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Lighting the way to
God Japji Sahib: Way to
God in Sikhism "Japuji is the most riveting Sikh prayer recited by the devout early in the morning. The composition is not assigned to any particular raga or musical measure, as is the rest of the scriptural text...""Preceded by the Mul Mantra, which is an invocation to God, the Japu comprises an introductory shlok and 38 stanzas, called pauris and a concluding shlok attributed by some to Guru Angad. The entire composition forms the sacred morning prayer and serves as a prologue to the Shri Guru Granth Sahib and encapsulates Guru Nanak’s philosophy as a whole`85" — The Encyclopedia of Sikhism by Harbans Singh.
"The message of the Japu is abiding in nature and universal in application. It simply describes the nature of Ultimate Reality and the way to comprehend it, and is not tied to any particular religious system. In a word it simply defines Sikhism, the religious view of Guru Nanak," adds Prof Harbans Singh. Maneshwar Singh Chahal’s annotation is of great significance in this regard. Not only those alien to the Gurmukhi script but also those who need to have a deeper understanding of the shades of meaning captured in their context at the time of the Japji’s compilation can refer to this book. The author uses abundant imagery, especially metaphors more suited to verse, so that the annotation creates a cascading effect and the prose flows with each shlok. References intersperse freely with the author’s version of the text and you have updates on other learned men’s versions of the same phrase. There are instances,
however, where the true meaning has been sacrificed for the sake of the
literal one. For example in the stanza, "jatt pahara dheeraj
suniyar/ ahran matt ved hathiyar," the author dismisses the
meaning of the word ‘ved’ as knowledge just because it has been used
in the singular. In Gurbani, there are umpteen instances where the Gurus
have used vivid images from the more popular Hindu myth and philosophy.
Literal translations are not able to communicate to the readers the
richness of the context and the depth of meaning. All in all, this book
is a labour of love and with the painstaking research that has gone into
it, the book may stand the test of time.
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The Sikh holy
scripture, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, starts
with hymns composed by Guru Nanak, the first Sikh Guru. This collection
of hymns that spans over the first eight pages of the holy scripture is
called ‘Jap’ (to recite), and is respectfully called ‘Japji Sahib.’
It is an important part of a Sikhdaily morning prayer. The collections
of hymns of Sikh daily prayer are often compiled separately in a small
book form called ‘Nitnem’, which starts with Japji Sahib but contain
other hymns as well.