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1
INTRODUCTION

In recent months some developments have taken place, which

have created the necessity of bringing out the present publication.
One of them is the production of two volumes. The first is a
Ph.D. thesis by one Pashaura Singh of Toronto University,
supervised by W.H. McLeod, who makes the blasphemous
statement that Guru Arjun changed, theologically and
linguistically, the barn or hymns of Guru Nanak, and having
done that, he passed these reconstituted hymns as the actual bani
of Guru Nanak. The entire thesis of Pashaura Singh seeks to
support the above proposition, and to attack the theological and
linguistic originality and authenticity of the Aad Granth, now
Guru Granth Sahib. This has been followed by publication of a
small book, 'Studying the Sikhs', which comprises mostly
generalised or defensive statements in justification of the earlier
work of W.H. McLeod and his erstwhile colleagues in the Batala
Mission, who have been criticised for some of their misleading,
incorrect and even blasphemous statements. As expected, there
was strong and spontaneous reaction to the work of Pashaura
Singh, in the Sikh academic world in India and abroad. This
reaction has been twofold. First is the proceedings of blasphemy
initiated by the SGPC, Amritsar, after obtaining reports of two
expert committees of Gurmat and university scholars, against
Pashaura Singh before the Akal Takht. The second part is the
publication of a large number of reviews, papers and articles by
well known academicians who criticised the work of Pashaura
Singh as 'blasphemous', and his findings 'preconceived', 'baseless',
and 'motivated'.
Since it is believed that the thesis of Pashaura Singh supported
by McLeod, an ex-missionary from the Punjab Missionary
organisation, is in continuation of the thinking and objectives of
the Batala Group, it is necessary first to give the background,
approach and history of some of its scholars, and to state concisely
the substance and slant of Pashaura Singh's Thesis, and the
criticism embodied in the 34 papers that form the body of this
publication.
 2

The Background and Approach: The Christian Mission

appeared in the Punjab soon after the annexation of the state by
the British in the middle of the last century. Almost since its
inception, it has, apart from doing normal missionary activities,
simultaneously been producing literature, subversive to the
identity and growth of other religions, particularly Sikhism. It is
well known that the reaction of the Singh Sabha was partly due
to these activities of the Mission working under the wings of the
British Administration. At one time, the Mission declared that
three Sikh boys of their school at Amritsar would be openly
converted to Christianity and their hair publically shaved.
In order to understand the approach of the missions in Punjab,
it is relevant to give the following decision of the World Council
of Churches made in one of its meetings. A proposal was made
by the North American Churches that, because of the danger of
Secularism, Christian Churches should seek the co-operation of
other religions in order to create a common front against the
danger of Secularism. Metropolitan Paulo Mar Gregorios, a former
Chairman of the World Council of Churches, reports:
"TheAmerican view was that there are three realities: Christianity,
other Religions, and Secularism, and that these three realities can
either be allies. or enemies. It was argued that the Christians had
to choose whether they were to ally themselves with other
religions against Secularism. The Americans, especially the Boston
Personalists, who were leading the debate at that time, took the
view that Secularism is a common danger for all religions, and,
therefore, there must be an alliance of all religions to fight
Secularism. European theologians, particularly Barth, Brunner,
and Kramer, took a totally different view. They maintained that
Secularisation, not Secularism, is the primary process. It is a
process in which some of the values of the Christian faith have
been put into a secular framework, bringing about a powerful
force which is destroying all old ideas. Hence Secularisation is an
ally, because it will destroy Hinduism, Islam and other forms of
what they considered to be superstition. So we should ally
ourselves with Secularisation, and see it as the work of God. That
was Bonhoffer's, Barth's, and Kramer's point of view."
"A similar debate took place in 1932 or 1933 in Madras at the
 3

next Missionary Conference. There the American .point of view'

was totally defeated." "One of the books published during that
era by Emil Brunner, the Swiss theologian, was called 'Either/
Or'. In it Brunner argued that the Christian Gospel has overcome
all its enemies except one, and that is mysticism. Mysticism is an
enemy, because it claims that you can have unmediated access to
God, and as long as you can have unmediated access, there is no
use for Jesus Christ. Therefore, mysticism is the only remaining
enemy, and one has to make a clear choice: either the Gospel or
Mysticism."
"That is why at the World Council of Churches it was almost
impossible to begin any kind of dialogue."
At another meeting in 1975 at Nairobi the Chairman was
confronted with the observation, "We do not feel we have anything
lacking. And so we are opposed to dialogue, unless it is for the sake
of testifying to Jesus Christ." "That was it. Then they passed a
resolution saying that under no circumstances should multi-religious
dialogues be undertaken, because multi-religious dialogues put
Christianity at the same level as other religions, and this is
unacceptable."
"That is the point of view that has triumphed in the World
Council of Churches. Some of us are still trying to change that
point of view, but it is difficult."
We do not say that honest attempts at inter-faith dialogue are
not taking place, but the general approach governing missionary
activities is quite clear.
Even after the Akali Movement of the twenties and the Indian
Independence, the work of mission continued in Punjab. A branch
of the Mission called the Batala Group, organised a special Centre
of Sikh Studies, which has from time to time been producing
half-baked literature that seeks in many subtle and even unsubtle
ways, to attack the institutions of Sikhism. Missionaries or ex-
missionaries and their associates have been quite prolific in
bringing out such material, and three of them, Loehlin, McLeod
and McMullen, are considered their experts in Sikh Studies.
Literature produced by this group on Sikhism and its
institutions, is controversial. From both universities and other
institutions, a large body of criticism has appeared to show
 4

how superficial and biased the works of McLeod and his

associates, are. Here we shall indicate only one of the
blasphemous issues raised by McLeod in his books.
McLeod Attacks the Authenticity of Guru Granth Sahib:
McLeod's small volume; "Evolution of the Sikh Community",
contained an unfounded attack on the authenticity of the
Kartarpuri Bir, which forms the basis of the Guru Granth Sahib,
worshipped by all Sikhs the world over, as their living Guru. The
level of the scholarship of the author is evident from the following
extracts from the reviews published in the Journal of Sikh Studies,
Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar. "In the short space of
104 pages the author attempts to cover the background, origin
and growth of ideology, and all the institutions of the Sikhs, and
naturally the method adopted is journalistic and speculative, rather
than comprehensive and academic." "It is the common failing of
persons with mechanistic views to ignore the role of ideas and
ideology as a cementing and directing force in human history
and to overstretch and overestimate the significance of ordinary
facts and routine events which otherwise, in similar circumstances
have never shown any like potential. If oddity is originality, and
conjectural assertions and assumptions pieces of historical
evidence, the book abounds in them." The assessment in the Sikh
Review, Calcutta is : "Dr McLeod has turned his attention on the
Sikhs and their religion with a view to giving special notoriety to
his views on Sikhs and Sikhism as he wants to or does see it. The
result is dearly a mildly and certainly a perverted version of the
Sikh esoteric principles and Sikh history and its exposition... It
would rank with Trumpp's translation of Guru Granth Sahib;
the Dhirmalian's 'Var Piran Pikambran ki'; or the contemporary,
'the bani of nakli Nirankaris', to mention just a few of the gems
of envious literary genius ever ready to knock down the prophetic
mission and achievements of the Sikh Gurus."
This book is full of unsupported generalisations and even
blasphemous statements against the Guru Granth Sahib and the
Sikhs. Over the subsequent years controversies about it have
continued, especially about his libellous or blasphemous
statement against the authenticity of the Guru Granth Sahib.
Without going into many of his other unacademic statements
like, "This is widely regarded as a great pity, even within the
 5

Sikh society, where the numerically preponderant Jats commonly

bewail the fact that there was never a single Jat Guru.", we shall
here confine ourselves only to one issue about his statement against
the authenticity of the Kartarpuri Bir or Guru Granth Sahib,
which is principally relevant to our present volume. The worst
part exposing the perfunctory scholarship and the underlying
motive of McLeod is that he made, and continued to repeat, these
unfounded statements without examining the Kartarpuri Bir of
1604 AD, without examining the Banno Bir. of 1642 AD, and
without studying the related literature on the subject. His
allegation is that Guru Granth Sahib, is a tampered with, or a
forged Granth, out of which inconvenient hymns have been
obliterated by the Sikhs. The Punjabi University, Patiala, published
two books, the first in 1968, and another in 1987, on the
Kartarpuri Bir, which show that McLeod's statements are
unwarranted and baseless. Both these books were written after
examination of the Kartarpuri Bir, and testify to its authenticity.
Unfortunately, knowing full well that what he was saying was
incorrect, he continued with his libellous statements in 1979 and
again in 1989. Since McLeod's allegations were considered un-
called-for and offensive to the authenticity of the Guru Granth
Sahib, four academic organisations of Punjab wrote in 1989 to
the University of Toronto that it was very anomalous that a person
who had been making blasphemous statements against the
authenticity of the Guru Granth Sahib, the Guru as well as the
Scripture of the Sikhs, had not only been appointed by the
University on a Chair funded by the Sikhs of Canada in order to
project a correct image of Sikhism and its institutions, but he had
been making his attacks from the platform of the University. As
there was no response from the University, the correspondence
exchanged was published. Here it is very relevant to state that of
the four organisations that wrote to the University about the
blasphemous conduct of McLeod, one was presided over by a former
Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and the other was
headed by an ExMinister of Government and a very senior advocate
of the High Court. They very well understood the ingredients of
blasphemy, and whether or not McLeod's statements amounted to
that. To recapitulate, the three ingredients of blasphemy are: one,
 6

that the statement should be false; two, that the author should
know it to be so; and, three, that the statement should be
defamatory of a religious person or body. It is, therefore, necessary
to give the requisite extracts of McLeod's statements to the readers,
so that they can well understand the position. He published the
following in his book 'Evolution of the Sikh Community' of
1975; in which he alleges deletion or obliteratiqn of a portion of
the Ramkali hymn attributed to Guru Arjun: "There seems to be
only one possible reason for the appearance of these two
fragments. The bulk of the hymn in each case must have been
deleted, leaving a small remainder which was faithfully copied into
the standard printed text. A fourth point seems to clinch the issue.
The Banno text of the missing portion indicated good reason
for later deletion, particularly in the case of Ramkali hymn by
Guru Arjun. This hymn describes the puberty rites conducted
by Guru Arjun at the initiation of his son, Hargobind. The rites
follow a standard Hindu pattern and in the third stanza there is a
reference to the manner in which the boy's head was shaved.
This feature is in obvious contradiciton to the latter prohibition
of hair cutting. When the prohibition became mandatory not
merely for Jat Sikhs, but ,also those of other castes, the reference
in the hymn could only be regarded as intolerable." "The
conclusion that seems to be emerging with increasing assurance
was that the widely disseminated Banno version must represent
the origional text; and that the Kartarpuri manuscript must be a
shortened version of the same text. A few portions must have
been deleted, because they could not be reconciled with beliefs
subsequently accepted by the Panth. This much appears to be
well established " "Later still, portions of the Kartarpuri
manuscript (the original manuscript written by Bhai Gurdas) were
ineptly obliterated in order to bring the two versions into line."
The above statement, especially the last sentence, is a clear
conclusion, without any reservation, saying that the inconvenient
hymn in the KartarpuriBir was obliterated. And, this conclusion
follows over four pages of argumentation in support of his
conclusion. To the reader the conclusion, as argued by McLeod
and as arrived at by him, is a clear assertion. And yet his
conclusion, as admitted by him, is false.
 7

For, on the very page of his conclusion he writes: "Dr Jodh

Singh assures us that there has been no obliteration at the point.
He reports a similar condition in the case of Guru Arjun's Ramkali
hymn. The solitary couplet is followed by a blank space which
extends to more than two folios - and no obliteration." These
blank spaces, as elsehwere in the text, are at the end of a raga, and,
for that reason, are natural, and nothing unusual. This shows
that the author, when he drew the earlier inference, knew his
statement to be incorrect. Because, while he laboured to write
four pages to arrive at his inference that the Ramkali hymn had
been 'ineptly obliterated' in the Kartarpuri Bir, and this he did
without examining the Kartarpuri Bir, the Banno Bir or the related
literature, he knew full well that Dr Jodh Singh, who had done
the meticulous work of recording page by page position of the
Kartarpuri Bir, had categorically stated that there was no
obliteration of the Ramkali hymn whatsoever. The third
ingredient of blasphemy is the defamation involved in McLeod's
conclusion that the inconvenient portion of the Ramkali hymn
was later obliterated by the Sikhs, when they found it to be
intolerable, and for that reason the Guru Granth Sahib is a forged
Granth that stood tampered with by the Sikhs. Thus, defamation
would, we believe, inevitably follow from the writing of the
author. Hence the complaint of the four organisations to the
University about unacademic, unethical and defamatory conduct
of its employee. Further, is the question as to whether he really
gave up his inference about the tampered with character of the
Kartarpuri Bir after his knowledge of Jodh Singh's book of 1968,
as admitted by him in his 'Evolution of the Sikh Community'.
There is no evidence whatsoever of his having given up his idea
when he read his paper at Berkeley in 1976. For, there too, he
clearly repeated his old assertion, "The earliest, representing
nearest approach to Guru Arjun's dictation would be Banno, the
second, an intermediate recension bearing the actual marks of a
later revision through the excision of unacceptable material, would
be Kartarpuri." The above statement makes it clear that there is
not the least sign of his ever having retracted his earlier stand. On
the other hand, he clearly repeats his statements of Kartarpuri
Bir being a later production done by the 'excision of unacceptable
material'.
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In July 1987 the Punjabi University, Patiala, published another

study by Daljeet Singh made after a rational examination of the
Kartarpuri Bir, which concludes that (a) Kartarpuri Bir is the
original authentic Bir written by Bhai Gurdas under the direction
of Guru Arjun; (b) that there is no obliteration whatsoever of the
Ramkali hymn, as alleged, (c) that while the Kartarpuri Bir clearly
records that it had been prepared in 1604 AD, it is equally explicit
that the Banno Bir had been prepared. in 1642 AD, and (d) that
McLeod's conclusions regarding the alleged originality of the
Banno Bir and later obliteration of the Ramkali hymn from the
Kartarpuri Bir are not only baseless, incorrect and misleading, but
have wantonly been made without any worthwhile academic effort
and without seeing the Banno Bir, the Kartarpuri Bir or studying the
many known publications making clear statements on the two issues.
Yet in 1989 McLeod published his book "The Sikhs" in which
he wrote, "This comparison suggests that the Banno recension
may actually represent the original text by Bhai Gurdas," but
adds that "if this is indeed the case the original version has
subsequently been amended by obliterating occasional portions
of the text."
Neither in his book of 1975, nor in his published views of
1979 and 1989 there is the least evidence of McLeod having ever
abandoned his idea about obliteration in the Kartarpuri Bir. On
the other hand, the reader is continually fed with the contrary
idea of later 'obliteration' of 'unacceptable material'. After the
four organisations had a long correspondence with the
University regarding the conduct of its employee, in December
1990 McLeod published a letter in 'India Abroad' saying, "What
I said was that at first it had appeared to me that this had been
done, but when I read Dr. Jodh Singh's book 'Kartarpuri Bir de
Darshan', I abandoned the notion." On reading McLeod's above
self-contradictory explanation or denial, we find that, Dr. 5.5.
Dharni of New York published a letter reproducing all the above
three statements (of 1975, 1979 and 1989) of McLeod and
suggesting that it was clear that his denial about having abandoned
the notion was just another mis-statement.
The above reproduction makes the truth explicit. For, neither
in 1975, nor in 1979, nor in 1989, did he ever abandon the
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notion. In fact, even after the publication of the two books on

the Kartarpuri Bir by the Punjabi University, Patiala, McLeod
continued with his wrong allegations against the Sikhs and against
the authenticity of their Guru Granth Sahib.
In all such matters the subsequent conduct of a person is
very relevant. Apart from McLeod's part in relation to Pashaura
Singh's blasphemous Thesis, his four page tirade against the Sikh
Scripture, and his statements in 1979 and 1989, leave hardly any
doubt as to the intentions of the writer, which apparently could
be called neither academic, nor rational, nor ethical. Because he
went on repeating his statements without ever studying the two
Birs and the many publications clearly contradicting his views,
and when he knew full well from Dr Jodh Singh's book that there
was no obliteration and what he was suggesting was not correct. Under
the circumstances the question of the writer having any academic
interest in making the allegations appears out of the question.
Now, in his paper in the book of 1993, 'Studying the Sikhs'
he virtually repeats his old plea that he just made a 'surmise' and
never said anything categorically. We believe that the two legal
luminaries, when they conveyed their allegation of blasphemy or
libel to the University, knew quite well both the Law in this regard,
and whether his statements attracted its provisions.
Whether the writer's motives were academic or otherwise, is
also apparent from the facts that, during over a decade, neither
did he exhibit any interest in studying the literature on the point,
nor did he ever make the least attempt to examine the Banno Bir
which showed, that it had been prepared in 1642 AD, 38 years
after the compilation of the Kartarpuri. Bir, and that even in that
Bir (Banno) the unacceptable part of the Ramkali hymn was clearly
a later interpolation, made after 1642 AD, the date of its preparation.
McLeod, when he now makes his simplistic explanation in his paper
of 1993 also knows that one of his own students, and another one
Gurinder Singh Mann of Dr. J.S. Hawley's Department in the
University of Columbia, have inspected the Kartarpuri Bir and found
it to be genuine, and authentic and without any obliteration. What
McLeod has suggested, is a direct attack not only on the Sikhs and
their integrity, but also on the authenticity of their Guru Granth
Sahib, before whom 15 millions Sikhs bow their heads and pray
 10

every day.
The above being the context, it is now too simplistic to put
forward the plea that only 'surmise' was made, or questions were
raised. We wonder if even the most gullible would accept such a
naive explanation. We also wonder if such statements of the
learned author, believed to be unwarranted, unethical, and
unacademic, as they are, could find any support in any sober
society. Yet it is unfortunate and amazing that persons who tend
to claim exalted academic status, find it necessary not only to
accept it but also to support it.
This being the background, we now take up the work of Thesis
of Pashaura Singh guided by McLeod, as exemplified in his Thesis.
Pashaura Singh started his Ph.D. work in 1987 under the guidance
of Dr. McLeod at the Toronto University, and submitted his Thesis
in 1991. This work has been considered another proxy attack against
the authenticity of the Guru Granth Sahib. The spurious and pre-
meditated character of this Thesis has been explained both in the
Editorial of the Abstracts of Sikh Studies, January 1993, and further
in the 34 papers, reviews and articles that are being published in this
volume. We shall, therefore, refrain from giving details, except that
we shall just record the broad features of Pashaura Singh's attack and
indicate some aspects of the thesis discussed by the scholars. Six
aspects of Pashaura Singh's Thesis need to be mentioned:
1. At the very start of Pashaura Singh's chapter on Textual
Analysis he quotes a letter published under the name of Dr
Loehlin, a co-missionary of McLeod at the Batala Mission, wherein
it is suggested that textual analysis of the Aad Granth is necessary,
and that some Sikhs and their friends have started it. Presumably,
among the contemplated Sikhs is Pashaura Singh, and among
friends is McLeod. The strange part of the article is as to why it
was written, who wrote it, and its history.
2. The second point is his theory of changes made by Guru
Arjun in the theological and linguistic structure of Gurbani or
hymns of the earlier Gurus. It is based on the assumption that
manuscript MS 1245 purchased by the GND University Amritsar
in 1987 is an earlier draft of the Aad Granth by Guru Arjun.
Since there are, he says, many differences between the language
and contents of MS 1245, and those of the Aad Granth,
 11

he builds his entire thesis on that assumption. Pashaura Singh

did examine the Kartarpuri Bir (the Aad or original Granth), and
he concedes that it is authentic, but because of the contents of
MS 1245, he asserts that the Guru changed the bani of the earlier
Gurus. The related question is whether the draft theory has a
history, and how and why it was introduced, when it is well known
that the very concept of a draft was unknown in India in the
times of Guru Arjun. It would also have to be seen whether or
not the draft theory and its creation are a compulsive necessity
for building a case for textual analysis.
3. Third is the veracity, value and history of MS 1245 and
whether the manuscript has a worthwhile character, or it is just
an odd manuscript introduced to build the draft theory and make
the exercise of textual analysis a possibility. In short, a brief
examination is necessary to assess the dating and authenticity of
the manuscript.
4. Fourth is the value of Mohan Pothis which Pashaura Singh
has also partly used for the purpose of his Thesis. Their veracity,
authenticity and history have to be considered.
5. Fifth, there is the question as to what are the objectives
that have prompted Pashaura Singh or his supervisor to pursue
this Thesis, and whether that choice has a relevance to the
objectives and approach of the Batala Mission.
6. Lastly, we shall have to draw our conclusions from the
various points mentioned above. It has to be seen whether all the
above points have an inter-relation and suggest a pre-conceived
plan to produce this Thesis in continuation of the earlier objectives
of McLeod and his group which had been frustrated, because their
moves were found to be without any substance, and, perhaps,
motivated.
Textual Analysis: The Aad Granth, as is now admitted by all
concerned, including Pashaura Singh, was first prepared and
authenticated by the Fifth Guru himself in 1604 AD. As such,
the concept of textual analysis is irrelevant, and inapplicable to it
for three reasons. First, as the Aad Granth is revealed bani and
has been called as such by the Gurus, and as it has been recorded
and authenticated by the Guru himself, the question of examining
its authenticity, or of making change in it does not
 12

and cannot arise. This point was further fortified by the Seventh
Master, when he punished his own son for making a change of
only one word in it. Textual analysis is relevant only in the case
of man-made scriptures or manuscripts which were collected or
compiled centuries or decades after the demise of the prophet
concerned, and have, on that account, no authentication. No
one makes textual analysis of Spengler's 'Decline of the West', or
Aldous Huxley's, 'Island'. The second fact is that we have not
known of any manuscript of the Bani in our history which is
prior to the date of the Kartarpuri Bir and which is considered to
be the compilation of the Guru and as having been authenticated
by him. Therefore, the very question of textual analysis becomes
inapplicable and absurd, because one cannot validate or question
the validity of an authentic Granth by comparing it with an
unauthentic Granth, which has neither any priority nor any
authenticity. Thus, the very idea of textual analysis is misplaced
in the case of the Aad Granth, which is admittedly authentic.
For, the very idea of comparing or using an unverified and
unauthentic manuscript from the street for the purpose of
correcting the Aad Granth authenticated by the Guru is too
irrational to have any sense. No one has ever tried to set right
or correct the standard by measuring it with the substandard.
The concept of textual analysis has a meaning or relevance,
when two conditions are fulfilled, namely, when the later
manuscript is unauthentic or is man-made, and when another
older and a distinctly more authentic manuscript is available.
Factually and historically these two conditions can never be
fullfilled in the case of the Aad Granth. For, whereas the
authenticity of the Aad Granth compiled by Guru Arjun, is now
admitted by even the McLeod's own group, we have never heard
of an earlier manuscript containing all the Gurbani, much less
have we an authenticated version of it. Evidently, the repeated
suggestion of the need of textual analysis has emanated only from
the Batala goup, and has its obvious meaning in view of the history
and objectives of that group. Excepting this group, no one has
ever thought that the suggestion could have any sense or relevance.
Yet, McLeod having failed in his earlier attempts to
 13

attack the authenticity of the Aad Granth, has seemingly now

taken another route, through the Thesis of Pashaura Singh, towards
his old goal.
Pashaura Singh has quoted an article supposed to be by Dr
Loehlin. That article was published in 1987 in England and again
in 1990 in the Sikh Review, Calcutta. Three facts are very
significant about it. Loehlin stood admitted to a Home for old
persons since 1983. The administrator of the Home has indicated
that since 1983 Loehlin was neither capable of writing nor wrote
any such article. This has also been confirmed by the daughter of
Dr Loehlin. Loehlin died in August 1987, and yet the same article
was published in 1990 in the Sikh Review, Calcutta. The question
is who wrote or contributed it, for it could possibly not have
been done by Loehlin. The second point is that Loehlin had
contributed one article on the subject at the History Conference
in 1965. Another article on the same issue, including part of his
earlier article, he wrote in 1976. In the second article Loehlin had
included the version of Dr. Jodh Singh who, while controverting
some of Loehlin's assertions and suggestions, has stated
categorically that the Kartarpuri Bir was genuine and
authenticated. Normally, even if reproduction was considered
necessary by him, it is Loehlin's later article of 1976 which should
have been republished; but the article claims to be a reproduction
of the 1965 paper of Loehlin. This statement is also not quite
correct. The intriguing question is why the earlier article was
sought to be republished, and not the later article, which Loehlin
had himself rewritten and contributed at Berkeley in order to
make it up-to-date and more comprehensive, in so far as the views
of Dr. Jodh Singh had also been incorporated therein. Evidently,
the publication of the earlier article is incongruous, and the only
reason could be that, to the ghost contributor, the views of Jodh
Singh about the Aad Granth, incorporated by Loehlin himself,
were not palatable, since those included affirmation of the
authenticity of the Aad Granth, and for that reason, made textual
comparison meaningless. The third question is that there is a lot
of material in the published paper of 1990 which was neither there
in Loehlin's article of 1965 nor of 1976. The question is who
 14

introduced that material in the article and why. In fact, part of it

could not even be germane to the History Conference or the
Berkeley Conference. On the other hand, though not by name,
the event of Pashaura Singh and his supervisor having taken up
the work of textual analysis is recorded therein. Poor Loehlin
who was languishing in an Old Preachers Home to expire in
August 1987 could hardly be concerned or be aware about it so
as to highlight it. The only person who possibly could make the
article as a base, as Pashaura Singh later did, was he or his guide.
Accordingly, in December 1992 Dr. Jasbir Singh Mann, wrote a
letter of enquiry to Dr. McLeod, O'Connell and Pashaura Singh
at Toronto, especially because McLeod was an ex-missionary
colleague of Loehlin at Batala, and both had attended the Punjab
History Congress as well as the Berkeley Conference on Sikhism,
and presumably he must have been in touch with the condition
and affairs of Loehlin. By this letter Dr. Mann wanted to know
who had contributed the article, because the quarters of Loehlin
had virtually denied its authorship by him, and, on the other
hand, Pashaura Singh supervised by McLeod had used the article
as genuine. May be even the clue about the presence of the History
Conference article was given by McLeod to Pashaura Singh.
Unfortunately till the date of our publication no reply whatsoever
has been received from Toronto. Hence suspicions about the
genuineness and authorship of the ghost article continue. The
letter by Dr. J.S. Mann has been reproduced in Appendix C. Thus,
there is no rational reply to the three questions, namely, (1) who
contributed the article, (2) why the earlier article was chosen in
preference to the later one which had been suitably brought up-
to-date by Loehlin for the conference at the Berkeley University,
and (3) who made additions in the published article indicating
that the work of textual analysis had been taken up by Sikhs and
their friends? It is a fact that Pashaura Singh has used it as virtually
a preamble of his chapter, and justification for the choice of his
Thesis on textual analysis. In any case, the entire issue becomes
extremely suspicious, especially when we find that the very
relevance or sense of textual analysis in the case of the admittedly
authenticated Aad Granth, by the Guru himself, cannot arise.
 15

Draft Theory: Pashaura Singh says that as MS 1245 is a draft

which is earlier to the compilation of the Aad Granth, and as
there are many differences between the hymns in MS 1245 and
those in the Aad Granth, the conclusion is that Guru Arjun made
many theological and linguistic changes in the bani of the earlier
Gurus, before he compiled the Aad Granth. A number of
questions arise concerning the draft theory. First, as mentioned
earlier, for Pashaura Singh and his guide, the necessity for the
presence of an earlier manuscript is compulsive, otherwise, the
question of textual analysis or comparison between the two
manuscripts cannot be taken up. Second, the very idea of a draft
and its preparation for the Aad Granth, is incongruous and self
contradictory in relation to the revealed bani, which according to
the Gurus cannot be changed. Third, a draft is made only in
regard to something which has not yet been fully formed, planned
or thought out; or something which is yet rough, tentative and
not final. As such, the very concept of a draft in relation to the
Guru's bani is out of question. For, the Guru was to copy the
bani of the earlier Gurus, and not himself to frame or reframe it
for them, and pass it as the bani of the earlier Gurus. Fourth, the
concept of a draft was unknown to India at that times, and
even otherwise, it becomes an impossibility, when the question
is of writing without purpose about 1400 pages. For, the object
was mere copying or compiling of bani and not its
composition. Fifth: The incongruity is that in MS 1245 an
internal index of the hymns of each raga has been given. In a
draft such a thing would be a meaningless superfluity. It would
be necessary only in a compilation or collection. The sixth
question about the draft is as to who introduced this irrelevant
concept in relation to the Aad Granth. We find that McLeod
is the person who earlier suggested this idea in his book
'Evolution of the Sikh Community' of 1975, where he wrote
without any specific reference that the point had been
mentioned in the History Conference. The proceedings of the
History Conference do not record any mention of the
suggestion. In the literature printed in English the concept of
a draft regarding the Aad Granth, has
 16

first been mentioned by McLeod, and that also without any earlier
reference. Though the draft theory falls to the ground as a valid
or relevant concept in relation to the Aad Granth, yet it does
raise certain suspicions as to why it has been done and whose
objectives or plans it seeks to serve.
History and Veracity of MS 1245 : The strangest part of MS
1245 is that it has no known history prior to 1987. It has just
appeared in the library of GNDU, after its purchase that year
from a local dealer, who is said to be reluctant to give its history,
but suggests that it was earlier with the family of Baba Budha.
Without any known history it is very unusual and dogmatic for
any academic student to assume that the manuscript first seen in
1987 was actually compiled before 1604 A.D. by the Guru. It
needs too much of credulity to believe this. The successors of the
seat of Baba Budha have categorically denied the ownership or
knowledge of the manuscript. It is strange that whereas the
researchers say that the dealer is reluctant to disclose anything,
yet on actual contact the dealer showed no inhibition. For, when
questioned, without any hesitation he voluntarily stated that he
had obtained it from a dera of Minas in Rajasthan. But, when still
later, the name of the place of the dera was asked from him by
another scholar, he is reported to have stated that he got it from a
rehriwala or a street hawker. The shift in statements about the
source of the manuscript is indeed intriguing. For, there is an
apparent anxiety to conceal it. But the more intriguing part is
that Pashaura Singh whose'job it was to probe into the matter,
made not the least attempt to trace the origin and history of the
manuscript, especially when both the dera of Baba Budha and
the dealer have been willing to make their statements. That such
a questionable document should be so readily accepted as a draft
of the Aad Granth, and Pashaura Singh awarded a Ph.D. degree,
is certainly beyond comprehension or expectation from a seat of
higher research and learning.
Another feature of this document is that it has a forged nishan
(mark) pasted on leaf 4 of it. Pashaura Singh concedes that because
of its handwriting, the nishan is probably of the Ninth Guru.
Yet, its scribe has mentioned it as that of the Sixth Guru.
 17

Pashaura Singh has without any question swallowed this

incongruous fact, namely, that the use of a forged NISHAN (mark)
affects seriously the veracity both of the author and the,
manuscript. Third, it is evident that even the scribe did not want
to give to the manuscript a date earlier than the period of the
Sixth Guru, whose nishan he had forged. And yet it is incredible
how Pashaura Singh and his supervisor have discarded all these
contradictory pointers, and have done the still more incredible
thing of calling it a draft by the Fifth Master whose Nishan it
does not bear.
Further, we find that MS 1245 has many apocryphal hymns
attributed to Guru Arjun which find no place in the Aad Granth.
This is a conclusive proof of the fact that the manuscript could
neither be a draft by, nor be written at the instance of, Guru
Arjun. For, it is too unbelievable that the Guru first included an
apocryphal hymn in the draft under his own name and then
omitted it. Similarly, Balwant Singh Dhillon of the Guru Nanak
Dev University in his comprehensive and detailed examination
of MS 1245, points out that the scribe has distorted, and even
fabricated, the hymns of the Fifth Guru and others. While
pointing out the glaring faults relating to the apocrypha and the
forged hymns, disparity between the index of the ragas and the
actual hymns in the text, omissions, duplications, and
orthographic evidence, he concludes that the manuscript is of
the period of the Ninth Guru, and could not be of the period of
the Sixth Guru or any earlier time. We also find that the alleged
discrepancy of the Mul-Mantar, which Pashaura Singh tried to
point out, is hardly a relevant factor, because the full form of
Mul-Mantar appears five times in the manuscript, and there are
variations in those writings. This shows that the scribe is far from
being a careful writer, especially because at many places though
the index shows that the hymn was started with the correct line
appearing in the Aad Granth, yet in the text of the manuscript
the hymn is recorded with altogether a different line.
There is, in addition, a glaring and conclusive fact about the
manuscript not being a draft by Guru Arjun. For, inside of the
text on page 1255 of the manuscript, the death dates of Guru
 18

Arjun and the earlier four Gurus are recorded in the same hand
and ink as the writing of the hymns before and after it. We wonder
if any rational person could consider a document to have been
authored by a person whose death date finds mention in its
contents. All this suggests that the only reason for Pashaura Singh
to arrive at his inference could be that he was so pre-possessed
with the evident compulsion of calling the manuscript a draft,
that he was obliged to ignore every rational hurdle in his chosen
path towards a pre-conceived objective. The casual, irrational and
abnormal manner of the process, coupled with many incongruous
and even suspicious factors suggests that apparently the objective
was anything but academic.
Veracity of Mohan Pothis: Pashaura Singh has also used the
Mohan Pothis for his textual criticism. That Mohan Pothis are
not an authentic collection of bani, and were not used by the
Fifth Master, is a matter that was long back dealt with and analysed
by Dr. Sahib Singh in his well-known work, wherein he
unambigously arrives at the above conclusion. He has clearly
discarded the suggestion that the word Mohan in the Aad Granth
in any manner refers to the schismatic Mohan who refused to
abide by the decision of the Third Master when he conferred
Guruship on Guru Ram Das. For in the entire Guru Granth
Sahib nowhere have hymns been recorded in praise of a private
person, and that the Guru should have done that in regard to a
defiant person who had started a deviant branch, is simply out
of the question. Second, the manuscript has throughout been
in the possession of the schismatic group that had been
opposing and cursing those Sikhs who would follow the Guru
and not their line. For, in the Mohan Pothis it is recorded that
those who do not accept them as the Guru would go to hell.
To suggest that such a manuscript could be a collection of the
bani of the Gurus or be recorded at the instance of the Third
Master, is just preposterous. Third, the date on one of the
manuscripts, which appears to have been put at a later time, is
1595 AD. This fact, coupled with the point that the manuscript
has the hymns of the Fourth and Fifth Guru as well shows that
the time of the preparation of the manuscript
 19

could only be subsequent to the period of the Fifth Master, whose

bani had by then been recorded in the Aad Granth and had, thus,
gained currency to enable the scribe to copy it in his collection.
In any case, it is obviously self-contradictory to suggest that the
manuscript was got recorded by the Third Guru, and that whereas
he conferred Guruship on the Fourth Master, he transferred his
collection of the written bani to one who had openly defied him
by not abiding by his decision, and by refusing to recognise the
Fourth Master as the new Guru. The fifth reason is that the text
of the Mul Mantar in this manuscript is the same as had appeared
in the collections of another schismatic group called Handalis.
Accordingly, there is hardly any evidence about the origin or
authenticity of the Mohan Pothis, maintained by a schismatic
group, much less can it be called a collection of the bani of the
Gurus commissioned by the Third or any other Guru.
 20

OBJECTIVES OF THE THESIS

The facts indicated above suggest that Pashaura Singh has an

objective which is linked with the objectives of the Batala
Missionary Group. We have seen that McLeod from that Mission
continued making unwarranted attacks against the authenticity
of the Aad Granth, without ever having had a look at the Aad
Granth, and without studying, or in utter disregard of, the
literature that had long before his attack existed on the subject.
However, truth cannot be denied indefinitely, i!:, the face of
overwhelming available evidence and the affirmation by his own
student who confirmed its authenticity. So eventually he had to
accept that the Kartarpuri Bir was the genuine original Aad Granth
compiled by Guru Arjun.
Though his first attempt failed, yet that was not to be the end
of his objectives. After his frustration, he presumably changed
his plank. Now Pashaura Singh's Ph.D. Thesis, which he
supervised, says that while preparing the Aad Granth, Guru
Arjun changed the bani of Guru Nanak and other earlier Gurus,
linguistically as well as ideologically, including the Mul Mantar
or the very creedal statement of Guru Nanak. The so-called
research in the Thesis followed a crudely manoeuvered suggestion
for textual analysis of the Aad Granth published by a ghost
contributor in the name of a dead Loehlin. A compulsive
requirement of their theory was the existence of an earlier
manuscript of the Granth. Since none existed, one had somehow
to be produced. For this purpose MS 1245 appeared almost
overnight, and support was also taken from the Goindwal Pothis.
The reality about these two manuscripts has been exposed in the
articles of the present volume, and, therefore, need not be repeated
here. While the former is a copy prepared sometimes in the late
seventeenth century and is full of inaccuracies, omissions and
apocryphal hymns, the latter is clearly the work of a schismatic
group done in seventeenth century .
In any case one thing is obvious that as between the earlier
attempt of McLeod to attack the authenticity of the Aad Granth
and the present thesis supervised by him, there is evident unity
 21

of design, rationale and purpose to show that the holy Scripture

of the Sikhs, Guru Granth Sahib, is not authentic.
ACTS OF BLASPHEMY
From their narration and study of the events, the authors of
the 34 articles in this book, find that Pashaura Singh has
committed the following acts of blasphemy:
i. That the bani, as proclaimed by Guru Nanak and the
other Gurus, is not revealed one, because it can be
changed and has been changed by Guru Arjun himself.
ii. That Guru Arjun and the Fourth Guru made theological
changes in the bani of Guru Nanak.
iii. That Guru Arjun made misrepresentations in so far as he
passed on the bani changed by him as that of Guru Nanak.
iv. That the hymns which for the Guru were apocrypha, are
suggested by the scholar to be true bani of Guru Nanak.
v. That bhagat bani was included in the Aad Granth by Guru
Arjun at a later stage, and that the reasons for so doing
were socio-political, including the anxiety to gain cred-
ibility or following among different castes.

INVALIDITY OF PASHAURA SINGH'S THESIS

Normal moves of men need to be seen in their proper context,

with which these are often intimately linked. We have noted both
the approach and the objectives of the Mission which came to
 22

India during the period of triumphant colonialism. The basic

belief was, "extra ecclesian nullah salus" (Outside the Church no
salvation), and that Indian religions were steeped in superstition.
Obviously, some of these missionaries in the Punjab carried the
same burden of bringing salvation to the misguided Sikhs as was
felt by the colonial administration, for the social emancipation
of the backward East. We have seen the opening of the Centre of
Sikh Studies at Batala and the repeated assertions of McLeod to
convince the Sikhs that their Guru Granth was a forged one and
that for the sake of their own salvation they should wake up to
the 'truth' which he had perceived. Unfortunately for him, the
Sikhs felt that this unsolicited concern of his could, perhaps, be
part of the process of what A.A. Malek and Edward Said have
considered to be the search for knowledge in order to gain power.
"Abdel Malek had emphasised in connection with Orientalist
studies in particular that there could be no disinterested
knowledge", and similarly, "Said has demonstrated the connection
of knowledge to power most effectively". However, W.H. McLeod
continued unabated with his 'research' tending to show that
Sikhism was hardly a coherent religous system, and that its
institutions and militancy had been modelled just on the "Jat
cultural pattern". But the significant event was that in the mid-
eighties he was chosen to occupy a Chair of Sikh and Punjabi
studies at the University of Toronto for which the Sikhs of the
area contributed the funds.
Pashaura Singh's thesis supervised by McLeod is a part of the
work done under the guidance of that Chair. The 34 papers
included in this volume have brought out with clarity that
Pashaura Singh's thesis rests on a precarious prop which has no
rational basis. The chief claim of the ex-missionary and his friends
all these years has been that they use critical western methodology.
Pashaura Singh's thesis, which is a sample of that methodology,
is founded essentially on MS 1245, which he calls
a draft of the Aad Granth by Guru Arjun. As described by Balwant
Singh Dhillon of GND University, who has studied the
manuscript in the University even more closely than did Pashaura
Singh during his hasty and short visit to Amritsar, the manuscript
is a stray collection of Gurbani interspersed with numerous
 23

apocryphal hymns, and it has no known history whatsoever

beyond the year 1987 when it was purchased, and when Pashaura
Singh started his work at Toronto. Another coincidence is that
he began his research in 1987 almost simultaneously with the
publication of an article supposed to have been contributed by a
dying Loehlin. It is also relevant to note that extracts from that
article are quoted by Pashaura Singh in the beginning of his chapter
on Textual Analysis, by way of justification for his project. Thus,
the inspiring reflection of Batala missionaries appears to have been
gainfully used. Dr Jasbir Singh's letter to the University as to
who wrote the article, since it had virutally been dis-claimed by
the Administrator of the Home where Loehlin expired, and by
his daughter, remains unanswered to date.
As stated earlier, the scribe, author, compiler or custodian of
MS 1245 is unknown and unknowable, except that its architect
has admittedly been a forger, though it is conceded that it has
probably the mark of the Ninth Guru (1664-1675). But Pahsaura
Singh violates all canons of logic and rationality, when he calls
MS 1245, which contains in its contents the death date of Guru
Arjun, as also many apocryphal hymns attributed to him, a draft
by Guru Arjun himself.
The simulaneous appearance of MS 1245, almost from
nowhere, with a dealer who has from time to time been changing
the story of its procurement, the seemingly ghost article in the
Sikh Courier of 1987, coupled with the denial of successors of
Baba Budha who were suggested to have owned and sold it, cast a
pall of suspicion on the entire version of Pashaura Singh. The
irrationality of his work has been shown to be so gross, and the
apparent blasphemy so obvious, that far from its carrying any
conviction, the very bona fides of the author become
questionable. Two things are evident, namely, the irrationality
of the thesis and a basic compulsive drive to arrive at
preconceived inferences unrelated to facts on the ground. Except
for the general support from friends and associates of the group,
there has not been a single paper in any manner agreeing with or
endorsing the views of Pashaura Singh. It is strange that the
University failed to understand that it could hardly be fair or
 24

reasonable to produce at their centre such a work as is considered

baseless and blasphemous by scholars of the community and still
to require the local Sikhs to finance it. For, it is difficult for anyone
to ignore the reality that McLeod, who for over a decade had
been unreasonably attacking the authenticity of the Aad Granth,
is the same scholar who has now guided the thesis of Pashaura
Singh, who too attacks the authenticity and purity of the Bani
(hymns) in the Aad Granth. In both the cases the target of this
claimed western methodology is Guru Granth Sahib, the holy
Scripture of the Sikhs. It is unfortunate and surprising that,
without disclosing or realising the blunder of accepting MS 1245,
bearing the death date of Guru Arjun, as a draft by him, letters
are being published and circulated among scholars by a
representative of the University complaining against academic
criticism of Pashaura Singh's shoddy work. Hence the need of
the present publication.
"STUDYING THE SIKHS"
We have mentioned the book, "Studying the Sikhs", which
apart from containing certain generalisations, is broadly written
to support W.H. McLeod and his associates. It includes some self-
justification by the former in the field of Sikh Studies, Religion
and History. The book does not add much to our knowledge.
There are certain observations therein, which will require some
comments.
a. Personal Attacks: It makes two statements, namely, that
personal attacks have been indulged in, and that there is only one
group (as echoed by Pashaura Singh also), that is taking what
they consider a confrontational view. Both the assertions are
surprising. We have indicated the approach of the Christian
missions, there objectives in Punjab, and particularly the so-called
academic work of McLeod. In his Cambridge lecture published
in 1975 he went out of the way virtually to malign
the Sikhs by suggesting that they had obliterated an inconvenient
hymn in the Aad Granth. In addition, his simultaneous suggestion
was that Guru Granth Sahib of the entire Sikh community was a
tampered with Granth. The suggestions were not only known to
him to be incorrect, but the author had not made the requisite
 25

academic effort before making them. The universities in Punjab

published literature to show that the ex-missionary's allegations
were baseless and unacademic. In 1988 he was invited to an
academic conference at Los Angles for a discussion of the issue.
In 1989, four Institutions/Orgnisations approached the Toronto
University pointing out his blasphemous statements, and suggested
his discussion at a seminar. There was no response or regret from
him, except a belated letter in 'India Abroad', saying that he had
abandoned the notion, after his knowledge of Dr. Jodh Singh's
book of 1968, though this was also a mis-statement. We fail to
understand what else could be the line of action the scholars in
India could follow, when an unwarranted and clearly blasphemous
attack had been made against the Sikhs and their Scripture, the
Guru Granth Sahib. The lack of concern on the part of the
University, and its continued efforts to employ and back up the
same person indicated that the attack of W .H. McLeod had their
support. The only action taken in India was twofold, a reasoned
reply through a university production and a complaint of the
activity of McLeod to his employer. We wonder if anything could
be more tolerant or sober than this. It reminds one of Bernard
Shaw's dictum that when a man kills a lion, it is sport, but when
a lion kills a man, it is ferocity. It is -indeed unfortunate and passes
one's comprehension that responsible persons should suggest that
an attack on the Sikh Guru and the entire Sikh community
without any rational or tangible basis is considered academic
activity, but to point out its faults and rebut the same lawfully is
unacademic personal attack. The insularity of such approach is
to say the least, quite obvious it is the surprisingly by unperceptive
approach of same in the University that has now led to what we
have described above as the apparently unfounded and
blasphemous attack, this time not only on the Sikhs, but also
against Guru Arjun, Guru Ram Das and the
Guru Granth Sahib. The reaction to the work of McLeod and his
student Pashaura Singh has, as the contents of the 34 articles show,
been spontaneous and wide- spread the world over; so much so
that the SGPC considered the subject through two Expert
Committees consisting of scholars from the universities and other
 26

parts of India and the world. The authors of these articles are
most of them academicians working in universities in India and
North America. It is just the poverty of Pashaura Singh's work,
the doubtful nature of his material and motives, and the outrageous
character of his inferences that have led to the profusion of response
in the Sikh academic world. The surprising part is that the ex-
missionary and his group still seem to be working in a colonial
atmosphere, completely impervious to the views of other scholars
and the feelings of a whole community.
b. Quietist Sants: There were a number of unauthenticated
formulations about Sikhism in W.H. McLeod's book 'Evolution
of the Community' that appeared in 1975. One of them is that
Sikhism is a projection of the Vaishanav Bhakti Movement, the
saints and Naths. Since then many publications have appeared to
show that Vaishanavas and Bhakti Saints belong to a category or
class of religious systems which are entirely different from that of
Sikhism. More than a dozen works including Gurdev Singh's 'Sikh
Tradition', 'The Sikh Ideology', 'Sikhism', 'A Comparative
Study', 'The Sikh Revolution', 'Perspectives on Sikh Studies',.
'In the Caravan of Revolutions', 'Advanced Studies in Sikhism -
An Oecumenical Religion', etc., have been published in which
the issue has been specifically examined and McLeod's
observations found to be very superficial, because doctrines is
wanting in the study of the hymns and doctrines of the Gurus
and their lives. The strange part is that never has McLeod or
anyone sought to support his formulation by any academic work
beyond ritual repetition which has been made also in the work,
'Studying the Sikhs': "A more credible view, the one most clearly
articulated by W.H. McLeod, is that Sikh tradition emerged from
medieval Hinduism."
It is well known that quietist saints and mystics have appeared
the world over and in all ages and times. In Judaism these appeared
when Jewish life was unable to meet the challenges of
Babylonian invasion. In Greece they appeared as Neo-Platonists
when Greek culture and life were distinctly on the ebb. Similarly,
in Christianity monastries appeared at the close of the third
century, and, slowly, apart from the fall of the Roman Empire
and the success of the barbarians, followed the Dark Ages.
 27

Similarly, Sufism and its khanqahs appeared later in Islam after

its elan" was on the decline. The position in India has been no
different.
Invariably, the saints or quietist mystics have some definite
characteristics. They cater only for the personal salvation of a
few. Celibacy and withdrawl from life are their other
characteristics. Not only pacifism or Ahimsa is an essential feature
of these groups, but they have been consistently disinclined to
form or organise a society. Much less have they ever accepted
social responsibility, which is an essential character of a whole-
life system. It is evident from the religious history of man that
whereas quietist saints have definite characteristics and have lived
and worked in all countries, never have they bloomed into creating
a whole-life system anywhere. Because, whole-life systems, apart
from accepting social responsibility and facing the problems of
evil in all spheres of life, organise social institutions and society
in order to tackle its challenges. Invariably, they accept the use of
force for a righteous cause and reject celibacy, pacifism, Ahimsa
and withdrawl. It is just as simplistic to say that the Vaishnava or
other quietist saints led to the Sikh Gurus and Sikhism as to say
that a citrus plant could in course of time bear the fruit of an
apple. Religious history of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam clearly
shows that whereas quietist mystics have always followed activity
or prophetic mystics, never has the vice versa happened. Yet,
without any academic evidence or study of the Guru Granth
Sahib, we find regular ritual repetition of the unexamined
statement that Sikhism is a development of the Sant tradition, an
assertion contrary both to facts on the ground and the lesson of
the religious history of man. For, neither any of the saints in
India or mystics or Sufis elsewhere organised a society nor did
they accept social responsibilities, as did the Gurus.
TWO CLASSES OF SCHOLARS: We have had a glimpse
of the work of a group of foreign-trained scholars who are
otherwise never weary of claiming their superior methodology
and training. While talking of two schools of Sikh history, N.G.
Barrier's indulgence in some self-praise is understandable, although
 28

the method has never been considered very exalting. He writes,

"Over the last several decades a second, contrasting group of
historians has gradually emerged, usually trained in and affiliated
with Western universities. These scholars question traditional
sources and apply the same type of rigorous textual analysis that
is used by historians of the Western mode." Two samples of foreign
trained scholarship have been given above. But our learned author,
while making sweeping generalisations about the work of local
scholars, gives no example to support his statement. He
downgrades their scholarship simply because, "The institutional
base for Sikh studies has tended to centre on a network of institutes
and university departments within the Punjab. The funding and
intellectual milieu within that state affects the focus of research
and the understanding of how Sikhism has evolved. Whether lay
or professioal, most Sikh commentators on Sikh history share
certain preconceptions and commitments." "Most recently they
have shared an insistence that non-violence had never been a
cardinal element in Sikh ideology. They wish to show that the
defence of Sikh ism through the use of force is a traditional Sikh
value." The Sikh Scripture and the Sikh ideology were formed
four hundred years earlier, and this is the ideology the Gurus
lived for 240 years. There is nothing new about this ideology. It
can neither be reformulated nor reframed now or in the future.
The position is not like that in some other religions where
the Scripture is man-made and was compiled centuries after
the demise of the prophet; and later centuries are having their
own but variant interpretaions of that ideology. In fact, the
very lives of the Ten Gurus are a complete demonstration of
their system under variant socio-economic and environmental
circumstances. True, among foreign scholars knowledge of the
Sikh Scripture is either absent or less than
adequate. That is their major difficulty and handicap. For example,
if Barrier had studied the Scripture, he would have known that
religious duty and responsibility of a Sikh are to defend justice
and righteousness and not Sikhism, as he says so incorrectly. While
for the purpose of ideology the Scripture is the primary and basic
 29

source, as also the 240 years of the lives of the Gurus, no local
historian has ever ignored the importance of historical evidence,
contemporary and the rest. For example, the three interpretative
studies of Jagjit Singh, 'The Sikh Revolution', 'In the Caravan of
Revolutions' and 'Perspectives on Sikh Studies', while they give
evidence from the lives of the Gurus and their hymns, are profuse
with historical and other data on the issues discussed.
On the other hand, without naming anyone we give two more
examples of Western trained scholars. In one case, the author while
preparing the resource bibliography for Sikh Studies, completely
excluded from the list practically every book, including over a
dozen admittedly standard works on Sikh religion and history,
that gave a point of view opposed to that of the learned author
(Authenticity of Kartarpuri Bir, Punjabi University, Patiala, p.
73). In the other case, the foreign trained scholar, while discussing
a particular period of Sikh history and quoting an authority on
the subject regarding some detail completely excluded his emphatic
conclusion, since it would demolish both his data and inferences:
"In this context, Rose clearly endorses Bhangu's view,
'comparatively few Sikhs are followers of Sarvar and there is in
fact a sort of opposition in the Central districts between Sikhs
and Sultanis. You hear men say that one party in a village worships
the Guru, the other worships Sarvar', that is, that one party are
Sikhs, the other ordinary Hindus who follow Sarvar. It has been
suggested that worship of Sarvar probably spread eastward among
the Jats in the 15th and 16th centuries, and was the prevalent cult
at the time of the great development of Sikhism in the days of
Guru Gobind Singh; and that most of the conversions of the
Khalsa faith were from worshippers of Sultan. This appears a very
probable account of the origin of such opposition as does exist
between these two forms of faith. As between the Hindus generally
and the Sultanis there is no sort of opposition; there are instances
in the popular legends of men opposing the cult of Sarvar, but in
the present days the Sultanis are looked on as ordinary Hindus.
Oberio while he gives irrelevant details of the miraculous powers
attributed to Sakhi Sarvar and lavishly quotes Rose as evidence,
 30

seems to have deliberately concealed the above mentioned

conclusion drawn by Rose and, instead, made the distortion that
Singh Sabha leaders were the first to object to such practices. Such
clear mis-statements are generally made by partisan propagandists
but never, we believe, by any academician. This indicates either a
lack of in-depth study or a conscious attempt to suppress facts
with a view to mis-representing Sikhism." The particularly
relevant fact is that Barrier calls that very author's work on the
subject, in the context of which he made the above suppression,
the best study on the issue. It shows why perceptions and
preferences differ. In his paper, 'The Sikhs and the British' G.S.
Dhillon reports Barrier's own sense of apparent inconsistency;
and, perhaps, conditioned: "Barrier in his article, 'The Punjab
Government and Communal Politics, 1870-1908' : 'My men are
expected to extend equal rights to all native religions and to align
with none'. On the basis of the above statement and other facts
Barrier concludes that 'the first Punjab administration thus
responded to a communal problem with religious impartiality'.
In fact the burden of his article is to suggest British neutrality
towards different religious communities in Punjab and defend
them against the charge of creating communal divisions. It is
difficult to understand what climatic change has occurred or
interests have over-weighed with the same author that he later
writes that, 'the British also played an important role by
supporting the maintenance of separate Sikh identity for
military purposes'. Because, it is normally unusual for an
author to give on the one hand a clean chit to the British for
their avowed and practical neutraliy towards the three
communities in Punjab, and on the other hand strongly to
endorse the oft-repeated charge of Hindu politicians that the
Hindu-Sikh divide in Punjab is a British creation to serve their
partisan interests. Besides, this religious policy regarding various
communities had been formulated by the British long before the
publication of pamphlets by the Singh Sabha at the fag end of the
19th century". May be, Dr. Dhillon has overstressed the point,
because human frailties of this kind are nothing uncommon.
Unlike as Barrier has done, we should not like to divide
 31

historians into two classes, one of locals and the other of those
trained abroad. Because, there are numerous scholars of religion
like Huston Smith, Schuon, John Hick, David Lockhead, Noel
King, James Lewis, Nichols, Frank Kaufmann, James Massey,
Metropolitan Gregoios, whose sense of fairness and scholarship
is, indeed, admirable.
Barrier and McLeod are fond of saying that Macauliffe's works,
about the Sikh Religion, which give a view opposed to theirs, are
dated in so far as they represent a view of a particular era. The
reality is that no writer in English, whether Indian or foreigner,
has made a more thorough study of the Sikh Scripture than did
Macauliffe. As such, unlike those of some other scholars,
Macauliffe's views about Sikhism and its history are based on an
intimate relation between the Sikh Scripture and the lives of
the Gurus May be some day, Macauliffe's work could be over
shadowed by a more patient, more thorough, deeper study
and broader vision, but not by mere gibes. The unfortunate
part, about almost every so-called foreign-trained scholar is
his virtual lack of knowledge of the Sikh Scripture and the
history of the Guru period when the Sikh ideology was
demonstrated and the society was modelled, conditioned, and
organised by the Gurus. It is that handicap of the scholars
that makes the work of the group dated or limited by the
influences of the Mission or Colonialism. Could Barrier really
be so unaware as not to know that many of the works of the
scholars of the group whom he puts in a higher class, have
been reviewed in Indian universities and other journals, and
found to be faulty? It is amazing that self-sponsored, and even
unethical observations or notions in same cases, are considered
the. product of critical methodology and undated. Universities
everywhere are funded by the national state or regional
organisations,and Punjab or India is no exception. We had no
desire to give the details, but it appears necessary to contradict
the implied theory of hierarchical, class or caste structure
introduced by the learned author. We should like to stress that
 32

none is against freedom of research and expression so long it does

not cross the bounds of normal or academic ethics.

FUNDAMENTALISM
It is unfortunate that short-term economic interests often
overshadow the vision of long term global problems. The basic
issue as Toynbee voiced decades back, was Religion versus
 33

Secularism. While indicating that Higher Religions have acted as

a chrysalis between the fall of one civilisation or culture and the
rise of another, he lamented the coming up of national secular
states which he considered parochial developments like the
Graeco-Roman worship of local goddesses. In fact, in his Burge
Memorial Lecture he accepted a global spiritual contribution from
the Christian Church, implying thereby that Christianity would
have a permanent future role, being the last spiritual dispensation,
a belief also held by Islam in its own case. But, now economic
interests of the West in the Middle East have led it to a new pose
of trying to raise Secularism to the level of a new religion and dub
as fundamentalisms all those movements that are either dissatisfied
or disillusioned with the greed or immorality of modern
Secularism: or consumerism. In the political field it has, on the
one hand, led support to Jewish religious nationalism in Israel,
and in contrast opposition to neighbouring Islamic nationalism
in Iran.
In the academic field, the American Academy of Arts and
Sciences has initiated through the Chicago University a major
project called the Fundamentalisms Project. Mark Juergenesmeyr's
volume, 'The New Cold War',' is comparatively a modest
summary survey of socalled fundamentalist or religious
movements the world over. The underlying theme in both the
cases the same, namely, that Western Secularism is the only viable
future civil religio-political system for man and all religious
growths or revivals opposed to it are fundamentalist or parochial
in character. However, unlike as in the case of Communism,
Juergensmeyer has the merit of suggesting that instead of
considering religious movements or religious nationalism a foe,
the West should try to live and co-exist with it.
As is understandable, when a global survey is undertaken,
there are errors of description. Such errors took place even in
the case of the broader survey of the Fundamentalisms Project of
the Chicago University, and faults regarding Sikhism were broadly
pointed out in the Editorial of 'Abstracts of Sikh Studies', July
1992. The position is no different in the survey of Juergenesmeyer.
While describing the Sikhs in the Punjab, misinformation
 34

regarding their movement is evident. For example, he completely

ignores the well-known and long-standing Sikh secular demands
for undoing the complete usurpation of their riparian rights over
the Punjab rivers and hydel power, which subjects the Centre
had unconstitutionally transferred to its own control. Irrigation
and hydel power form the base of all agricultural and industrial
development. The deprivation done can be guaged from the fact
that at the time of Independence the refugees lost 2.2 million
acres of perenially irrigated land, and had to be content with only
0.4 million acres in the East Punjab; now, the Centre, instead of
enabling the State to irrigate its land with its own river waters,
has allotted or diverted 75% of Punjab waters to non-riparian
States, even though it is the Punjabis who are the lone sufferers
from their floods each year involving sometimes loss of hundred
of lives and over a billion dollars of property in a single flood.
Actually, the Punjab agitation of the 1980's was against this very
unconstitutional decision of the Centre, and it was started against
the laying down of the foundation of the SYL Canal by the Prime
Minister, since that was the main channel to carry Punjab waters
to non-riparian states. He also ignores the well documented fact
that while everyone among the Akalis, including Bhindranwale,
had more than once agreed to a reasonable settlement, it was the
Prime Minister who always changed her mind, and staged the
Bluester attack. This has been reported by persons like Harkishen
Singh Surjit, Kuldip Nayyar, Dr. Ravi and others.
Regarding the Sikh ideology too he makes a similar confusion,
when he says that while Guru Nanak was just an introspective
Sant, it was his successors who acted as leaders of a separate
community and that the Mughal military administration too
adjudged and dealt with them as such. Juergensmeyer could not
be unaware of the fact that it was Guru Nanak who created in his
own life time the three societal institutions of
congregational centres for meetings, called Dharamsals,
congregational worship, and Langar and Pangat, involving
community dining and food for the indigent. These three
institutions had distinct social and societal implications that were
in opposition to the earlier discriminatory caste practices. Further,
 35

he started the system of succession with the clear objective of

continuance and development of his socio-spiritual mission
through committed leaders. No Sant took any of these social
measures. Equally faulty is the hackneyed, but long since exploded
suggestion that Jats in any way influenced the Sikh ideology.
However, factual errors apart, there is evident, sobriety and
wisdom in Juergensmyer's recommendation to his country men
and the West generally that reasons for the breakup of the Soviet
Empire should be grasped, and the rise of smaller national States
should be looked upon and dealt with understanding and not
with hostility.

CONCLUSION
In sum, the story of these essays is simple. At the University
of Toronto, Pashaura Singh has been awarded the degree of Ph.D.
for a thesis, guided by an ex-missionary Professor, which declares
 36

a manuscript (MS 1245), with unknown and unknownable author

or scribe or history, to be a draft of Aad Granth by Guru Arjun,
even though in its contents, in like hand and ink, the death date
of the same Guru is clearly recorded. That the University should
award a Ph. D. degree on grounds of such a ridiculous rationale,
is no concern of Sikh scholars. But what do concern them are
two facts. First, that simultaneously, on the basis of the alleged
manuscript, the thesis asserts that Guru Arjun changed,
theologicallly and linguistically, the Sikh Scripture, Guru Granth
Sahib; and that accordingly the same stands altered and is
unauthentic. The second fact is that for over a decade the same
professor had without any academic ground, been asserting that
the Sikh Scripture was unauthentic and had been tampered with,
even though he had known full well that the tampering with or
obliteration suggested by him was non-existent. In fact, after
examination of the Granth, it had earlier been categorically
declared that there had been no such obliteration as later indicated
by him. Since in both the cases the target of attack is the
authenticity of the Aad Granth, the scholar involved is the same,
and the factual basis of the attack is either absent, incorrect or
baseless, the perception of the Sikh scholars is that the work done
is biased and motivated. Facts being as they are, we wonder if
anyone can object to these natural perceptions. When confronted
and accused of blasphemy, to turn round and say that he had
'abandoned the notion', or only raised 'questions' or made 'surmises'
is too simplistic an argument to be rationally acceptable. To make
unwarranted attacks against the authenticity of a Scripture of another
religion is indefensible. The surprising part is that none of his group
have realised the enormity of the lapse, and preference seems to have
been given to observance of group loyalties. On the other hand, the
friends of the Professor have all the years been raising the chorus
that they are specially trained in Western methodology
and that the scholars in India, being from local universities financed
by the state, are committed to old perceptions. But apparently the
particular speciality of these scholars and the field in which they
outshine, appears evident from the two afore-mentioned instances.
In 1990 Sikh scholars, many Sikh organizations and Sikh
 37

representatives from Toronto approached the University with

details of a critical review of Dr. McLeord's work. But, the proposal
for clarification was spurned, rather the response was accusatory;
"the proper thing for such critics to do is to withdraw their
criticisms explicitly in public and in published form. "We are
ready before any academic forum to show that MS 1245 is
unauthentic and not an early draft. If McLeod and O'Connell,
who are so much proud of their method, cannot prove its
authenticity, they should withdraw the blasphemous observations
in public and in published form. Infact, all the formulations of Dr.
McLeod have been challenged, and perfectly rational conclusions to
the contrary have been drawn using sound methodology. Proceedings
of such seminars have been published and are available for scrutiny.
Issues have been clearly defined and must be taken up for
dispassionate academic discussion instead of making tall claims that
stand exposed in the case of Pashaura Singh's thesis.
It is learnt from reliable sources that there are words in English
and some lines in Punjabi recorded on the manuscript in the
handwriting of a Prof. indicating that the introduction of the
manuscript may be fraudulent and needs investigation.
By using unauthentic MS 1245 the so-called methodological
atheists have clearly shown the true nature of their scholarship.
Nobody is objecting to any research, whether genuine or faulty,
but the issue is : Honest Research VS Unethical or Blasphemous
production. As Guru Granth is the living Guru of the Sikhs, any
attack on its authenticity and integrity will never go unanswered.
We do not see any problem between believers and critical scholars.
But in this case it is obvious that production has been done without
any sense of rationality, responsibility or accountability. We hope
that the international response of 34 scholar; would be a reasonable
encounter and create intelligent goodwill that will help permanently
to stop any production of unethical or spurious work.. For, it will
create, maturity of understanding and cooperation among all
concerned and will build and promote authentic Sikh studies and
the Sikh way of life in Canada and the United States.
In order to clarify the confusion that has been raised by the
two scholars, it is necessary to publish the various papers and
reviews that have appeared from time to time on the issues. The
experience of the last two decades shows that prejudices have to
 38

be shed and caustic observations avoided, and instead, the only

useful path would be that of dialogue and discussion, preceded
by a detailed study of the Sikh Scripture which is prominently
missing from the academic equipment of practically all the existing
scholars claiming use of critical methodology. For, no
understanding of the Sikh religion and its history can be rational
or authentic, until the study both of the Guru Granth Sahib and
the history of the Guru period is combined. Otherwise,
unidimensional studies cannot obviously be objective or valid,
much less profound.
The editor is particularly grateful to all the scholars for
contributing stimulating articles which express their concerns over
this PhD dissertation. It is also our great pleasure to express our
thanks to various International Sikh organisations and the Sikh
Community of North America for their contributions,
cooperation, and participation in taking up this cause of the
community and Sikh Studies.

