On the occasion of International Women’s Day -8 March 2022, WSN shares this article by prolific writer Saran Singh, who recently passed away. The veteran author dwells on the teachings of Gurbani relating to women at home and in society. This was first published in The Spokesman Weekly, Guru Nanak Number in 1985.

Guru Nanak’s best-known composition, yet awaiting to be translated in some of the major world languages -the Japji, is truly remarkable for its profundity of thought in incredibly austere but expressive diction. In nine pregnant phrases of the Mul Mantra -the preamble of Japji and Guru Granth Sahib, Guru Nanak spells out the basic Reality of the Creator, “There is but one God whose Name is Truth, He the Creator is devoid of fear and enmity, immortal, unborn and self-existent, of bountiful Grace, He is attainable through True Guru’s guidance. “

This was first published in 
The Spokesman Weekly in 1985,
archived by Panjab Digital Library.

“We know so little about the personality of one who only five hundred years ago was acknowledged as Asia’s Prophet of Peace and Love.” However, “whatever has been handed down to us through his own hymns and through traditional Janam Sakhis is sufficient to establish that he was a persona of extraordinary spiritual power, rare sensitivity and profound humanity.”

Most of Guru Nanak’s compositions, in simple lyrical verse and homespun idiom, are nevertheless replete with philosophical verities and socio-psychological wisdom dwelling, time and again, on the key argument that the object of life is not material wealth but the irrepressible urge to attune oneself to the Creator and His Purpose to discover one’s inner self and finally to become one with the Divine. That his thought process has an uncanny resemblance with what we call the scientific mode of
thought is evident from much of his writing. Examine the dialogue with Pir Dastgir at Baghdad:

“The universe is beyond human thought, many galaxies of countless planetary systems, some—like earth—having intelligent beings, highly evolved spiritually. . . the goal is one.”

Or the succinct story of the origin of the Universe:

ਸਾਚੇ ਤੇ ਪਵਨਾ ਭਇਆ ਪਵਨੈ ਤੇ ਜਲੁ ਹੋਇ ॥
ਜਲ ਤੇ ਤ੍ਰਿਭਵਣੁ ਸਾਜਿਆ ਘਟਿ ਘਟਿ ਜੋਤਿ ਸਮੋਇ ॥
ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ਅੰਗ 19

“When paraphrased, this means:

First, there was the true Being; from Him came air, and from the air was created water and from water came the biosphere —all symbolising His immanence.

3. This and many other writings point to the fact, if, indeed, it is necessary to do so,—that the great teacher had dwelt profoundly and systematically on the complex problems not only involving the social and moral values but on the ultimate secret of the Divine Spirit. These eternal values of Truth and Love and of the seeker’s duty and devotion are the perennial principles which the seers of Satiyuga first discovered in the dim dawn of history; which the Buddha, Christ and Mohammed affirmed in their own times and climes. These are the values which are ever ancient’ -and yet ever new!

4. Above all, Guru Nanak brought these values as they were to the doorstep of the common man; translated them in the day-to-day metaphors, telling people —all men are equal-Na Koi Hindu, na Musalman.

5. In his own persuasive and gentle way, he deplored the exploitation of the poor by the rich and made no secret of where his sympathies lay. Rather than raise a storm of controversy about the deep-rooted caste system, he simply and courageously identified himself with the so-called low caste. He said:

ਨੀਚਾ ਅੰਦਰਿ ਨੀਚ ਜਾਤਿ ਨੀਚੀ ਹੂ ਅਤਿ ਨੀਚੁ ॥
ਨਾਨਕੁ ਤਿਨ ਕੈ ਸੰਗਿ ਸਾਥਿ ਵਡਿਆ ਸਿਉ ਕਿਆ ਰੀਸ ॥
ਜਿਥੈ ਨੀਚ ਸਮਾਲੀਅਨਿ ਤਿਥੈ ਨਦਰਿ ਤੇਰੀ ਬਖਸੀਸ ॥4॥3॥
                      -ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ਅੰਗ 15

In other words: “I have nothing to do with the high caste. I commune with the lowly and the lost God’s Grace is where the lowly and down-trodden are cared for.”

6. Once, near Sialkot, disdaining invitation to a rich man’s feast, Guru Nanak gladly dined with a low-caste carpenter. Summoned to answer this insult, the Guru told the rich man that his food was “tainted” with the blood of the poor. In another context, Guru Nanak raised his voice against the plunder and persecution of peaceful citizens by the invading armies of Babur, thus:

ਖੁਰਾਸਾਨ ਖਸਮਾਨਾ ਕੀਆ ਹਿੰਦੁਸਤਾਨੁ ਡਰਾਇਆ ॥
ਆਪੈ ਦੋਸੁ ਨ ਦੇਈ ਕਰਤਾ ਜਮੁ ਕਰਿ ਮੁਗਲੁ ਚੜਾਇਆ ॥
ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ਅੰਗ 360 

Then gave expression to his righteous indignation by addressing God thus:

ਏਤੀ ਮਾਰ ਪਈ ਕਰਲਾਣੇ ਤੈਂ ਕੀ ਦਰਦੁ ਨ ਆਇਆ ॥1॥
ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ਅੰਗ 360

Which means, 0 Lord, are you not moved to pity by the dreadful suffering of the masses?

