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Kicking The Tires
The Roundtable Open Forum # 78

by I.J. SINGH

 

 

I believe that Sikhi should speak to me today as it did to so many half a millennium ago when the iconoclast Guru Nanak laid the foundations of Sikhi. He boldly challenged religious practices that he found around him in the two traditions extant at that time in India - Hinduism and Islam.

Each of the Ten Gurus held a mirror to society and rejected practices and beliefs that did not meet the acid tests of honesty, meaning and purpose.

Sikhi continued to speak clearly and unambiguously to countless numbers three centuries ago when Guru Gobind Singh established the institution of the Khalsa that challenged entrenched authority frankly, vigorously and openly.

Obviously, such exploration cannot be restricted to examining others. It should also put under the lens what we Sikhs are doing, and change what needs to be changed as and when necessary after wise and collective deliberation. 

If we critically examine only others but become defensive about our own shortcomings, then that can lead to only one of two end results: undeserved and unnecessary hubris or a schizoid existence. 

I wonder if we now have both processes going on simultaneously and well.

Have we in the three centuries after the Gurus forgotten the art of self-examination?

I direct your attention to only a few selected examples; many more abound. Readers surely will add to the list.

We know that our hundreds of gurduaras in the diaspora, mostly if not entirely, function like black boxes. They have never heard of  transparency, accountability and self-governance where the sangat should be supreme. Nor have many ever thought of gurduara as an academy for teaching and learning.

Our granthis (pastors and ministers) are still living in a bygone time and society of two centuries ago. They remain disconnected from the society and its culture today. How relevant can they be to our lives then?

Sikh institutions in India that were, not so long ago, models of participatory self-governance, transparency and accountability, are now, less than a century later, dysfunctional bureaucracies ... and that’s a charitable opinion.

Flying directly in the face of the teachings of the Gurus, we practice sex determination of the fetus in order to selectively commit female foeticide.  And we continue to deny women the right to serve as equals in our gurdwaras in India or abroad. And I won’t even touch other evils like dowry. 

But we have largely and effectively written women out of our history and public space.

We have created institutions and gurdwaras in the diaspora with an unfiltered transfer of models and management from the culture of India, and don’t want to face the fact that we are now in a different world and in a different time.

Many rituals and practices have infiltrated our behavior from the non-Sikh society in which we exist as a small drop in a very large ocean. Other practices have lost their meaning over time. Yet we continue to live and die for them without ever examining and challenging them.

We have five seats of authority in India and five chiefs (Jathedars), one for each seat. At least two of the five appear not to accept the Sikh Code of Conduct (Rehat Maryada) or follow it. This would be analogous to a situation in America if 3 or 4 out of the 9 justices of the U.S. Supreme Court refused to accept the supremacy of the U.S. Constitution. One would have to wonder what they are doing on the bench.

Metaphorically, businesses - like automobiles - have tires on which they run. What I have learned from my fifty odd years in this society is that the best businesses are run by those who kick these tires every day. This is true whether the business is high-end banking, manufacturing widgets or even some plain ordinary work like teaching - my vocation.

Good business models speak of “planned destruction” to be periodically and methodically done to even the most productive business practices.   (Take these words not literally but metaphorically.) The essentials are not toyed with; the production model is reinvented at predicted intervals. Similar reasoning holds in education. We don’t readily throw out the contents but we must reconfigure how we teach quite regularly. Or else, the teaching or the business, losing contact with life, grows stale and fossilized. Just don’t throw out the baby with the bath water.

What the Gurus did was kick the tires of the society they were in. They turned upside down many of the norms of existing society of the day. Their shock treatment created a new and bold people - the Sikhs who strode their turf like the Colossus of old. One can still see the signs of their past glory. That tells me that it is late but not too late yet.

But how do we react?

Now when someone makes a bold statement and challenges entrenched thinking, we don’t look at it as a call for exploration or a teaching moment, but immediately close ranks, circle the wagons and pull a protective shield around the jathedars of authority to guard them. 

