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In Nanakshahi we Trust
Jagmohan Singh
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Gurta Gaddi celebrations would be incomplete without the talk of
efforts to preserve the Word of the Guru in its pristine glory.
The Nānakshāhī Trust in Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar, near
Chandigarh is engaged in doing just that and more. While
millions are being spent on Langar, yatras, pilgrimage and
decorations and we do not grudge that, let us also spare time,
money and effort to boost the wonderful and path-breaking work
of this team, Let us all, trust Nānakshāhī. |
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 As
we go into the fourth centennial of revering Guru Granth Sahib as
our Guru, one of the biggest challenges before us is the
preservation of the original work of our Gurus and other
contributors of the Granth Sahib.
We have lived
through many a struggle during our chequered history of six
centuries. The preservation of our heritage has suffered the
vagaries of time, history and apathy. Of late, the opponents of the
Sikh thought had brought the situation to such a passé that inimical
academics and many other adversely inclined had started to question
the authenticity and veracity of Sikh scriptures.
The Thanda Burj
where the Sahibzadas of Guru Gobind Singh were imprisoned, the
tell-tale signs of the storming of Darbar Sahib in Amritsar in 1984,
the environs of Takht Hazur Sahib Gurdwara, the house of the first
Sikh –Bebe Nanki, the precious manuscripts and artifacts in the Sikh
Reference Library –all is lost. Nobody knows where is the
handwritten Zafarnama which Guru Gobind Singh ji wrote to Aurangzeb?
 Somehow
the idea of preservation of legacy and priceless treasure did not
seem to sink into our psyche. We used to take pride in the
‘creation of history’ and ‘not in its preservation’.
The demolition
and destruction of heritage buildings in the name of Kar Sewa, the
marble-layering of one Gurdwara afer another without rhyme or reason
was going on uninterrupted and is still happening with the blessings
of the very custodians of the faith.
Someday, the
custodians of this treasure of the community, essentially, the SGPC
should be prosecuted for dereliction of duty. According to the Sikh
Gurdwara Act, 1925, they are mandated to protect and preserve
Sikhism, but in this aspect, they have not only failed but have
taken deliberate steps to erase our historical and cultural legacy.
The state government of
Punjab and the
government of India, not known for respect for heritage and culture
are equally responsible and culpable for vandalizing our cultural
inheritance.
Decades ago,
UNICEF did carry out microfilming of some Sikh scriptures. But that
was not enough. Things had to change. The nation could not wait
any longer. Wanton destruction had bestirred many but some took the
first steps. Amandeep Singh Madra and Paramjit Singh in the
UK
took up the mantle to preserve the Art of the Sikh Kingdoms and have
come out with remarkable books on the subject. They have documented
Sikh heritage artifacts in a number of museums across the globe.
Harbinder Singh’s Maharaja Duleep Singh Trust, has measured the
length and breath of the Anglo-Sikh Heritage Trail. Gurmit Rai of
Cultural Resource Conservation Initiative with her pioneering work
almost secured us the World Heritage status for Darbar Sahib. The
restoration of Guru-ki-Masit in Gurdaspur by her team is a classic
and unparalleled achievement. The design work of Kanwal Parkash
Singh in the US and the Sikh heritage paintings of the sister duo of
UK-Amrita and Rabindra Kaur Singh are unique efforts at
preservation. The Sikh arts collection of Narinder Singh Kapany of
the Sikh Foundation is another major landmark in this field.
Balvinder Singh of Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar has ably
documented the art and architecture in
Amritsar
city. The Nānakshāhī Trust took upon the daunting, painstaking and
severe task of preserving Sikh literature and art.
 The
Nānakshāhī vision:
The Nānakshāhī vision is to bring the documentary history and
artifacts of Panjāb to life. This new digital life will increase
awareness and access. Digitizing documents and preserving them is a
tedious but sure way of preserving the heritage of humankind for
posterity. Basically it is the capturing of data through advanced
scanning and photographic techniques, transforming it to easily
searchable digital files on computers.
Embarking upon
this challenging task, the Nānakshāhī Trust initiated the Punjab
Virsa Digitisation programme using advanced technology and the
services of a team of dedicated professionals. They have managed
what others would easily deem impossible.
Setting strict
benchmarks for itself, the Nānakshāhī team says that, “The real
challenge is whether we can do better and last longer than the
Alexandria Library, which was said to hold between 30-70% of the
world’s knowledge.”
As is the case,
cultural items reside in different areas of the state of
Punjab, such as
villages, private collections, libraries, archives and museums and
are accessible only in person. Digital preservation has changed
this. With the setting up of the Punjab Digital Library, it has
become possible not only to preserve our cultural heritage but also
to showcase the varied and fascinating history of the Panjāb region.