Chandigarh Bachittar Singh Giani

Dated: December 25,1993 Advocate
Punjab & Haryana High Court
And
Editor
Daily Navi Parbhat
Calcutta - Chandigarh
 39

2
BLASPHEMOUS ATTACKS
By
Dr. GURNAM KAUR
Dr. KHARAK SINGH
It is well-known that Christian missions started their activities
in the Punjab in the second half of the nineteenth century. A
Missionary Centre was started at Batala. Evidently, the object
was to spread Christianity, and wean away people from their
existing religions. At Amritsar Sikh students of a Mission School
were openly sought to be converted to Christianity. The response
from the Singh Sabha successfully checked these attacks from
the Mission. Later, the Akali Movement in the early twenties
brought about an awakening among the Sikh masses, and the
missionary activities of the Batala Group were virtually stopped.
However, the Mission changed its tactics, and started another
line of attack. It opened a Centre of Sikh Studies. The activities
of some of its functionaries as the facts seem to disclose, have
been subversive of the Sikh ideology and its institutions. In this
paper we shall deal with their sustained attack on the authenticity
of Guru Granth Sahib.
Guru Granth Sahib - A Unique Scripture :
The Sikh Scripture, is unique in many ways. It completely
embodies the Sikh ideology, and lays down firm foundations of
all Sikh doctrines. Second, these principles are not man-made,
but are spiritually revealed. The Gurus say: (1) "O, Lalo, I express
what the Lord conveys me to speak." (2) "Nanak says the words
of Truth, he expresses only the Truth, it is time to convey the
Truth" (3) "I have expressed only what You made me say." (4)
"1 have no voice of my own, all what I have said, is His
Command." (5) Guru's words are divine nectar (Amrit). These
quench all spiritual thirst." (6) "Consider the Bani of the Satguru
the words of Truth. "0, Sikh, it is the Lord who makes me convey
them." The message is repeatedly stressed by the Gurus in Bani.
Third, this Scripture stands authenticated by the Guru himself.
Nothing that is revealed in Gurbani, is outside it. As such, it is
unalterable. Lastly, the revealed Bani or Shabad
 40

has been declared the Living Guru of the Sikhs. In contrast, all
other scriptures of the world are man-made, compiled or recorded
centuries or decades after the demise of the concerned prophet.
For these reasons, there are a spate of controversies, and a growing
crop of literature that casts doubt about the real message or canon
of the prophet concerned.
Kartarpuri Bir Inspected:
The above gives the context as to why the Batala functionaries
may be uneasy, and, seemingly, seek crudely to strike at the
unshakable ideological base of Sikhism and its established canon.
In 1945-46 there was a case going on between the SGPC and
the Kartarpur Sodhis about the custody of the Kartarpuri Bir. It
is unanimously accepted as the original Aad Granth, compiled
by Guru Arjun Dev himself in 1604 A.D. The date of writing
it, is recorded in the Granth itself, and it is authenticated by
the Guru by writing his Nishim which is indexed in the List
of Contents. During this period the Commission was allowed
access to the Bir comprising three persons, namely, Rev. CH.
Loehlin of the Batala Mission, br. J.C. Archer, and Dr. Jodh
Singh. They made separate examination of it. The notes of
their examinations are extremely revealing as to the approach
and the mind of these persons. Evidently, the most important
fact about the originality or the authenticity of a document is
the date of its writing, besides its author or scribe. It is
undoubted that the date of writing the Kartarpuri Bir is given
at the very beginning of it. What is extremely significant, is
that the dates of demise of the first four Gurus are in one
handwriting and are in the same shade of ink and manner.
The date of demise of the Fifth Guru is also recorded by the
same scribe, but the shade of ink is different as also the words
thereof, because in this case, even the day, apart from the date
of demise, is indicated.
Batala Group misrepresents authenticity of Adi Granth.
We give below the observations of these three scholars who
in a way reported their findings at the Punjab History Conference
held in November 1965.
Loehlin read his paper in which he produces both his
 41

observations and those of Archer. They had full access to the

Granth. In his own observations, he completely omits reference
to the date on the Bir, including the clear proof as follows from
the record about dates of death of the first five Gurus. He records
that in the very beginning, there is Guru Arjun's writing as the
nishan of the Guru. But he says that there are no signatures, little
knowing that the recording of signatures was never an Indian
practice then, and that the only and the recognised method of
authentication was putting of Mul Mantar, called Nishan" by the
Guru on. any Holy Granth. Similarly, Archer, while admitting
the presence of the Index and mention of the Nishan of Guru
Arjun therein, makes a very misleading observation that the Bir
bears no dates and that its authenticity cannot be proved. ,Further,
in this paper it is recorded that the problem ,of the book is acute
and although the Granth is said to have been dictated by Guru
Arjan Dev, yet its textual criticism like that of the Christian
Scripture would be necessary. The paper records: "The
observations are not so superficial, as they might at first seem.
For one thing, Dr. Archer's statements are those of a trained
observer. Both are the reactions of friendly critics, who know
how irreplaceable such a book is. Both are from men who have
had to study the involved subject of textual study of the Christian
Scriputre." Such self-recommendations by the author about the
two observers in an academic paper is extremely uncommon and
indeed amusing. How 'friendly' the two observers are, is evident
from the fact that their eyes remain closed to see dates on the Bir
and the proof of its writing, as was clear from the dates of demise
of the five Gurus, and the traditional Nishan of the Fifth Guru.
Not only do they omit every fact about the date and authenticity
of the Bir, but they also go on narrating its non existent defects
and recommending textual criticism by these two 'friends'. Archer
also goes to the extent of making a mis-statement that the date is
not there. That the omission and self recommendations of these
friendly critics, seemingly deliberate, were made with apparently
unfortunate objectives, is evident from the paper of Jodh Singh,
the third person who also saw the Bir. His paper contributed at
the same Conference,
 42

not only gives the date of the Bir, but also explains cogently the
blank spaces and other seeming objections raised by Loehlin and
Archer. Since Jodh Singh's paper at the Conference exposed the
superficial scholarship, and perhaps also their intentions, the Batala
Mission remained quiet for some time.
McLeod Suggests Adi Granth is Tampered with :
But in 1975 the attack was repeated by W.H. McLeod, a Batala
trained ex-employee of the Mission, in his book 'Evolution of
the Sikh Community'. He went a step further from the attempts
of Loehlin and Archer. He wrote that the Kartapuri Bir, was not
the original one and that the Banno Bir was the original Bir which
had a hymn by the Fifth Guru, recording the alleged Tonsure
ceremony of the Sixth Guru, conducted by Guru Arjun, and that
probably the Sikhs had obliterated the hymn from the Bir at
Kartarpur. He wrote "The conclusion which seems to be emerging
with increasing assurance, was that the widely disseminated Banno
version must represent the original text; and that the Kartarpuri
manuscript must be a shortened version of the same text. A few
portions must have been deleted because they could not be
reconciled with beliefs subsequently accepted by the Panth. This
much appears to be well-established..." "Iater still, portions of
the Kartarpuri manuscript (the original manuscript written by
Bhai Gurdas) were rather ineptly obliterated in order to bring the
two versions into line." "When the prohibition became mandatory,
not merely for Jat Sikhs, but also those of other castes, the reference
in the hymn could only be regarded as intolerable." McLeod's
suggestion is that the Guru never prescribed the keeping of hair,
and since it was a Jat cultural practice, others also started keeping
their hair and the hymn in the Kartarpuri Bir was obliterated by
the Sikhs. McLeod also pleads for textual examination, the same
plan and pleas as made by the 'friendly' pair of scholan; earlier.
The surprising parts of it are two. First, in 1968 had appeared
Jodh Singh's detailed and meticulous record, page by page, of the
Bir, along with clear reasons and conclusions of its being the
original Adi Granth dictated by the Fifth Guru. He stated that
the blank spaces were due to the reason that a fixed cluster of
leaves was kept for each Raag, and since in some cases the cluster
could not be filled from the available hymns, space at
 43

its end remained blank. In fact, this was a clear additional proof
of its authenticity. Dr. Jodh Singh's book clearly recorded that
there was no obliteration of the Ramkali hymn at the place alleged
by McLeod. Thus McLeod's suggestion about obliteration was
blatantly unwarranted, incorrect and misleading. McLeod was well
aware of the work of Jodh Singh which he quoted in his book.
The second reason to doubt both McLeod's motive and
scholarship is that he made these assertions without examining
either the Kartatpuri Bir or the Banno Bir. Besides, he should
have known that there was literature about the Banno Bir (Mahan
Singh's book), saying that the recorded date on it showed that it
was scribed in 1642 A.D., 38 years after the preparation of the
Kartarpuri Bir, i.e., in the times of Guru Hargobind Sahib. Yet in
his book of 1975, he wrote about four pages of his incorrect tirade
agains the Sikhs for obliterating the hymns and recommending
textual examination.
McLeod Repeats Blasphemy:
The Batala Group did not rest at that. In 1979 a Conference
of Sikh Studies was held at Berkeley, and both Loehlin and Mc1eod
read papers on the Adi Granth. This time Loehlin was a little
hesitant and, compared to McLeod, fair, and while he reproduced
the statements of his own and those of Archer, he also gave some
of the observations from Jodh Singh's paper of 1965 presented at
the History Conference. But he repeated the mis-statement of
Archer that there was no date on the Bir. He repeated this mis-
statement, even though he knew it to be incorrect, simply because
he wanted to repeat, as he did in the end, his earlier suggestion for
textual criticism. Similarly, McLeod repeated his blasphemous and
baseless statement that the Ramkali hymn had been obliterated
and that the Banno Bir was the original one, even though he had
still not examined either of them. He wrote, "The earliest,
representing nearest approach to Guru Arjan's dictation would
be Banno. The second, and intermediate recension bearing the
actual marks of a later revision through the excision of
unacceptable material, would be Kartarpur."
It was, however, on record that there was no obliteration of
the Ramkali hymn in the Kartarpuri Bir (Jodh Singh's book of
1968), and that the Banno Bir had been scribed in 1642 A.D.
 44

(Mahan Singh's book of 1952). Without examining the Birs and

without caring to study the profuse and conclusive literature on
the point, McLeod continued with his apparent blasphemy, even
in 1989 in his book "The Sikhs". He wrote, "This comparison
suggests that the Banno recension may actually represent the
original text by Bhai Gurdas. The theory allows that the Kartarpur
manuscript may well be the document recorded by Bhai Gurdas,
but adds that if this is indeed the case, the original version has
subsequently been amended by obliterating occasional portions
of the text."
But the real facts are that not only had the examination of the
Kartarpuri Bir by Jodh Singh (1968), Harbhajan Singh (1981) and
Daljeet Singh (1987), been published proving unambiguously the
authenticity of the Kartarpuri Bir, and accusing McLeod of making
deliberate blasphemous statements, but many scholars like Mahan
Singh (1952), the University Team from the GNDU Amritsar,
Principal Harbhajan Singh (1981), and Professor Pritam Singh
(1982-84), had published papers or reported that the Banno Bir
had, on its own record, been scribed in 1642, and that even there
the Ramkali hymn was just an interpolation made after that year.
And yet over the years without examining the two Birs and
disregarding the available published University and other literature
on the issues, McLeod went on with his baseless and unethical
attacks saying (a) that the Banno Bir was the original Bir, (b) that
there was motivated obliteration of the Ramkali hymn in the
Kartarpuri Bir, and (c) that textual criticism was necessary. One
wonders if any further .comments are necessary about his motives,
level of scholarship and extraneous objectives. Textual Analysis:
Here, a few words about textual criticism and its relevance.
As noted, except the Adi Granth, there is no scripture in the
world that had been recorded either by or in the time of the
original prophet. Whether it is the Torah, the Bible, the
Dhamapada or the Quran, each was compiled and finalised after
the demise of the prophet concerned. Hence the problems of
correct canon or textual criticism, form criticism, redaction and
like criticism have arisen. In the time between the demise of the
prophet concerned and the date of its final compilation,
 45

there had been many man-made versions of concerned scriptures

or parts thereof. In fact, in the case of the Jewish and Christian
scriptures there are innumerable intervening manuscripts
suggesting one inference or the other. It has given unlimited mass
of material to scholars to exercise their intellectural ability or give
vent to their idiosyncracies, some of them even malicious. So
much so, that on the basis of a doubtful and unproven manuscript,
Morton Smith went to the extent of casting unbecoming aspersions
on Jesus Christ. Now the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in
1947 has put in confusion both the versions of the Talmud and
the Bible. It is the unique vision of the Fifth Master that he
eliminated all possibilities of such criticism by himself compiling
and authenticating the Bani. Further, the Gurus established a
tradition, in fact a firm direction, that since it was a revealed bani,
no one had the right to change even a word of it, and that nothing
outside the Guru Granth, unless a copy of it, is Gurbani. For,
there could be no question for Guru Arjun, to leave Gurbani
outside and not to include it in the Adi Granth. The Seventh
Guru even banished his own son for changing a single word of it,
and the Tenth Master was very angry with a Sikh who wrongly
pronounced a word, which could be misconstrued to change the
meaning of the hymn.
Blasphemy Evident
These being the facts and realities, the Batala missionary has
gone out of the way to muddy the waters by making unethical
and unwarranted statements. These opinions, besides being clear
mis-statements, were unacademic, since these were made over the
years without ever examining the Birs. These were written in
clear contradiction to and in utter disregard of the readily available
published literature on the subject before 1975 and 1979. Even a
junior student of Sikhism knows that (a) the Kartarpuri Bir was
dated and authentic, (b) that the Banno Bir was dated 1642 A.D.
with a subsequent interpolation of the alleged Ramkali hymn, and
(c) that the question of textual analysis could not arise in view of
unambiguous statements of the Gurus, that the Bani was revealed
and was authenticated by Guru Arjun himself. For these reasons, it
would indeed, be arrogant for any scholar today (400 years later) to
claim a better sense of judgement by suggesting that some
 46

authentic Bani was, mistakenly or otherwise left out by the Guru.

McLeod Accused of Blasphemy:
Thus the frivolous suggestions of the Batala Group died out,
especially because McLeod had since lost all academic credibility
by his having made baseless attacks against the Sikh scripture. In
fact, in 1989-90 four Sikh Organizations wrote to the University
demanding how McLeod, while knowing full well the truth from
the publication of Dr. Jodh Singh had written page after page,
suggesting 'inept deletion' of 'unacceptable' material from the
Sikh Scripture, and how the University could defend such
misconduct of their employee. Perhaps, in response to these
accusations of blasphemy, he wrote a letter to the "India Abroad"
in December of 1990 virtually saying that he had abandoned his
doubts about the Kartarpuri Bir after reading Dr. Jodh Singh's book.
It was a strange and unbelievable denial, because every blasphemous
statement of McLeod, whether of 1975 or 1979 or 1989, had been
made after the publication of Jodh Singh's book of 1968, knowledge
of which he had even accepted in his book of 1975.
Another Ghost Attack Starts:
After his exposure, McLeod seemingly changed his plank of
attack against the Adi Granth. In 1987, a paper under the caption
"Need for Textual and Historical Criticism" appeared under the
name of Loehlin in the Sikh Courier' (U.K.). Therein parts of
Loehlin's paper which had been published in 'Sikh Studies' in
Berkeley were reproduced. The unfortunate part which exposes
the motive of the author, is that whereas the statement of Archer
that the Kartarpuri Bir was undated and unauthentic, was
reproduced, it omitted the portion of Jodh Singh's paper wherein
he had categorically concluded that the Bir was original, because
it was dated and authenticated with the Nishan of the Fifth Guru.
The article noted that it was a reproduction of Loehlin's paper
read at the Punjab History Conference and published in 1966.
Evidently, this incongruous reference to Loehlin's Paper of 1965,
22 years old, by omitting reference to his later paper of Berkeley
published in 1979, was significant, and perhaps deliberate, because
evidently, the writer wanted to project the alleged faults of the
Bir and to exclude from the notice of the readers, the views of Dr.
Jodh Singh contradicting erroneous observations of Loehlin and
 47

Archer, that had appeared in the Proceedings of the Punjab

History Conference of 1965 and the Berkeley Conference of 1979.
Further, even the foot - note was incorrect, because the present
article contains considerable additional material, referring to the
writings of Giani Partap Singh regarding Dasam Granth, to Grewal
and Bal's book on Guru Gobind Singh, to the event of the creation
of Khalsa, and to Dr. Radhakrishnan's observations in the Sacred
Writings of the Sikhs. These additional 2 or 3 columns of the
article concluded with the suggestion: "Western friends of Sikhism
and Sikhs likewise have noted this lack of critical interest on the
part of Sikhs. Fortunately many of their scholars and research
experts are doing research of textual and historical problems."
The new concluding para exposes the objective of republishing
an old paper. For, it was sought to be made a preparatory ground
for reviving a dead issue. The anomalous part is that even the
note "A Paper read at the Punjab History Conference and
published in the proceedings, 1966" is also not quite accurate,
since the article contains considerable additional material with a
new slant. Second, The Western 'friends' of Sikhs would seem to
be, perhaps, none other than the 'friendly' McLeod of the Batala
Group and his student, Pashaura Singh, who had taken up research
on the issue in 1987. Third, Loehlin who died in August 1987,
stood admitted since 1983 to an old Home for Ex-missionaries in
California, and was understood to have been incapable, since 1983
of doing any academic work. Further, according to the records of
the Home he is reported neither to have written nor revised any
such paper. Dr. Amrit Singh and Dr. J.S. Mann visited the Home
and talked to Mr. Rollings, Executive Director of the Home, where
Loehlin had lived since 1981. After the visit, Dr. Mann wrote to
Mr. Rollins by way of confirmation of the information Mr. Rollins
had conveyed to them. He says, "You also reviewed the above
two papers published under the name of Dr. C. Loehlin in spring
- summer of 1987 and March - April of 1990, as I had faxed you
on October 7 of 1992. For the sake of records I am confirming
our discussion and your opinion that 'You knew Dr. Loehlin
very closely, and in your personal recollection since 1983 (when
you Joined the centre) till his death, and also review of records of
Westminister Gardens reflect that till his death Dr. Loehlin did
not publish any article during his stay at Westminister Gardens'.
 48

I also contacted Mrs. Marian Davies (Dr. C. Loehlin's daughter)

via telephone on October 6th, 1992. She also does not recall that
her Dad published any article on Sikhism in later years of his life
when he moved to Westminister Gardens". This clearly proves
that the real author of the paper is not Loehlin. Because Loehlin
never worked at Berkeley, and could never describe himself as
from Berkeley as noted in the ghost article.
Another incongruous and surprising event is that the same
paper by Loehlin under the same heading was published in the
Sikh Review of March - April 1990, making a plea for textual
analysis of the Bir, even though Loehlin had died three years earlier.
Unfortunately, this time, even the note that it was a reproduction
of the earlier paper was not there, giving thereby the impression
that the article contained new academic research about the
allegedly undated Bir. Thus even though exposed about his earlier
statements regarding the authenticity of the Kartarpuri Bir and the
alleged deletions, it appears that someone again resorted to pleas for
textual examination under the name of a dead ex-Batala Missionary.
Evidently, all this is inexplicable as a normal or ethical academic activity.
A Proxy Attack against the Bir Starts:
Having failed to attack the authenticity of the Guru Granth,
an ob ious question arises, as to who is the ghost author or body
sending articles in the name of a dead Loehlin, making
misrepresentations that the Bir is undated and pleading for textual
analysis, (which is supposed to have begun, or been taken up by
'friendly' persons) ? Facts tend to point out that it could be an ex-
Batala man behind it. His antecedents suggest an apparent bias
against the Sikh Scripture, because, without examining it, he went
to the extent of making incorrect suggestions about its being a
tampered with or forged Granth. Second is the susequent
coincident event as to who has implemented the suggestion in
the paper about textual analysis that appeared in the name of
dead Loehlin. In the same period, about 1987, it is McLeod who,
as supervisor, and Pashaura Singh, as his student, who took up
the so-called research on the text of Adi Granth. Pashaura Singh
in his dissertation, guided by McLeod at Toronto starts his chapter
on Textual Analysis with the observation and a quotation from
the ghost paper of 1987; "In the 1940's two Western scholars,
 49

J.C. Archer and CH. Loehlin, had an opportunity to take a look

at the Kartarpuri Bir. Although their comments are ma.mly
concerned with the internal physiognomy of the manuscript, they
have, nevertheless, stressed the need for textual and historical
criticism of the Adi Granth. To quote Dr. Loehlin: The Sikhs
will hold a unique position among the religions of the world, if
they prove through careful textual criticism the widely accepted
belief that the Kartarpuri Granth is the MS dictated by Guru
Arjan.'
Concept of a Draft:
A significant and fundamental fact of Pashaura Singh's
accepted dissertation is the ridiculous theory of a draft by Guru
Arjun, based on a manuscript which is without antecedents,
without history, without date, and without scribe's name, that
was first heard of only in 1987. A very revealing fact is that this
draft theory of Pashaura Singh is presumably based on the phoney
idea of his supervisor, Dr. McLeod, which he brought into print
(suggesting the theory of draft) in his book of 1975. He wrote,
"Another has suggested that the present manuscript must be a
first draft, subsequently amended by the Guru himself". (the
manuscript referred to is the Kartarpuri Bir). The foot-note about
the' another person' who made the suggestion, is as follows: "This
opinion was advanced orally during the discussion which followed
the reading of Dr. Loehlin's paper, 'A Westner looks at the
Kartarpur Granth' at the First Session of the Punjab History
Conference. "The name of another person, is not given, and there
is no reference or record of that person or anyone giving, the
draft idea, in the Conference Proceedings. Perhaps, it may not be
inaccurate to suggest that the another person', author of draft
idea, may be none other than Pashaura Singh's guide.
Here a few words about the irrelevance of the draft idea. In
the available literature about the Adi Granth, the draft concept
has been unknown. Because, this is just a modern western concept,
and because, a draft in relation to the Adi Granth is a
contradication in terms. The bani being revealed, had only to be
copied or compiled. A draft has to be made about something that
is half baked, sketchy, preparatory or rough, or something about
which ideas are not clear or have yet to be formed or finalized. As
such, to the concept of revealed and unalterable
 50

Bani, as emphasised by the Gurus themselves, the idea of a draft

is inapplicable. Second, it would be impossible to think of drafts,
when a sacred Granth of over 1400 pages has to be copied. As
stated already, both the concepts of textual analysis and a draft
are in the case of the Bani of the five Gurus. It is to eliminate all
possibilities of controversy or confusion of authenticity that Guru
Arjun took the sagacious step of compilation and authentication.
Unfortunately, McLeod is obsessed by the presence of such
confusion and controversy regarding Christian and Jewish
Scriptures, finalised centuries after Christ and Moses, respectively.
They never recorded or authenticated their thought in their own
times. What is available are often unowned, or sketchy manuscripts
mostly in parts or patches. It is from these that the Scripture or
the Canon has to be constructed (not reconstructed, because there
never was an original in full, or complete) by men of variant
beliefs, prejudices, abilities or learning. The Scripture had to be
finalised by a process of consensus, possibility, feasibility and even
guess by men, who, as professor Nichols emphasises, have or had
culture entirely different from the earlier culture of the prophets
and their times. Accordingly, when anyone has to construct, frame
or finalise a scripture, or even to interpret it, he has to take into
consideration the principles of form or redaction criticisms. For,
there is nothing given or authenticated before him. The present
scholar is as much human as the one who made an earlier
construction or interpretation from the portions or fragments
from the works of the earlier writers. For, no earlier prophet
authenticated his message. Because of the uncertainty and the
lack of authenticity of the original works of the prophets, concepts
of form or textual analysis or man-made drafts have some
relevance. Evidently, McLeod's ideas of textual criticisms, drafts
and hermeneutics are conditioned by the Christian background.
These ideas are irrelevant and inapplicable to Sikhism where the
Scripture, as now universally accepted by all, was authenticated
by the Fifth Master himself, declaring it to be both revealed and
final. Sniping by 'friends' apart, this is the academic and real
position, as given to us by the Fifth Master.
Manuscript 1245.:
Now we come to Manuscript 1245 on which Pashaura Singh
 51

Builds the entire edifice of his Ph.D. thesis. He calls it a draft

of the Adi Granth prepared by Guru Arjun through Bhai Gurdas.
(a) The raft theory, we find, is too flimsy to sustain. But
Pashaura Singh seems to know of no wavering from the thinking
or plan of his surpervisor, the ex-Batala Missionary.
(b) The second significant feature of MS 1245 is the coincidence
of its sudden appearance, almost from the blue, on the shelf of an
Amritsar dealer and its purchase by the University in 1987. It is
also in 1987 that the ghost article, recommending textual criticism
and announcing the start of work by Western Sikh 'friends'
appears. Again, it is in 1987 that Pashaura Singh supervised by
McLeod takes up the subject of textual criticism for his Ph.D.
work. It is difficult to dispel the thought that this triple coincidence
of events in 1987 has an adverse significance for the authenticity
of MS 1245 or that all this has some connection with the
traditional plan of 'muddying' the waters.
(c) The third unfortunate fact is the history or lack of history
of MS 1245. It has no history whatsoever. The entire literature of
Sikhism, including the Survey List of Shams her Singh's Catalogue
of old manuscripts, or the Sikh tradition does not refer to its
existence anywhere.
(d) The dealer who sold it in 1987 does not know of its history.
The dealer's supposed note typed on the manuscript is very
revealing. It contains almost every argument Pashaura Singh had
given to suggest its antiquity, namely, its having been with Baba
Budha whose hymn is written on it, its not having Bhagat Bani,
its having Satgur Prasad and not Gurprasad, its not having the
line of Aad Sach, jugad Sach, etc. On an oral and lengthy
examination of the dealer, Harbhajan Singh, by scholars, he stated
that he got this manuscript (which he said was the only one he
had and sold it to the GND University in 1986 or 1987) from
Rajasthan, alongwith a few other Mehrban group (Meena) books.
He repeatedly mentioned its Mehrban antecedents. He did not
say a word about its other noted characters or its Baba Budha
antecedents. This would appear to suggest that the distorted note
was written at the instance of someone else, and for that reason, the
dealer had no idea or remembrance whatsoever of its contents. His
only recollection was that it was a Mehrban Granth which he sold
 52

to the University in 1986-87.

On interview, the renowned successor, Sant Baba Darshan
Singh, at the seat of Baba Budha, clearly stated that there was no
handwritten Bir linked with Guru Arjun or Baba Budha with
them, and that the question of selling such a prize, if available
could never arise. He also said that they had never known of
Baba Budha jee having composed any poem or bani, and gave a
written statement to that effect. But the most inexplicable fact is
the complete silence of Pashaura Sigh about its history. He founds
almost all of his conclusions, largely on this manuscript, and yet
he says nothing about its source or custody during the preceding
400 years. There is not even a word suggesting that he made any
attempts to trace its past or inquire from the dealer or elsewhere,
its history, which is the basic requirement of the reliability of a
manuscript. He makes a clear reference, without any supportive
evidence or inquiry, that the manuscript had remained with the
family of Baba Budha. But equally intriguing is the fact that
although he was in Amritsar for about a week, and MS 1245 is
the corner stone of his thesis, yet he never cared to verify its
history from the well known Gurdwara or Centre of Baba Budha
where the present successor is Sant Baba Darshan Singh, who
lives only a few miles away from Amritsar. The successors at the
Baba Budha centre completely deny any knowledge of it. All this
demolishes the reliability or value of the manuscript. One wonders
if a scholar working for a Ph.D. thesis could be so blissfully
ignorant, smug, or unconcerned about the history of the basic
manuscript of his work. Equally intriguing is the apparent lack
of concern on the part of the supervisor in this respect.
(e) The Japuji in MS 1245 is virtually the same as in Mehrban
literature. This with the presence of a couplet with the word
Nanak seeking to attribute its authorship to the Guru, even though
it is not Gurbani, shows that it is a Mina collection. One of the
reasons for preparation of the Adi Granth was the circulation of
such misleading hymns. All this and the clear statement of the
dealer that he got it from Rajasthan from a Mehrban group,
establishes its Mehrban or Mina character.
(f) Lack of consistency is always a natural proof of one's bias
or motive. In 1975 McLeod attacked the authenticity of the
 53

Kartarpuri Bir saying that the Banno bir was original, because it
contained more material than the Kartarpuri Bir, "The conclusion
which seems to be emerging with increasing assurance was that
the widely disseminated Banno version must represent the original
text; and that the Kartarpur manuscript must be a shortened
version of the same text." Now Pashaura Singh, approved by
McLeod, uses manuscript 1245 to attack the authenticity of the
Kartarpuri Bir, because it is a shorter version, "If the standard
rule of textual criticism that "the shorter reading is to be preferred
to the longer one ( ) is considered, the text of this manuscript
comes out to be the earlier than the famous Kartarpuri
manuscript." Both Pashaura Singh and his supervisor seek to attack
the authenticity of Kartarpuri Bir on the basis of MS 1245, even
though it is a Mina collection, and is, as facts prove conclusively,
a post-1606 manuscript.
(g) Intriguing also is the contrast of approach of McLeod, to
this manuscript, which is brought forward to oppose the authentic
Sikh Scripture, on the one hand, and to the views attacking the
Kartarpuri Bir, on the other. The Adi Granth is dated, and it has
the Nishan, which is virtually the signature of the Fifth Guru.
The Nishan is listed in the Table of Contents. Besides, the notes
of dates of demise of the first four Gurus and the note regarding
the Fifth Guru are in different shades of ink, although both are
in the hand of Bhai Gurdas. All this, its proper custody over the
centuries, and numerous other internal and external pieces of
evidence, prove its authenticity. Despite the knowledge of this
conclusive evidence, McLeod wrote in his Berkely paper of 1979,
doubting the authenticity of Kartarpuri Bir, One is the obscurity
which envelops a significant period of the text's actual history."
And similarly, Archer wrote in his article, "It is said that Guru
Tegh Bahadur hid it once for 14 days in the river Beas to protect
it but there are no signs of water damage." He concluded
that "Its authenticity cannot be proved.:' In one case the alleged
uncertainty of custody for 14 days disproves the authenticity of a
manuscript, but in the other case its lack of history or knowledge
of custody for 400 years is ignored as of no consequence. As against
it, MS 1245 has no date, no Nishan of the Fifth Guru, and no clues
about its scribe, or the history of its custody in 400 years. And yet,
 54

McLeod seems to have suddenly turned the Nelson's eye to all

this. Bias could be a reason for such incongruous conduct.
(h) There is another intriguing contrast. Whereas the
Kartarpuri Bir contains the Fifth Guru's Nishan, MS 1245,
according to Pashaura Singh, and as seen by us, has a forged Nishan
pasted on it which is considered to be that of the Ninth Guru, on
the basis of identity of handwriting. But the owner represents
this Nishan as that of the Sixth Guru. And yet, on the basis of
MS 1245, whose owner has evidently forged the Nishan of the
Sixth Guru, Pashaura Sigh and his Supervisor suggest that Guru
Arjun made theological changes in the Bani of Guru Nanak. We
wonder if modem scholarship or textual criticism involves
attacking authentic Scripture on the basis of a forged manuscript,
especially when even its owner does not pretend to claim it as of
Guru Arjun's period. No one can be to blame, if such 'friendly
Western scholarhip' is considered to be suspect, and to have
brought its reputation to an unenviable level.
(i) MS 1245 is not a Bir. It is just a collection of 'hymns
recording as the scribe has been able to find them. The collection
includes both Bani and non-Bani, and the hymns stand recorded
without any order of ragas or any other order as in the Adi Granth.
It is significant that the dates of demise of first five Gurus are
written on leaf 1255. Normally these dates are written either in
the beginning or at the end of a manuscript. But even after writing
these dates on leaf 1255, the scribe went on collecting upto leaf
1266, the Bani of third, fourth and fifth Gurus as well as non-
Bani. The recording is all haphazard, without any system or
sequence of any kind. By no stretch of reason can the manuscript
be called a Bir or a draft. It is just an odd recording of available
hymns the scribe could lay his hands upon.
(j) There is another intriguing fact. We are not told that MS
1245 has any known history. It entered the vision of academic
forum in 1987 after it was listed in the university catalogue
following its purchase. The entire thesis of Pashaura Singh and
the arguments of textual analysis are largely based on this
manuscript. Without it, Pashaura Singh could make no
comparison or progress in the field of his research, because in the
Sikh academic world no such manuscript or first draft has
 55

ever been mentioned. Neither Pashaura Singh nor McLeod ever

visited Amristar after the cataloguing of this manuscript until
1990. How is that Pashaura Singh chose the subject and his
supervisor approved of it, when both of them had no knowledge
of the existence of MS 1245, or anything like it, in the absence of
which no one could make any headway in this field? Besides this
a number of other questions arise. Did Pashaura Singh know of it
and its contents? Did he include mention of its basic importance
in his synopsis? If so, who conveyed the presence and the detailed
contents of MS 1245 to him in 1987 so as to give him both material
and confidence to start his textual venture? In the background of
ghost articles the truth may be quite revealing.
MS 1245 was Scribed after 1606 A.D. :
As one fact alone is enough to knock the bottom of the dating
or period regarding the time of scribing of MS 1245, we need not
go into many other details and facts. Manuscript 1245, according
to Pashaura Singh, contains the dates of demise of all the first five
Gurus. He writes that they are in the same hand, and although
he gives no reasons for it, he says that the date' of the fifth Guru
was recorded later. The factual position, as clear from our
examination, and the photocopy of the five dates, is that the dates
of demise of all the five Gurus are in one hand and in the same
shade of ink. This shows conclusively that the manuscript was
scribed after the demise of the Fifth Guru (1606). And, thus, the
question of its being a draft by Guru Arjun cannot arise.
Accordingly, the entire rationale of the thesis of Pashaura Singh
regarding alleged changes by Guru Arjun becomes baseless.
Pashaura Singh well understood the significance of this feature of
the manuscript. Therefore, he appears to have been obliged to
make the mis-statement that the date of demise of the Fifth Guru
had been written later, although, he could give no reason to
support it, since the hand and shade of ink were the same. Second,
the scribe or the owner of the manuscript does not attempt to
give by way of the forged Nishan of the Sixth Guru, a date earlier
than the period of Guru Hargobind. This shows that its being a
manuscript of a time prior to 1606 is out of the question, and was not
claimed as such. Actually the handwriting of Nishan shows it to be of
10th Guru, and, thus MS 1245 could only be of the time of the
 56

Ninth Guru.
Pashaura Singh's guess about the scribe of MS 1245 is also
untenable. He conceded that although the hand writing of the
scribe does not match with that of Bhai Gurdas in the Kartarpuri
Bir, Bhai Gurdas must have improved it by the time he wrote
Guru Arjun's Granth. Seemingly, he also improved his knowledge
of Gurmukhi writing, since MS 1245 is not written in the kind of
script with matras, in vogue in the period of the Fifth Master.
Further, if Bhai Gurdas wrote MS 1245, how did this manuscript
travel from the Bhallas to the area of the Baba Budha family?
Since the handwriting of all the five dates is the same, as seen by
us, the 'improvement of handwriting' theory of Pashaura Singh
falls to the ground and the scribe could never be Bhai Gurdas.
For, the five dates stand written simultaneously by the same scribe.
And, what was the need of writing the date of demise of the Fifth
Guru, if it was merely a discarded draft? Further, why were the
dates of demise of subsequent Gurus not mentioned? Evidently,
the writer never intended to claim a date prior to 1606 A.D., i.e.,
the period of the Sixth Guru, which is fixed by the author having
forged the Nishan of Guru Hargobind. Just as the author of the
manuscript has, by the pasted forged Nishan, sought to extend
his ambitious claim about the time of scribing MS 1245, Pashaura
Singh has now so irrationally sought further to extend that period
to the time of the Fifth Master. .
The fact that the dates of demise are on leaf 1255 and the
scribe records the Bani of Gurus and other hymns on the
subsequent over twenty pages, shows clearly that manuscript
continued under use and preparation even after 1606 A.D. Further,
the manuscript has a hymn alleged to be of Baba Budha in which
the author uses the word 'Nanak' for himself, as was done by the
Gurus. This fact, as referred to earlier alone is sufficient to prove that
MS 1245 is spurious, and is a production of an anti- Guru or anti-
Sikh section. Because a devout Sikh would never pass his own poetry
as Bani of Guru Nanak or his successors. Such pretentious profanity
on the part of Baba Budha is inherently impossible.
Available Material is Unauthentic:
As it is, there are hundreds of manuscripts of the Aad Granth,
with private owners and in the Sikh Gurdwaras.
 57

Everywhere the owners keep them with utmost respect and

veneration, and usually try to establish their antiquity by linking
them with one of the Gurus or some other historic figure. Yet, so
far, never has the story of a draft or the claim of a Bir being
earlier than 1604 A.D. been made. This is the deadline, because,
in the existing tradition, history and facts, everyone knows that
any claim beyond that date would be unacceptable and even
ridiculous. The earliest story in this regard was the Banno story,
claiming the simultaneous scribing of the Bir by Bhai Banno in
1604 AD. The facts have conclusively revealed that the story has
no basis, and that this Bir is dated 1642 AD. Human ingenuity
can be unlimited but so far no one has dared to claim the existence
of a manuscript of the Adi Granth earlier than that of 1604 AD.
Of course this 'research' has now come from the so-called 'friendly
Western scholarship'. The point to stress is that there are
innumerable hand-written copies of the Adi Granth. If this kind
of irrational claim is entertained, anyone can come forward with
spurious arguments, seeking to claim authenticity for his Bir, and
to 'muddy' the waters.
Need for Investigation to Stop Malpractice:
One fact more needs to be mentioned. After the destruction
of the Sikh Reference Library in 1984, the story is current that
many of its manuscripts are still available and persons are making
claims of their ability to procure them for a price. Such trade is
said to be going on both inside and outside India. MS 1245 could
be part of the goods being traded about. It is, therefore, essential
that the entire transaction and the matter be looked into.
Significance of Kartarpuri Bir :
The creation of the Kartarpuri Bir or the authenticated Adi
Granth by the Fifth Master is a landmark in academic and religions
history, which, apart from showing the Guru's vision and sagacity,
has the deepest significance. The Guru had all the authentic
material available to him. The Sikh Sangat of the time,
although sizeable, was well known to the Guru. Second, the
Bani of the earlier Gurus, if claimed to be present with any
Sikh, could not remain unknown or undisclosed to the Guru.
In fact, every claim of such Bani in existence would have been
proudly and voluntarily offered to the Gurus. The Fifth Master
 58

took a long period to complete the Bir, which he considered to

be sacred. Every Bani, hymn or couplet in the Adi Granth is
numbered, with progressive totals indicated in the text. These are
also listed in the Table of Contents. It shows his decision to make
sure that no one could in the future make any interpolation or
change in the text. He would certainly have exercised utmost care
to ascertain the authenticity of the material before recording it in
his Adi Granth. We have the story of Pransangli which was
obtained from Ceylon, but later rejected as unauthentic on
scrutiny. We can be absolutely sure that any Bani in existence at
that time, was available to him. It is rather far fetched that after
400 years someone should come forward and claim a greater sense
of discrimination, spiritual perception, vision or ability to know
or test the authenticity of the Bani, than Guru Arjun Dev ji. His
preparation of the Adi Granth was a clear declaration of three
facts. One, that the Bani in the Adi Granth is the only true Bani
of the Gurus. Two, that no Bani of the Gurus has been left out by
him outside the Adi Granth. Three, that any claimed existence of
the Bani could not be true, since the same would have been
scrutinized and tested by the Fifth Master himself. Obviously
any claim made subsequent to that would be meaningless, since
in the above context post-facto claims would always be spurious.
It is also impossible that anyone withheld any Bani from the Fifth
Master, only to disclose it now. The Gurus lived for over a hundred
years after 1604 AD., and there is no record of any additional
6ani having been offered during this period. Only the Bani of the
Ninth Master was included in the Guru Granth. The Guru has
given us not only an authentic Scripture but also a supreme
touchstone to test whether anything produced or represented by
anyone is Gurbani or not. The corollary of Guru's edict or
decision is that any suggestion of a hymn which is outside the
Adi Granth, being called Gurbani is a clear act of blasphemy.
From the above context one conclusion is inevitable. Since
the very object of Guru Arjun was to locate, identify and compile
authetic Bani in order to exclude all pretensions that were being
made about it in some quarters, including Minas, what he included
in the Adi Granth, is the only true text of the Bani. Consequently
even if there was anything elsewhere in a form
 59

different from that in the Adi Granth, the logical corollary. is

that it was either spurious or stood Incorrectly recorded, which
the reason for the Fifth Master having rejected it or having rejected
it in the form in which it was there.
It is sheer illogic of Pashaura Singh's argument, that has led
him to make the main suggestion that Guru Arjun changed his
own Bani in the final Adi Granth. The evident, the logical and
the simple inference is that the scribe of MS 1245 has wrongly
copied not only the Bani of Guru Nanak but also of Guru Arjun,
and has forged the Nishan of the Sixth Guru to claim authenticity
and hide the spurious character of his work. It is the good luck of
the scribe of MS 1245 that posthumously he has found in Pashaura
Singh and his supervisor enthusiastic advocates and logicians who
have called his work an original compilation. If the topsy turvy
logic of Pashaura Singh is to be followed, every plagiarist would
claim to be the author and every author would be in the dock.
Baseless Insinuations:
Pashaura Singh seeks to depict the Fifth Master almost as a
political figure, anxious to attract followers in order to gain socio-
political prominence and standing. He writes, "their (Ravidas's
and Dhanna's hymns) inclusion in the scriptures reflects a
situtation wherein the followers of those Bhagats (The Jats and
Cobblers) were attracted to the Sikh fold in large numbers."
"Although Kabir is prominently represented in the Sikh Scripture
followed by Namdev, Ravidas and Sheikh Farid, eleven other
figures from different regions and castes are given a token
representation to justify the Sikh claim to universality". Further
it is the same logic that makes Pashaura Singh also to say, because
of the absence of Bhagat Bani in MS 1245, that the reasons for
inclusion of some Bhagat Bani in the Adi Granth were not
ideological but mundane or almost political. For he writes
regarding the Bani of Bhagat Dhanna, "Its later adgition may reflect
a situation when Jats were attracted into the Sikh fold in large
numbers. It should be emphasised that the inclusion of Bhagat
Bani in the Adi Granth, may have been motivated primarily by
the popular impulse of the times in which different sectarian
traditions (Sampradays) were equally involved ..."
 60

Change of Guru Nanak's Bani Theologically

Impossible:
We have already given reasons why a change in revealed Bani
is a theological contradiction. So far as Guru Nanak's Bani is
concerned, it is doubly so, because his spiritual status has been
recognised to be unique and exalted. As explained by Bhai Gurdas
in his 20th Var, Guru Nanak was Guru or Gurmukh from the very
start, and received directly the Grace of God. But every other Guru, as
stated in the Var, was first a Gursikh, and subsequenty became the
beneficiary of His Grace through Guru Nanak or his successor,
Accordingly it is an inherent theological impossibility that Guru Arjun
could ever think of altering the Bani of Guru Nanak, much less his theology.
Mohan Pothis :
Apparently Pashaura Singh's presumption is that Mohan
Pothis were got recorded at the instance of the Third Master. This
presumption is also baseless. For, the date on one of the Mohan
Pothis as claimed and recorded, is 1595 AD. Evidently to give
priority to Mohan Pothis by calling them a pre-Fifth Guru
manuscript, is as ridiculous as to consider MS 1245 with the forged
Nishan of the Sixth Guru, to be an earlier draft. While there can
be some plausible reasons for considering a manuscript to actually
be of a date later than the one recorded on it, it is absurd to attribute
to it a date earlier than the one written thereon. The story about
Mohan Pothis is impossible and self-contradictory. Because, it is
unthinkable that the Third Master after having appointed Guru
Ram Das as his successor, would give the Bani got dictated by
him to his adversary who openly refused to recognise the Fourth
Master. The hymn in the manuscript cursing those who did not
recognise their 'Hundi', could only be from a frustrated and discarded
group and never from the benevolent and beneficient Guru.
Conclusion:
Our review of Pashaura Singh's thesis supervised by McLeod
leads to some clear conclusions: (1) For several individually
conclusive reasons, like forged Nishan of the Sixth Guru, the
one-time record of the dates of demise of the first five Gurus,
its lack of known writer (or scribe), dating, history, etc., MS
1245 is obviously of a date far later than 1606 AD. (2) Because
of a couplet with the word Nanak now attributed to Baba
Budha, it is certain that the manuscript is the preparation of
 61

someone in the anti-Sikh quarters, i.e., the Mehrban group as

also disclosed by the dealer. (3) There are numerous factors and
facts to suggest that in the preparation of the thesis the concerned
persons have crossed bounds of academic propriety and made
statements that are apparently indefensible or blasphemous. For
example, it is not possible for a disinterested person to ignore that
(a) In 1975 McLeod wrote that in the Adi Granth, now Guru
Granth Sahib, 'inept deletions' of an unacceptable hymn' had
been made, and even when he knew from Jodh Singh's book that
there were no such deletions, and even when he had never
examined the Kartarpuri Bir, and the Banno Bir, for which he
claimed originality. He continued repeating these unwarranted
and incorrect allegations, but virtually retraced them only after
he had been accused of blasphemy. (b) Apparently doctored
reproduction of Dr. Leohlin's papers appeared under his name in
1987 and 1990 even when Loehlin was invalid or dead, and for
these reasons was unlikely to write them. (c) The triple coincidence
of the appearance of a ghost article, Pashaura Singh taking up his
research work on the subject and the appearance of MS 1245 in
the same year (1987) is a very intriguing circumstance. This
coupled with the idea of a draft by Guru Arjun, which first
appeared in McLoed's book of 1975, and which forms the entire
base of Pashaura Singh's thesis would, together with the other
factors, seemingly suggests a planned course of events in caIling a
post 1606 manuscript, with a forged Nishan, a draft by
Guru Arjun, and alleging on that account that the Guru had
made changes in the Bani of Guru Nanak, Pashaura Singh
supervised by McLeod has made unwarranted and blasphemous
statement against the Guru' Granth, Guru Arjun and the entire
Sikh community. In fact both these attempts would appear to be
quite inter-connected, the singular objective being to attack the
authenticity of Guru Granth Sahib which has the unique distinction
of its having been compiled by the Prophet himself. Irrelevant
arguments of deletion, tampering with, a first draft, textual analysis,
etc., are being advanced, the apparent objective being to cloud the
originality of the Adi Granth (now Guru Granth) through frivolous
and uncalled for attempts. (5) The facts, chain of events and the
matter are too serious to be ignored. These need to be investigated
 62

with a view to taking if called for action according to the law, the
religious code and the academic regulations. Because, there seem
to be reasons to suggest that the author could have an objective
other than academic.

Note: Photo copy of the leaf 1255 from MS 1245 has been
given in this book as Appendix' A'.
 63

3
AN ACADEMIC ANALYSIS OF A PH.D THESIS
By
Dr. GURMEL SINGH SIDHU
Pashaura Singh was awarded a Ph.D. degree on the basis of
the thesis, "The Text and Meaning of the Adi Granth" submitted
to the University of Toronto in 1991. In his thesis, Dr. Singh has
raised some doubts about the editorial aspect, authenticity and
apocalyptic nature of the barn of the Adi Granth. As a result,
many Sikh scholars have expressed their concern regarding the
contents of the thesis. This article will examine, apart from other
aspects, the authenticity, originality and scientific standard of
research embodied in this thesis. Based on the findings,
conclusions will be drawn as to whether or not this thesis is
worthy of a PhD. degree.
Academic Basis of a Ph.D. Dissertation: The doctorate of
philosophy degree is awarded in various fields, such as science,
religion, literature and other social sciences. In addition to completion
of required class work, submission of an acceptable doctorial
dissertation is required in all cases to earn the doctorate in philosophy.
While some requirements of the doctoral dissertation vary depending
on the academic field, it must always satisfy certain basic requirements.
Specifically, the research must be original and authentic. It should
have the potential of contributing to the welfare of humanity.
There is a set pattern to the research conducted for a doctoral
dissertation. It should have a clear cut aim, appropriate materials
and methodology and unbiased conclusions. The later should
be based on the data generated and results deduced. Based on the
subject matter there could be minor adjustments m the
methodology of a thesis, but the basic tenets should remain the
same. While definitive research avenues in the fields of
mathematics and chemistry may require slightly different
approaches than the non-definitive research avenues, such as
theology and literature, the requirements for the originality and
authenticity of research are of paramount importance. They
cannot be ignored at any cost. Any academic research must always
adhere to these principles.
Outline of Pashaura Singh's Doctoral Dissertation: Let us
now examine Pashaura Singh's doctoral dissertation under the
 64

light of the above requirements.

Materials:
Adi Granth
Goindval Pothis
GNDU MS 1245
Other manuscripts
Procedure: Textual criticism, linguistic analysis and
explanations of the manuscripts that formulated the basis of the
Adi Granth. Grouping of Seventeenth Century manuscripts of
the Adi Granth using sampling method.
The dissertation is divided into seven chapters:
Chapter 1 : Introduction
Chapter 2 : Manuscripts of the Adi Granth
Chapter 3 : Origin of the Adi Granth
Chapter 4 : Textual Analysis
Chapter 5 : Editorial Policy of Guru Arjun
Chapter 6 : The meaning of the Adi Granth
Chapter 7 : Conclusions
Academic Analysis of Chapters of the Dissertation: In
the following pages, a critical analysis and discussion of the relevant
chapters is offered.
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
The salient features of chapter one, as presented by Pashaura
Singh, are given below with appropriate comments and/or analysis
where ever required.
Feature A : The Adi Granth is a sacred book of the Sikhs.
The prefix" Adi" indicates that it is the first scripture of the Sikhs
and is different from the Dasam Granth of Guru Gobind Singh.
Feature B: The process that led to the compilation of the Adi
Granth, was initiated during the time of Guru Nanak (Grewal,
1979). Guru Nanak had a clear vision of preserving his bani in
written form. Bhai Gurdas indicated that Guru Nanak wrote his
hymns in a Pothi which he always carried with him (Varan Bhai
Gurdas). Guru Nanak's hymn :ilKy bwhu suriq nwhI boil boil gvweIAY
(Awid gRMQ pMnw: 566) indicates the importance of preserving his
bani in the oral and / or written form. Guru Nanak regarded
himself as a mouthpice of Akal Purakh, and he preached
whatever the Almighty gave him to preach. This is obvious
from his shalok: jy s I my Awvy Ksm kI bwxI qy s Vw krI igAwnu
 65

vy lwlo (Awid gRMQ pMnw: 772) which can be roughly translated: "As
the Lord sends the bani so do I deliver it."
Comments: Two points are worth noting here: (1) the
bam of Guru Nanak was intentionally preserved in either the
oral and / or written form, and (2) it was revelatory in nature.
Analysis: The revelatory nature of the bani is unique as
compared to other religions (Christianity, Islam and Hinduism)
in the sense that it has been translated from its abstract into
concrete form by glorifying its meaning through wordly examples.
By using the name Lalo, Guru Nanak simply makes its impact
more concrete for human minds. Such practical examples are
scattered throughout the Adi Granth. Babar bani is one of the
outstanding examples of bani of Guru Nanak.
Feature C: Guru Angad stressed the functioning of the Divine
Order (Hukam in worldly affairs, thereby overriding the law of
Karma that emphasises caste system, through divine grace.
Feature D: Guru Amar Das identified bani with the "Formless
Lord" (nirankar) vwhu vwhu bwxI inrkwr hY iqsu jyvfu Avru n koie (Awid gRMQR
pMnw: 515)
Thus, the bani functions as the living "voice" of Akal Purakh
which resounds throughout the creation. Guru Amar Das put
more emphasis on this concrete form of "Guru Granth Sahib" as
the embodiment of "Guru".
Feature E: Guru Amar Das made the first attempts to collect the
bani in written form. This was done to preserve the authenticity of
bani, because some spurious hymns in the name of Guru Nanak
were being circulated. Guru Amar Das prepared the so-called
Goindval Pothis by collecting together his own bani along with that
of his predecessors, Guru Nanak and Guru Angad, and of some
bhagats. Originally, there were four Goindval Pothis, two of which
are now extant with the descendants of the Third Guru.
Comment: As discussed in chapter two of Dr Singh's
dissertation, Goindval Pothis were among the pre-written
manuscripts on the basis of which Guru Arjun is said to have
compiled and edited the Adi Granth. Dr Singh's discussion
about the authenticity of these pothis is unwarranted in chapter
one. This should have been discussed alongwith GNDU MS
1245, the manuscript which he has claimed, was the
 66

other main source used by Guru Arjun to compile the Adi Granth.
Feature F: Guru Ram Das also collected Gurbani, and
perhaps, used scribes to copy the works of the previous Gurus.
Guru Amar Das says: qy hsq pivqu hir myir ijdVIey, jo hirjsu hir hir
lyKih rwm translated as "Those hands are pure and holy, my soul,
which are used in writing the praises of the Lord". Guru Ram
Das expanded the range of ragas by adding eleven new mode
sequences. He explicitly identified. bani with the Guru : bwxI guru
guru hY bwxI ivic bwxI AimRq swry[ gurbwxI khYY syvku jnu mwnY prqiK guru insqwry
[ (Awid gRQ M pMnw: 982) which says, "The bani is the Guru and the
Guru the bani and the nectar permeates all the bani. When the
Guru utters bani and the believer responds with faith, then shall
it be seen that the Guru bears him to freedom".
Guru Ram Das was concerned about imitative teachings and
apostasy, as indicated in one of his hymns:siqgur kI rIsY hor kcu ipcu
boldy sy kUiVAwr kUVy JiV piVey (Awid gRMQ pMnw: 304) "Those who in
imitation of the true Guru make false utterances are fools and
they are destroyed by their lies. "Dr Singh asserts that four such
hymns are present in Goindval Pothis which are not included in
the Adi Granth.
Comments: According to Giani Gurdit Singh (1990), as
referred to by Dr Singh, these four hymns in the Goindval Pothis
were written by Amar Das before he ascended gurguddi.
Therefore, they were not included in the Adi Granth. Dr Singh
thinks this is questionable. He says that these four hymns were
written and incorporated by a claimant of gurus hip, perhaps
Baba Mohan. yet on page nine of the dissertation, Dr Singh claims
that the Goindval Pothis were prepared by Guru Amar Das. On
the same page, he contradicts himself, stating that" traditionally,
the Goindval Potms were written during the period 1570-72 C.E.
(A.D.) by Baba Sahansram, a son of Baba Mohan and grandson of
Guru Amar Das." More comments and analysis of the Goindval
Pothis will be offered during the discussion of MS 1245.
Feature G: Guru Arjun, inherited a large volume of sacred
verses from various sources in the form of pothis, including
Goindval Pothis, from Baba Mohan. In his dissertation Dr Singh
states that Guru Arjun alludes to the acquisition of pothis in one
of his verses : pIaU dwdy kw Ko i l ifTw Kjwn, qw my r y min BieAw
 67

inDwnw (Awid gRMQ pMnw: 186) When I opened the treasure ofmy father
and grandfather to see for myself, then I realised the divine treasure
in my mann" (combination of the English concepts heart, mind
and soul). Pashaura Singh says that the works of Guru Nanak,
Guru Angad, Guru Amar Das, and bhagats were grouped in the
Goindval Pothis. Guru Ram Das was not represented in these
pothis; therefore, his bani was obtained through another
manuscript (unnamed).
Analysis: Goindval and Mohan Pothis are one and the same
manuscripts. They are two in number. These pothis contained
bani of Guru Nanak and Guru Amar Das and of bhagats in their
entirety. Guru Nanak and Guru Amar Das wrote bani in 19 and
17 ragas, respectively. The contents of bani of both the Gurus in
different ragas, which are not included in Goindval Pothis, are strikingly
similar in language and meaning. Both Guru Nanak and Guru Amar
Das wrote bani in Ragas Gauri and Asa, and the similarity of meaning
and style is apparent from the following few examples:
Guru Nanak (Raga Gauri)
1. DMn rYix suhylVIey jIau nId n AwvY ]
2. muMD inmwVIAw jIauy, ibnu DnI ipAwr ]
3. sux nwh pRBU jIau, eyklVI bn mwhy
Guru - Amar Das -(Raga Gauri)
1. DMn rYix suhylVIey jIau, hirisau icqu lwey ]
2. imlu myry pRiqmw jIau, quDu ibn KrI inmwxI ]
3. Dn eyklVI jIauy, ibn nwh ipAwry ]
Guru Nanak -(Raga Asa)
mn kwhy Buly mUV mnw ]
jb lyKw dyKih bIrw, qau piVAw ] rhwau ]
Guru Amar Das (Raga Asa)
mn AYsw lyKw qU kI piVAw ]
lyKw dyxw qyry isir rihAw ] rhwauy ]
The similarity in mea;Ung and style cannot be merely
coincidental. The conclusion one draws, is that the Third Guru
possessed the entire bani of his predecessors, which he gave to his
son-in-law, Guru Ram Das. Guru Ram Das in turn, forwarded
the entire bani to Guru Arjun Dev. The shalok: pIaU dwdy kw ifTw
Kjwnw ] indicates the line of succession that started with Guru
Nanak.
Feature H : For two reasons, Guru Arjun compiled the Adi
 68

Granth after consulting various manuscripts. First, it was his

intention to authenticate the bani of the Gurus and save it from the
threat of spurious hymns that were being circulated by Minas (the
descendants of Prithi Chand). Second, Guru Arjun sought to "crystallize"
the Sikh tradition that was undergoing socio-political changes.
Analysis: Dr. Singh clearly indicates that the purpose of his
dissertation is to "examine the preparation of the Scripture as
integral to the wider process of crystallization of the Sikh tradition,
which had already begun in Guru Nanak's lifetime during the
Kartarpuri period. It is worth noting that the process of
crystallization reached another milestone in the history of the
Panth during the Fifth Guru."
He borrowed this idea from two Western scholars, Dr. Archer
and Dr. Smith. Both of them and particularly Dr. Archer (1946),
wrote about Sikh religion primarily from an historical point of
view. The world "crystallization", as Dr. Singh acknowledges,
was first used in this context in an article by Smith (1981). He
used the term to refer in general to preserving divinely inspired
utterances in written form, though not necessarily in a changed
written form, as Dr. Singh implies.
Interestingly, Smith applies his "crystallization" concept only
on the Quran and the Adi Granth, sparing Christianity. According
to Dr. Singh, Smith puts "too much emphasis on the Muslim
influence in the formation of the Adi Granth... "This would, imply
that both these authors consider that the Quran and the Adi
Granth are not revelatory, and thus needed "Crystallization"
during their compilation. This dangerous thought has brought
Dr. Singh the ill-will of the Sikh community since it is contrary
to the clear statements of the Guru themselves.
Dr. Singh's conclusion that Guru Arjun compiled the Adi
Granth to preserve sacred word for posterity and "also to frustrate
any attempts by schismatic groups to circulate spurious hymns
for sectarian ends" is praisewrothy. However, his basis of
crystallization of bani, which includes certain changes in divine
words, is unfounded.
For the sake of reasoning, let us accept that his assertions are
correct. Then the question arises, how did he arrive at his
conclusions? Is there any acceptable and authentic evidence to
support his thesis? This will be examined in the following pages.
 69

CHAPTER TWO : MANUSCRIPTS OF THE ADI GRANTH

This chapter opens with a brief discussion on the Kartarpur-
Banno debate that was initiated by Pashaura Singh's mentor, Dr.
McLeod (1975). Dr. Singh accepts that Guru Arjun produced the
Adi Granth in 1604 AD. However, he challenges the history and
authenticity of the Adi Granth.
History of Compilation of the Adi Granth: Dr. Singh says
that the process of the Adi Granth compilation was initiated much
earlier than previously believed and continued even after its
completion. According to geneology (Fig. 1) given by Pashaura
Singh, Guru Arjun consulted various manuscripts, such as:
A. Goindwal Pothis
B. GNDU MS 1245
C. Other manuscripts (Bhagat bani, Gurbani)
However, the Goindwal Pothis and MS 1245 formed the basis
of his thesis. According to Pashaura Singh, Goindwal Po this are
manuscripts (finished handwritten material), and M/S 1245 is a
draft (material under preparation). Goindwal Pothis were available
to Guru Arjun at the time of compilation of the Adi Granth,
whereas MS 1245 was prepared under his direction. Dr. Singh
offers conflicting views about the authenticity and date of
compilation of both the Goindwal Pothis and MS 1245. Below,
his views and evidence will be analysed in the light of the true
situation.
A. Goindwal Pothis
(i) Guru Amar Das "undertook the task of collecting the sacred
works of his own and that of the previous Gurus... and prepared
the so-called Goindwal Pothis... "This the Third Guru did" in
response to the threat of spurious hymns becoming popular among
the Sikhs and to provide authentic version of bani
(ii) Traditionally, the Goindwal Pothis were written during
the period of 1570-72 AD by the grandson of Guru Amar Das.
This assertion was originally made by Bawa Prem Singh.
"However, the actual date given on Volume 1.. is Sambat 1652...
corresponding to 1595 C.E. (AD)."
Analysis: On page 8/b of Ahiyapur Pothis, names of the
first three Gurus are given, indicating that these were written
after the time of Guru Amar Das. Moreover, the handwriting of
 70

page Bib does not resemble the handwriting of the first folio,
suggesting that there were two different writers. Also, the name
of Guru Amar Das is correctly written on page 8/b as compared
to Guru Amar Das on the first folio, confirming that two writers
were involved.This also puts" the authorship of a scribe in
jeopardy; Sahansram may not be the actual author of these pothis
as is usually believed.
(iii) There is a story that Guru Arjun visited Baba Mohan to
collect bani (pothis) before the initiation of the Adi Granth. The
Fifth Master narrated a hymn in praise of Baba Mohan. This myth
is impressively discarded by Sahib Singh, who concluded that the
word "Mohan" in bani is in praise of God, not a person. Praise of
a person in bani is against the tenets of Sikh religion.
(iv) A hundi on the first folio clearly indicates a reference to
Guru Ram Das because he was an outsider to ascend the throne of
Gurguddi. Moreover, distortion of his name as "Gulam" (Gulam mastan
Jeth Chand) and "Servant" (Sewak) on page 94 of Volume II also indicates
an ill - will among aspirants for Gurgaddi, such as Baba Mohan.
Going back to the reference of pIau dwdy kw Koil ifTw Kjwnw qw myry
mn BieAw inDwnw suggesting that Guru Arjun received bani in the
form of pothis from Guru Ram Das, also becomes irrelevant due
to the followings :
(a) It is impossible that the Fourth Guru would have enter-
tained pothis without his own bani and containing a refer-
ence to his name in bad taste.
(b) It is also out of the question that the Fifth Master would go
to Baba Mohan to collect bani that does not contain hymns
of his father (the Fourth Master) and alludes to a state-
ment hundi) obviously referring to the Fourth Master in a
negative sense.
(c) It is also impossible that the Third Master, having col-
lected the Bani of his own and that of his predecessors
would hand it over to his son, Baba Mohan, who was not
considered worthy of Gurguddi
(d) Manglacharan in Goindwal Pothis is recorded from pothis
of another estranged group called Hundalis. It is incon-
ceivable that Guru Arjun could have entertained bani
tainted with anti-Sikh religious contents.
 71

(v) The copying of Jap of Guru Nanak from Guru Ram Das
is accredited accordingly in the Adi Granth. It is impossible that
the Gobindwal Pothis would not enjoy the same recognition in
the Adi Granth in the event of their being an authentic source of
bani.
(vi) There is no mention of the names of Baba Mohan or
Sahansram as scribe or editor of the Goindwal Pothis. There is
no evidence that the pothis were written at the instance of Guru
Amar Das by Sahansram, as has been speculated. It is inconceivable
that all the work of Guru Amar Das would not have been a part
of the pothis if they were compiled under his supervision.
(vii) The pothis contain two hymns by Guru Ram Das and
one by Guru Arjun Dev in Raga Dhanasri, suggesting that the
scribe was not partial to any group. It also shows that the process
of its copying was going on contemporarily to the compilation of
the Adi Granth.
The above events may help us to reconstruct the chronological
events of Goindwal Pothis.
Chronological Events of Goindwal Pothis: (1) The mention
of the names of three Gurus in the past tense proves that they
were written after 1574 AD. (2) The presence of some hymns by
the Fourth and Fifth Gurus make the pothis contemporary to
the time of Guru Arjun (1581-1606 AD). (3) During the time of
compilation of the Adi Granth by Guru Arjun, some schismatic
group(s) (apparently belonging to the Baba Mohan tradition) also
initiated the collection of bani as a challenge to the line of
Gurguddi. Perhaps they called their collection Goindwal Pothis.
The head of this group inscribed a date (1595 AD) earlier to that
of the Adi Granth completion (1604 AD) on the first page in
order to show their antiquity.
B. Guru Nanak Dev University MS 1245
Pashaura Singh claims that MS 1245 is a draft prepared under
the direction of Guru Arjun Dev before he actually prepared the
Adi Granth. In support of this hypothesis, he offers certain
assertions as proof. His assertions are either deducted from the
cursory textual analysis of the text or are concocted to lay a basis
for writing his dissertation, willfully ignoring the concrete
evidence inherently apparent in the draft.
Analysis: Pashaura Singh applied two standard rules of
 72

textual criticism:
Rule 1 : the shorter reading is to be preferred to the longer one.
Rule 2 : The more difficult reading is generally preferable.
According to Rule 1, MS 1245 is shorter to read than the Adi
Granth and, therefore, is older. Although MS 1245 contains a
few shorter hymns, the fact remains that MS 1245 has all the bani
of the five Gurus.
For example, Guru Amar Das has comparatively many hymns
in MS 1245 among the first five Gurus only. The Third Guru has
extra Chaupadas in Sirirag (I), Asa (I), Ramkali (I), Chhant in
Sirirag (15), Ashatpadian in Asa (1) and Ramkali (1).
Comparatively, the Third Guru has five shaloks less than in the
Adi Granth. Guru Amar Das has one extra shabad in Raga Tilang
and two extra shaloks. Guru Arjun Dev has extra chaupadas in
Asa (3), Sarang (2), Ramkali (2) and Suhi (1). Guru Arjun Dev
has one and four chaupadas less in Gujri and Devgandhari,
respectively.
As far as the bhagat bani and Bhatan de Savaye are concerned,
the scribe seems to be interested only in the bani of the Gurus. This
has nothing to do with the "shorter reading". A few instances of
blank spaces, or mention of first lines of some shaloks, does not
make a case for "shorter reading" because they are a drop in the
bucket as compared to the entire volume of hymns in MS 1245.
From the above, one can safely conclude that, in fact MS 1245
contains extra bani of five Gurus that is not found in the Adi
Granth. Therefore, use of Rule 1 of Textual Analysis is not
applicable. It contains apocrypha. Thus no one from the house
of Guru could be connected with it.
Let us examine the applicability of Rule 2 regarding MS 1245.
Pashaura Singh says that this rule may be equally applied to the
GNDU text since it contains archaic linguistic expressions which
were standardized in the Kartarpuri volume. "To qualify his
statment he writes that the "Gurmukhi script of the manuscript
is still in the process of development.. to a large extent its style is
very similar to the Gurmukhi script of the Kartarpuri manuscript.
This is a self-contradiction.
The most distinctive differences, however, he thinks, are "in
the formation of certain letters and vowel signs.." For example a
dot (.) represents a kanna, and vowel ura (E) , is written with
 73

an open end (as E ) while the consonant chhachha (i:) is still in

the older sharda form. These few examples cannot be considered
a linguistic analysis worthy of a doctoral dissertation. Moreover,
on the basis of these cases, one cannot conclude that MS 1245
contains a"more difficult" reading than the Adi Granth. Therefore,
use of Rule 2 is also inapplicable.
Analysis: MS 1245 does possess some differences in word
formation, letter configuration and sentence construction as
compared to its counterparts found in the Adi Granth. For
example, the words Dry auqrI, iliKAw, isPqI mUho, ipCy found in the
Adi Granth have their corresponding counterparts in MS 1245 as
Dryie, auqrY, ilKIAY, ispqI muhhu, pwCy These examples indicate oldness
of MS 1245. However, other words, such as ikau, hoey, nwau, dyKW,
kauxu, pwaux found in MS 1245 are written as ikv, hovin, nwie, vyKW,
kvxu, pvxu, the Adi Granth, indicating newness of MS 1245.
These examples are taken only from Jap ji of Guru Nanak; such
variations in word formations are scattered all over MS 1245.
Would you call MS 1245 old or new?
These variations are merely colloquial or pertain to the level
of the bearing of the scribe and have nothing to do with the
linguistic characteristics of the draft.
Pashaura Singh has quoted only two cases of variations in
letters (i.e., E and C). If you examine MS 1245 carefully, you will
also find that A, e, h, G, c, C, lalso show sharda form. Moreover,
aunkar dolankare and hora are also written in different form than
the Adi Granth. Do these variations in vowels, consonants and
their signs make MS 1245 older than the Adi Granth ?
The compelling evidence inherent in this draft supports the
view that it was written after the compilation of the Adi Granth.
The following conclusive evidence will support this view.
I. MS 1245 contains the dates of demise of all the First Five
Gurus written in same hand and ink. Pashaura Singh acknowledges
this truth but purposefully and wrongly adds that the date of
demise of the Fifth Guru was written later by the same scribe.
II. MS 1245 contains a nishan in the handwriting of Guru
Tegh Bahadur (1664-1675 AD). A nishan becomes significant only
if it is written in the handwriting of a Guru (i.e., someone who is
actually occupying the seat of Gurgaddi). Therefore, the nishan
of the Ninth Guru must be written between the years 1664-1675
AD. It is immaterial whether it was pasted later on the draft as
claimed by Pashaura Singh.
III. Pashaura Singh concedes that the scribe of the draft may
 74

possibly be Bhai Gurdas, who was the scribe for the Adi Granth.
Since the handwritings of MS 1245 and the Adi Granth are
different, he assumed that Bhai Gurdas may have improved his
handwriting by the time he wrote the Adi Granth. If MS 1245
and the Adi Granth were written by the same scribe (i.e. during
the period of Guru Arjun), then the theory of improvement of
handwriting seems to be utterly baseless and quite possibly
ludicrous. Moreover, why would Bhai Gurdas add the date of
demise of the Fifth Guru on a discarded draft?
IV. Without scrutiny, Pashaura Singh accepts the dealer's
savoury note indicating a hymn and signature of Bhai Buddha on
folio 3 of the manuscript. This he sees as further confirmation of
its relative antiquity, forgetting that Baba Buddha lived long after
the death of Guru Arjun Dev. Moreover, Baba Buddha never wrote
any hymn, as was confirmed by his descendants.
V. MS 1245 contain extra bani of Guru Arjun Dev. The extra
canonical hymns may be the ones Guru Arjun did not include in
the Adi Granth but which were remembered and included in MS
1245 by his followers. This possibility implies MS 1245 to be a
much later draft than the Adi Granth. The fact that there are
many pages of hymns added after the demise dates on leaf 1255,
suggest that the compilation of this draft must have continued
even after 1606 AD., the date of demise of Guru Arjun Dev.
The factual evidence given above clearly shows that MS 1245
was written after the compilation of the Adi Granth in 1604 AD.
Pashaura Singh knows that, but compelled by his drive to earn a
doctoral degree, has concocted facts and ignored obvious evidence
inherent in the body of this draft. The hypothesis of "earlier
manuscripts of the Adi Granth" was first proposed by McLeod,
and Pashaura Singh merely honoured his wishes. The scientific
aspect of research embodied in his thesis is purposely falsified,
and thus cannot be considered worthy of a Ph. D. degree.
CHAPTER THREE: ORIGIN OF THE ADI GRANTH
In this chapter, Pashaura Singh considered the basis of origin
of the three recensions, Lahore recension, Banno recension and
Damdama recension, after the establishment of the Adi Granth
as the authentic final sacred Granth of the Sikhs. He concluded
"that different recensions of the Adi Granth originated as a
 75

result of factional division in the Panth and external interference in its

affairs." This is a narrative chapter and does not command any analysis.
CHAPTER FOUR: TEXTUAL ANALYSIS
This chapter is the one which has raised the question of
blasphemy in Sikh religion. This chapter opens under the guise
of two Western scholars (namely Dr. J.C. Archer and C.H.
Loehlin), who have expressed the idea of textual analysis of the
Adi Granth. Although textual analysis is inapplicable to the
Kartarpuri Bir, let us examine the academic aspect of the textual
criticism of the Adi Granth.
Pashaura Singh has devoted this chapter to textual criticism of
five hymns and individual works of various Gurus. By doing so,
he aims to reconstruct the history of the text of the Adi Granth.
The hymns he has considered are the following:
(1) Mul Mantar
(2) Jap ji and Rehras
(3) Suhi hymn of Guru Nanak
(4) Tilang hymn of Guru Arjun
(5) Ramakali hymn of Guru Arjun
Of these; Dr Singh's discussion of Mul Mantar has drawn
most attention from Sikh scholars.
Mul Mantar and its Analysis: Mul Mantar is the opening hymn
of the Adi Granth. It has a prime importance in Sikh religion.
Mul Mantar is considered a summary of thoughts of Jap ji, and
Jap ji in turn is regarded as the summary of the Adi Granth. Let
us first reproduce three variations of Mul Mantra from Goindwal
Pothis, MS 1245 and the Adi Granth.
Govindval Pothis, Vol. I :
1E siqgur prswdu
scu nwmu krqwru inrBau inrIkwru Akwl mUriq AjUnI sMNBau (1)
MS 1245 :
1E siqnwmu krqw purKu inrBau inrvYru Akwl mUriq AjUnI sYBM siqgurU prswid ]
The Adi Granth
1E siqnwmu krqw purKu inrBau inrvYru Akwl mUriq AjUin sYBM gur pRswid ]
In MS 1245, only the word siq (siqgur)U is extra compared to
the text of the Adi Granth. However, the following difference in
the words or spellings are obvious between the Mul Mantar of
the Govindwal Pothis and the Adi Granth :
 76

