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RANJIT SINGH)
New York.
November 05, 2006.
Nanak, born in a humble family of an accountant, in a village named Talwandi (Now in Pakistani Punjab)
on April 15, 1469, taught mankind at every step that the social and moral qualities were more important
than religious rituals.
GURU NANAK’S AGENDA:
Guru Nanak ‘s mission cannot be limited to spiritualism. He had a socio-political agenda.
1st: He wanted to rid mankind of religious rituals that ends in blind faith, devoid of reason.
2nd: He wanted to protect mankind from religious bigotry, food codes, dress codes that separate humanity
into groupism.
3rd: He wanted to promote dignity of labor and elimination of caste inequalities.
4th: He wanted to oppose exploitation by the rich and mighty.
5th: And finally, he wanted to tell mankind that there is only one God and we all His children.
His first act of revolution against religious rituals got manifest at an early age of 13. He was to wear a
circular thread along the shoulder and chest. It was a necessary religious duty in the Hindu families. But
Nanak refused. When the priest argued with him, Nanak replied: For me MERCY is cotton and
CONTENTMENT is the thread. Give me such a thread, which will not get soiled, nor burnt, nor lost.”
He was only 16 when the spark of divinity got kindled within him. There is a story around this transformation
and the manifestation of the divinity. It is said that while taking bath in a river near the village, Nanak
disappeared and was declared drowned. But after three days, he reappeared at the same spot, changed
and transformed. He gave his lesson to mankind:
“There is only one God. He is the Creator of all. He is the TRUTH, the FEARLESS and is beyond the cycle
of life and death.”
Immediately after the spark of divinity was kindled within him, he broke all the walls between religions.
“There is no Hindu; there is no Muslim.” To the Muslim governor of his region, Nanak gave this advice.
“ Let God’s grace be mosque,
And devotion the prayer mat,
let Quaran be the good conduct,
Modesty the compassion and good manners, the fasting.”
Guru Nanak gave the clear message to the Indians that the divinity created no barriers between the Hindus
and the Muslims and that the divinity did not order any rituals as a necessity. And this message remained
throughout with the Guru as the part and parcel of his teachings.
AGENDA-in-ACTION
Guru embarked at travels at the age of thirty to break the shackles of ritualism, to demolish the hold of the
vested
interests, to challenge the mighty and to give dignity to the downtrodden and the lowly.
In a small town of Saidpur (Now in Pak Punjab), he became a guest of a low caste carpenter named Lalo.
He did not go
to attend a party that the local chief, Malik Bhago was hosting that day to the religious people. This annoyed
the chief
and he summoned Nanak to his palace to explain his refusal to attend the party.
Guru Nanak showed every one assembled there, including the mighty governor, the reality behind the might
of the
chief. He held Lalo’s food in one hand and Bhago’s richly dishes in the other and squeezed both. Milk
oozed from Lalo’
s humble food, while blood trickled down from Bhago’s richly dishes. It was Guru Nanak’s message through
a miracle
Whereas the wealth with the mighty is the product of exploitation and tyranny, the honest labor produced
nectar.
After his refusal to wear the sacred thread to prove the uselessness of the rituals, dignifying the lowly and the
downtrodden was Guru Nanak’s second social agenda- not to surrender to the mighty but to uplift the lowly.
Guru Nanak’s travels, far and wide and spread over the major part of his life were devoted, not to preach
spirituality only but to spread a revolution against religious bigotry, food codes, suppression, brutality and
exploitation.
An incident at Kurukshetra (now in Haryana) vindicates it.
A big fair was going to commemorate the solar eclipse. Many pilgrims and devotees were assembled
there. Someone
offered the Guru a dish of deer meat. The Guru asked his companion, Mardana, to cook it. As the news
spread, an
angry crowd gathered to attack the Guru and his companion to punish for the sacrilege. But the Guru stood
fearless
and explained: “ Only the fools argue whether to eat meat or not to eat it. Who can define what is meat and
what is
plant? Who knows who is the sinner, the vegetarian or the meat-eater.”
An almost similar incident at Hardwar is yet another example of Guru Nanak’s revolutionary nature. While
the devotees
were throwing the water of the river Ganges towards the Sun, Guru began throwing it in the opposite
direction. The
devotees considered it a foolish act and reprimanded him. But the Guru replied: “My crops in my village are
withering. I
am watering them.” “How can water reach that far?” asked the devotees. And the Guru’s reply was: “If your
water can
reach the Sun, how is it that my water will not reach my village?”
Guru Nanak traveled four times to places as far as Sri Lanka, Tibet and Mecca. Along with the doctrine of
Oneness
God and brotherhood of mankind, he kept spreading his socio-spiritual revolution by establishing chapters,
here and there. Guru Nanak never taught isolation, seclusion and retreat as the only means or goals worth
desiring and aspiring. He advised doing daily duties towards oneself, towards family and society, while
keeping Almighty’s fear in
mind and heart.
