KHALSA VIRTU
Does Guru Nanak Approve Of Force & Statecraft?
Premise:
The Sikh Renaissance’s two latest podcast episodes ruffled quite a few feathers. The first of these two episodes explored the historic adage inscribed on Sikh coins that Guru Nanak armed Guru Gobind Singh with the sword of victory and how this reflects the progenitor Guru’s words in the Guru Granth. The second episode featured eminent Sikh historian Dr. Balwant Singh Dhillon discussing his discovery of several new edicts of the ninth Guru, in the Guru’s own hand, shattering the myth of him being some quiescent pacifist meditating his life away and only reluctantly taking on the mantle of Guruship. The underlying trend uniting both episodes, and what ignited the wrath of the poor self-proclaimed Sikh humanists, is the revaluation of both Gurus as worldly sovereigns supporting both statecraft and necessary violence.
Shattering the myth:
In a previous article we discussed how the roots of Sikh tenacity reside within Guru Nanak’s dictums and that the Guru exhorted his Sikhs to arise and confront the worldly tyranny that would be imposed upon them for their pursuit of self-perfection. This same point was repeated in both the contentious episodes. Both Guru Nanak and Guru Tegh Bahadur endorsed the use of violence, within the Gurmat paradigm, to not only defend themselves but also ensure the achievement of Sikh territorial sovereignty. Guru Nanak seeded the ideological basis for this resistance; Guru Tegh Bahadur enhanced it further by equipping the embryonic Sikh army at the nascent Anandpur citadel with weaponry, preparing them for the day they would evolve into the Khalsa of Guru Nanak’s envisioning. The secular-humanist myth that Gurmat is far removed from the worldly sphere is systematically unraveled by the actions and lifestyles of both Gurus thus shattering the myth of Sikh spirituality being apolitical.
The Secular-Humanist purview:
The self-proclaimed secular-humanist Sikhs, contrary to their assertions, derive the image of an apolitical Guru Nanak and Guru Tegh Bahadur from the very Brahminism they so vocally deride. This is not only a contradiction but a humorous irony. Brahminism, itself, paints a majority of the Sikh Gurus as pacifists to single out and efface the legacy of the warrior-Gurus arguing they resorted to the sword as some temporary solution. The secular-humanists do likewise. Yet they hypocritically target the very Brahminism whose canards they so conveniently regurgitate. The reality is that the very foundations of Sikh statecraft, religiopolitical ambition, and dominance were laid by Guru Nanak when he identified the world as the realm of righteousness (Dharam Khand).
ਰਾਤੀ ਰੁਤੀ ਥਿਤੀ ਵਾਰ ॥ ਪਵਣ ਪਾਣੀ ਅਗਨੀ ਪਾਤਾਲ ॥ ਤਿਸੁ ਵਿਚਿ ਧਰਤੀ ਥਾਪਿ ਰਖੀ ਧਰਮ ਸਾਲ ॥ ਤਿਸੁ ਵਿਚਿ ਜੀਅ ਜੁਗਤਿ ਕੇ ਰੰਗ ॥ ਤਿਨ ਕੇ ਨਾਮ ਅਨੇਕ ਅਨੰਤ ॥ ਕਰਮੀ ਕਰਮੀ ਹੋਇ ਵੀਚਾਰੁ ॥ ਸਚਾ ਆਪਿ ਸਚਾ ਦਰਬਾਰੁ ॥ ਤਿਥੈ ਸੋਹਨਿ ਪੰਚ ਪਰਵਾਣੁ ॥ ਨਦਰੀ ਕਰਮਿ ਪਵੈ ਨੀਸਾਣੁ ॥ ਕਚ ਪਕਾਈ ਓਥੈ ਪਾਇ ॥ ਨਾਨਕ ਗਇਆ ਜਾਪੈ ਜਾਇ ॥੩੪॥੧ ੭
“Nights, days, seasons, and times. Winds, oceans, fires, and land. The earth is set therein and made the abode of righteousness. Within it are creatures of various forms and they have countless names. It is within it that actions committed are discussed and observed. The Master is true and the Master’s court is true. Within it the foremost are exalted and make themselves acceptable (through their deeds). Through their actions they earn the divine gaze upon themselves and become emblematic. Integrity and falsity are judged therein. Nanak has traversed this path and now leads others onwards.”
-Japji.