The Goindwal Pothis The Adi Granth

scunwm siqnwmu
krqwru krqw purKu
inrIkwr inrvYr
sMBau sYBM
siqguru prswdu gur pRswid
Pashaura Singh accepts that the basic tenets of Mul Mantar in
the Goindwal Pothis "come from the works of Guru Nanak.
Presumably he himself formulated it during the Kartarpur period.
"The significant additions or variations of words such as nirvauru,
gurparsadi and purakh, he suggests were made later. Pashaura Singh
says that Guru Ram Das added the word nirvairu and Guru Arjun
replaced satguru parsadi with gurparsadi and also added the word
purakh to the revised text of Mul Mantar. Let us look into the
etymological, religious and sociological aspects of the changed
words in the two Mul Mantar.
(a) Sachnaam vs. Satnaam: The word sachnaam is relatively
limited in meaning. Therefore, its connotation has concrete form.
Some examples from Gurbani will clarify this point.
scKMif (sicKMif vsY inrMkwr - m : 1
sicGir (sicGir bYis rhy gux gwey - m : p)
scu Gru (scuGru lyhu bqwie - m : 1
sic (sic rhhu sdw srju suK aupjY - m :3)
sic (sic mYlu n lwgY BRm Bau BwgY - m : 1)
sc (sc ibnu swKI mUly n bwkI - m : 1)
scu (scu qw pr jwxIAY jw irdY scw hoie - m : 1)
scu (scu imlY scu aupjY - m :1)
scu (Awid scu jugwid scu - m : 1)
scu (mn mWjY scu soie - m : 1)
scu (scu kI bwxI nwnk AwKY - m
Comparatively the usage of Satnaam is mostly attributed to
the Creator or Super Being. The following examples will attest to
our point.
siq (siq nwmu krqw purKu - m :1)
siq (Awip siq kIAw sB siq - m : p)
siq (n siq mUf mufweI kysI m : 1)
siq (jo ikCu kry siq kir mwnhu - m : 4)
siq (siq srUpu irdY ijin mwinAw B s : p)
 77

In Gurbani, the word sachnaam is found in greater abundance

than satnaam. This is understandable, because it is related to
person(s), time and space. On the other hand, most often the
word satnaam relates to the Super Being (prmwqmw). Mul Mantar
contains a praise of Super Being, therefore, the word satnaarn is
more appropriate than sachnaam. For example, Satnaam,
Satkartar, and sat sri akal are used in praise of Super Being. In
Mul Mantar the prefix "Sat" is deleted from Satgurparsaad because
of its personification, whereas in Goindwal Pothis it is retained.
(b) purakh vs. Kartapurakh : Pashaura Singh writes that
"Guru Arjun added the word purakh to the received text of Mul
Mantar (because) by this time the personal (purakh) aspect of the
Supreme Being acquired prominence as compared with Guru
Nanak's emphasis on the formless (nirankar) nature of Ultimate
Reality." Does this mean that by the time of Guru Arjun, the
Ultimate Reality ceased to exist? The word purakh is used in the
bani of Guru Nanak at various places:
1. ijs sqgur purK n ByitE
su Baujil pcY pcwie [
2. ibn ipr purKu n jwxeI swcy,
gur kY hyiq ipAwir [
Guru Nanak's bani views nature and God interchangeably,
and puts human beings in the context of both of these entities.
This ideology is found all over Guru Nanak's bani. The
compound words Kartapurakh, Aadpurakh, Akalpurakh, and
Satpurakh in the bani of Guru Nanak prove our point.
The etymology of the word purakh in relation to the Supreme
Being and nature is very interesting. Purakh has its root in Purash.
Old Sanskrit literature ralates Purash to both nature and God. In
Santmat, Purash means Supreme Being (prmwqmw) According to
Rigveda, Purash means "God" (eISvr) who creates the world.
Rigveda goes further to describe Purash as having 1,000 heads, eyes
and feet. Anything that has happened or will happened on this earth
is embodied into Purash (jh inrml purKu purKupiq hoqw - m : 5)
In Geeta, Brahmtat (bRhm - q`-pRmwqmw ) is translated into
Purshotam (p u r S + au q m). Grammar also follows the timeless
 78

concept of Purakh (i.e. first person (auqm purS), Second person(mDm

purS) and third person ( AMn purS). Purakh in Guru Nanak's bani
and especially in the Mul Mantar, does not specify a person, but
signifies the Supreme Being. Most of Guru Nanak's diction has
its basis in Sanskrit literature. In old Sanskrit literature (Vedas),
Purakh signifies Supreme Being (prmwqmw ). Kartapurakh truly
denotes the Creator in the Mul Mantar of the Aad Granth. This
emphasises that there is only one Creator of the world, and Guru
Nanak makes a combination (krqw + purKu) to clarify the significance
of the Creator in relation to Purakh.
Pashaura Singh's statement that the word purakh was added
by Guru Arjun cannot be considered" academic research" by any
standard. In making this assertion, he has challenged the basic
tenets of Sikhism.
(c) Nirankaar vs. Nirvair: Pashaura Singh suggests that the
world nirikaar of Goind wal Pothis was changed to nirvair by
Guru Ram Das. This he did "... to counteract the situation of
hostility in real life created by the animosity of his rivals ..." His
rivals were apparently the sons (Baba Mohan and Baba Mohri) of
Guru Amar Das. (The Fourth Guru was son-in-law of the Third Guru).
This would imply that Guru Ram Das changed this word simply due
to his estranged relations with the family of his predecessor. What a
limitation is bestowed upon the personality of a Guru, who is supposed
to be the head of a religion, rather than a family!
The word Nirikar of Mul Mantar is composed of Nir and
Akar (inr-Akwr) which means formless. The next two words,
Akalmurat and Ajuni, theologically also signify Nirikar. All the
three words imply different aspects of the Supreme Being.
However, the absence of the word Nirvair in Mul mantar is
obvious. Guru Nanak was a public preacher with a divine message
aganist the ills of his contemporary society, which was composed
of various religions including Islam, Hinduism, Christianity and
others. Although each one of these religions believed in a God
(or Gods), they preached against each other on the basis of
religious animosity. Guru Nanak consciously used the word
Nirvair in Mul Mantar to get rid of the shortfalls of other
contemporary religions. Gurbani contains various examples
of Nirvair and particularly Guru Nanak put more
 79

emphasis on this aspect of the Supreme Being. (bisE inrvYr irdMqir

-m :1)
A corollary of Pashaura Singh's hypothesis could also be true.
The people who showed animosity towards Guru Ram Das, may
have deleted the word Nirvair from hls original version of Mul
Mantar.
(d) Sambhau vs. Saibhung: Gurbani contains various variations
of the word saibhung (sYBM ) These include sambhau (sMBU ) and
sambhaviou (sMBivAau). Perhaps these variations crept in due to
variations in pronunciation, without a change in meaning.
Pashaura Singh is silent about this change.
(e) Satguru Parsaad vs. Gur Parsaad: Pashaura Singh speculates
that Guru Arjun turned" satguru" into "gur" in order to "provide
a more coherent structure to the text of the Mul Mantar." The
word "gur" he thinks, "stands for the divine principle, functioning
behind the free and sovereign act of grace".
In the Mul Mantar of the Adi Granth, the word satnam (siq
+ nwm) is appropriately used in praise of the Supreme Being, whereas
in Goindwal Pothis, the word satguru (siq + gurU) implies "with
the grace of the Guru". It seems inappropriate to use the word
"sat" in relation to both God and the Guru in the same couplet,
i.e. Mul Mantar. To make this distinction, Guru Nanak
appropriately used the word "sat" in relation to God and "Gur"
in relation to God (Guru). To keep rhythm and coherence, both
words are available in Guru Nanak's bani at appropriate places:
(1) siqgur hiD inbyVu JgVu cukwieAw
(2) isKI isiKAw gur vIcwir
(3) gur prswdI jwxIAY qau AnBau pwvY
(4) nwnk siqgur AYsw jwxIAY jo sBsY ley imlwey jIayu
MS 1245 also contains satgur parsad; otherwise, there is no
difference in the Mul Mantar of this draft and of the Adi Granth.
Comments: Pashaura Singh has attempted a cursory textual
analysis of the Mul Mantar of Guru Nanak and suggested that
Some of the key words were, in fact changed by Guru Ram Das
and Guru Arjun Dev in order to make it contemporary to the
Sikh thought. He believes that the Mul Mantar of the Goindwal
Pothis is that of Guru Nanak, whereas the one found in the Adi
Granth is a modified version. The changes were made under
 80

the influence of socio-political atmosphere, suggesting that it is

not revelatory.
In our view, scarcely any textual analysis of the Mul Mantar,
other than undocumented statements, a couple of sentences long,
is given in Dr Singh's doctoral dissertation. A textual analysis from
the modem scientific point of view requires that it should employ
knowledge gained from other disciplines, such as scriptology,
philosophy, history, (if possible), ethnology and biotechnology.
Nowhere in his thesis has Pashaura Singh analyzed the Mul Mantar
under the light of these disciplines. On the contrary, without.
supporting evidence, he hastily drew wrong conclusions. In fact, he
asked 'the wrong questions that apparently led to wrong conclusions.
Comparative Analysis of Jap ji: Goindwal Pothis do not
contain Jap ji, whereas MS 1245, with a few variations, contains
this bani Pashaura Singh believes that Jap ji was present in both
MS 1245 and the Adi Granth, with some difference which will
be considered below.
According to Pashaura Singh, MS 1245 "provides an earlier version
of the Morning Prayer before its standardization." He brings out
"important differences." Let us examine their credibility and importance.
(1) "First, the Mul Mantar is given in its earlier form..."
Analysis: The word satgur (siqgur) is used in MS 1245, as
compared to gur (gur) in the Adi Granth. This is the only difference
in the two Mul Mantars. Pashaura Singh argued that by" ..replacing
satgur parsadi (siqgur pRswid), by the grace of the True Guru with
gur parsadi (gur pRswid) by 'the grace of Guru, Guru Arjun provided
a more coherent structure of the text of the Mul Mantar. This is
the logical conclusion, but is based on wrong approach. In
Gurbani, the intended usage of the word "sat" (siq) is always in
praise of the Supreme Being, and seldom in relation to a living
Guru. This is the ingenuousness of the Gurus, who so
meticulously uttered the words of God. It is impossible that Guru
Nanak would .call himself Satguru suggesting equality with the
Almighty in whose praise the Mul Mantar (the root formula of
Sikhism) is uttered. The words Satnam and Satguru in these
manuscript are not only redundant, but also theologically
incorrect.
Out of faith, followers some times call their Guru as Satguru,
 81

and this tendency is apparent in Goindwal Pothis and other such

manuscripts. For exa.mple, in Goindwal Pothis the following
formations are available:
1E guru siq
gur siq
siqgurU prswid
1 sRI siqgurU pRswid
Since such manuscripts were prepard by the followers of the
Guru, they inserted words of praise for their Guru in Curbani.
However, this could not have been done by Guru Arjun, who
was recording revelatory' bani received by his predecessors.
(2) "Second, the title of the compositon is mentioned as japu
mohalu (1 jpu 1 mhlu 1) indicating specifically the authorship of
Guru Nanak. The symbol mahalu is omitted in the Adi Granth."
Analysis: Pashaura Singh accepts that all three variations of
Mul Mantar refer to its historical development. Nowhere in the
dissertation does he question the authorship of Guru Nanak
(mahala 1) Why, then, does "mahala In become so significant in
the text in relation to the historical aspects of Mul Mantar ?
(3) Third, Pashaura Singh has pointed out certain linguistic
variations in Jap Ji of MS 1245 and the Adi Granth. He quotes
some examples of words, i.e., jyie jy, auqrY, auqrI ikau, ikv[
Analysis: Pashaura Singh says that the word jyie of MS 1245
was changed by Guru Arjun to it in the Adi Granth, but both
these words are used in Jap ji:
jy ky khY ipCy pCuqwey (The Adi Granth)
jy ky khY pwCY pCqwie (MMS 1245)
The second example he quotes is of the words ikau and
ikv. Both these words are used interchangeably in both versions
of Jap ji.
ikv kir AwKw ikv swlwhI ikau vrnI ikv jwxw (The Adi Granth)
ikau kir AwKw ikay swlwhI ikay vrnI ikv jwxw (MS 1245)
There are numerous other examples of interchangeability of
words in both versions of Jap ji.
In conclusion, Pashaura Singh's linguistic analysis is limited
to spelling or variations of some words. He has not studied the
etymology of any words under the light of linguistic principles.
The examples of linguistic variations are of subsidiary
 82

importance in the analysis of Jap ji. Moreover, he failed to note

the fact that word variations are often found in manuscripts
prepared by followers of Gurus. This may well have occurred due
to colloquial pronunciation of words.
The word variations are prevalent in the bani of individual
Gurus. Such variations are part and parcel of poetry because of
rhyme and rhythm problems. Guru Arjun Dev was compiling
the bani of Gurus, rather than editing it in the critical sense. It
would have been almost impossible to change a word and still
keep its authentic meaning and raga sequence of concerned hymns.
CHAPTER FIVE : EDITORIAL POLICY OF GURU ARJUN
Pashaura Singh praises the editorial skills of Guru Arjun.
According to him, Guru Arjun's policy was based on five major
principles:
(1) doctrinal consistency,
(2) idea of balanced life,
(3) an optimistic spirit,
(4) the universal nature of the Sikh claim and
(5) the concern for distinctive Sikh identity.
His view on Bhagat Bani and reasons for its inclusion in Adi
Granth are questionable. It is incorrect to suggest that Bhagat
Bani was included due to political reasons. Bhagat Bani was
procured, selected and edited according to its merit and suitablity
in Sikh faith.
CONCLUSIONS
In his thesis the meaning and text of Adi Granth, Pashaura
Singh has attempted to analyse the bani of Gurus, and the process of
compilation of the Adi Granth (Kartarpuri Bir). Other authors have
examined the religious, philosophical and revelatory aspects of the
Adi Granth as discussed by Dr. Singh. This paper is an attempt to
look into the scientific and academic merits of this thesis. The aim
was to explore whether or not this thesis is worthy of a Ph.D. degree.
Primarily, Pashaura Singh raised the following three issues
regarding the authenticity of the bani and the process of
compilation of the Adi Granth.
I. During the compilation of the Adi Granth, Guru Arjun
consulted two manuscripts, namely, Goindwal Pothis and GNDU
MS 1245.
 83

II. Guru Arjun selected, modified and improved upon the bani
of his predecessors before its inclusion into the Adi Granth. This
he did in order to "Crystallize” the Sikh thought and tradition.
III. Guru Arjun included Bhagat bani in the Adi Granth on
the basis of contemporary political pressure, rather than of the
suitability of the bani according to the Sikh thought.
Our examination revealed that the two manuscripts that
formed the basis of the thesis were written after the compilation
of the Adi Granth (1604 AD). Therefore, the materials he selected
for his thesis were inappropriate.
Selection of ma terial for the thesis is very important to conduct
viable and meaningful research. Material should be prone to critical
evaluation through suitable methodology. Procedures are applied
to analyse the material in order to generate data. If the materials
are not prone to suitable methodology, the data will pose problems
of analysis. That is exactly the problem we see in Dr. Singh's
thesis. The procedures applied have no set scientific pattern;
therefore, he ran into problems of analysis. Analytical procedures
and research methodology are only as good as the materials they
analyse.
Pashaura Singh has attempted linguistic analysis of some bani
from the points of view of word-variation and word-selection.
His analysis lacks depth. Standard techniques of evaluation of a
theological topic are not employed. Often his analysis is less critical
and more narrative - an attribute undesirable in doctorial research.
The data do not yield results. Rather the results are
Superimposed on the data. For example, the two manuscripts are
purposely shown to be pre-Adi Granth compilation, ignoring the
persuasive evidence present in them against that.
The most serious aspect of Dr. Singh's thesis is the suggestion
that the bani is non-revelatory. According to his thesis, Guru Arjun
made theological changes in Gurbani in order to crystallize the Sikh
tradition and thought. The Guru did this under influence of socio-
political pressure. The suggestion is Contrary what Gurus have
emphasized that Gurbani is revelatory. This is the most dangerous
thought that any scholar of scriptures can suggest because it totally
destroys the existence of a basic belief that sustains the human
existence. Even an atheist eventually admits that where intellect
 84

ceases to exist, the realm of some unknown power takes over.

In conclusion, Pashaura Singh has failed to produce a thesis
worthy of a doctorate of philosphy. His thesis lacks suitability of
materials, methodology, and (therefore) scientific data. It seems
that his conclusions are preconceived, and the data concocted to
comply with desired results.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Arhcer, J.C. 1946 : "The Sikhs in relaion to Hindus, Moslems, and
Ahmediya : A study in Comparative Religion". Princeton
University, Press, Princeton.
Bhalla, G. (Bhai Gurdas) : Varan Bhai Gurdas, H. Singh and V.
Singh (ed.) Khalsa Samachar, Amritsar, 1962
Grewal, J.5., 1979 : "A Perspective on Early Sikh History". In M.
Juergensmeyer and N.G. Barrier (eds.) "Sikh Studies: Com-
parative Perspectives on a Changing Tradition". Berke-
ley Press.
Loehlin, C.H., 1987 : "The Need for Textual and Historical Criti-
cism". The Sikh Courier (Spring-Summer 1987)
McLeod, W.H., 1975 : "The Evolution of the Sikh Community".
Oxford Press, Delhi
Singh, Gurdit (Giani), 1990 : "Itahas Sri Guru Granth Sahib: Bhagat
Bani Shag". Sikh Sahit Sanstha, Chandigrh.
Singh, Sahib, 1979 : "Gurbani Te Ithas Bare", Singh Brothers, Bazar
Mai Sevan Amritsar.
Smith, W.C., 1981 : "On Understanding Islam", Mouton Publish-
ers, New York.
 85

4
MYTH OF EARLY DRAFT OF THE ADI
GRANTH (MS 1245)
By
Dr BAL WANT SINGH DHILLON

I. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Recently, observations of some scholars on Pashaura
Singh's Thesis, the Text and Meaning of the Adi Granth,. Have
generated a lot of controversy in the field of Sikh Studies. It has
been opined that there exists an earlier draft on which Guru
Arjun seems to have worked before compiling the Adi Granth.
It has also been alleged that to polish the metre and to add flavour
to the music, not only the hymns of earlier. Sikh Gurus were
revised in the final version, but Guru Atjun also frequently
modified his own hymns. Similarly, the originality and
authenticity of Mul Mantar, Japu ji and other liturgical hymns
have also been challenged. Although one of the scholars claims
that his findings are based purely on the Western methodology
of textual criticism, and another asserts that Pashaura Singh has
drawn his conclusions after a careful analysis of various
manuscripts of the Adi Granth, yet their views are an attempt to
distort the Sikh ideology and to create misunderstanding about
the authenticity of the Sikh Scripture. As the scholars have either
very little or incomplete information about this manuscript (MS
1245) or the so-called earlier draft, nd as some scholars have,
advertently or inadvertently, given Information which is not factually
true, it was considered necessary to examine the main features of
the manuscript and share the findings with the academic world.
II. MS 1245
2.1 MS 1245 was purchased by Guru. Nanak Dev University
in 1987 from, M/S Harbhajan Singh Harcharan Singh Chawla ,
Manuscript Dealers, Bazar Mai Sewan, Amritsar. It is said they
were reluctant to share information about its origin or history
interestingly, they disclosed to another group of scholars that
they had procured it along with other works of Meharban from
somewhere in Rajasthani. In fact in the absence of any colophon
in the, manuscript, its history will remain shrouded in mystery.
2.2 This manuscript has 1267 folios in all. Some folios are
 86

completely or partly blank. Some of the folios are even missing.

The hymns in it are recorded in 30 ragas, 2 the sequence of which
corresponds to the Guru Granth upto Wadhans, but changes after
that. Contrary to the earlier manuscripts of the Adi Granth, index
of hymns is not available at the beginning. Instead, a separate
index has been appended at the outset of each raga. It seems the
scribe intended to record the folio number of hymns, but he has
left it incomplete.2 The hymns and salokas of Guru Tegh Bhadur
are not found in it. The liturgical hymns of the so purakh and
sohila sections are also missing. Similarly, except for a few salokas
of Bhagat Kabir,3 the whole corpus of bhagat-bani has been
excluded from it. The arrangement of hymns of the epilogue
section does not conform to the standard version. Although, the
recording of hymns, in the ragas is on the Guru Granth pattern,
yet instance of violation are also found in it. The order in the Sri
and Todi raga has been changed to a considerable extent, and
where the metre of hymns ends, blank spaces have been left. At a
number of places only the first line of hymn has been recorded,
and blank spaces have been provided, ostensibly to complete the
text later. Instances, where the text has been completed in a
different hand, are clearly visible. Still there are about 170 hymns
and salokas which are in incomplete form. Irrespective of their
incomplete text, all such hymns have been included in the index.
The scribe has left appropriate blank space for the completion of
the incomplete text, and at some places, has recorded the serial
number of the incomplete hymns in the blank spaces, which
confirms that he was well aware of the text and order of the hymns
to be inscribed, and had another source at his disposal showing
that it is a copy but not the original.
2.3 In all the salokas of the Sikh Gurus which are found in the
various vars, the term rnahala mhlw indicating their authorship has
been omitted. Consequently, a scholar not well versed in gurbani, can
easily be misled that Guru Angad, for instance, has no composition
to his credit. Though authorship has not been differentiated yet the
Second Guru's salokas are found at their fixed place. Similarly, the
authorship of pauris which Guru Arjun had added to the vars of
other Gurus, has not been shown. In addition to that a hymn of
Guru Nanak which occurs in Rag Gauri has been repeated in the
 87

same raga under the authorship of the Fifth Guru 4.

Again, a hymn of Guru Nanak I.n Maru (kudriq krnYhwr Apwrw)
has been attributed to Guru Arjun5. Three salokas of Guru Amar
Dass and one of Guru Ram Das, have been recorded as Guru Nanak's
compositions 6. It is obvious, inadvertently or deliberately, the
authorship of many hymns has been confused in this manuscript.
III. REPETITIONS
3.1 Though a few hymns have been repeated in the Guru
Granth with some variation, yet a considerable number of hymns
have been repeated in this manuscript without any variation. For
instance, two of the fifteen apocryphal chants attributed to Guru
Amar Oas, have been repeated on the very next folio 7 . As
mentioned earlier, a hymn of Guru Nanak in raga Gauri has
been included again in the same raga under the authorship of
Guru Arjun. A Dhanasri hymn of Guru Ram Das occurs in raga
Tilang also. Similarly, a hymn of Guru Arjun in raga Gauri is
also found in raga Majh. . A Suhi raga hymn of the Fifth Guru
also occurs in Tilang, although in this case information to take it
to Suhi has been provided in the margin8. Significantly, a hymn
of Guru Arjan, in Suhi has been recorded at serial Nos. 31 and 39
also 9. By repeating it in the index, the scribe has given proof of
his gross negligence and of his objective being just non-religious
or mere non-serious collection. Similarly, in place of pauri no. 30
of Guru Ram Das var in Gauri mode pauri No. 33 has been
repeated 10. Likewise, a saloka of var Gujri of Guru Arjun has also
found its way in his var of Gauri mode11. A considerable number
of salokas of Guru Arjun, have been recorded twicel2 . On the
basis of a Suhi hymn, Pashaura Singh has deduced that from the
language and thematic point of view, it has been taken from Tilang
to the Suhi mode13. But he does not mention the above repetition.
He has no explanation to offer as to whether the above hymns have
not been repeated in the Adi Granth due to editorial policy or the
arbitrariness of the scribe. As mentioned earlier, some of the hymns
to appear have been recorded again due to the negligence of the scribe.
One hymn each of Guru Ram Das and Guru Arjun has been repeated
in Tilang raga. They have been excluded from the Index. Obviously
the scribe was well aware of the fact that these hymns do not occur in
this raga. A hymn ( AwEu hmwry rwm ipAwry) of Guru Arjun which has
 88

been recorded both in Gauri and Majh modes helps us to solve

the mystery of repeated hymns. In the Guru Granth it has been
recorded under Gauri Majh, indicating a mode of Gauri which
was prevalent in the Majha region. But the scribe of this
manuscript has misunderstood it to record the hymn in Gauri as
well as in Majh. Consequently, the practice to sing it in two
different modes must have come into vogue. Thus it is quite
apparent that in the musical tradition of the scribe, the hymns
which have been repeated in different modes, were actually sung
in two different modes.
IV. OMMISSIONS
4.1 A considerable number of hymns have been omitted from
this manuscript. Only 32 panegyrics (swayye) by Kalh Bhatt are
found in it. It has been opined that by the time this manuscript
was written some of the Bhatts had not yet appeared in the court
of the Guru14. Except for a few salokas of Bhagat Kabir, bhagat
bani has totally been excluded. It has been suggested that Guru
Arjun's primary concern was to fix the hymns of the Gurus first,
and then to deal with the issue of the hymns of the bhagats15 .
This is a very unreliable and vague explanation, because without
going into the authenticity of the Goindwal Pothis, it can safely
be concluded that before the codification of the Adi Granth in
1604 AD, the bhagat bani had not only found acceptance, but
had also become a part of the Sikh literature. A question arises as
to why the scribe ignored the bhagat bani completely. It is not a
simple, but a serious issue, the probability is, that by excluding it,
the scribe has shown that he is out to compile his own or his
sect's parallel scripture to the Adi Granth, and for that reason has
no use for the bhagat bani which related to other sects, to whom
he obviously had no desire to give prominence, since, unlike that
of Guru Arjun, his objective was quite different, viz., creation of
a new seat of Gurudom and to give currency to apocrypha whicn
he has introduced in the manuscript.
4.2 Again, Guru Arjun's var in Basant mode is not available
in this manuscript. The var of Satla and Balwand in Ramkali
mode is also not available in it. The conclusion has been drawn
that it had not come into vogue by the time this manuscript was
ready16. But, the scribe has made a reference to it in the indexl7. It
shows the presence of the hymns and knowledge of
 89

the scribe, and, thus, indicates only his omission in recording

them. It proves that the learned scholar is ignorant about the
manuscript and has jumped to a wrong and preconceived
conclusion.
4.3 Moreover, some salokas of Guru Nanak, and three hymns
and a few salokas of Guru Amar Das, are also not availablel8.
Similarly, a considerable number of hymns of Guru Arjan have
also been omitted. Though, on the basis of non-availability of
some such hymns, Pashaura Singh has challenged the authenticity
and originality of some liturgical hymns, yet he has no explanation
to offer for the large number of missing hymns. Although it can
be argued in the case of Guru Arjun's hymns, that those had not
till then been composed, yet there is no explanation why the
compositions of earlier Gurus have been excluded. Hence the
line of argument of their late construction is untenable. In reality,
the manuscript is marred by numerous scribal mistakes and
omissions. Instances of missing lines and stanzas are very common.
Obviously, mind has not been applied to the fact of the text being
incomplete and deficient while evaluating the genuineness of this
manuscript.
V. APOCRYPHA
5.1 Existence of apocryphal hymns is another significant
feature of this manuscript. One astpadi in A sa, a chhant in Suhi
and about five salokas attributed to Guru Nanak, but not found
in the Guru Granth are included in it19 . Similarly, one astpadi
each in Asa and Ramkali, and 15 chhants in Sri Rag under the
authorship of Guru Amar Das, occur only in this manuscript.
About 14 hymns spread over various modes and some slokas of
apocryphal nature attributed to Guru Arjun, have also been
included. Evidently, a major portion of the apocrypha has been
entered under the authorship of the 'Fifth Guru. Most of the
apocryphal hymns do not occur in the middle of a metre, but are
at the end of it on the unrecorded blank folios. Similarly their
entry into the index has been insered later. In this way the scribe has
not only violated the musical beat (Gru). but also taken liberty to
violate the pattern fixed for recording the hymns in the Adi Granth.
The recording of apocrypha being at the end of the set pattern,
substantiates at this is not an earlier draft, but a later work where
 90

additions have been made.

5.2 What is the source of these apocryphal hymns? Why has
such a large number of them found its way into this manuscript
only? Are these really the compositions of Sikh Gurus? Why
have these not found acceptance in the Adi Granth ? These are
some of the very relevant issues to which the scholar should have
addressed himself. Unfortunately, these questions have been
overlooked very conveniently, while analysing the manuscript.
However, Pashaura Singh has taken notice of only 15 chhants of
Guru Amar Das, and appears to be unaware about the above
mentioned hymns. It again proves that his knowledge about the
manuscript is very superficial or he is knowingly ignoring the
truth. If it is believed that it is an earlier draft, and that it has been
the basis for editing the Adi Granth, then he should have given
reasons why the apocryphal hymns, and of earlier Gurus, are in
such a large number and why they were rejected.
5.3 Although it is very incongruous even to suggest that the
Guru first included in the so-called draft the apocrypha relating
to the other Gurus and then rejected it, it is almost absurd to say
that he (or the scribe) first included the apocrypha relating to
himself and then rejected it especially when mostly it is at the end of
the correct hymns. It is a conclusive proof to show that the manuscript
is by an outsider .and has nothing to do with the Gurus.
5.4 It looks very plausible that Guru Arjun was aware about
some apocryphal hymns being in circulation. These hymns could
not find acceptance, because they owed their origin to his rivals
or dissenters. The problem of apocrypha included in the
manuscript, requires an in-depth investigation. As we will
domonstrate later, serious attempts have been made in it to distort
the originality and authenticity of the hymns of the Sikh Gurus.
Attempts at forgery coupled with the inclusion of such a large
number of apocryphal hymns, are some of the conclusive evidence
to substantiate that this manuscript is a later copy or a production
of some rival camp of Guru Arjun.
VI. FORGERY
6.1 To take stock of distortion in this manuscript, the scholars
are referred to Guru Arjun's two hymns, one each in Gaund and
Bhairo raga. In raga Gaund the order of lines of hymn
 91

No 21 has been changed in the text as well as in the index and

the' hymn has been started with a different line (n ieh buFw n ieh
bwlw) 20. Towards the end of Guru Arjun's hymns, the scribe
intended to record another hymn which started with the original
line (Acrj kDw mhW AnUp), but he has left it incomplete21. Similarly
in raga Bhairo the lines of hymn No. 51 ( hir ky lok sdw gux gwvih)
have been inverted, and at the end abortive attempt has been
made to record another hymn which begins with the original
first line (BY kau Bau piVAw) of this hymn22. Evidently, the scribe, in
his attempt to fabricate hymns of Guru Arjun, has split the text
of some hymns into two to compose a new hymn.
6.2 It is well known in Sikh history that some rivals of the
Gurus had endeavoured to confuse the originality of gurbani by
indulging in interpolations. Some hymns of this manuscript
provide a peep into their designs. There is a hymn in Guru Granth
which depicts the religio-spiritual environment of Ramdas Pur23 .
But by distorting it the scribe has fabricated another hymn24. In
the epilogue we come across an apocryphal saloka in the name of
Guru Nanak, which has been fabricated on the basis of different
strands of his compositions25. However, another saloka attributed
to Guru Nanak presents the best example of such distortions26 .
The first stanza of this saloka has been taken from a saloka of
Guru Amar Das27 and the rest has been fabricated in the name of
Guru Nanak. On close scrutiny we find that the text of stanza
Nos. 26 and 27 of Anandu of Guru Amar Das has also been
tampered with. It must be noted how cleverly the apocryphal
writings have been added in the compositions of the Sikh Gurus.
It is naive to suggest that such a spurious and impure manuscript
was made a basis for editing the Adi Granth. Anyway, the
apocrypha composed on the lines of gurbani to imitate it, cannot
prove that this manuscript is older than the Aad Granth, rather it
provides evidence to show It is a later work. There is not much
doubt that the writer and may be also his superior have taken full
advantage of these distortions and fabrications to call this shoddy
thesis a sample of modem critical study, because in the West
examiners and the academic world are hardly conversant with
Gurbani or Gurmat.
VII. INDEX AND TEXT
7.1 A comparison of the text and the index Presents very useful
and interesting results. Though by and large, the index and
 92

arrangement of the text, correspond to the Guru Granth, at some

places they have been changed to a considerable extent. To illustrate
it, a study of its Sri raga can be very useful. Here the order of
Guru Arjun's hymns has been changed in the text but the index,
instead of corresponding to it, follows the Guru Granth pattern28.
Apparently, the scribe has obtained the index from another source.
This again, refutes the claim that it is an earlier draft of the Adi
Granth, because he is well aware of the pattern in Adi Granth
where from he has copied it. It shows clearly the priority in time
of Adi Granth.
7.2 It has been opined that the text of this manuscript belongs
to an earlier strata which has subsequently been revised in the
final version of the Adi Granth29. It has also been alleged that not
only the verses of some hymns have been altered but their refrain
(rhwau ) has been tampered with 30 . To prove these arbitrary
assumptions, Guru Arjun's hymns in Tilang mode have been
quoted very liberally. As no manuscript antedates 1604 AD,
obviously, there is no other source to authenticate it.
Unfortunately, the scholar has totally ignored the vital information
provided in the index, which is very significant to check the
authenticity of the text. Had he done so, he might not have drawn
his wrong conclusions. For instance, while in the index Guru
Arjun's hymn No. 2 in Tilang mode has been entered as (quid ibn
dUjw nwhI koie), yet in the text it starts with another line (sB aUpir
pwrbRhm dwqwr). The fourth hymn in the index begins with krqy
kudrqI musqwk,but in the text it has krqy kudrqI musqwk, Similarly, the
fifth hymn in the index has been recorded as mIrW dwnw idl soc,
while in the text it starts with another line (dIdny dIdwr),31 . Entry
of the third hymn (imhrvwn swihb imhrvwn) has been omitted from
the index altogether, otherwise we could well know how it would
have been recorded. Obviously, the text of Tilang raga does not
conform to its index. Significantly, the index lines of the above
hymns follow the standard version of the Adi Granth. It is evident
that the scribe has altered the verses in the text. Consequently,
the allegation that Guru Arjun has changed the order or verses of
hymns in the Adi Granth is absolutely unfounded and shows
superficial and hasty character of so called research.
7.3 The above fact becomes even more significant, when we
compare the index of other ragas with the text. In the Appendix
(D) at serial Nos. 1 to 13 are those index lines which correspond
to the Adi Granth,32 but the text in the manuscript starts with
different lines. Obviously, where the index and text of the
 93

manuscript are in unison with the Adi Granth, they have come
directly or indirectly, from a correct copy or source. Secondly,
the differences in the index and text, suggest that these variations
are due to either the intentions or faults of the scribe, and in no
way can these be attributed to Guru Arjun.
7.4 It has also been alleged that Guru Arjun has shuffled the
hymns from one mode to another33. As pointed out earlier, there
is a hymn in Suhi in this manuscript, which has been repeated in
Tilang also. Though information to take it to Suhi has been
provided in the margin, yet it has been argued that since the
language and style of Tilang hymns of Guru Arjun pre-suppose a
Muslim audience, and because the theme and (poetic genre) of
this particular hymn differ from the Tilang hymns, it has been
shifted to Sum, where it fits well with the preceding hymns of
Guru Nanak34. Significantly we find a Dhanasri hymn of Guru
Ram Das which has been recorded again in Tilang'35. Why has it
been shifted to Dhanasri? Pashaura Singh has no explanation for
it. Similarly, an apocryphal hymn (inrmlw suK rIiq suAwmI)36 attributed
to Guru Arjun found in Tilang mode, does not fit in the Tilang
hymns linguistically, and also does not appear to have been
addressed to Muslims, yet it has not been taken to the other mode.
It is highly probable that in the musical tradition of the scribe,
the hymns which have been recorded in duplicate, were sung in
more than one mode.
VIII. MODIFICATIONS
8.1 On closer scrutiny we find that the scribe has made several
modifications in the text. Various syllables and phrases have been
replaced with alternatives or synonyms. Sometimes they have
been dropped from the text altogether. For example there is a
hymn of Guru Arjun in Sri raga (mn ipAwirAw jIE imqRw) where in
the text, jio (jIE) has been dropped, but in the index it is available37.
Similarly at another place (Awau swjn sMq ipAwry) Sant has been
replaced with Pritam (pIR qm) in the text38. The scribal variations can
be due to dialetical and regional pecularities. Some musicological
variations are also found in this manuscript. For example, in hymn
(hir hir auqm nwm hY) refrain (rhwau)u has been repeated seven times 39. At
another place stanzas of an astpadi have been converted into pauris
and an additional Saloka (apocryphal) has been added to each of
 94

them 40. Similarly, contrary to the tradition of the Guru Granth,

the beat of dhamal for singing has been indicated with the mode41.
Such variants confirm that the scribe and musicians associated
with him, have brought modifications in the text to suit their
requirements. To conclude, on the basis of these modifications,
that Guru Arjun had revised the text in the final version, is totally
illogical and unjustified.
8.2 Even Mul Mantar has not been spared from scribal
modifications. Though, the authenticity of the available Goindwal
Pothis is highly debatable, yet it has been alleged that the Mul
Mantar found in them represents the earlier form42 . It has been
alleged that first Guru Ram Das had modified it, and then Guru
Arjun worked over the text in successive drafts to give it its final
form43. In the Mul Mantar in this manuscript Satguru Prasad (sqgurU
prswid) has been employed. A close examination of manuscript
reveals that full form of Mul Mantar occurs five times in it. Even
at these places the Akal Murt and Prasad have been dropped from
it once and twice, respectively44. Obviously, this is a scribal variant
which can be intentional or unintentional. But it would be
ridiculous to conclude on this basis that the original Mul Mantar
did not include these terms.
IX. ORTHOGRAPHY
9.1 The orthography, spellings and style of Gurmukhi of this
manuscript, are some other features which have been taken into
account to prove its earlier origin. As it is impossible for a script
to acquire all the characteristics in just a decade or so, it is hard to
pin-point the age of a manuscript on this basis. Only conjectures
can be made on this count. It is also possible that due to regional,
dialectical or personal taste, the scribe may not be following the
prevalent method. The scribe of this manuscript has been
considered by the scholar to be a close associate of Guru Amar
Das, possibly Bhai Gurdas46. This is a wild conjecture which finds
no support in any internal or external evidence. Besides, the
orthography of this manuscript indicates that not just one, but
more than two scribes have been employed to complete the
unfinished manuscript. There are numerous folios where the
incomplete text has been filled in a different handwritng. The
orthography of some folios, instead of looking old, seems to be of
recent origin47. At one folio a scribe of the present era has inserted
information indicating the beat (Gru) of a hymn48. This shows that
either the dealer or the person who introduced it to him, made this
 95

writing. Thus, the whole of the manuscript has not been written
in a single hand, and during a single penod of hme, and the chances
of interpolation and forgery in it seem evident.
9.2 The use of a dot for the vowel sign of Kanna which is the
distinctive feature of early gurmukhi style, has been picked up to
indicate its earlier origin49. This is again a gross misrepresentation
of facts. In fact the use of half kanna almost at every folio is
clearly visible besides the dot. The use of such half kanna and
vowel sign of ura (E) with an open mouth are also found in the
Hukamnamas of Guru Harkrishan and Guru Tegh Bahadur50 .
Thus, instead of proving the manuscript to be old, its orthography
points to its origin somewhere in the second half of the 17th
century AD. This view finds support from the fact that the
manuscript has preserved an autograph of Guru Tegh Bahadur. If
it had been scribed earlier, then its scribe or custodian could have
procured the autograph of an earlier Sikh Guru contemporary to
him. That the scribe of this manuscript is a forger, and for that
matter, unreliable, is evident from the fact that he writes this
nishan as that of the Sixth Guru.
9.3 In this manuscript the dates of passing away of the first
five Gurus have been recorded. This establishes beyond any doubt,
that the manuscript has been written after Guru Arjun's
martyrdom. In his enthusiasm to prove earlier origin of this draft,
Pashaura Singh has stated that the last date has been written later
by the same scribe (i.e. Bhai Gurdas)51. Unfortunately, this can
hardly be an honest deduction because the relevant entries have
been made with the same pen and have the same shade of ink,
and are in the same handwriting. Moreover, while making the
above observations, he himself contradicts his earlier statement
that Bhai Gurdas, "may have further improved his handwriting
by the time he wrote the final draft of the Adi Granth" 52. As
mentioned earlier, the manuscript contains no colophon
indicating the scribe, date and place of writing. Thus there is no
proof to associate the manuscript or its scribing with Bhai Gurdas.
It is just a figment of imagination. Description of Guru Amar
Das's death in eulogistic manner can in no way be attributed to
Bhai Gurdas alone. Any devout Sikh of the Third Guru can be
expected to use this type of termmology. Perhaps to enhance its
 96

value, the seller or the manuscript dealer has himself made a

suggestion that the manuscript contains a hymn written in Bhai
Budha's hand. The scholar who boasts that his study is based on
the Western methodology of textual criticism, has taken this note
on its face value to conclude that it is quite possible that the
descendants of Bhai Budha may have preserved the manuscript
through the process of handing it over to the next generation53 .
But this notion finds no validity in any internal or external
evidence. It is a made-up suggestion which Pashaura Singh is
inexplicably willing to swallow with the least attempt at
verfication, otherwise he would have readily found it to be
spurious. But persons with predetermined ideas are rarely serious
or sound in their effort.
X. DHUNNIS
10.1 Though nine vars of the Adi Granth have dhunnis (tunes
indicating the musical style) at their beginning, yet in the index
of this manuscript only eight vars are found with their dhunnis.
Amazingly, in the text except two all the dhunnis have been
dropped 54. Pashaura Singh has pointed towards the Lahore
recension of the Adi Granth, in which dhunnis have been removed
from the text55. It is also said that as the result of some influence
dhunnis were removed from the text of the Adi Granth 56 .
Naturally, the omission of dhunnis from'the text of this
manuscript also establishes its close relationship with the later
Lahore recension which, again proves that it is not an earlier draft
but a late 17th century product.
XI. WHO PREPARED IT ?
11.1 Internal evidence establishes that the scribe has depended
heavily on other sources to prepare it. If it was an independent
attempt to compile the hymns of the Sikh Gurus, then who were
the persons or group behind this move? The inclusion of
Ratanmala (18 stanzas) suggests that the scribe has inclinations
towards ascetic ideals, especially the hatha-yoga practices. The
subject of most of the apocryphal hymns revolves around Sant,
Sadh, Sadhsang and Satguru. Though, these subjects are not
altogether alien to Sikhism, yet frequent reference to them indicates
that the authors of apocrypha were more concerned about
personal Guruship and ascetic tendencies. The most significant
fact is that the text of Japu Ji of this manuscript resembles the
Japri Parmarath of Harji, a grandson of Pirthi Chand 57. Moreover,
 97

in the Mul Mantar as well as in the shorter form of invocation,

this manuscript uses Satguru Parsadi instead of Gur Prasadi, which
is again a most distinctive feature of the Mina Literature58. We
have evidence to suggest that collection of Gurbam which the
Minas had prepared under the guidance of Meharban, had the
hymns of the Sikh Gurus alone59. Likewise in the manuscript,
also there is no indication that it has bhagat bani in it. In this
manuscript, the title of panegyrics by the bards (bhatts) has been
entered as sveIey guru AMgd ky kwlY Bit kIqy60. Significantly, Kalh or
kalashar Bhatt was known as Kala bhatt in the Mina literature61 .
The Mina collection also contained the panegyrics by Kala bhatt
only62. Truly, all the 32 swayye, included in this manuscript have
turned out to be the composition of Kalh bhatt only. Attempts at
forgery and fabrication found in this manuscript, have already
been illustrated. The apocrypha attributed to the Sikh Gurus, is
the most characteristic feature of this manuscript. All these facts
establish its close connection with the dissenters within the Sikh
Panth, particularly the Minas, the descendants and followers of
Pirthi Chand. It should be remembered that after preparing a
compilation, Meharban had made copies of it to distribute and
install them in various establishments 63. Most probably, this
manuscript has originated in that environment and sequence.
XII. CONCLUSIONS
12.1 The foregoing analysis reveals that the index and text of
the manuscript do not correspond with each other. The serial
number, recorded with the incomplete hymns, suggests that
information of total hymns in a particular raga was available to
the scribe. Mention of Satta and Balwand's var in the index proves
that he was aware of it. The apocryphal hymns have been inserted
at the end of metres. These have been inserted in the index later on,
and some of them have been recorded very tightly in the text. All
these features establish that prior to this manuscript, arrangement
and pattern to record the Gurbani had been fixed. The authorship
of some hymns has been changed. Even the authorship of the salokas
recorded in the rars has not been indicated to differentiate them.
Whereas a large number of hymns have been omitted, yet many
others have been repeated. The text of a sizeable number of hymns
 98

is incomplete. These facts prove that it is not only an incorrect

but also an incomplete manuscript. One should hesitate to call it
an earlier draft on the basis of orthography too, because besides
the dot, we also find the usage of Kanna in it. Examples of text
interpolated later in a different handwriting are clearly visible. To
associate it with Bhai Gurdas and Bhai Budha is absolutely illogical,
because no source, history or evidence validates it. The scribe has
altered the order of verses of some hymns, and has brought various
modifications to suit his requirements. There are examples where
a hymn has been split into two to fabricate a new hymn. Most of
the incomplete as well as repeated hymns belong to Guru Arjun.
Similarly the major portion of apocrypha has been attributed to
the Fifth Guru. These are some of the strong reasons to suggest
that the rivals of Guru Arjun had produced it to distort his
compositions. Obviously, such an impure, incomplete and
incorrect manuscript could not be a draft or become a basis for
editing the Adi Granth. The dates of passing away of the first five
Sikh Gurus, autograph of Guru Teg Bahadur, and the orthographic
style, prove conclusively that it is a late 17th century product,
and cannot be a basis of a draft. Before relying on this manuscript,
it was imperative for a serious scholar to go into its authenticity.
Ironically, the learned scholar has miserably failed in this respect,
because, instead of making an honest and an objective exercise,
vital internal evidence has been overlooked, and misstatements
and mis-representation of facts have been made to prove the pre-
conceived idea of an earlier draft, which is totally untenable and
unjustified. Observations made on the Adi Granth on the basis
of this manuscript will certainly boomerang and meet a fate similar
to the one of the fake fossil research of Prof. V.J. Gupta which
has landed the Punjab University, Chandigrh, in the thick of an
international controversy, badly ravaging its reputation and
standing in the academic fraternity.
 99

REFERENCES AND NOTES

1. 'Blasphemous Attacks',
ABSTRACTS OF SIKH STUDIES,
The Institute of Sikh Studies,
Chandigarh, January, 1993, p.16
2. For instance see index of Sri raga, Folios, 39, MS 1245
3. MS 1245; Folios, 905
4. Ibid; Folios, 219
5. Ibid; Folios,145
6. Ibid; Folios, 1234-35
7. For repetitions See Appendix A
8. MS 1245; Folios,682
9. Ibid; Folios, 713/714
10. Ibid; Folios, 319/321
11. Ibid; Folios, 326/489
12. For details See Appendix A
13. Pashaura Singh : The Text and p.127
Meaning of the Adi Granth', Ph.D.
Thesis, University of Toronto, 1991
14. Ibid; p.26
15. Ibid;
 100

16. Ibid;
17. MS 1245;
18. For omitted text
19. For apocryphal hymns
20. MS 1245;
21. Ibid;
22. Ibid;
23.

27. Guru Granth Sahib: pp. 1420-21

28. For difference in index and text of Folio 40, 71-75
Sri raga see MS 1245,
29. Pashaura Singh, op. cit., pp. 25-26; 118
30. Ibid; 118-125
31. For comparison of index and text See folio 679,
of these hymns 681-682 MS 1245
32. See Appendix D, Sr. No. 14-17
 101

33. Pashaura Singh : op. cit., 34. Ibid; pp. 125-126

35. MS 1245; p.127
36. Ibid; Folio, 681
37. Ibid; Folio, 682
38. Ibid; Folio, 42
39. Ibid; Folios, 105, 113
40. Ibid; Folio, 90
41. Ibid; Folio 799
42. Pashaura Singh : op. cit., Folio, 798
43. Ibid; p.93
44. MS 1245; pp. 95-96
45. Pashaura Singh, op.cit., Folios, 867, 1255 p.27
46. Ibid; p.28
47. MS 1245; Folios, 576, 577, 582 & 583
48. Ibid; Folio, 75
49. Pashaura Singh : op. cit., p.27
50. Ganda Singh : 'Hukamnamas,
Punjabi University, Patiala 1967
51. Pashaura Singh, op. cit.,
52. Ibid;
53 Ibid;
54. These two are Guru Nanak's Var in
Malhar and Guru Amar Das' Var
in Wadhans, See MS 1245;
55. Pashaura Singh : op. cit.,
56. Ibid;
57. Japu Parmarath of harji
58. Pothi Sachkhand, Folio 1 and, pp. 72, 110, 114,
116, 118
Pothi Harji Folio I, Manuscripts 427 and 4278, respec-
tively, Khalsa College, Amritsar.
102
103
104
105
106
107
 108

5
THE TEXT AND MEANING OF THE ADI GRANTH
ACADEMIC BLASPHEMY
By
Dr. BALKAR SINGH

The Ph. D. Thesis submitted by Pashaura Singh to the

University of Toronto can be termed as an academic blasphemy.
The writer was no doubt born in the Sikh house, but after his
thesis, "The Text and Meaning of the Adi Granth", he does not
qualify to be a Sikh. Nobody could have even imagined his present
role in creating an unhealthy controversy directed wilfully towards
erosion of the Sikh faith. The devout Sikhs who provided him
travel grant (Mr. Gurmez Singh Bains), love and support (Sardar
Savinder Singh Bhasin) and (Sardarni Nicketpal Kaur Bhasin),
hospitality during his stay in England (Sardar Bhajan Singh
Sandhu), must be a shaken lot at the disservice done by Mr.
Pashaura Singh in his Ph.D Thesis to a cause, dear to them. He
has belied the hopes of Gurmat College, Patiala, which, after
giving him a stipend, must have expected from him the role of a
good Sikh missionary. His parents and his community will not
be able to reconcile with his becoming an agent of anti-Sikh forces.
These observations are intended to place on record my
disappointment as a student of Sikhism after reading his thesis
carefully.
Sikhism is the only religion in the world for which curiosity
for knowing pervails among other religions. The tragic part is
that this has created jealousy and panic among the missionaries
of almost all the religions. Christian missionaries took a lead in
this direction as early as second half of the nineteenth century.
Doctor Trump started this and Pandit Shardha Ram Philauri
provided the basis for it. The detailed account of this is not needed
in the present context. What I want to say is that Sikh academics
which had never been established systematically, faced continuous
erosion particularly from the Christian missionaries. Psuedo or
unbaked Sikh scholarship took pride in siding with them. Western
tools are supposed to be used to evaluate the Sikh academics.
 109

Pashaura Singh is the latest to join this bandwagon.

The main thrust of his thesis is that Guru Arjan Dev ji did
not confine himself merely to the compilation of the Bani of his,
redecessors but, instead, allowed himself full freedom to delete
and discard, subtract and substitute and add or axe any of its
portions. This means that for Pashaura Singh, Bani was raw
material to be shaped and Improved by Guru Aqan Dev Ji at will.
No serious student of Sikhism can think in this way as the internal
evidence of Sri Guru Granth Sahib proves beyond doubt the nature
and character of Sikh revelation enshrined in the Holy Guru
Granth SahIb. So the question of reshaping and recasting or re-
writing the Bani of earlier Gurus cannot be entertained. Pashaura
Singh's thesis starts from wrong premises and naturally suffers
from wrong conclusions. In order to build his thesis on
preconceived and biased opinions, he stretches his infirm
arguments too far to stand the strain of close scrutiny. I am
convinced that the Sikh tenets and traditions are at complete
variance with the conclusions of Pashaura Singh's thesis.
He has committed the sin of misquoting and misinterpreting
the established Sikh doctrine. Its established truth is that the
compilation of Guru Granth Sahib was done in order to maintain
the authenticity of Bani. In the preface of the thesis the writer,
puts this positive perspective into a wrong statement by saying,
"Examination of earlier manuscripts has revealed that Guru Arjan
worked over a number of drafts to produce the final text in 1604
C.E." He forgets here the principle laid down in Bani i.e. the
harmonisation of light and praxis, p. 966 : "The same light permeated
him, the same praxis, only the Master and his visible form had
changed." So Lord's word (Khasam Ki Bani) becomes 'draft' for
Pashaura Singh and he persists to confuse Bani with poetry.
He perhaps wilfully overlooks the tradition of treating 'Bani'
as being of a higher status than the Guru in person because of
Guru's prevalent or established belief that the 'Shabad' or 'The
Holy Word' is the very embodiment of the Holy Lord or,
Akalpurakh',
He is not able to be in tune even with his master's voice.
i.e. of his guide. With the result that irrelevance and contradictions
came his style. At the very first page in the preface of his thesis he
 110

declares, on the last line of second paragraph, the Kartarpuri

manuscript to be the final text of the Adi Granth. But on the
same page, in the first line of third paragrapn, he contradicts this
by giving credence to Kartarpuri-Banno debate and the three
recensions of the Adi Granth. He wants to cover himself under
the cloak of so-called 'Careful research'. The only mission with
him is to reduce Bani to the level of secular poetry. The entire
thesis shows that Pashaura Singh wilfully, but without any basis,
seeks to distort established Sikh doctrines. I want to conclude my
comments as under:
1. This Thesis is written in McLeodian style and aims at the
erosion of the authenticity of Sikh tenets.
2. The infallible and everlasting Sikh spiritual doctrine of
"Shabad Guru" has been established beyond any doubt in
the form of Guru Granth Sahib. Pashaura Singh tries in his
thesis to confuse this with secondary or peripheral per-
spectives. It is confusing infallibility with fallibility.
3. The threefold mission which Pashaura Singh seems to have
aimed at in this thesis is to befool the students, and ignore
the source material. All this has nothing to do with Sikh
religion and Sikh academics.
4. The basic controversy regarding the authenticity of
Kartarpuri Bir was started by Dr. W.H. McLeod along with
another controversy based on the Jat theory. S. Daljeet
Singh and S. Jagjit Singh answered this in detail in their
books, Authenticity of Kartarpuri Bir and Sikh Revolu-
tion respectively. Pashaura Singh only repeats McLeod's
version time and again in his thesis without refuting the
facts given by the above authors.
5. Published or handwritten recensions of Guru Granth Sahib
are still carrying very minor textual variations. The mis-
takes of scribes or printers should not be attributed to the
Gurus. The reasons for this are known to every body. The
publishing agencies have intruded in the "Sikh circles. In
spite of all efforts to the contrary, the intruding agencies
in field are successful in their unbridled interference.
 111

6. Researcher, especially in the field of theology, needs train-

ing of the intellect and punty of the soul. But the negation
of this is Pashaura Singh, if his thesis is seen in the per-
spective of Gurbani, its meanings and spirit, which
Pashaura Singh has shown he lacks. His confused and con-
tradictory efforts have resulted in chaos more for himself
than for others who know Gurbani.
One can easily conclude after the study of Pashaura Singh's
thesis that he can be placed in the tradition of Pandit Sharda Ram
Philauri who provided the basis for erosion of Sikh religion and
ethos in his books like "Punjabi Baat Cheet" and "Sikhan De Raj
di Vithya". The model Mr. Pashaura Singh is using by saying in
his conclusion, "These hymns were committed to memory by
his first disciples, who passed them on to the next generation
through oral transmission of a singing tradition", is not the Sikh
model. He lacks the much-needed discriminating knowledge for
a researcher and fails to understand the independant concerns of
Sikhism. His sweeping statements heavily mitigate against the
sanctity and integrity of the Sikh scriptures. It is why his thrust is
totally unacceptable. His labour is of a mercenary scholar. He
has tried his level best to demolish the entire gamut of the firmly
authenticated Sikh tenets and traditions. He completely fails in
his mission as awakened Sikhs are coming out with the truth.
What Pashaura Singh has done is against the written writ of the
Guru and hence his work is blasphemous.
 112

6
MANUSCRIPT 1245 :
A POST 1606 COLLECTION
By
Dr. KHARAK SINGH MANN

The following is an interim report of the examination of the

Manuscript 1245, which forms the basis of the conclusions and
observations in the thesis of Pashaura Singh for PhD, degree. A
detailed report by the scholars will follow.
1. The manuscript is neither a Bir of the Granth Sahib, nor
its earlier draft. It is only a collection of poems, arranged in a
haphazard manner. The arrangement of Ragas and Bani does not
even remotely follow the one in the Aad Granth (Kartarpuri Bir),
authenticated by the fifth Guru.
2. Several Bani and hymns of Bhagats are missing in the
Manuscript.
3. The handwriting of the scribe is completely different from
that of Bhai Gurdas, who scribed the Kartarpuri Bir.
4. The manuscript was purchased by GND University in 1987
from a dealer of Amritsar. Nobody knows its antecedents. The
University authorities including the Librarian and the members
of the purchase committee pleaded ignorance, since according to
them, the dealer was not willing to part with his trade secret.
5. According to the supposed dealer's note on the manuscript,
and Pashaura Singh's surmise, there is a suggestion that the
manuscript is connected with the family of Baba Budha, the well-
known devout Sikh. The Ms 1245 has a Shlok attributed to Baba
Budha in which, like the Gurus, he has used the name "Nanak",
for himself. The successors of Baba Budha at Bir Baba Budha
Sahib, have completely denied the existance of any such Bir or
any hymn ever composed by Baba Budha.
6. There is no date nor scribe's name on the manuscript, nor any
evidence of its antiquity. Rather, there is conclusive evidence that the
manuscript was scribed much later than 1606 AD. There is a Nishan
pasted on the Bir on leaf 1253, which, the scribe claims to be of the
Sixth Master. Evidently, the scribe wants us to believe that he wrote
it during the tenure of Guru Hargobind. This claim has been rejected
even by Pashaura Singh, for, the Nishan bears no resemblance to
that of Guru Hargobind, but resembles that of Ninth Master. Thus
 113

there is no basis for Pashaura Singh to claim it as an earlier draft

of the Adi Granth, compiled by Guru Arjan Dev in 1604.
7 The Japuji version in the manuscnpt resembles closely with
that of Meharban, who had been considered an enemy, and ex-
communicated from the Panth by the Guru. The presence of
word 'Nanak' in the couplet on folio 3, also proves its Mina origin.
Even the dealer said that he had obtained it from a Meharban
group. The collectjon is undoubtedly part of the Mina Sahitya.
To call such literature an earlier draft of Guru Arjan, is an
unforgivable traversity of facts. This seems to have been planted
in the University in 1987, perhaps with ulterior motives.
8. Scriptures of most other religious faiths came into existence
long after the demise of the prophets concerned. The ex-missionary
group of Batala has been trying to deny originality and authenticity
of the Aad Granth (Kartarpuri Bir) on frivoluous grounds. The
present attempt attributing changes in the Bani of Guru Nanak, by
Guru Arjan Dev Ji appears to be part of the same plan.
9. The Ms 1245 gives on leaf 1255 dates of demise of the first
five Gurus in the same handwriting and the same ink-shade. This
fact alone conclusively proves that MS 1245 is a post-1606
collection. Pashaura Singh knows this, and that is why he makes
the mis-statement that the date of demise of Fifth Master was
written later.
10. Moreover, the dates of demise on folio 1255, do not mark
the end of the manuscript. The recording of collected hymns
continues for another 22 pages. This shows that the work on the
collection, continued later than 1606.
11. It is also incorrect to interpret that Manglacharan contains
the word 'Nirankar' or 'kartar. The word 'Karta purakh' is clearly
recorded.
12. By calling a forged and later manuscript as 'first draft'
Pashaura Singh is considered to have committed blasphemy on
four counts.
a. The Gurbani, .as proclaimed by Guru Nanak and other
Gurus, is not revealed Bani. For, later it can be changed and has
been changed by Guru Arjan. Its revealed and unalterable character
was there thereby by destroyed by the Guru himself.
b. That Guru Arjan made theological changes in the Bani of
 114

Guru Nanak.
c. That Guru Arjan made mis-representations in so far as he
passed his own Bani as Bani of Guru Nanak.
d. That the hymns which, for the Guru, were not true Bani
(or was Kachi Bani), are eulogised by the scholar to be the true
Bani of Guru Nanak, and that the authentic Bani, so declared by
the Guru, is not true Bani of Guru Nanak.
Can traversity of facts or blasphemy go further than this?
 115

7
GOINDW AL POTHIS-A POST 1595
PRODUCTION
By
DALJEET SINGH AND KHARAK SINGH MANN
In recent years there has been some confusion regarding the
relevance of manuscripts, including Mohan Pothis, as a source of
the Aad Granth of the Fifth Master, or textual analysis. This
misunderstanding needs to be cleared, especially because in some
quarters such manuscripts are being used as authentic source of
Gurbani. In order to understand the true position, it is essential to
grasp the significance of Guru Arjun Dev Ji's sagacious decision
and his unmatched vision in creating the Aad Granth.
Significance of the Aad Granth: It is well known that in the case
of all other religions, their scriptures are man-made, and were
compiled centu~ies or decades after the death of the concerned
prophets. It is the unique vision of Guru Arjun that, having sensed
the confusion and controversy in the case of other religions, and
having known that Minas and others were circulating spurious
hymns as those of the Gurus, and thereby misleading the Sikhs; he
made his landmark decision to compile the Sikh Scripture and
authenticate it. The Guru carefully organized all available material,
and scrutinized other granths or writings, including may be Mohan
Pothis. It is certain that every material, other than what was with
the Guru, available with any Sikh or non-Sikh must have been
procured or produced before him for inclusion. The Guru's search
for authentic material was so keen that he presumably obtained
Pransangli from Ceylon, but did not include it, being not Bani.
There are good reasons to suggest that the Guru had reliable
sources of Gurbani. The first Var of Bhai Gurdas clearly states that
Guru Nanak during his tours in West Asia carried a book with
him. Evidently, the book could neither be the Vedas, nor the Gita,
nor Quran; it could be nothing else than a collection of his own
hymns, and it is unimaginable that while appointing a successor, he
would not pass on to him this most valuable part of the heritage, or
that his successor would be less conscious or discreet in the matter and not
repeat the process of recoding the hymns and ensuring their preservation
and transfer to the successors. The Puratin Janam Sakhi records that
 116

at the time of appointing his successor Guru Nanak also gave

Guru Angad the manuscript of his Bani. There is another
maunscript, now with the Punjab University Lahore, quoted by
Dr. Mohan Singh Diwana in his book "Punjab Bhakha Te Chhand
Bandi", saying that Guru Nanak preserved his Bani and gave this
treasure (the word used is Khazana) to Guru Angad. Apart from
that, both Sahib Singh and Harbhajan Singh have compared this
Bani with that of the other Gurus. The comparison is based on
identity of diction, phraseology and idiom and they have produced
convincing evidence that all the Gurus were well acquainted with,
and had close knowledge of the hymns of their predecessors. This
authentic material for compilation of the Aad Granth was available
with the Fifth Master.
The preparation of the Kartarpuri Bir has triple significance,
namely; (a) That all authentic and revealed Bani has been included
in the Bir; (b) That no authentic Bani of the Gurus is outside it;
(c) That the Bani being revealed, it stands meticulously numbered
and compiled, so that no one could change even a word of it. The
Seventh Guru even banished his own son for changJng a single
word of it. And the Tenth Master was very angry with a Sikh
who wrongly pronounced a word which could be misConstrued.
The Scripture (Pothi) was installed at Harmandir Sahib, and was
revered throughout by the Guru and the Sikhs. The decision of the
Guru unambiguously laid down that there was no authentic Bani of
the Gurus outside it. Thus the question of any confusion, mischief
or textual analysis stands eliminated for all time by this compilation.
Textual Analysis Irrelevant: Here a few words about textual
criticism and its relevance. As noted,' except the Aad Granth,
there is no scripture in the world that was recorded either by or
in the time of the prophet concerned. Whether it was the Torah,
the Bible, th e Dhampada or the Quran, each was compiled
and finalised after the demise of the respective prophets. Hence
the problem of correct canon or textual criticism, form
criticism, redaction criterian and like criticisms have arisen.
In the time between the demise of the prophet concerned and
the date of its final compilation, there have been many man-
made versions of the concerned scripture or parts thereof. In
fact, in the case of Jewish and Christian Scriptures there are
 117

innumerable intervening manuscripts suggesting one inference

or the other. It has given unlimited mass of material to scholars to
exercise their intellectual ability or give vent to their idiosyncracies,
some of them being malicious. So much so that on the basis of a
doubtful and unproven manuscript, Morton Smithy went to the
extent of casting unbecoming aspersions on Jesus Christ. Now
the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947 has put in confusion
both the versions of the Talmud and the Bible. Hence the question
of textual analysis is irrelevant and stands distinctly eliminated
by the Guru. Because, for good reasons any manuscript even if it
were now presented as an old one, would be suspect and
valueless.First, its being old cannot be accepted, becasue in our
tradition and history no such manuscript (except Mohan Pothis)
is known; and its being without any history or with a doubtful
history, would by itself negate its claim. Second, it has to be
assumed that if it was there before 1604 AD., it was either knowingly
not presented to the Guru, or, if presented, it was rejected by him. In
either case the document becomes meaningless. After 400 years it is
difficult to accept the credibility of a scholar saying that he has been
able to trace Gurbani which the search, vision or the sense of
discernment of Guru Arjan failed to find or judge properly. Such a
claim would be too tall to have any sense or credibility. Hence the
irrelevance of all talk of textual analysis and the claim, pretension or
value of any manuscript and its use for any purpose.
Mohan Pothis: According to a traditional story there were
some Pothis with Baba Mohan. Two of these are extant, one at
Ahyiapur and the other at Pinjore. Bawa Prem Singh Hoti Mardan,
from a Bhalla family, refers to these Pothis. Three questions arise
about these Pothis, namely, their authenticity, their dating, and
the reliability of the story.
(a) Authenticity: On the point of authenticity we have already
stated that the Guru's decision to compile the Kartarpuri Bir
categorically emphasizes that any composition that is variant in
form or content from the Kartarpuri Bir is not Sachi Bani of the
Gurus. Therefore, a variant manuscript can neither be used, nor
have any claim to authenticity for the purpose of the identity of
Gurbani. Accordingly, if there is any variation in any Pothi or
Granth from Gurbani in the Aad Sri Guru Granth Sahib, it
 118

has to be considered unauthentic in the light of the historic decision

of the Fifth Master. Because of the tradition, it can be assumed that
the Mohan Pothis were with the Gurus and were rejected to the
extent their Bani is variant from the Bani in Aad Granth. Therefore,
except for the reverence in which any Pothi is held as a family treasurer
it cannot be of any significance as a source of Gurbani, which is
only the Aad Granth, the Living Guru of the Sikhs. This is the
unambiguous consequence of the decision of the Fifth Master.
(b) Dating of the Mohan Pothis: So far there is no clarity even
about the dating of the extant Pothis, much less is there a distinct
proof of their genuineness. According to tradition, these Pothis
ate said to have been recorded by Sahansar Ram, grandson of the
Third Master. The Fourth Master, while he was a Gursikh is also
said to have been associated with it. Except for an assertion and a
story, there is no evidence that either the Third Master got them
dictated through Sahansar Ram, or that they were written by
him in association with the Fourth Master, while he was Bhai
Jetha. On the other hand, the facts controvert such suggestions.
It is inconceivable that had the Third Master commissioned the
compiling of the Bani in these Pothis, there would not have been
any mark of the Master thereon. Bawa Prem Singh claims them
of the period between 1570-72 AD. This assertion is obviously
controverted by the Ahyiapur Pothi. On the first page of it the
year 1652 Bikarmi is recorded. The hand may be different from
the one in which the body of the Pothi is written. This
crorresponds to 1595 A.D. the period of the Fifth Master. It is
evident and natural that the person who has later written this
date has made an attempt to give it a date earlier than the date on
it while it was actually scribed, so as to claim for it greater antiquity.
It is out of question that the owner, scribe or author would ever
allow the Pothis to be postdated as against its actual date. Hence
the story of the pothis having been compiled in the time of the
Third or Fourth Guru is ruled out. It is significant that Kalyan
Das Udasi also gives 1595 AD. as the year of its production. Mrs.
Jaggi, who has only followed Baba Prem Singh mistakenly says
that Kalyan Dass does not support his view by any evidence. She
seems to have ignored the actual date (1652 BK) given on the
Pothi of Ahiyapur. Another important fact is that in Kartarpuri
 119

Bir the Fifth Master, records that the Japu of Guru Nanak had
been copied from the one recorded by the Fourth Master. That
being an authentic source, the fifth Master has clearly referred to
it. Had any Mohan Pothi also been written either at the dictation
of the Third aster, or in association with the Fourth Master, or
been an authentic source, it is unthinkable that Guru Arjan Dev
would not have clearly indicated its presence as a source of
authenticity, as he did in the case of Japuji Sahib.
(c) An impossible Story: Sahib Singh feels that the Mohan
pothis story, as had been the practice then of some writers,
including those of Janamsakhis, is just a narration woven around
a couplet of Guru Arjan's to seek popularity and recognition. In
the entire Guru Granth Sahib there is no hymn praising a person
other than the Gurus, much less is there a eulogy of one virtually
in the opposite camp. The word Mohan in the couplet means
and is thus addressed to God. It has decidedly no reference to the
person of Baba Mohan, Two facts are extremely against the
historicity of the story, and the manuscript.
The date (1652 Bk) as stated, clearly shows its post-Fourth
Guru production. Apart from that, the very fact that the Pothis
record that the custodians have the blessings of three generations,
show that it is a post-Third Guru production (1574 AD.) and not
one dictated or ordered by him. The reference of the Fourth Guru
or the fourth generation of the Gurus is not given, because the
Mohan group was opposed to the recognition of Guru Ramdasji
as the Guru or his line. As such, The production is certainly of
1595 AD or a date subsequent to It. Further, the note recording
about the blessings of the three Gurus adds that anyone not accepting
their leadership (Hundi) would go to hell. To suggest that such an
unbecoming method of cursing those who do not follow the Guru,
was utilized or dictated by him, is just an obvious traversity. This
statement could never be even at the remotest suggestion or
thought of the Guru. On the other hand, it is a statement by a
seemingly ustrated group or person (which the branch of Mohan
and Sahansar Ram was), wanting to regain recognition by such
curses and tactics of claiming to have the Pothi or Bani of the
Gurus. Hence the recording of the Pothis is certainly of the
time of Guru Arjun. Second, there is a strong reason for not
recognizing the authenticity of the Pothis. On the assumption
 120

that the Third Master did have his recorded Bani, it is just
ridiculous to suggest that whereas he conferred Guruship on Guru
Ramdas, he would convey, against the known tradition, the
treasure of the Bani to the estranged or aggrieved persons who
were even not willing to recognize the Fourth Master as the Blessed
Guru. The Guru Granth Sahib itself says that whereas Mohri the
Guru's other son, accepted Guru Ramdas as the successor, Baba
Mohan remained sullen and apart. Hence the story of the
authentic Bani being with this group is both an impossibility and
an inherent contradiction.
Conclusion: The conclusion is inevitable that even if the
Mohan Pothis had been available to the fifth Master, .he kept
what he considered to be Bani and rejected the rest. In fact, as we
have stated above, this is the task of scrutiny of Bani, the Guru
had been judiciously performing, Le., either accepting it as Sudh,
or correcting it, or' rejecting it.
However one may like to discard the idea, the facts do seem
to suggest that some persons have apparently felt uneasy at the
idea that the Sikhs have the unique distinction of having an
authenticahed scripture which had been compiled by their Guru.
First, there was in 1975 a misleading and incorrect suggestion, an
insinuation, that the Kartarpuri Bir had been tampered with by
obliteration of an unacceptable hymn. This suggestion made by
McLeod was considered blasphemous and irresponsible, becasue
it was made without examining the concerned Birs, without going
through the related literature on the point and in contradiction
of the known work of Jodh Singh which stated that there was no
such deletion. It seems to have been withdrawn because the facts
of the matter were too clear to enable him to proceed further
with the blasphemous suggestion.
Now another oblique route of textual analysis appears to have
been taken up under the guise of western scholarship. The seeming
object is the old one, namely, to attack the authenticity of the
Aad Granth. But, as earlier, the props raised to support it are too
feeble and frivolous to sustain it. For it is partly based on MS
1245 with an externally pasted and forged mark (Nishan) of the
Sixth Guru which is actually of the Ninth Guru. Further, the
manuscript contains in its contents, simultaneously recorded death
dates of the first five Gurus proving thereby that it is a post 1606
AD. production Partly, the attdck is based on a self-contradictory
 121

and discarded story of Mohan Pothis given currency by an anti-

Guru group.
Assuming that such futlle attempts have the cover of the
freedom of expression and also do not bring the promoters in
conflict with the law, we wonder if these can enhance the reputaton
of anyone for academic or moral credibility.
Note:Suggested reading on Goindwal Pothis Prof. Sahib Singh
D. Lit., "Gurbani Tay Ithas Baray" Principal Harbhajan
Singh, "Gurbani Sampadan Nirnay"
Principal Teja Singh, "Guru Granth Da Sampadan"
 122

PASHAURA SINGH'S "THE TEXT AND

MEANING OF THE ADI GRANTH"
By
RANBIR SINGH SANDHU

INTRODUCTION
Dr. Pashaura Singh's doctoral thesis [1], in his own words,
"seeks to reconstruct the history of the text of the Adi Granth"
and examine Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji's editorial policy, "particularly
his approach towards the inclusion of the Bhagat Bani in the Sikh
scripture. "The author has written about the preservation of their
writings by the Sikh Gurus, the compilation of the Sri Granth
Sahib and the editorial policy of Sri Guru Arian Dev Ji.
The author has put in an immense amount of work in
identifying numerous manuscripts, going through several of them
very carefully, and comparing them. An entire chapter is devoted
to the discussion of so-called different versions of the Adi Granth
Sahib and another to the origins of the various traditions. He has
correctly concluded that the source for all these later versions
was the Kartarpur manuscript. However, in analyzing some of
the data he had accumulated, he has made numerous assumptions,
and drawn several conclusions that appear to be quite rash. In his
discussion of the preservation of the Bani, editorial policy of Sri
Guru Arjan Dev Ji, the role of some manuscripts in the
preparation of the "final" version of the scripture, and the
motivation for the inclusion of the Bhagat Bani, his approach is
definitely questionable. Certain views are postulated without
presenting independent supporting evidence. Arbitrary assumptions
are made to bolster the claims, and significant conclusions are drawn
regarding his own speculative statements as proven facts.
Dr. Pashaura Singh ignores vital information, available
from the text of Sri Guru Granth Sahib, about the nature of
the revealed Word and the character of those who brought
the divine message. Presumably, this has been done in the name
of objectivity. His comment: "It is a conspicuous feature of the
modern Panth to perceive critical scholarship as an attack on the
Sikh faith" is indeed uncalled for and unfortunate. No one
 123

disputes the need for critical scholarship to establish facts.

