Japji Sahib Way to God in Sikhism - Book 1

Sikhism is the youngest of the major world religions and the most modern and egalitarian in its practice. The scriptural authority for its followers is the 'Gurbani' in the Sri Guru Granth Sahib. Japji Sahib is the quintessential 'bani' and the key to the philosophy expounded by the Gurus. Composed by the founder of the Sikh faith, Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji, the Japji Sahib spells out the basic roadmap prescribed for a Sikh to undertake the great journey from the mundane to the Divine. As the very epitome of the Sikh doctrine, it finds pride of place among the set of daily prayers recited by Sikhs in the early morning hours.

Guru Nanak's Japji Sahib: Way to God in Sikhism by Maneshwar S. Chahal is a unique presentation in that, before offering well-reasoned conclusions, it puts forth many a point of view and not just any single interpretation of the verses. It will help the lay reader easily understand the Guru's message and offer the scholar ready material for deeper study of this vast subject.

At the beginning of the book has been added the text of the verses of Japji in Roman script, as also in 'Gurmukhi' for those who would want to also experience the joy of chanting the "bani."

Maneshwar S. Chahal has an honours degree in English Literature, a degree in Engineering and a Masters in Public Administration. He has been an army officer, a senior bureaucrat in the IAS, CMD of the Punjab & Sind Bank, and a member of the State Human Rights Commission in Punjab, In the midst of these multifarious roles, he has continued to be a deeply devoted student of Spirituality, especially of the intensely humanistic Sikh Religion.

His series 'Way to God in Sikhism' offers a lucid and easy-to- understand delineation of the Spiritual path in the context of the Sikh belief system. Starting with the Japji Sahib, it has been warmly welcomed and much appreciated by scholars and lay readers alike.

The context in which the Garbar is to be read is important to know before proceeding to read, understand and then, if the Lord's blessings be on us, to act upon the message and to follow the path the Sri Guru Granth Sahib (SGGS) prescribes. The approach of the Gurban and the manner in which the message has been presented has obviously been determined by and is rooted in the milicu in which the founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak Dev ji lived. The social, the political and above all the religious factors that prevailed were necessarily going to influence the form in which the message is worded. The Guru's vision is cosmic in scope and in this composition the Guru presents to the common man the mysteries of the Divine, to the extent such mysteries are amenable to presentation within the limitations of human understanding and the constraints of language. Since the message is of the spirit, it had to be couched in language understood by the Guru's audience and in terms that were relevant to their existing religious and spiritual concepts.

The major religions prevalent at that time were Hinduism and Islam. The other religions, like Budhhism and Jainism, though originating from the soil of India were not followed in any significant strength, though Budhhism continued to flourish in large parts of Asia beyond the shores of this country. In this country Budhhism had lost out many centuries ago to a resurgent, and often militant, Hinduism, while Jainism had never really managed to acquire very many adherents. Also, Hinduism with its well known capacity to incorporate and absorb other belief systems had accorded to the Budhha the status of an avatar, an incarnation, of Lord Vishnu, and managed thereby to blur the distinctions between the two religions. Islam came into the country gradually, till the raiders of Mahmud Ghaznavi and Mohammad Ghon brought into the country, through the force of arms, a more militant version, in the second millennium. This was followed in quick succession by more conquests from the West and the beginning of a series of Muslim dynasties in India. With this, Islam gained the status of being the ruler's religion and accordingly acquired converts. Such movement into the new religion was also facilitated by the existence of huge inequities that had crept into the Hindu social structure. Islam also gained from the efforts, and the example, of the Sufis whose brand of a kindlier, more spiritual Islam would have attracted large numbers. of the more enlightened. This combination of the sword, state power, social inequities of the existing order, and the Sufi saints made Islam strong in India. In spite of all these factors the population continued to be mainly Hindu, by a large majority. The Christian influence was yet very limited.

Thus, when the Guru began his ministry, the seekers, the disciples who thronged the Guru's congregations must have belonged mainly to either the Hindu or the Muslim faith. The language he used and the method of his teaching were bound to be influenced by this circumstance. He would have had to use the idiom that they understood. The path that he delineated for the world was new and different in many ways from both these religious belief systems. Yet, inevitably his presentation, his arguments will be seen to revolve round these existing systems, and from there they proceed to present his new vision, his new way of thinking, his new prescription for God-realization.

The sublime spiritual beauty of the Garbig is well recognized by all those who have been lucky enough to be exposed to it. Sadly, however, there are many, even among the twenty plus million Sikhs who find the Gurmukhi script a barrier; or more often find the message difficult to understand because the language differs so much from present day Punjabi. As Prof. W.H. McLeod said, "The world is poorer for its ignorance of the Sikh Scriptures." Also, to quote Macauliffe, "The Granth Sahib thus becomes the most difficult work, sacred or profane, that exists, and hence the general ignorance of its contents." He was of course referring to the fact that this sacred writing had employed such a large variety of languages and dialects, and it was hard for any one man to be a scholar in all of those.

Efforts to bring the message to the world in simpler, easier to understand language have often been made. Some European translations exist, especially noteworthy among them being Macauliffe's six volumes: The Sikh Religion, Its Guru's Sacred Writings and Authors. There are then detailed commentaries in Punjabi, notably by Prof. Sahib Singh and Bhai Vir Singh. There are dictionaries such as Bhai Sahib Bhai Kahan Singh's Gurshabad Ratnakar, more commonly known as the Maban Kosh. Finally, there are verse renderings in English; Prof. G.S. Talib's being notable. All these learned men have tried to make clear the meaning of the Garlin. Our subject here being the Japji Sahib we may note that all these have naturally also included their perceptions inter alia, on this, the foremost of the Guru's compositions. Commentaries specifically on the Japy in the English language have been few Generally we find verse translations figuring either as a part of an overall commentary on the Sikh scriptures, or the Japji being rendered into poetry in English with a few explanatory footnotes. The Punjabi commentary in greater detail exists but is not accessible to those who do not have an understanding of the Gurmukhi script.

There is, therefore, a large audience, which is aware of the grandeur of this scripture but cannot access it, this being true of the Sikh diaspora with even greater poignancy. There are also many, not necessarily adherents of the Sikh religion but keen seekers of spiritual growth who would like a detailed explanation of the terms used and the thoughts which possibly lay behind those words. It is for all of them that this humble presentation is made. It has been three years in the preparation and the writing, and is based on half a century's personal pursuit of the Guru's Path, however imperfect and lacking in true merit that effort may have been. It owes also a great deal to the many learned commentaries and translations, in Punjabi and in English. A special debt is owed to Prof. Sahib Singh's 10-volume Sri Guru Granth Sahib Darpan where he has in Vol. I annotated the J Sahib. Vol. 1 of Bhai Vir Singh's commentary has also been a constant source and guide, Giani Sant Singh Maskin's twenty- cassette audio-commentary on the Japy has also been relied on. Osho's twenty-cassette commentary in Hindi and his very readable commentary The True Name', on the Japji Sahib have also been of help in formulating and shaping these thoughts.

Book's Contents and Sample Pages