Authenticity of Kartarpuri Bir - Global Sikh Studies

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58 it is a fact that the leaves of the Kartarpuri Bir show no sign what-so-ever of damage by water or dampness. 78 The story of concealment in the river bed is, thus, factually controverted. Thirdly, it is really un-thinkable that the Sikhs, who were aware of the supreme value of the Kartarpuri Bir and who on that account, were earlier, even after the express desire of the Guru, reluctant to return the same to the Dirmalias. would suddenly become so disrespectful, callous and inconsiderate towards the Bir as to bury it in the river bed and thereby incur both the wrath of the Guru and also the risk of the loss of the invaluable Granth by water or wetness, especially when they all considered the volume to be both the repository of the Sabad and irreplaceable. But, the truth is that as they did not want to meet the enemies of the Guru, they placed the Granth at a safe place, sent a message to Dirmalias who were only too anxious to pick it up. Further, there is little doubt that when the 10th Guru wanted at Anandpur Sahib to prepare the Damdami version it was to the Dhirmalias that he sent the message for loan of this Bir of the fifth Guru. 79 So, what-ever be the facts of the earlier part of the story, at the time of the tenth Guru, the original authentic Bir was certainly with the Dhirmalias. After that the Bir always remained in safe hands. Had the Bir been lost it is impossible to imagine that Ranjit Singh who had waged a war for obtaining a horse, would not be aware of it and recover this venerable treasure or that he would be satisfied with a spurious version of the original Bir. Another objection of Mcleod about the two verses of the Chhant of Guru Arjun in Ramkali Rag is as to “why it was recorded in a section of the Adi-Granth devoted to longer Chhant form.” 80 The objection displays a clear ignorance of the scheme of the Granth according to which the Chhant should have been only where it is. The Chhant has three features. It is to be sung in Ramkali Rag, it is
59 by the fifth Guru, and it is a Chhant. As such, it could only find a place in the section for Ramkali Rag in the subsection for the Chhants, and, further in the subsection in which Guru Arjun’s Chhants had been recorded whether those were short or long. There is no other place in the Adi-Granth where Guru Arjun’s Chhants under Ramkali Rag are recorded. Hence the Chhant hymns in question could only be where these are, and could not be recorded elsewhere, without violating the scheme of the Adi-Granth. Here it is not our purpose to ascertain whether Mcleod made his observations out of sheer ignorance of the available facts and materials, or of his anxiety to suppress known but awkward facts, or of his conscious or unconscious bias because of his years of working and association with the Christian Missionary Centre, Batala. But, in either case, it does little credit to his credibility as a scholar, especially because, even after quoting Jodh Singh he writes: “From this report it is clear that the issue should still be regarded as open.” 81 In view of the above, we conclude that Mcleod’s criticism is factually incorrect, untenable, and, in parts, even misleading. VII We, now, come to the criticism of Prof. Pritam Singh. In his paper 82 he has, on the one hand, tried to attack the authenticity of the Kartarpuri Bir and, on the other hand, tried to give a fresh lease of life to the Banno story and the Banno Bir having been written in the time of the 5th Guru. He states that in the present Banno Bir the year of completion recorded in the Tatkara has been changed from 1699. From all the available internal evidence, he concludes that the present Banno Bir at Kanpur was completed in 1699 and not earlier. 83 But, quite inexplicably and on the
Page 1 and 2:
CHAPTER 1 Introductory Sikhism is a
Page 3 and 4:
and analyse all the available mater
Page 5 and 6:
Parkash (1801 A.D.) the reply of Bh
Page 7 and 8: authentic scripture of the Sikhs co
Page 9 and 10: and kept it with him as a national
Page 11 and 12: 11 with the quotation of the first
Page 13 and 14: 13 Kartarpuri Bir, though he had no
Page 15 and 16: 15 There is no handwritten Bir the
Page 17 and 18: 17 5. There is another set of corre
Page 19 and 20: 19 mistakes which in their characte
Page 21 and 22: 21 been scored out or cancelled by
Page 23 and 24: 23 that the last words end where ve
Page 25 and 26: 25 been wrongly numbered as 333, 34
Page 27 and 28: 27 in the copy all the 1 to 60 Saba
Page 29 and 30: 29 It is important to understand th
Page 31 and 32: 31 contention was that the Kartarpu
Page 33 and 34: 33 pretension on the part of any on
Page 35 and 36: 35 Salok is not in the Mohan Pothie
Page 37 and 38: 37 Singh writes that the Kartarpuri
Page 39 and 40: 39 ever have been contemplated, tha
Page 41 and 42: 41 including these two verses was n
Page 43 and 44: 43 on very cogent grounds rejected
Page 45 and 46: 45 scriptural or doctrinal deviatio
Page 47 and 48: 47 Banno Granth had been tempered w
Page 49 and 50: 49 original is without any factual
Page 51 and 52: 51 was shaved. This feature is in o
Page 53 and 54: 53 can be accomodated on about 465
Page 55 and 56: 55 5. This Bir was written in Sarna
Page 57: 57 Granth having been copied on way
Page 61 and 62: 61 changing it to 1659. Apart from
Page 63 and 64: 63 In his paper he records that in
Page 65 and 66: 65 suggestion, for the first time r
Page 67 and 68: 67 Pritam Singh when faced with the
Page 69 and 70: 69 need to be allowed and “the al
Page 71 and 72: 71 On the main issue we have come t
Page 73 and 74: 73 the Kartarpuri and the Banno Bir
Page 75 and 76: 75 available since 1981. If it had
Page 77 and 78: 77 of the three authors or critics
Page 79 and 80: 58 ibid, pp. 119-121, 135 59 ibid,
Page 81 and 82: 81 APPENDIX A Dr. W. H. Mcleod has
Page 83 and 84: 83 Mira Bai’s hymn, as already st
Page 85 and 86: 85 done only for the utilization of
Page 87 and 88: 87 The work was in the tradition of
Page 89 and 90: 89 about the nature of the mystic e
Page 91 and 92: 91 Sikhism every other religious pr
Page 93 and 94: love. Because in the religious envi
Page 95 and 96: 95 life there is aggression or inju
Page 97 and 98: 97 causes, but also prescribed that
Page 99 and 100: 99 ALDOUS (with emphasis) : Exactly
Page 101 and 102: 101 Centuries earlier a Muslim sain
Page 103 and 104: 103 Sikh Gurus God was Love. For th
Page 105 and 106: 105 for all living, but in the purp
Page 107 and 108: 107 rationality has been called a c
Page 109 and 110:
109 constituted the unstable spirit
Page 111 and 112:
111 The situation is similar in Afr
Page 113 and 114:
113 17 ibid, pp. 26, 1091-92 18 ibi
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Essays on Authenticity of Kartarpur
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ESSAYS ON THE AUTHENTICITY OF KARTA
Page 121 and 122:
PREFACE I am extremely grateful to
Page 123:
its essentials. In laying down thei
Page 126:
covered the scriptural and doctrina
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