The Panjāb
Digital Library initiative of the Nānakshāhī Trust, while being the
first such endeavour by a non-governmental organization to work
without a grant, has so far digitized 8,50,000 folios of
manuscripts, rare books, pictures, magazines and newspapers.
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The Thanda Burj where the Sahibzadas were imprisoned, the
tell-tale signs of the storming of Darbar Sahib in Amritsar in
1984, the house of the first Sikh –Bebe Nanaki, the environs of
Takht Hazur Sahib Gurdwara in Nanded, the precious manuscripts
and artifacts in the Sikh Reference Library –all is lost. Still
there is a lot that can be preserved and should be.
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The record of
the trust is remarkable. It has so far digitized over 2,250
manuscripts including, copies of Gurū Granth Sāhib dated as early as
1653, inscriptions of Gurū Gobind Singh and Gurū Tegh Bahādur Sāhib,
a Granth bearing the mark of Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib, Bhagvat Gitā
(1866), Bhagvat Purān in Gurmukhī, Persian manuscripts, Arabic works
such as Korān Sharīf, and 328 manuscripts of Shārdā Script, Gian
Ratnavli by Bhai Mani Singh, Paire Mokhe Vali Janamsakhi with
seventy eight illustrations, Safri Bir of Bhai Daya Singh and a
hukamnama by Guru Gobind Singh Sahib. Also digitized are most of
the issues of The Spokesman Weekly (1951-1993), Khalsa Akhbar
(1893-1903), all issues of The Sikh Review (1953-2008); printed
works include the Map of Hindoostan (1783), Sketch of the Sikhs
(1812) and over twenty books by Giani Dit Singh.
The private
collection of bibliophiles, archivists and scholars have also been
digitized including those of the Sodhi family, Anandpur Sahib, Dera
Mahant Mastan Singh, Dharamkot, Dr. Man Singh Nirankari, Chandigarh,
Prof Pritam Singh, Patiala; Prof Madanjit Kaur, Gurtej Singh, ex-IAS.
The archives of the
Institute of
Sikh Studies and the Government Museum, Chandigarh have also been
digitized.
More than
200,000 pages from books, magazines and newspapers have been put up
into a searchable format. Venturing into multimedia, the project
has over 160 hours of historical interviews and 2000 rare
photographs.
A number of
individual and institutional archiving projects have been
accomplished by the trust. Some of these are:
Guru Granth Sahib Manuscripts:
The trust has collected 25 manuscripts including seven copies of
Gurū Granth Sāhib from various sources; five manuscripts of Gurū
Granth Sāhib were given by Mahant Mastan Singh and Mahant Shiv Rao
Singh of Dharamkot.
Kurūkshetrā University:
In a rare achievement, 430 manuscripts lying with the
Kurūkshetrā
University were digitized prompting the dean of the University, Dr.
G. Khurana “..hamāri university ke upar Nānak sahāi ho gae hain”.
The University celebrated Manuscript Day and has further requested
the Nānakshāhī Trust to digitize an additional 6500 manuscripts and
1500 rare books lying with the University, which awaits allocation
of funds. A grateful Kurukshetra University has acknowledged the
efforts of the Nānakshāhī Trust on its official website.
 Panjāb
Languages Department:
The Trust has digitized the entire collection of 604 manuscripts of
the Panjāb Languages Department running into 2,70,000 folios.
Chief Khālsā Divān:
29 manuscripts of Guru Granth Sahib in nearly 37,000 folios have
been digitised. The Trust has further plans to digitize more records
of the Divan.
Jathedār Dalip Singh Malu Nangal:
135 manuscripts, amounting to 45,000 folios of this collection,
including rare manuscripts have been digitized.
Panjāb Virāsat Charitable Trust:
Navjot Pal Singh Randhawa’s Punjab Virasat Charitable Trust has a
fabulous treasure chest of over 800 manuscripts and about 200 rare
books in the fields of literature, medicine, religion and history,
running into some 58,000 folios, which are under the scanners of the
Nānakshāhī team and this project too will soon be completed.
November 1984 legal documents:
All historic documents running into 200,000 pages, which will some
day be part of the Nuremberg-like trials of the anti-Sikh pogrom,
from the records of advocate-activist Harvinder Singh Phoolka have
been digitally preserved.
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Spare a Tear
While we celebrate Gurta Gaddi, spare a tear for what we have
lost forever in June 1984.
