Selected Editorials - The Sikh Bulletin

Whether multiple Gods preceded or followed the One God the fact remains that idols were an integral
part of that belief system. Mohammed pitted himself against idol worship in the Arab world and was
successful. Christianity had the same effect in Greece where the stone images of Gods lie in ruin. But
stone Gods are alive and well in Hindu India. Over centuries nothing has changed. There is so much in
common between Greek and Hindu mythology and human and animal mix in their Gods that it is hard to
miss.
Finally, the concept of Miri Piri in Sikhism is the tail end of the ancient concept of religion and politics,
being the flip sides of the same coin. Its impracticality is shown by the current control of SGPC by the
Badal clan in Punjab.
Hardev Singh Shergill
*****
EDITORIAL
[From May-June 2012 Sikh Bulletin]
GURU NANAK’S GOD
¡
siq nfmu krqf purKu inrBAu inrvYru akfl mUriq ajUnI sYBM gur pRsfid ]
The opening verse of Guru Granth Sahib, shown above, is accepted as Guru Nanak’s description or
definition of God. English translation of the above verse by Manmohan Singh in ‘Sri Guru Granth Sahib’,
published by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee is as follows:
There is but one God. True is His name, creative His personality and immortal His form. He is without
fear, sans enmity, unborn and self illumined. By the Guru’s grace (He is obtained).
Guru Nanak is quite certain that God is a singularity, unlike Hindu or Christian Trinity, and calls it Truth.
It is the Creator of everything, visible and invisible. It created itself but unlike its creation It is timeless
and formless. But then he mentions two attributes that are purely human, fear and enmity, but says God
does not show either. Then why mention it unless Guru Nanak wishes man to aspire to be God like. If one
treats others as he would like to be treated then there would be no enmity. If there is no enmity, there is no
hostility and fear will disappear. That is a strong indication of life course that Guru Nanak would like us
to follow.
Here I would like to confess to my personal belief that might be considered a blasphemy and offend most
people, even those who know me well. That is that Guru Nanak did not initiate another religion. There
were too many religions and divisions among them in his time as is the case today. Today he will surely
say that ‘I am neither a Hindu nor a Muslim; neither a Sikh nor a Christian’. He showed mankind a path
to life and living. The tragedy is that ‘well meaning people’, which would be 99.9% of us all, have turned
it into yet another divisive and suffocating faith.
Guru Nanak’s belief in One God was so absolute that the very next thing that follows the opening verse
is:
afid scu jugfid scu ] hY BI scu nfnk hosI BI scu ]ñ]
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