However, many Sikhs have objected to what they consider to be
wild and sacrilegious speculation In the name of research. In the
context in which the author has made this comment, It must be
noted that the Banno-Kartarpur debate was settled by Dr. Jodh
Singh in his book [2] titled: Sri .Kartarpur Bir de Darsan. Since
that time, the debate has essentially been marked by Dr. McLeod's
refusal to accept the facts. It is gratifying to note that Dr. Pashaura
Singh has been able to satisfy Dr. McLeod that the entry of the
year on Banno version is indeed samvat 1699 and not 1659.
The purpose of the article is to look at some of the statements
made and the conclusions drawn by the author. Clearly, there are
two approaches to this exercise. One would use the contents of
the Adi Granth, the subject of Dr. Pashaura Singh's research, to
evaluate his analysis. This would be the approach of a "believer".
The other would ignore, as the author has done, the message of
the Adi Granth and the claIm of the Sikhs that its authors speak
on behalf of the Divinity. This 'secular' approach would regard
the contents of the Adi Granth as the work of ordinary mortals
who, driven by the d~sire for popularity and personal gain, might
possibly be willing to yield to sodo-political pressures.
PRESERVATION OF THE BANI.
Dr. Pashaura Singh states [1, page 2]: "It would appear that
Guru Nanak had a clear vision of preserving his own bani, by
committing it to memory in the first place and then possibly to
writing during his own lifetime". It is difficult to understand how
the author sets up a sequence of first committing it to memory
and then "possibly to writing." Did someone else compose these
verses for Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji that he had to commit it to his
memory? The author himself states [1, page 3] : "There are
numerous references in the hymns of Guru Nanak that point
towards the existence of a written tradition during his lifetime"
and that: "Bhai Gurdas records a tradition that Guru Nanak used
to carry a book (Kitab) of his own compositions on his missionary
tours." He records (1, page 3,3) two references to this in Sri Guru
Nanak Dev Ji's Bani and concludes correctly that: "This verse
clearly suggests that the Wtitten tradition of Gurbani must have
begun during Guru Nanak's lifetime. "Guru Sahib has himself
 124

said:
gun gie suin iliK dyie ] so srb Pl hir lyie ]
He who sings (God's) praise, listens to (the same), writes them
and gives them (to others), attains union with God who is the
giver of all rewards [3, page 838]
hir pV hir ilKu hir jwpu hir gwE hir Baujl pwir auqwrI ]
O Man, read God's Name, write God's Name, recite God's
Name, sing God's Name. God takes one across the ocean of fear
[3, page 669]
In view of Bhai Gurudas Ji's assertion and Sri Guru Nanak
Dev Ji's own instructions, it is clear that written records of
Gurbani were prepared by Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji himself, or
under his direct supervision, and carefully preserved by him. These
were possibly copied, even during his lifetime, by many disciples
and, conceivably, even reproduced extensively. As noted [l, page
7] by .the author, Sri Guru Amar Das Ji, in one of his verses,
exhorts: "Come, dear Sikhs of the True Guru, sing the true bani."
The Bani had to be available to be sung. Also in Raag Bilawal
Guru Amar Das Ji, writing about "seven days" (vwr sq) of the
week, refers to the "fifteen dates" (iQqI) of the lunar month. A
bani with that title was given by Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji and
immediately precedes the one by the third Guru. The connection
between the two is obvious and points to the fact that the third
Guru had the bani given by Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji with him
when he recorded the verse associated with his name. Clearly the
recorded bani as augmented by succeeding Gurus and the collected
works were transferred by each of them to his successor. The
timing and manner of writing it down are immaterial.
The conjecture, by the author, of Guru Nanak Dev Ji first
committing the bani to memory and then of his "possibly
committing it to writing during his own lifetime" stands in
contradiction of the author's own findings. This conjecture is at
the root of subsequent questions of authenticity, selectivity, and
possible revision of the text elaborated in his thesis; Noting the
ample evidence showing that the Gurus themselves preserved their
bani in writing possibly as it came to them from God, Dr. Pashaura
Singh's statement is unwarranted and the subsequent
 125

discussion based upon it without substance and merit.

COMPILATlON OF SRI GRANTH SAHIB
The author, trying to guess the reason for the compilation of
Sri Granth Sahib, regards the effort as "integral to the wider process
of crystallization of the Sikh tradition. "He quotes [1, page 16]
John Archer: "The bare fact of canon-making has significance in
itself. The Sikhs were intent upon a book." These comment by
Archer imply the need for a book, the absence of one, and a
deliberate attempt to create it. These are irrelevant to the subject
of the research because the Sikhs all along had a "book" inasmuch
as each Guru had the bani of his predecessors with him and kept
adding to it his own. The process of compiling Sri Granth Sahib
was continual one, having had its start with Sri Guru Nanak Dev
Ji. The content of the "book" increased through a process of
accretion based on continual revelation to Sri Guru Nanak Dev
Ji and his successors. It did not terminate with the Kartarpur
manuscript when scribed in 1604 A.D. The author correctly notes
about Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji: "Even during the last two years of
his life he added to the scripture a number of his own verses
before he died in 1606 CE." This is an affirmation of continued
revelation of the bani even after the Kartarpur MS was compiled.
Indeed the process continued till the bani of Sri Guru Tegh
Bahadar Sahib was included and Sri Guru Gobind Singh Sahib
conferred eternal Guruship upon Sri Granth Sahib.
Throughout, the text was extensively copied.
SOURCES FOR THE COMPILATION OF SRI GURU
GRANTH SAHIB.
a. The Goindwal Pothis
The author states [1, page 8,9] : "the first definite attempt by
the Sikh tradition to record a single collection of approved works
was evidently made during the Guru Amar Das' period '" Guru
Amar Das... prepared the so-called Goindwal pothis, at least two
of which are still extant with the descendants of the third Guru...
" It is understandable that the owners of these pothis would much
like to have these accorded the high status they claim for them.
However, it is by no means "evident" that these manuscripts were
"the earliest attempt" or that they were prepared during Sri Guru
Amar Das Ji's time. No evidence has been presented to establish
 126

that these pothis were prepared by, under the supervision of, or
even with the knowledge of Sri Guru Amar Das Ji. No evidence
has been produced to show that Sri Guru Amar Das Ji was aware
of their existence. These could well have been copies. The non-
availability of a source from which these were directly derived
does not mean one never existed. Their relationship to the
authentic bani of the Gurus could be quite remote. The author
correctly doubts (1, pages 9-12) the authenticity of the Jalandhar
pothi. The same doubts ought to extend to the others.
Even thQugh his statement regarding the Goindwal Pothis
being the "first definite attempt by the Sikh tradition to record a
single collection of approved works" is in contradiction of the
fact that Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji recorded his own bani and
"carried a book," the learned author has proceeded to accept,
without critical scrutiny, the story that Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji
"procured the Goindwal pothis for use in the compilation of the
Adi Granth. "He goes on to state (1 page 13) : "Although the
Goindwal volumes provided a substantial nucleus for formulating
the scripture there were other collections of the Gurus' hymns
that were preserved by devout Sikhs and. that must have been
available to Guru Arjan... "The question of "procurement" of
pothis has been dealt with very ably by Dr. Sahib Singh [4.) Here
we shall merely list the asssumptions implicit in the author's
statement. For Dr. Pashaura Singh's assertion to be valid one has
to accept the following premises: 1. Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji did
not have all the previous Gurus' bani with him as part of his
inheljtance. It would follow from this assumption that either each
Guru did not record and keep in his possession all the "bani"
given by himself and his predecessors or that part of all of such
records had been lost.
2. There were persons other than the Gurus themselves who
had authentic records of the bani of the current Guru or the
previous Gurus. This would imply that when the Gurus spoke,
records of the bani were kept, not for them, by themselves (or by
their immediate retinue) but by outsiders who chose to keep the
records in their own custody.
3. Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji, when he had "procured" these
documents, had some way of finding out whether any or all of
 127

their contents were indeed genuine and not fake (kach pich kcipc).
The third assumption a ove wou necessitate t e existence of a
"master" version against which the "procured" material could be
verified. Else, one would have to take the "believer's" approach
and assume that Guru Arjan Dev Ji had the ability to verify the
contents by inspection and from memory. This is in contradiction
to the need for "procurement" of the bani. There is no evidence
that these pothis had any bearing on the Kartarpur manuscript.
All available evidence points to the bani being in the personal
custody of each Guru during his time. This would be the "master"
version. If the Fifth Guru had this version with him, there would
be no need to "procure" material. On the other hand, if the Guru
could verify the contents without reference to a master text and
simply from memory or divine inspiration, this alternative could
serve as the primary source, eliminating the need for
"procurement." Of course, people were encouraged to write
the bani and evidently many copies more or less complete
and more or less contaminated came into existence. However,
to assume that the Gurus, in particular Sri Guru Arjan Dev
Ji, did not have access to the authentic bani of the preceding
Gurus and had to depend upon his Sikhs, and even upon some
who did not accept him as the Guru, to provide him the same
is altogether fanciful.
Dr. Pashaura Singh states (1, page 14) "Guru Arjan... was filled
with admiration when he examined the works of his predecessors
from the pothis, which he evidently obtained from various sources,
including the Goindwal volumes from Baba Mohan.." The first
part of the statement is verified by Sri Guru Granth Sahib (quoted
by the author on page 15 of reference 1). The later part is totally
speculative. There is nothing to indicate that the Khajana (Kjwnw)
referred to by Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji consisted of or even included
the Goindwal volumes nor is there any evidence that anything
was obtained fromMohan fi. There is no basis for assuming that
Sri Guru Arjun Dev Ji, in his admiration of the Khajana is
implying that he did not have the khajana with him all the while
and that there was a definitive date and time when he first saw it
after procurement". Noting that the Goindwal pothis were
 128

incomplete, the author states correctly [1, page 15] that "Guru
Arjan presumably had access to a second manuscript" If this is
so, the need for the incomplete pothis disappears. According to
the author [1, page 17, 18) : "Guru Arjan had before him a
considerable array of material gathered from reliable manuscripts
when he started to codify the compositions of the Gurus and the
Bhagats into an authorized volume..." These statements are
entirely conjectural. There is no evidence whatsoever to indicate
that Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji did not have with him the authentic
collection of the bani as augmented by each succeeding Guru.
There was no need for him to look for "reliable external sources."
Each Guru had the complete Bani with him and did not need
help from outside.
b. The GNDU MS # 1245
The learned author has seen a manuscript designated GNDU
MS # 1245 that was acquired by the Guru Nanak Dev University
in 1987 C.E. He has tried to prove it to be an earlier draft of the
Adi Granth Sahib implying that the bani as written after revelation
was revised by the Guru. In claiming its being an earlier draft,
the author asserts "the'standard rule of textual criticism" that "the
shorter reading is to be preferred to the longer one" and another
that "the more difficult reading is generally preferable." There
are serious questions regarding the assertion that this manuscript
predates the Kartarpur manuscript. The author has himself stated
that the introductory note regarding the autograph written in
"Guru Hargobind's blessed hand" is not correct. However, his
own observation that the autograph attributed to Sri Guru
Hargobind Sahib is fake, has not deterred the author from drawing
several conclusions. He also notes that the manuscript gives the
"death dates of the first five Gurus." Inspection of the manuscript
by some learned persons [5] who have provided copies of the
relevant page, clearly shows that all the entires are in the same
handwriting establishing that the manuscript was worked on
after Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji's passing away. He has not
produced any evidence that the manuscript was indeed written
by (or at the instance of) Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji, and that
Guru Sahib had it in his possession and used (or directed that
it be used) for the purpose of producing the "final draft." Many
 129

explanations can be given regarding the existence of this

manuscript. It could, among other possibilities, be a collection
made by some Sikh o.f whatever part of the bani he was able to
gain access to. There can be any number of reasons for the blanks
in some places. The difference in Raag sequence in various copies
is explained quite easily once it is accepted that the Gurus possibly
kept the barn in each Raag as a separate collection. Access to the
entire barn, in its original form, at one time would be a rare
privilege for any Sikh. The manuscript could very likely be a
compilation from bits and portions as they become available to
the writer. The writing of a shabad in Raag Talang whereas it is
in Raag Sum in the original, and then noting the error in the
margin conveys nothing beyond that the scribe made an error
and noted the same. The author has not provided any evidence
that the writing is of Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji or of Bhai Gurdas Ji
or any other known Sikh.
Incorrectly accepting the work to predate the Kartarpur
manuscript, the author has gone on to assume that the same was
prepared by or for Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji and that he had it with
him when the final version was prepared. Extending this line of
erroneous thought, he has concluded not only that Sri Guru Arjan
Dev Ji worked on sevral drafts of Sri Granth Sahib but also that he
frequently revised them. He attributes the authorship of a verse to
Baba Buddha Ji on the basis of a note by the booksellers. He goes on
to make the preposterous suggestion that the inclusion of the Bhagat
Bani in Sri Granth Sahib" reflected a situation wherein the followers
of those Bhagats (the Jats and the cobblers) were attracted into the
Sikh fold in large numbers." This would require us to believe that"
1. Dhanna Ji had a large following among the Jats;
2. People of various castes were followers of Bhagats belonging
to their own castes;
3. Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji deliberately augmented Sri Granth
Sahib during the preparation of the final draft by including the
Bhagat Bani in order to increase his followings.
There is no historical evidence to show that people of various
castes actually joined the Sikh fold because of the inclusion of the
Bhagat Bani. One wishes the author had provided some evidence
of Jats and cobblers becoming Sikhs because Dhanna
 130

Ji's and Ravidas Ji's bani was included in Sri Granth Sahib. Also,
if the author's line of argument be accepted, inclusion of a large
number of Kabir Ji's compositions should have led to a large influx
of people of the weaver caste. Sikh history does not provide any
support for the assumption that persons of various castes joined
the Sikh fold because the writings of Bhagats of their caste were
included in the Guru Granth Sahib.
The author notes some differences in titles of some collections
of verses and presumes that these were editorial corrections made
by Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji while preparing the final draft. His
argument that the Gurmukhi script of the manuscript, using a
dot for the kanna and some characters from the Sharda script
establishes it as an earlier draft does not stand scrutiny. It is well
known that a dot was still in use for the Kanna in Sri Guru
Hargobind Sahib's time. The scribe who wrote the GNDU #
1245 manuscript may not have been knowledgeable enough or
may have had certain preferences in writing style. Dr. Pashaura
Singh, using the word "evidently" to replace the need for logical
discussion states (1, page 22) "Guru Arjan evidently worked over
a number of drafts before he produced a 'final' text in 1604 A.D."
This statement is totally unfounded and offensive to the Sikh belief.
He has provided no evidence to show that Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji
did not have a complete set of all the bani as revealed to himself
and his predecessors or that he did not dictate the entire bani
himself, or that he made any changes in the bani given by his
predecessors. The mere existence of a manuscript - GNDU MS #
1245 or any other possibly predating the Kartarpur manuscript
cannot by itself give it the status of a draft prepared by the Guru.
The author's chart on page 23 [Reference 1] should start with the
Kartarpur MS; the claims regarding the so-called earlier
documentation, other than the one in the Gurus' own possession,
being entirely speculative.
EDITING THE KARTARPURI BIR
Compilation of any work includes collection of source
material, editorial selection of material that is to form the final
product, selection of a sequential order for presentation of the
material, and correction of errors of transcription, if any. In the
case of Sri Guru Granth Sahib, the source was revelation of the
 131

bani to the Gurus and, apparently, selection of additional works

of the Bhagats and Bhatts. The sequential order selected by Sri
Guru Arjan Dev Ji and, presumably, by his predecessors, was
according to Raag (music). It is easy to understand that Gurus kept
separate records of the bani in each Raag and the records were further
subdivided into collections of Shabads comprising dupadas, tipadas,
chaupadas,etc., by musical groupings (ghar); astapadis, chhants, special
collections and Bhagat Bani, under individual headings. It would be
extremely convenient and natural for each succeeding Guru to add
his own bam to each of these several sets as accretions at the end.
This is the arrangement in the Kartarpur Bir. It is also easily
understandable that those who made copies of bani might have had
access only to portions at a time and, for this reason alone, their
collections might differ in their order for each Raag.
The editorial necessity that Sri Arjan Dev Ji saw and resolved
was the handling of individual shlok and collections of shlok
that formed part of the bani. He added many of these at
appropriate locations in the several Vars and compiled those left
over as a separate collection. The author .states [1, page 30]: " ...
sections, each of which was carefully read by Guru Arjan Dev
before he was able to pronounce it sudh ('pure', correct)." As
explained by Dr. Sahib Singh, the comment sudh applies to the
Shlokes added to the Vars. There was no question of correcting
the bam that had already been recorded by the preceding Gurus
or by Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji himself.
OTHER BIRS
a. The Lahore Recension
Dr. Pashaura Singh, in discussing the Lahore recension, notes
correctly that the Kartarpur Bir indicates the dhunis for singing
the Vars. He correctly discounts the tradition that these were
introduced by Sri Guru Hargobind' Sahib. However, this does
not stop him from indulging in speculation regarding Sri Guru
Arjan Dev Ji's motives in giving that direction. He states [1,
page.66] : "Presumably the tradition of singing the Vars to the
heroic tunes may have begun during Guru Arjan's period or even
before with the specific purpose of attracting the rural people,
especially the Jats, into the Sikh fold." The Gurus used the local
vernacular in communicating God's message to the people.
 132

However, the suggestion that they would be choosing their words

to "attract" followers is contradictory to their teachings. They
were proclaiming the Truth - often bluntly and not soliciting votes.
Again, the author Starts with the assumption, introduced by
McLeod, that the Sikh faith was based on the so-called Sant
tradition before Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji's martyrdom and that
militancy was introduced into the faith by this event. Even if this
baseless suggestion is accepted, how would this "militancy" be
introduced by Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji before his martyrdom? In
fact, there never was any change in the Sikh belief even till the
times of Sri Guru Gobind Singh Sahib who states in the Zafarnama
[6] : "I came to the battlefield when there was no other alternative."
Also, he never continued any battle longer than necessary for
safety and peace. He never was an aggressor at any time. We note
too that Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji said [3] : "If you desire to play
the game of love, come my way with your head on the palm of
your hand." All the Gurus consistently preached the message of
Divine love and of meeting God through love and humility. At
the same time, they all inculcated fearlessness in the Sikhs and
taught them to stand up for truth and justice and for the defence
of the weak and the helpless.
b. The Banno Tradition.
Discussing the Banno tradition, the author speculates [1, page
73] : "It is quite possible that Guru Arjan's policy of frequently
revising the revised texts caused some resentment among the'
Udasi Sikhs." As there were no revisions of the divine word the
comment is superfluous, and words Udasi Sikhs is a contradiction
in terms since Sikhism rejects sanyas or being a reduce". The Banno
version is apocryphal and not the work of Sikhs. It has been in
existence for a long time but has never been accepted by the Panth.
In his concluding statements [1, page 89-91], the author states:
"although the Damdama version of the Adi Granth were used by
the Sikh community in the eighteenth century the Banno recension
was' predominant." This is incorrect. The author has himself
indicated that the apocryphal versions were, used by followers of
Sants and that the Banoo group, included Hindalis, Udasis, Bhatras
and Brahamins. All these groups were not Sikhs. The Sikhs have
always accepted as their Guru only the version that was given
 133

eternal Guruship by Sri Guru Gobind Singh Sahib. All other

versions are apocrypha In nature an lrrelevant to to Sikhs. The
Singh Sabha reforms" did not sanctify this version" as the auther
states; Sri Guru Gobind Singh Sahib did that.
c. Other Manuscripts.
. As has been stated earlier, many copies of the Granth Sahib
more or less complete and more or less authentic were prepared
by various people, The number of such copies surviving cannot
be made the yardstick for the acceptance or the prevalence of any
of them. This phenomenon would be greatly influenced by the
size of the congregation, availability of scribes and, most
importantly, of the political conditions in the region. The Sikh
Religious and Educational Trust Library has a manuscript of Sri
Granth Sahib completed in 1759 C.E. This manuscript is in a
single handwritng, does not include the Raag Maala; indicates
Mahala 10 after the first line of the Dohra in Sri Guru Tegh
Bahadar Sahib's Shlokes, has shlokes of Bhagat Kabir and Sheikh
Farid recorded after the Mundavani; has the shloke : "Tera Keta"
….included in Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji's shlokes; has the Swayyas
by the Fifth Guru and the Bhatts at the end; includes the Chhant
beginning with "Ranjhunjanra" in Raag Ramkali as completed
in the Banno version; and has "Chhad Har Bemukh ko Sang"
entered after Surdas shabad in Raag Saarang. It does not have
Mira Bai's hymn. It includes the dates of passing of Baba Gurditta
Ji and Guru Hargobind Sahib along with the note: "This is a
copy of the writing of the eighth Guru, the Creator Lord, who
wrote this with his own special hand (mhlw 8 mhly ATvy jI dw nklu
hY Kws klm AwpxI hQI iliKAw krqy puriK )." Utilizing the classification
given by Dr. Pashaura Singh, this would belong to the group of
manuscripts described as the Kangrah-Kiratpur tradition. It is
noteworthy that this manuscript lists the dates of passing of only
the .first nine Gurus. This would show that the original from which
it was copied was compiled during Sri Guru Gobind Singh Sahib's
time. The scribe who did the copying 51 years after the passing of
the tenth Guru apparently chose not to make any additions to the
text. It is also noteworthy that the numbers are recorded only on the
right hand margin of the right hand page when the manuscript is
opened but the left side is referred to by the same number in the
 134

table of contents. Such versions represent copies from other copies,

more or less correct and more or less complete but not correct
versions verified against the authentic bani. They have no value
or authenticity but an unscrupulous person can use it to make a
mountain of a mole hill.
TEXTUAL ANALYSIS
The author devotes a chapter to "textual criticism of certain
hymns and individual works in order to reconstruct the history
of the text of the Adi Ganth." He does this by examining the
textual variations in some of the hymns as they appear in the
Goindwal po this and in the so-called early manuscripts of the
Adi Granth. Having noticed the textual variations between the
Goindwal pothis and the GNDU MS#1245 on the one hand and
the Kartarpur Granth Sahib on the other, the author concludes
{I, page 140]: "It is quite evident from the occasional textual
variations in some of the hymns as they are recorded in the
Goindwal Pothis and in the manuscripts of the Adi Granth that
Guru Arjan frequently revised the received texts in the interest of
establishing a canonical scripture." This is an irrational conclusion
based upon the speculation that Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji did not
have the original bani and indeed relied upon the Goindwal pothis.
The entire exercise is fruitless because it is based on the
unproved assumptions that such earlier manuscripts predating
the standard version did indeed exist, that Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji
or the earlier Gurus were the authors of these, and that Sri Guru
Arjan Dev Ji indeed revised his work frequently. None of these
assumptions have any base. All are entirely conjectural. There is
a lot of discussion centering upon the Mul Mantar. The standard
version is given in Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji's own writing. No earlier
version exists. All the different versions presented by the author
are apocryphal writings and not stages in an evolutionary
process.The Japji is ascribed to Sri Guru Ram Das Ji. Referring to
the shloke at the begining of the Japji, the author states [ 1, page
102] : "Evidently this shloke was added by Guru Arjan much
later when he produced the final text of Japji". Noting its occurrence
in Gauri Sukhmani, the author asserts: This fact alone apparently
makes it the composition of Guru Arjan." The author's inference is
not only "evident" but indeed farfetched. In Sri Guru Granth Sahib,
there are numerous instances of the bani stated by the Gurus
 135

taining repetition of lines already given by earlier Gurus or

containing repetition of lines already given by earlier Gurus or
even by themselves. The author notes this on page 107 but still
goes on to draw the wrong conclusion. Why could he not accept
than in Gauri Sukhmani, Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji's shaloke is
repeated in a slightly different form? How does he assume that
Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji was trying to pass some of his own work
under Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji's name?
Similarly, the author has repeated (1, page 105] McLeod's
hypothesis that Sri Guru Angad Dev Ji "added his own shloke at
the end" of Japji. This is based upon the fact that similar shlake
under Sri Guru Angad Dev Ji's authorship appears in Raag. The
statement amounts to accusing Sri Guru Angad Dev Ji of passing
his work as if it was Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji's. Firstly, Sri Guru
Angad Dev Ji's giving, under his own name, a shloke that closely
resembled one by Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji would not be an unusual
matter. Secondly, can we accept that
Sri Guru Angad Dev Ji would lie regarding the authorship of
any verse? If indeed he had to add his shlake to Japji, why wouldn't
he, or after him Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji, write the words "Mahla
2" before the shloke ?
The author goes on : "The use of the word Sudh... in the
margins of the Kartarpur manuscript in a different hand acquires
a new significance in the light of the findings of the present study.
Clearly, Guru Arjan would employ it only when he had approved
the content, form and organization of the bani in a particular
raga section in the final text. "Once again, these comments are
speculative and not based on reason. According to Dr. Sahib Singh
[4], these comments Sudh or Sudh keechay, apply only to the (editing)
addition of shlakes (addition of) Slokas of the Vars. The author regards
them as marks of approval to the entire bani in that Raag up to the
end of the Var. Dr Sahib Singh's interpretation is supported by the
fact that these comments appear only in Raags where Vars occcur
and then not with all Vars either. If Dr. Pashaura Singh's haypothesis
is accepted we face the anomaly that the other Raags do not have such
comment. Also in that case, one would expect the comment of approval
to be at the end of the Bhagat in each Raag. The author's interpretation
appears to be motivated by the need to prove his somewhat outlandish
hypothesis that Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji revised and added to
 136

the text given by the earlier Gurus.

The author refers to Dr. Jodh Singh's work [2] as "Scrupulously
accurate." However, discussing the apocryphal addition in Raag
Ramkali in the Banno version, he ascribes a motive to Dr. Jodh
Singh in adding the word "shloke" and the count of 1 at the end
of the two lines by Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji. The error is definitely
there but it is difficult to see any motive in making an "incomplete
text look complete." The author himself has stated that such single
lines occur elsewhere in Sri Guru Granth Sahib. To bracket Dr.
Jodh Singh, one of the most illustrious scholars, with those who
sought to change the Guru's word is, to say the least, very unfair.
CONCLUSIONS
The main inferences of the thesis are based primarliy upon
the study of two manuscript that, the author claims, predate the
Kartarpur Bir and numerous others that followed it. He argues
that the Kartarpur Bir is the final text of the Adi Granth having
evolved through a number of drafts which Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji
revised frequently. We have attempted to show that the author's
reasoning is faulty and his conclusions rather hastily drawn
without looking at possible alternative scenarios. It appears that
he started by making the assumptions that Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji
did not have all the bani of his predecessors with him and had to
depend upon records kept by others, that he had in his possession
the two manuscripts, the author claims, that predate the final
version, and that he changed the bani frequently and added to
the collection with the purpose of attracting followers of particular
castes. He has regarded the Gurus as any other literary person
(who often has to revise his initial draft a number of times to take
it to final form); as ordinary public figures willing to tailor their
writings to soda-political pressures and to do what it needs to
increase their followings. Thus, the contents of Sri Guru Granth
Sahib, regarded by the Sikh as the sacred word of God revealed
through the Gurus, are reduced to the status of writings of socia-
political opportunists.
The Sikhs believe that the Gurus brought God's Word and
taught people the way td union with God. This makes Guru
God's own mouthpiece, as recorded by the Gurus. The Guru has
divine qualities. In Sri Guru Granth Sahib there are numerous
references and explanations of this concept.
 137

For instance.
guru gopwlu guru goivMdw ] guru dieAwlu sdw bKisMdw ]
Guru is the preserver the universe, Guru is Govind. Guru is
gracious, ever forgiving.
[3, page 1074]
guru prmysru guru goivMdw ] guru dwqw dieAwl bKisMdu ]
Guru is the Supreme Lord, Guru is Govind; Guru is the Giver,
the merciful forgiver.
[3, page 897]
guru myrI pUjw guru goibMd ] guru myrw pwrbRhmu guru BgvMqu ]
The Guru is my worship, the Guru is the preserver of the
universe. My Guru is god; the Guru is all powerful.
[3, page 864]
siqguru myrw sdw sdw nw AwvY n jwie ] Eh AibnwsI purKu hY sB mih rihAw smwie ]
My Satguru is forever...He does not take birth nor does He die.
He is the Eternal Pervader Who pervades all.
[3, page 759]
The Guru is regarded as a person having born in human form
for the salvation of the world, and in total communion with God.
The author has himself referred to Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji's
mention of his bani being sent by God [1, page 3]. However, he
adds ambiguity by stating [1, page 2], about Sri Guru Nanak Dev
Ji that "He frequently regarded himself as the mouthpiece of Akal
Purakh". The Sikhs firmly believe that the Guru was speaking
for God not only "frequently" but that all the bani preserved by
him for his successors came from God. All the succeeding
Gurus as well spoke for God.
Even disregarding the Sikh belief in the divinity of the Gurus,
the work by the author is replete with unsubstantiated statements,
disregard of available evidence and rash and unsupported
conclusions based upon conjecture contrary to logic.
REFERENCES
1. Pashaura Singh, "The Text and Meaning of the Adi Granth,
Ph.D. thesis submitted to the University of Toronto, Toronto,
Canada, 1991.
2. Jodh Singh, SRI krqwpur bIV dy drSn, " Punjabi Univerusity,
Patiala, 1968.
 138

3. Sri Guru Granth Sahib, the printed version of 1430 pages.

4. Sahib Singh, "Guru Granth Sahib Darpan, "Raj Brothers,
Jalandhar.
5. Gurnam Kaur and Kharak Singh, "Blasphemous Attacks".
 139

9
IF IT IS A Ph D THESIS?
By
Dr. DARSHAN SINGH
This thesis of Dr. Pashaura Singh builds itself entirely upon
only one point and tha! is that Goindwal's Pothis and the
manuscript No. 1245 lymg in Guru Nanak Dev Umverslty,
Amritsar, presumed to be of Adi Granth, were the manuscripts
which were available to Guru Arjan Dev at the time of the
compilation of Adi Granth. Therefore, according to Dr. Pashaura
Singh , Guru Arjan Dev worked upon these manuscripts and
prepared many drafts before the final draft of Adi Granth was
prepared in 1604 A.D. If only this were his opinion, though it is
unproved and hence unaccepted, it might have been considered,
at least for the sake of argument. But, he does not stop here. He
further observes that during the process of compilation of Adi
Granth Guru Arjun Dev worked upon the Bam of preceding
Gurus also. He changed the lines, the words, rearranged them for
the clarification and strengthening of a particular point of view
and made many interpolations and incorporations for the
refinement of the words and adjustment of ideas. This observation
in terms of its authenticity is not only untenable but unthinkable.
Rather it is criminal and unlike of a research scholar. Further,
the whole of this thesis is standing upon the walls of sand, and
the moment it confronts the reality, it collapses.
Dr. Pashaura Singh writes on page 9, "Thus there is a question
of the authenticity of the Jalandhar Pothi and of whether or not
it is one of the original volumes prepared under the supervision
of the third Guru or just a copy of the original". He himself is
not sure of the authenticity or the originality of the Pothi. To me
it appears from the subsequent treatment of the subject from PP.
9 to 12 by Dr. Pashaura Singh himself that these two pothis,
which he has consulted, are the copies of an original Pothi
prepared by Baba Sahans Ram which was lost like most of the
precious Sikh literature, during the turmoil of Sikh history. In
the process of copying, scribes either committed mistakes or
changed or manipulated to meet their own vested interest.
This can be the attempt of Hindalis or Minas. Dr. Singh has
ex tolled them because he has made these Pothis the
 140

touchstone for examining the manuscript of Adi Granth.

Dr. Pashaura Singh further states, "This theory of the Origin
of the Banno tradition, therefore, represents the union of Hindali,
Udasi and Bhatra interest", (p. 74). This exactly is the case about
the Goindwal Pothis and the manuscript No. 1245 which he
consulted. Like other innumerable later recensions of Adi Granth,
Manuscript No. 1245 is full of variations and deviations. This
also is the product of vested interests of the estranged sections of
the Sikhs after the execution of Guru Arjun Dev ji.
All the 8 features of Manuscript No. 1245, discussed by Dr.
Pashaura Singh, on pages 25 to 27, can easily be reversed for
evolving a factually correct perspective and thus it can be
concluded that the change in all the eight cases was actually
brought in by the later scribes. Thus, one is led to believe, because
the whole treatment of this subject by Dr. Pashaura Singh points
towards this end, that he has made very funny formulations. For
example, he says on page 93 to 97, thatGuru Arjun Dev revised
the Mul Mantar from the Goindwal's Pothi to Manuscript No.
1245, and from Manuscript No. 1245 to the present Granth. Does
it make any sense? Particularly, when he himself believes, "The
origin of the major components of the earlier form of the Mul
Mantar as given in the Goindwal Pothis can be traced directly
from the work of Guru Nanak", (p. 93)
There are three points which deserve our attention: First,
"Further, it is claimed that the manuscript contains a hymn
written in Bhai Budha's hand on the third decorated page", (p.
27). Bhai (Baba) Budha was not a writer. Therefore, this conclusion
is fake. Second, in Manuscript No. 1245, this hymn, claimed to
be written by Baba Budha Ji, is written in the name of Nanak
like the succeeding Gurus' way of writing in the name of Nanak.
This fact Dr. Pashaura Singh likes to hide. How can a devout
Sikh like Baba Budha do this? Third, Baba Budha was alive even
after the execution of Guru Arjun Dev Ji. If, he had written a
hymn and it was included in the Adi Granth, it could be done
only after the execution of the 5th Guru. It could not be the case
that Guru Sahib included his hymn in one manuscript, that is
manuscript No. 1245, and dropped the same in the Adi Granth.
Furthermore folio 1255 of the manuscript contains the death-
 141

dates of the first five Gurus only", (p. 28). There cannot be a
more solid and dependable proof than this one. Second,
Manuscript No. 1245 extends beyond pp.1255 upto 1266 i.e. even
after giving the death dates of five Gurus. This clearly indicates
that this Manuscript is not written by one person and also not at
one time. This together with other indications, like unsystematic
arrangement of the matter, leaving about 150 pages blank, about
12 pages with only one hymn written on them, missing of the
Bhagats Bani the inclusion of the Kachi (not approved by Guru
Arjun Dev) and Paki (approved by Guru Arjun Dev) Bani
aItematingly, clearly means that writers of this manuscript No.
1245 did this job after the execution of the 5th Guru and the
compilation of Adi Granth in 1604 A.D.
Since the hand-writing of Manuscript 1245 is different from
that of Bhai Gurdas, and the Adi Granth was undoubtedly written
by him, the whole story of the Manuscript No. 1245, being on
earlier manuscript is proved to be fabricated. He says, "Bhai
Gurdas, who may have further improved his handwriting by the
time he wrote the final draft of the Adi Granth", (p. 28). Does
this observation make any sense? As if, the first draft he wrote
when he was a child.
"A comparative analysis of the earlier manuscripts (Goindwal
Pothis and the GNDU MS 1245) and the Kartarpur Bir has
revealed that Guru Arjun standardized the Gurmukhi script when
he prepared the final text of the Adi Granth", (p. 32). It means Guru
Arjun Dev used an underdeveloped script when he wrote M.S.1245
(presumed by Dr. Singh) : and a developed one when he wrote
Kartarpuri Bir. Can there be a statement more funny than this?
Kartarpuri Bir definitely was written earlier than M.S. 1245.
In addition to the above mentioned points the following points
further confirm this fact:
(1) It contains editorial comments given by the compiler, that
is, Guru Arjun Dev Ji. Dr. Singh himself writes, "The editorial
comments in this manuscript, which are unique and quite
revealing, are not to be found in any other manuscript" (p.28)"
(2) The autograph of the sixth Guru is on folio 45" (p.29)
(3) The actual recording of the Mul Mantar is in Guru Arjun's
hand, (p. 29)
 142

(4)"The date of completion of the volume is recorded at

the head of the Table of Contents as follows', (p.28) that is 1604
A.D.
(5)Guru Arjun Dev himself writes 'Sudh' (Correct, final) at a
number of places in the Kartarpuri Bir.
In the face of such a factually solid evidence there remains
practically no place for any doubt about the originality and the
precedence of Kartarpur Bir.
Dr. Pashaura Singh raises the issue of Guru Arjun Dev's adding
a couplet in between the years 1604 A.D. and 1606 A.D. in the
Adi Granth. In support of his argument he writes, "The use of a
different pen and the absence of its mention in the index clearly
indicate that this couplet was added after the compilation of the
scripture in 1604 and before Guru Arjun's death in 1606", (p. 32).
The use of a different pen and the absence of its mention in the
index is made out to be the reason for its later incorporation.
Sikh historical chronicles amply record that Guru Arjun Dev,
after completing the compilation of the Adi Granth brought it in
a procession, in a royal manner, placed it on a higher platform
and he himself sat at itS feet. Second, right from the days of Guru
Nanak, the 'Shabad' is adored like the Guru and Guru Arjun
Dev anticipated the embodiment of that concept by Guru Gobind
Singh Ji at Nander. Will he himself change it just to include only
one of his couplets in it ? Do the above said two reasons justify
addition? For it has already been shown that M.S. 1245 is a
manuscript which was prepared much after the execution of Guru
Arjun Dev Ji.
Therefore, once this fact is established that Goindwal pothis
and Manuscript 1245 were written after Kartarpuri Bir, the whole
perspective of the thesis is changed because the entire treatment
is factually and logically based on wrong presumptions and the
incorrect proposition that M.S. 1245 was written earlier than the
Kartarpuri Bir. Therefore, the whole structure of the thesis
becomes baseless and unsustainable. Thus whatever he has
discussed in the subsequent pages, given the correct perspective,
proves otherwise. The thesis thus becomes an out-burst of aR
undisciplined mind and irrelevant by itself. The genealogical map
on page 23 also becomes absolutely undependable.
 143

On page 92 to 101, Dr. Pashaura Singh argues that Mul Mantar

was framed by the manuscript writers before Guru Arjun Dev.
He also believes that this Mul Mantar was arranged with the help
of the words taken from the Bani of Guru Nanak. This observation
is contradictory. The Mul Mantar was written and arranged in
the present form by Guru Nanak himself and, therefore, it is not
the creation of the wnters of Gomdwal's Pothis or Manuscript
No. 1245. In fact, the situation is clearly otherwise. This was
written by Guru Nanak, Guru Arjun placed it, as it was, in the
beginning of, Adi Granth, and the later scribes, including those
of Govidwal's Pothis and M.S. No. 1245, because of diverse
reasons, made changes. The above said two manuscripts are, in
fact, the product of unknowing and notivated scribes and,
therefore, are full of mistakes. Dr. Pashaura Singh himself writes,
Guru Arjun seems to have indicated that the ultimate source of
all the Bani is the Eternal Guru, who revealed himself through
Guru Nanak and his successors", (p.101)
Thus, Dr. Singh accepts the claims of Guru Nanak and his
successors that this Bani is revealed one (Dhur Ki Bani, Khasam
Ki Bani), that they are only the vehicle of communication and
that their word is actually the word of God. This status of Bani is
undoubtedly accepted by Guru Arjun Dev himself. Historically
speaking, we know that the 7th Guru punished his son by turning
him out of the house, because he, under fear or temptation,
changed a word (that too verbally) while reciting Bani in the
Mughal Court of Delhi. Such a small alteration was not forgiven
even to the son of the Guru. In this situation, will Guru Arjun
Dev, for that matter any devout Sikh, ever think of changing,
improving upon or making interpolations in Bani? Dr. Pashaura
Singh insists that Guru Arjun Dev made changes in order to
restructure the Mul Mantar and so many other hymns, thereby,
implying that Guru Nanak and his successors wrote Bani which
required further corrections or improvements. This only Pashaura
Singh can say, knowing full well that this point of 'view could
not stand the test of fact and logic.
Dr. Singh further says, lilt should however, be emphasized
here that this revision is in keeping with both the rhythm and
the meaning of the hymn", (p. 21). I don't think that there can
anything more absurd than this observation; as it implies
 144

that Guru Arjun Dev earlier wrote something which was

unrhythmical and meaningless. Clearly these changes were
brought in by the later scribes.
Dr. Pashaura Singh's claimed linguistic modifications of certain
words in a hymn are discussed from page 120 to 125 and change
of the musical mode of a hymn from page 125 to 130. Similarly,
his treatment about Guru Arjun's Ram Kali Bani is discussed
from pages 120 to 130. In fact, the whole of this chapter stands
on the ill-conceived presumption that the variations took place
either before the compilation of the Adi Granth or after it, between
the years 1604-1606. It has amply been shown that both the
presumptions are wrong. Hence whole of the chapter collapses.
Since all these supposed changes appeared in the later versions,
Goindwal's Pothis and manuscript no. 1245, which he consulted,
were prepared or copied from the original manuscript by the
Hindalis or Minas, who have committed mistakes or brought in
interpolations to serve their vested interests.
In order to prove his point, he wrongly associates authorship
of the second hymn with Guru Gobind Singh. This opinien he
claims to have formed on the basis of information contained, in
the early manuscripts, (p. 153). The myth of early manuscripts is
already exploded. The two hymns are undoubtedly written by
Guru Teg Bahadur. Invariably, the theme of the second part of
both hymns is identical, it is like this:
KAHO NANAK AB OAT HAR (I) GAJ (I) JEO HOH (U)
SAHAI NANAK SABH KICHH TUMRE HAATH ME
TUMHI HOT SAHAI M.9., S.G.G.S.P 1429
Therefore, on the basis of this version the issue of thematic
continuity cannot be disproved. Moreover, such like observations
prove lack of understanding of a piece of literature. This is further
exemplified by another observation of Dr. Singh. He says, "Also
this was time when he appears to have instructed his son to add his
own Bani to the Adi Granth for the sake of preparing the final text",
(p. 153). There is a clear case of ignorance resulting in mischief by
the author. He wants to prove that Guru Gobind Singh defied his
father by not adding his Bani except one hymn, in the Adi Granth.
If he wrote and added this hymn to Adi Granth' he could also add
 145

more of his Bani which he wrote in abundance. It should have

been possible for him to add, If he wanted, especially when
according to Dr. Pashaura Singh, he got the sanction of his father
the 9th Guru.
At 'many places, he writes s-heer libel. He presumes that Gurus
were in search of clients in order to put everyone in their basket.
This is neither historically true nor logically acceptable,
particularly when we know that in Sikhism there is no concept
of conversion. Whosoever entered the door of Sikhism, did so
mainly because of his ideological commitment in terms of his
declared objective of being on the side of the oppressed. His main
objective was to make available freedom, equality and brotherhood
to all human beings. But, let us have a look at this author's method
of treating Sikh Guru being governed by mundane objectives.
He writes that Guru Arjun deliberately got the Bir autographed
by the Sixth Guru so as to ensure his succession (of Guru Har
Gobind) in the wake of prevailing hostility, p.p. 29-30.
The selection and fixation of the heroic tunes for the singing of
the Vars of the Adi Granth was done for the "specific purpose of
attracting the rural people especially the Jats into the Sikh fold, (p. 66)
In order to prove a hypothetical thesis about Mul Mantar, he
contrives a very strange explanation. He argues that the word
'Nirvair' was brought in the Mul Mantar by Guru Ram Das to
"Gounteract the situation of hostility in real life", (p. 96)
Dr. Pashaura Singh writes that the placing of the Shalok in
the end of Japuji Sahib was an attempt on the part of Guru Nanak
"to institutionalize the office of Guruship to ensure its survival
and permanence", (p. 108)
While discussing the placing of Guru Arjun's own Shalok
before that of Guru Nanak, he argues, "It serve~ to underline
Guru Arjun's claim that he carries the spiritual authority of Guru
Nanak", (p. 147). It means that even after the tradition of
generations and after serving the Panth for twenty-five years on
the seat of Guru Nanak, he still had to prove that he carried the
spiritual authority of Guru Nanak. Can there be a more funny
statement than this ?
About the inclusion of the Bhagat Bani in the Guru Granth
Sahib he argues, "Although Kabir is prominently represented in
 146

the Sikh scripture followed by Namdev, Ravidas and Sheikh Farid,

eleven other figures from different regions and castes are given a
token representation to justify the Sikh claim to universality",
(p.p. 174-75).
While writing about the use of Dakhni musical tunes Dr.
Singh writes, "Their use in the Adi Granth may perhaps be seen
as symbolic expression of the Sikh claim to universality, which
would embrace a southern audience", (p. 200).
Attaching motives to every move of the Sikh Gurus amounts
to distorting the facts and suggesting them to be nothing more
than politicians persons. Does it behove a scholar? One who looks
through coloured glasses, finds the same colour everywhere.
Some of Dr. Pashaura Singh's observations are really
blasphemeous and mischievous distortions. For example, while
disscussing the inter-relationship of the two hymns given under
the authorship of Guru Teg Bahadur in Guru Granth Sahib, (p.
1429), Dr. Pashaura Singh concludes, "It may also reflect the
contemporary debate over the issue of Sikh identity: that is
whether one follows the teachings of Guru Nanak and his
successors contained in the Adi Granth or one joins the Khalsa
of Guru Gobind Singh", (p. 86). The suggestion that the two are
different is a baseless attempt to divide Sikhism right from its
foundation. He first builds a wrong hypothesis and then tries to
make it believeable by introducing distortions. Again, he says,
Guru Arjan's frequently revising the received text along with other
reasons was due to "internal pressure created in the Sikh
community as a result of disagreement over Guru Arjan's editorial
policy also (p. 74)". There was not, nor could be disagreement
over Guru's decisions. The suggestion is a deliberate distortion.
Again while discussing Guru Har Gobind's resolve to fight
the imperialist oppression by taking up arms against it, Dr.
Pashaura Singh hypothetically presumes a situation in which he
tries to say that Sikhs were divided over this policy. He writes,
"Presumably these groups were still holding Sant beliefs and did
not approve the shift towards militancy in the affairs of the Panth",
(p. 76). This tendency of Pashaura Singh to twist the facts shows
his anxiety to please his mentor by becoming the mouthpiece of
his shallow views that already stand blasted by scholars.
 147

Within the Sikh Panth there have been no, nor could be, two
groups. These are only a few selected instances from a long list of
deliberate distortions made to please his supervisor.
Similarly, Dr. Pashaura Singh is in the habit of making
unwarranted comments. Just for example on Page 12, he writes,
"In designating his son-in-law as Guru, Guru Amar Das had
'bypassed' his own sons, Baba Mohan and Baba Mohri", (p. 12)
Again, on page 108, he tries to prove that Guru Angad's Shalok
was added to 'insure' the survival of Guruship. Probably, Dr.
Pashaura Singh does not know the meaning of the words 'bypass'
and 'insure', and of their inapplicablity at least in the given context
of spiritual merit for Guruship.
Throughout his thesis, Dr. Pashaura Singh makes uncalled
for, wrong and distorted remarks which do not behove a scholar.
Many examples have been given. Similarly he writes that Adi
Granth was created as a text parallel to Vedas. Such statements
only expose his ignorance and level.
Dr. Pashaura Singh very rarely touches upon the philosophical
or ideological aspects of the Bani in the Adi Granth. Even in his
Chapter 6, which should have been devoted to these problems,
he side-tracks the main issue. On top of it, whenever he just
touches upon these issues, he is wrong. For example, his
explanation about the word 'Hukam' and 'Raja' is absolutely
wrong. He further writes, "He stresses the functioning of the
divine order (Hukam) in human affairs, which overrides the law
of Karma", (p. 6). In this explanation ~e relationship between
Hukam and Karma is based on wrong tnterpretation. The
'Hukam' does not override the law of 'Karma'. On the other
hand Hukam or His will is pressed into ?,otion by God. Law of
Karma is, in fact, not something which IS separate or independent.
There is no question of overriding of one by the other.
Similarly, while discussing Guru Arjun's hymn, he concludes'
that the appreciation of the contribution of the saints drawn from
so-called low castes means Guru Arjun's attempt to attract the
Jats into Sikh Panth, (p.p. 173-74).
I don't know how one can form such far-fetched and hollow
theories. Sikh Gurus genuinely believed that no one is lower or
higher because of his birth. Each individual is equal in spirit and
form and hence is the embodiment of the same elements.
 148

Therefore, whosoever achieves distinction by his actions

deserves the appreciation of the Sikh Gurus. They appreciated
the Sants drawn from so-called low-castes in this context. The
attempt to divide the society into fragments and fix their
estimation through this method was not the ideology of Sikh
Gurus. They were genuinely interested in oneness of God and
oneness of mankind and this was the core of their teaching.
Second, this theory is absolutely wrong that Jats were attracted
towards Sikhism only during or after the period of Guru Arjun
Dev. For this purpose one cannot ignore the fact that even before
Guru Arjun Dev, like other communities including Muslims, Jats
joined the Sangat of Guru Nanak and they continued to participate
in its growth. In order to verify this point one has to have a look
at the list of Sikhs given by Janam Sakhis, and Bhai Gurdas and
of the generals of Guru Har Gobind's forces. The attempt to divide
Sikhism, on caste basis, however clever it be, could not succeed in
history and this is not likely to succeed even now. It is so, precisely
because in Sikhism ideological commitments throughout the
struggle remained unchanged. It is not a sociologic~l development.
Sikhs, as individuals and also as a community, are bound by certain
ideological considerations. Therefore, the understanding of
Sikhism requires a deep understanding of the Bani and its
philosophy.
Dr. Pashaura Singh touches upon another theoretical point
also. He refers to the status of Reality in Sikhism, particularly, in
terms of God being personal and impersonal. Undoubtedly in
Sikhism, God is one, formless and very personal. He is absolufely
not impersonal. He is personal to the extent that He intensely
loves all beings, and as a mother or a father loves them. He shapes
the destiny of his people like a teacher. He accompanies them through
the difficult period like a genuine friend and He takes them across
like a competent guide. On the whole, He is with His people in all
and in every situation, being nearer than anything else. This can be
possible if He is formless. Therefore, Sikhism conceives of a God
who is formless and is within each being at the same time. Therefore,
the traditional perception of God, His being personal or impersonal,
transcendental or immanent, Sarguna or Nirguna, does not apply to
the concept of God in Sikhism..In a similar context,
 149

Dr. Singh comes to a very funny conclusion when he distinguishes

between a personal Guru and a divine Guru (p.95). As if a personal
Guru cannot be a divine Guru and divine Guru cannot be
personal. This simply speaks of his poor understanding of the
issues with which he is dealing.
Dr. Pashaura Singh begins his thesis with the point that the
collection of Bani was started by Guru Nanak himself. This point
has already been established by Dr. Sahib Singh in his 'Sri Guru
Granth Sahib Darpan', (Vol. 3, p.p. 803-828).
Height of his ignorance is amply displayed when he says, "In
fact, the first complete vernacular commentary on the Adi Granth
appeared only in the begining of the century", (p. 217). This
process started much earlier through interpretation of different
Parnalis which he himself has mentioned in the subsequent pages.
Here he takes a self-contradictory stand.
While discussing the editorial scheme of Guru Arjun Dev Ji,
Dr. Pashaura Singh mainly depends upon two aspects. First he
deals with different schools of criticism or interpretation available
in Punjabi since its origin. The second aspect is locating the
musical basis of the Bani. The first part, as he himself admits, is
borrowed from Dr. Taran Singh. And the second part is totally
wrong. In his Raga organization of the Adi Granth, (P. 195), he
makes indefensible mistakes which clearly show that the author
does not know much of this subject. It is true that Guru Arjun
Dev arranged the major portion of Bani in accordance with the
Ragas in which that portion is prescribed to be sung. This factor
is known to every one. But let us have a glance at how Dr. Pashaura
Singh treats this subject:
1. While writing in the beginning of page 195, he says, "The
basic division of the middle section of the Adi Granth is according
to ragas or melodic patterns". This cannot be called melodic
phrases or notes. This is how the very beginning is wrong.
2. On the same page he observes by quoting his personal
interview with Professor James Stephan, "Apart from the Sikh
tradition the Asa Rag is now found in the musical tradition of
Afghanistan and not in musical traditions of North India." Asa
Raga is in fact very popular in Sikh tradition as well as in almost
all the musical traditions of India since the days of Guru Nanak.
In fact, many scholars are of the view that the Asa Raga
 150

is a local Raga i.e., a Raga of this land.