Housed in the precincts of Darbar Sahib,
Amritsar, the
Sikh Reference Library, set up in 1929, had hundreds of volumes
of rare manuscripts, besides artifacts.
According an estimate, we lost the following in the Indo-Sikh
battle at
Amritsar
in June 1984:
Books 20,000
Manuscripts of Guru Granth Sahib 2,500
Manuscripts related to Sikh Gurus 500
Newspapers since 1876 120 files
Rare books and documents 200
Hukamnamas and Sikh Relics 160
Rare paintings 250
This biggest and richest treasure house was looted and
torched. The Indian state is still non-committal about its
responsibility.
Also, let us
not forget the contribution and role of Dr. Devinder Singh
Duggal, whose labour of love was the Sikh Reference Library, and
who died of shock at what the Indian armed forces had done to
it. |
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Old Newspapers and Magazines:
The Trust
has acquired a huge newspaper collection from different sources,
which includes The Indian Express, Tribune, Akālī Patrikā, Ajīt,
Hind Samāchār and Jag Bānī from 1961 to 2006, all the issues of The
Sikh Review since 1953, Sant Sipāhī and some other rare magazines
since 1946. Even the SGPC resolutions since 1932 form part of the
enormous collection.
Digitization of Books:
Going the whole hog and using the latest technology to the hilt, the
team has so far digitized 1453 books, most of them are rare or out
of print and have an exclusive tie-up with publishers Singh Brothers
to present all their publications online.
Full fledged
parallel digitization of books has already commenced. The trust has
priorities in this regard. ‘Orphan’ and ‘out-of-print’ works are
given preference. If you are an author or even a collector, do not
hesitate to get in touch with the affable team of Nānakshāhī.
Future
Projects:
With miles to go, the team of 22 at Mohali is garnering 30 GB of
data every 24 hours. The formalities to document the collection of
Dr. Trilochan Singh, twenty eight manuscripts of Gurū Granth Sāhib,
six of Dasam Granth and thirteen others in
Banāras and the
private collection of Baba Sarabjot Singh Bedi have been completed.
The trust has submitted proposals to SGPC, Khālsā College, Amritsar,
Panjābī Sāhit Academy- Bhaī Vir Singh Sāhitya Sadan,
New Delhi
and Panjāb Archives, Patiala.
The work of
archiving is a living habit of the proponents. They have introduced
annual memberships for individuals and corporate houses and the
trust also organizes awareness activities to underline the need for
heritage preservation. Training volunteers and young contributors is
part of their domain.
 Archiving is not
second nature, but first to the Nānakshāhī team. They have built a
vast reservoir of resources, leading to the building up of a virtual
library of Sikh resources, the kind of which will make the
Nānakshāhī Team -the UNICEF of the Sikh nation. Through the good
offices of the Nānakshāhī Trust, the Sikh nation has 9000 GB of data
so far and it is increasing at the rate of 30 GB and more every
day!
While
established Sikh organizations are yet to recognize the work of the
Trust, the
Government
Museum and Art Gallery, Chandigarh has appreciated the services of
the Nānakshāhī trust for digitizing the Gallery’s manuscript
collection and with the conferring of the India’s Best
e-Content-2007 award by Manthan Awards, the Punjab Virsa
Digitisation Initiative has bagged many new projects.
With the launch
of online digital library website slated at the end of this year,
searching and researching Sikh archives will only be a mouse click
away.
On the occasion
of the world-wide Tercentenary celebrations, Davinder Pal Singh,
Director of operations and co-founder of the the trust reiterates,
“Nānakshāhī needs your invaluable time and monetary assistance to
advance towards realizing its vision and seeks inputs on the
perceptions, possibilities, and practicalities of our mission.
Nānakshāhī wishes to write new chapters in the coming years, in its
effort to preserve our heritage.”
If Hewlett
Packard can provide online access to the
Vatican’s
Apostolic Library, then why can’t SGPC or DSGMC or Takht Hazur Sahib
Committee or philanthropic and concerned Sikh business tycoons spare
a few millions to enlarge the scope, area and spheres of the
Nānakshāhī Trust?
 With
sheer dedication and minimal resources, this team has made us
proud. In the true sense of having the original manuscript by our
side, we can say, Guru de Naal. So, if you love your Guru, if you
respect your Guru and you want the future generations to celebrate
Guru de Naal, trust Nānakshāhī. They have a long way to go and so
have you. Take the first step. Today. Log on to
www.Nānakshāhī.org.
Jagmohan Singh
is a commentator based in Ludhiana, Punjab. He may be contacted at
jsbigideas@gmail.com
29
October 2008
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