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From its face one infers that the "handbook" may be a
chronicle of important events in Sikhism. It is not so. The
author has restrained himself to the religious contours only.
The lives of Sikh Gurus, holy scriptures, Sikh institutions, the
five symbols, Sikh shrines, the five takhts, music in Sikhism,
the Sikh way of life, and the concept of God in Sikhism are the
topical contents of this book. The narration is in simple and
devotion-inspiring language. It goes to refresh and recharge the
faith of a devotee besides educating a neophyte.
Guru Nanak Dev’s
principles, the author avers, may be summed up as "The
Unity of God and brotherhood of man." For Guru Nanak there
was no such thing as a God for Hindus and a God for Muslims. A
less known fact brought out by the author is that "before
his death Guru Arjan Dev gave an injunction to the Guru
(Hargobind) that he should sit on the throne fully armed and
also maintain an army and utilise it as and when
necessary."
Important events
of the life of Guru Gobind Singh, birth of the Khalsa, battles
with royal forces, martyrdom of four sons, the writing of Zafarnama,
re-induction of the 40 muktas, his last injunction to the
Sikhs, "He who beholds Guru, let him search the holy
Granth," a life full of trials and tribulations—the
account of all this and more keeps the reader absorbed.
In the chapter
"Holy Scriptures," the names of 16 sants and bhaktas
and Gurus, whose hymns have been included in the Adi Granth,
is informative. The importance of Japji has been well defined
and compared with Gita and the New Testament. Similarly,
contents of the Dasam Granth have been described.
In the chapter
"Sikh Institutions," Khalsa, sangat, pangat,
and langar, have been defined. The exposition on pangat
and description of the Dasam Granth by the author may
help tone down the controversy heard now and then.
The importance of
the five symbols of a Sikh—kesh, kanga, kachh,
kara, and karpan—have been so vividly and
logically explained that a non-Sikh would be convinced to go for
a change.
In
"Shrines," the origin and importance of gurdwara have
been described in a lucid manner with a sense of devotion. In
the penultimate chapter, "Thus Spake Gurus," the
English version of certain hymns of different Gurus, the
foremost being Japji, refresh the reader of the spirit of
the Sikh religion.
Johar, who has
already written 13 books on the Sikh religion and Sikhs, has
admirably added the 14th to his credit.
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SIKHISM
is a vibrant religion not only because it is the youngest of all the
established religious faiths of the world but also owing to its
unique tenets. To mention a few, oneness of God, cosmopolitan
outlook, no caste—only Khalsa, shorn of rituals, distinct identity
of its followers. Above all, the Sikh religion was founded at a time
when people were groaning under the religious tyranny of Islamic and
the Brahmanical order and the atrocities of the Mughal rule. At that
critical moment Guru Nanak, founder of the Sikh religion, raised his
voice against that tyrannical order.