3. On the same page, 196, he has used the word "pure notes"
for sudhang. Now these notes are neither pure nor impure. In
music they are major or minor.
4. On page 197, he says, "Obviously he had intended to
compile a scripture with a theological as well as musicological
coherence in mind." Guru Aqun's theological concerns are evident
but musicological ones are not the end in themselves. It is only a
vehicle through which one can reach at the meaning, the spirit,
the inspirational part of Bani. Therefore, the two cannot be
equated.
5. On the same page, he has translated "Ragan Vich Sri Rag
Hai" as "Sri Rag is chief among the Ragas". This translation is
wrong and distorted mainly because the whole line is not kept
in mind. In fact, Guru Amar Das accepts Sri Rag conditionally.
Similar is the case with most of other Ragas also. They are accepted
only if they help in reaching at the goal. The traditions in which
Raga was the ultimate end, are, by now, lost to the dust of history.
6. In terms of the time theory of the music the emphasis is
not upon Purvang or Uttarang, (p.199). It is on the common or
Sudh Suar.
7. The Gharana cannot be translated as 'family'. It has to be
'school,' like Patiala school etc., (p. 204).
8. On Page 202, he says, "This kind of classification is to be
found in the Adi Granth Rag Mala". This is true that this
classification is found in Rag Mala, but it is not applicable to the
Ragas used in Adi Granth. In the Adi Granth the Ragni is not
used. All the Ragas given in Raga Mala are not used. Similarly, all
the Ragas used in Adi Granth don't find mention in Raga Mala.
Unfortunately, in the above statement, Dr. Pashaura Singh tries
to confuse the readers in terms of Adi Granth and Raga Mala
relationship. Obviously, the author of this thesis neither knows
the spirit of the Adi Granth, nor the Bani and Raga relationship
in it; his technical expertise is out of question.
9. This can further be exemplified with a quotation from his
thesis. On page 66 he writes, "There are other such poetic 'genres
(ghorian, alahanian, birahara and pahare) which are modelled on
the folk tunes in the Adi Granth". Now, these folk forms of poetry
 151

or folk tunes were there even before the Adi Granth. What Sikh
Gurus did was a unique experiment. They rescribed these forms
to be sung in classical music. For example, it is prescribed in Adi
Granth to sing ghorian and alahanian in Raga Vadhans, and
Birahare in Rage Asa. In fact, this was done by Sikh Guru to
produce "balanced effect on the minds of both listeners and
performers", (pp. 200-201). For this they brought the folk music
under classical discipline and 'toned down' the classical by singing
them in folk tunes in order "to create a reflective mood".
Contradictions in statements, information and arguments and
casual and unauthentic statements are the landmarks of this thesis.
Therefore, it is very difficult to draw any clear or useful
information about any of the points made by the research scholar;
he starts or concludes almost every point with the word:
presumably, possibly, may be, seems to, etc., as if he himself is
not sure about what he wants to say.
Another problem with Dr. Pashaura Singh and his supervisor
Dr. W.H. McLeod is that both of them do not know the meaning
of the words of Grubani. And a still more serious problem is that
without it, it is very difficult to understand the growth of Sikh
history, Sikh institutions and Sikh doctrines. In order to overcome
this difficulty Dr. Pashaura takes refuge in "reader response", (p.
210), theory of Schuyler Brown. He says, "McLeod is suggesting
an approach that maintains that the process of unfolding the
meaning of the Adi Granth text depends upon the level of the
understanding of human beings", (p. 210). But to their dismay
this theory does not work in terms of understanding of Gurbani.
This can be partially true in case of Vedas or old Testament because
they are written in classical languages and also they do not support
the growth of history. Such vague references to inapplicable ideas,
while they could mislead western persons ignorant of Gurbani,
but not those who understand something of it. Even otherwise,
the inefficiency of a reader, particularly of a scholar, cannot be
the responsibility of the text. The text has to be understood by
genuine interest, labour and keenness to know more. I fear both
the gentlemen are wanting in it. There is clear evidence to this
effect in the present work.
As far as the quality of work is concerned manuscript No.
 152

1245 and Dr. Pashaura Singh's thesis are almost identical in their
performance, accuracy and level. Both are ill-logical and
ill-supported, and are inspired by vested interests and a strong
sense of vengeance. Both contain stray collections of material and
ideas, in many cases, copied from others and serve no meaningful
purpose in academic compilation, research or ideological
understanding. It is beyond one's comprehension how such a
baseless, absolutely irrational and apparently blasphemous attempt
could be accepted as a Ph.D thesis by a university of an advanced
country or supposed to have been supervised by a teacher of Sikh
studies. No one is to blame if reasons for doing so are considered
unacadamic. I am particulary pained to know that this gentleman
was earlier a student of Gurmat College, Patiala, and a Granthi
of a Gurudwara in Canada.
NOTE: The page nos. which I have given throughout, mean
numbers of the pages of the manuscript (by Dr. Pashaura Singh),
which I have reviewed.
 153

10
THE TEXT AND MEANING OF THE ADI
GRANTH : CRITICAL COMMENTS
By
Dr DEVINDER SINGH CHAHAL
Introduction
The work entitled, "The Text and Meaning of the Adi Granth"
was submitted by Pashaura Singh (name abbreviated as PS in this
article) in conformity with requirements for the Degree of Doctor
of Philosophy to the University of Toronto in 1991. It has become
the second recent biggest controversy since the Panth (Khalsa
Commonwealth) has again become active after a long time to
safeguard the Sikh philosophy presented in the Aad Guru Granth
Sahib (AGGS). The first one was the work of Dr W.H. McLeod (1).
Although Sikhism came into being when the science was in
its primordial form, I have found it the most scientific and logical
religion which is without any mythology; but some writers have
been trying to portray it as another mythological religion similar
to Hinduism. Since its foundation and now others are undermining
the lofty ideals of Sikhism by misinterpretation of Gurbani
incorporated in the AGGS. Sikhism was first presented to the western
world by E. Trump (3) in 1877. But his work was declared apocryphal
by the Panth. A good presentation of Sikhism to the western world
came from the work of Max Arthur Macauliffe (4) in 1909. But in
19705 W.H. McLeod started systematically undermining the Sikh
scripture and the Sikh philosphy (1).
Sikhism remained the domain of theologians in the past. But
during the second half of the twentieth century it became the
most studied subject by peoples from judiciary, administration
and by historians and academicians from various fields i.e.
languages, physics, chemistry, astronomy, natural sciences, etc.
Therefore, any recent writings on Sikhism cannot escape the eyes
of the Sikh academicians belonging to the above fields.
From now on, therefore, it would be very difficult for the
future writers to misinterpret the Gurbani, incorporated in the
AGGS and also to disrupt the lofty ideals of Sikhism. But this
awakening in the Panth has been taken as "an attack on the Sikh
faith", "insecurity in their (Sikh academicians) approach" and "a
 154

new phenomenon linked with post 1984 events", by PS as follows:

"A great deal of this energy is directed these days at the writings
of W.H. McLeod, who has been raising questions about the Adi
Granth and making a plea for a sustained campaign of textual
analysis to establish a sure and certain text. Although McLeod
combines sensitivity with meticulous care in his analysis of Sikh
documents, his arguments on the Sikh scripture have been received
with caution within Sikh community. It is a conspicuous feature
of the modem Panth to perceive critical scholarship as an attack
on the Sikh faith. That is perhaps why the organized response
offered by a group of Sikh scholars (of whom the most notable
include retired civil servants of the Government of India and
doctors of medicine, as well as academics) appear to be so defensive
that one can easily sense a feeling of insecurity in their approach.
It appears to be a new phenomenon linked with post 1984 events.
Thus there is need for a textual critic to proceed with extreme
caution and circumspection." (pages 20-21).
But it appears that PS failed very badly to be observing extreme
caution and circumspection in presenting his work in his PhD
thesis. That is the main reason that a number of comments have
already appeared about his (PS) work on textual analysis of Adi
Granth in many weeklies and still many more may appear in the
future. Just possible that it may become a serious matter of
discussion amongst the academicians and theologians alike in the
future.
CRITICAL COMMENTS
In the present article I have tried to give my comments on
some areas which have not been reviewed critically from academic
and theological point of views so far:
Spelling of "Aad" (Awid) :
In this work the word" Aad" has been spelled as "Adi".
Similarly many scholars use the same spelling i.e. "Adi". If 'Adi"
is spelled back into Gurmukhi script it would become AwdI " which
means one half in Hindi and habitual in Punjabi. But the original
meanings of "Aad" are: preceding all others
 155

in time order or importance; first; primary; original; cardinal;

outststanding; paramount; pivotal, etc. The above spelling have
been coined by keeping in view the words having "siari" with the
last letter e.g. in Jap" ieik ik and hukim hukm in pauri
2; kiD Kath in paui 3; gurmuiK gurmukh in pauri 5suriq, miq min,
Git, suid surt, mat, man, ghat, sud in pauri 36, min on page 186; ieik
ik; kir "kar on page 566; hir har sbid sabad, shij sehj, Git ghat,
gurmuiK and gurmukh on page 775 of AGGS.
It is my humble suggestion to all the scholars to spell "Awid"
as "Aad" in future in their writings. If we continued to spell it as
"Adi" then the time is not far off when readers would draw an
erroneous inference or someone may write another PhD thesis
to prove that the' Adi Granth" is one half and the "Dasam Granth"
is the second half of the whole Sikh philosophy. Then it would
become another big problem to be resolved by the Panth.
Use of "Sri'
I had just finished my comments when an ordinance, in
reponse to the controversies raised by Dr Pashaura Singh in North
America and Dr Piar Singh in India, was issued by S. Gurcharan
Singh Tohra, President of Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak
Committee (SGPC) that no research on AGGS should be done in
any university. And he also mentioned that the Sikh Granth should
be called "Sri Guru Granth Sahib" (World Sikh News, Stockton,
California, February 5, 1993). I was stunned to note that he had
dropped the most important and appropriate adjective "Aad" from
the title of the Sikh Granth. It is beyond the scope of my present
article to write about the dire consequences of banning research on
the AGGS and on Sikhism in the future, however, I would like to
write a little about the dropping of "Aad" from the title of the AGGS.
The title of the Sikh Granth which is published by the SGPC is,
"Aad Sri Guru Granth Sahib". I don't understand why all of a ~udden
"Aad" has been dropped from the title by S. Tohra, WIthout giving
any reasons and "Sri" has been retained. Most of the time "Sri" is
added before the Guru by many writers also out. of .devotion e.g.
Sri Guru Granth Sahib (Darpan) by Dr Sahib Smgh (5); Sri Guru
Granth Sahib (English Version) by Dr Gopal Singh (6); Sri Guru
Granth Sahib (English Translation) by Gurbachan Singh Talib (7),
etc. It is a pity that the above scholars have not used" Aad" with
 156

the title. Some scholars think that the adjective" Aad" is used
only for the Granth originally compiled by Guru Arjan. They
are mistaken because the present Aad Guru Granth Sahib is the
same Aad Granth of Guru Arjan in which the "Gurbani" of Guru
Teg Bahadur was added by Guru Gobind Singh. He also ordained
it as the "Guru" of the Sikhs. Since then the present Granth is
known as the" Aad Guru Granth Sahib".
The adjective, "Sri", used with "Guru" seems to be redundant
as there is no adjective which could 'qualify the Guru. Because
"Guru" itself is of a higher order than "Sri". Moreover "Sri" is a
very commonly used title to address even a common man in the
street of India as "Mr" is used in the western world. It should also
be noticed that "Sri'" has never been used as an adjective for the
"Guru" in the "Gurbani" by the Sikh Gurus in the AGGS.
It is emphasized here that when" Aad" is added to "Guru"
then it becomes" Aad Guru" meaning the "Guru" who precedes
all others in time, order and importance. Thus" Aad Guru"
becomes the Almighty, whereas "Sri Guru" remains an ordinary
Guru as "Sri" is used for a common man in the street also. Thus
the" Aad Granth Sahib" means the Granth which contains the
revealed Bani of the Almighty and also it means the first and the
primary Granth of the Sikhs.
Therefore, it is my humble request to all the scholars to use
"Aad", the most appropriate adjective, in the title of the Sikh
Granth without "Sri", and it should always be addressed as "Aad
Guru Granth Sahib" (AGGS) in the future to be consistent.
Gurbani Distorted:
On page 2 PS writes the following ill-conceived idea: "It would
appear that Guru Nanak had clear vision of preserving his own
Bani by committing it to memory in the first place and then
possibly to writing during his own lifetime:" Then on page 3 PS
mistranslates the Gurbani to justify his above ill-conceivd ideas
as follows:
"He (Guru Nanak) maintained that one might lose the divin.e
word thrOugh oral recitation alone, if one has not written It
down to preserve it." Then PS quoted the following stanza from
the Gurbani ilKy bwJhu nwhI boil boil gvwieAY ]
AGGS, M 1, P 556.
But its real interpretation by everyone is :
 157

"Without His blessing (will) no one gets high consciousness

(bout the Almighty), but one loses (the opportunity) in mere
taking." Dr Sahib Singh (5) has the same view. PS's interpretration
is not even comparable to those of Dr Gopal Singh and Dr
Gurbachan Singh Talib on which he has relied for English
translation (preface) :
"Without the (Lord's) Writ, one is conscious not (of His
Truth); and one prattles in vain." Or Gopal Singh (6).
"Without recorded destiny comes not realization, Utterance
without realization is only void." Dr Gurbachan Singh Talib (7).
The above discussion clearly indicates that PS perverted the
interpretation meaning of the above stanza of Gurbani to justify
his above ill-conceived idea.
Through the above statement PS has raised doubts about the
writing of bani by Guru Nanak by using the word "possibly" in
his statement. On page 4 PS has again reiterated that, "It is entirely
possible that Guru Nanak may have himself written down his
own composition in his lifetime." Here PS again used the words
"possible" and "may" to create doubts. On page 4 and 5 PS
continued to build up the same ill-conceived idea as: "Although
the manuscript of this collection is no longer extant, its mention
by Bhai Gurdas may indicate that Guru Nanak was the first person
to begin a written collection of his own works."
And finally PS wrote: "There exists no known manuscript of
Guru Nanak's composition written in his own hand or coming
from his time."
Thus PS has created a situation where one can start doubting
that Guru Nanak might not have written his own Bani by himself
as was not done by the other prophets of other religions of the world.
It is. a matter of grave concern for the Sikhs in general that PS
has Ignored the diligent research done by Prof. Sahib Singh (8) to
prove that Guru Nanak recorded his own Bani as soon as it was
revealed to him and he always kept it with him with other
collections of Bhagat banis and he passed it on to Guru Angad
and Guru Angad wrote his bani and added it to that of Guru
Nanak and passed it on to Guru Amar Das. Then Guru Amar
Das continued the tradition and passed on his bani and that of
his predecessor Gurus to Guru Ramdas. Finally Guru Ramdas
passed on his own bani and the bani of his predecessor Gurus to
 158

Guru Arjan as an ancestral treasure of divine wisdom from which

Guru Arjancompiled the Aad Granth, Kartarpur Bir. This fact
has been mentioned by Guru Arjan in AGGS as follows:
pIaU dwdy kw Koil ifTw Kjwnw ]
qw myrY min BieAw inDwnw ]
AGGS, M 5, P 186.
"When I opened up and looked into the ancestral (inherited)
treasure then my mind realized the divine wisdom (treasure)."
AGGS, M 1, 186.
(Note : pIaU dwdy kw Kjwnw" is a well-known Panjabi proverb
meaning. " ances traIl inherited treasure")
But very tactfully PS continued to build up a base through
his further manipulations to highlight the importance of Goindval
Pothis by ignoring the aboye fact of handing over the ancestral
treasure of divine wisdom by Guru Ramdas to Guru Arjan as
recorded by Guru Arjan in AGGS on page 186 as above.
PS wrote on page 9 : "Traditionally, Goindval Pothis were
written during the period 1570 72 AD by Baba Sahansram (Sahansar
Ram), a son of Baba Mohan and grandson of Guru Amardas" to
establish that the Gurbani was still not written by the Gurus
themselves but was written by others i.e. Baba Sahans Ram.
Furthermore, to make the Goindval pothis as a base for writing
of final version of Kartarpur Bir by Guru Arjan, PS again perverted
the above verse (pIaU dwdy kw Koil ifTw Kjwnw) of Gurbani of Guru
Arjan as follows:
"When I opened the treasure of my father and grandfather to
see for myself, then I realized the divine treasure in my 'man'
(heart-mind-soul).' (page 15).
He further mentioned:
"Here the reference to both his father's and grandfather's
"treasure" may suggest that Guru Arjan received at least two sets
of manuscripts of Gurbani, one belonging to his father and the
other to his grandfather. The works of Guru Nanak and Guru
Angad together with the Bhagats, were grouped with his
grandfather's bani in the Goindval Pothis. Since his father, Guru
Ramdas was not represented in these volumes, Guru Arjan
presumely had access to a second manuscript." (page 15).
Here PS interpreted " pIaU dwdy kw Kyil iBTw Kjwnw " very literally
as "the treasure of father and grandfather," the treasure
 159

(i.e.Goindwal Po this) which Guru Arjan procured from Baba

Mohan as stated on page 14. On these assumptions PS has
constructed Genealogy Figure 1 on page 23 indicating that two
Goindval pothis form the base of the first draft, the Guru Nanak
[)ev University manuscript (GNDU MS) 1245, and then finally
Kartarpur Bir was prepared by Guru Arjan after collecting more
bani from other sources.
Thus the whole objective of PS is to convince the readers by
mistranslating the Gurbani about his ill-conceived idea that
Gurbani was not written by the Gurus themselves and was not
kept by them. And Guru Arjan had to procure the Goindval
Pothis (written by Sahans Ram) from Baba Mohan and other Bani
from other sources to prepare the final version of Kartarpur Bir.
Thus PS has topsy turvyed the well established fact that Guru
Arjan received the ancestral treasure as one unit from Guru
Ramdas as established by Prof. Sahib Singh (8) and others.
TEXTUAL ANALYSIS (Chapter 4)
The need and importance of textual analysis given by PS is
based on the following quotation of Dr Loehlin on page 92 :
"The Sikhs will hold a unique position among the religions
of the world if they prove through careful textual criticism the
widely accepted belief that the Kartarpur Granthis the MS dictated
by Guru Arjan." C. Loehlin (9).
Most probably keeping the above quotation in mind, PS has
written two special chapters (pages 20-91) to strengthen the
illconceived idea of Loehlin wherein he doubts the established
fact that Kartarpur Granth was compiled by Guru Arjan.
From the unauthentic and apocryphal materials recorded in these
two chapters (Chapter 2 : manuscripts of Adi Granth and Chapter 3 :
Origin of Adi Granth) PS has drawn the following dubious conclusions :
1. "The foregoing examination of the Manuscripts revealed
that the GNDU MS # 1245 was one of the many drafts on which
Guru Arjan seems to have produced the final text of the Adi
Granth in 1604." (page 59).
2. "Another important outcome of this scrutiny is the
confirmation of the Kartarpur manuscript as the final text of the
Adl Granth as compiled by the fifth Guru." (page 59).
3. . "This analysis also shows that there was no unity of the
Adi Granth text to be found among the different versions
 160

during the last quarter of the seventeenth century." (page 59).

4. "Of all the three competing versions of the text of the Adi
Granth that were being used by different groups with the Panth,
it appears that the Banno version was coming to the fore at the
end of the seventeenth century and the beginning of the
eighteenth." (page 60).
5. "It is claimed here that Guru Gobind Singh prepared the
final recension of the Adi Granth at Damdama (Damdama Sahib,
Talvandi Sabo in Bhatinda in 1705 AD) by adding a collection of
the work by the ninth Guru to the original compilation. This is
not correct, since the bani of Guru Teg Bahadur had already been
incorporated in a number of manuscripts immediately after his
death. The point to be noted is that a single couplet, attributed to
Guru Gobind Singh in the earlier manuscripts, became part of
the fifty-seven shloks of the ninth Guru." (page 78-79).
6. "Although he (Guru Gobind Singh) approached Dhir Mal's
descendants at Kartarpur to obtain the Adi Bir, he did not succeed
in persuading them to part with the volume. A number of copies
of Kartarpur text, however, were available at that time, along with
two other versions of the Adi Granth. It was these that he used to
prepare the Damdama version of the Aad Granth at a resting-
place (damdama) in Anandpur Sahib in the last quarter of the
seventeenth century. Further, the bani of Guru Tegh Bahadur
had also become part of all the different recensions of the Adi
Granth immediately after his death." (page 80).
To strengthen the above statement PS quoted the following
information:
7. "Harbhajan Singh briefly mentions that two manuscripts
of Adi Granth, written in sambat 1739 (1682 CE) and sambat
1748 (1691 CE), which contained the works of the ninth Guru at
appropriate places with raga jaijavanti following the prabhati mode
in the standard way. He calls them Damdama versions because
they were written at a place called "Damdania" in Anandpur
Sahib." (page 80).
8. "Although the Damdama.version of the Adi Granth was
 161

prepared by Guru Govind Singh at Anandpur in the last quarter

of the seventeenth century, different versions of the Adi Granth
were used by the Sikh community in the eighteenth century. The
Banno recension was predominant. The standardization of the
text of the Adi Granth-based on the Damdama version-took place
during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who was able to procure
the Kartarpur volume for this purpose. The first printed edition
of the standard Damdama version appeared in 1868 CE, which
gave a fillip for universal acceptance. The Singh Sabha reformers
sanctified this standard version and set aside all other versions
used in earlier centuries." (page 90-91).
9. "The solitary couplet that was attributed to the tenth Guru
in early manuscripts lost its authorship and became the part of
Guru Teg Bahadur's shalokas. This may have been intentionally
done to keep Guru Gobind Singh's authorship limited to the bani
of Dasam Granth. It may also reflect the contemporary debate
over the issue of Sikh identity: that is, whether one follows the
teachings of Guru Nanak and his successors contained in the Adi
Granth or one joins the Khalsa of Guru Gobind Singh" (Page
86).
Comments:
My comments on all the conclusions drawn by PS are given
one by one as followings :
Conclusion 1 :
PS did not give any sound, logical and scientific reasons or
any special characteristics which could prove that GNDU MS
1245 is one of the early drafts. Where are the other drafts?
Moreover, a number of questions will arise about its being a draft
e.g. Does any scholar keep first, second or third draft of his work
as a record or give them as souvenir to others who in turn would
prefer to preserve it as a substitute oi the final text? Why a person
who kept this draft for almost four centuries decided to sell it to
a bookseller in Amritsar who says he got it from a street hawker?
Nevertheless, these days everybody is aware of the fact that a rare
MS like this could be sold to the institutes of higher learning e.g.
Guru Nanak Dev University or Punjabi University or
 162

the highest authority of the Sikhs i.e. Shiromani Gurdwara

Prabhandak Committee (SGPC) at a very high price.
A very important point has been discussed by Prof. Sahib
Singh (8) that Guru Arjan categorized the bani (ancestral
treasure) into different Rags and sections. And a ]uz (quire: a
paper folded twice to make four sheets; a collection of sheets
of papers, usually 24) was assigned for writing each category
under certain Rag or section. Some sheets of certain ]uz
remained blank when the writing of that portion of bani or
section was completed. Thus there are some blank sheets in
the Kartarpur Bir. If we accept the assertion of PS that GNDU
MS 1245 was one of the early drafts, then there could be no
possibilities to have blank sheets in the original Kartarpur Bir
which has been accepted by PS as the final text in his
conclusion 2 (page 59). From Prof. Sahib Singh's findings it is
clear that the Kartarpur Bir was the first and the final version
of Aad Granth.
Since the authenticity of GNDU MS 1245 has become a great
issue, its origin should be studied by the panel of judges,
constituting persons from judiciary, languages, history, archives
and sciences. This panel should find out who planted GNDU
MS 1245 to c.onfuse the Sikhs.
PS's conclusion that the final version of Kartarpur Bir was
prepared from the Goindval Pothis and other materials as
shown in Figure 1 on page 23 is also based on unauthentic
information. Actually PS should have first disproved the
findings of Prof. Sahib Singh (8) where he proved that all the
writings of the predecessor Gurus were handed over to Guru
Arjan as an ancestral treasure by Guru Ramdas wherefrom
the Kartarpur Bir was prepared.
Conclusion 2 :
PS admits that the Kartarpur manuscript is the final text of
the Aad Granth as compiled by the Fifth Guru, but after writing
many drafts and making changes in the original Gurbani. But the
Kartarpur Bir is the first and the final version of Aad Granth
according to Prof. Sahib Singh (8).
 163

Conclusion 3 :
It is true that there is no unity of Aad Granth Text found in
different versions. It is so because every scribe had tried to copy
the text according to his own whims and added, deleted, modified
certain banis and also re-arranged sequence of banis as he wished.
Conclusion 4 :
According to Prof. Sahib Singh (8) the Banno version was
most common because people had easy access to copy the Banno
version as the real and authenticated version of Aad Granth
installed in the Harmander Sahib at Amritsar which was not easily
available for copying.
Conclusions 5,6,7,8,
PS has given more weight to a small piece of information given
by Harbhajan Singh to make his point that Damdama Bir was
compiled at Damdama in Anandpur Sahib. But he ignored
completely without giving any solid reasons of rejecting the facts
recorded in Gurbilas Chhevin Patshahi and by Gian Singh in Sri
Guru Panth Prakash that Damdama Bir was prepared by Guru
Gobind Singh who also added the bani of Guru Teg Bahadur at
Damdama Sahib in Talvandi Sabo, Bhatinda. Because of this
importance, in addition for others, Damdama Sahib was declared
the fifth Takht by the S.G.P.c. Moreover, PS also ignored the
information given by Mehar Singh (10) that Guru Gobind Singh
was given the Gurgaddi of Guru Nanak (pontification) after the
demise of the Ninth Guru at a place called Damdama Sahib near
Anandpur Sahib, but there was no mention about the compilation
of Aad Granth by Guru Gobind Singh at this place. However,' it
has been mentioned that Guru Gobind Singh compiled the Aad
Granth at Damdama Sahib, Talvandi, Bhatinda. It is evident from
the above information that PS did so to undermine the important
role played by Guru Gobind Singh to give the Sikhs a final
authenticated version of AGGS by adding the bani of the Ninth
Guru, Teg Bahadur. He also got made some copies of this
authenticated Damdama Bir, and these were sent to all the Takhts
and other important Sikh centres (Manjis).
The assertion of P.S. that the authorship of Guru Gobind
Singh was removed from Shlok 54 of Guru Teg Bahadur by the
scholars appointed by Maharaja Ranjit Singh or by Singh Sabha
 164

at the time of preparing a standardized version, is without any

base. It is a question of simple common sense that Guru Gobind
Singh, who had every right to add his Bani in the AGGS, why he
should restrict himself to adding only one stanza of his bani in
the sloks of Guru Teg Bahadur.
PS blames Singh Sabha for declaring the Banno Bir as "khari"
(brakish or bitter) which means spurious or apocryphal (page
89). It is a pity that PS, a scholar, did not consult the literature
carefully before making such a statement. I hope he might be
aware of the information that Banno Bir was declared apocryphal
by Guru Arjan himself (Prof. Sahib Singh 8). PS should also have
disproved the findings of Dr Sahib Singh before blaming Singh
Sabha for declaring Banno Bir as apocryphal. Conclusion 9:
This conclusion of PS should be viewed very carefully. Here
PS is trying to create two distinct sects of Sikhism: The Sikhs of
Guru Nanak who would follow the AGGS, and the Khalsa of
Guru Gobind Singh who would follow Dasam Granth. But Guru
Gobind Singh did not do anything which was not of the
philosophy of Guru Nanak, incorporated any other doctrine in
the AGGS. In fact Guru Gobind Singh was propagating and giving
practical shape to the philosophy of Guru Nanak.
It is very unfortunate that PS is not aware of the fact that
Guru Gobind Singh never said, advised or ordered any Sikh to
follow any granth other than the AGGS. It is crystal clear that
had Guru Gobind Singh any intentions to create Khalsa as a
different sect from the mainstream Sikhism, (as pointed out by
PS), he would not have advised his Sikhs (Khalsa) to follow Aad
Guru Granth Sahib. But he did not do so, instead he added
Gurbani of Guru Teg Bahadur in the Kartarpur Bir and reiterated
at the time of his departure to heavenly abode that the AGGS is
the Guru of the Sikhs from that time and also ordained the
stoppage of further succession to the spiritual throne of Guru
Nanak in the form of human Gurus.
1. Mul-Mantar :
PS has tried to prove that the present form of Mul Mantar in
the AGGS was not given by Guru Nanak alone. PS has developed
a thesis that Mul Mantar found in the present form
 165

the AGGS is the result of additions of new words and in

modification of some, as warranted by the cIrcumstances, done
by Guru Arjan in the original Mul Mantar of Guru Nanak.
Before I could comment on this issue it would be necessary to
look into the presentation of such developments in Mul Mantar
given by PS in Chapter 4 (pages 92-141) :
1. The following form of the Mul Mantar was current during
the period of Guru Amar Das which was found in the Goindval
Pothi Vol. 1 :
< siqguru prswd
scu nwm krqwru inrBau inrIkwru Akwl mUriq AjUnI sMBau ]
1.- '1' "Oamkar (There is one supreme Being").
He is the True Guru who reveals himself through grace.
The True Name, the Creator, the Fearless One and Formless One.
He is timeless Who is beyond birth and death.
He is self existent." (page 92-93).
PS further explains that this is based on the philosophy of
Guru Nanak and quotes many verses of Guru Nanak to support
his assumption that this is the earliest form of Mul Mantar
developed by Guru Nanak :
"The basic elements of the earlier form of the Mul Mantar
come from the works of Guru Nanak. Presumably he himself
formulated it during the Kartarpur period, when the f~rst Sikh
community started using it in worship." (page 95).
2. Guru Ramdas invoked the divine attributes of the Mul
Mantar in one of his composition as follows (page 95).
jip mn inrBau [ siq siq sdw [ inrvYru Akwl mUriq ]
AjUnI sMBau ] myry mn Anidno iDAwie inMrkwru inrwhwrI ]
"Contemplate the fearless one, my- man (mind). (He who is)
true, true and always true. He is without enmity, the Timeless
one. He is beyond birth and death, He is self-existent. Meditate
day and night on the Formless one, my man, He who is above
any need of sustenance. AGGS, M4, P l20l.
PS says that word "nirvair" (without enmity) was added in
the Mul Mantar to reflect his (Guru Ramdas') firm resolve to
counteract the situation of hostility in real life, created by the
animiosity of his rivals, with the spirit of love and friendliness.
3. Guru Arjan worked over the text of the Mul mantar 10
sussessive drafts to give it its final form. The Guru Nanak Dev
University manuscript, which is early draft of the Adi Granth,
gives the form of Mul Mantar before its standardization:
 166

< siqnwm krqw purKu inrBau inrvYr Akwl mUriq AjUnI sYBu siqgur pRswid ]
"IK" Oankar (There is one supreme being). His name is the
Eternal Truth. He is the Creator, without fear and devoid of
enmity. He is the Timeless One, who is beyond birth and death.
He is self existent. He is the True Guru who reveals himself
through grace." (page 96).
In his final version Guru Arjan replaced the phrase 'satguru
parsadi; (siqgurU prswid), by the Grace of the True Guru' with 'gur
parsadi' gu r prswid by the Grace of the Guru', presumably to
provide-a more coherent structure to the text of the Mul Mantar.
"Another significant point is that Guru Arjan added the word
'purkh' to the received text of the Mul Mantar. It clearly indicates
that by this time the personal (purkh) aspect bf the Supreme Being
acquired prominence as compared with Guru Nanak's emphasis
on the formless (nirankar) nature of the ultimate Reality. This
may provide an adequate explanation of the subsequent
development that took place in Sikh doctrine as well as within
the Panth since the days of Guru Nanak. This will, however,
challenge the traditional understanding of the Mul Mantar as being
created in the present form by Guru Nanak." (page 96-97).
Before making any comments on the above thesis of PS about
the step by step development of Mul Mantar, it is necessary to
look into the information given by Mohinder Kaur Gill (11) and
Sikh Phulwari (12) about the different forms of Mul Mantar
found in the AGGS.
1. <siq gur pRswid (There is one supreme being, known by
the grace through the true Guru). It has been used 519 times (523
times-Sikh Phulwari) at the beginning of various headings and
subheadings in different sections of the AGGS.
2. <siqnwmu gur pRswid (There is one supreme being, the eternal
Reality, known by His grace). It has been used only two times in
the AGGS (once in Siri Rag on page 81 second time in Bihagara
Rag on page 544.) .
3. <siqnwm krqw purKu gur pRswid (There is one Supreme Being, the
Eternal Reality. He is the Creator, known by His grace). This
form has been used 9 times (8 times - Sikh Phulwari) in the AGGS.
4. <siqnwmu krqw purKu inrBau inrvYru Akwl muriq AjUin sYBM gur pRswid
(There is one Supreme Being, the Eternal Reaiity. He is the
Creator, without fear and devoid of enmity. He is the timeless
 167

Who is beyond birth and death. He is self-existent, and is known

by Guru's grace). This unabbreviated form has been used 33 times
in the beginning of almost all the new sections of Rags in the
AGGS.
Gill (11) and Sikh Phulwari (12) have also mentioned a fifth
form of Mul Mantar i.e. Ik O'ankar (<). It has been used once in
old birs, (granths) but it is not found in the present form of AGGS.
However, this shortest form (Ik O'ankar) has been accepted
without any hesitation by the Sikhs and it is used very commonly
in their writings.
Note: The readers are advised to read the article by Dr.
Trilochan Singh about Mul-Mantar in chapter 12 of this book
Editor.
Comments:
The thesis of PS that the present form of the Mul Mantar is
the result of additions of new words and modifications of some,
as warranted by the circumstances, done in the original Mul
Mantar of Guru Nanak by Guru Arjan is without any solid
arguments or logics as it is based on the information available
only from Goindval Pothi Vol. I and the GNDU MS 1245, the
unauthenticated materials as discussed before.
I would like to repeat that when Guru Arjan compiled the
AGGS it was compiled from the "ancestral treasure" received from
his father, Guru Ramdas, and not from Goindval Pothis or any
other materials. The Mul Mantar written in the Kartarpur Bir
was the original Mul Mantar found by Guru Arjan in that
"ancestral treasure" received by him. PS also admits that Guru
Arjan had written in Kartarpur Bir that the "Jap" was copied
from the manuscript written in Guru Ramdas' hand (page 101-
102), which clearly indicates that the Mul Mantar found in
Kartarpur Bir is from the "Jap" of Guru Nanak found in Guru
Ramdas' collections which was authenticated by the Fifth Guru.
Therefore, the assertion of P.S. that Mulmantar was copied from
the Pothi of Goindval is baseless. Moreover, the Goindval Po this
were written by Sahans Ram not by Guru Ramdas. Therefore,
the Mul Mantar written by Guru Arjan in the Kartarpur Bir is
the original Mul Mantar written by Guru Nanak which was passed
 168

on to him (Guru Arjan) as 'ancestral treasure' through successive Gurus.

The variations in the Mul Mantar found in Goindval Pothi Vol.
I and in the GNDU MS 1245 is the result of imperfect copying
from the original Granth by the scribes or modifications done
according to the whims of the scribes. It is an irony of the fact
that PS has taken the aid of unauthentic materials for proving his
thesis of step by step development of Mul Mantar.
Let us consider the divine attributes e.g. "Nirbhao, Sat, Nirvair,
Akal Murat, Ajuni Sangbhao (Swebhan), Nirankar, Nirahari" of
Mul Mantar invoked by Guru Ramdas as discussed by PS above.
These attributes are from the fourth of six stanzas of Guru
Ramdas in Rag Sarg (Sarang) (Page 1201-1202 of AGGS). These
attributes were used for the Almighty by Guru Ramdas to persuade
the Sikhs to attach their mind with the Almighty. Guru Ramdas
used different attributes e.g. "Jagnath, Jagdishrao, Jagjivnao,
Mohan, Narhare, Ram, Madhoo, Madh Sudhan, Sri Rangao,
Satparmeshrao, Prabh, Anterjami, etc." in his first three stanzas.
Then again in the fifth and sixth stanzas he used the attributes
like Govindo and Sri Ram, Sat Ram, Sad Ram, etc. The analysis
of attributes used in these six stanzas of Guru Ramdas would
clearly indicate that Guru Ramdas used the attributes in the first
three, and fifth and sixth stanzas which were commonly used
and understood by the people at that time. And then he (Guru
Ramdas) used the attributes e.g. "Nirbhao, Nirvair, Akal Murat,
Ajuni, Sangbhao (Swebhan)" which were used by Guru Nanak
in the Mul Mantar to put more emphasis on these new attributes
used by Guru Nanak. Using of such attributes (used in the Mul
Mantar) in the Bani is a common practice of other Gurus also
(including Guru Nanak and Guru Arjan). Moreover, the word
"nirvair" was already in use by Guru Nanak in his Ramkali
Dakhani O'ankar (AGGS, page 931) before Guru Ramdas used it
and PS is aware of this fact (page 96). Therefore, the question of
updating Mul Mantar by Guru Arjan or Guru Ramdas by adding
the word "nirvair" of Guru Ramdas does not arise. Thus the
assertion of PS that word 'Nirvair' used by Guru Ramdas was
added in the Mul mantar by the Guru to reflect his resolve to
counteract the situation of hostility in real life, created by the
animosity of his rivals, with the spirit of love and friendliness,
has got no standing. In fact the word "nirvair" was already there
in the original Mul Mantar of Guru Nanak as proved above.
Similarly the reason given by PS for addition of word "Purkh"
in updating the Mul Mantar is also baseless.
 169

Now let us examine the different forms of Mul Mantars given

by Gill (11) :
There are four different forms of Mul Mantars found in the
AGGS. The maximum used form of Mul Mantar (1 above)
contains the word "Satgur Parsad". It has been used in the AGGS
for 519 times. It is hard to understand why Guru Arjan would
replace the word "Satgur Parsad" from the so-called first form of
Mul Mantar of draft Mul Mantar with a short word "Gur Parsad",
when "Satgur Parsad" has been used in the short form of Mul
Mantar for more than 519 times in the AGGS. PS says that Guru
Arjan did so to provide a more coherent structure to the text of
Mul Mantar. It is again hard to understand what coherent structure
was given by dropping the epithet "Sat" from "Satgur Parsad". It
would have been more appropriate had Guru Arjan dropped the
Satgur Prasad " from the shortest Mul Mantar (1 above) used by
Guru Arjan in the AGGS more than 519 times. But Guru Arjan
did not do so. Why? PS is silent on this issue. Thus it is clear from
the above discussion that the word 'Gur Parsad' was present in
the first instance in the original Mul Mantar of Guru Nanak and
the Sat Guru was added by the scribe by mistake OR it has been
added intentionally by the scribe in the GNDU MS 1245 to create
confusion in the Sikh doctrine.
Now we enter into another area which gives rise to a big
question which has not been discussed by PS. Why are there four
different forms of Mul Mantar in the AGGS? It needs a thorough
research to answer this question. Mohan Singh Diwana and many
others raised the following question: "Is the full Mantra on the same
level of potency as the shorter ones or the potency increases with
the short wave-length ?" ( A foot note on page 98 of PS Theses).
Gill (11) has pointed out that the different forms of Mul
Mantars have been used in the AGGS to break organizational
Monotony" and to add diversity to the structure of the Sikh
scripture. But according to Gurus' philosophy it would be more
appropriate to say that Guru Arjan (It is still to be studied which
Guru abbreviated the Mul Mantar) abbreviated the Mul Mantar
to convince the Sikhs that either the Mul Mantar is not a
Mantar or to disclaim the belief of Sharma or Hindu's
philosophy that chanting of Mantars whether completely and
correctly or in abbreviated form does not mean anything. But
 170

the real thing is to understand the realization of the Almighty by

following and practising the Gurbani, but not in chanting" the
Mantars. If we study the Mul Mantar (as it is commonly called)
carefully, it clearly indicates that it is the most concise and precise
definititon of the Almighty not found anywhere else. This
definition of the Almighty given by Guru Nanak remained
unchanged during the time of ten Sikh Gurus till to date and I am
sure, that it would remain unchanged even with the new
advancements in scientific knowledge about the Nature (God) in
the future (2).
Bhai Kahn Singh (13) has described Mul Mantar as "the root
mantar, 'O'ankar', of all the mantars e.g. "Ik O'ankar sat nam
karta purkh "He has also recorded it as a "Manglacharan"
which means tne definition of the Almighty which has been
discussed above. I would also like to add here that whenever the
word "mantar" has been used in the Gurbani it has been used as
simile only to explain certain points but it does not signify it as a
"Mantar" used in the terms of Hindu philosophy. According to
the Sikh philosophy it would be right to call, "Ik O'ankar sat
nam karta purkh "as Mul Mantar. It is the creedal statement given
to us by Guru Nanak, it gives a profound definition of God which
forms the base of Sikh doctrines.
2. Liturgical Texts:
PS has drawn the following conclusions from his analysis of
liturgical texts :
Conclusion 1.
"It should be emphasized that Guru Arjan even revised his
own composition in the final text of the Adi Granth." (page 130).
Comments:
To draw the above conclusion PS has compared the hymns of
Guru Arjan in the Kartarpur Bir with those of his hymns found
in the Goindval pothis, GNDU MS 1245 and other sources. The
above conclusion cannot be accepted because all above sources
of' Gurbani are not accepted as authentic materials according to
Prof. Sahib Singh (8), as discussed earlier.
Similarly the argument of deletion of certain bani from the
Kartarpur Bir is also not justified when it is compared with Bani
 171

present in such unauthentic bus. One such example of addition

made is a slok of Guru Arjan in Rag Ramkali by some Sikh in
the Banno Bir to give legitimacy to Brahminical rituals in Sikh
Society, has been given by PS himself (page 130-140). Thus the
question of deletion of a portion of bani raised by McLeod in PS
thesis on page 138, from the original Kartarpur Bir cannot be
justified merely on the basis that the portion of a hymn, is present
m an unauthentic Bir (Banno Bir).
Conclusion 2.
"During the editorial process, Guru Arjan achieved linguistic
refinement through substituting of synonyms for certain words
and other minor modification of the text (without letting lose
the original meaning and rhythm of those hymns)." (page 140).
Comments :
Yes, it is evident in the present volume of the AGGS that
there are some substitution of synonyms of certain words and
minor modifications e.g. in the slok, "Pawan guru pani pila..." at
the end of fap and Paun 27 of Jap, "Sodar Keha so ghar keha
" If Guru Arjan did make such changes to achieve linguistic
refinement then why he (Guru Arjan) would repeat the same
salok on page 146 of AGGS and same paun 27 on pages 8 and 347
of AGGS without making such changes? Does not Guru Arjan
want to be consistent throughout the text of the AGGS ? Thus
some changes in spelling could have been made becausee those
words were spelled like that at the time the Jap was written by
Guru Arjan in the Kartarpur Bir. Similarly Guru Arjan also omitted
some words to abridge the Pauri 27 as is done when one writes a
summary of one's work, because jap is the Quintessence (summary)
of the whole Sikh scripture. Thus it becomes very clear that had
Guru Arjan made such changes to improve the language or rhythmic
tone, he would have repeated these sloks and pauris in the text with
the improved language but he did not do so. Thus the claim of PS
that Guru Arjan achieved linguistic refinement of the text is baseless.
Neverthless there could be some other reasons to take such changes
which we cannot figure out at present and It needs further research
before some conclusions could be drawn.
Conclusion 3 :
The absence of M 2 for the epilogue of Jap,"Pawan guru pani
pita" has raised some questions in the mind of some scholars.
Thus PS has also pointed out following three possibilities about
the authorship of the epilogue of Jap (pages 105-107) :
i. "Traditionally the concluding shalok of Japji is understood
 172

to be Guru Nanak's own composition. There are, however,

scholars who regard Guru Angad as its real author.
ii. "Guru Nanak may have initiated his successor, Bhai Lehna,
into the poetic skill of verse composition in the literary form of a
shalok and this training may have been part of his designation to
the office of Guruship."
iii. "Presumaly it was introduced in Sikh worship as part of
the Japji by his successor, Guru Angad, who may have made it
obligatory that the shalok be recited at the concluSion of all the
Sikh ceremonies. Thus with the passage of time the shalokbecame
popular under the symbol of Guru Angad.
PS again pointed out that "There are other such instances in
the Adi Granth when a composition is repeated at two different
places under the symbols of two succeeding Gurus e.g. Guru Amar
Das shalok 2 in Var Sri Rag (AG, p. 86) is repeated under the
symbol for Guru Ram Das as shalok 28 in salok Varan le Vadhik
(AG, p. 1424). Similarly, Guru Ram Das' Pauri
12 in Var Gauri (AG, p. 306) appears in the same Var under
the symbol of Guru Arjan as pauri 31" (AG, pp. 316-317". A
footnote on page 107 in PS' thesis).
Comments:
Jap is considered as the quintessence of the whole Sikh
scripture by almost all the Sikh scholars. It is also regarded as the
composition of Guru Nanak. But the present volume of the
AGGS shows that a slok, "Aad such jugad such hai bhi such
Nanak hosi bhi such", of Guru Arjan (from page 285 of AGGS)
is found immediately after the "Manglacharan" and another slok,
"Pawan guru pani pila ...oo" of Guru Angad (from page 146 of
AGGS) is found as an epilogue of Jap of Guru Nanak.
First of all. we should note that throughout the jap no Mahla
(M) has been assigned to any slok or pauri. Why? The most logical
reason seems to be that the Jap is regarded as the quintessence of the
whole Sikh scripture thus its authorship could only belong to the
First Master who got the revelation and whose spirit and thesis is
expressed by other Gurus. The revelation to Guru Nanak was total
and not in parts to different Gurus. Such an idea is baseless, being
contrary to the fundamental concept that Guru Nanak had a mission
which was carried out by other Gurus who also had the same revelation
and there may be some good reasons for the differences
 173

on or likeness in diction. It needs further reasearch before we can

generalize anything. However, such minor variations are
immaterial because all the Gurus are the light of Guru Nanak.
The other point of PS was that slok, "Pawan guru pani pila
…." was composed together by Guru Nanak and Guru Angad as
part of training to Bhai Lehna (Guru Angad) for Guruship is an
ill-conceived thought. The above thought of PS might have
originated from some spurious story about writing of letters by
Guru Arjan to his father, Guru Ramdas. From these letters Guru
Ramdas judged the ability of Guru Arjan and decided to
pontificate the gurus hip to Guru Arjan instead to his elder brother,
Prithi Chand. The story goes on to declare that these letters
became the first shabads of Guru Arjan, Mera man loche gur
darshan lai.. (AGGS, M 5, P 96). This has been refuted by Dr
Sahib Singh (5,8) and he proved that these Shabads are addressed
to the Almighty not to his father, Guru Ramdas, as claimed in the
story. Thus a question arises if Guru Nanak trained Guru Angad, as
claimed by PS, then who trained Guru Amar Das, Guru Ramdas
and Guru Teg Bahadur for writing bani and for guruship ?
The simple answer is that the bani was revealed by the Sikh
Gurus and nobody taught any Guru. No specific changes (except
those minor ones as discussed above) were made by Guru Arjan
while compiling the Kartarpur Bir from the ancesteral treasure
received from Guru Ramdas. It is now, as always, an accepted fact
that Guru Arjan gave us an authentic Aad Granth after full
scrutiny and with complete authority. No Guru has given
authenticity to any other manuscript and no claim ever was made
before any Guru. If today any Tom, Dick or Harry says that he
has found true Bani, it is on the dual a~sumptions that the person
has a better capacity of discernment and authority than the Gurus,
and that has found what the Gurus could not. Can such inherently
irrational claims be entertained by any scholar without any bias? Only
P.S. and his supporters could do it who call MS 1245, with date of
demise of Guru Arjan in its contents, a draft of the Adi Granth.
CONCLUSIONS
The most outstanding feature of PS' thesis is that first an
imaginary question of textual analysis of Kartarpur Bir was
raised and then textual analysis was done by taking
 174

information from unauthentic birs and other materials. Prof. Sahib

Singh (8) had already done an extensive research to prove that the
Kartarpur Bir was compiled by Guru Arjan from the ancestral
treasure received from Guru Ramdas and not from any other
unauthentic Bir, pothis or materials. This has also been supported
by the information recorded by Guru Arjan in the AGGS. (Pio
dade ka khol dhitha khazana AGGS, M 5, P 186) and the
original Bir is the Kartarpuri Bir. Therefore, it is absolutely
unjustified and meaningless to do textual analysis of Kartarpur
Bir by taking information from unauthentic Birs or materials.
The "Mul Mantar)" at the beginning of the Jap in the AGGS is
the original one given by Guru Nanak and no changes or
modifications were done by Guru Arjan or any other Guru. And
there was no first or second draft prepared by Guru Arjan.
The so-called draft, GNDU MS 1245 and all other versions of
Aad Granth found at different places or with different persons
are the copies of the unauthenticated Banno Bir in which a lot of
changes were made by different scribes according to their own
whims.
PS has also tried to topsy turvey the important role played by
Guru Gobind Singh to give us the authentic Granth which was
prepared from the Kartarpur Bir by adding the bani of Guru Teg
Bahadur at Damdama Sahib, Talvandi Sabo near Bhatinda (not at
Damdama of Anandpur Sahib as emphasized by PS). Guru
Gobind Singh also got made some copies of Damdama Bir and
those were sent to all the Takhts and other important Sikh
institutes (Manjis) to replace the unauthenticated and spurious
Birs. Guru Gobind Singh also ordinated to the Sikhs to accept
this Damdama Bir as their Guru. PS also tries to undermine the
role played by the scholars appointed by Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
and the role of Singh Sabha to popularize the Damdama Bir in all
the Gurdwaras, and Institutions, and among the Sikhs.
 175

REFERENCES
1. Institute of Sikh Studies (1990) Some Recent Publications on
Sikhism : An Evaluation. 959, Sector 59, Chandigarh.
2. Devinder Singh Chahal (1992) Philosophy: Scientific Interpre-
tation of the Sikh Scripture. The Sikh Review. Vol 40 : 7
No. 463 Calcutta, pp 5-20.
3. E. Trumpp (1877j The Adi Granth (English). George Allen and
Unwin, London (Munshiram Manoharlal, New Delhi re-
print 1970).
4. Max Arther Macauliffe (1978) The Sikh Religion and Its Gurus,
Sacred Writings and Authors. 8 volumes, S. Chand and
Co., Ltd., New Delhi.
5. (Dr) Sahib Singh (1970) Sri Guru Granth Sahib Darpan (Punjabi)
10 volumes, Raj Publishers, Reg., Jallandhar.
6. (Or) Gopal Singh (1987) Sri Guru Granth Sahib (English). World
Sikh Centre Inc., New Delhi.
7. Gurbachan Singh Talib (1988) Sri Guru Granth Sahib (English)
4 volumes. Publication Bureau, Punjabi University, Patiala.
8. (Prof.) Sahib Singh (1987) Aad Bir Bare (Punjabi). Singh
Brothers, Amritsar.
9. Clinton H. Loehlin (1966) The need of textual historical criti-
cism. The Sikh Courier UK. Spring-Summer.
10. Mehar Singh (1947) Bharat Wich Gurdware (Punjabi) Prakash
Vibhag, Bharat Sarkar Publication, Patiala House, New
Delhi.
11. Mohinder Kaur Gill (1982) Guru Granth Sahib di Sampadan-
Kala (Punjabi). New age Book Centre, Amritsar.
12. Sikh Phulwari, Ludhiana. January, 1993. Question and An-
swers. page 17.
13. Bhai Kahl1 Singh (1981) Mahan Kosh (Punjab). Bhasha
Vibhag, Patiala.
 176

11
CAN DR. PASHAURA SINGH BE DEFENDED?
By
GURTEJ SINGH

I have seen with great interest the open letter written by Prof.
Joseph T.O'Connell in defence of Dr. Pashaura Singh, which is
in itself an oddity because true scholarship needs no defence. It
becomes necessary to defend a scholar when he transgresses the
legitimate limits of academic activity and joins politicians in trying
to undermine the existence of an inconvenient group. The Sikhs
have been at the receiving end of such activity ever since India
obtained independence from colonial rule in 1947. Great stress
has been laid on dissolving the distinct Sikh identity. One
expression of it is in trying to establish that Sikhism is merely a
sect of Hinduism. This argument does not make much headway
in the face of the existence of Sri Guru Granth Sahib which is a
record of the mystic experiences of the Sikh prophets. It clearly
proposes that Sikhism is a sovereign dispensation.
Challenge to separate Sikh identity can only be posed by
denying that it is an authentic record of revelation. This has been
attempted by some others in the recent past. But they had to
rescind their positions, because it was possible to confront them
with established facts to the contrary. Pashaura Singh is trying to
achieve the same aim through a different route. He does not deny the
originality of the Kartarpur volume compiled by Guru Arjun himself.
He is trying to challenge selected text of the original by raising the
ghost of a previous draft of the same and would like to pave the way
for later challenging the contents of the entire original volume.
Toward this end he has suggested that a manuscript bought by
the Guru Nanak Dev University in 1987, is an earlier draft. For
the following reasons MS1245 cannot be accepted to be anything
but a later copy of the original Sikh scripture: 1) it is an undated
volume with the traditional dates of demise of the first five Gurus
written in the same hand and ink. Date of demise of Guru Arjun
being included, it is clearly not a draft of the original unless,
according to western methodology it is quite in order to accept
books edited posthumously. 2) There is no concept of a draft in
relation to compilation of the Sikh scriptures in the last four
 177

hundred years. All history and all tradition speaks of only one
volume having been compiled.
3) The entire concept of textual study which Pashaura Singh
is attempting to undertake, is misconceived because Aad Granth
has been compiled by the Prophet of the faith and no grounds for
discovering the original text or its meaning exist: especially in
this case because Pashaura Singh has already accepted the
authenticity of the Kartarpur volume.
4) The volume he is using here is an apocryphal writing of a
schismatic sect ostracized from Sikhism some centuries ago. Even
while taking good care to hide its Mina origin he should have
known that it is at best a tainted evidence.
Before setting out to cast stones left and right, must not the
University look within and try to understand how it has been
able to grant a degree of Ph. D. in spite of the above?
Every word of the open letter smacks of arrogance, unusual,
at least to us in the not very enlightened East. Professor O'Connell
regrets that the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee is
not eligible to obtain his certificate of knowing the aims of modern
scholarship. Evidently, the precondition is that it must tolerate
baseless attacks on the Sikh scriptures and the Sikh religion. The
SGPC is woefully aware that McLeod had recently attacked the
original volume basing himself on the Banno version which is
dated 38 years later and which has always been universally regarded
as a copy. Then for the purpose of proving the original to be a
copy and the copy to be original he propounded the strange theory
that parts of hymns which do not square with later Khalsa beliefs
were obliterated in the original. For upholding this proposition it
did not matter to the vintage western scholar that the original
volume had always been in the custody of a sect opposed to the
Khalsa way, and the strangest fact, that no such obliteration actually
exists. Would the Professor excuse the SGPC for not understanding
the ways of this special brand of western scholarship ?
It is strange that a case for the favourite Pashaura Singh is
being built up on the supposed failure of the Eastern people to
understand the "aims of western scholarship". Pashaura Singh
has received all his education in India though nobody holds it
against him, particularly because the aims of legitimate
 178

academic activity are the same everywhere. India, because of its

colonial past, has been following the same system of education as
followed in the west. It is also clear to the SGPC that no standards
of scholarship justify the kind of destructive activity being carried
out by the Batala group and those supporting it.
Some of the main formulations of this scholar are contrary to
verifiable facts and are in support of a Christian missionary group
the aims of which can be readily discerned. It is the Sikh people
who have to judge whether they are also detrimental to the
interests of Sikhism. Their well reasoned conclusion has been
arrived at after meticulous scrutiny and has been articulated by
the SGPC. Now it has put it to the genuine scholar to judge for
himself whether the activity of scholars like Pashaura Singh which
is being sustained and promoted by some University professors is
detrimental also to the interests of truth. The Sikh people do not
need the support of old scholars referred to, nor will they be
deflected by the acidic and un-academic comments of those fast
approaching intellectual barrenness.
Contention of the SGPC is that Pashaura Singh has violated
every canon of objectivity. His best defence in the circumstances
is to exhibit how he has retained regard for truth. Crude attempts
to intimidate the SGPC are not adequate. Citing of University
norms is of no consequence unless it can also be shown that they
have been actually followed. Recently an attempt was made to bring
such violations of norms by McLeod to the notice of the concerned
University. After a long drawn out correspondence on the subject,
the university found it impossible to retire from his defence although
the Reverend had to later rescind some of his earlier formulations.
Correspondence with the university is published and will convince
any impartial reader of the truth of this contention.
Commendation of Pashaura Singh, stands condemned by the
very fact that it is found necessary. In the opinion of the Sikh
people, he is distorting the Sikh religion and is misleading the
academic world by misusing the prestige of a University. Let this
be the central point of the debate. The Sikhs refuse to learn from
O'Connell as to what is Sikhism or who is doing what for it or to
it. It appears from the open letter that Pashaura Singh is being
sold to the Sikhs in an attractive package by an aggressive salesman.
 179

Must we buy the goods recommended?

With respect to middle aged scholars interested in destabilizing
Sikhism, it can be stated that there is no group of "elderly Indian-
educated" people trying to lead a "Campaign" against equallty
India-educated Pashaura Singh. Just as the entire concept of
education in India is western, the standards of scholarhip are
universal and have been particularly favoured by the Sikhs since
they basically fit in very well with the Khalsa code of conduct.
Western educated scholars do not know their own ground but
they presume to teach a lesson or two to the Sikhs. Sikhs are
interested in honest research and do not care who takes it up and
where, provided it remains honest.
It is a figment of imagination that attempts are being made to
"disrupt efforts to build up" Sikh studies. Protests are against the
very determined effort to destroy the basis of Sikhism. For
instance, one of the formulations of this highly recommended
group of "three or four" easily identifiable scholars is, that Sikhism
is not an independent dispensation but is a part of either the
Bhakti movement, Sant tradition or the Nath tradition, that is,
eventually that of Hinduism.. Sikhism does not need such pliable
scholars to continue with such propaganda of the interested parties.
What good are they who consider gains of a few dollars much
above regard for objectivity. If they really believed in what they
wrote, would they not quit chairs meant for Sikh st\ldies in favour
of those meant to study Hinduism?
The SGPC has pointed out that Pashaura Singh has come to a
wrong conclusion not warranted by the evidence cited. It is
therefore clear that he is trying to please his masters who have
been pursuing destructive aims for decades. These bad conclusions
can be useful to the political enemies of the Sikhs and are of value
to a certain set of missionaries who have not Come out of the
syndrome of White man's Burden. There is no use of
recommending Pashaura Singh as an answer. It is good to know
that he is at least a good family man and everybody will have
regard for that trait. But the SGPCis questioning his credentials
as a scholar and his objectivity; that is what needs an explanation.
Others are considered unethical for calling in question the
most irresponsible thesis based on conjectures, because they did
 180

not write to Pashaura Singh about their grievance. This ex-India

educated scholar finds it quite in order to write an open letter
about it. Just as he feels it necessary to come to Pashaura Singh's
defence, others found it necessary to expose his unreasonable
formulations. The SGPC represents the Sikh people and cannot
remain complacent about so sensitive an issue. Perceptions like
the existence of a pressure group waiting to pounce upon a thesis
writer, are products of persecution mania usual to pamphleteers.
Similarly it is mischievous to suggest that indictment of his client
has been particularly harsh. Much has been made of the temporary
excommunication which is effective only so long as the concerned
person does not present himself to the appropriate authority to
explain himself. Established standard procedure has been followed
and no exception has been made in Pashaura Singh's case. Closer
look will reveal that the procedure followed to ensure the
attendance of the accused is basically the same in all jurisprudence.
His shedding of crocodile tears would have been better
appreciated had he taken care not to whip up hysteria against the
SGPC by writing the kind of open letter he has written. Similarly
his interest in the welfare of the Sikh people would have struck a
sympathetic chord had he not tried at the same time to cause a
vertical schism within the Sikh Panth by attempting to pit the
younger generation against the older. That however will not
happen; a buffalo does not die to oblige the scavenger birds. With
this open letter the game plan of the blasphemous group is clearer.
They hope to be able to bring out the threatened schism by such
pseudo scientific writings. Even eastern educated people are able
to make out what is meant when the wet nurse makes a show of
more concern than even the mother.
His indignation at the unethical use of the unpublished thesis
is quite in order and goes well with eastern standards. The
author must get an opportunity to revise his opinion. If it is a
hint that this is what is intended, then it should be welcome,
for such foolhardiness cannot be sustained for long. One
would, however, like to know what he wrote to Rev. McLeod
when he similarly used the half-baked ideas from the similar
unpublished works of Harjot Singh and Surjit Hans. The
concept that the body responsible for sustaining an erring
 181

scholar must be addressed is likewise sound. However as

mentioned earlier, t at was le w en It was point out to a university
that certain contentions of Rev. McLeod were contrary to verifiable
facts and conclusions drawn on their basis were therefore
motivated. Response of that body was to turn a deaf ear. Must
one indulge in that fruitless exercise again and again? Such options
would be freely used once the concerned bodies establish a
reputation for dealing with valid objections in an impartial
manner.
Pashaura Singh goes ahead to undertake a textual examination
after clearly admitting the existence of scripture compiled by the
prophet of the faith. It is well known that this volume has a
recorded history of custody since its compilation. His exercise
amounts to challenging the original text on the basis of a later
undated apocryphal copy originating in a schismatic sect and
having no record of custody. It is admitted that the scribe of the
copy had pasted a forged Nishan of the Sixth Guru to give it
antiquity and authenticity of production. Is this the research we
are being called upon to support? No other university even in the
darkest of dark continents would grant a Ph. D. degree for it.
Since that is what has been done, are we being unreasonable when
we draw warranted conclusions?
It is useless to contend that the scholar has approached the
Guru Granth Sahib with respect. That will be determined by all
the factors taken into account while formulating conclusions.
When the approach is unsound, the evidence concocted and the
conclusions awry, the scholar must look within and explain. Here
is a set of scholars who are on a weak wicket in all respects and
yet are shouting like hell to drown the voices which are pointing
this out to them. Scholar's work is not the Pharaoh's decree; it
must partake of humility. Those who presume to teach this to
the SGPC must exhibit that they imbibe it also. The threat to
whip up sentiments of specified communities against the SGPC
is hardly helpful and will never work.
The kind of dialogue now being sought was sought by certain
scholars (of all ages) in the winter of 1990 but was denied for no
rational reasons. If they are to retain their credibility, the seats of
higher learning must not presume to be the sole repositories of
 182

truth. Almost all the primary fonnulations of Rev. McLeod have

been challenged by well known scholars. Perfectly rational
conclusions to the contrary have been drawn using sound
methodology. Proceedings of such seminars have been published
and are available for scrutiny. Issues have been clearly defined
and must be taken up for dispassionate discussion immediately.
That would be a welcome step.
 183

12
PASHAURA SINGH'S THESIS ON
"THE TEXT AND MEANING OF ADI GRANTH"
By
Dr TRILOCHAN SINGH

I had seen the first proofs of my book when news came about
the controversial thesis of Pashaura Singh guided by Dr Hew McLeod
in the University of Toronto. The learned Guide has induced his
docile and abjectly submissive student to project, rationalize and
uphold his crude and irresponsible and unsubstantiated views about
Adi Granth in the hope of getting respectability and credibility for
his views in U.S.- Canadian academic world. Pashaura Singh, a willing
victim of Dr McLeod's indoctrinated propaganda machinery has
been pushed into the pit of ignominy and humiliation he is
unfortunately facing now. He succeeded in persuading Pashaura Singh
to write in McLeodian language and idiom what even Dr Hew
McLeod did not dare to write in any of his books.
I received a copy of Pashaura Singh's thesis from U.S.A. on 20th
November. There is a high level clique that has been working as a
willing tool of "McLeod Sahib" as they call the learned Guide of
Pashaura Singh. The highest authority in the University provided a
microfilm to McLeod Sahib, but Sikh and Indian scholars were
virtually denied access to the GNDU MS 1245. With considerable
difficulty I was able to get a Zerox copy of some portions and
pennission to go through a Zerox copy kept in the Rare section
room. The original was kept by the librarian in his office and
presented only for "darshan" of the specially decorated pages having
an alleged verse of Bhai Budha and the autographs of Sikh Gurus.
Pashaura Singh's thesis has seven chapters out of which only
three are connected with his subject, the Textual study of GNDU
MS 1245. It opens with a long quotation from his learned Guide
and ends with a longer quotation claiming to have proved what his
learned Guide has said in his books. Pashaura Singh gives over sixty
references from Dr Hew McLeod's books and does not give a single
line from the scholarly opinions of learned commentators on Adi
Granth of nineteenth and twentieth century. But he goes on quoting,
rationalizing and repeating Dr Hew McLeod's pet hostile phrases,
pungent terminology, conjectural comments and
 184

derogatory remarks ending each irrelevant theme crudely discussed

by him with inconsequential questions which are always based
on false premises, prejudiced observations and blasphemous
assumptions. Like his Guide, Pashaura Singh never considers it
necessary to give any credible evidence for any of his disturbing
statements and proclamations in the style of Dr Hew McLeod's
assertion quoted in thirteen chapters of this book.
This induced and contrived thesis of Pashaura Singh is verily
a Pandora Box of clumsy distortions, highly absured prompted
contortions and inspired malformations. It is said about the
Pandora Box of Greek mythology that when all the evils that
flesh is heir to flew forth out of it and have ever since continued
to afflict the world, the last that flew out of it was 'Hope'. But in
the Pandora Box constructed through Pashaura Singh's thesis by
Dr Hew McLeod, the Christian Missionary Critic of Adi Granth
has left no place for 'Hope'. Throughout the thesis there is a lot
of quibbling and cavilling, but one does not find any internal or
external credible evidence on any page of the thesis.
Pashaura Singh's Thesis is Not
A Textual Study in Any Sense of the Word.
I have already stated in my book that"hermeneutical studies
and textual analysis of Dasm Granth and Adi Granth (based only
on historically accepted authentic recensions) has been a
continuous process in the past two centuries. I have mentioned
the names of scholars who have devoted their life-time to
hermeneutical studies of Sikh scriptures. I have personally known
a number of eminent scholars who have been working, each in
his own ways and expressing their views freely and frankly, but
always remaining open to other points of view. It is unbelievable
that Pashaura Singh did not find time to look at the shelves of
University-libraries which are rich in material. He does not even
mention their names probably for fear of offending the sensibilities
of his Guide, whose backseat driving in his research work has
landed him in the pit of such multiple blunders out of which he
finds it difficult to extricate himself.
There are many textual analytical studies of Sanskrit
works. Even though, many manuscripts of Kabir's works are
available and scholars of great eminence have worked on him,
but no one has as yet prepared a Textual analysis of his works.
 185

But a gifted Belgian scholar Dr Winand Callawaert, Professor of

Indian Studies at Katholleka Universtlet, Leuven, Belgium has
given a remarkable Textual and Critical analysis of all existing
recensions of Hindi Padavali of Namdev. On the Rajasthani
collection he is assisted by Dr Mukand Lath. If there are five
different versions of the text, he has given all the five. He has also
given a very simple and beautiful translation oJ his collection
leaving a few untranslated. The translation matches the sublimity
and inner mystical charms of Namdev's Kymns. Dr Winand
Callawaert's "Hindi Padavali of Namdev" is a shining example of
an excellent and scholarly Textual Analysis of Hymns of a
medieval saint of eminence. If he prepares a similar work of
Namdev's Marathi Abhangas he will certainly emerge as the most
outstanding scholar of Namdev's works. Compared to Professor
Callawaert's work Pashaura Singh's work is not a Textual Analysis
in any sense of the word.
Pashaura Singh has even failed to correctly present and
interpret the Mul Mantar and japji from authentic recensions.
He simply picks up less than a dozen hymns out of bulky text of
1267 folios (2534 pages) and gives erratic and bizarre interpretations
without comparing with any of the hundreds of dated authentic
old recension.
Use of Irrelevant and Inappropriate Terms
Pashaura Singh follows his Guide mindlessly in the use of
quite inappropriate words for well known oriental religious
concepts. A knowledgeable reader clearly notices a clever
derangement of concepts through the use of these irrelevant words.
Formula for Mantra: Both Pashaura Singh and Dr Hew
McLeod translate the Mantra as formula. There is as great
differences between formula mathematical or otherwise or
Mantras as between the jewel of a crown and shining stones on
the sea shore. The word mantra means the Mystic Word or Words;
and such words exist in every faith such as Bismilla in Koran.
Each Hindu sect has its own deities, gods or goddesses and for
them the priests have coined mantras. But the mantra (Mulmantar
and gurmantar) in Sikhism are. divine Words carrying within
them the essence of revelation of the Light of God to Guru Nanak.
Let us first explain what a mantra is and What it is not.
 186

The eminent German scholar Agehananda Bharati says,

"Finally mantra is not a senseless mumbo-Jumbo of words, a view
expressed by European scholars in the last century and held by
Arya Samajists and other Indian scholars to this day. There is a
two-fold danger today of perpetuating this erroneous notion. The
first stems from philosophy which would relegate mantra to hocus
pocus dustbins. Mantra is verifiable not by what it describes but
by what it effects, if it creates that somewhat complex feeling in
the practising person."
Heinrich Zimmer says, "Mantra" is Power, not a mere word
or speech which the mind can contradict or evade. What the
mantra expresses by its sound exists, comes to pass, Here if
anywhere, words are deeds, acting immediately. It is the peculiarity
of the true poet that his word creates actuality, calls forth and
unveils something real. His word does not talk, it acts. The mantra
is the Word which is vehicle of mystical forces. Mantras are inward
and spiritualized words. It is blasphemous to call them secular
words."
About the meditation on mantras in Buddhism, the German
Buddhist monk Anagarika Govinda says, "Buddha's spiritual
power is present in the mantra but the impulse which amalgamates
the qualities of heart and mind and the creative forces which
respond to the idea and fill it with life, this is what the devotee
has to contribute. If his faith is not pure, he will not achieve inner
unity; if his mind is untrained; he will not be able to assimilate
the idea if he is physically dull; his energies will not respond to
the call; and if he lacks in concentration, he will not be able to
co-ordinate form, heart and mind.
Mulmantar and gurmantar have a profoundly exalted place in
Sikh religious and mystical discipline and practices: The hymns
of Guru Granth have given elaborate interpretation of Mulmantar
and Gurmantar in Sikh Scriputres. We give only a few quotations.
Mulmantra is the divine alchemy of the Name of God,
Contemplating which says Nanak
The Perfect Lord is attained
A.G. Guru Nanak, Rag Maru, P 1040
Remember and Recite the gurmantar
In inner consciousness, says Nanak
You will be free from all sorrows and sufferings
 187

A.G. Guru Arjan Sh. I Gujari P 521

The True Word has been imparted as gurmantar to me
I have meditated on this true Word
Glorified the presence of the Lord
And dispelled all disquiet and distress.
A.G. Gurur Arjan Vadhans P 576
The True Guru has initiated me
Into the gurmantra (Mystic Word)
And imparted His Name
As the panacea of all ailments.
A.G. Guru Arjan P 1002
Count Keyserling has rightly said, "Man is exactly as immortal
as his ideal and exactly as real as the energy with which he serves
it." Scholars completely lacking higher moral and spiritual
perceptions have dehumanized and sterilized some of the most
exalted and refined aesthetical and mystical doctrines of Sikh
religion. "A merely historical or philological interpretation of a
mantra is indeed the most superficial and senseless way of looking
at it, since it takes the shell for the Kernel and the shadow of the
substance; because words are not dead things, which we toss at
each other like coins and which we can put away, lock up in a
safe or bury underground, and which we can take out.
Pothis; Anthologies of Gurbani; When Guru Nanak set up
and institutionalized the Sikh Church at Kartarpur he fixed three
daily prayers (Nitnem) for all initiated Sikhs nearly twenty years
before he left this world. The prayers were japji, Rahiras (Guru
Nanak's verses) and Arti Sohila (Guru Nanak's verses). When
some disciples who came from far off places asked, "Sire, when
can we have a glimpse of your divine Presence again, "Guru Nanak
replied "My physical and temporal body is transient, but the
Shabad, the Bani is my real Personality and Being; Contemplate
it and you can achieve nearness to me." So it became an article of
faith with Sikhs to have a collection of Hymns of Guru Nanak
in the form of Pothis. The Sikh Sangats of far off places had such
collections. The hymns of Kabir and other Nirgun Bhagtas were
also collected.
Guru Nanak passed on a definitive collection of his own
hymns and those of some Bhagtas to Guru Angad. Those authentic
 188

collections were given by Guru Angad to Guru Amar Das, whose

own collections were considerable. Goindwal became the ancestral
home of our fourth and fifth Gurus. When Guru Ram Das and
Guru Atjan came to Amritsar the original Pothis were still at
Goindwal, but copies and the original works of Guru Ram Das
and Guru Atjan were preserved in Kotha Sahib built just opposite
the Harimandir (Golden Temple). Adjacent to Kotha Sahib Guru
Hargobind built Akal Takht.
A Manuscript copy of Bhai Mani Singh's Sikhan di Bhagatmala
copied within three years of his martyrdom and other printed
versions report the following historical facts which are supported
by other historical documents of considerable importance.
Bhai Gopi Mehta and his fair companions came to the presence
of Guru Atjan. They humbly said "0 true King of Kings, on
hearing the Bani (Hymns) of the Satguru the mind is inspired by
reverence and devotion. But Prithimal, Mahadev and other Sod
his (refering to Meharban) have written Bani with the signature
line of Nanak. On hearing the compositions of these Sod his the
mind of the listener is filled with vanity and crafty thoughts."
"On hearing this well - founded and convincing complaint
Guru Atjan said to Bhai Gurdas, "Now we have Sikhs who can
discriminate between the Bani of the true Guru (True Prophets)
and false Guru (false prophets). The spiritually enlightened Sikhs
today perceive the difference between authentic Bani (Sachi Bani)
and fake Bani (kachi Bani) of imitators and pretenders, but in
future it may be difficult. So collect all the Bam Pothis for the
compilation of Granthji. Also simplify the Gurmukhi alphabet
(Gurmukhi akhar sugam kichai) so that everyone may read them
easily (sabh Kisai de vachan vich sugam hovan). So all the
collections of Bani were collected and kept in a room (at
Amritsar) (Kothai vich baman lkathian kitian). Pashaura Singh's
Prosaic and Discursive observations on Some Recensions of Adi
Granth.
In the second and third chapters of his thesis Pashaura Singh
makes superficial observations on Goindwal Pothis, KartarpuI
bir and other recensions which he has neither seen or has he
studied the text of anyone of these volumes. He- has seen some
 189

old copies in Punjabi University and other places, but says nothing
even about the Japji and other important texts of these recensions.
He only repeats the remarks of his Guide, Dr Hew McLeod here
and there.
Without giving an iota of internal or external evidence, and
without quoting a single sentence from historical documents and
without refuting contemporary or near contemporary evidence
about the canonization of Adi Granth (known earlier as pothi
Sahib or Granth Sahib as Guru and Successor of Guru Gobind
Singh, he makes a blasphemous statement saying, "The foregoing
examination of the early manuscripts reveals that GNDU MS/
1245 was one of the many Drafts on which Guru Atjan seems to
have worked to produce the final text of the Adi Granth in 1604
A.D." (Thesis Chapt. 2 p. 60) According to Pashaura Singh, both
the Sikh Panth and even Guru Gobind Singh failed to produce a
final standard edition, a task which according to him and his Guide
was fulfilled by the illiterate ruler Ranjit Singh with the help of a
council of scholars whose names are not mentioned by him. At
the end of the third chapter he re-iterates his mischievous and
unsubstantiated statement without giving even a correct resume
of any of the recensions mentioned in his thesis by authoritatively
asserting: A careful survey of the early manuscripts reveal that
there was no one version of Adi Granth. Ranjit Singh abolished
the institution of gurmatta (collective decision of the Khalsa Panth)
and tried to down play the doctrine of Guru Panth. He also made
efforts to bring forward the doctrine of Guru Granth. Maharaja
Ranjit Singh appointed a council of prominent Sikh scholars to
prepare an authorised version of Adi Granth (Thesis Chap. 3, p.
82). Pashaura Singh is not tired of repeating this utterly stupid
suggestion without giving an iota of evidence. Guru Atjan
frequently revised the received texts in the interest of establishing
a canonical scriptures. During the editorial process, Guru Atjan
achieved ilnguistic refinement through substitution of synonyms
for certain words, "which he p.resumes Guru Atjan did not have in
earlier drafts. Pashaura Singh mindlessly follows the absurd
suggestions of his Guide Dr McLeod but he does not give a single
line or a single word from the text to prove what he so loudly asserts.
Pashaura Singh's Mendacious Concoctions and
 190

