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Guru Nanak and his mission of humankind
To defend the weak and to establish Halemi Raj
Mark
Twain
If to fight for the protection of
the poor is considered extremism or fanaticism, these are the labels
which the Sikhs will have to live with
In these times there are conflicts,
violence and bloodshed everywhere. Atomic threat haunts humankind.
People are suffering political and social tyranny of the
corrupt and the greedy.Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikh
faith, raised his voice in defence of human rights
during his times against Babur and gave the message of
universal peace, goodwill and brotherhood of humankind.
The Sikh history is full of martyrs who fought for this ideal. Guru Nanak was born at a time when human beings were not
regarded at a level higher than animals. The kings and the
administrators not only inflicted all sorts of on the ordinary
people but forced them to live on their terms. Public was regarded
as no better than slaves. The word from the king and his
administrators was regarded as the word of God. At such a
time, Guru Nanak raised his voice for the rights of ordinary
people and said: “The kings are bloodthirty tigers and
the ministers (administrators) are like blood-sucking dogs...”
This was the only voice that was
heard at that time. People were so frightened by the
cruelty and oppression of the rulers that they had
virtually accepted a life of animals than dare raise their
voice against the rulers. Following lers, when Babur
attacked and conquered India, he killed a large number of men,
women, children and elderly, and enslaved many like animals.
Cries of agony arose from all directions. There was no one who
could convey their voice forcefully to Babur. His word at the
time was law. No one dared even raise an eye lid before
Babur’s extreme cruelty. At such a time, only Guru Nanak said
fearlessly to Babur that he was an oppressor and he had no
reason to slay so many innocent people to satisfy his
lust for power. Guru Nanak, thence, said: “Babur has come from
Kabul, with his wedding party of sin.”
Guru Nanak organised and
coordinated the people. He encouraged them to live active lives to
collectively defend of their rights. He told the people that
rather than dying slow deaths at the hands of those in power,
it were better to die the deaths of the brave in battle. The
other Gurus, following Guru Nanak, gave further impetus
to the human rights movement. One after another, further institutions
were developed each of which played a prominent role in ensuring
human rights of the people. For the achievement of honour and
dignity, they however considered it right to use different methods
of warfare. Guru Gobind Singh went so far as to declare that:
“When all other means fail it is legitimate to use the (Sword)
force.”
In India, at the time of Guru Nanak, the popular
concept of a holy person was one who abandoned his family and
his social obligations to live a life of begging or wandering in the
forests and mountains in search of spiritual truth. This view
accords with the notion that religion is something to be divorced
from social and oral responsibility (politics). In giving the
opposing Sikh view, Guru Nanak gave example of the lotus flower
that, having its roots in muddy waters, still flowers beautifully
above.
 So, one should live in a society, work
constantly for its improvement and yet always be above its meanness
and pettiness. It is this positive attitude of voicing concern
on social issues and working to alleviate injustice that has
so frequently brought Sikhs into conflict with secular authority who
respond with smears of ‘extremist’ interference in politics. Sikhs
are duty-bound to protest against injustice or the cruel or
arbitrary behaviour of those in authority.
Much earlier, the oppressed Hindus of
Kashmir went to Guru Teg Bahadur, the ninth of the ten Sikh
Gurus, to seek his help in stemming the forced
conversion of their coreligionists to Islam. Knowing that it
would probably cost him his life, he unhesitatingly agreed and
went to Delhi to intercede on their behalf, though he was personally
opposed to some of their religious practices. The Moghul
Emperor, Aurangzeb, was unmoved by his plea for religious
tolerance. The Guru was imprisoned, cruelly tortured and
finally publicly beheaded for upholding the right of the Hindus to
worship in the manner of their choice.
If to fight for the protection of the
poor is considered extremism or religious fanaticism, these are the
labels with which Sikhs will have to live.
The Sikh movement had three main aims
until the establishment of the Misals. First was to preach total
freedom and equality for man, second for the establishment of a Sikh
faith- the Panth, and the third was to use the Panth as a means for
causing social and political freedoms. The Indian society has not
produced another movement that has promoted public domain over the
ruling power. The Sikh movement took a major step towards spiritual
freedom by shunning the thought philosophy and public administration
dominated by the caste system.
According to Guru Gobind Singh, the
objective of Sikhism is to establish the rule of the true and the
pure on this earth. This pronouncement is a further evidence of the
need to protect human rights. “Sovereignty is never handed
over, it is realised through strength” (Guru Gobind Singh). Thus,
Sikhs are duty-bound to defend the weak and the innocent, if
necessary, by the sword (besides craving for Halemi Raj
as enshrined in Sri Guru Granth Sahib).
A close examination of the UN
Declaration of Human Rights reveals sympathy with such
sentiments as: ‘Whereas it is essential, if person is not to
be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion
against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be
protected by the rule of law’ and ‘When all other means of
resistance against tyranny and oppression have failed, it is
legitimate, as a last resort, to turn to the sword.’
I would like to make it clear to all those in government who are (or
were) infringing human rights by killing Sikh youths in faked police
encounters, by desecrating Sikh Gurdwaras by sending in
security forces, and by implicating innocent young Sikhs
in false crimes that “Do not burn bridges; you never know how
many times you have to cross the same.” Following the
footsteps of the Gurus, the Sikh nation, in order to reaffirm human
rights and to establish its honour and lost glory, will continue the
struggle in line with the Sikh tradition of defending the weak. Let
us all pool all our efforts to achieve this mission, a special
assignment that is given to us by our Guru, Guru Nanak.
D
S Gill
1 November, 2006
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