Guru Nanak elaborates, in the above verse, that deed informs character that ultimately earns divine recognition of one’s worth. This makes the Sikh, the Khalsa, emblematic. Their conduct becomes a mystical legacy for others traversing the Sikh path to liberation. In this way they are judged truthful while living within this world. Their pursuit of perfection makes them foremost in every human endeavor ergo why neither Sikhi nor the Sikh cannot be divided from the world rendering both belief and believer an existential danger to otherworldly religions and illegitimate worldly states that derive their coercive power from base-mindedness.
The Khalsa Virtu:
The term virtu is Machiavellian in nature referring not to virtue but rather the inherent power within all humans to confront and master the ravages of fortune. Virtu transcends all human definitions of good and bad because it effectively only empowers its wielder. How it is used and what informs its usage is left to those who call upon it. Similarly, the Khalsa virtu too is designed by Guru Nanak to surmount the seemingly adverse destiny thrust upon Gurmukhs (the enlightened beings) on their path to perfection and one of the more surest ways it can be surmounted is through Raaj-Jog or the melding of both the spiritual and worldly paradigms in which the Khalsa emerges as both the dominant (sovereign) force in worldly affairs through spiritual excellence.
ਗਾਵਹਿ ਕਪਿਲਾਦਿ ਆਦਿ ਜੋਗੇਸੁਰ ਅਪਰੰਪਰ ਅਵਤਾਰ ਵਰੋ ॥
ਗਾਵੈ ਜਮਦਗਨਿ ਪਰਸਰਾਮੇਸੁਰ ਕਰ ਕੁਠਾਰੁ ਰਘੁ ਤੇਜੁ ਹਰਿਓ ॥
ਉਧੌ ਅਕ੍ਰੂਰੁ ਬਿਦਰੁ ਗੁਣ ਗਾਵੈ ਸਰਬਾਤਮੁ ਜਿਨਿ ਜਾਣਿਓ ॥
ਕਬਿ ਕਲ ਸੁਜਸੁ ਗਾਵਉ ਗੁਰ ਨਾਨਕ ਰਾਜੁ ਜੋਗੁ ਜਿਨਿ ਮਾਣਿਓ ॥੪॥
“Kapildas sings of Joges(w)ar who he believes to be the true Avatar. Jamd(a)gan and his son Parsuram sing of the one they believe to be infinite. Akrur and Bidar sing of the one they deem to be the soul of all. But Kalh sings only of Guru Nanak who has shown us the way of ਰਾਜੁ ਜੋਗੁ .”
-Guru Granth, 1389.
Where the Khalsa virtu significantly differs from Machiavelli is that it is rooted in Sikh morality and not political necessity. It is the Raaj-Jog of Guru Nanak that is summarized by the compound adjectives of Miri-Piri symbolized by the two dual swords retained by the sixth Sikh Guru, Guru Hargobind. Does Guru Nanak approve of force and statecraft? What does the Guru Granth testify? Yes, he does. This is why he rooted Sikhi in the worldly sphere and instructed the Sikhs to dominate in both Raaj and Jog.
In His Own Words:
The secular-humanist Sikhs would do well to read Guru Nanak’s acerbic commentary on the Sanataanis and their priestly caste’s dismissal of force and statecraft as minor exigencies and hurdles on the path to meditative spirituality and self-realization. His words are as equally applicable to the pacifist humanists of today as they are to the Hindus of his time period. They dethrone the hubris-induced notion of achieving peace without strength and dismissing statecraft altogether because of the base minded frailty of human society unable to overcome its animalistic self. The Guru’s words would inform the actions of his successors to arm themselves and commit the Sikhs to liberty rather than cowering under any form of tyranny.
ਮਾਣਸ ਖਾਣੇ ਕਰਹਿ ਨਿਵਾਜ ॥
ਛੁਰੀ ਵਗਾਇਨਿ ਤਿਨ ਗਲਿ ਤਾਗ ॥
ਤਿਨ ਘਰਿ ਬ੍ਰਹਮਣ ਪੂਰਹਿ ਨਾਦ ॥
ਉਨ੍ਹ੍ਹਾ ਭਿ ਆਵਹਿ ਓਈ ਸਾਦ ॥
ਕੂੜੀ ਰਾਸਿ ਕੂੜਾ ਵਾਪਾਰੁ ॥
ਕੂੜੁ ਬੋਲਿ ਕਰਹਿ ਆਹਾਰੁ ॥
ਸਰਮ ਧਰਮ ਕਾ ਡੇਰਾ ਦੂਰਿ ॥
ਨਾਨਕ ਕੂੜੁ ਰਹਿਆ ਭਰਪੂਰਿ ॥
ਮਥੈ ਟਿਕਾ ਤੇੜਿ ਧੋਤੀ ਕਖਾਈ ॥
ਹਥਿ ਛੁਰੀ ਜਗਤ ਕਾਸਾਈ ॥
“The man eaters (Muslims) recite their prayers. Others (of their kind) wield daggers but wear (allegedly) sacred threads around themselves. Within their homes the Brahmins (secretly) sound their conch. (But) both (tyrants) have the same taste. They are merchants of filth trading in filth. They speak filth to consume their daily bread. Shame and righteousness are far removed from them. Nanak, they are totally immersed in filth. They have (allegedly) sacred marks on their heads and (allegedly) sacred clothes around their waists but they are armed with daggers, such are these butchers of the world.”