Presentations of GNDU MS 1245 as Guru Arjan's First

Draft
This chapter opens with a passage from an eassy of Dr Loehlin,
which was originally written by him long ago. But after his death
Hew McLeod clique prepared a distorted form of it, introducing
in it passages to which he never subscribed during his life time.
They have got it published under a new title "The Need for Textual
and Historical Criticism" to suit their purpose.
These three chapters move around one lamp-post in the blind-
alley in which Pashaura Singh ventures to enter. This lamp-post
is his Light-house, and whenever he gropes in the darkness of
bluff, blustering deception, he follows the light-house repeatedly
asserting: McLeod says, McLeod thinks, McLeod suggests, McLeod
concludes. With such back-seat driving of his learned Guide,
Pashaura Singh again and again jumps out of the frying pan into
the fire of hostile and ignominious postures constructed by his
guide. But a scholar with academic interests looks for some
concrete internal or external evidence in support of his much
trumpeted theory that GNDU MS 1245 is an early Draft prepared
by Guru Arjan.
Pashaura Singh!McLeod's Magical Formula Many people like
me do not believe in magic, but when you happen to see a magical
show you are impressed by the art of illusion. But Pashaura Singh
and his learned Guide Dr Hew Mdeod have evolved a novel
magical formula for upgrading and downgrading sacred scriptures
and fake documents to whatever position they desire. Besides
giving a newly constructed Geneological Table, historically
incorrect and misleading from top to bottom (Thesis p. 23) he
introduces a new magical formula in Toronto University academic
studies by making the following statement.
"If the standard rule of textual criticism that "the shorter
reading is to be preferred to the longer one (Brevior lectio
prueferendu varbosiori) is considered the text of this manuscript
comes out to be earlier than the famous Kartarpur manuscript.
Another rule that "the more difficult reading is generally
preferable" (Proclivi lectioni praestat ardua) may be equally applied
to GNDU text since it contains archaic linguistic expressions
which were standardized in the Kartarpur volume."
 191

If some learned Christian scholars like Dr Hew McLeod

applies an abracadabra magic formula and some Latin or Greek
so called standard rules of criticism, to the Bible and places the
Forth Gospel before the First, and Epistles of St. Paul before the
birth of Jesus Christ, his Christian colleagues of Berkley and
Toronto Universities might consider Dr Hew McLeod and his
students and admirers genuses of a new genre, but all those eminent
scholars who devoted a life time to the study of the Bible might
turn in their graves on hearing of this new methodology of studying
sacred scriptures. Even orthodox Sikhs are very tolerant people but
no one in his normal senses can tolerate such gibberish nonsense.
Both Dr Hew McLeod and Pashaura Singh might have been
on better grounds if they had taken shelter under such Latin or
Greek phrases to protect and propagate their prejudices and errors
as: urgumentum and ignorantium (arguments based on the
adversary's ignorance; or individium (peoples hatred and
prejudices). These universities have lowered their own prestige
by instituting such, unacademic research which only ventilates
the ignorance, contempt and prejudices of a hostile Christian
scholar and a stupid Sikh student.
Mul-Mantar in Authentic Guru Granth copies
Mul-Mantar and Gur-mantar in Sikh scriptures have been one
and the same ever since they were revealed to Guru Nanak. They
have come down to us only through written tradition. Cult-groups
virtually disassociated from Sikhism even during the Guru-period
have tried to corrupt the Mulmantar, Gurmantar and also distort
Gurbani, but the Mulmantar and gurmantar of Guru Nanak has
been recorded in all authentic recensions of Adi Granth,
historically acceptable Janamsakhis, GurbiJases is absolutely
correct, The correct Mulmantar is
Ek : The One Transcendent God
Omkar : All-pervading Immanent Spirit
Satnam : His Name is Eternal Truth
Karta Purkh : Creator, Perfect Being
Nirbhau : Without Fear
Nirvair: Without Enemity
Akal murat : Immortal His divine Image
Ajuni : Unborn
Saibhan : Self-Existent
 192

Gurparshad : By his Grace attained

The Mulmantar is based on Guru Nanak's experience and
vision of the Unmanifest Absolute one and only one God, and
His Manifest Immanent, all-pervading Light Omkar. This ek
Omkar is also called the Bij mantar and is present in all
invocations. The divine Attributes of God are given in the
Mulmantar. It embodies the luminosity of the Unmanifest
Absolute God and His All-pervading Light which gives Life and
divine speak to all living creatures. It unfolds a vision of the
Ultimate Reality and the Creative Power behind the universe.
Contemplation and meditation on the Mulmantar opens the
inner most being of man to the spiritual consciousness of the
Immanent and Transcend.ent Presence of God. In the Guru Granth
we find it in 33 places besides being placed at the opening of new
Ragas it is particularly attached to two major compostions of Adi
Cranth namely japji and Asa-Ki-Var. it appears it was inseparably
associated with these compositions from the time of Guru Nanak.
Minor Invocations: For invocations as minor sub-headings a
part of it ek Omkar satnam kartapurkh gurprashad is used only
eight times, while a still shorter invocation ek Omkar
satgurprashad is used 525 times. These minor invocations are not
Mulmantras. They are used even while writing a letter. For writing
encydic letters (Hukamnamas) these invocations were still reduced
to brief statements and ekomkar guru sat. Guru Gobind Singh
introduced a number of other invocations such as Vahguru-ji-ki
Fateh, tav prashad, Akal Sahai. These Invocations are not mantras
and are not used for meditations.
Bhai Gurdas has explained in detail the significance of
Mulmantra in two of his verses in such a way that the distortions
can easily be detected. Bhai Gurdas, the co-compiler of Adi Cranth
authoritatively confirms what the real Mulmantar in Sikh
Scriptures is and what it means.
ekomkar akang likh
Ura Omkar lakhaya
satnam karta purkh
nirbhau hoe nirvair sadaya
akal murat partakh soe
nau ajuni saibham bhaya
gurprashad su adi sach
 193

jageh jugantar honda aya

After writing the numerical akang (one)
Symbolizing ekomkar : the Transcendent God.
The letter Ura was written along. with it . .
Symbolizing Omkar : All pervadmg Immanent Spirit
Satnam : Eternal Truth is His Name
Karta Purkh : he is Creator, perfect Being
Nirbhau hoe, being Ever Fearless
Nirvair sadaya : He is known as "Without Enemity;;.
Akal Murat His Immortal image is Visible Presence.
His attribute is Ajuni : Unborn
He is ever self-Existent: Saibham
By the grace of Eternal Guru ("'Gurparshad)
He is achieved: The Primal Truth
Who ever exists from age to age.
Bhai Gurdas : Var 39, pauri 1.
Bhai Gurdas repeats this confirmation of Guru Nanak's
Mulmantar in Var 26 Pauri
As break away cults, like Minas, who were condemned as
highway robbers had already started corrupting Gurbani,
distorting Mulmantar and gurmantar so Bhai Gurdas not only
clearly states what Mulmantar in Sikh Meditations is, but also
gives clear expression to Guru Nanak's gurmantar when he says
"Vah-Guru Gurmantar hai jup haumai khoi. Vah-Guru is the
gurumantar contemplating which the disciple gets rid of all I-am-
ness (ego consciousness).
Forgeries, Fabrications in Guru Nanak Dev University
Manuscript: GNDU MS 1245
Guru Nanak Dev University bought this manuscript from
Curio Dealers Harbhajan Singh and Harcharan Singh Chawla.
Dr Piar Singh and Or Madanjit Kaur of Guru Nanak Studies
Department of the University certified it as a very rare and unique
manuscript of Adi Granth. A micro-film copy of this manuscript was
specially provided to Dr Hew McLeod, perhaps on the strong
recommendation of Dr Piar Singh and Dr Madanjit Kaur, two of the
four or five strong admirers of Dr Hew McLeod and uncritical supporters
and propagators of his bluff-blunder books allegedly called academic.
The claim of the Dealers or those who have committed the
forgeries tha t there is "Nishan mangal" of Guru Hargobind are
 194

utterly false. A Mul-mantar written by the clearly discernable

handwriting of Guru Tegh Bahadur is pasted on it afterwards.
Forged Hymns in the name of Bhai Buddha
It is shocking to note that Professors who recommended it as a
rare Manuscript of Adi Granth, in their rash enthusiasm to promote
this completely fake eighteenth century document as an early and
rare draft of Adi Granth failed to note that the crude hand in which
this hymn falsely attributed to Bhai Buddha is a recent forgery pasted
on it to give it historical colouring and increase its sale value.
Forgery of Fake Hymn Attributed to Bhai Buddha
A hymn is pasted on the Manuscript which is attributed by
those who forged it to Bhai Buddha's handwriting. Pashaura Singh
says, "The attribution of this hymn to Bhai Buddha is based on
the family tradition. See the Manuscript Note by Harbhajan Singh
and Harcharan Singh Chawla (P 27-28 f.n.) Pashaura Singh writes
'The manuscript contains a hymn written in Bhai Buddha's hand
on the third decorated page, which may show his involvement in
the creation of the scriptures. It is quite possible that his
descendants may have preserved the manuscript through the
process of handing it over to the next generation."
The forgery is clear from the following facts:
(1) During the course of my researches I have maintained a
regular contact with the deras and villages 'connected with Bhai
Buddha's life. These deras and shrines never had any recension of
Adi Granth or any document having anything wtjtten by Bbai
Buddha's hand.
(2) These lines written with a rustic hand are from a distorted
hymn of Guru Amar Das. They have nothing to do with Bhai Buddha.
(3) Bhai Buddha was the first teacher who taught the Punjabi
alphabet first to Guru Arjan and then formally to Guru
Hargobind. No man in his proper senses would believe that Bhai
Buddha wrote in such a clumsy and crude handwriting. Bhai
Buddha was the most honoured and the first Patriarch of Sikh
history who was not only the most loved and respected disciple
of Guru Nanak, but he was appointed by the Founder of Sikhism
to anoint his successor. God granted him such long life and
spiritual strength that he anointed five successors of Guru Nanak.
 195

When the compilation of Adi Granth (Pothi Sahib) was complete,

he was asked to install it in the Hari Mandir (Golden Temple).
He was appointed the first High Priest of this most sacred shrine
in the light of his first hand knowledge and experience of the
durbars of Guru Nanak, Guru Angad, Guru Amar Das and Guru
Ram Das. Those who have presented a forged hymn under his
forged handwriting deserve to be condemned for such
blasphemous act.
Mina-Cult Attitude Towards Bhai Buddha
If there was anyone whom the Mina-Cult rival gurus hated it
was Bhai Buddha and Bhai Gurdas, who compaigned against the
aggressive and mischievous schismatic activities of Prithi Mal and
his son Meharban, who were condemned by them as Minas
(Highway robbers). They bribed the Masands and indirectly
plundered the tithes before they reached the legitimate Guru. They
corrupted and plagiarized Gurbani, and thus committed literary
thefts in many ways. When Guru Ram Das handed oyer the
articles of spiritual regalia to Bhai Buddha and asked him to anoint
his youngest son Arjan Mal as his successor, Prithi Mal rudely
confronted Bhai Buddha and said,
Listen O old Man,
I know you very well;
You are praised
As companion of Guru Nanak;
I am the eldest son,
And deserved to be set
on the pontific throne of the Guru
You have not done the light thing;
You are an old man now,
And have lost all sense of discrimination;
I conducted all the administration,
What have you done old Man.
You have anointed Arjan as the successor.
If I do what I must do
You will have to face dishonour and humiliation'
I will wrest control of the pontific throne. '
Kavi 5antokh 5ingh : 5uraj Prakash Rashi 2, Anou 22 The
hostility of the Mina Sodhis (prithi Mal and Meharban)
contined to the end of the life of the great Patriarch who was
respected as a great Apostle and contemporary of Guru Nanak
 196

by all the Sikh Gurus.

Bhai Gurdas' Criticism of Mina Sodhis: Prithi Mal. and
Meharban
It is an established fact that the decision to compile an Adi
Granth (pothi : Holy Book) was taken when it was detected that
the Mina Sod his started mixing their own hack-work and
imitation verses in authentic Gurbani. Kesar Singh Chhiber in
his Bansavali-nama writes:
"Meharban son of Prithi Mal started composing poetry. He
was educated in. Persian Hindvi, Sanskrit and Punjabi. He
composed his own Bani, with the signature line of Nanak. The
bards ignorantly started singing it as real Bani. These Mina Sodhis
set up their own durbar and prepared their own Granth. They
put into their Granth the Banf of earlier Gurus."
When Guru Arjan heard the bards ignorantly singing Mina-
Bani as real Bani, he addressed Bhai Gurdas and said, "These Minas
are corrupting Gurbani by mixing their own fake Bani in it. This
we will not permit,"" Thus Bhai Gurdas was asked to collect all
the authentic Pothis. Sarup Das Bhalla also writes in his Mehma
Prakash
Guru Arjan immediately commanded
Bhai Gurdas to collect all Barn Pothis
Compile the True Gurbani
Include in it the Bhagat Bani
And take out the fake bani (Kachi Bani)
Sarup Das Bhalla : Mehma Prakash P. 701
The more pacific Guru Arjan remained, the more aggressive
and violent was the attitude of Prithi Mal and Meharban. Every
time Guru Arjan sent Bhai Buddha and Bhai Gurdas for
reconciliation and peaceful family relations, Prithimal and
Meharban insulted them and were extremely rude to them. When
they made an all out bid to bribe the Masands and win the support
of the Mughal authorities to capture the control of Amritsar, Bhai
Gurdas exposed them by writing a whole Var (Canto) of stirring
verses exposing their hypocricy, duplicity, meanness and wicked
deeds thus:
 197

"The Minas are as hypocritical as the cranes, who dwell in

holy rivers, cheating by their pretensions on places of pilgrimage.
The True Guru is the King of kings. The Minas are spiritless evil
persons whose faces are blackened with evil deeds. (Var 36-1)
Just as a Jackal who jumped into the vat of a dyer changed his
external appearance and posing as King of the Jungle he frightened
all animals' into submissions; but when the Jackal opened his
mouth his utterances exposed him. Such are the false and
mischievous (kupata) Minas. They are without character and
honour and will be chastised and exposed in the Court of God
(36-2).
How can a Mina glowworm ever face the Light of ever shining
Moon? How can a Mina who is like a drop of water ever be equal
to the Vast Sea (the true Guru). You stand condemned from the
divine Source 0 Minas. You are doomed hell. (36-3).
Just as a prostitute is beautiful but her black heart and soul
pushes her lovers to the pit so the companionship of Minas pushes
a person to the pit of sorrow and suffering. (36-5)
How do you distinguish the True Guru from the Mina
hypocrites. Minas are like counterfeit coins. They are like
condemned and repudiated Pirs who get shoe beating wherever
they go (36-8)
Without possessing any moral or spiritual qualities these Minas
proclaim themselves to be Gurus of the Sikhs. (36-11).
The Janam Sakhis, the Goshtis, the imitative Bani written by
Prithimal, Meharban and his son Harji stood condemned and
anathematized by the Sikhs. At first, Prithimal claimed to be the
fifth, Guru of the Sikhs, but a sustained campaign against them
earned on by Bhai Buddha and Bhlli Gurdas ousted them out of
Amritsar.. The supreme sacrifice of. Guru Arjan in suffering
martyrdom with divine calmness and endurance put the Minas
in the Shade. But when Prithvi Mal found the 11-12 year old
Hargobind installed as sixth Guru, he felt that he could easily
oust, him as successor of his father. So Prithi Mal started
captioning his imitiative Bani as Mahal Sixth, and when he died
his son Meharban started calling himself the seventh Guru of the
Sikhs. Guru Hargobind publicly declared that he would not
 198

compose any hymns and there would be no Bani under Mohalla

sixth or seventh. Thus we find the Bani under Mohalla sixth,
seventh and eighth is all Mina Bani.
Technique Adopted by Meharban and other Minas of
Composing Bani
The Minas adopted a tactless technique of lifting half the lines
from the compositions of earlier Gurus, juxtapositioning them
into a new verse-line, and after putting three or four lines in verse
order added Das Nanak as their signature line claiming divine
descent from Guru Nanak. For example, Meharban picks the
following half-lines either in their original form or slightly changed
form.
kudrat kar Guru Nanak Sri Rag
paki nae pak Guru Nanak Sri Rag
sabh kich terai vas Guru Arjan, Var
Ramkali
From these plagiarized lines Meharban has composed the
following verse which has no rhythm or pohi beat.
kudrat kar dikhlalya hindu musalman
paki nai pak tu ap ram rahmin
sabh kich terai vas hai das Nanak ke meharvan
It is with this three-line verse Janam Sakhi of Meharban ends.
There are over 150 such verses of Meharban in his Janam Sakhi
of Guru Nanak. The lines of each verse can be traced to the earlier
composition of the Sikh Gurus.
Mina-Cult Mul-Mantar in GNDU MS/1245
Pashaura Singh quotes the following Mul-Mantar from GNDU
MS/1245 and has devoted over six pages of comments on it.
< siqnwm krqw purK inrBau inrvYr
Akwl mUriq AjUnI sYBM siqgur prswid
This is the innovative Mulmantar which was introduced by
Meharban and his Mina-Cult after Guru Arjan had compiled the
Adi Granth. Meharban's Janam Sakhi begins with this corruputed
form of Mulmantar,. This Mulmantar is also found in the
following other manuscripts of the Mina-gurus Harji Mina and
Chaturbhuj.
1. Pothi Harji a continuation of Meharban's Janam Sakhi
(who claimed to be a successor of Guru Nanak).
 199

2. Pothi Chaturbhuj
Both of these works begin with the Mina-Cult Mulmantar
and both are published by Khalsa College, Amritsar.
The following other Manuscripts found in other libraries and
about a dozen Mina-Cult deras also have this Mul-Mantar as their
distinguishing feature.
1. Ramkali. Omkar Vada. In imitation of Guru Nanak's
Omkar, in Ramkali Rag (54 verses) this Mina-Cult composition
has 87 verses. The plagarizing tadics are clearly visible. Most of
the lines are picked up from Guru Nanak's Bani.
2. Sukhmani Sahansar-Nama. The Manuscript of this also has
the same Mina-Cult Mul-mantar. It is a composition prepared to
replace Guru Arjan's Sukhmani. It is completely an anti-thesis of
Guru Arjan's work. Guru Arjan's Sukhmani has 24 Ashtapadis.
Mina Sukhmani has 30 Ashtapadis. Guru Arjan's Sukhmani
glorifies only God and true saints and illlumined Mystics (Brahm-
Giani) of God. The Mina-Sukhmani glorifies Hindu Avatars and
praises Rama, Krishna in order to attract Hindu Vaishnavas to
Mina-Cult fold. Historically all these works were composed after
Guru Arjan had completed the Adi Granth.
For Pashaura Singh to call this Mina-Mul Mantar the first
draft of G.uru Arjan, without giving any evidence is an absurdity
of the first order. This Mul-mantar has nothing to do either with
Guru Arjan or with Adi Granth.
Distortion of the Japu Ji in GNDU MS/1245
It is an established fact and confirmed from many copies
prepared from the original Kartarpur recension that Guru Arjan
used a very authentic version of Jap ji from a copy prepared by
his father Guru Ram Das. The Jap(u) in all authentic versions is
found as follows:
"jpu" Jap(u)
Awid scu jugwid scw ] adi sach jugadi sach
hY BI scu nwnk hosI BI scw ] hai bhi sach nanak hosi bhi sach.
Meditation
In the beginning He was the Truth
Throughout the ages He has been, the Truth
 200

Even now He is the Immanent Truth

For ever in future He shall be the Truth.
In this GNDU MS/1245 Mina-Cult scribes have introduced
all their innovations by distorting the text. The Shloka Adi Sach
Jugadi sach is completely removed, but used by Minas elsewhere
in their own Bani. The Jap Text only 40 verses had been a daily
prayer of all Sikhs during the last twenty years of Guru Nanak's
life. Guru Angad, Guru Amar Das and Guru Ram Das maintained
the same text as authentic from 1569 onwards. Guru Arjan copied
the correct Text from a personal prayer Book prepared by his
own father. Now in 1990 Pashaura Singh/Hew McLeod want
the Sikhs to believe that a Mina-Cult Manuscript of eighteenth
century full of a distorted version of Japji was the first draft of
Japji and Adi Granth hymns. Four Gurus, and even its author
Guru Nanak could not prepare a final version of this most
important meditation during his life time. Guru Nanak had time
to finalize the text of all his compositions which are longer than
Japu, but failed to give the most important and inspired
composition a final form.
Mina-Cult Distortions in Jap(u) Text of GNDU MS/
1245
Guru Arjan in the first compiled volume had already stated
that the Japu was from a copy recorded by his father in his own
hand. In order to prove to their disciples that the Bani they were
recording was from more authentic sources, Minas have even distorted
lines from Japji. We give ten lines from the first six pauries of Japji.
Text of Authentic version Corrupted Text in
GNDU MS/1245.
BuiKAW BuK n auqrI BuiKAw BuK n aUqrY
Shs isAwxpw lK hoih qw shMs isAwxpw lK hoin qW
ikv sicAwrw hoieAY ikv ikau sicAwrw hoieAY ikauN
hukim hovin Awkwr hukim hoAw Awkwr
hukmI hovin jIA hukmI hoey jIAw
swcw swihb swcu nwie swcw swihb swc nwau
mUho ik bolx bolIAY muhhu ik bolx bolIAY
ivx BwxY ik nwie krI ivx Bwxy ikAw nwie krI
jyqI isriT aup
u weI vyKw jyqI issid aupweI vyKw
ivx krmw ik imlY ivx krmw ikAw imlY
Even in Japu this kind of innovative distortions go on to show
to their Mina-Cult followers that they have a different and better
 201

copy of Japji. They ignored the fact that these innovative

distortions changed the accentuation of sylables and the number
of accentuated syllables in a line. Thus this method of distorting
the metre also made the verse unpoetic and irregular.
Distortion By Changing Verse Order
There are many hymns which have been, distorted by changing
the verse sequence. Pashaura Singh calls these distorted forms,
the earlier forms, When this undated manuscript form is of
Meharban and Harji period and decidedly later distorted form;
how can they be called earlier forms by mere application of Latin
formula. On page 118-119 of his thesis Pashaura Singh gives a
well known hymn of Guru Atjan in Rag Tilang. We give below
the correct text found in all recensions, the correct translation
and then the distorted version.
Guru Arjan : Rag Tilang
Refrain
Mira dana dil soch
muhabate man tan basal
sach shah bandi moch
1
didnai didar sahib
kachh nahi iska mol
pak parvardgar tu
khud khasm viida atol.
2
dastgiri dehi dilawar
tuhi tuhi ek
kartar kudrat karni khaliq
nanak teri tek.
Translation
Guru Arjan: Rag Tilang
Refrain
O my King kings (Mira)
O Embodiment of Wisdom
This thought and reflection
Has come to my mind.
Your Love illumined with Your Presence (Mhabate)
 202

Ever dwells in my mind and body

You are the true King of kings
You are the Emancipator from bondage
1
Lord, to see the vision of Your Presence With my inner eyes,
Is predous beyond price.
O Omnipotent Protector and Nourisher
Your are Pure and Perfect
O Self-Created Lord
You are Great and Immeasurable
2
Lead me with They Hand, Lord
And inspire me with divine value Thou and Thou Alone art
One
You are the refuge of Nanak
O Creator and Maker of Cosmic Nature
Adi Granth, Rag Tilang, P. 724
On the same page of Adi Granth there is a hymn of Guru
Arjan beginning with a line karte kudrati mushtak. In the ten
lines of this hymn nine lines are so shamefully corrupted that no
one knowing the ABC of poetry can ever think that such ugly
unpoetic and incorrect words can ever come out of the pen of
Guru Arjan.
Lines as Found in All Lines as Found in Mina-Cult
Authentic Recensions GNDU MS/1245
krqy kudrqI musqwk krqw kdrqI musqwk
dIn dunIAW eyk qUhI dIn dunIAw eyk qUM hY
Awcrj qyrw rUp Acrj qyrw rUp
kaux jwxY cmqu qyry kvx jwxY clqu qyry
idnsu rYix ij quDu ArwDy idnu rYin quJ ArwDqy
AjrweIl Xwr bMdy AjrweIl AdIr bMdy
gunh au sky sgl AwPU qyry jn gunh aun ky AwPU jy jn
gur imil nwnk buiJAw imil pIr nwnk buiJAw
The italic words are distortions which pashaura Singh and
McLeod call the first Draft of Guru Arjan. Throughout the Adi
Granth the word Azrael is correctly written by the Sikh Gurus
and Sheikh Farid. No one has ever used the word Arai- clair for
Azrael anywhere. Only ignorant and mischievous corrupters of
Fake Bani like the Minas-cult do it in order to
 203

corrupt the authentic hymns of Guru Arjan. No historic co nsion

has ever given this completely distorted reading. only Dr Hew
McLeod and his headless research students like pashaura Singh
can attribute such preposterous language and poetry to Guru
Arjan.
Shocking Alterations in Var Gauri of Guru Arjan P 323 to
328 of GNDU MS/1245
In Gauri Var of Guru Arjan The Pauris are intact and have
'few errors. But all shlokas have been removed from their proper
places and attached to some other Pauris while shlokas have been
completely eliminated. Some shlokas are called Dakohas a Multani
name for a couplet.
But the most sacriligious and stupid arbitrary misplacement
is, verses attached to some Pauris. In place of the appropriate
shlokas some verses have been picked up from Guru Arjan's well
known composition Phunhe of 23 verses on P. 1361-1363 of Guru
Granth and Gatha a composition of 24 verses on P. 1360-61 of
Guru Granth. Shlokas connected with Pauri 16 are removed and
replaced by Phunhe verse 11 followed by verse 7. Pauri No. 17 of
Guru Arjan's Var Gauri has shlokas in authentic text. These
shlokas have been removed and replaced arbitrarily by verse 10
from Phunhe followed by verse 18 from Gatha of Guru Arjan.
This pick and chose malformation and distortion is the most
stupid thing the Mina-Cult scribes of this MS 1245 could do.
This pattern is followed by them in a number of other places.
May I ask Christian scholars and experts on the text of the
Bible just one question: "How would they feel if some genius like
Dr Hew McLeod produced an apparently old Manuscript In
which passages from Sermons on the Mount are shifted to the
Psalms, and verses from Soloman's "Song of Songs" are shifted to
the Fourth Gospel and this rare genius claims that this document is
older than the Books of Wisdom in Old Testament. And when he is
asked to give any internal or external evidence he recites a Latin cir
Greek formula like the Tantrics reciting magical mantram.
Collections arduao : "If the canon of unusual readings is
applied to determine the age of a document then it can certainly
be placed anywhere. The erratic whims of such academic
researchers of Toronto University illumni present any
 204

absurd illogical nonsense to conceal their ingnorance behind these

Latin or Greek utterances. If we were to list all the distortions in
this Manuscript, it will require over two hundred pages along
with the correct text found in hundreds of authentic recensions.
Elimination of Bhagat-Bani and Ludicurously Stupid
Comments
Ragas were inseparable part of the hymns of the Guru. All
the Gurus who composed hymns that were to be sung fixed Ragas
to them which his successor never changed. Authentic, Bhagat
bani also became a part of the Bani Pothi collections. 'The hymns
of Sheikh Farid and Jayadev were collected by Guru Nanak. Just
as Guru Angad, Guru Amar Das and even' Bhai Gurdas have
commented on many verses of Jap(u) meditation, to elucidate
and give deeper meaning of Guru Nanak's hymns, the Sikh Gurus
have written some commentary hymns in some verses of the
Bhagats. Some of these great saints whose hymns are selected for
Adi Granth lived centuries earlier and in an entirely different
religious atmosphere and' cultural milleu. There are some verses
of Sheikh Farid written with the background of a life-long self-
mortification. While the Gurus appreciated the real mystic and
moral fervour of these verses, they did not wish that these should
be taken literally. Even Farid recommended detachment and trust
in god and not self-mortification to his disciples.
The person who has prepared this manuscript has completely
removed the Bhagat-Bani in order to please Brahmanical Hindu
Vaishnavas. Mina-Cult people called themselves Bhagatias, a word
used in Punjab for Vaishnavas. There are no doctrinal differences
in the Guru-Bani and Bhagat Bani. Anyone who has dared to
remove Bhagat-Bani from Adi Granth has been excommunicated, No
one can ever say that Guru's Bani is superior to Bhagat Bani. For the
Sikh the Bani of Sheikh Farid and Kabir is as much the Word of God
and True Bani (Sachi-Bani) as the Bani of the Sikh Gurus.
Bhagat Bani Introduced to Attract Low Caste People to
Sikh-Fold
The most mischievous suggestion in this thesis is made to
project another harum scarum theory of Hew McLeod. Although
the Text of MS/1245 has no Bhagat-Bani but Pashaura Singh turns
to Kartarpur to record twice in his thesis (pages 26 and 174 of
 205

Thesis) to heedlessly support Hew McLeod's theory that the

purpose of includmg the Bhagat-Bani of low-caste to medieval
saints was none other than attracting disciples from low-caste
Hindus. The number of these hymns of low caste Bhagats also
was gradually increased in proportion to their support of Sikhism.
On pages 26 and 174 of his thesis pashaura Singh refers to
Kartarpur Bir saying that Bhagat Dhanna's hymn "Gopal tera
arta" in Dhanasri Rag and Ravidas' hymn Begampura sahar ko
nau were interpolated in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries
reflecting a situation in which Jats and cobblers were attracted
into the Sikh fold in large numbers. These hymns are found in all
recensions prepared before 1700 A.D. and were among the first
important hymns of Ravidas and Dhanna. No one had ever
changed a word nor dared to interpolate in Guru Gobind singh's
authorized version prepared at Anandpur called Adi Singhasan
Damdama. I have two dated recensions prepared during the life-
time of Guru Gobind Singh, before the Adi Granth was installed
Guru. These hymns are in their proper places even in much earlier
recensions. The suggestion that they were interpolated in seventeenth
or eighteenth century is highly mischievous and blasphemous.
This theory of Hew McLeod also suggest that because the
largest number of hymns included in Adi Granth are those of
Kabir (weaver: ]ulaha) and Sheikh Farid (a Muslim), the largest
number of followers of the Sikh Gurus obviously were weavers
Oulahas) and Muslims. Next in importance and numbers as
followers were tailors inspired by Namdev's Bani and Cobblers
because of Ravidas. Jats should have been minimum as in Adi
Granth. By making such unsubstantiated suggestions I do not
know whether Hew McLeod and Pashaura Singh are making a
fool of their readers or the Canadian academic world or
themselves. No one who has even a rudimentary knowledge of
Sikh history believes in such harum scarum luff theories of Hew
McLeod, projected through Pashaura Singh.
Blasphemous Suggestion of Ranjit Singh As Final
Compiler of Standard Edition of Adi Granth
There are more than half a dozen contemporary historical
evidence of the installation of Guru Granth as Guru by Kavi
Sainapati : Guru-Sobha Granth, Bard Nath Mall, Bhai Nand Lall
 206

and other contemporaries of Guru Gobind Singh who had spent

nearly their whole life in the Guru's durbar. The most important
document is Hukamnama of Mata Sundari, wife of Guru Gobind
Singh, now in the possession of Bhai Chet Singh of Bhai Rupa
village which strongly condemns those cults whose leaders tried
to become eleventh Guru of the Sikhs. In it some cults are named.
Besides God and the Shabad (Word of the Guru) manifest in Guru
Granth no one was to be the Guru. Bhai Nand Lall was with
Guru Gobind Singh during his last days and stayed with Mata
Sundri at Delhi for nearly two decades writes: He says
He who wishes to see the true Guru
let him go and see the Granth
He who wishes to speak with the true Guru,
let him read and meditate
On the Word (Shabad) in the Granth,
He who wishes to hear the word of the
Guru Let his heart and soul
Listen to the word of the Granth
Bhai Nand Lall: Rehatnama
Quoting Hew Mcleod as his sole authority Pashaura Singh
writes, A careful survey of the early manuscripts reveal that there
was no one version of the Adi Granth that was accepted by all
the Sikhs in the eighteenth century. Maharaja Ranjit Singh
abolished the gurmatta (collective decision of the community).
He also made efforts to bring forward the doctrine of Guru
Granth, a doctrine which affirms the authority of a Scriptural
Guru." (Thesis P. 82.-83). "It is quite possible that Maharaja Ranjit
Singh appointed council of promient Sikh scholars to prepare the
authorized version of the Adi Granth" (Thesis P. 84)
History cannot be created out of fantasy theories and wild
imaginative suggestions. Neither Hew McLeod nor Pashaura
Singh explain how over a handred dated copies of the authentic
version of Adi Granth still exist all over India and even in Kabul
and Dacca which were written and completed long before Ranjit
Singh was born. Ranjit Singh never summoned a council either of
saints or of scholars on any religious issue. But during the last 25
years of his life the atmosphere of his durbar was so full of voluptuary
 207

activities backed by Dogra Chiefs of Jammu and Kashmir that we

have given documentary evidence to show that even the High
Priest of Golden Temple considered his sons frequent visits an
involvements in ourt affairs an insult to his prestige and position.
Hew Mcleod's and Pashaura Singh's Definition of
Fundamentalist Sikh Scholars
Hew McLeod and Pashaura Singh give fantastic definition of
fundalmentalist scholars. Sikh scholars who try to fix only one
meaning to a text are called fund'amentalists while those who
according to their knowledge and spiritual perceptions give more
than one interpretation are liberal. There is no such division
amongst Sikh theologia. According to this division Bhai Vir Singh
is liberal while his brother Dr Balbir Singh is fundamentalist.
When the Gurus or Bhagtas wrote the hymns they had in
their mind only one meaning and only one experience and vision.
Different scholars try to reach this real meaning in different ways.
No scholar throughout Sikh history has ever claimed that his
meaning and interpretation is the final and the only correct one.
Bhai Vir Singh told me that he tried to record all the written
traditions so that the scholars in future may not have to search
them and reflect on them separately. Interpretation of Adi Granth
requires the following equipment for its study (1) Good knowledge
of Prakrit, Appabransh, Punjabi, and Persian. (2) a good
knowledge of schsmatic as well as Hindu-Buddhist doctrines. (3)
Most important of all an intuitive perception and experiences of
the moral and spiritual experiences of the hymns (4) A Good
knowledge of the Grammer of Adi Granth. If any of these is
lacking the interpretation will reveal the shortcoming. There is
no such as Singh Sabha tradition, Udasi tradition etc. Faridkot
Tikka was prepared during Singh Sabha Movement. Pashaura
Singh gives it a fanciful name .of intuitional. Bhai Vir Singh started
work on his exegesis when he left the Singh Sabha Movement far
behind him, and even Akali movement was on the decline.
Shabad-Shloka Definition. Pashaura Singh tries to give a novel
interpretation of Shabad Shaloka relation. The word Shabad
is used in a number of senses in Sikh Scriptures. It is used for
Gurbani Unstruck Music, name of God. The Shlokas are
generally connected with pauri in Vars. The wold Pauri is
 208

the exact Punjabi translation of the word Sura. Both these words
mean step of a ladder by which a person mounts. When a Shloka
is attached to a padavli and not a pauri, the padavali is called
Shabad which means a hymn. We have given- Our comments in
the odd and irrelevant comments of Pashaura Singh on his thesis.
He has neither seen or examined the Kartarpur recension, nor
the Goindwal Pothis. His comments on other recensions are
extremely superficial and he says nothing positive or substantial
about the texts of these recensions. His attempt- to upgrade this
Mina-Cult GNDU MS 1245 of eighteenth centuries and place it
historically above Kartarpur recension with the magical trick of
Latin formulas and McLeod-Style utterly incorrect and misleading
is of the type he uses for ]anam-Sakhis has ultimately boomeranged
on him. As his Guide Dr Hew McLeod does not consider it
necessary to give any historically reliable evidence for all his
recklessly hostile assumptions, conjectural statements. Pashaura
Singh also fails to quote a single trustworthy historically correct
statement. On the other hand all well established, published and
unpublished documents and studies on Adi Granth contravene
and controvert all his capricious and fantastic statements picked
up exclusively from Hew McLeod's books or superimposed on
Pashaura Singh's thesis by his Guide.
Calligraphy and Index Pashaura Singh is absolutely wrong
when he says that the calligraphic style is the same as that found
in two Goindwal Pothis available. The Goindwal Pothis consisted
of the Bani of Guru Nanak, Guru Angad and Guru Amar Das.
The Bani of Guru Ram Das and Guru Arjan were outside them.
As each Pothi has on the average 3000 hymns, the total number
of Pothis having the Bani of the Gurus and Bhagatas should have
been at least eight. The calligraphic style of the Pothis is distinctly
different from that found in GNDU MS 1245. Pashaura Singh
also is wrong when he says that the whole GNDU MS 1245 is in
one hand. It is written at least by four or five scribes. He attributes
the writing to Bhai Gurdas and suggests that an entirely different
hand in the end means that Bhai Gurdas improved his handwriting.
When Pashaura Singh calls a unique feature, it actually exposes
the Manuscript to be fake from one end to another. Each Rag has
a separate index, but both Pashaura Singh and his guide fail to
 209

note that these indexes do not tally with the contents. No page
or folio number is given. It is quite obvious that these Indexes are
picked up from some other collections without checking whether
they -would fit in here or not. The order of the Ragas, the order
in which different chhandas are placed are all irregular and not
found either in any Pothi or recension of Adi Granth.
Following his Guide Dr Hew McLeod, Pashaura Singh time
and again tries to prove that there was no authentic version which
was installed by Guru Gobind Singh as the Guru. As Hew McLeod
has a sustained tendency of rejecting or ignoring all historically
correct documents and never quoting any historical document in
support of his own fantasy theories, both he and his headless
students like Pashaura Singh reject what all European and Indian
scholars have accepted. Even Dr Emest Trumpp confirms this
historical fact, when he says.
"The Guru felt that his dissolution was near at hand, and
ordered his Sikhs to keep ready wood (for cremation) and shroud.
Having done so they all joined their hands and asked, "O true
Guru, whom will you seat, for the sake of our welfare, on the
throne of the Guruship ? " He answered: "As the nine Kings
before me were at the time of their death seating another Guru
on their throne, so shall I now not do, I have entrusted the whole
society (of the disciples to the bosom of the Timeless Divine
Male (Akal Purkh). After me you shall everywhere mind the book
of the Granth-Sahib as your Guru; whatever you shall ask it will
show to you. Whoever be my disciple, he shall consider the Granth
as'the Form of the Guru." Having uttered these verses he closed
his eyes and expired A.D. 1708 (pp xcvi)
Dr Hew McLeodand his students like Pashaura Singh have
gone far beyond even Dr Trumpp in constructing utterly false
hIstory and unfounded mendacious doctrines which no Sikh with
the name ever accepts.
Courtesy: from the book entitled "William Hewat Mcleod
and Emest Trump as Scholars of Sikh History, Religion and
Culture"
 210

13
RESEARCH-COVERAGE OF BLASPHEMY
A Critical Evaluation of Mr. Pashaura Singh's TEXT AND
MEANING OF THlE ADI GRANTH,

By
Dr SURlNDER SINGH KOHLI
The school of thought founded by Professor W.H. McLeod
through his works like Guru Nanak and the Sikh Religion,
Evolution of the Sikh Community, Early Sikh Tradition, A Study
of the Janamsakhis, Who is a Sikh 1, The Problem of Sikh
Identity, The Sikhs .: History, Religion and Society, The B40
Janamsakhi, The Chaupa Singh's Rahit-nama and carried further
by his students and admirers like Harjot Singh, Pashaura Singh,
Surjit Hans and others is a conscious effort at misconstruction
of Sikh History, Religion, Philosophy and Theology by indulging
desultory discussions, distortions and misrepresentations, leading
towards blasphemy and spreading doubts about well-authenticated
historical facts. In the words of Dr Noel Q. King, Dr McLeod in
his works exhibits lack of respect for truth and historical records.
2. Mr. Pashaura Singh, while working under the supervision
of Dr W.H. McLeod, has produced his Ph. D. Thesis entitled
"THE TEXT AND MEANING OF THE ADI GRANTH".
In his Abstract of the Thesis, he has mentioned: "Examination
of early manuscripts has revealed that Guru Arjan worked over
a number of drafts to produce the final text in 1604 CE. He
prepared the scripture primarily in response to the process of
crystallization of the Sikh tradition that was taking place during
his period". This is the basic argument on which the edifice of
his whole thesis has been raised. But this edifice falls down at
once, when we take into consideration the following verses from
the Sikh Scripture itself :
i. Whatever Bani of the Lord I received, I pass on the knowl-
edge contained in it, O Lalo! (Tilang M. I, p. 722)
ii. Through the True Bani (utterance), one enters the Abode
of the Lord. (Asa M. 3, p. 423)
iii. The Bani is the. Guru and the Guru is the Bani and all the
ambrosias dwell in this Bani. (Nat. M. 4, p. 982).
 211

iv. This Bani has come from the very outset. (Sorath M. 5 p.
628)
The above quotations imply the revelatory character of
the verses of the Adi Granth. The Scripture is a revela-
tion from God to man, therefore, it is blasphemous to sug-
gest or say that Guru Arjan Dev worked over a number of
drafts to prod uce the final text or the Scripture, when he
himself says: "I speak on what you make me speak, O
Lord-God !" (Sorath M. 5, p. 623)
3. The manuscript of the Adi Granth, on which the researcher
Pashaura Singh has based his thesis is the Guru Nanak
Dev University (GNDU) Manuscript No. 1245, which was
purchased in 1987 by the University from Harbhajan Singh
Ha rcharan Singh Chawla, the Manuscript dealers of Bazar
Mai Sewan, Amritsar. The writer of the article, when he
was the Professor and Head of the Department of Punjabi,
Panjab University, Chandigarh, during his tenure, from
1962 to 1979, made purchases of several manuscripts from
the same dealers which also included one manuscript of
the Adi Granth. Mr. Pashaura Singh has not visited the
Panjab University Library, which is a treasury of many
valuable manuscripts. The manuscripts of the Adi Granth
before the advent of the Printing Press, had been continu-
ously scribed and copied in large numbers, not only in the
Sikh religious centres far and wide in India, but also in
various places abroad, where the Sikh settlers, traders and
missionaries (Udasis or priests) had gone to stay with their
families. There was a great demand for them from indi-
viduals, Gurdwaras and Dharmshalas, as the Sikh move-
ment grew and the adherents increased. Hundreds and thou-
sands of such manuscripts were destroyed during sacri-
leges and attacks by the inimical forces. Many old manu-
scripts were consigned to riverwaters. But still hundreds
of such manuscripts were preserved in Sikh Shrines,
Gurdwaras and Libraries. There are dealers, who trace them
out from various places and old prestigious families and
sell them to the institutions of learning and research. There
are still several scholars and old houses, in whose per-
sonal libraries, there are many valuable
 212

collections of manuscripts. The writer of this article has

also got a valuable collection of manuscripts in his per-
sonal library. Sardar G.B. Singh, the author of "Sri Guru
Granth Sahib dian Prachin Biran" in Punjabi, did prelimi-
nary research on some selective manuscripts of the Adi
Granth, lying scattered in India and abroad. Mr. Pashaura
Singh, seems to have consulted about two and a half dozen
manuscripts in India and about one and a half dozen in the
United Kingdom. Out of these manuscripts, he has selected
one manuscript of Guru Nanak Dev University No. 1245
as the basis of his research, claiming that it is one of the
drafts on which Guru Arjan Dev worked in order to pro-
duce the final text of the Adi Granth.
4. (a) The above mentioned manuscript is undated, therefore
in order to justify and prove that it was prepared earlier
than the famous Kartarpur manuscript, the researcher has
mentioned two criteria of textual criticism that 'the shorter
reading is to be preferred to the longer one' and the more
difficult reading is generally preferable', but no logical and
satisfactory proof of its earlier preparation is provided.
(b) It is very childish of the researcher to think that the
long eulogistic description of Guru Amar Das's death in-
dicates that the scribe was possibly Bhai Gurdas, who may
have further improved his handwriting by the time he wrote
the final draft of the Adi Granth. In this manuscript, a short
hymn of four verses is believed to have been written by
Bhai Buddha. In its last verse, this hymn contains the name
"Nanak" in it, which was only used by the Gurus in their
bani or the Minas like Meharban used it in their verses.
How could a true Sikh like Bhai (or Baba) Buddha think"
of composing a verse in the name of his Guru? Bhai Bud-
dha never wrote any poetry according to the Sikh histori-
cal records. According to the introductory note written in the
beginning of the manuscript there is a benedictory autograph
written in Guru Hargobind's blessed hand. The researcher him-
self says that this note is incorrect. He found on examination
that a different piece of paper, containing the Mul Mantar
 213

written in Guru Tegh Bahadur's hand, was pasted. Then

how could he conclude that the said manuscript was one
of the drafts, on which Guru Arjan Dev 'seemed to work?
(c) In this manuscript, the researcher has seen blank spaces
for insertion of shaloks, difference in raga sequence, some
marginal notes, incomplete panegyrics by the bards, dif-
ferent titles in the epilogue and the useage of Gurmukhi
script, which is still in the process of development. Such
like peculiarities can be noticed elsewhere also, because
of the changing mood, whim, disposition and handwriting
of the scribe or the copyist. The researcher does not find
in the manuscript the Bhagat Bani. He believes that Guru
Atjan's primary concern was to fix the hymns of the Gurus
first. This is far from truth, because the Guru was compil-
ing the bani of both the Gurus and the Bhagat at the same
time. It is ludicrous to think that the bani of the Bhagats
was included anticipating the attraction of the followers
of the Bhagats in the Sikh fold. None would accept the
blasphemous statement of the researcher that Guru Atjan
Dev, who received the bani intuitively from the Lord,
modified his own hymns in a number of places. Why has
the researcher not visualized the consequences of deni-
grating the revelatory character of the scripture and in-
dulging in blasphemy by specifying such a manuscript as
the basis .of his research, which is undated, unauthentic
and without any historical significance?
5. In his Textual Arudysis, the researcher has given the first
place to the consideration of Mul Mantar (The primary
Sacred Formula), which is given in the very beginning of
the Adi Granth, after which the Dani entitled JAPU be-
gins. It is also a part of Japu, and is recited daily by the
Sikhs as such. It occurs many times in the body of the
scripture in its complete form as well as in other abbre-
viated forms at the beginning of various sections and
sub-sections of the scripture. In his analysis, the re-
searcher has referred to its different text, which occurs
in volume I of the Goindwal Pothis. The researcher believes
that this was the form that was current during the
 214

period of Guru Amar Das. In this text the words Satgur

Prasad are given instead of Gur Prasad, Such Nam instead
of Satnam, Kartar instead of Karta Purkh, Nirikar instead
of Nirvair and Sambhau instead of Saibhang. Satgur Prasad
occurs after Ik-Aumkar and with the word Sambhau the
Mul Mantar ends. The volume, which the researcher has
referred to does not contain the bani Japu, therefore we
cannot be sure whether the same form of Mul Mantar has
been used there. Many a time, the scribes and copyists
have stumbled and written according to their discretion.
We have to see how the master scribe like Bhai Gurdas
has written the same, or how Guru Arjan Dev has recorded
the same. In the Kartarpur manuscript, Bhai Gurdas has
written the form of Mul Mantar, recorded in his own hand
by Guru Arjan Dev as confirmed by the researcher him-
self. There is, of course, no writing available in the hand
or scribe by Bhai Gurdas. The researcher, in his zeal for
bringing forth something new, tries to prove that the ear-
lier draft of Mul Mantar in the Goind wal Pothi changed to
the following form of Mul Mantar:
Ik-Aumkar Satnam Karta Purkh Nirbhau Nirvair Ajuni
Saibhang Satguru Parsad
In the Guru Nanak Dev University manuscript No. 1245,
the only difference being of Satguru Parsad instead of Gur
Prasad. But according to the researcher during the devel-
opment of Mul Mantar, Guru Ram Das changed the word
Nirikar to Nirvair, which reflects his firm resolve to coun-
teract the situation of hostility in real life, created by the
animosity of his rivals, with the spirit of love and friendli-
ness. Guru Arjan Dev replaced Satguru Parsad with Gur
Prasad to provide a more coherent structure to the text of
the Mul Mantar. He also added Purkh changing the word
Kartar to Karta, because by his time the personal (Purkh)
aspect of the Supreme Being acquired prominence as com-
pared with Guru Nanak's emphasis on the formless
(Nirankar) nature of Ultimate Reality. According to the re-
searcher "This may provide an adequate explanation of the
subsequent development that took place in Sikh doctrine as
 215

well as within the panth since the days of Guru Nanak.

This will, however, challenge the traditional understand-
ing of the Mul Mantar as being created in its present form
by Guru Nanak himself." This CHALLENGE of the re-
searcher regarding the traditional understanding of the Mul
Mantar, is in fact, a challenge to the whole Panth. IT IS
THE HEIGHT OF BLASPHEMY. Generally, the mantar
occurs in two forms. One form is the regular prayer in
words, which is called Mul Mantar. The other form of the
Mantra is the combination of syllables. It is called Bija-
mantar, which is Wahi-Guru in Sikhism. It may also be
Ik-Aumkar. Mul Mantar is prepared only by the founder
bf the Faith. In the case of Sikhism, it was undoubtedly
prepared by Guru Nanak himself. None can change any
word or letters of the Mul Mantar. It was Guru Nanak him-
self, who used the words Mu! Mantar in his verses. He
says: "Mul Mantar is the source of ambrosia, tasting which,
one realizes the Perfect Lord" (Maru M. I, p. 1041). Thus
Mul Mantar is the name of the Lord whose recitation leads
one towards Ultimate Reality. It is thus sacrilegious to say
that the components of the Mul Mantar were prepared at
different times to suit the worldly situations or religious
developments. The researcher has tried to trace directly
from the works of Guru Nanak, the origin of the major
components of the earlier form of the Mul Mantar, as
though the founder Guru was not the author of the Pri-
mary Sacred Formula. Does the researcher not know that
the attributes of the Lord mentioned by Guru Nanak in the
Mul Mantar, when practised by the disciple (Sikh) make
him God-like ? Whereas the Lord is Nirbhau (Fearless),
the disciple becomes fearless: "He becomes fearless, in
whose heart abides the Lord" (Maru M. 1,9.1042). Simi-
larly the Lord is Nirvair and according to Guru Nanak Dev,
the disciple destroys all 'Yair Virodh' (enemity). How could
then the researcher think that Guru Ram Das introduced
the word Nirvair in Mul Mantar, because of personal rea-
son. The researcher does not seem to have any hold on the
religious philosophy of the Sikh Scripture. He thinks that
for Guru Nanak the word Nirankai is of utmost
 216

importance. The Sikh Gurus believed in both the aspects

of the Lord i.e. Nirguna (Transcendent) and Sarguna (Im-
manent). Guru Nanak Dev said, "Nirgun te Sargun thia"
(Ramkali M. 1, Siddh Goshta, p. 940) Guru Arjan Dev
said, "Nirgun aap Sargun bhi Ohi" (Gauri Sukhmani M. 4,
p. 387). Did Guru Nanak Dev not say that the Lord has no
eyes,. no form, etc. (Sarguna aspect) ? (Dhanasari M. 1,
Aarti, p. 13). Then what special importance has been given
to the Nirguna aspect by using the word Nirankar? Un-
doubtedly, the Guru pays his obeissance to the Lord, who
is above maya, but this world is the abode of the Omni-
present Lord, therefore it has a significance for him. The
researcher says further that Guru Arjan Dev introduced
the word Purkh in Mul Mantar, because with him, the per-
sonal (purkh) aspect of the Lord acquired prominence as
compared with Guru Nanak's emphasis on the formless
nature of Ultimate Reality. The researcher seems to be
ignorant of the philosophical term Purusha, from which
the word Purkh had been formed in Sant Bhasha (the saint-
language). According to Sankhya Shastra, after Prakriti,
the other co-eternal reality is of Purushai it is pure con-
sciousness, eternal, changeless but passive. There are in-
numerable Purushas. When Purusha comes into contact
with Prakriti, evolution takes place. The Lord God of Guru
Nanak is also called Purusha, but He is called the Primal
Purusha (Aad Purkh), Creator (Karta Purkh). Purusha is
without the impact of maya
(Niranjan Purkh), etc. The ordinary Purushas are souls, which
are a part and parcel of the Primal Purusha or Lord-God.
6. After Mul Mantar, the researcher has taken up the textual
analysis of JAPU and some other hymns. According to
him, the Guru Nanak Dev University manuscript No 1245
provides an earlier version of Japu before its standardiza-
tion. Here also he has tried to prove that Guru Arjan re-
fined the language of certain passages and polished the
metre. While writing about the concluding shaloka of Japu,
he says that traditionally this shaloka is understood to be
Guru Nanak's own composition, but there are scholars who
 217

regard Guru Angad as the real author. Along with this, he

has made a very obnoxious Suggestion: "Guru Nanak may
have intitiated his successor Bhai Lehna into the poetic
skill of verse composition in the literary form of a shalok,
and the training may have been a part of his designation to
the office of guruship. The two Gurus may have worked
together on the text of the epilogue of the Japji and ac-
cordingly both may be regarded as its joint authors".
7. Another marvel that has come to our notice is the refer-
ence of the researcher to an article of Dr. C.H. Loehlin
entitled "The Need for .Textual and Historical Criticism"
in his Bibliography. This article was published in "The
Sikh Courier (Spring-Summer, 1987). The actual article
of Rev. C.H. Loehlin entitled" A Westerner Looks at the
Kartarpur Granth" was published in the Proceedings of
Punjab History Conference (First Session dated Novem-
ber 12-14, 1965). A rebuttal of this article entitled" A Note
on Kartarpur Granth" by the eminent Sikh savant Bhai Jodh
Singh was published in 1965. Loehlin's article was first
published in The Sikh Courier in 1987 and later on pub-
lished in the "The Sikh Review" in its March-April 1990
issue. In there two articles we find additional matter after
the actual earlier article of Loehlin of about ninety lines.
This addition of about hundred lines is the same in both
these journals. The articles are publishd under the name of
C.H. Loehlin. Dr. Loehlin presented himself this article
personally in 1965 in the Punjab History Conference. He
passed away on August 27, 1987 at the age of ninety. He
resided in Westminster Gardens Presbyterian Retirement
Community Center, 1420 Santo Domingo Avenue, Duarte,
California 91010 from 1981 until his death. According to
the catalogue (Memories of Westminster Gardens) of all
the academic papers published by the residents of the above
facility during their stay, Dr. C. Loehlin did not publish
any article during his stay at the above facility. Now the
question artses as to who has tampered with the actual
article of Dr. Loehlin published in 1965 and sent the addi-
tional ~atter along with the actual article to The Sikh Cou-
rier in 1987 under Dr. Loehlin's name? The title of the
 218

article has been changed from "A Westerner Looks at the

Kartarpur Granth" to the "Need for Textual and Historical
Criticism". It was in 1987 itself that researcher Pashaura
Singh started his research in Toronto under the supervi-
sion of Dr McLeod, and the Guru Nanak Dev University
manuscript No. 1245 was also purchased in the same year
by the end of March, which was made the basis of his
Textual Analysis. We have every reason to believe that all
this is the work of a CLIQUE, with which the researcher is
associated. The additional matter contains such blasphe-
mous and obnoxious statements :
"If the problem of the Adi Granth is so acute, much more
so than of the tenth Granth is ? Who wrote it ? How really
was it compiled? What is its authentic text ? What is the
purpose of its various books?.... The Adi Granth is not
given an exclusive preference over the bani of Guru
Gobind Singh ….Western friends of Sikhism and the Sikhs
likewise have noted this lack of critical interest on the part of
the Sikhs. Fortunately many of their scholars and research
experts are doing research on textual and historical problems."
The Sikh scholars and research experts, mentioned in the above
quotation can be none else than the members of the
abovementioned clique. We do not understand how the editors
of the prestigious Sikh Journals like The Sikh Courier and The
Sikh Review could publish such blasphemous material, which
has been deliberately introduced in order to rake up new
controversies regarding the well-established Revelatory Character
of the Sikh Scripture and mislead the faithful adherents.
The researcher has wilfully indulged in an irreligious exercise
and act of blasphemy, knowing full well as a Sikh the sentiments
and beliefs of his own people. He has been given a wrong advice
in selecting an undated manuscript, which is unauthentic and
has no locus standi. Many of his statements about the Gurus and
their works are ill-conceived and ill-considered. They are illogical
assumptions. A great disservice has been done through this
research. The Sikhs religious institutions should take note of
blasphemous works, which try to demolish the spiritual
foundation of their Faith.
 219

14

SACRILEGE IN THE NAME OF RESEARCH

A Critical Analysis of Pashaura Singh's Assault
on the Sikh Scriptures
BY
Prof. MANJEET SINGH SIDHU
"Evad Ucha hovia Koe "Tis Uche Ko Jane Soe" only the one
as exalted as the Lord Himself can fully comprehend Him.
"G.G.S. page 5.
Gurbani is God's Word (shabad) revealed through the medium
of the Sikh Gurus. To attempt a textual analysis of the Lord's
Word without the Guru's God-bestowed grace and mystic
intuitiveness is like pursuing on the ground shadows of the birds
in flight-an exercise in utter futility. Pashaura Singh's doctoral
thesis, "The Text and meaning of the Adi Granth" eminently
qualifies for this dubious distinction. It is the latest in the series
of motivated attempts to somehow negate the essentially
revelatory character of the Gurbani as recorded in the Adi Granth
by Guru Arjan Dev and subsequently updated by Guru Gobind
Singh by including Guru Teg Bahadur's Bani in it. Pashaura
Singh's thesis is a pathetic subterfuge to present afresh Prof.
Mcleod's malodorous wine in a new bottle and is characterized
by the same inadmissible ratiocination and sacrilegious sophistry.
Pashaura Singh admits that G.B. Singh in challenging the
authenticity of the Kartarpur recension (Bir) "Seemed to be
serving the Arya Samaj interests as evidenced by his defence of
Dayanand's argument in his book, "but feels absolutely no qualms
in endorsing much more dangerous designs of Dr Mcleod, his
mentor and Ph. D. supervisor. Dr Mcleod, while working as a
Christian propagandist for a Christian missionary InstItute in
the Punjab was smart enough to realize that the Sikh religion's
revelatory fount would prove to be an insurmountable stumbling
block in disseminating Christianity and securing conversions to
his faith. He, therefore, embarked upon a wild-goose chase of
planting doubts about the revelatory character of the Gurbani
by questioning established historical events and by weaving like
 220

a spider a web of untenable hypothesis. His frivolous and

unacademic approach in determining Bhai Banno's Bir to be the
authentic Bir as compared to the Kartarpur Bir without even
casting a single glance at either of the two Birs and without
consulting the well-researched available books on the subject very
dearly domonstrates his real intent.
Pashaura Singh, as a devout disciple of Dr. Mcleod, follows like him
the stratagem often used to distort the facts of history. First a conjectural
premise is presented and then a cumbersome rationale is so contrived as
to completely obliterate the conjectural nature of the premise. The
arguments are stretched and twisted, stretched and twisted till the
originally groundless premise is made to appear as a solid historical reality.
Mr. Mcleod used and perfected this technique in his wilful onslaught on
the Sikh religion but confounded by a barrage of incontrovertible and
scientific evidence rebutting his insidious statements and conclusions
questioning the authenticity of the Kartarpur Bir, Janam Sakhis, creation
of the Khalsa by Guru Gobind Singh on the Baisakhi day of 1699 etc.,
he seems to have recruited some careerists who are willing to compromise
their integrity for unknown reasons. They now serve as his minions
and are engaged in their assigned task of subverting the Sikh religion
and its sacred traditions.
By suggesting that "Guru Arjan worked over the text of the
Mul Mantar in successive drafts to give it its final form" Pashaura
Singh has launched a frontal attack on the revelatory nature of
the Gurbani. He contends that Guru Arjan changed the Mul
Mantar to make it conform to the contemporary concept of
personal Guru as against Guru Nanak's Formless Divine Guru.
He also contends that Guru Ram Dass changed the world
"Nirikar" to "Nirvair" "to counteract the situation of hostility in
real life, created by the animosity of his rivals, with the spirit of
love and friendliness." These and many other such contentions
in the thesis reduce the Gurbani to a conscious and laboured
poetic expression composed as a situational response to the
changing times, and thus reject Guru Nanak's repeated assertion
that the Gurbani was mystically revealed to him. Says Nanak (1)
"O, Lalo I express what the Lord conveys to me to speak" G.G.S.
Page 722 (2) "1 have no voice of my own, all what I have said is
His command." G.G.5. Page 763 (3) "Consider the Bani 'of the
Sat Guru to be the words of Truth, O, Sikh, it is the Lord who
 221

makes me convey them." G.G.S. Page 308.

