Amritsar in 1604. He included his own hymns and those of his predecessors, the Gurus Nanak, Angad, Amar Das, and Ram Das, as well as devotional songs of both Hindu and Islamic saints, notably the poet Kabir. The oldest surviving manuscript version of the Adi Granth is the Guru Nanak Dev University Manuscript 1245.
Guru Arjan's compilation of the Adi Granth yielded several drafts and manuscripts, some of which have survived into the modern era. Minor variations and three significant Adi Granth recensions are known, providing insights into how the Sikh scripture was compiled, edited, and revised over time. The existence of these variations and recensions suggests that the Adi Granth was a dynamic text that evolved over time.
In 1704, the tenth and final Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, added the hymns of his predecessor, Guru Tegh Bahadur (the 9th Guru), 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. Thus, the Adi Granth is considered the final, sovereign, and eternal Guru following the lineage of the ten human gurus of Sikhism.
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The Dasam Granth
The standard edition of the text contains 1,428 pages with 17,293 verses in 18 sections. These are set in the form of hymns and poems mostly in the Braj language (Old western Hindi), with some parts in Avadhi, Punjabi, Hindi and Persian. The script is written almost entirely in Gurmukhi, except for Guru Gobind Singh's letters to Aurangzeb—Zafarnama and the Hikaaitaan—written in the Persian alphabet.
There are three major views on the authorship of the Dasam Granth. The traditional view is that the entire work was composed by Guru Gobind Singh himself. The entire collection was compiled by the poets in the Guru's entourage. Only a part of the work was composed by the Guru, while the rest was composed by the other poets. In his religious court at Paonta and Anandpur, Guru Gobind Singh had employed 52 poets, who translated several classical texts into Braj Bhasha. Most of the writing compiled at Anandpur was lost while the Guru's camp was crossing the Sirsa river before the Battle of Chamkaur in 1704.
There is a theory that later, Bhai Mani Singh compiled all the available works under the title Dasam Granth. Traditionalist scholars claim that all the works in Dasam Granth were composed by the Guru himself, often on the basis of a letter attributed to Bhai Mani Singh. The veracity of this letter has been examined by scholars and found to be unreliable. Some others dispute the claim of the authorship, saying that some of the compositions included in Dasam Granth such as Charitropakhyan are "out of tune" with other Sikh scriptures and must have been composed by other poets.
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The influence of other religions
Sikhism was founded in the 15th century by Guru Nanak in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent. It is one of the most recently founded major religions and is the fifth-largest amongst the world religions. There are about 25 to 30 million adherents, known as Sikhs, worldwide.
The development of Sikhism was influenced by the Bhakti movement, a Hindu devotional movement within the Hindu tradition that worships the god Vishnu. However, Sikhism was not simply an extension of the Bhakti movement, and disagreed with some of the views of Bhakti saints Kabir and Ravidas. Sikhism also incorporates Indic ideas on rebirth and teachings from Muslims, namely Baba Farid and Kabir. The first convert to Sikhism was a Muslim, Mardana, a lifelong friend and companion of Guru Nanak. The Sikh scripture, Guru Granth Sahib, includes teachings from non-Sikh bhagats who lived and died before the birth of Nanak.
Some scholars argue that the Sants, a group of poor, dispossessed, and illiterate people who composed hymns expressing their experience of the divine, were influenced by Islam through their contact with the Mughal rulers of India from the early 16th century. However, others disagree, stating that there is little indication of this, and that while Sufism (Islamic mysticism) may have had a marginal effect, Sikhism transcended the environment it emerged from.
Sikhism also shares similarities with Islam, such as the belief in other messengers, including Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed, and the Islamic theosophical belief in wahdatul wujud has many similarities to Sikh panentheism. However, there are also important differences between the two religions, such as their beliefs about the relationship between the creator and creation, and the role of rituals and pilgrimages. While Islam considers itself to be a perfect and final religion, Sikhism emphasizes the freedom of conscience and the validity of multiple religious traditions.
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The role of gurus
Sikhism's traditions and philosophy were established by ten gurus from 1469 to 1708. Each guru built upon and reinforced the message taught by the previous guru, resulting in the creation of the Sikh religion. The first guru, Guru Nanak, appointed a disciple as his successor, and the line of succession continued until the tenth guru, Guru Gobind Singh, who is considered the final guru in human form.
Guru Nanak stated that his guru is God, who is the same from the beginning of time to the end of time. This belief in the oneness of God is reflected in the phrase "Ik Onkar". God in Sikhism is considered Nirankar ("shapeless"), Akal ("timeless"), Karta Purakh ("the creator being"), Akaal Purkh ("beyond time and death"), and Agam Agochar ("incomprehensible and invisible").
The gurus played a crucial role in shaping the core beliefs and practices of Sikhism, which are articulated in the Guru Granth Sahib and other Sikh scriptures. These include faith and meditation in the name of the one creator (Ik Onkar), the divine unity and equality of all humankind, engaging in selfless service to others (seva), striving for justice for the benefit and prosperity of all (sarbat da bhala), and honest conduct and livelihood.
Upon the death of Guru Gobind Singh in 1708, the spirit of the eternal Guru transferred itself to the sacred scripture of Sikhism, the Guru Granth Sahib, also known as the Adi Granth. The Guru Granth Sahib is regarded as the sole Guru and the living Guru, providing spiritual guidance to Sikhs. It is considered the embodiment of the Guru, and the teachings within it serve as a guide for Sikhs, reinforcing the student-teacher relationship between the Gurus and their followers.
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Frequently asked questions
The Sikh canon is made up of the Guru Granth Sahib and the secondary canon, the Dasam Granth.
The Guru Granth Sahib is the central religious scripture in Sikhism. It is regarded as the 11th and eternally living guru by Sikhs.
The tenth guru, Guru Gobind Singh, named the Guru Granth Sahib.
The Dasam Granth is the secondary canon of Sikhism.
The Sikh Bible, or the Adi Granth, is the final version of the Guru Granth Sahib.