Every day misdirected and thoughtless edicts greet us: Thou shall not question or criticize the Akal Takht, thou shall not sit on tables and chairs to eat langar at a gurduara, thou shall not criticize the Shiromini Gurdwara Parbhandak Committee (S.G.P.C.) for it is the parliament of the Sikhs, thou shall not analyze gurbani, thou shall not listen to or associate with Professsor Darshan Singh or Gurbaksh Singh Kala Afghana, thou shall not discuss the “Dasam Granth,” and so on.  The list is endless.

Is this the spirit of the Gurus?

Speaking of kicking the tires, do we even know where the tires are or how many there may be?

As part of this week's Roundtable Open Forum (# 78), we welcome your thoughts on the above. 

 

ijsingh99@gmail.com

October 12, 2011 

Conversation about this article

1: Sangat Singh (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), October 12, 2011, 10:10 AM.

True ... we now tend to create difficulties for every solution our Gurus gave us.

2: Baldev Singh (Bradford, United Kingdom), October 12, 2011, 11:39 AM.

The rot of brahminism, held firm by superstition and rigid tradition, is indeed making insidious inroads into our lives.

3: Baljit Singh Pelia (Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.), October 12, 2011, 1:02 PM.

The most significant aspect of Sikhi has been turned upside down. From an all inclusive, universal and tolerant religion with regards to appearance, class, caste, status, profession and even religion, Sikhi is now being projected as an exclusive domain, of and for a people that appear akin to Brahmins. Instead of the open four doors, entrance is granted after a keyhole verification of appearance only, not much different than Brahminism. On the other hand, the stringent and rigorous requirements for joining the brotherhood of the Khalsa have been practically abolished. Instigated under the stewardship of the British during the Raj, this new definition of Sikhi has emerged. Rehatnaamas and the S.G.P.C. constitution were crafted to satisfy the needs of legal definitions under British law, in their language. S.G.P.C., a defunct organization with no relevant purpose other than to consolidate the control of Sikh institutions and marginalize the manjis, takhts, taksals and dharamsals, was created for the benefit of the rulers. These Sikh institutions that were established to unite the subcontinent and propel it forward have effectively been destroyed as we seek to redefine and interpret our religion through Chairs and grants at Western universities.

4: G. Singh (U.S.A.), October 12, 2011, 1:37 PM.

Let's not blame others for our own faults and problems. We are the one responsible for letting these institutions run amok unchecked and now we are paying the price. We like to hail the S.G.P.C. as the parliament of the Sikhs. How can a body representing only Sikhs from Punjab, Haryana and Himachal be called parliament of Sikhs worldwide? There is no representation from the global Sikh community. Its elections are held after approval from Indian govt. S.G.P.C. in turn "appoints" as well as "fires" jathedars based on political affiliations. Jathedars in turn issue "hukamnamas" under political pressures. Disapora Sikhs are the biggest culprits these days who run to jathedars like little school children, complaining and asking for ex-communication, ban and interference on petty disputes. We had a really good system in place called Sarbat Khalsa which should be revived. Sikh organizations and representatives from across the globe can meet at Akal Takht every 2-4 years and make major decisions related to the global Sikh community, challenges and growth. Small, petty disputes should be allowed to be handled by local bodies. We should also understand that as the Sikh community grows across the globe, cultural differences are bound to happen and should not be a reason for alarm.

5: Baldev Singh (Bradford, United Kingdom), October 12, 2011, 4:17 PM.

What we actually need to do collectively is clarify what constitutes a 'Sikh' and the Sikh Maryada.

6: Harbans Lal (Dallas, Texas, U.S.A.), October 13, 2011, 1:30 AM.