Before undertaking any study or research relating to the
text, aning or history of the Aad Granth, Pashaura Singh and
others of his persuasion must necessarily proceed from the
historically established premise of the Gurus being inspired
messengers ordained by the Lord to disseminate his Word (Shabad)
among the mankind. No research, academic or otherwise, is valid
unless it fulfils this primary requisite. Just as no study of
Christianity and Islam is valid that does not accept Christ and
Mohammad as the prophets, similarly no approach to Sikh
scriptures is valid that does not accept Sikh Gurus as divine
messengers. Pashaura Singh's failure lies in the fact that he has
difficulty accepting Guru Nanak and his successor Gurus as the
prophets. According to him Guru Nanak "regarded himself as
the mouthpiece of Akal Purakh" (Thesis Page 2) implying that
Guru Nanak was not the mouthpiece of Akal Purakh, he merely
"regarded" himself as the mouthpiece. It is this basic failure that
leads him from one fallacy to another. This failure gets further
compounded when he makes a' spurious manuscript, the so-called
Guru Nanak Dev University MS # 1245, as the bedrock of his
pitiably hollow formulations. This manuscript was purchased in
1987 by Guru Nanak Dev University from Amritsar dealers
Harbhajan Singh and Harcharan Singh Chawla of Bazar Mai
Sevan. It bears no date, no name or any other distinguishing mark
that can place it in the time frame in which Pashaura Singh has
vainly attempted to place it. On page 4 of his thesis Pashaura
Singh says, "It is entirely possible Guru Nanak may have himself
written down his own compositions in his lifetime unlike many
religious figures of his day he was not illiterate. Bhai Gurdas
records a tradition that Guru Nanak used to carry a book (Kitab)
of his own compositions on the missionary tours." He also accepts
that some "schismatic groups were circulating hymns under the
name of Nanak with the intention of winning a following of
loyal Sikhs" and quotes Guru Amar Dass's general warning against
the circulations of such utterances :. "Apart from the
(compositions of the) true Guru all Bani is spurious. Those who
recite It are spurious, likewise those who hear it and those who
propagate it." Yet he makes a spurious manuscript as the base to
snipe at the revelatory character of the Bani. The fact of the
 222

matter is that every other composition outside the Kartarpur Adi

Granth and the final Granth Sahib is spurious and therefore, totally
irrelevant to the study of Gurbani. While discussing the editorial
policy of Guru Arjan Pashaura Singh has attempted to prove that
Guru Arjan "frequently revised the received text in the interest
of establishing a canonical scripture." The important point that
he, consciously or unconsciously, misses here is that Guru Arjan
while compiling the Adi Granth collected only such writings of
his predecessors as were not in his possession, which forms only
a negligible portion of their writings. His collection mostly
covered the writings of the Bhagats, Sants and Savants that he
wanted to include in the Adi Granth. He recorded the works of
Guru Nanak, Guru Angad, Guru Amar Dass and Guru Ram
Dass in their purest form without adding or altering even a single
syllable anywhere. The cardinal principle underlying the revealed
Word is that it does not admit addition or alteration. It would be
a grievous blunder to attempt such a sacrilege and no body could
be more sensitive to it than Guru Arjan. To suggest anything
contrary to this would itself be a sacrilege. Guru Arjan devised a
brilliant format in which Bani was arranged according to a definite
order based on the ragas. (For details see Daljeet Singh's Essays
on the Authenticity of Kartarpur Bir and the Integrated Logic
and Unity of Sikhism.) The collected material was handed over
to Bhai Gurdas who then put it in the order and place appropriate
to the hymn and its author. The deletions and erasions were
effected by Guru Arjan when he found that a hymn of a Bhagat
or a Sant scribed by Bhai Gurdas was not in consonance with the
revealed Word. There are no deletions or obliterations with regard
to the Bani of the Gurus. Even when he found one of his hymns
occurring at two places, he did not delete either of the two. He
only inserted a note to that effect.
Pashaura Singh on the one hand accepts Kartarpur Bir as the
authentic Bir and also accepts that Guru Arjan recorded "Sudh"
in the margin in his own hand after the works of the Gurus in
each section, but on the other hand attempts to project it as the
revised version of a spurious writing like GNDU MS # 1245. His
attempt to make it an earlier text than the Kartarpir Bir is both
awkward and groundless. His argument that archaic linguistic
 223

expressions -found in MS # 1245 were later on standardized in the

Kartarpur Bir only betrays his ignorance about the continual use
of suchf archaic linguistic expressions even up to our own modem
time especially by Sadhus and Sants. I remember a wandering
minstrel who used such expressions and "Lande" style of writing
Punjabi. Clearly the spurious copies of the Barn were wntten by
each Scribe according to his own training, affiliation and
background with the purpose of building up his own clientele.
Other arguments in support of making MS # 1245 an earlier draft
than Kartarpur Bir are equally fallacious. Pashaura Singh's whole
thesis thrives on expressions typically used by a political
manipulator, expressions like "it seems", "it appears", "perhaps",
"may be", "it is possible", etc., etc. The truth, however, is that
time tested traditions cannot be eroded by arbitrarily invented
grotesque mental images. A serious researcher must rely on
unimpeachable sources and conclusive evidence and scrupulously
avoid playing second fiddle to intolerant scholars like Dr. McLeod
who have ulterior motives in denigrating traditions other than
their own.
Pashaura Singh has tried to revive the dead issue regarding
some notional division "over the issue of Sikh identity, that is,
whether one follows the teachings of Guru Nanak and his
successors in the Aad Granth, or joins the Khalsa of Guru Govind
Singh." Eminent scholars of Sikhism have time and again tom to
shreds any suggestion of a departure by Guru Gobind Singh from
the teachings of Guru Nanak. They consider it as both repugnant
and incorrect. Guru Govind Singh himself states as follows about
the integrated logic and unity of the Sikh doctrine:
"The holy Nanak was revered as Angad,
Angad was recognised as Amardas,
Amardas became Ramdas.
The pious saw this, but not the fools,
Who thought them all distinct;
But some rare person recognised that they were all one.
They who understood this obtained perfection
Without understanding perfection cannot be obtained :
(History of the Sikhs, Macauliffe, Vol. V,P. 295)
Pashaura Singh, misguided as he is, contends that Guru Gobind
 224

Singh's solitary couplet in the Adi Granth was assimilated in Guru

Tegh Bahadur's Shaloks "to keep Guru Gobind Singh's authorship
limited to the Bani in the Dasam Granth." Had Guru Gobind
Singh perceived any dichotomy between his doctrine and that of
the Granth Sahib, he would not have bestowed Guruship upon
the Granth Sahib. He would have given his unique position to
the Dasam Granth. Besides, whatever Guru Gobind Singh did or
said is in full conformity with Guru Nanak's mission and
philosophy. Guru Nanak rejected the escapist paths advocated
by Jainism, Nathism and other similar scholars of thought. He
declared that though everything else was less important than the
vision of Truth, the life of good conduct was of greater importance
than that vision. "Truth is higher than everything, but higher
still is truthful living." In the Japuji, the final stage recounted by
him of spiritual development is that of the "Heroism of Mighty
Endeavour." "Death is the privilege of brave men, provided they
die in approved cause," he declared. In Babar Bani Guru Nanak
deplored the brutality of the invaders and not only sanctioned
the use,'of force for righteous causes, but also prescribed that it
was' both the duty and the responsibility of the religious man to
resist aggression and oppression. Creation of the Khalsa of Guru
Gobind Singh, therefore, followed as the natural and logical
culmination of Guru Nanak's teachings.
Gurbani, being the divine Word, is characterized by inherent
universality and only such Bhagat bani was included in the Adi
Granth as had universal appeal. It was not included as suggested
by Pashaura Singh, to attract larger following or to "Justify the
Sikh claims to universality" or to give representations to different
regional and caste divisions of the Bhakti movement. The only
criterion for inclusion was uniformity with the integrated logic
and unity of the Gurbani. By insinuating that Guru Amar Dass
included hymns of Kabir and Namdev in his collection in the
pursuit of his "expansionist policy" intended to attract the
followers of the Sants into the Sikh fold, Pashaura Singh has
transgressed every conceivable canon of responsible research. His
thesis is a poor ill-conceived and collection of conjectural
statements. He lacks both the capability and the corroborative
eivdence to substantiate his hollow hypothesis.
 225

In conclusion it would. be pertinent to state that Sikhs are

not inimical to an in-depth study of the Gurbani. However, the
study must strictly maintain and follow objectivity, sincerity, and
academic principles and should stay within the parameters as the
Bani's interpretation, its poetic excellence and import and scope
of the message. Reprehensible and motivated assaults under the
pious garb of intellectual inquiry are bound to prove counter-
productive leading to unnecessary tensions and tempers. Pashaura
Singh ought to apologize for his ill-advised blasphemy and make
amends by re-writing his thesis keeping in mind the inviolable
sanctity of the Gurbani as God's revelation unto mankind through
the Sikh Gurus. Deviation from this basic truth would mean
groping in the dark for something that is just not there.
To put an end to such misguided and vicious attacks on the
Sikh religion and its scriptures, S.G.P.C. should create a Standing
Committee of unbiased Gurbani scholars and approach the
Universities of the world requesting them to coordinate with the
Standing Committee before a research work concerning the
Gurbani is given any kind of recognition.
 226

15

TEXT AND MEANING OF ADI GRANTH:

PASHAURA SINGH
By
Dr. GURBAKSH SINGH
The study of the thesis reveals it to be a case of misplaced
scholarship and blasphemy. The author attempts to make the
readers accept his baseless assumptions and his "new feelings"
regarding Gurus and Guru Granth Sahib. Most of the satements
are incorrect and some are self contradictory.
A. Review of the Abstract
1. It's very first para gives an unexpected shock to a Sikh : "It
also examines various factors that first led to the emergence of
three different traditions of the Adi Granth and then to the
eventual -standardization of its text". "Standardize" means to
conform to a standard, to make uniform, to remove the
irregularities or variations. The author thus gives an impression
that there were three different accepted versions of the Adi Granth
from which a standard version was prepared. While the fact is
that the Gurus and the Panth always accepted the Kartarpur Bir
as the only original and genuine Bir. Ironically the author accepts
this: "The debate started in 1944 when G.B. Singh set about
marshalling evidence to challenge the authenticity of the
Kartarpur manuscript as being the original text." He also agrees,
"G.B. Singh seemed to be serving the Arya Samaj interest as
evidenced by his defence of Dayanand's arguments in his book."
Where lies the question of standardization of the Bir, removing
irregularities and variations? This statement is basically wrong
and is an attack on the revelation aspect of the Gurbani. The
idea of 'Three different traditions' is also a misleading part of the
statement. It gives acceptability to the copied Birs containing
modified or fake hymns. Further, it limits the fake versions to
two only. Both these observations are incorrect. Birs compiled
later are available with many kinds of changes made in them by
different writers. For example, with and without Ragmala, with
and without Rattan Mala, with and without fake hymns, with
different arrangements and sequence of hymns, and with many
other variations. The second para makes the reader wonder if
those statements could be made by a knowledgeable Sikh.
 227

"Examination of earlier manuscripts has revealed that Guru

Arjan worked over a number of drafts to produce the final text in
1604 CE." This statement is wrong even if the author's naïve
asumptions are taken to be true. He is misleading the readers to believe
that the Guru made many drafts before the one written in 1604.
The author mentions only one such draft, GNDU MS 1245.
Others, he assumes, might be somewhere not yet traced by the
Sikhs. Even his MS 1245 has nothing to do with the Gurus. It is
again an assumption by the author, based on the following; (i)
Old form of writing (ii) less Bani (iii) differences in titles, etc.
Knowing that the writing styles in the two Birs are different and
there is no reason, and the author gives none, to believe it to be
written by Bhai Gurdas under the guidance of the Guru, the
author makes one more ridiculous assumption, "Bhai Gurdas,
improved his handwriting." He knows the handwriting in MS
1245 is not of Bhai Gurdas. Therefore, he makes this mistatement
to cover up the truth that Bhai Sahib's handwriting in Kartarpur
Bir is entirely different from that of the scribe of MS 1245.
Based on the information given even in the thesis, none else
but the Kartarpur Bir is the only Bir prepared by the Guru. (i)
Kartarpur Bir has more than 1.14 of the total pages blank. A
copy prepared from an earlier draft cannot have that many blank
pages. Blank pages were left to include late received hymns at the
right place. Such additions, as is evidenced by the study of the
Kartarpur manuscript, were actually made (ii) There are deletions,
changes, corrections and notes in the margins as they are supposed
to be in the original; a copy cannot have such deletions or writings.
2. Regarding MS 1245-who wrote it, why and where it was
written : From the observations mentioned by the author (i) Old
Writing style (ii) absence of Bhagat Bani and other Bani (iii) some
different title words, (iv) Bhallas did not accept the fourth Guru
(v) Bir was written by a Bhalla (vi) some incorrect claims made in
the Bir on page 4, etc., one can state that it was prepared by the
Bhallas, opponents of the Gurus, to claim right to Guruship. They
on their own excluded Bhagat Bani and Sata Balwand Var and
some of the Bani not available to them. Further, the scribe retained
the original vowel form because his knowledge was poor. Many
 228

admittedly late writings have this style because of the low level of
educaction of the scribe. Thus, the finding, in that "The Guru
worked over a number of drafts." an important conclusion of the
study, is baseless when logically examined.
3. The author makes another wrong claim, "One important
outcome of this study is that the Kartarpur manuscript as
compiled by Guru Arjan is confirmed through scrutiny of the
manuscript evidence as the final text of the Aad Granth".
It means, the author believes that Bhai Jodh Singh's team of
scholars, who studied it page by page over a long time, wrote
without scrutiny of manuscript evidence. But later he himself
writes that they made thorough study of the manuscript. That
being the admitted position, why should McLeod, his guide, have
falsely accused the Sikhs of deleting the hymns from the Bir to
suit their thinking? The Sikhs have to address themselves about
the observations and writings of such "scholars" .
Review of Text :
1. Twisting Gurbani meanings to fit his assumptions: There
are many wrong translations and quotes chosen out of context to
build or endorse his own baseless theories. Out of these, three
cases are reported below;
(i) "It would appear that Guru Nanak had a clear vision of
preserving his own Bani by committing it to memory in the first
place and then possibly writing it during his own life time. He
maintained that one might lose the divine Word through oral
recitation alone, if one did not write it down to preserve it. (ilKy
bwjhu suriq nwhI bol bol gvweIAY )."
Reading of the complete hymn reveals that the correct message
of the quote is: "Without God's will (ilKy bwjh- without having
been ordained by God) one cannot know the truth; talking alone
(without practicing truth) is a losing process (blo bol gvweIAY)
The hymn is not even remotely concerned with the author's
theory, "preserving Bani by oral recitation, and later writing down
for fear of its being lost. This comment (or 'findings; as the author
wants the readers to accept) only lowers the status of the Guru
and Gurbani by saying that Guru thought of writing down the
revealed Bani only later in his life.
 229

(ii) After quoting hymns ipau dwdy kw Koil ifTw Kjwnw, the author
writes, "Here the reference to both his father's and grandfather's
"treasures" may suggest that Guru Arjan received at least two sets
of manuscripts of Gurbani, one belonging to his father and the
other to his grandfather".
It is unbelievable that a Sikh born and raised in a village does
not know that the phrase ipau dwdy kw means 'ancestral'. To suit his
theory, he separates the words and literally translates them to
assume there were two separate manuscripts, one obtained from
Guru Ram Das and the second from Guru Amar Das. But Guru
Amardas was not his dada (grandfather), he was his nana. Hence
dada cannot refer to third Guru, who was not his grandfather.
We also know there are no such pothis or their copies available
which contain Banis of individual Gurus.
(iii) P-30 (iehu Sbdu duhrwgiq ciVAw hY bwvMjh hY) Its translation
should be: This hymn was got written twice, it is (at) 52. But read
the results of his "research" and observe what kind of changes the
author makes in its translation and interpretation. "At a number
of places Guru Arjan discards one or other of his own hymns
and points out that a better version of the same is to be found
somewhere else. For instance, there is a marginal note in folio
836/1 referring to one of Guru Arjan's hymns, "This hymn is
unnecessarily repeated here, its actual place is at (number) 52."
A simple note indicating that the Shabad had been mistakenly
written twice, has been wrongly translated by adding words
'unnecessarily', to give negative impression. Further, he construes
from it a highly objectionable and baseless statement that the
Guru discarded one version in preference to a better version.
The author also assumes the 'first Shalok in japji, "Awid scu
hosI BI scu', was written by Guru Arjan Dev. If so, would he say
that the Guru revised his Shalok when he included it in Sukhmani
by replacing "+E" with" A+" to have a better version of the old
Shalok ? Then why the inferior version in Japji ?
Further, there are three versions of Sodar in the Guru Granth
Sahib, all by Guru Nanak Dev. Will the author say which is the
best of the three, and why Guru Arjan Dev retained the other
two ? Why only the 'best' version was not retained and the other
ignored by the Guru? The thesis is full of distortions and
assumptions which do not stand the test of logic. Instead of
 230

research work it may be mentioned as distortion work. P. 26

Further "research findings by the author".
"Their (Ravidas' hymn and Dhanna's hymn) inclusion in the
scripture reflects a situation where the followers of those Bhagats
(The Jats and the Cobblers) were attracted into the Sikh fold in
large numbers."
"It should be emphasized that the inclusion of the Bhagat
Bani in the Aad Granth may have been motivated primarily
because of the popular impulse of the times in which different
sectarian traditions were equally involved in moulding the poetry
of the Sants into collection of scriptures."
" Although Kabir is prominently represented in the Sikh
scriptures followed by Nam Dev, Ravi Das and Sheikh Farid, 11
other figures from different regions and castes are given a token
representation to justify the Sikh claim to universality." "It may be
stated that the selection of the Bhagat Bani was not made exclusively
on the basis of the identity with the teaching of the Gurus."
All these and similar other statements of the author mean
that primarily there were mundane reasons (other than the
recordings of the divine message for the seekers of the truth) for
the inclusion of the Bhagat Bani in the Guru Granth Sahib.
Attraction of the followers of the Bhagats to the Sikh fold has
been mentioned as the main reason for it. Further, token
representation has been given to 11 Bhagats of different castes so
that Gurus could make a claim to the universality of Gurbani. Is
it not blasphemy? Evidently, the object is to lower the status of the
Guru Granth from its being divine revelation to its being a political
document for increasing the number of Sikhs by pleasing them.
Gurbani repeatedly stresses the brotherhood of hunamity. It
is being the foundation of the Sikh faith. Caste pride has been
deplored repeatedly since the time of Guru Nanak Dev, the
founder of the faith. (P 349 Guru Granth P 1330 Guru Granth.)
Bhagats too have spoken very strongly against the caste pride.
How could the Gurus be accused of including Bhagat Bani because
of their castes so as to claim universality? Does not the hymn ijnI
nwmu iDAwieAw gey msikq Gwil (anybody who loves God, realizes
him) give the message of universality? The inclusion of the Bhagat
Bani is an endorsement of this message and mission Bani of Guru
 231

Nanak Dev and other Gurus (see closeness of the words in the
hymns).
Those mentioned above are not the only ,:"rong conclusions
and baseless assumptions of Pashaura Smgh, they are just
mentioned as a sample.
3 Professional honesty: Mr. McLeod has made many false
cusations about the Gurus, Sikhs and their scriptures obviously,
he did so to destroy their image under the pretence of writing on
Sikhism for English knowing people.
The author himself has found in his study that his accusation
relating to the Sikh scripture were false. Mcleod wrote that the
Sikhs deleted from the Kartarpur Bir a hymn relating to the hair
cutting ceremony of the Sikh Guru.
Pashaura Singh however has found there was no such Shabad
and no such deletion in the Bir.
However in the face of these findings of his own that the
accusations of McLeod are false, he still gives a credibility certificate
to his guide.
"Although McLeod combiness sensitivity with meticulous
care in his analysis of Sikh documents, his arguments on the
scriptures have been received with caution with the Sikh
community it is a conspicuous feature of the modern Panth to
perceive critical scholarship as an attack on the Sikh faith."
"Further he accuses critics of Mcleod to be having a "feeling
of insecurity" and relates their criticism to post- 1984 events.
Pashaura Singh ignores the fact, which is known to him, that
criticism of his guide about his work bring incorrect and poor
was made long before 1984 when his book was reviewed in a
University and another journal. While it is known that students
generally follow the path laid down by the teacher it is, indeed, a
new and surprising convention, that a student in his thesis should
give certificate of academic ability and good conduct to his own
supervisor. But does it not show the atmospheric pressures and
level of the place?
 232

16

THE TEXT AND MEANING OF THE ADI

GRANTH
By
I.J. SINGH, New York University
When I was asked tp review this thesis, I was aware of the
highly critical opinion on it that had been published by scholars
like Kohli, Sukhminder, Marco and J.S. Mann, yet I agreed because
a wider debate can only benefit us. It is only in the Sikh religion
that a doctoral thesis is debated and analysed in a lay publication
and not necessarily in a scholarly, university based journal.
Consequently, the discussion is open to all and not limited to
those affiliated with academic institutions. This is our strength
though it is centered on whether textual comparison of extant
Gurbani with earlier versions of it is blasphemy. To us Sikhs,
Gurbani is revealed word of God but the Guru Granth is also a
book to be read and analyzed. To others Gurbani appears as literature,
much as we view the Bible. And there is no harm in that.
Sikhism evolved in a milieu with a predominantly- oral
tradition but not much of a. written one. Pashaura makes the
case that Guru Nanak saw the necessity for a permanent written
record which would evolve into the Guru Granth Sahib. He and
the Gurus who succeeded him acted to preserve and codify
Gurbani in a process that culminated with Guru Arjan's
monumental effort. Naturally the process took years during which
many documents had to be reconciled. One must keep in mind
that in the days preceding printing and mass education, documents
were handwritten. There were few scribes, some had their own
agenda reflecting many factions and divided loyalties. They made
mistakes, some unintentional" others stemming from their
background, bias and nature. If any changes appear to have been
made by Guru Arjan, they may not be deliberate modifications
of the text but merely corrections of errors introduced by different
scribes. Pashaurs's conclusion that Guru Arjan amended Guru
Nanak's writing is therefore, not tenable.
Until the time of Ranjit Singh, Sikhs had little peace or leisure.
It is no wonder that it took many years to lay all doubts to rest,
discard all of the competing or erroneous versions and to establish
the primacy of the standard version of the Guru Granth Sahib
which had been compiled by Guru Arjan.
 233

Pashaura reinforces this traditional view, well buttressed by

research that the Kartarpur version is authentic.
Pashaura's thesis rest on an analysis of an undated, rare
document, MS I245, pnmanly from two aspects:
1) Inclusion of certain hymns or parts thereof, and; .
2) Features in the written script of the manuscript which may
allow dating of the document.
Unfortunately, neither yardstick is in itself sufficient and the
lumping together of two inadequate criteria does not always make
for good logic.
As is well known, and Pashaura readily admits, one cannot
clearly document whether a hymn or a part thereof was not
included by a decree of the Guru, a whim of the scribe, or at the
behest of a competing, schismatic group. Dating a manuscript by
the selective use of characters of a script is also not without pitfalls.
In that age of less than universal education, evolutionary changes
in a script did not necessarily percolate so rapidly through the
populace. Other corroborating evidence must be found before
one can assign a definite place, if any, to MS I245 in the history of
the Guru Granth Sahib. MS 1245 remains a document of
considerable interest and deserving of much research, but at
present, one of unknown antecedents, questionable authenticity,
and limited usefulness. The problem with Pashaura's thesis
becomes that his case, no matter how intricately argued, rests on
a shaky premise, the authenticity of MS 1245 which remains open
to question. Pashaura Singh has, in his zeal, over-interpreted MS
1245 and extrapolated well beyond what the document allows.
Since Gurus' routinely interpreted their own writing as well
as that of their predecessors, it becomes ridiculous to suggest that
Guru Nanak may have initiated Guru Angad in the art and skill
of versification. What was Guru Nanak doing, running a class in
creative writing? The argument reminds one of the asinine
discussions on who wrote Shakespeare's plays. I am always amazed
at how one creative mind spawns a thousand dissertations which
are bent on splitting hair even where none exist! It is too bad that
in trying to be rigorously intellectual (a desirable goal), Pashaura
Singh has fallen into a quagmire of his own making.
One place Pashaura defends his mentor McLeod by attacking
 234

his detractors as former bureaucrats and medical doctors. Such

misplaced loyalty to one's guide is understandable but that kind
of thinking has no place in a thesis. Since when is it that
bureaucrats or medical doctors may not also be philosophical
and erudite? Witness such bureaucrats as Francis Bacon or closer
to home, Kapur Singh. Look at medical doctors such as Leydig,
Somerset Maugham or Arthur Conan Doyle, etc. The list is
endless. When McLeod's critics point to his connection with a
Christian Missionary Institution, it is relevant for in the
interpretation of religious tenet, he may have a bias. Similarly,
the religious affiliation of his critics (Sikhs) is pertinent, their
being bureaucrats is not. The Sikhs have come a long way in 500
years. I can visualize the rich tapestry and unbroken tradition in
Sikh literature and history and its continuing evolution. It has
progressed from giants such as Bhai Gurdas, Nandlal and Mani
Singh, who were less historians and more scribes and interpreters
of Gurbani, indeed the repositories of our heritage. There have
been Puran Singh and Vir Singh, who combined the mystic's
vision with a sure grasp of historical detail. Finally we have the
serious historical scholars - giants like Kahn Singh, McAuliffe,
Kapur Singh, Jodh Singh, Teja Singh, Ganda Singh, Sahib Singh
and Harbans Singh, followed by contemporary, significant analysts
like Kohli, Khuswant, Mansukhani and Shan. Such an evolution
with an emphasis that oscillates between the devotional and the
analytic is quite natural to any religion. Others have had their
day in the sun and now the torch must pass to a new generation
of scholars. In the process, many missteps will occur - witness
G.B. Singh's analysis of the Kartarpur Bir, and some of the errant
nonsense from McLeod and Khuswant. Pashaura's work has .to
be looked at in perspective.
Not so long ago the radio commentator, Jodh Singh, observed
to me that we Sikhs tend to discover either 'blossom or blasphemy'
in a strictly analytical study of religion. Pashaura's work is a run
of the mill Ph. D. thesis which doesn't add anything that novel
or earth shattering to our understanding of Gurus, Gurbani or
human nature. Only time and further research will tell us if MS
1245 has any significant vlaue. But in the meantime, let us treat
this young scholar - Pashaura Singh trained in the skills and rigor
of historical analysis and dedicated to defining our roots, as a well
intentioned man at the beginning of his intellectual exploration.
Let this matter not become like the Sulman Rushdie for that does
not become us.
 235

17
PASHAURA SINGH; PROVOCATIVE,
CONTENTIOUS, CONTROVERSIAL
By
KULDEEP SINGH TOLEDO, OHIO
In 1992, Pashaura Singh earned his Ph.D. degree based on his
thesis, "The Text and Meaning of Aad Granth." The thesis was
submitted at the University of Toronto through the supervisor,
Dr. W.H. McLeod, a controversial figure in the arena of Sikh
Studies. The contents of Dr. Pashaura Singh's thesis have further
served to fuel the forest fire of opposition prevalent against the
"McLeodian' master" and, what is seen as his continuing wilful
attack on the authenticity of the Guru Granth.
The main thrust of Pashaura Singh's thesis is that the Aad
Granth is not a strict collection of the Bani of the Gurus but is
instead a modified, and edited version of that collection. Pashaura
Singh claims that Guru Arjan Dev Ji, the fifth Guru who is credited
with the compilation of the Aad Granth, gave himself full editorial
licence to do as he pleased with the "raw" material at his disposal. By
doing so, Pashaura Singh claims that "Guru Arjan refined the
language of certain passages and polished the meter".
The above claims strikes a blow at the very foundation of the
basic Sikh ideology that Sikh doctrines have been spiritually
revealed through Gurbani and are not man-made:
O Lalo, I express what the Lord conveys me to speak. Nanak
says the words' of God, he expresses only the Truth, it is time to
convey the message of God.
I have expressed only what you made me say.
I have no voice of my own, all what I have said, is His Command.
Guru's words are divine nectar (Amrit). These quench all
spiritual thirst.
Consider the Bani of the Satguru the words of Truth.
O Sikhs, it is the Lord who makes me convey them.
The message is clear that Gurbani is unalterable; the question
of reshaping or modifying the Bani of a Guru is unthinkable.
Pashaura Singh's conclusion is drawn virtually from a single
source: that source being Guru Nanak Dev University
manuscript 1245, lying since 1987 with that University. Prior
to that it was unknown. There is no reference in Sikh literature,
 236

Sikh tradition or in any index of Sikh collections to the existence

of this manuscript. Pashaura Singh claims it is a draft of the Aad
Granth prepared by Guru Arjan. No attempt is made to provide
its authenticity.
Pashaura Singh builds his hypothesis by :
twisting and misinterpreting Gurbani,
presuming that one of the principal sources for the compilation
of the Scripture was the Goindval Pothis, and that the second
source of the Scripture is Guru Nanak Dev University Manuscript
No. 1245.
TIlE MISINTERPRETATION OF GURBANI
1. On page 2 of his thesis, Pashaura Singh states:
"It would appear that Guru Nanak had clear vision of
preserving his own Bani by committing it to memory in the first
place and then possibly to writing during his lifetime". Then, in
defence, he quotes Gurbani :
Likhey bajhon surat naahin, bol, bol gavaiay.
This is translated by Pashaura Singh as :
One might lose the divine word through oral recitation alone,
if one has not written it down to preserve it.
This example of Pasharua Singh's interpretation indicates that
he lacks even the most basic understanding of Gurbani. Pashaura
Singh gives new meaning to the dictum that the devil can quote
scripture to suit his own needs. If the entire shabad is carefully
recited, the meaning given above is rendered invalid. The actual
meaning of the quote is :
Unless it is predestined by Waheguru Akal Purkh, realization
of God cannot take place. All the intellectual talk of human beings
is of no avail.
2. Pashaura Singh's interpretative ability is further
demonstrated on page 15 of his thesis, where he claims that:
Guru Arjan received at least two sets of manuscripts of
Gurbani, one belonging to his father and the other to his
grandfather.
He supports this with:
Peo dadey ka Khol ditha khazana,
Ta merey maan bhaya nidhana
which is translated as :
When I opened the treasure of my father and grandfather to
 237

see for myself, then I realised the divine treasure in my heart,

mind and soul.
Here the Guru is using the term Peo Dada Le to indicate
ancestral heritage, and the "divine treasure" referred to is that of
God's Name. Pashaura Singh translates this quote very literally
to give the idea that at least two manuscripts existed which Guru
Arjan then put together. Misinterpretation aside, Pashaura Singh's
logic also falls apart because of the fact that Guru Amardas ji was
Guru Arjan Dev Ji's Naana (maternal grandfather) and not Dada
(Paternal grandfather) as the shabad is clearly referring to 'Dada'.
3. In footnote 18 on page 30, Pashaura Singh mistranslates the
Shabad that starts with Satgur Sachey Diya Bhej as "Guru Arjan's
intention to designate his only son as his successor may be seen
in his hymn which he composed to celebrate the later's birth.
vadhi vel bhau piri chali
"With the increase of the family tree the succession has become
continuous."
The Gurgaddi was given to the most suitable Sikh whose
humility and Sikh way to life was tested and proven to be second
to none. How could Guru Arjan Dev Ji designate the infant
Hargobind as the next Guru ?
4. Pashaura Singh protrays Guru Arjan Dev ji as a person
who would go to any length in order to gain prominence and
attract followers.
On page 26 of this thesis, he points out that Bhagat Ravi Das
Ji's hymn, "Begumpura shehar ko naun", and that of Bhagat
Dhanna Ji's, "GopaI Tera Aarta", were added because "their
inclusion in the scriptures reflects a situation wherein the followers
of those Bhagats (the Jats and the Cobblers) were attracted into
the Sikh fold in large numbers."
On page 66 of his thesis, Pashaura Singhargues that "Guru
Arjan probably selected the heroic tunes for the singing of the
Vars of the Aad Granth in order to reach out to the rural
audience" and" " Although Kabir is prominently
represented In the Sikh Scripture followed by Namdev, Ravidas
and Sheikh Farid, eleven other figures from different regions and
castes are given a token representation to justify the Sikh claim to
universality.
238
239
 240

Two pages messing form here book page no 238-39

Onkar Satgur Parsad", which is complete in itself, is a short
form of the Mulmantar (and is frequently used in the Kartarpur
Bir) whereas the second and third sentences are the additions of
the scribe of the Goindval Pothis. The words Such Nam Kartar",
seem to have been picked up from another Shabad of Guru Nanak
Dev Ji. Bolo Such Naam Kartar, Phun Bahurh Na Avan var.
Pashaura Singh, however, accepts the 3 line version as the
Mulmantar and without giving any evidence goes on to say on p.
93: "Evidently, this was the form that was current during the
period of Guru Amardass." He further explains how Guru
Ramdas Ji added the word" Nirvair by giving the following
"reasoning" for his addition: "This may reflect his firm resolve to
counteract the situation of hostility in real life created by the
animosity of his rivals with the spirit of love and friendship."
Pashaura Singh claims that "Satguru Parshad" was changed to
"Gurparsad" in order to provide a more coherent structure to the
text of the Mulmantar. He conveniently leaves unexplained why
the allegedly "incoherent" "Ek Onkar Sat Gurparshad" is used
519 times in the Aad Granth.
3. At yet another place, Pashaura Singh says that Guru Atjan
Dev ji changed the word "Kartar" to "Karta Purakh" because "by
this time, the personal (Purkh) aspect of the Supreme Being
acquired prominence as compared with Guru Nanak's emphasis
on the formless (Nirankar) nature of Ultimate Reality." His
interpretation is that with the passage of time, the emphasis on the
form Nirankar shifted and the Purakh aspect of the Supreme Being
which he translates as "personal" gained prominence. Pashaura
Singh's imagination has led him to conclude that, with the passage
of time, Guru Nanak's ideas became old fashioned and obsolete and
were ultimately replaced by Guru Arjan's ideas. With this conclusion,
he attempts to drive a wedge between the ideologies of the two Gurus.
GURU NANAK DEV UNIVERSITY'S MANUSCRIYf NO: 1245
This manuscript appeared out of. the blue on the shelf of
Harbhajan Singh, Harcharan Singh Chawla, Antique dealers of
Amritsar in 1987. It was purchased shortly thereafter by Guru
Nanak Dev University. The manuscript is 1277 pages long; on
page 1255 are written the dates of demise of Five Gurus; there is
also a forged Nishan pasted in the manuscripte There is
 241

controversy about whose signature this Nishan represents: The

note accompanying Manuscript 1245 claims that the Nishan is
that of the Sixth Guru; handwriting experts claim the writing is
of Ninth Guru. Pashaura Singh claims that this manuscript
represents a draft of the Aad Granth prepared by Guru Arjan
Dev through Bhai Gurdas. Although he concedes that the
handwriting of the scribe of this manuscript does not match with
that of Bhai Gurdas in the Kartarpuri Bir, yet in order to force his
theory, Pashaura Singh counters that this could be Bhai Gurdas's
"unimproved" handwriting. No attempt is made to substantiate
this theory. The antique dealer when questioned by a group of
Sikh scholars knew nothing more than that it originated in
Rajasthan and that he had sold it along with a
typed note and a few other Meharban group (Meena) books.
Meharban was the son of Prithi Chand. The "Meharban group"
consisted of Prithi Chand's followers. The dealer repeatedly
mentioned the Meharban antecedents of the manuscript. He had
no recollection of the contents of the typed note accompanying
the Meharban Granth.
On this shaky, unsupported and flimsy evidence, Pashaura
Singh expounds his theories!.
1. Pashaura Singh claims manuscript 1245 was compiled before
1604 i.e. before the Kartarpuri Bir. In support of this claim, he
presents that the dates of demise of the first five Gurus are in the
same hand but the date of the Fifth Guru has been written in
later. The fact is that all 5 dates are in the same hand and in the
same shade of ink. This indicates that the manuscript was scribed
after the demise of the fifth Guru i.e. 1606. And, thus, the question
of its being a draft by Guru Atjan cannot arise. This one point
alone is sufficient to knock the wind out of Pashaura Singh's
theories. .
2. Manuscript 1245 has forged Nishan pasted on it. The note
attached to this manuscript proclaimed that the Nishan, mark or
handwriting was that of Guru Hargobind Sahib Guru. Regardless,
of the forged Nishan, even the scribe does not attempt to give a
date earlier than the period of Guru Hargobind. Oblivious to all
this, Pashaura Singh continues to suggest that this manuscript
was completed by Guru Arjun Dev before 1604 A.D.
 242

3. The dates of demise of the five Gurus appear on page 1255

of the manuscript. Hymns from the third, fourth and fifth Gurus
are recorded on some 20 subsequent pages as well. This indicates
that the manuscript was under preparation after 1606 A.D.
4. The manuscript contains a hymn alleged to be of Baba
Budha Ji, the hymn finishes with the word 'Nanak'. Pashaura
Singh uses this to authenticate Baba Budha Ji's involvement in
the creation of this manuscript. However he is silent about how
a devout Sikh like Baba Budha could use the word Nanak for
himself. The head at the Dera of Baba Budha has given a written
statement to the effect that they know of no poem, Bani or writing
authored by Baba Budha Ji.
5. On page 104 of his thesis, Pashaura Singh writes: There are
numerous such examples throughout the text of Jupji where Guru
Arjan refined the language of certain passages and polished the
meter." Is he implying that the language of Guru Nanak Dev Ji
was not refined and its meter required polishing ? And that is
why Guru Arjan had to correct them? Pashaura Singh obviously
does not believe in the golden words of Gurbani :
Bhullan andar subh ko,
abhul Guru Kartar
All are liable to commit error
The Guru and Waheguru are the only exceptions to the rule.
6. Manuscript 1245 contains a version of Jupji Sahib which
differs from that in the Aad Granth. Excerpts from Jupji Sahib
appear at numerous places in Manuscript 1245. Pashaura Singh
expounds a new but baseless theory to explain the difference. On
page 106, he says "Guru Arjan revised the Shalok in the fiqal
version of Jupji .but he retained its earlier form in Var Majh."
Why would a version deemed incorrect be retained in even one
spot? The "misguided professor" does not care to explain this.
7. Here the question of why a number of Shabads in
manuscript 1245 differ from those in Aad Granth must be
addressed. The explanation perhaps lies in the fact that Meharban
was known to compose poetry. Bansvali Nama by Kesar Singh
Chibber, a historian, is quoted below to substantiate historical
evidence:
 243

Meharbaan poot Prithiyay ka kabishri karey

Farsi Hindvi Sanskriti naley Gurmukhi parhey
Tinn bhee baani bahut banai bhog Guru Nanak ji da hi paai.
It means Mehrban son of Pirthya composes poetry; he uses
Persion, Hindi, Sanskrit and Gurmukhi in it; he has created lot
of Bani, but uses the name of Nanak instead.
Chibber also writes :
Doom lagey shabad
meenian ke gavan;
pura darbar guriai lavan.
meenian vee ik pustak
granth banaya;
char patshahyan
de shabad Bani
vich likh paya.
It means:
Bards sang shabad
written by Meenas;
They had their
own court and
started their own
Gurudom; Meenas
also created a
book as their granth;
They also wrote the
Bani of first
four Gurus in
this granth
The above present clear historical evidence that although the
granth of the Meenas contains the bani of the Sikh Gurus, this
granth could vary drastically from the original Aad Granth as
a result of the efforts of the Meenas to produce a fake granth
to mislead people.
CONCLUSION:
The greatest lacunae in the thesis of Pashaura Singh are the
lack of authentication of Manuscript 1245 as well as the persistent
misinterpretation of a number of hymns of Gurbani.
 244

Pashaura Singh indicates nowhere that he ever attempted to

verify the history or trace the past of the manuscript upon which
his house of cards has been built. This is extremely damaging; in
fact it has demolished the credibility of his entire work. Whether
this is due to smugness, lack of concern for truth, deliberate
provocation, plain mischief or pure and simple ignorance he alone
can say. A greater intriguing fact, however is the apparent lack of
concern on the part of his supervisor, Dr. McLeod, in this respect.

In this day and age sensitive scientific testing could have been
availed of in order to accurately estimate the age of manuscript
1245. The type of paper, the inks used, the glue, the binding
teGhnique as well as any residue, no matter how minute, from
the pages could provide valuable clues for analysis. The reputation
of Pashaura Singh and his master as Sikh scholar has been
irreparably damaged. In fact, there is no room in the arena of
Sikh studies for those who persist in standing by the incorrect
and baseless claims made by pashaura Singh and W.H. McLeod.
The attacks on the Guru Granth Sahib, Guru Arjan and the beliefs
of the entire Sikh community are serious and cannot be tolerated.
Pashaura Singh should either present concrete proof of the
reliability of his sources or should withdraw the libelous and
offensive portions contained in his thesis.
 245

18
MUL MANTAR REVELATION OF GURU NANAK
By
Dr. PIARA SINGH, CERRITOS CA
1. My gratitude to Sikh scholars for their articles of high
understanding and caliber (1) Centre of Sikh Study of blasphemy
by Dr. Sukhminder Singh (WSN Oct. 2, 1992), (2) Sikh Mul
Mantar Revelatory, by Dr. Jasbir Singh Mann (WSN Oct. 9, 1992),
(3) Research coverage of Blasphemy by Professor Surinder Singh
Kohli (WSN Oct. 16 and Nov. 6, 1992) (4) "Text and Meaning of
Aad Granth", by Dr. Gurbaksh Singh (WSN Nov. 27, 1992) and
(5) You Call It Research Dr. Mcleod, by Dr. Hakam Singh (WSN
Dec. 11, 1992) written in response and to expose the self
contradictions and blasphemous statements of Mr. Pashaura Singh
covered in his thesis called "Text and Meaning of Aad Granth",
supervised by Dr. W.H. Mcleod, a Christian Missionary.
2. The conclusions and observations of Mr. Pashaura Singh
are based on: (1) A compromising posture with a Kartarpuri brand
Bir of 1642, Jat Militancy theory, and Miri (spiritual), Peeri
(Temporal), earlier publications of Blasphemy by Dr. W.H.
Mcleod & Associates, which had been rejected categorically by
eminent world scholars like Dr. Jodh Singh and Dr. King, (2) MS
1245 (3) Mul Mantar in Goindwal Pothi Vol.
1, (4) Classic Music and Ragas of Guru Granth Sahib, (5) Mr.
Pashaura Singh says: Guru Arjun shaped the Guru Granth Sahib
to suit the environment. Guru consciously re-created his style
and theme while keeping in mind the growing needs of the Sikh
community. Guru added Muslim/Arabic words to attract the
Muslim audience and Bhagat Bani to claim universal nature of
the Guru Granth Sahib. It is not known about which environment
and the type of militancy, Mr. Pashaura Singh is contemplating
but the historical facts tell us otherwise.
(a) MS. 1245 : The MS 1245 gives on leaf 1255 dates of demise
of the first five gurus in the same handwriting and in the same
ink and shade. This fact alone conclusively proves that MS 1245
is a post 1606 collection. Mr. Pashaura Singh knows that and that
is why he makes the mis-statement that the date of demise of fifth
Guru was written later. Moreover the dates of demise of folio
1245, do not mark the end of the Manuscript. The
 246

recording of collected hymns continued later than 1606.

(b) GOINDWAL POTHI. VOL. 1 : It was the only Source of
verification of Mul Mantar says Mr. Pashaura Singh. The Pothi
was with the Guru Har Sahai family, direct decendants of Guru
Amar Das, and the same was lost in a train theft in 1973.
Historically, it is known that Guru Arjun had collected all the
relevant pothies before compiling Aad Granth. Nowhere, some
family could have the copies of original one. The family in
question not only had a Pothi but also had an original beautiful
rich brocade Chola (Dress) of Guru Nanak. The family (Baba
Jaswant Singh) used to display these for public Darshan (Glimpse)
on Guru Nanak Dev Ji's birthday each year. In 1960's I was
fortunate to have Darshan of Pothi and Chola. Mul Mantar was
there in the beginning of the Japji Sahib as we find today. Now
the question arises that:
How Mr. Pashaura Singh came to know about the loss of the
Pothi in train theft in 1973 ? Did he go to the family and inquire
personally? Did he ask the family members about MuI Mantar ?
The family kept the Pothi for centuries. They must have read the
Mul Mantar in the beginning of the Japji Sahib. Mr. Pashaura
Singh is silent about this fact finding efforts. I believe Mr. Pashaura
Singh did not go to the family and these blasphemous statements
are the figments of his own mind.
(c) CLASSIC MUSIC AND RAGAS OF GURU GRANTH
SAHIB: I wonder if they, Mr. Pashaura Singh and Dr. Mcleod
and Associates, are qualified to interpret the Classic Music and
Ragas. Their observations are based on the interpretation of Classic
Music and Ragas, its musical sound, tune, melody, language of
Ragas, style, theme, rhyme and mode. The world would like to
know which school both of them attended and specialised in classic
music and ragas. If none, then tell us the name of the ';Sashtri"
who helped to interpret all this for you.
(d) THREE (3) WAYS OF COMMUNICATIONS OF GOD
WITH HIS PROPHETS: (1) By calling Prophet to His.
Presence (2) By commanding Prophet (3) By direct
communication with Prophet. In each case, the Spirit of God is
felt and experience within by each prophet. During the process
of communication the prophet is possessed of absolute
consciousness and utters his divine words to be delivered to
mankind. The prophet himself has no control over the flow
 247

though conscious (witnessing only) of what is happening. That

is why in Sikhism personal experience of the mystic variety is
admitted as an authentic experience. Something happened first
time in the history was that during the process of divine
communications each Guru recorded the divine words as they
came to him.
(1) BY CALLING PROPHET TO HIS PRESENCE:
When Prophet Moses was called to the presence of God, then
what did he see? Did he see the God As spirit? You cannot see the
spirit. The spirit can only be felt or experience within or seen in
form. Prophet Moses must have seen the God's spirit in form.
(2) BY COMMANDING PROPHET: In this case the spirit
of God working through the Prophet mayor may not reveal his
own identity in form to the Prophet. But the divine words are
true as in the other case. This can be applied to those Prophets
who revealed God as spirit or Prophet as God.
(3) BY DIRECT COMMUNICATIONS WITH PROPHET:
In this case the spirit of God working through the Prophet reveals
his identity to the Prophet. Guru Nanak has revealed this in Mul
Mantar as; 'KARTAPURUKH' God as spirit yet in form. The
same spirit of God chose to carry out his divine mission through
Guru Nanak to 10th Guru Gobind Singh. After having strict test
of each successor, Prophet Nanak did not pass on his spiritual
throne either to any of his two sons or to his wife. After a severe
test he found a disciple of his, Lehna by name, alone worthy of
being his successor. Each Prophet chose his successor, only a few
days earlier of his demise. It is blasphemous when Mr. Pashaura
Singh says Guru Nanak and Guru Angad might be the joint
authors of a shalok written at the end of Japji Sahib. Besides Mul
Mantar and Japji Sahib, Mr. Pashaura Singh is silent about the
authorship of thousands of other Shabads, revelations of Guru
Nanak incorporated in the Guru Granth Sahib. It is important to
note, that prior to proclamation of Prophethood, divine words
did not come to each Guru. It happened only after each Guru
succeeded to the spiritual throne. The consistency and the unity
of thought in the name of one Nanak, one spirit was kept in
contact by all the ten Prophets, because each one of them not
only experienced the same spirit of God but also saw God's spirit
in form. Since the creation of the Universe, the divine Mission of
such a nature is not known or seen. Perhaps the divine message
 248

of God is sometimes not grasped by us because of our weak nature

or because of too many middlemen between God and the human
beings. Revelations thus can never be the product of any
circumstances or environment. It is direct experience of the truth.
Gurbani according to its textual testimoney by all Gurus is the
spiritual experience which is qualitatively a distinct state, a direct
communication with the finite being and a merger of one's
individual spirit with Eternal Being.
(e) ENVIRONMENTS PROPHET: By defination
environment means: Conditions by which one is surrounded.
Prophet is one who utters divinely inspired revelations. Prophet
is the person who never compromises the divine mission under'
any circumstances. The Gurus and Gurbani insist on one's having
authentic personal experience and not the spurious thrill. Is there
anyone who has such internal experience of God? Does anyone
know the language through which the spirit of God communicates
with the Prophet? If none, then any assumption used to prove
otherwise is a blasphemy.
The tune of the divine mission of ten Prophets was the Era of
Mugal Emperors Babar-Aurangazeb-Bahadur Shah. The legislative,
judicial, and the executive powers were vested in the king and his
word was the law and order of the land. The story stands as the
testimony to the depth of human degradation and tyranny of this
Era. During times of such human degradation and tyranny the
Gurus proclaimed their mission with courage and strength.
(1) GURU NANAK AGE 9 : At an arranged Hindu ritual
ceremony he refused to bow before the Idol of Saligram and to accept
Gyatri Mantar and to wear the sacred thread called jenau, instead he
told the Pandit that he was willing to wear it if it was made of
compassion and contentment. With divine word Guru Nanak
changed the lives of thugs (Sajan), cannibals, maneaters, (Koda
Rakhash) going himself to their dens. Guru Nanak used spiritual
power only when needed. The same spirit of God later chose to
move making 'Lehna' the prophet Angad and so on till 10th prophet.
(2) GURU ANGAD : Guru Angad refused to extend any
special treatment to Emperor Humanyun when he came to Guru's
darshan (Glimpse) and seek blessings.
(3) GURU AMAR DAS : He asked Akbar, Emperor of India,
 249

to go to Guru Ka Langar and eat in Pangat first before he is

granted Guru's holy glimpse. Guru stopped the "Sati" custom
from the society.
(4) GURU ARJUN DEV JI : Instead of compromising his
faith, he preferred death as ordered by Emperor Jahangir who
made him to sit on a red hot iron pan, and poured burning sand
over him, to inflict death, and threw him in the river Ravi. The
prophet even in the midst of such terrible tortures, was all the
time uttering holy words: "O, Lord it is a blessed pleasure, for me
to abide in thy Will". The following Holy words were on the lips
of Guru at the time of his martyrdom:
"IT IS THE GLORY OF GURU NANAK, MY LORD HAS
GRANTED MY SUPPLICATION, AND NOTHING COULD
DETER ME., NOW THE GLORY OF GURU NANAK, HAS
MANIFESTED ITSELF IN ALL THE AGES THROUGH"
No doubt, the glory of the holy mission of Guru Nanak Dev
Ji manifested itself in this martyrdom.
(5) GURU HAR KRISHAN AGE 8: When present at Bangla
Sahib, Aurangazeb, Emperor of India, wanted to meet him. The
Guru refused him the boon because he had usurped the throne
through stratagem by killing his father and brothers.
(6) GURU TEG BAHADUR : He injected new life into the
sleeping souls of his countrymen by bringing home to them
freedom of worship and thus said, "Those who fear are cowards,
and those who frighten are fools, he, alone is an enlightened soul
says Nanak, who frightens none". Each Prophet was consicious
about the status and the importance of
the spiritual throne and the divine mission.
Thus all Gurus never adjusted themselves or compromised
with the environment, but were seen bringing about fundamental
changes in the attitude and the superstitious beliefs held by the
people. However Mr. Pashaura Singh and Dr. Mcleod & Associates
may think otherwise.
3. GURUS AND DIVINE TRADITION: While founding
the Sikh faith the first foundation stone that Guru Nanak laid
was of "Self sacrifice", thereby specifically enjoying that whosoever
Wished to enter the path of his faith must come with his head on
his palm not in a spirit of seeking any gain but out of sheer divine
love. Says Guru Nanak Dev Ji : "Shouldst Thou wish to play the
game of love, come unto my path with the head on thy paim, and
 250

once you step into this path, you may well give up thy head,
rather than the cause". The same ideal is enshrined in the
commandments of Guru Angad, Guru Amar Dasr Guru Ram
Das, and Guru Arjun Dev, who thus said: "He who is martyred
in defending the "Truth" attains to such a divine bliss that even
the holiest of the holy Yogi envy". Guru Har Gobind has also
enjoined on every Sikh that while the Sikh should extend warm
hospitality to every guest, he must also keep his arms ready for
dealing with any misguided adversary.
(1) GURU HAR GOBIND JI : In the fourth battle of
Kartarpur (Jalandhar) Painde Khan, the traitor, led the attack
against Guru Har Gobind. The Guru allowed him to attack first.
Painde Khan made many abortive attempts on the life of Guru,
but himself fell a victim to the first blow of the Guru. The sun
was shining at its peak. Alighting from his horse, the Guru shaded
the face of Painde Khan with his shield and asked him to recite
the Holy words from Gurbani in the last moments of his life.
Painde Khan, however, replied, "Thy shield alone is my Holy
Word" and uttering thus breathed his last.
(2) GURU GOBIND SINGH JI : In the battle of Bhangani,
the Guru allowed Hari Chand thrice to attack first. Hari Chand
charged three arrows but the Guru remained unhurt. Later, the
Guru struck down Hari Chand with his very first arrow. The
ultimate victory thus, lay with the Panth and the enemy ran away
from the field in great disorder. The personal percepts of the Holy
Gurus followed by their followers gave birth to the tradition of
martyrdom. Says Gurbani, "To court death for an approved cause,
is the right of every true hero".
(3) SIKH AND DIVINE TRADITION: The tradition of
martyrdom has a long history in Sikhism. There is hardly any
mode of torture, which the Sikhs have not suffered. This is true
even today. The Sikh prayer like their religion itself cannotes
universalism. History abounds in records that even in the thick
of a battle when the turban of an adversary got off his head the
Sikh withdrew his sword to allow the enemy to redeem his Turban.
The Sikhs were essentially fighting for "Truth" and righteousness.
They would never rob a person of his honour, a woman of her
jewellery or for that matter, cast an evil eye on anyone. Even in
the face of increasing number of losses, the Khalsa was making
 251

its presence felt everywhere. En-route Kabul, when Abdali was

camping at the bank of river Jhelum,the Sikhs stormed into his
very camp, at which he exclaimed, "They for sure, have some
thing divine, to frustrate every effort of mind". They are certainly
blessed by God and as such, nobody could ever defeat them. Their
courage is a symbol of, righteousness, truthfulness, fearlessness and
bravery. However, Mr. Pashaura Singh and Dr. Mcleod and Associates
may call it militancy, nay it is a divine order, a shield to uphold the
Dharma, truth and righteousness, without which human dignity
will perish from the face of this planet. We all are born with this
right, but one has freedom as to how one takes it. But the highest
level of consciousness comes only with the grace of God.
4. DR MCLEOD'S CHRISTIAN VIEW & REFLECTION
AND MR. PASHAURA SINGH'S THESIS: Mr. Pashaura Singh
and Dr. Mcleod are seen equating the development of Gurbani as
that of Christian Bible. The development of Bible was based on :
plural transmission, Bible history used as the unifying element
rather than as topical approach, and even Archaelogical discoveries
in the Bible lands were used to understand it. Out of many Bibles,
5 were accepted. Holy scriptures of all other faiths (Gita, Quran,
Bible) came into existence long after the demise of the prophets
concerned. This is not so in Gurbani, each Guru had written and
recorded 'the "Gurbani as it came". And the fifth Prophet Guru
Arjun compiled to its musical setting in 1604, and later it was
declared as Guru after adding
Bani of ninth Guru by Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th, Prophet.
No question whatsoever about the authenticity of other scriptures
are raised by Dr. Mcleod and Associates, but unfortunately they
refuse to accept the Gurbani. They ignore the facts that: the Sikh
history and wisdom contained in each word of "Gurbani in Aad
Granth" stand alone as testimony of Its "Divinity, doctrine and
the Prophethood". To understand the philosophy of the Sikh
religion, one needs to examine the spiritual experience as
recommended by the Prophets of the Sikh faith, the 10 Gurus. Being
the true christian missionary, Dr. Mcleod, should be more concerned
to clear up the controversial issues raised by one of the "Hindu
Prophet, Dayanand "about Christ and Christianity. He has directly
attacked Sikhism, Islam, Budhism, Christianity and the lot, all in
 252

the name of Hinduism.

5. ATTACK ON MUL-MANTAR AND THE REASONS:
In Christianity there is principle of loving one's neighbour, in
Islam they give a call of sharing with the men of faith, Sikh religion
gives a call to anyone who is under the sky. "When God is one,
his order must be one". That order or divine word finally came
to rest in Guru Granth Sahib. Each word of Guru Granth Sahib
is revelatory, that was the reason, all Gurus did not claim any
word of their own and Guru Har Rai disowned his son Ram Rai
who changed a single word of Gurbani. Guru Gobind Singh was
very angry with a Sikh who pronounced one word wrongly, which
could be mis-construed. The author of classic music and ragas in
Guru Granth Sahib is none but God himself. All Gurus including
Bhagats did not go to any school to learn classic music and Ragas.
Each divine word of Guru Granth Sahib "reveals one God,
describes the one, and unites with the one". Bhagat Bani which
met this criteria, Guru Arjun included that in the Aad Granth.
Including Bhagat Bani in Aad Granth is also reminder from God
to the entire mankind that : God has no barrier of time, age,
caste, creed, place or nationality. His grace can fall upon on any
of his creations may he or she be rich or poor, high or low
(untouchable), medical doctor or engineer. Gurbani says": "Ek
Pitai Ekas Ke Ham Balak"; Our father is one, and we are all his
children". The basic characteristics of God revealed in Mul-Mantar
are not found any where else, and are beyond the comprehension
of human mind, and that could be known or revealed by none
but God himself. Mul- Mantar is the one that removes the
middleman and establishes direct communication of human beings
with one God and thereby contradict the beliefs of other major
religions who says that: (1) God takes birth…… incarnation theory
(Hindu Trinity God head) and (2) Prophet as God or a preferred
religion". Thus, read and understand very carefully, the Mul-
Mantar revelation of Guru Nanak. "Ik Onkar, Sat Nam, Karta
Purkh, Nirbhau, Nirvalf, Akal Murat,. Ajuni Saibhang, Guru-
Parsad". (Japji, GURU Nanak). Means "God is one, His name is
truth, He is creator of all (formless yet in form), He is without
fear, He is without fear enmity, He is timeless, He neither takes
birth nor dies, create by himself, and with His grace, He is
realized".
 253

The divine word, kept intact in Aad Granth. and uthenticated

by Prophets themselves is with us, and it would be a misfortune
if we all fail to recognize the "Truth" and see Enlightment and be
a witness to the "Truth". The choice is with everyone, but we
(Sikhs) remain the believers of Gurbani which teaches us that:
"Ek Pita, Ekas Ke Ham Balak"; our "Father is One, and we are
all His children".
 254

19
YOU CALL IT RESEARCH, DR. MCLEOD ?
By
Dr HAKAM SINGH
Recently I had a chance to go through a thesis entitled, "The
Text and Meaning of the Adi Granth" submitted to the University
of Toronto by Pashaura Singh for the Degree of Doctor of
Philosophy,. The research work was carried out under the
direction of Dr. W.H. McLeod. In this thesis the author claims to
have endeavoured to reconstruct the history of the text of the
Aad Granth, to provide textual analysis of certain portions of the
Aad Granth and to examine Guru Arjan's editorial policy,
particularly his approach towards the inclusion of the Bhagat Bani
in the Sikh Scripture". The basis of his dissertation is a rather
recently acquired manuscript of Aad Granth from bazar Mai
Sevan, Amritsar, by Guru Nanak Dev University (Manuscript
No. 1245). The researcher puts forth some extremely flimsy and
childish arguments to show that this manuscript was written
earlier than the Kartarpuri Bir. The depth (or shallowness) and
quality of his research work becomes quite evident when one
finds that the manuscript at issue has neither any date of writing
nor the name of the scribe nor any authentication by Guru Arjan.
Without even an iota of evidence (historical or traditional) he
mantains that Bhai Gurdas was the writer of this manuscript.
Now it is a historical fact that the scribe of Kartarpuri manuscript
was Bhai Gurdas. Pashaura Singh has realized that the hand-
writings of the two manuscripts are markedly different. However,
he puts forth the silly argument that Bhai Gurdas's handwriting
probably improved by the time he wrote Kartarpuri manuscript.
As he proceeds further his conclusions approach the levels of
absurdity to blasphemy. It will not be possible for me to discuss
here all the preposterous conclusions that he has reached in his
"don't confuse me with facts, I have made up my mind" analysis
because that will require a whole book, so I will confine myself
to some glaring blasphemies that he has professed. Modification
of Mul Mantar, by Guru Arjan: Pashaura Singh suggests that the
original Mul Mantar given by Guru Nanak was changed to the
present form by Guru Arjan. This statement could only be
possible from a person who is suffering from Amnesia because in
 255

his thesis (p.101) he writes that "the entry in the intex of Kartarpuri
manuscript, however reads, the Japji is copied from the manuscript
written in Guru Ram Das's hand". Thus the Japji in Kartarpuri
manuscript is identical to that in current printed copies of Guru
Granth Sahib and this was written by Guru Ram Das. How then
could Guru Arjan have modified it to its present form?
Furthermore, in reaching this conclusion the researcher has utterly
disregarded the established traditions of Sikhism, a rather young
religion where the probability of changes because of time factor
is not very high. 'Reciting of japji in the morning has been a
daily chorus of every Sikh from the time 'of Guru Nanak.
Nowhere is there any indication of Japji having been changed.
This is a blatant violation of established tradition of Research.
According to Dictionary, the word "Research" means to investigate
thoroughly or careful or diligent search. It is hard to find even a
slight element of diligence or depth in Pashaura Singh's research
work.
Authorship of the Concluding Shalok of Japji : Inspite of the
fact that' Puratan Janamsakhi as well as Miherban Janamsakhi
both state that this shalok was recited by Guru Nanak, Pashaura
Singh ignores them completely and seems to follow the purely
conjectural conclusion drawn by W.H. McLeod, who had the
temerity to write that Bano recension (Khari Bir) represented the
original text of the Aad Granth without even seeing the Kartarpuri
manuscript and totally ignoring the famous book by Bhai Jodh
Singh on the same subject (Kartarpuri Bir de Darshan). Prof.
Surinder Singh Kohli in his recent article (World Sikh News, Oct.
16, 1992) has aptly (but politely) called Pashaura Singh's suggestion
as obnoxious which goes as follows "Guru Nanak may have
initiated his successor, Bhai Lehna, into the poetic skill of verse
composition 10 the literary form of a shalok, and the training
may have been a part of his designation of the office of Guruship."
Again this seems to be a premediated conclusion drawn by the
researcher In the face of strong historical evidence to the contrary.
Bhagat Bani in the Aad Granth : There are numerous
conclusions drawn by the author on the inclusion of Bhagat Bani
in the Aad Granth and under the title, "Doctrinal Issues arising
from the Bhagat Bani" (Pashura Singh's thesis pp.174-194) which
 256

indicate lack of knowledge of Guru Granth Sahib and the basic

tenets of Sikhism on the part of the author. I will take only a
couple of examples. On page 174 the statement "one hymn of
Dhanna in the Dhanasri mode was incorporated in the Kartarpuri
manuscript after it was bound in 1604 CE. This is quite evident
from the way it is recorded on folio 519/2 with the extended
margin on the left hand side of the volume. Its later addition may
reflect a situation when Jats were attracted into the Sikh fold in
large numbers". This statement in the light of logic, can at best
be called childish. When already several hymns of Dhanna were
included in the Aad Granth, why one additional hymn was felt
to be necessary by Guru Arjan for inclusion in order to attract
Jats to the Sikh fold or to please them?
Another preposterous statement is to be found on page 109
which reads "by doing so he (Guru Arjan) is in fact inviting the
followers of the Bhagat (Sur Das) to become part of the Sikh
Sangat and to enjoy the state of blissful sahj through devotional
singing. It is a historical fact that none of the Sikh Gurus ever
tried to invite, implicity or explicitly, anyone to become his
follower. In fact the basic principles and standards of values laid
down by the Gurus do not recommend solicitation for conversion
to Sikh faith. This indicates the negligence of the researcher to
study in depth the Sikh Religion and its basic principles or he has
purposely ignored them. Furthermore, unlike Kabir and Ravidas,
there has never been a separate and coherent staunch following
of Sur Das which renders this conclusion of Pashaura Singh
redundant. This conclusion however, becomes easy to
comprehend if we realize that the supervisor of this thesis is none
other than W.H.McLeod who is a Christian missionary and like
all other men of his profession is obsessed with the idea of
converting 'heathens' to his faith, According to his own words,
"The sacred Scripture is indeed the Guru, but it conveys its message
in different ways to different people, communicating with some
at one level of perception and with others at a different level
(W.H.McLeod). The Meaning of Sikh Fundamentalism and its
origin, Nov. 1990 conference at University of Chicago)". Thus
someone with obsession of conversion to his faith, like a jaundiced
eye, will see the same motivation elsewhere also.
 257

Conclusion: Pashaura Singh in his thesis has arrived at certain

conclusions based on the existence of an obscure and spurious
manuscript of Aa Grant with no proof of Its authenticity. These
conclusions seem to disregard the revelatory character of the Aad
Granth, totally ignore the Sikh traditions and even negate some
of his own observations made from other historical sources and
entered in his own thesis. He seems to have advertently or
inadvertently fallen into a diabolic trap and has become a
mouthpiece of Dr. McLeod, whose writings seem to indicate that
he is obsessed with distorting and misinterpreting the established
Sikh religious traditions in the name of research. Finally, I appeal
to the decency of Dr. McLeod that enough is enough. If he failed
to bring Sikhs in Punjab to the fold of Christianity during the
period of his missionary work there, he should not puff out his
pent up frustration to mislead innocent Sikhs by bringing out
(himself as well through his stooges) ill-conceived and preposterous
publications which have little historical, traditional or even logical
corroborative truth.
 258

20
PASHAURA SINGH THESIS ON ADI GRANTH
A Critique and Assesment
By
IQBAL SINGH SARA

The Sikh World owes a special debt of gratitude to Dr. Gurmail

Singh Sidhu, of the Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, British
Columbia. Dr. Sidhu has recently published a very interesting
critique, in English and in Punjabi, (the Indo-Canadian Times,
April 8, 1993) of an internationally controversial thesis authored
by Pashaura Singh in 1991. Mr. Pashaura Singh created this thesis
to earn a Ph.D. degree, working under the supervision of another
controversial ex-Christian missionary in the Punjab who spent
decades there in advancing his mission. Dr. W.H. McLeod has
since authored a number of publications in a dedicated program
of attacking and confounding Sikh beliefs, tenets and history.
Pashaura Singh produced his thesis called, "THE TEXT AND
MEANING OF THE ADI GRANTH", working under McLeod,
at the Centre for Religious Studies, of the Toronto University,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Previously, Pashaura Singh held a Master's degree from an
Indian University, and sometimes wrote, promisingly inspired
articles, such as : "Dharam Dhuja Farhant Sada". Until, that is,
he came under the tutelage of missionary McLeod, who has
operated from Toronto for some years now, following his earlier
activity from the University of Otago, New Zealand.
The abstract of Pashaura Singh's thesis consists of 237 pages,
done on triple space, not including Bibliography. Included in the
bibliography are a number of English Works. It is noteworthy,
that these sources list W.H. McLeod as the author of as many as
ten (10) works about Sikhs, which is the largest number attributed
to any single author listed under English Works, even through
many Sikh authors have a greater contribution.
The ten works of Mcleod, of course, include his 1975
publication, Evolution of the Sikh Community, which stirred a
 259

storm of literary protests from all over the world. Some of these
published in magazines such as the Sikh Review, Calcutta, at the
time. As a western scholar, and involved with the Sikh homeland
of Punjab and a Christian crusader, W.H. McLeod has
concentrated, through his publications, on interpretations and
nuances that best effected his purpose: to call into question,
challenge and controvert Sikh beliefs, scriptures and sources of
theological polity. His mission has been carried on steadfastly
against the Sikhs and is still ongoing.
The latest manifestation seems to be incarnated in Pashaura
Singh's PhD. thesis. The Preface to it, opens with the ominous
statement, of Pashaura Singh, thus :
"This study seeks to reconstruct the history of the text of the
Adi Granth. It provides textual analysis of certain portions of the
Aad Granth and examines Guru Arjan's editorial policy
particularly his approach towards the inclusion of the Bhagat Bani
in the Sikh Scripture. It also examines various factors that first
led to the emergence of three different traditions of the Aad Granth
and then to the eventual standarization of its text.
Examination of early manuscripts has revealed that Guru
Arjan worked over a number of drafts to produce the final text in
1604 CE. He prepared the scripture primarily in response to the
process of crystallization of the Sikh tradition that was taking
place during his period. One important outcome of this study is
that the Kartarpuri manuscript as compiled by Guru Arjan is
confirmed through scrutiny of the manuscript evidence as the
final text of the Aad Granth.
Pashaura Singh, typically, uses the phrase "traditions' of
the Aad Granth. This phrase is reminiscent of W.H.McLeod's
characteristic phraseology as applied to Sikh scriptures or
theology or tenets. Everything that is today concrete and clear,
and part and parcel of Sikh practice and belief, is
characteristically under siege by McLeod (and even by other
dectractors, such as Harjot Singh Uberoi, occupying another
seat of Sikh Studies at the University of British Columbia).
The tool or weapon of assault is that there was such and such
a tradition", and therefore the Sikh contemporary practice is
suspect. Pursuant to this method of contradiction, all the author
 260

has to do is conceive, formulate and fabricate or argue a set of

contrary or discrepent, though associated, set of circumstances
or half-facts, and cap them off under the style of "tradition" which
is urged or suggested as inconsistent with the current Sikh practices
and beliefs. Thus a rival set of demi-facts is put up; a discussion is
developed, at least a controversy is created. The effect of this
'scholastic' endeavour is, at the minimum, an attack or challenge
to the object or belief against which it is asserted. The method of
fleshing out discordant facts as "tradition" is independent of any
principles or rules of authority. A nebulous discussion of the
period, its collateral events, unsuspecting or remotely related
circumstances involving personalities, episodes, activities,
ceremonies or meetings and conversations, are all bits and scraps
of building material for the "researcher's" quest for a Sikh contrary
"tradition" - which detracts from patent Sikh belief.
In this perspective, it is not difficult to see and understand
that both McLeod's and Pashaura Singh's phraseology pivoting
on "tradition" is by now familiar to Sikhs.
There are other serious questions about the Ph.D. thesis.
Who proposed it? Was it suggested, or encouraged by
McLeod? He, of course, as Pashaura Singh's supervisor, must have
had an immense influence in the reasoning, and the deductions
and inferences. The student would be amenable to the guidance
and direction offered by the professor and supervisor. At least the
suggestions available to the candidate for the doctoral degree, in
the environment, could not be ruled out.
Why was it thought to be so significant or important that
somebody should come up with the notion of "seeking to
reconstruct the history of the text of the Adi Granth" ?
What was thought to be wrong with the text of the Sri Guru
Granth Sahib, the signed, sealed and delivered Scripture, of the
Sikhs ?
Guru Arjan, Nanak the fifth, himself authenticated and
bequeathed the Sikh gospel, the Adi Granth, to the Sikhs in A.D.
1604. Why would any scholar, barring the involvement of
McLeod in the matter, decide upon questioning the finality
of the Adi Granth, four hundred years later?
Even if there had been in 1595 A.D. some alleged collections,
 261

in book form, (called, Mohan Pothianor Goindwal Pothian) of

the first four Gurus revelatory compositions, what difference
would it make to the cardinal fact that the Aad Guru Granth, the
Sikh scripture, as exists, is the final and irrefutable Scripture of
the Sikhs declared as such by the Guru?
What is the object or purpose or value of any other spurious
or rival materials being resurrected in this day and age? Is the
purpose not that, ipso facto, the resuscitation of bygone illegitimate
materials would tend to challenge and attack the established
integrity and authenticity of the Sikh scripture today? The fact is
that Guru Granth, and Guru Granth alone is and always was,
since 1604 A.D., the sole Sikh gospel. It is the successor Guru,
since the demise of our tenth prophet, Guru Gobind Singh, in
1708. Sikhs believe in its supremacy as their ever-living Guru.
Sikhs are a people of the Book, in this respect, like the Christians
and the Muslims.
Further, to the Sikhs there is no division, difference or
distinction between the first Nanak and the fifth Nanak, as their
prophets. Guru Nanak is the same as Guru Arjan the fifth Guru.
Who cares, or should, whether the Aad Granth, the Sikh scripture
was compiled by the fifth Guru, as is a fact, or by the first Guru
Nanak himself? It would make absolutely no difference to Sikhs,
anywhere. Consequently, the entire exercise and debate
engendered by McLeod and Pashaura Singh is nefarious. One sure
result of it is the affront to Sikhs, the injury to their religious
sentiments and spiritual beliefs. It does absolutely no good to
anybody else at all; unless, of course, it can be expostulated that
the spirit of the rivalaries of anti-Sikh "Matths", of the Guru
period, dispensed by anti-Guru "characters, such as Mohan,
Mohri, Ram Rai, Meharban, and the 'Dhirmalias', is still extant,
as it was in Guru Arjan's time. Sikhs must regard it as an
abomination, in all the self-evident circumstances.
At worst, it must also be the source of imaginative provocation
to Sikhs. Similar literary and research 'scholarship' has strayed
far afield, and ventured on to deny historical facts such as the
holocaust, with understandable. inflammation of the Jewish
religious sentiments. Salman Rushdie targeted the Holy Quran,
taking refuge behind poetic and literary genius. But it has failed
 262

to blunt the legitimate fury of the Islamic peoples all over the
world. By comparison, it is indeed a miracle that so far the anti-
Sikh scholastic works have not touched off a protest of ugly
proportion.
All seven chapters, and the conclusions, of Pashaura Singh's
thesis, have come under the critical scrutiny of Dr. Gurmail
Singh's Sidhu. The valuable commentary was published recently
in the Punjabi Weekly earlier mentioned. This analysis appears
to have deflated some of the myths or conjectures Pashaura Singh
thesis has capitalized on. By his erudite critical analysis, coupled
with an amazing scholarship of the Sikh scripture and its contents,
Dr. Sidhu was well able to establish the following points, as facts:
(1). The Mool Mantar (the root hymn or incantation) is
exclusively the apostolic utterance of Guru Nanak; it is prophetic
and fundamental. That, contrary to Pashaura Singh's premise,
no alteration or extrapolation has been introduced therein by
Guru Arjan (the fifth Apostle). Pashaura Singh has apparently
mis-stated in the thesis in question that the phrase: "Sac" (Sach)
was introduced into by Guru Arjan for the first time. On the
"textual analysis principle", Pashaura Singh had reasoned that this
must be so because Guru Arjan is seen to have used the same
Sloka, namely, "Ad sac, (sach) Jugad sac, (sach) hai bhi sac, (sach)
Nanak hosi bhi sac (sach)", in the beginning of the 17th Asht-
Padi, (Asht-Padi meaning a poetic composition consisting of Asht,
or Ocht (German) or Eight Stanzas, each stanza consisting of
some ten couplets) of the "Sukhmani" composition of Guru Arjan:
Dr. Sidhu finds that Mr. Pasharua Singh has evidently erred
in so supposing, or reading the pertinent part of the Sukhmani.
While the Sloka, heading the 17th Ashtpadi, is a correct quote of
Guru Nanak's Mool-Mantar, as quoted by Guru Arjan, the
succeding 17th Asht- Padi is redolent with the phrase "Sac" (sach)
(and not "Sac"). Consequently, the Pashaura Singh presumption
is in fact erroneous.
(2) It is established fact that the Goindwal texts or Pothian
(books) are sans Jap Ji Sahib the cardinal composition of the first
apostle, Guru Nanak, attests to their spurious character. The
hymnology was obviously deliberately omitted by the oval
claimants of Guru's time. But it is of course duly inscribed in the
 263

