The Truth of Nanak and the Sikhs part one

Foreword

The book of Holy Scriptures known as the Guru Granth Sahib (also known as the Adi Granth) is the supreme spiritual authority and Head of the Sikh religion.  The word Sikh means, “disciple”.  The book is treated by Sikhs as a living Guru.  The book of scripture of the Adi Granth is not worshipped as an idol (Sikhism rejects idol worship); the emphasis is placed on the respect for the writings contained within the book, which is displayed on the altar in the gurdwara, a Sikh place of worship.  The book contains the repository of God’s revealed Word through ten Gurus.  Sikhism is regarded as a revealed religion through specific people who experienced the movement of the Spirit of God through themselves and wanted others to have the same experience.

The Guru Granth Sahib is a collection of devotional hymns and poetry, which proclaim God.  Each hymn has its own traditional tune.  The hymns and poems stress meditation on the True Guru (God) and they also espouse moral and ethical rules for the development of the soul while it is on earth to achieve spiritual salvation and unity with God.  The actual process of daily living is a continuous act of worship by a Sikh who  functions on earth before his or her Creator.  The true ablution consists of adoring God constantly.  It is the written spiritual message contained within the words of the book that makes it important as a teacher for each person.  In the Sikh religion, everyone is equally important:  there is no distinction between priesthood and laity.  All people have a direct connection with God, the Father of all.  The word Granth is from the Sanskrit and means, “book”.  The word Sahib is a term used to look at “man with respect”.  The Guru Granth Sahib can easily be interpreted to mean God’s Book to Respectful Man.

The founder of the Sikh religion was the Guru Nanak (1469-1538 AD) who lived in the region of northern India known as Punjab.  Nanak was born into one of the higher castes of Hindus in a period of time several hundred years after the Muslims had found their way into Punjab.  Nanak preached the existence of One True Universal God for all mankind and it was his desire to unite the Muslims with ALL the castes of Hindus into one brotherhood which would be the effect of the Fatherhood of God.  Guru Nanak believed that his writings were divinely inspired since he declared himself to be an ignorant man and could only speak when he was inspired by God.  Nanak and his followers held this view based upon an inner personal experience.  The scriptures are written in such a way that the Spirit of Truth moving to and through the earthly capacities of heart, mind and body informed  Nanak of the message to be delivered to all who were willing to listen.  When the readers observe the word, Pause, they should apply what they have just read to themselves in order to increase their understanding of the material that leads to enlightenment.

People are at a various levels of spiritual awareness:  a person who has achieved unity with God is called a giani;  a person is filled with divine understanding is a brahmgiani;  a person  who functions as a guide to assist others toward spiritual enlightenment is a sant.  The message of the Guru Granth Sahib is that the Spirit of the Lord is in and with everyone.  The present level of human nature identity (manmukh) can be relinquished to experience his or her divine identity (Gurmukh).  This ascending transitional experience in consciousness requires a willingness to depart from emotional attachment to the material world before the person can enter the spiritual world, Nirvana, the ultimate goal for all God’s children who are the Siblings of Destiny.