Sikh devotees carry the palanquin during a procession at the Golden Temple in Amritsar on Tuesday, the eve of the birth anniversary of Sri Guru Nanak Dev.
Photo: Vishal Kumar
The Tribune – Guru Nanak Janam Din Gurpurabh, Harmandr Sahib, Amritsar
427.Man in Blue – Japji, Rahras and Sohila
Writing last week’s article about the five ‘khands’, the five stages on the way to God, was a real challenge. The subject seems straightforward to me, but I have been on the Sikhí path since 1996 and daily think about these things. What is simple to me now might be complicated to the readers.
This week’s article is inspired by the index of the Guru Granth Sahib as found on the ‘Sikhitothemax’ download version. The first folder is called ‘Beginning’ and is followed by 31 folders, one for each rág in which most shabads are arranged.
The first shabad in the ‘Beginning’ folder is Japji Sahib. Japji Sahib is a beautiful spiritual poem, meant for reciting, not for singing. The second and third entries are Rahras and Sohila, both compilations of shabads in different rágs. These are usually recited but can also be sung.
Each shabad in Rahras and Sohila appears twice in the Guru Granth Sahib, once in these compilations and once under their respective rágs.
Why did Guru Arjan separate these out ? Japji Sahib is a very special composition by first Guru, Guru Nanak, and discusses many of the basic teachings of Sikhí. It fully deserves its position as the first spiritual poem of the Guru Granth.
I think that by publishing Japji Sahib, Rahras and Sohila on the first 13 pages, Guru Arjan, who compiled the first version of the Guru Granth (the Ádi Granth), instructed the Sikhs to recite these every day.
I have of course no authority to change the Rahit Maryada. According to the 1945 Sikh Rahit Maryada we have to read Japji Sahib, Jaap Sahib and the ten Svaye starting with ‘Srávag Sudh’ in the morning. In the evening we should read an extended Rahras and then before going to bed an unchanged Sohila.
Mostly this leads to speed reading, or listening to recorded versions while doing other things. Reading Japji Sahib with full attention should at least take half an hour. Follow that by some simran and you have a very nice opening of your day. Similarly for Rahras, a beautiful collection of shabads, very well balanced and full of important teachings.
Most Sikhs, encouraged by Taksal and AKJ, want to read more, not less. But what is often practised is either speed reading or listening to a recording via iPod or computer. Listening to recordings is not bad, but after having listened to Japji Sahib or Jaap Sahib our minds have problems concentrating on more input. Does not Guru prefer quality over quantity ?
Any suggestions from Sangat ?
409.The Man in Blue – He or She, the Lord and Vahiguru
From the Roman Catholic area of the Netherlands where I grew up I remember two images of God. One was the traditional old man-in-white-beard, a bit like a Guru picture without a turban. The other image was a big eye in a triangular frame, which portrayed God as the All-Seeing One.
As Sikhs we agree to the concept of the All-Seeing God. But God is neither an old-man-in-beard nor an old-woman-without-beard.
The Guru repeatedly refers to Mata and Pita, but this does not mean that God is sometimes a man and sometimes a woman. God is not either this or that; God is ‘Everything’ at all times. God is the Groom and we are all the brides, but God is also the brides, as God is All and All is God.
God is the One, God is the True Name, God is the Creator Being, God is the Wonderful Teacher, God is the Nourisher, God is the Liberator, God is the Biggest Giver, God is Limitless, God is not He, She or It, God is He-She-It, all of these and many more at the same time.
Most translators of the Guru Granth have been males from a patriarchal society and therefore used ‘He’ in all references to God. They also too often ‘translated’ the various words used to describe God’s qualities as ‘Lord’.
Of course if the original text uses a word that means ‘He’, we should translate ‘He’, if the text uses a word meaning Lord we should translate as Lord and if the word used for God is generic then we should translate God.
Panjabi does not really have a word for he or she. For instance ‘he is a granthi’ would be something like ‘this (a) granthi is’ in Panjabi.
According to Bhai Gurdas and Bhai Randir Singh Vahiguru is the Sikh word for God. I respect both and am very happy that they got spiritually uplifted by reciting ‘Vahiguru’. But this does not mean that it is a good idea to translate words like Prabhu, Har or Nirankar as Vahiguru.
Prabhu is I think a generic (general) word like God, and definitely has not got the specific meaning of ‘Wonderful Teacher’. Har has a specific meaning, but it does not mean ‘Lord’ or ‘Wonderful Teacher’, and where Guru repeats : Har, Har, Har, Har I just translate God, God, God, God.
Translating the Guru Granth is never easy because we are dealing with poetry that uses rhyme, metre and rhythm and poetic language. But we make things unnecessary difficult by getting even the simple things wrong. I plan to write more about translating the Guru Granth in the coming months, mainly stressing how it is not to be done and hopefully also giving some positive directions and examples.
