March 5, 2019 -
“When an affair is past every other remedy it is righteous indeed, to unsheathe the sword” -Gobind Singh (The 10th and greatest of the Sikh Gurus, 1699)
As we have traveled we have visited a number of churches, mosques, synagogues, and temples. These houses of worship are often the most beautiful or significant cultural sites in a city and so are a natural draw. Almost all of them have a gift shop that is worth browsing. Today was the first gift shop we ever encountered in a religious site that sold swords. These were not toy or souvenir ones. These were actual swords in a variety of lengths and styles that were quite sharp. But I will come back to this part of the story.
We visited Gurudwara Bangla Sahib temple today. Bangla Sahib is a Sikh temple founded in the 17th century. It is one of the largest in India. It was founded here after a visit from Har Krishan, the 8th Sikh Guru, who had a small bungalow on the present day site. At the time there was a cholera and smallpox epidemic raging in the city. According to the story, the Guru gave aid and comfort to the sick by providing clean drinking water from his well. However, on March 30th 1664 he too died from smallpox. The site continues to be worshiped as a place of healing.
Sikhs are not Hindus. Where Hinduism is a polytheistic faith that worships thousands of different gods, Sikhism is strictly monotheistic acknowledging only one unnameable god or creator. They derive their spiritual authority from their sacred text which is a compilation of the teachings of the 10 Gurus. The text is read from and chanted everyday at the temple.
But, there is another thing we saw fist hand at the temple today. Sikh’s express their worship not through sacrifices to appease the many idols of the Hindu faith, but by service to their fellow man. The temple has a kitchen and clinics that are open all day. They feed tens of thousands of people everyday for free regardless of your faith with no questions asked. They offer free medical care with western style medicine. The kitchens and clinic are staffed by all volunteers and, especially by Delhi standards, are remarkably clean and well ordered. We saw cheerful servants who felt they were serving the creator by just helping others. It was a humbling place to visit as we saw hundreds sit down on a clean mat and be served a hot plate of good food and tea by volunteers. And all of this happens every day.
Sikhs represent only 2% of India’s population yet pay 30% of all taxes collected. They pride themselves on hard work, industry, and equality for everyone. They categorically reject the Caste system and believe women are equal to men. There is much to admire here.
Sikh men are easily recognizable by their distinctive turbans. Sikh men are forbidden to cut their hair, hence the turbans, or beards. They have to wear a special comb in their hair, a silver bracelet, special underwear (We declined that part of the tour), and they always have to carry a dagger or a sword at all times.
Although they are devoted servants of those in need, they reject the Christian notion of ‘Turn the other cheek’. If they feel threatened, they feel in their faith they are perfectly justified to end you. So to help you on your Sikh walk, you can find a number of amazing swords at the gift shop to take home and carry with you at all times.
Despite the religious significance of the weapons to the Sikhs, airlines do not allow them to carry them on airplanes, but you can on trains!
I should note, Indira Gandhi the former prime minister, and later her son, were both killed by their own Sikh bodyguards after the government violated the sanctity of an important Sikh temple.
Sikhs have much to offer the world. Just don’t piss them off.
There is so much more here - Pictures from Humayun's Tomb
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humayun%27s_Tomb
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