BACKGROUND
The word Sikh means disciple or student. Sikhs
are students and followers of Guru Nanak (b. 1469),
the founder of the Sikh religious tradition, and
the nine prophet-teachers-called Gurus-who succeeded
him. Though sometimes mistaken for members of
a sect of Hinduism or Islam, Sikhs belong to a
distinct religion with its own unique, divine
scriptures, which are collected in the Guru Granth
Sahib, the eternal spiritual guide of the Sikhs.
This extraordinarily poetic treasure of sacred
and practical wisdom contains not only the writings
of the Sikh Gurus, but remarkably, those of Muslim
and Hindu saints as well. It is also notable in
that the holy text was written by the Gurus themselves,
without the use of any intermediaries.
BELIEFS
Sikhism's central theological belief is that
there is one God for all of creation, a loving
Creator attainable through meditation upon and
remembrance of God's Name. In addition, Sikhs
are enjoined to lead moral lives, earn their
living through hard work and honest means, and
to share the fruits of their labor through charitable
contributions and work. Sikhism is a way of
life that advocates the practice of holistic
life experiences-work, worship, and service-in
order to attain perpetual union with God, while
creating a just social order in this world.
A Sikh is enjoined to lead a wholesome family
lifestyle, and to avoid celibacy or asceticism
as a means of reaching God. Spurred by their
religion's dictates, Sikhs have a long, celebrated
heritage of speaking out against injustice,
and standing up for the defenseless.
The twenty-two million Sikhs worldwide trace
the origin of their religion to Punjab, meaning
the land of the five rivers, located in present-day
Pakistan and northern India. Now the fifth largest
religion in the world, Sikhism is universal
in that it is open to all, and that it recognizes
and respects all human beings as equals. Just
as God transcends the boundaries of race, class,
gender, and ethnicity, the Sikh religion dismisses
such earthly distinctions. The Sikh religion
is profoundly egalitarian and democratic, as
its adherents believe steadfastly that all people
have civil rights, including the freedom of
religion. Sikh doctrine resonates with the Gurus'
belief that all people have the right to follow
their own path to God, without condemnation
or coercion from others.
Nearly five centuries ago, Sikhism's founder,
Guru Nanak, denounced the invidious, wretched
caste system that still plagues Indian society
today. He strove to create a spiritual community
in which such marks of social status would be
dissolved, and all would be recognized as equals
by the fact of their humanity. A truly revolutionary
social reformer, Guru Nanak also condemned the
mistreatment of women in his time, proclaiming
them the equals of men in every respect-political,
social, and religious-over two and a half centuries
before the founding of the United States.
KHALSA
On March 30, 1699, Guru Gobind Singh-the tenth
and final human Guru-revealed a new order of
the Sikhs, called the Khalsa (meaning "belonging
only to the Divine").
The Khalsa consists of Sikhs who undergo a initiation
ceremony and dedicate themselves to living by
the high standards of the Sikh Gurus at all
times, as well as maintaining their physical
distinctiveness in society by maintaining five
articles of faith. The Khalsa, a global human
fellowship, upheld the highest Sikh virtues
through the harshest and most difficult times
in Sikh history.
One of the more conspicuous and noteworthy of
the articles of faith is the Kesh (uncut hair),
which is kept covered by a distinctive turban.
The other articles are the Kirpan (ceremonial
sword), Kara (metal bracelet), Kanga (comb)
and Kaccha (under-shorts). They all have deep
religious meanings for Sikhs, who wear them
to honor the teachings, wishes, and memory of
their beloved Gurus.
HIGHLIGHTS
· The word Sikh means disciple or student.
· Sikhs are students and followers of
Guru Nanak (b. 1469), the founder of the Sikh
religious tradition.
· Guru Granth Sahib is the eternal spiritual
guide of the Sikhs.
· Sikhism's central theological belief
is that there is one God for all of creation,
a loving Creator attainable through meditation
upon and remembrance of God's Name.
· Sikhism is a way of life that advocates
the practice of holistic life experiences-work,
worship, and service.
· Twenty-two million Sikhs worldwide
trace the origin of their religion to Punjab.
· Sikhism is the fifth largest religion
in the world.
· There are an estimated 500,000 Sikhs
in the US and about the same number in Canada.
· Sikhism does not recognize racial,
class, caste, or other earthly distinctions.
· Sikhism recognizes the complete equality
between women and men in all spheres of life:
political, social, and religious.
· Guru Gobind Singh-the tenth and final
human Sikh Guru-revealed a new order of the
Sikhs, called the Khalsa (meaning "belonging
only to the Divine").
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