Dr. I.J. Singh has sounded an alarm bell. Let us see who is awakened by it. Let us take his first proposition: he proposes that we must start with our own congregations or sangats. Our Gurus defined the panth as consisting of all sangats far and near. As I.J. proposes, the sangat should be supreme in managing its day to day affairs for the promotion of its objectives of seeking Sikhi from Guru Granth Sahib. Then, representatives of all sangats connect to each other to take major decisions and lead the panth. As he says, we have distorted the meaning of sangat. Sangat is meant to consist of Guru Granth and those who gather around the Guru for learning. It is so defined by our founding Gurus and further elaborated by our scholars like Bhai Gurdas and Bhai Nand Lal. Then all of the satsangis or members of the sangat so defined should be invited to participate in its management without any other definition except that everything is done under the guidance of the Living Guru. It sounds very simple but every day we drift away from this very basic structure of our congregation. We began to redefine the Sikh sangat and its membership. The redefinitions are supported by quotations from unconfirmed documents written by someone or the other. There were times when comprehensiveness of the Guru Granth was never questioned. That very belief is being replaced with statements such as, though we do not find much evidence of this and that maryada or guideline in the Guru Granth, but so and so practiced that way or wrote about its desirability. Most of these documents thus quoted, outside the Guru Granth, have questionable authenticity and were not meant to replace the Guru Granth to guide the future of humanity or even the Sikhs. Some were just observations made at certain times. Unless we understand this simple fact that the Guru Granth is eternally complete and comprehensive, it was completed under the direct divine inspiration, and it alone was instituted as our guide and knowledge base, we cannot guarantee that our sangats will remain units of the panth as they were intended. Panthic leadership not chosen by these primary units of the panth but merely appointed by politicians will not have the honor of taking Sikhi to the global village.

7: Baljit Singh Pelia (Los Angeles, U.S.A.), October 13, 2011, 12:20 PM.

Dr. I J Singh ji: I checked the car this morning. To my surprise, it was standing only on two tires - kirtan and langar. The other two tires of institutions and gyaan were missing. The car was full of sangat that had no idea of where they were headed. Worst of all, the driver was under the influence of kaam, krodh, lobh, moh, ahankaar. The navigation system was installed by the last colonizers of the subcontinent they named India, the rulers previous to them having named it Hindustan, and the current rulers have declared it a free-for-all. The one powerful intact thing left was the engine of Guru Granth Sahib, but there again the owners were thinking of installing various other broken engines of literary books by calling them granths. Harbans Lal ji, if ever a Sarbat Khalsa is called, you and like-minded people should be at the forefront.

8: I.J. Singh (New York, U.S.A.), October 13, 2011, 7:25 PM.

Ah! Baljit ji, we seem to have lost two tires; we have no spare in the trunk; the roads are unpaved, unmarked and unlit. I wonder if there is a club like the AAA around in that country that offers emergency roadside assistance. I would request that you develop your brief comment into a full fledged essay - the satire is most welcome; it lightens the weight we all feel.

9: R.S. Minhas (Millburn, New Jersey, U.S.A.), October 14, 2011, 8:48 AM.

At what point does faith become "blind faith" according to Sikhi? Does faith make "blind faith" a paradox? The bully pulpit of a stage is used by preachers to guide those who have not thought about these things. P.S.: Thanks to Yuktanand Singh ji for clarifying a shabad in an earlier discussion. His interpretation that differed from sikhitothemax was superb. The topic closed before I got a chance to thank him.

10: Ajit Singh Batra (Pennsville, New Jersey, U.S.A.), October 14, 2011, 10:44 AM.

We are now spread out all over the globe and are therefore governed by the conditions (political,social and religious) prevalent in the countries in which we live. What counts is right conduct and truthful living. Profession of faith requires, in addition to our outward observances, its roots in inner life.

11: Gurjender Singh (Maryland, U.S.A.), October 14, 2011, 11:55 AM.

As mentioned by Dr. I.J. Singh about AAA, and Baljit ji about the navigation system, unless and until Guru Granth Sahib is our AAA and navigation system, we will continue to fail in reaching our destination.

12: Harinder Kohli (Canada), October 18, 2011, 12:02 AM.

The author has pointed out today's situation, which is a factual statement. No one can progress till one finds the baseline and which is right here in this post. Our leaders have sold us to politics. Will the real panth wake up? Do we need a Jathedar at the top who can be hired and fired by political bosses?

13: Ravinder Singh Oberoi (Mumbai, India), October 18, 2011, 1:13 PM.

We have our living Guru - the eternal Guru Granth Sahib. All our efforts to promote Sikhi should be to make people connect with the Guru Granth Sahib (reading, listening, thinking over it, understanding it and trying to implement it in life as per one's understanding). This should be our root parchaar. All we need today is to be under the shelter of Guru Granth Sahib.

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The Roundtable Open Forum # 78"









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