Selected Editorials - The Sikh Bulletin

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If Guru had come across the faith that holds its redeemer to be the only son of God and who was resurrected from death for a second coming sometime in the future he would have rejected that belief by saying that for the birth of a human to take place it needs a man’s semen and a woman’s egg in side her womb and the clock of death cannot be turned back. Long before the modern scientific thought developed Guru Nanak sowed the seeds of it in the opening verse of Guru Granth Sahib and the bani ‘Jap’ that follows it. This editorial is followed by some selections from GGS to illustrate these points. The opening verse: < siqnwmu krqw purKu inrBau inrvYru Akwl mUriq AjUnI sYBM gurpRswid ] “God is ONE. His name is Truth. He is the creator. He is fearless and not inimical. He is without death and without birth. He is self-existent. Humans can attune to him through Guru’s grace.” What does it really mean What does it describe Certainly it is not anything akin to a human. It is formless and timeless and yet is self-existent. In the opening line of ‘Jap’ Guru unequivocally reasserts his firm belief that what he is saying is an absolute truth. ਆਿਦ ਸਚੁ ਜੁਗਾਿਦ ਸਚੁ ॥ ਹੈ ਭੀ ਸਚੁ ਨਾਨਕ ਹੋਸੀ ਭੀ ਸਚੁ ॥੧॥ ArQ:- hy nwnk! Akwl purK mu`F qoN hoNd vwlw hY, jugW dy mu`F qoN mOjUd hY [ies vyly BI mOjUd hY qy AgWh ƒ BI hoNd vwlw rhygw [1[ True In The Primal Beginning. True Throughout The Ages. True Here And Now. O Nanak, Forever And Ever True. ||1|| There is a single English word that describes what Guru is saying and that word is ENERGY. Referring to death Guru asks what has died. Then he answers his own question; nothing has died. Body has simply gone back to its elements. The breath mixes with air, body becomes dust and the spark of ENERGY merges with the ENERGY. I see seeds of E=MC 2 . ***** Hardev Singh Shergill EDITORIAL PRAYER - ARDAAS [From the January-February 2013 Sikh Bulletin] Practice of prayer has a universal presence in all societies, primitive to very advanced and in all the religions. Whether it helps or not is another matter and depends upon an individual’s beliefs. One thing is certain, however, prayer might help a person if it is about self and that not because of any divine intervention but because of the placebo effect, well known in the field of medicine. To pray for someone else’s good health and rainfall during drought is a fruitless exercise. Dr. Chahal, in his article on Ardaas (p.2) with extensive quotes from Gurbani has come to the conclusion that Guru Nanak’s belief about prayer was different from what his followers are now proclaiming and practicing, and it is best summed up by his quote by Albert Einstein, “Scientific research is based on the 76
idea that everything that takes place is determined by laws of nature, and therefore this holds for the actions of people. For this reason, a research scientist will hardly be inclined to believe that events could be influenced by a prayer, i.e. by a wish addressed to a supernatural Being.” Had Albert Einstein read the philosophy of Guru Nanak he would have said that same advice was given by Guru Nanak during the 15 th century (the Period of Renaissance in Europe) to the people of the Indian Sub-continent and the Middle East. Prayer is an essential component of all the faiths but in the Sikh prayer that is recited in Gurdwaras and homes there are glaring words and phrases that are in conflict with Gurbani. Commencing word, ‘Bhagauti’ and ‘meditate then on revered Hari Krishan on seeing whom all suffering vanishes’ are just two examples. Dr. Chahal has correctly pointed out that a Sikh’s Ardaas is found in the Guru Granth Sahib itself. This Ardaas begs for nothing from the Creator because the Creator has already provided all the means of sustaining all the living things, including mankind. In this Ardaas a Sikh offers thanks to the Creator for Its bountiful blessings and describes Creator’s characteristics. The Ardaas that Dr. Chahal chose from the Guru Granth Sahib is from page 268. He has given a better English rendition than the literal ones you will find. Same Ardaas is presented below with meanings in Panjabi by Professor Sahib Singh: ਤੂ ਠਾਕੁਰੁ ਤੁਮ ਪਿਹ ਅਰਦਾਿਸ ॥ ਜੀਉ ਿਪੰ ਡੁ ਸਭੁ ਤੇਰੀ ਰਾਿਸ ॥ ਤੁਮ ਮਾਤ ਿਪਤਾ ਹਮ ਬਾਿਰਕ ਤੇਰੇ ॥ ਤੁਮਰੀ ਿਕ੍ਰਪਾ ਮਿਹ ਸੂਖ ਘਨੇ ਰੇ ॥ ਕੋਇ ਨ ਜਾਨੈ ਤੁਮਰਾ ਅੰ ਤੁ ॥ ਊਚੇ ਤੇ ਊਚਾ ਭਗਵੰ ਤ ॥ ਸਗਲ ਸਮਗ੍ਰੀ ਤੁਮਰੈ ਸੂਿਤ੍ਰ ਧਾਰੀ ॥ ਤੁਮ ਤੇ ਹੋਇ ਸੁ ਆਿਗਆਕਾਰੀ ॥ ਤੁਮਰੀ ਗਿਤ ਿਮਿਤ ਤੁਮ ਹੀ ਜਾਨੀ ॥ ਨਾਨਕ ਦਾਸ ਸਦਾ ਕੁਰਬਾਨੀ ॥੮॥੪॥ {ਪੰ ਨਾ 268} ArQ:- (hy pRBU!) qUM mwilk hYN (swfI jIvW dI) Arz qyry A`gy hI hY, ieh ijMd qy srIr (jo qUM swƒ id`qw hY) sB qyrI hI b^SIS hY [ qUM swfw mW ipau hYN, AsI qyry bwl hW, qyrI myhr (dI nzr) ivc byAMq suK hn [ koeI qyrw AMq nhIN pw skdw, (ikauNik) qUM sB qoN au~cw Bgvwn hYN [ (jgq dy) swry pdwrQ qyry hI hukm ivc itky hoey hn; qyrI rcI hoeI isRStI qyrI hI AwigAw ivc qur rhI hY [ 77
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IN SEARCH OF SIKHS Khalsa Tricenten
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1. ik iXh vI sLc hE ik dId;r is|Q b
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SIKHS ARE A NATION Whole World Is O
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Page 75: Blinded by our egos we have turned
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Page 85 and 86: EDITORIAL MILK BARS TO DESI SHRAB B
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Selected Editorials - The Sikh Bulletin

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