He spoke and fought against the tyranny, thereby, earning the wrath of the Moghul emperor of the time,
Babur, whose soldiers threw him behind the bars.In the jail, he wrote and sang a poem complaining to the
Almighty against the brutal killings, the Moghul soldiers were resorting to.
“You (Almighty) have espoused the tyrants to scare India. Are you, O God, not feeling merciful towards the
innocents who are suffering and crying with pain.”
Challenging those who were persecuting the the lowly by abusing power and wealth, was Guru’s way of life.
He gave the same lesson to his devotee, named Lehna, who later was named Guru Angad Dev Ji and
became the second in command of the socio-spiritual revolution of Guru Nanak.
There is a story that once the Guru, while walking along with his two sons and devotee, Lehna, spotted
something
covered with a sheet. It was a dead body. The Guru asked them to eat. His sons disobeyed but Lehna
removed the
sheet to eat it. It turned into a tray of sacred food. Lehna offered it to the Guru, his two sons and took some
for
himself. Guru Nanak’s words at to his devotee and sons at that time for every one to ponder and act “
Lehna,” said the
Guru “if you don’t share your wealth with others, it is alike dead body. But if you share with others, it
becomes a tray of
sacred food.”
Distribution of wealth for the good of all was yet another agenda of Guru Nanak.
The faithful in every religion suffer from a common flaw. They have the tendency to see in the life and
teachings of the founders of their religions, only one agenda- the praise of the Lord and His search at the
cost of everything else. Therefore, they view him as only a GIVER to be invoked in time of difficulty and
need. In a receiving mode, the faithful forget that our Gurus and Saints have imposed upon us certain duties
towards ourselves, our families, our society and even the State.
We tend to forget that according to Guru Nanak’s teachings, it is more important to challenge the mighty
who abuse wealth and power than to sing Almighty’s praise. It is more important to break the iron curtain
that religious leaders have installed than to succumb to rituals and it is more important to share wealth
equitably than to resort to exploitation to amass it.
TIME TO ANSWER A FEW QUESTIONS.
We all need to pause for a moment and answer a question,
1) Who shall be more important in our lives- Guru Nanak, who preached castelessness or those who use castes as
tools to create violent conflicts?
2) Who shall be more important in our lives- Guru Nanak who said there is no Hindu, no Musalman or those who
conspire to impose religious supremacy?
3) Who shall be more important in our lives- Guru Nanak, who squeezed milk out of a poor carpenter’s food or those
who still amass wealth by treachery and exploitation?
Delve deep into your soul, get the answer and act accordingly.
============================================================================
New York.
November 05, 2006.
Nanak, born in a humble family of an accountant, in a village named Talwandi (Now in Pakistani Punjab)
on April 15, 1469, taught mankind at every step that the social and moral qualities were more important
than religious rituals.
GURU NANAK’S AGENDA:
Guru Nanak ‘s mission cannot be limited to spiritualism. He had a socio-political agenda.
1st: He wanted to rid mankind of religious rituals that ends in blind faith, devoid of reason.
2nd: He wanted to protect mankind from religious bigotry, food codes, dress codes that separate humanity
into groupism.
3rd: He wanted to promote dignity of labor and elimination of caste inequalities.
4th: He wanted to oppose exploitation by the rich and mighty.
5th: And finally, he wanted to tell mankind that there is only one God and we all His children.
His first act of revolution against religious rituals got manifest at an early age of 13. He was to wear a
circular thread along the shoulder and chest. It was a necessary religious duty in the Hindu families. But
Nanak refused. When the priest argued with him, Nanak replied: For me MERCY is cotton and
CONTENTMENT is the thread. Give me such a thread, which will not get soiled, nor burnt, nor lost.”
He was only 16 when the spark of divinity got kindled within him. There is a story around this transformation
and the manifestation of the divinity. It is said that while taking bath in a river near the village, Nanak
disappeared and was declared drowned. But after three days, he reappeared at the same spot, changed
and transformed. He gave his lesson to mankind:
“There is only one God. He is the Creator of all. He is the TRUTH, the FEARLESS and is beyond the cycle
of life and death.”
Immediately after the spark of divinity was kindled within him, he broke all the walls between religions.
“There is no Hindu; there is no Muslim.” To the Muslim governor of his region, Nanak gave this advice.
“ Let God’s grace be mosque,
And devotion the prayer mat,
let Quaran be the good conduct,
Modesty the compassion and good manners, the fasting.”
Guru Nanak gave the clear message to the Indians that the divinity created no barriers between the Hindus
and the Muslims and that the divinity did not order any rituals as a necessity. And this message remained
throughout with the Guru as the part and parcel of his teachings.
AGENDA-in-ACTION
Guru embarked at travels at the age of thirty to break the shackles of ritualism, to demolish the hold of the
vested
interests, to challenge the mighty and to give dignity to the downtrodden and the lowly.
In a small town of Saidpur (Now in Pak Punjab), he became a guest of a low caste carpenter named Lalo.