-Guru Granth, 472.
And,
ਨੀਲ ਵਸਤ੍ਰ ਪਹਿਰਿ ਹੋਵਹਿ ਪਰਵਾਣੁ ॥
ਮਲੇਛ ਧਾਨੁ ਲੇ ਪੂਜਹਿ ਪੁਰਾਣੁ ॥
ਅਭਾਖਿਆ ਕਾ ਕੁਠਾ ਬਕਰਾ ਖਾਣਾ ॥
ਚਉਕੇ ਉਪਰਿ ਕਿਸੈ ਨ ਜਾਣਾ ॥
“They adorn the (Islamic) blue apparel to impress their conquerors. They consume the food thrown at them by the spiritually unclean (Muslims) but still have the gall to display their readings of their Puranas. They swallow the halal-slaughtered goats that have spiritually unclean prayers read over them in barbaric tongues but still let none dare enter their sacred squares.”
-Guru Granth, 473.
To live under such conditions and not offer any form of resistance to regain one’s liberty is akin to discarding the path of honor. To immunize the Sikhs against such abject dishonor, Guru Nanak instilled Khalsa virtu in them. He made it imperative for them to ascend to statehood if they were to preserve their faith-the only sole true faith and the guarantor of righteousness in the face of a fast-regressing humanity. He secured the mechanism of Sikh sovereignty by hinging it on the dual cornerstones of political dominance through necessary violence and Gurmat oriented spiritualism through self-perfection. He ensured that the sword of the Sikhs was to be informed by his divinely revealed words. To paraphrase Ardashir I (c.180-c.242), founder of the Sasanian dynasty,
'Know that Kingship and religion are twin brothers; there is no strength for one of them except through its companion, because religion is the foundation of kingship, and kingship the protector of religion. Kingship needs its foundation and religion it's protector, as whatever lacks a protector perishes and whatever lacks a foundation is destroyed.'
Sikh statecraft and statehood are the protectors of Sikhi while Sikhi is the constitution of Sikh statehood. This beautifully symbiotic relationship was put into play by the later Gurus and the Khalsa, as Guru ad-perpetuum, and is absent from the modern Sikh discourse today.
Conclusion:
The blatant revising of Sikh heritage and history to misrepresent Gurus Nanak and Tegh Bahadur as pacifists reflects the broader trend of appropriating Sikh figures both religious and otherwise. This revisionism is intended to wear down the Sikh spirit. Its stormtroopers happen to be the legion of self-proclaimed Sikh rationalist seniors whose eminent contribution to the faith, besides robbing from Gurudwara depositories and misleading the community, stands at a glorious null. But falsity never happens to have the last laugh and as time progresses, the Khalsa shall reawaken to reclaim its glorious inheritance.
Absolutely brilliantly written article: especially because it accurately reflects the lived experience of the Sikhs and the Khalsa regarding how they feel, based on what they have carried throughout generations, about the idea of sovereignty, spirituality and politics. Great stuff! Guru Mehar Kare!
This is the type of Sikh scholarship we require in academia rather than all the disjointed garbage narratives pushed by the likes of Harjot Oberoi and co. This article also systematically deconstructs and exposes the blatant misappropriation and revisionism of Sikh philosophy and praxis pushed on reddit Sikh forums and by the Global Sikh Council and co. Guru Nanak, indeed, was the father of Sikh statehood. You reference the words of both Ratan Singh Bhangu and Giani Gian Singh on this point that the Sikhs of Guru Nanak annihilated the mightiest empires. This is the lived experience of our ancestors. It is only this secularist purview of history, pushed on the Sikhs by the British and then the modern Indian state, that has so systematically rewritten Guru Nanak as a pacifist when he was a true sovereign indeed. Empires always have to begin from somewhere. The Khalsa empire began from Guru Nanak.