7. He reminded rulers of the day to practise social justice, telling them of the inexorable law of Karma. As you sow, so shall you reap. No one could escape the consequences of his own actions. He was amused at the folly of a man who concocted poison but expected to drink sweet nectar:

ਬੀਜੇ ਬਿਖੁ ਮੰਗੈ ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤੁ ਵੇਖਹੁ ਏਹੁ ਨਿਆਉ ॥2॥
ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ਅੰਗ 474

Or observe this:

ਐਸਾ ਜਗੁ ਦੇਖਿਆ ਜੂਆਰੀ ॥
ਸਭਿ ਸੁਖ ਮਾਗੈ ਨਾਮੁ ਬਿਸਾਰੀ ॥1॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ਅੰਗ 222

That is:
“Strange is the paradox of this world—
Everyone wants happiness,
but forgets God’s name.”
In another hymn, he warns:

ਹਕੁ ਪਰਾਇਆ ਨਾਨਕਾ ਉਸੁ ਸੂਅਰ ਉਸੁ ਗਾਇ ॥
ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ਅੰਗ 141

In other words: To deprive another of his rightful wages, must be forbidden as firmly as the eating of beef by a Hindu or the of eating of pork by a Muslim.

8. For this generation, and for this country, there is a deep significance in what Guru Nanak taught his followers. He stood for a positive and dynamic approach to life—for the acceptance of duty and responsibility — duty towards family, to society, to the country and indeed the whole of humanity. His three-point message to the common man is,

ਨਾਮ ਜਪੋ,
ਧਰਮ ਦੀ ਕਿਰਤ ਕਰੋ,
ਵੰਡ ਛਕੋ.
Dedicate yourself to God
Earn an honest living
Share your wealth with others.

9. To the agriculturist —his message is:

ਧਰਮੁ ਭੂਮਿ ਸਤੁ ਬੀਜੁ ਕਰਿ ਐਸੀ ਕਿਰਸ ਕਮਾਵਹੁ ॥
ਤਾਂ ਵਾਪਾਰੀ ਜਾਣੀਅਹੁ ਲਾਹਾ ਲੈ ਜਾਵਹੁ ॥8॥
ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ਅੰਗ 418

In simple English, this means:
“Practice such agriculture
In the soil of Justice plant the seeds of Truth
And verily you shall reap a bountiful harvest.”

10. One of the chief merits of Guru Nanak’s message is at once its earthiness and its high thought. He often used vernacular—the people’s language—to express some of the most profound ideas. This was a radical departure from the classical Brahmanic lore with its abstruse mantras, unintelligible to the mass of people who had therefore fallen easy prey to a web of superstition and empty ritual. As the medium of his message, he freely drew upon regional languages —which, incidentally explains the rich variety of his compositions enshrined in Guru Granth Sahib.

11. Early in life it was his ambition to seek out and converse with holy men and to attain the divine light. To accomplish this, as the Buddha had done many centuries before him, Guru Nanak left his wife and two children and set out on an Odyssey such as has seldom been equalled. From Sultanpur in Punjab, he first went to Delhi, Varanasi, Patna, Rajgir and as far as Assam and Dhaka.

12. In the second trip he went north into the Himalayas, as far as the Mansarovar and, possibly, into Tibet where the name “Rimpoche Nanak” still lingers in tradition. His third great journey was to South India. through Karnatak, all the way to Sri Lanka. However the most celebrated of his journeys was to Baghdad and the holy Mecca—where he left a mark as the Pir of Hind—the prophet from India.

13. To the contemporary generation it should be a pleasant surprise to know that Guru Nanak restored to women their rightful place in society. In the sixteenth century, the woman was regarded either as an object of pleasure or as a domestic slave kept behind a veil. A widow had the awesome choice to commit Sati or live a life worse than death. Guru Nanak was much pained by this degradation of half the human race. He affirmed that woman as an equal partner of man—competent in her own right to participate in the congregation and deserving of respect as a mother, sister, or wife. He says in one shloka:

ਸੋ ਕਿਉ ਮੰਦਾ ਆਖੀਐ ਜਿਤੁ ਜੰਮਹਿ ਰਾਜਾਨ ॥
ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ਅੰਗ 473

“How can you regard her as inferior,
of whom monarchs are born ?”

14. The sweep of Guru Nanak’s sympathies is truly astonishing. He even found time to have a dig at the ways of bureaucracy. In the closing stanzas of his well-known composition, Asa-di-Var, Guruji says,

ਸਲਾਮੁ ਜਬਾਬੁ ਦੋਵੈ ਕਰੇ ਮੁੰਢਹੁ ਘੁਥਾ ਜਾਇ ॥
ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ਅੰਗ 474

That is, the public servant who not only proposes and advises but also prevaricates, simply vitiates his profession.

15. At another place, addressing those in authority he exhorts them to do justice and fear God, unlike the Qazi who–though sitting in the seat of a judge, engaged in the dispensation of justice in the name of Allah, yet takes bribe and gives decisions which are perverse; Then justifies them with reference to the letter of the law and precedent!

16. It is this basic humanity of Guru Nanak and his concern for the downtrodden which makes his appeal so irresistible today. Indeed his teachings are not only relevant to the problems of today, but also acquire a compelling urgency in our quest for the attainment of happiness and eventually—the emancipation of the soul—individually as well as collectively —for this is mankind’s ultimate destiny.

Title photo: Courtesy: www.saldef.org