He did not go
to attend a party that the local chief, Malik Bhago was hosting that day to the religious people. This annoyed
the chief
and he summoned Nanak to his palace to explain his refusal to attend the party.
Guru Nanak showed every one assembled there, including the mighty governor, the reality behind the might
of the
chief. He held Lalo’s food in one hand and Bhago’s richly dishes in the other and squeezed both. Milk
oozed from Lalo’
s humble food, while blood trickled down from Bhago’s richly dishes. It was Guru Nanak’s message through
a miracle
Whereas the wealth with the mighty is the product of exploitation and tyranny, the honest labor produced
nectar.
After his refusal to wear the sacred thread to prove the uselessness of the rituals, dignifying the lowly and the
downtrodden was Guru Nanak’s second social agenda- not to surrender to the mighty but to uplift the lowly.
Guru Nanak’s travels, far and wide and spread over the major part of his life were devoted, not to preach
spirituality only but to spread a revolution against religious bigotry, food codes, suppression, brutality and
exploitation.
An incident at Kurukshetra (now in Haryana) vindicates it.
A big fair was going to commemorate the solar eclipse. Many pilgrims and devotees were assembled
there. Someone
offered the Guru a dish of deer meat. The Guru asked his companion, Mardana, to cook it. As the news
spread, an
angry crowd gathered to attack the Guru and his companion to punish for the sacrilege. But the Guru stood
fearless
and explained: “ Only the fools argue whether to eat meat or not to eat it. Who can define what is meat and
what is
plant? Who knows who is the sinner, the vegetarian or the meat-eater.”
An almost similar incident at Hardwar is yet another example of Guru Nanak’s revolutionary nature. While
the devotees
were throwing the water of the river Ganges towards the Sun, Guru began throwing it in the opposite
direction. The
devotees considered it a foolish act and reprimanded him. But the Guru replied: “My crops in my village are
withering. I
am watering them.” “How can water reach that far?” asked the devotees. And the Guru’s reply was: “If your
water can
reach the Sun, how is it that my water will not reach my village?”
Guru Nanak traveled four times to places as far as Sri Lanka, Tibet and Mecca. Along with the doctrine of
Oneness
God and brotherhood of mankind, he kept spreading his socio-spiritual revolution by establishing chapters,
here and there. Guru Nanak never taught isolation, seclusion and retreat as the only means or goals worth
desiring and aspiring. He advised doing daily duties towards oneself, towards family and society, while
keeping Almighty’s fear in
mind and heart.
He spoke and fought against the tyranny, thereby, earning the wrath of the Moghul emperor of the time,
Babur, whose soldiers threw him behind the bars.In the jail, he wrote and sang a poem complaining to the
Almighty against the brutal killings, the Moghul soldiers were resorting to.
“You (Almighty) have espoused the tyrants to scare India. Are you, O God, not feeling merciful towards the
innocents who are suffering and crying with pain.”
Challenging those who were persecuting the the lowly by abusing power and wealth, was Guru’s way of life.
He gave the same lesson to his devotee, named Lehna, who later was named Guru Angad Dev Ji and
became the second in command of the socio-spiritual revolution of Guru Nanak.
There is a story that once the Guru, while walking along with his two sons and devotee, Lehna, spotted
something
covered with a sheet. It was a dead body. The Guru asked them to eat. His sons disobeyed but Lehna
removed the
sheet to eat it. It turned into a tray of sacred food. Lehna offered it to the Guru, his two sons and took some
for
himself. Guru Nanak’s words at to his devotee and sons at that time for every one to ponder and act “
Lehna,” said the
Guru “if you don’t share your wealth with others, it is alike dead body. But if you share with others, it
becomes a tray of
sacred food.”
Distribution of wealth for the good of all was yet another agenda of Guru Nanak.
The faithful in every religion suffer from a common flaw. They have the tendency to see in the life and
teachings of the founders of their religions, only one agenda- the praise of the Lord and His search at the
cost of everything else. Therefore, they view him as only a GIVER to be invoked in time of difficulty and
need. In a receiving mode, the faithful forget that our Gurus and Saints have imposed upon us certain duties
towards ourselves, our families, our society and even the State.
We tend to forget that according to Guru Nanak’s teachings, it is more important to challenge the mighty
who abuse wealth and power than to sing Almighty’s praise. It is more important to break the iron curtain
that religious leaders have installed than to succumb to rituals and it is more important to share wealth
equitably than to resort to exploitation to amass it.
TIME TO ANSWER A FEW QUESTIONS.
We all need to pause for a moment and answer a question,
1) Who shall be more important in our lives- Guru Nanak, who preached castelessness or those who use castes as
tools to create violent conflicts?
2) Who shall be more important in our lives- Guru Nanak who said there is no Hindu, no Musalman or those who
conspire to impose religious supremacy?
3) Who shall be more important in our lives- Guru Nanak, who squeezed milk out of a poor carpenter’s food or those
who still amass wealth by treachery and exploitation?
Delve deep into your soul, get the answer and act accordingly.
============================================================================