Guru Granth, the Sikh scripture, as authenticated by Guru Arjan,

or the fifth Nanak, its compiler.
(3) It is established that the document or manuscript
numbered 1245, was created in or after the period of the Sixth
Guru, Sri Guru Har Gobind. It is not even a contemporary parallel
source material related to the time of Guru Arjan when Aad
Granth was compiled. It is subsequent in sequence. Therefore it
is of no significance whatsoever as regards the Sikh authentic
scripture, the Aad Granth. It may be of interest to advert to Dr.
Sidhu's analysis of this 1245 document, and its notorious features.
For instance, in editing the Aad Granth, the ending phrase "Sudh"
or "Sudh Kichay" is inscribed. Not so in the manuscript No.
1245 which is subsequent. Again, by comparison, each Var (ode)
in the Aad Granth is also ascribed to the specific Guru (by
designating as the First, Second, Third or Fourth and so on). But
this is not done in the document numbered 1245, which, as stated,
is of a later date. Further, certain extra or additionaJ verses of the
fifth Guru are included in document No. 1245 which do not
form any part of the Aad Granth compiled by him, indicating
that these are not by the fifth Guru and are apocrypha included
by a schismatic scribe to mislead the Sikhs. And now Pashaura
Singh is doing the same. Further, the most important of the Sikh
prayers, the Anand Sahib (of the Third Guru) has been departed
from in the later document No. 1245. The most striking or
remarkable thing about document 1245 is that the date of death
of each of the five Gurus is inscribed in the hand of the same
writer and in same ink. Yet Pashaura Singh glosses over this factual
circumstance by reasoning that the date of death of the fifth Guru,
Arjan, was added later on, which is a misstatement. Document
no. 1245 does no contain the bani of the Bhagats. This is entirely
contrary to the Sikh belief, tenet and an affront to Sikhism. Because
Sikhism transcends all differences of caste or creed. It would have
been thus quite liberal and different. It thus appears that the editor
or compiler of MS 1245 was not at one with the fundamentals of
Sikhism. It is likely therefore that the links of No. 1245 were
with the sect of Ram Rai or Meharban (rivals of our Guru Arjan).
The Sikhs firmly believe that the bani (divine verbal
composition) of each and every individual Bhagat (divine) was
 264

critically weighed by the compiler of the Aad Granth, Guru

Arjan, and matched with the norms of divine revelation. Only
those pieces were accepted for inclusion that met this standard.
(4) It is absurdly suggested by Pashaura Singh, that the bani of
the Bhagats was enshrined in the Aad Granth because of alleged
pragmatic considerations on the part of its compiler,
Guru Arjan. It was suggested that Guru Arjan anticipated
attracting Hindu converts to Sikhism, by this expansion of the
Aad Granth. Guru Arjan, and indeed the whole Sikh concept
was an all. embracing concept open to all humanity. The essentials
of Sikhism were anchored in supremacy of God and universalities
of mankind. Thus those Hindu, or, for that matter, Muslim
divines, who echoed this ethos of the Gurus, were welcome to
become part of the Sikh scripture.
Only the inculcated impulse for converts to Christianity, could
conceivably presume to import such intentions to the Sikh Gurus,
who, as the historical record attests, counselled devotees to adhere
to their own religion, without conversion to Sikhism. Only when
the urge to embrace the path shown by the Gurus was
overwhelming, did our Gurus accede, and let the new corners
into the Sikh fold. It is indeed a sad and deplorable portent that
Pashaura Singh, as a Sikh, guided by McLeod, his superviser, would
inject insinuations and conjectures of this nature, both into the
cerebration of the Sikh Gurus and the sanctity of their Sikh
scripture.
This is beyond the pale of scholarship, and is thoroughly
unsupported by any research material. All it does is reach for the
divinity and piety of the Sikh Gurus and, their sanctity, and raze
them to the level of common adventurers.
Both the Centre for Religious Studies, and the University of
Toronto, appropriately merit the indignant censure of all the Sikh
world, for allowing this sort of 'scholarship' or 'research to go
forward, when quite clearly, its object and aim is the vilification
of a whole religious community, spread in almost each and every
country of the world.
5) Dr. Gurmail Singh Sidhu's sound commentary arrives at
hree last conclusions, arising from Pashaura Singh's disturbing
hesis :
 265

(A) There is no reliable basis upon which to hold the Goindwal

Pothian (books) as pre-dating the compilation of the Guru
Granth; They cannot have any significance in so far as the
compilation of the Sikh Scripture is concerned;
The manuscript no. 1245 is entirely dateless, but its con-
tents attest to the fact that it dates to the time between the
sixth and the ninth Guru. It is impressed with the insignia
of the ninth Guru. It also embodies the dates of the death
of each of the first five Gurus. Yet pashaura Singh pre-
sumes to suggest that its chronology pre-dates the Guru
Granth - the Aad Granth. This reveals his level of rational-
ity and academic ability.
(B) It is an unsupportable supposition that, as Pashaura Singh
alleges, the fifth Guru, Guru Arjan, doctored the Gurbani
(the Gurus' articulations) and embodied it into the Granth;
and that he did so in order to answer the need for 'Crystal-
lization of the Sikh 'tradition'.
What in the world Pasharua Singh means by stating that
"the process of crystalization of the Sikh tradition that was
taking place during his (Guru Arjan's) period" ? Have we
not heard that from McLeod, before? Here again, the ge-
nie of "tradition' is so subtle and elemental that it can serve
every purpose the essayist has set for himself.
Dr. Sidhu correctly concludes that the above premise, from
which Pashaura Singh, proceeds to write his thesis, ipso
facto, has degenerated or detracted from the God-inspired
quality of the Sikh Scriptural contents.
Dr. Sidhu attests that he is not at all satisfied by the dis-
cussion or comments or explanations offered by Pashaura
Singh, which are sparse and scant. For instance, his unsat-
isfactory treatment of the position of the Mul-Mantar, as
earlier discussed.
Even if it be supposed, to admit his argument that Guru
Ram Das and Guru Arjan had altered any wording, then
such words, for instance, "Purukh" or "Nirvair", indeed
are found in the bani of Guru Nanak also and are repeat-
edly employed at appropriate places to good effect.
 266

21
CENTRE OF SIKH STUDIES OR BLASPHEMY?
By
Dr. SUKHMANDER SINGH
Guru Arjan with his unique vision authenticated the revealed
Bani of the Gurus in the Aad Granth (Kartarpuri Bir) in 1604
A.D. therby excluding for all times any scope of form, red action
or textual criticisms, and declaring that what is included in the
Aad Granth is alone Bani, and what is outside it, unless it is a
copy of it, is not the Bani of the Gurus.
But, W H. McLeod, a former limb of the Chrisitian Mission
in Punjab, which came there under the wings of the British
Colonialism, to convert and civilize the heathens, started in 1975
the game of "mud dying" the holy waters by saying, "Portions of
the Kartarpuri manuscript were rather ineptly obliterated in order
to bring the two versions into line". The conclusion which seemed
to be emerging with increasing assurance was that widely
disseminated Banno version must represent the original text: and
that Kartarpuri manuscript must be a shortened version of the
same text. A few portions must have been deleted, because they
could not be reconciled with beliefs subsequently accepted by
the Panth. This much appears to be well established". In 1979,
he wrote, "The earliest, representing the nearest approach to Guru
Arjan's dictation, would be Banno the second and intermediary
recension bearing the actual marks of a later revision through
the excision of unacceptable material would be Kartarpuri. "In
1989 he repeated, "The comparison suggests that Banno recension
may actually represent the original text inscribed by Bhai Gurdas,"
Actually, it was well known that the Banno Bir had been scribed
in 1642 A.D. McLeod's level and intention can be assessed from
the fact that he wrote all this against the Sikh Scripture without
even examining the Kartarpuri Bir or the Banno Bir. McLeod
was accused of blasphemy for alleging motivated deletions,
implying that the Kartarpuri Bir or Aad Granth was a forged
one, even when he knew that Dr Jodh Singh's work of 1968 had
categorically stated that there was no deletion of Ramkali hymn
in the Kartarpuri Bir. After. this accusation of blasphemy against
him, in 1990, he seemingly retracted his position, saying that on
studying Jodh Singh's work of 1968 (which he had even quoted
 267

in his books 1975), he abandoned the notion of doubt about the

originality of the Kartarpuri Bir. This was found to be a
misstatement because he made all his allegations of 1975, 1979
and 1989 after reading Jodh Singh's book of 1968. These being
the facts, we leave it to the readers to assess the veracity of his
various statements.
Now the role of "muddying" the holy waters and spreading
"blasphemy" appears to have been taken up by Pashaura Singh
whose thesis for Ph.D. was guided by McLeod as supervisor.
Every Sikh knows that since the Bani is revealed, no one could
ever think of changing even a word or matra (vowel) of it. Much
less could anyone think of committing a blasphemy by changing
a doctrine or concept of Guru Nanak Dev or other Gurus. It is
well known that the Guru banished his own son Ram Rai, for
changing a single word, and the 10th Master was very angry with
a Sikh who pronounced one word wrongly which could be
misconstrued.
But Pashaura Singh writes, "Guru Arjun worked over the text
of the Mul Mantar in successive drafts to give it the final form.
The Guru Nanak Dev University manuscript, which is an early
draft of the Adi Granth, gives the form of the Mul Mantar, before
its standardization." "Another significant point is that Guru Arjun
added the word "Purakh" in the received text of the Mul Mantar.
It clearly indicates that by his time the personal (Purakh) aspect
of the Supreme Being acquired prominence as compared with
Guru Nanak's emphasis on the Formless (Nirankar) nature of
the Ultimate Reality. This may provide an adequate explanation of
the subsequent developments that took place in Sikh Doctrines as
well as within the Panth since the days of Guru Nanak. This will,
however, challenge the traditional understanding of the Mul Mantar
as being created in its present form by Guru Nanak himself."
Similarly, he writes, "The comparison of this text with earlier forms
of the Mul Mantar given above clearly indicates the additon of the
word "Nirvair" (without enmity), which Guru Ram Das employs
to put emphasis on the divine attribute of benevolence. Thus a new
theological dimension is added to the Sikh understanding of the
Ultimate Reality". Thus, the same temporal considerations he has
attributed to the fourth Guru for using the word "Nirvair," and
 268

adding new dimension, because he was suffering hostility in social

life. Further, he writes, "In his final version, Guru Arjun replaced
the phrase satgur prasad (by the grace of the True Guru) with
Gur prasad (by the grace of the Guru)". the implication of all
these apparently blasphemous statements is that the description
of God's attributes is not the result of revelation or spiritual
experience, but follows needs of the social milieu i.e., the Marxian
logic of environment governing all thought and denial of
spirituality. He also writes, "A comparative analysis of this text
with the standard version of the Japji reveals the following
important differences which illuminate the different stages in the
process of its development." "The most distinctive difference is
that the introductory couplet of the Japji is missing in the earlier
text. In the standard version it reads "'The Eternal one, From the
Beginning, Through All Time, present Now, the Everlasting
Reality' Evidently this shalok was added by Guru Arjan much
later when he produced the final text of the Japji," "Evidently Guru
Arjan modified the language of certain words." "There are numerous
such examples throughout the text of the Japji, where Guru Arjun
refined the language of certain passages and polished the meter."
"All these examples clearly indicate that certain linguistic
revisions were made at the same time of standardization of the
text of the Japj ji"
"Traditionally, the concluding shaloka of the Japji is
understood to be Guru Nanak's own composition. There are,
however, scholars who regard Guru Angad as the real author."
(the scholar who is cited in support, is no other than McLeod).
"Second, Guru Nanak may have initiated his successor, Bhai
Lehna, into the poetic skill of verse composition in the literary
form of shaloka, and this training may have been a part of his
designation to the office of Guruship. The two gurus may have
worked together on the text of the epilogue of the Japji, and
accordingly, both may be regarded as its joint authors."
The author has attacked the spiritual basis and the unalterable
character of the Sikh Scripture. Not only has the sanctity of the
Bani and its revealed character, as pronounced by the Gurus
themselves, been violated, but he has also asserted that Guru Arjun
changed the fundamental concept about God laid down by Guru
Nanak, from a Formless God to a Personal God, who is the object
 269

of worship and prayer. These changes he adds, the Guru made

purely out of temporal considerations and to suit subsequent
developments in the Panth, requiring a shift in doctrines. All his
arguments support the Mechanical theory of social challenge and
response, eroding the theory of Spirituality: By willingly or
unwillingly pursuing the Marxian line, Pashaura Singh has tried
to undo the work of Guru Arjun who with his eternal vision,
stopped all possibility of textual or like criticism, as had happened
in the case of scriptures, compiled by devotees scores of years or
centuries after the demise of the concerned prophet. Now the
author by his work seeks to open the flood gates of such
destructive, baseless and wild conjectures, which, Dr Jodh Singh
said in reference to G.B. Singh's criticism of the authenticity of
the Kartarpuri Bir, strikes at the very roots of the spiritual and
revelatory origin of the Bani and the consequent Sikh faith.
It is amazing that practically all the assertions of Pashaura
Singh are based on a manuscript which has no authenticity, no
history and no dating to suggest its alleged earlier character as a
draft by Guru Arjun. It is a manuscript, which the Guru Nanak
Dev University catalogued only in 1987, after its purchase from
the dealer that year. Nothing is known as to who or when anyone
wrote it, or how the dealer got it. There is not yet an iota of
evidence to suggest that it is an early manuscript or draft. On the
contrary it is clear that the manuscript is a later copy of the Aad
Granth probably of the time of the Ninth Guru. The scribe
himself has claimed it to be only of the time of the Sixth Guru by
interpolating a paper which he calls Nishan of the Sixth Guru,
and which claim Pashaura Singh himself concedes, is incorrect,
the Nishan presumably being of the Ninth Guru. Pashaura Singh
says that the manuscript was scribed by a Bhalla, because in it
many lines have been devoted to the praise of the Third Master.
He adds that the writer must be Bhai Gurdas, although the
handwriting does not tally with the one in the Kartarpuri Bir.
But he argues that the difference should not matter, because al
Gurdas must have improved his handwritng when he wrote the
Kartarpuri Bir. He also concedes that its Gurmukhi writing is
without many vowels. Yet, while calling it a draft by Guru Arjun
he neither explains why the Guru allowed an eulogy to the Third
 270

Guru alone to the exclusion of an eulogy to Guru Nanak, the

Fourth or other Gurus, nor does he explain a radical change in
the writing of Bhai Gurdas from the one without vowels to the
one with all the necessary Matras, or why Guru Arjun allowed
the alleged draft to be written without Matras, when the script
had been standardized much earlier, probably in the time of the
Second Master. In fact, in the time of the Fifth Guru, Gurmukhi
was being written, except by less illiterate persons, with necessary
vowels. Pashaura Singh makes the ridiculous suggestion about
Bhai Gurdars having written the draft, because he knows that it
would be even more ridiculous to say that the draft was got written
by Guru Arjun from an unknown Sikh, who was discarded later
and the original was got written from Bhai Gurdas. There is not
the least sign of any mark pretended or otherwise of the Fifth
Guru. It is self-contradictory to vouch for the authenticity of a
manuscript the writer or owner of which is considered to have
forged the Nishan of the Sixth Guru. Pashaura Singh's assertions
about change by the Fifth Master are apparently blasphemous,
because the very basis of his arguments is a castle in the air. It is
strange that McLeod called the Banno Bir the original one, because
it contained more material than that in the Kartarpuri Bir, and
now he seems to have approved of the argument that GND
University manuscript is the original draft, because it contains
far less material than that in the Kartarpuri Bir. Such lack of
consistency would cast a cloud on the seriousness or objectivity
of the rationale.
There is no evidence to suggest that any Granth or Pothi is
more true than the Aad Granth compiled by the Guru after his
scrutiny of the authenticity of the Bani of the Gurus. This unique
step the Sikh Prophet took, which no other prophet had taken,
in order to eliminate the possibility of any clumsy attempt to
question the authenticity and sancity of the Bani. Pashaura Singh's
work has to be assessed in this light. It is distressing that an authentic
Granth, admittedly compiled by the Guru himself is called tampered
with or forged and a manuscript with an admittedly forged Nishan
of the Sixth Guru is accepted as authentic. Let the reader judge the
level or motive of such scholarship.
Nothing has been emphasized more in the Guru Granth than
 271

the revelatory and authentic character of tjhe Bani in the Aad

Granth compiled by the Guru. And nothing is more sacred than
the Shabad therein and its truth. What Pashaura Singh has
repeatedly asserted, we feel, is clearly contrary to the established
and accepted authenticity and revelatory and unalterable character
of the Bani. We, therefore, believe that his statements are baseless
and blasphemous, and need thoughtful and appropriate response
from the sangats and other organizations who should consider
the issue. Jathedars of the Takhats and other religious institutions
or Taksals, that are concerned with the Bani and the Sikh faith,
should also be addressed. The Jathedars of the Takhats, being the
authority on the subject, could be requested to call the explanation
of Pashaura Singh, and deal with him according to Gurmat.
Further, it appears necessary to obtain legal advice to find if what
has taken place is actionable.
The overall rationale of the thesis is unsatisfactory and faulty.
But we have no desire to comment on that at present. The author
appears, by and large, to have chosen, by consent or compulsion,
to be only the mouthpiece of his supervisor.
 272

22
MUL MANTAR REVELATORY
By
Dr. ]ASBIR SINGH MANN
Ikna nadi na bedi na gia rasu, rasu, kasu na jananti
Ikna sidhi na budhi na agli sar, akkhar ka beheo na lahanti,
Nanak te nar asli khar, ji binu gun garabu karanti
(Guru Granth, 1, 1411)
ieknw nwd n byd nw gIAw rsu rsu n jxMq[
ieknw isiD n Agil swr AKr kw Byau n lhIiq[
nwnk qy nr Asil Kr ij ibnu gux grub krMq
Sardar Kapur Singh translates the above hymn as : "There are
those who are cultured neither in philosophy nor in scripture,
not have developed proper taste for. Music. And likewise, there
are those who are unacquainted with aesthetics. and arts. They
have neither a trained character, nor disciplined intellect, and as
such, they are devoid of true learning, so much so that the true
significance accumulated human wisdom is out side their sphere
of interest. Such people, says Nanak, are true animals for they
strut as human beings without the qualifications of human
beings."
It is very. painful to review and record that Pashaura Singh's
thesis suggesting that the original Mul Mantar revealed to Guru
Nanak, was subsequently modified by his successors to suit the
changing socio-political scene is clearly blasphemous. Pashaura
Singh contradicts himself when he writes: "Guru Nanak employed
both phrases, "Karta Purakh' and' Akal Purkhu' being in the
first stanza of Var Majh (AG, 138 and in Maru Solhe 18 (AG, P.
1038) respectively". "Although Guru Nanak has also employed
the word nirvair for the supreme being in his Ramkali Dakhni
Onkar (AG p. 931), the frequency of its usage is greater in the
compostion of Guru Ramdas". Pashaura Singh should understand
that revelation cannot be set aside on the mere suspicions of
unjustified scepticism of an ex-exployee of a Christian mission.
He should have gone deeper to find the authenticity of GNDU
M.S. # 1245.
Sikhism is a revealed religion. The spiritual and religious truths
which Guru Nanak preached had been revealed to him "through
 273

a direct encounter with God at some level of consciousness" and

he preached what he had been told by God to teach. He conveyed
only those words to the world which God had wished him to
give as His divine message as stated by him in verses such as the
following:
As the Lord's Word descends to me So I express it, Lalo !"
(G.G.S pg. 722) "1 have uttered only what you, 0' Lord have
inspired me to utter". (GGS. pg 566)
Guru Nanak has also mentioned in another hymn that he
was an ordinary minstrel who was commissioned and blessed by
God with his service. Describing his first audience with the
Supreme Being the Guru sang aloud thus in words which read as
under:
"I was an idle bard, God assigned to me a rewarding task, and
commanded me to sing His praises night and day. He summoned
me to His Eternal Mansion, bestowed on me the robe of holy
laudation, And feasted me on the holy Name ambrosial. The
Supreme Being is attained says Nanak, by laudation of the holy
Eternal." (GGS. 148 & 150)
As is well known to the students of comparative religion,
contents of a revealed religion are conveyed to the people by the
Supreme Being through His special messengers either by calling
them to His presence, as in the cases of Moses, or by
communicating His messages to them, as in the case of Prophet
Mohammad. As regards Sikhism, God is stated to have been
pleased to use direct ways to convey His Words, Laws and
Commandments to its founder, as stated above by the first Sikh
Prophet, Guru Nanak, himself in his own words. (This has also
been duly mentioned by the earliest chroniclers of Sikh Religion,
such as, Bhai Gurdas (1551-1629) in his var no. 1 pauri No. 24;
Puratan Janamsakhi (1634 c.) pp. 17-18; Sodhi Meharban (1581-
1640) in his Sachkhand Pothi (dt. 1620 c.), pp. 88-89; Bhai Nand
Lal (1633-1741 in his Ganj Namah, Ch. 1, verses 48-50). The
thought contained in Sri Guru Granth Sahib is not the product
of the environment, nor were the. Gurus compelled by the
circumstances, the conditions of that period to say whatever they
have said. There was nothing new in the environment to being
about the revolutionary changes in thought made by
274
275
 276

Page No 274 and 275 was not scanned

to undo it. By his great wisdom and vision Guru Arjun Dev
has himself vouched for the authenticity of the Bani of Guru
Nanak. Now Pashaura Singh has come forward to say that this is
not correct, and Guru Arjun Dev Ji changed it. Is this not
blasphemy?
Sikhs owe it to themselves to find out how and why this has
happened. The SGPC and all Sikh institutions should take
appropriate action against such misadventure. It is unfortunate
that despite the standard of Jethedar Kesgarh Sahib that Sikhs
should not cooperate with McLeod, he has found a collaborator
in Pashaura Singh. It is learnt that another coordinator is coming
up with similar plans. Sikhs must set their own house in order, so
that atleast no Sikh becomes a party to commission of blasphemy.
Pashaura Singh must answer Sikh Panth two questions :
1) Does he believe that Sikhism is a Revelatory Religion and
the Bani of Guru that what they have recorded is revelation or is
it a product of History?
2) Does he believe in constant unity of Sikh thought. ?
As Sikh Panth believes in the concept "He (Nanak) established
religion in the Kaljug...Nanak assumed the body of Angad
Afterwards Nanak was called Apwr Das. As one lamp lit from
another... And Amar Das become Ram Das, The pious saw this,
but not the fools, Who thou};ht them all distinct., But some rare
persons recognized that they were all one."
Hope Waheguru gives strength to Pashaura Singh to
understand the revelatory text and meaning of Aad Granth, and
that Bani in Granth is not there in response to socio-political
circumstances.
References:
1. Pashaura Singh, "The text and meaning of Adi Granth Thesis.
Toronto University, 1991.
2. Gurnam Kaur, "Reason & Revelation in Sikhism" Cosmo Pub-
lication, 1990
3. Hamam Singh Shan, "Fundamental Issues in Sikh Studies,"
"Sikhism - An Original, Distind and Complete Religion",
4. jagjit Singh, "Sikh Revolution"
 277

23
PASHAURA SINGH AND HIS THESIS : ANALYSIS
by
SIKH MISSIONARY CENTRE, MICHlGAN
There are two copies of Pashaura Singh's thesis in Detroit
Gurdwara and we have read it very carefully. As other writers
have pointed out, Pashaura Singh writes in his thesis, "Examination
of early manuscripts has revealed that Guru Arjan worked over a
number of drafts to produce the final text in 1604 CE. He prepared
the scripture primarily in response to the process of crystalization
of the Sikh tradition that was taking place during that period."
The main exphasis of Pashaura Singh's thesis is that Guru
Arjan Dev made a number of drafts before producing the final
text of the Aad Granth. We feel the need to point out here that
there is no such thing as 'Aad Granth' now as majority of the
scholars are still referring to the present 'BIR' as Aad Granth in
their writings. It is now" Aad Sri Guru Granth Sahib" and not
Aad Granth.
There are two main points to be considered here, first, Faith
and then clarity of the Basic Concept of Gurmat. It seems that
Pashaura Singh lacks both. '
FAITH: Intense devotion and unwavering faith in Guru's Word
inculcates Fear in a Gursikh. This Fear is not a fear from worldly
dangers. It is the fear out of Love, Devotion and, Honour for
Him. Holding Him in such high esteem that doing anything
against His Word by word, deed or thought, would shake human
mind, body and soul. Pashaura Singh claims that he is a believing
Sikh. Had he any faith in Sikh Religion, he would never have
dared to write that Guru Arjan Dev made a number of drafts of
the Aad Granth when Guru Arjan Dev himself calls it "Dhur Ki
Bani".Dhur ki bani aaee, tin sagli chint metaee
Dur kI bwxI AweI ]
iqin sglI icMq imtweI ]"
(soriT m: 5 pMnw 628)
CLARITY OF BASIC CONCEPT OF GURMAT :Guru
Nanak was the Embodiment of Divine Light (Jot) : Guru Nanak
Dev is Gobind Roop.
 278

gur nwnk dyv goivMd rUp ]"

(bMsq m: 5 pMnw 1192)
Gur Nanak Nanak Har Soi
guru nwnk nwnku hir soie ]"
(gof m: pMnw 965)
Guru Nanak Dev Ji gave an unparalleled form and content to
his Guruship. Transformation from one Guru to the other is
recognized as one. It was a Holy transformation of the 10 Gurus
since all of them came from the same Divine Light (Jot) in
continuity of the same Divine Mission. This Divine status of
Guru Nanak's Guruship is a supreme and essential character of
Sikh faith. Guru Arjan Dev was sitting on the Divine Throne of
Guru Nanak. Under what authority Pashaura Singh theorizes
that Guru Arjan Dev made a few drafts before producing the
final text of Aad Granth ? He claims that he is basing his argument
on facts which he himself contradicts in his thesis. Pashaura Singh
has thus reduced Dhur Ki Bani to a level of human poetry. Did
he care to find out what Guru Arjan Dev said? The fifth Nanak
himself says:
"I know not how to speak,
I say what He commandeth me to say"
hau Awphu boil nw jwxdw
mY kihAw sBu hkmwE jIau ]"
(rwg sUhI m: 5 pMnw 763)
By writing his so-called Thesis he has not exhibited his faith
in Sikh Religion. Religious teachings in schools and universities
(as being taught by Pashaura Singh in University of Michigan),
which do not reflect their teacher's dedication and deep-rooted
faith in that particular religion, are undesirable and unwanted. A
religious teacher's faith has to be evident in his work.
Who makes the drafts?
Human beings prepare drafts because of imperfections
inherent in human nature. Guru is a Supreme authority. God,
Guru and Guru's word (Gurbani) all these three are absolute and
unchangeable.
"ibru nwrwiex ibru gurU
ibru swcw bIcwr ]"
 279

(dKxI EAMkwr m: 1 pMnw 934)

How could the Eternal Guru Nanak Divine Light (Jot) (Guru
Arjan Dev) change Gurbani by making draft after draft as
proclaimed by Pashaura Singh when Guru Arjan Dev himself
says:

1. Jeso Guru updesya mai teso keha pukar

jYso gur aupdyisAw
mY qYso kihAw pukwir ]
(rwg gwauVI m:5 pMnw 214)
2. Jio bulavo tio Nanak das bolai
ijau bwlwvhu iqau nwnk dws bolY ]
(gauVI suKmnI m: 5 pMnw 292)
3.Dhur ki bani aaee tin sagli chint mitaee
Dur kI bwxI AweI ]
iqin sglI icMq imtweI ]"
(soirT m: p pMnw 628)
4. Bolai sahib kai bhanai. das bani braham vakhanai
boly swihb kY BwxY ]
dwsu bwxI bRhm vKwvY ]
(soriT m: 5 pMnw 629)
5. Hao aapo bol na janda, mai kiha sabha hukmao jio
"hau Awphu boil nw jwxdw, mY
kihAw sBu hukmwE jIau ]"
(rwg sUhI m: 5 pMnw 763)
6. Nanak OOlai tis ka bulaya
nwnk bolY iqskw bulwieAw ]"
(mlwr m: pMnw 1271)
Sikhism is not a man-made philosophy course, not an academic
procedure. Sikh faith is a total allegiance to the Guru's Word. It is
a way of life lived with complete submission and unconditional
 280

surrender to the Guru's order where all teachnical and academic

knowledge prove hollow and worthless. It is a way of life full of
commitments to the Guru, Guru Granth Sahib, and Dhur Ki
Bani Par Excellence.
To say or to conclude that it is not "Dhur Ki Bani", is
committing sacrilege of Guru Nanak's Guruship.
Egoistic minds of some scholars prohibit them from
understanding the divinity of the Guru. As long as their tninds
remain under the intoxication of the so-called technical and
academic knowledge, they can never preceive the power and touch
of heavenly Divine Light (Jot) and can never comprehend God
and His Glory.
From the very beginning there have been attacks on Sikh
religion and they will continue in the future also, but Eternal
Truth shall always prevail which is : Aad Sach Jugad Sach Hai
bhee Sach Nanak hosi bhee Sach.
 281

24
PATHOLOGY OF PSEUDO-SIKH RESEARCHERS
WITH LINEAR, MYOPIC, LEFT BRAIN, AND
MYSTIFIED WESTERN REALITIES
By
Dr. S.S. Sodhi
There is no odour so bad as that which arises from Goodness
Tainted. If I know for certainty that a man was coming to my
house with the conscious design of doing me good, I should run
for life. Thoreau, Famous American Philospher. In this article, I
would attempt to provide a psycho-social analysis of the
pathological functioning of some Western/Eastern Sikh scholars
who have made a habit of trampling over the subjective faith of
the Sikhs with narcissistic arrogance and "scholarly" ignorance.
These historians are A.L. Basham, Ernest Trumpp, Huston
Smith, Archer, CH. Leohlin, J.S. Grewal, S.S. Hans, M. Juergen
Smeyer, W.H. McLeod, Pashaura Singh, Piar Singh, Harjot Singh
Oberoi, O'Connell and his associates at the University of Toronto.
Some of these researchers feel that just as Jesus of History is
different from Jesus of Faith, similarly Nanak of History has to
be separated from Nanak of Faith to bring respectability to Sikh
religion. Furthermore, they feel that Sikh community's
permission is not needed for doing such "scholarly" research in
secular universities.
It is also believed that bringing "correctness" to Sikh history
and tradition is the secular right of these self appointed scholars
indulging in "objective" research. Whether such research
destroys the faith and causes pain to the believers is not the
concern of these scholars. They forget that legendary and
mythological elements are a psychological necessity for the
believers for building faith with which to encounter the modem
world.
Most of these historians are either non-believers or are running
away from their own religion. But there is one element which
they seem to share. Most of them start as missionaries and hence
do not hesitate to use religion to become mobile in their lives.
The examples of Pashaura Singh who came to Canada as a Granthi
 282

and Dr. McLeod who went to Kharar, India, as a missionary are

cases in point. McLeod used the missionary money of New
Zealand to stay in India. He came to India with the motivation of
producing from poverty stricken untouchables of Kharar and
Batala some "Rice Christians", Punjabi speaking Sikhs of Kharar,
India, taught him Panjabi and identified with him as one minority
community identifies with another minority community.
When Gyani Jaimal Singh of Kharar saw McLeod's growing
interest in Janam Sakhis, he felt that there was a Cunning ham or
Macauliffe in the making. Little could he fathom that this
Christian student of his will attempt to "Summarize the Nanak
of History in one page".
Dr. Neol Q. King writing for Advance Studies in Sikhism
(1989, P.8) published by Sikh Community of North America,
P.O. Box 16635, Irving, Ca, U.S.A. sums the psyche of the likes
of McLeod and Pashaura Singh as follows
"For them Scriptures and Traditions are specimens. In their
own estimation they approach them with impartial objectivity,
they are not concerned with what effect their work has on public
ethics or on religious bodies, no more than scientists hold
themselves responsible for military or commercial use of their
research."
The Western Scholars with a few exceptions have been
arrogantly unkind to Sikhism. They consider that Sikh studies in
Panjab are of a traditional type, whereas Western Scholars using
social science methods have produced objectives and unprejudiced
research. To challenge this assertion let us examine the statements
about Sikhs and their scriptures as produced by these "instant"
Sikh Scholars.
1. Aad Granth was perhaps the most shallow and empty book
that exists, in proportion to its size (Ernest Trumpp, 1877).
2. Sikh religion appears to bear the kind of relation to the
Hindu religion, which the protestant does to Romish (Major James
Browne, 1788)
3. Sikhism is a hybrid of two old religions Islam and Hinduism
(John A. Hardon, 1963).
4. Nanak was closer to Hinduism (R.W. Morgan, 1933).
 283

5. Nanak leaned rather more to Islam than to Hinduism

(Ninian Smart, 1976).
6. There is no doubt that Muslim sources predominate in
Sikhism (John A. Hutchism, 1969).
7. Sikhism because of its syncretic character is not in any
absolute sense new (John B.Noss and Davit S. Nose, 1984)
8. Guru Nanak though a man of peace was not a pacifist (John
Ferguson, 1978).
Dr. James Lewis, Professor of Philosophy and Religion, Appalachian
State University Boone, North Carolina feels that Christian authors,
and their role dancing disciples, or those who use religion in the
instrumental sense to make a living or get a PhD. and a job might be
projecting their guilt unto Sikh religion. He comments :
"To the extent that the author is Christian, or at best from a
Christian background, it might be possible to postulate that a
kind of guilt projection is at work here. In other words, if one is
uncomfortable with the tension contradiction in Christian
religion, then one is likely to project those contradictions onto
other religious traditions - whether .or not such tensions actually
exist in other traditions."
In other words, the Sikh 'scholars with Western realities
including McLeod are using, covert-value judgement when it
comes to Sikhism because" of their unresolved tensions and
contradictions about their own faiths.
What else can be said about the arrogance of these self
appointed scholars of subjective faiths of others ?
They are still attempting to carry white man's burden by
bringing "civilized" white culture's mystification to the faiths of
others that are declared rustic (Oberio) or syncretic (Khushwant
Singh).
Most of them in their zeal to become "Scholars" have jumped
on McLeod's bandwagon. The name of S.S. Hans, Pashaura Singh,
J.S. Grewal, Gurinder Singh Mann and yet another scholar in the
making, Mr. Frank (University of Toronto) comes to mind.
As a Social Scientist working in Canada, I know that this is a
very common phenomena in Social Sciences. Some body invents
a pardigm. Historians in a hurry jump on it; do the damaging
research and then disappear leaving others to clean the mess.
 284

It also appears, these scholars are mostly left brain thinkers,

affective domain of their personality is usually retarded. No
wonder then can call Guru Arjan, the greatest poet of the 16th
century of India as politically motivated person and hence
murdered by Jahangir.
Many seem to lead a life which is instrumentally motivated.
They can violate all codes of Social Science, Humanities Research
of any country to get a Ph.D. or land a job (Pashaura Singh &
McLeod who were funded by Social Science and Humanities
Research Council of Canada violated all the codes and can be
legally sued for these human rights violations).
These scholars so as to reinforce themselves from a collective
group mind call conferences, publish books, develop chairs, appoint
their own students for in-breeding to take place. Incidently, the
research done by these scholars who sit on these chairs is against the
same community that provides funds from their hard earned money.
Sikh chair, 'controlled by Dr. Oberio, at the University of British
Columbia is a case in point. These scholars are so linear, myopic,
convergent, and neurotically narcissistic that the "other kind of
seeing" does not touch them with a ten foot pole.
If they internalized the faith by listening to the faith music,
do the Zen of Sewa they may" come to their senses by losing
their linear minds"!
Christianity has been a violent religion. Ask any community
that was colonized. First nation Canadians are cases in point. To
expect from Christian missionaries kindness to other religion is
just like expecting "milk from a house that keeps the bulls"!
We knew that "objective" research on Sikhism is done mostly
by the non-believers or those who went to India as missionaries but
later became non-believers, or those who came to Canada as Granthis
but later under the influence of Christian scholars got mystified. A
historian with faith will never indulge in divergent speculations about
Sikh Gurus who were producing Gods work under very trying
conditions. Such persons will never speculate ,about who corrected
whose bani but rather get amazed about the beauty, originality of
the poetry that was produced under the altered state of consicousness.
I must say that Dr. McLeod's perception is selective. He skips
over periods of the Sikh History where the white colonial power
 285

did the most damage. The rope of Sikh empire which was carefully
planned in Ludhiana In 1820 and then executed In cold blooded
fashion between 1839-1849 does not fascinate him. The torcher
of Kukas (Namdaris), the execution of Bhagat Singh and other
2500 Sikh young men that were hanged by the "secular" British
masters does not even get a line in his writings. Discussion of
Christianity as a cultural and colonial imperialism that destroyed
a budding Sikh nation is intentionally ignored by these historians.
I will challenge Dr. McLeod and his associates to develop the
role of Sikh Gurus under Mughal rule, and also attempt to write
glorious history of Sikhs between Banda's death and the emergence
of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
I am very upset with the activities of Dr. McLeod and Loehlin
who as missionaries of a minority communities living in Punjab
have done a great disservice to the religion of another minority
community.
If this provocation continues, one can imagine the adverse
effects between the relations of Sikhs and small pockets of
Christians in Panjab when the need of the hour is to unite the
minority communities to defend themselves.
This brings one to the concept of responsibility in Sikh
research or the research that affects the life chances of a minority
community. Those days are gone that one could hide behind
secular university research. The guide lines of SSHRC have
declared any research unehthical which produces a negative image
of a community.
The universities and centres doing such research should be
tried in the courts of North America and India. Clause 15 of
Canadian Constitution and Amendment 14 of U.S.A.
Constitution should be tested to see if "McLeod gang" can be
brought to their senses. When all measures of convincing the
scholars fail we should try what non-violent philosophers call
"embarrassing the enemy" using verbal and non-verbal measures.
In the end, let me sum up the "researched" speculations of
these "Historians in a hurry". I have concentrated mainly on the
research produced by "Sikh Scholars" (McLeod, Pashi1ura Singh,
J.S.OberiO, M. Juergen Smeyer, J.S., Grewal, S.S. Hans &
S.S.Dhillon).
 286

1. Guru Nanak was the founder of Sikh religion in the

organizational sense and not in the religious sense.
2. Nath tradition was worked by Kabir, Guru Nanak provided
the extension.
3.Guru Nanak in a way is Saint Nanak.
4. Guru Nanak never went abroad.
5. Regression from Sikhism to Hindu religion took place at
the time of Guru Amar Das.
6. Jat influence got Guruship to Guru Arjan Dev Ji.
7. Guru Arjan corrected the bani written by Guru Nanak.
8. Compilation of Aad Granth was a process. It was not Dhur
Ki Bani. (Revealed)
9. Bhagat Bani was included in Guru Granth Sahib to please
the minorities.
10. Singh Sahha imposed a single correct interpretation to
Guru Granth Sahib.
11. A rare undated manuscript No. G.N.D.U. it 1245 should
be studied very carefully. This is the first draft of Guru Granth
Sahib on which Guru Arjan Dev Ji worked and produced Kartar
Pur Wali Bir.
12. Exclusion of Mira Bai's Shabads from Guru Granth Sahib
was done in an attempt to develop Sikh identity. Also her Shabads
were extremely erotic.
13. Khalsa was not given 5 'Kakars' by Guru Gobind Singh
on Baishakhi day, 1699.
14. Hair and turban and sword entered Sikhism through the
Jat influence, "Jat did not enter Sikhism empty handed."
15. Bachittar Natak was no written by Guru Gobind Singh.
16. Guru Granth Sahib became the Sikh Guru, because Guru
Gobind Singh had no surviving children.
17. Guru Arjan was murdered and not martyred in 1604 A.D.
"Sikh Scholars" at St. Michael's College, University of Toronto,
and J.S. Oberoi at the University of B.C. Vancouver, Canada are
still busy producing research which is very harmful and damaging
to Sikhism. In Canada, Dr. Carole A. Murphy, Director Fellowship
Division, Science Humanities Research Council of Canada, 255
Albert Street, P.O. Box 610, Ottawa, Canada, K1P 6G4 funds
such research. If the readers agree with the sentiments expressed
in this article, I would urge them to drop Dr. Murphy a line. We
would see that SSHRC grant to University of Toronto be stopped
unless they agree to mend their ways.
 287

25
ADI BIR BARE (PUNJAB I)

Prof. Sahib Singh a most celebrated scholar of "gurbani", has

written a book Adi Bir Bare (punjabi) which shows that Guru
Nanak carefully preserved his "bani", and passed it on to Guru
Angad Dev ji who succeeded him. The practice was followed by
the subsequent Gurus also, so that the entire "bani" of all the
Gurus, was available with Guru Arjun, when he undertook
compilation of the Aad Granth. The hymns of the "bhagats"
had likewise been collected by Guru Nanak and his successors
for inclusion in the Granth. The book which is divided into
fourteen chapters, provides extremely useful information on the
Sikh Scripture, and answers convincingly many of the questions
raised from some quarters.
In the first chapter, the author reproduces relevant portions
from the account given by Bhai Santokh Singh in 'Gur Partap
Suraj', as also from Giani Gian Singh's 'Twareekh Guru Khalsa',
besides the details recorded in the 'Gur Bilas Patshahi Chhevin'.
Giani Gian Singh reports that part of the bani came in response
to "hukamnamas" issued by Guru Arjun Dev ji, and that
contribution from the Goindwal pothis was marginal.
Dr Sahib Singh rejects the above assumptions in the second
chapter for lack of historical evidence, and with convincing
arguments. He considers it highly improbable that during Guru
Nanak's itinerary, there were always some people with pens and
paper in their hands, ready to record the Guru's hymns, and
later to preserve these bits of paper for generations, until the Fifth
Master demanded them. The author also believes that the alleged
story of "Bhai Bakhta" is only a figment of imagination.
In the third chapter 'the author supports his view with a
critical analysis of selected episodes in Guru Nanak's life,
mentioned in "Janamsakhis", and builds his case for the view
that it was the Guru himself who recorded and preserved his
"bani"
In the fourth chapter Professor Sahib Singh rejects G.B.Singh's
erroneous suggestion that thrown into the river alongwith the
motal remains of Baba Sri Chand. Quoting from the Puratian
 288

Janamsakhi' and comparing the verses of Guru Angad Dev with

those of Guru Nanak Dev, it is concluded that the "bani" was
passed on to the succeeding Gurus, so that each Guru had the
"barn" of the previous Gurus available to him.
Chapter five highlights the remarkable similarity in the form
of poetry employed by Guru Nanak and the Third Master, like
the chhant, ashtpadi, etc., and the 'pause' (rahao) verse. Further,
it is not a mere coincidence that Guru Amar Das delivered his
"bani" in the 17 raags (musical modes), which were all selected
from the 19 raags employed by Guru Nanak Dev, viz., sri raag,
majh, gauri, asa, gujri, vadhans, sorath, dhansari, tilang, suhi,
bilawal, ramkali, maru, tukhari, bhairo, basant, sarang, malhar
and parbhati, Besides, there are comments of Guru Amar Das
side by side with the views of Guru Nanak Dev. All this is cited
as evidence of the fact that Guru Nanak's "bani" was available
with Guru Amar Das.
The sixth chapter examines and rejects the story of Guru Arjun
Dev going to Baba Mohan to collect any pothis. He explains that
the story is built around the Guru's hymn, "Mohan tere uche
mandir", and that the praise is addressed to God, and not to Baba
Mohan or any other mortal, in this hymn, as in so many others.
In the seventh chapter the author deals with the "Bhagat"
"bani". He does not accept the view that it was Guru Arjun who
collected the "bani" of the 15 "bhagats" included in the Aad
Granth, or that the "bhagats" or their spirits personally came to
offer their compositions. Their names are Beni, Namdev, Ravidas,
Pipa, Sadhna, Sain, Bhikhan, Dhanna, Jaidev, Trilochan, Parma
Nand, Ramanand, Kabir, Farid and Surdas. Quoting extensively
from Farid and Beni, the author brings out a similarity between
the "bhagats" and the Gurus in several respects. The saloks of
Baba Farid are interspersed with those of Guru Nanak and Guru
Amar Das, which shows that collection of "bhagat bani" was in
fact made by Guru Nanak, and that it was available to the
succeeding Gurus.
Chapter eight furnishes convincing evidence to show that the
"var" of Satta and Balwand was included in the Aad Granth with
the approval of Guru Arjun Dev ji, and is recorded in the hand of
Bhai Gurdas.
 289

Chapter nine deals with the date of compilation of the Aad

Granth, and its installation in the Harmandir Sahib at Amritsar,
and points out the complete agreement among historians on the
fact that the "bir" was completed and installed in 1604 AD.
professor Sahib Singh does not accept the story that the" bir" was
sent to Lahore -for binding, and that Bhai Banno cleverly got a
second "bir" copied on the way. Instead, the author believes that
the binding was done in Amritsar itself. The arguments, the
discussion, and the analysis of available historical data, given in
this chapter, are indeed very illumunating and informative.
Chapter ten is a description of the sequence and the system
employed in the compilation of the "bani" in the Aad Granth.
Starting with Mul Mantar, Japji, So Dar, So Purakh and Kirtan
Sohila, the "bani" appears under 31 "raags", followed by Sahaskriti
Saloks, Gatha, Funhe,Chowbole, Saloks of Kabir and Farid,
Swaiyyas, additional saloks and concludes with saloks of Guru
Tegh Bhadur, Mundavani and Raag Mala. Under each raag hymns
follow a set sequence starting with shabads followed by ashtpadis,
chhants, vars, etc. Under each of these, the "bani" of different
Gurus follows a set precedence, with hymns of "bhagats" at the
end, usually starting with Kabir.
Chapter eleven is a scholarly discussion of the variations from
the Aad Granth or the additional compositions/verses found in
the Banno Bir and some other subsequent copies. The author
refers to the overwhelming evidence produced by historian Karam
Singh in his book 'Katik ke Vaisakh?" and proves that the additions
are the result of a deep-rooted and subtle conspiracy hatched by a
schismatic group of "Handalis".
Chapter twelve examines the case of such hymns of Bhagat
Surdas and Miranbai, as were not included in the Aad Granth by
Guru Arjun Dev ji. Professor Sahib Singh disproves the
claim of G.B. Singh that these formed a part of the Banno Bir
or the Bohat Bir, which were perhaps the earliest copies of the
Aad Granth. On the contrary, these hymns are conclusively shown
to be motivated later interpolation made sometimes after 1732 AD .
Chapter thirteen is a critical study of the 'Puratin Janamsakhi'
and the 'Bala Janamsakhi'. On the basis of internal evidence,
language and style, it is assumed that the former was written during
 290

the time of Guru Hargobind, while the later belongs to the period
of the Tenth Master. There is no indication as to the author of
the 'Puratin Janamsakhi' in the book. Professor Sahib Singh
surmises, however, that he belonged to an Uppal Khatri family
of Tolambha village in the Multan district of Punjab (pakistan).
He also points out on the basis of a careful comparision that the
"Bala Janamsakhi' draws heavily on the author of the 'Puratin
Janamsakhi' for its account of several episodes in the Guru's life.
The author also shows that followers of Handal added several
"sakhis" with ulterior motives, and that parts of them were
interpolated in the later "birs" or recensions of Guru Granth Sahib
also by the same group.
The last chapter draws attention to a wealth of information
that is available in the Aad Granth, prepared by Guru Arjun Dev
Ji, regarding other religious systems of the Gurus' times, like
Hinduism, particularly Nathism, Vaishnavism, Puranic stories,
worship of gods and goddesses, etc., Jainism and Islam, besides
prevalent social and cultural values, rituals of worship and
ceremonies connected with marriage, birth, death, etc.
The book brings out the farsightedness and vision of Guru
Nanak Dev Ji and his successors in carefully preserving the "bani"
for the salvation of humanity, untill the Fifth Master undertook
the historic and momentous task of compiling the Aad Granth.
The author, through a meticulous study of the relevant literature,
has exposed successfully the nefarious attempts of schismatic
groups to interpolate their own compositions to confuse the Sikhs,
with ulterior motives. Unfortunately the attempts still continue.
The book, therefore, has tremendous relevance in the present
context also.
 291

26

GURBANI SAMPADAN NIRNAI (Punjabi)

Principal Harbhajan Singh in this volume who is well known
for his contribution to understanding of Sikhism through
numerous books, and services rendered as Principal of the 5hahid
Sikh Missionary College and Editor of the two leading Gurmat
magazines, 'Gurdwara Gazette' and 'Gurmat Parkash', gives a
brief and concise narration of the circumstances attending the
compilation of "Gurbani" by Guru Arjun Dev ji and provides
wealth of information on several related issues.
The first four chapters introduce the author and the subject.
Opening the subject in the 5th and the 6th chapter, the author
stresses that "Gurbani" is revealed. He concedes that during the
time of Guru Arjun, Mehrban, son of Prithi Chand was
composing his own verses under the name Nanak, which was
causing confusion among the Sikh masses, for it was not easy for
an ordinary person to tell genuine Gurbani from fake verses of
Mehrban and other Minas who had set up a rival Guruship. Guru
Arjan saw the need for compiling true Bani for guidance and
benefit of the Sikh. This was not, however, the only reason for
compiling the Aad Granth although this could have been the
immediate cause. The author's view is that the compilation of
the Granth is not the result of special requirements of a particular
point or period of time. Rather, it was intended to provide eternal
lead to mankind in spiritual, social, economic and political spheres
in the process of evolution of man from his present stage of
Manmukh to that of superman (angel) or Gurmukh.
In chapter seven which deals with the sources of the "bani",
the author shows clearly that all the Gurus themselves recorded
their "bani", and as expected, took utmost care to preserve the
revealed word for salvation of humanity, and that it was passed
on to the successor Gurus. Thus authentic "bani" was already
available with Guru Arjun Dev Ji. The point is proved by
overwhelming internal evidence, since there are numerous
reference to verses of the earlier Gurus in the "bani" of the later
 292

Gurus. Bhai Gurdas is also quoted to support this view. Besides,

this chapter lists the contribution of each Guru in terms of
shabads, chhants, etc., in the Aad Granth, which are, respectively,
974, 62, 907, 679, 2218 and 116, for the 1st 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and
9th Patshahi.
Chapter eight deals with the Bhagat "bani". The shabads/
shaloks of Jaidev ji, Farid ji, Namdev ji, Trilochan ji, Beni ji, Sain
ji, Dhanna ji and Bhikhan ji, are respectively, 2,4-12-18, 60
4,3,1,4,2. Rejecting other current theories, the author believes that
the Bhagat "bani was largely collected by Guru Nanak himself. This
view is supported by Teja Singh, Sahib Singh, Gapda Singh, Mohinder
Kaur, Oharama Anant Singh as well as Pandit Tara Singh Narotam.
Referring to "bani" of Sheikh Farid, he says that the "bani" is of the
original Sheikh Farid, and not that of his successor, Sheikh lbrahim
who was contemporary of Guru Nanak. Dr Mohan Singh is quoted
in support of this view, besides sixteen other renowned scholars.
Chapter nine gives further details about the contents of the Aad,
Granth. The 'bani" is classified according to raags or modes or systems
of music. There are 31 major raags, besides 11 combinations and 6
minor raags. There are, however, a few compositions which are free,
and do not belong to any of these disciplines. A notable example is
Japji in the beginning and some verses towards the end of the Aad
Granth, after the raag Jaijawanti of ,the Ninth Guru.
Chapter ten deals with pronunciation of the words used in
the "bani". The author vehemently opposes the view 'Read as
recorded' preached by some, since it tantamounts to distorting
the real meaning or the sense of the "bani": Besides different
dialects; of Punjabi language, the Gurus have drawn upon
vocabulary from more than a dozen other languages, like Sanskrit,
Persian, Arabic, Marathi, Sindhi, etc. These words should, in all
fairness, be pronounced as in their parent languages. Any
inaccuracy in recording is due to the inadequacy of the alien script.
But if these words have acquired a changed (tat-bhav) form, then
they must be pronounced in the new form. The symbols tipi and
mostly bindi for nasik sounds are frequently not given, since the
vogue permitted their omission. They must, however, be duly
pronounced in order to retain the meaning. Talking of such symbols
as siari and aunkar (grammatical), which have been used with the
 293

last letter in the Aad Granth to denote the "case" of a noun or an

adjective, the author explains that these should be ignored in
pronunciation, although they are vital In understanding the
meaning of a word or the verse in which they occur, according to
the Gurbani Grammar.
The following three chapters indicated the sequence of various
components, the bani of the Bhatts, and the Vaars, After the Mul
Mantar and the major banis of nitnem including 'Japji' 'So Oar',
'So Purkh', 'Kirtan Sohila', etc., which cover the first 13 pages,
the Guru Granth Sahib includes bani classified under 31 raags
covering pages 14 to 1353. From page 1354 to page 1430 raag-
rehat bani (bani not classified under any particular raag) is
recorded. It includes 'Sahaskriti Saloks' 'Bhatt Bani', 'Salok Varan
te Vadhik', etc. The Bhatt bani is a contribution by 11 Bhatts
who were contemporaries of Guru Arjun, and were highly devoted
to him. They have paid very glowing tributes to the Gurus and
have compared them with the greatest in all human history.
Vaars were a popular from of poetry, which was employed by
the Gurus to convey their message. There are 22 vaars in all, three
by Guru Nanak Dev, four by Guru Amar Das, eight by Guru
Ram Das, and six by Guru Arjun Dev. The vaars are invariably
given at the end of a raag. The bani within each raag follows a
strict pattern. The bani of the Gurus in each set, is given in the
beginning and is recorded in order of their succession. The Bani of
the Bhagats follows in a pre-determined order, starting with Kabir
and followed by Namdev, Ravidas, Trilochan and other bhagats.
Chapter fourteen describes the system of enumeration, which
prescribes a serial Number to each verse, stanza or shabad, and to
each group or category of shabads. The numbering system also
give progressive totals, and has been so designed that it eliminates
any chance of later interpolation or deletion of any part of the
bani. This has been very effective in preserving the Integrity of
the Aad Granth and has successfully frustrated attempts to tamper
with it from vested interests.
In the fifteenth chapter the author deals with the Mul Mantar.
He reports that while the full Mul Mantar has been used 33 times
in the Aad Granth, mostly at the beginning of a raag, the following
abbreviated forms have also been used with frequencies shown
against each:
 294

i. Ik onkar satinam karta purkh gur parsad : 8 times

ii. Ik onkar satinam gur parsad : 2 times
iii. Ik onkar satgur parsad : 523 times
iv. Ik onkar: 1 time
Total 567 times
The author also reports that in the Aad Granth (Kartarpuri
Bir) the recording of Mul Mantar precedes the heading of a bani.
Chapter sixteen gives some additional useful information about
the Aad Granth. For example, the writing of the whole verse is
in continuous form without separating the words. This is because
of the vogue current in Hindi and Sanskrit during those times.
The author, however, pleads for and justifies the padchhed or
separation of words done in recent Editions of the Sri Granth
Sahib, including those published by the SGPC, since the Gurbani
is meant for the masses. Without it this Treasure would remain a
monopoly of the scholarly elite. The author further points out
the the Gurus have avoided exclusivism, and have freely used
words from other languages which impart richness to their
compositions, and add to their meaning and content. Metre
requirements of poetry have been a major consideration, but
nowhere has the meaning been subordinated to this requirement.
Wherever necessary, metre has been sacrificed to retain the sense
or the meaning.
In the seventeenth chapter the author briefly recalls some
historic birs or recensions of the Aad Granth. Since during the
Gurus' times printing was unkown, the birs were written by
professional scribes and this was considered an honourable
profession. The Sikh Reference Library at Amritsar had as many
as 1500 hand-written birs, quite a few of them written before
1663. The author is convinced that the original Aad Granth
scribed by Bhai Gurdas under the direction and supervision of
Guru Arjun himself, is at Kartarpur in the custody of the Sodhi
descendants of Prithi Chand. This is a view supported by Bhai
Vir Singh, Sarup Das Bhalla, Kesar Singh Chhiber, Santokh Singh,
Gian Singh, Macauliffe, Kahan Singh, Jodh Singh, Teja Singh,
Sahib Singh, Taran Singh, Daljeet Singh and Rattan Singh Jaggi.
Besides this, the following other birs find mention in this chapter.
 295

Bir of Bhai Hardas : Hardas was official scribe of Guru Gobind

Singh. This bir records the bani of Guru Tegh Bahadur at proper
places, besides dates of demise of the first nine Gurus.
It is clear that the bani of Guru Tegh Bahadur had been
included by Guru Gobind Singh soon after he ascended the Gaddi.
The bir also contains Raag Mala and a few extra compositions. .
Sammat 1739 Damdami Saroop Bir (Sr-77) : This also contains bani
of the Ninth Master at appropriate places, but no extra compositions.
Sammat 1742 Bir : Shows Mul Mantar at the proper place.
Samat 1748 Bir : Contains bani of Guru Tegh Bahadur at proper
place and no extra bani.
Pindi Lala (Gujrat) Bir : Scribed in 1732. Contains no extra
bani. Bir Bhai Pakhar Mal Dhillon : It was procured from Bhai
Gurbaksh Singh in 1954. It was sponsored by one of his ancestors,
Khushal Singh, Head Granthi of Gurdwara Sri Tarn Taran Sahib,
generations earlier in 1745 AD. It contains no extra bani. The
position of the Mangal is as in the Kartarpuri Bir.
Samat 1811 Bir : Scribed after Guru Gobind Singh ji.
Bure Sandhu Wali Bir : Scribed by Bura Sandhu during Guru
Arjun's time under the sponsorship of Milkhi Ram Peshawar.
Chapter eighteen describes the birs in Harmandir Sahib. The
Parkash Bir is believed to have been scribed during Jassa Singh
Ahluwalia's time. The Sunehri Jild Bir (The Bir with Golden
Cover) was carefully preserved in the Akal Takht for parkash
during Jalau only, 5-6 times during a year. A bir supposed to have
been sent by Baba Deep Singh, was available in the toshakhana of
Darbar Sahib. It was later transferred to Sahid Bunga Baba Deep
Singh under the charge of Bhai Manna Singh. He resigned and
Tara Singh took over. Later when Bhai Manna Singh visited the
Bunga, he discovered that the bir had been replaced and nobody
knew where the original bir had gone. The present bir with the
gold binding is a replacement.
Bhai Banno Bir : The author does not accept the version that
the Aad Granth was sent to Lahore for binding and that during
the journey another bir was prepared by Bhai Banno.
In chapter nineteen the author discusses the stories built around
the Damdami Bir. He does not believe that the so-called Damdami
Bir was reproduced by Guru Gobind Singh as a result of taunts
 296

by Dhirmal. The fact is that birs with Guru Tegh Bahadur's bani
incorporated, had already been produced at Anandpur Sahib at a
place, also called Damdama Sahib, specially set up for this purpose.
Some of the birs mentioned in the earlier chapter bear testimony
to this fact. Later, however, some birs were probably scribed at
Sabo ki Talwandi also. The Damdami Bir is defined as Kartarpuri
Bir with bani of Guru TaAegh Bahadur added to it. This had
been done long before the GaAuru reached Talwandi Sabo.
Chapter twenty deals with the printing of birs. A resolution
passed by the SGPC in 1964 prescribes three conditions :
a) Damdami Sarup should form the basis for printing.
b) the position of Mangal relative to the heading should be
identical to that in the Kartarpuri Bir.
c) In case of confusion lead should be taken from the Damdami
Bir.
In practice, however, the author feels that condition (b) is
difficult to implement, since it could be done only through tracing
or photostat. In chapter twentyone the author makes a fervent
appeal to observe the decision of SGPC on the position of the
Mul Mantar as well as the headings of bani, which should follow
the pattern approved by Guru Arjun Dev ji, who compiled the
Aad Granth. In Chapter twenty two, with convincing historical
evidence
the author rules out any possibility of a meeting between Guru
Nanak and Kabir.
In Chapter twenty three the author raises the issue of correct
pronunciation in reciting the bani. He also summarises some of
his earlier points as follows:
i. The bani of the Ninth Master was added soon after his
martyrdom, by Guru Gobind Singh, at Damdama Sahib of
Anandpur Sahib.Several extant birs scribed before 1762 AD, are
the evidence.
ii. While there is no doubt that the Guru had the powers of
reproducing the entire Guru Granth Sahib, yet it was not necessary
to exercise these miraculous powers, since several
copies of the bir were already available.
iii. There were centres for making copies of the Aad Granth.
It hardly matters where the 'present Damdami form was finalized.
No basic doctrine is involved. Sikhism is word-based, and not
legend -based.
 297

vi.The Sikhs have been busy creating history during the last
500 years. They have, however, not pal a equate attention to
resenting to the world an accurate record of it.
About a dozen Appendixes given at the end greatly add to the
value of the book, since they support and provide extremely useful
and authentic information on the points discussed in the text of
the book. These are :
- The views of Giani Gurdial Singh, Jathedar, Sri Akal Takht.
- "The place of writing the Damdami Bir" by Giani Garja
Singh. Additional Evidence' by Piara Singh Padam.
- 'The Real Damdami Bir and its Manuscripts' by Shamsher
Singh Ashok.
- 'On Sequence of Mangal and pachhed by Giani Harbhajan
Singh.
- 'On the Damdami Bir' by Jaswinder Singh.An article by
Randhir Singh on the 'Itenerary of Guru Gobind Singh from
Anandpur Sahib to Abchal Nagar.
- 'On the Current Tradition regarding Incorporation of Guru
Tegh Bahadur's Bani in the Guru Granth Sahib' by Giani
Fauja Singh, Ja thedar Sri Kesgarh Sahib.
- Statement of Giani Bhagat Singh, Ex Manager, Takht Sri
Kesgarh Sahib.
- Sri Oamdami Bir Bare' by Giani Jagtar Singh Jachak.
 298

27
‘Blasphemy Prohibited Not Research’
By
Prof. GURDARSHAN SINGH DHILLON

In view of the decision of Gurmat Scholars on the 28th

January 1993 every Sikh refrained from making any comments
on the many charges of blasphemy against Pashaura Singh, which
have been placed before the Jathedar Akal Takht. But it is
extremely unfortunate that this silence is being used by the accused
group to denigrade the highest Sikh institution of Akal Takhat
and to mis-state facts. For example, it is well known to this group
that (I) Heads of the Departments of Guru Granth Sahib and
Sikh Studies, at the Patiala and the Panjab Universities, had both
written articles, calling Pashaura Singh’s work to be unacademic
and blasphemous; and (2) both of them were not only present in
the meeting of the 28th January 1993, but also supported the
resolutions passed on the concerned issues.
Evidently, what has disturbed this group is the decision of
the 28th January, that since the facts and circumstances of the
cases, a Committee of experts should be appointed to go into the
entire affair and unearth the other participants of the accused.
Hence, their attempts to camouflage the issues, so that the truth
remains covered. For reasons stated already, at present facts and
realities are not being publicised, but will be exposed at the
appropriate time.
As clarified by the acting Jathedar Sri Akal Takhat, what is
sought to be stopped is not any Research or interpretation
regarding Guru Granth Sahib or the Bani, but blasphemous
attacks on its authenticity and integrity, because the same stand
authenticated by the Guru himself. Hence, it would be illogical
and ridiculous for anyone to claim that he has a better sense than
of the Guru. No one says that there will still not be persons who
will make such tall claims or make blasphemous attacks on the
Guru. The tradition to deal with such arrogance has been set by
Guru Har Rai Sahib himself by punishing his own son. Should
that tradition be set aside as is being pleaded by some so-called
academicians and ‘Liberals’? What the Guru and the meeting of
the 28th January 1993 stopped, is blasphemy and not any research.
 299

In the west, too blasphemy is punishable both by the Church

and the Law. Nowhere has blasphemy been ever adjudged by
academician or at the public platform. Even at Oxford University,
an academician is employed on the assumption that he or she
would not question or attack the Christian Gospel. Guru Granth
Departments have been established on the basis that an authentic
Guru Granth was given to us by the Guru himself. If that basis is
to be questioned, the very rationale for having the departments
of Guru Nanak Chairs becomes irrelevant. Of course, there are,
and will be persons who will question the integrity of the Gurus
and the Guru Granth Sahib, but the fact alone will determine on
which side of the line they stand.
The entire Criminal Law is based on two assumptions, namely,
that man has a free will, and is responsible for his voluntary acts,
and that there is an existing standard of public morality. Both of
these assumptions are questionable. For, there are persons,
religious and otherwise, who assert that man is a determined being
incapable of free activity or that public morality is too much of a
changing and vague concept to be denned rigorously and yet no
one has ever argued in a court of Law that the accused should be
set free and declared faultless, because he or she is as determined
as a river flood or a volcano, or that a certain offence is no longer
considered objectionable by modem standards of public morality.
300
301
 302

APPENDIX-C

December 4, 1992,
Dear Hew, Joseph & Pashaura;
I am enclosing few more reviews written by academics of
all three Universities from Punjab and seems that all the
accusations are based on facts. I attended Sikh conference at San
Francisco last week where Western friends of Sikhism and Sikhs
likewise were unable to understand the unacademic behaviour of
critical scholarship by use of unauthentic GNDU Manuscript
1245 and use of ghost articles under name of Dr. Loehlin written
in 1987 and 1990 when he was invalid or dead respectively. They
advised me to approach you directly.
As you know many forces are working in present political
environment who can use all means to diffuse Sikh Identity. Can
you provide me with the following information :
1. When and how you came across GNDU Manuscript
1245 and where it was before 1987?
2. Who could publish article under authorship of Dr.
Loehlin in 1987 & 1990 suggesting “Western friends of Sikhism
and the Sikhs likewise have noted this lack of critical interest on
part of the Sikhs. Fortunately, many of their scholars and research
experts are doing research on textual and historical problem”
I am also hereby enclosing new book by G.S. Dhillon
“India commits Suicide” which explains the Sikh perspective of
Punjab problem being a political and economic problem rather
than fundamentalist.

Hope to hear from you soon.

Sincerely yours,
Jasbir Singh Mann
 303

APPENDIX-D
Will Dr. O’Connell Respond to Real Issue
It is unfortunate that in his open letter, O’Connell has forgotten
the maxim that those who live in glass houses, should not throw
stones on others. No one objects to academic research, genuine
or even faulty. Only libel and blasphemy are criticized. Detailed
and specific objections have been raised by writers against Pashaura
Singh’s work. But inexplicably Dr. O’Connell, who should have
known everything, has avoided defining the issues. Instead, he
writes only in vague and general terms. The January issue.
Abstracts of Sikh Studies, of the Centre of Sikh Studies, Santa
Ana (CA) gives the entire background and the real issues. Let
O’Connell reply to them instead of abusing the critics. We shall
give only an example of shady work of Pashaura Singh. He
concludes that MS 1245, on which his entire thesis is based, is the
first draft of the AAD Granth by Guru Arjun, even though the
date of demise of the Guru is written on pg. 1255 of the MS in
the same hand and shade of ink as the rest of the text before and
after it. If elsewhere a schoolboy were to answer that a book was
authored by a person whose date of death was mentioned in the
text, his sanity would be questioned and he would be asked to
reappear his test. But such is modem scholarship of which Dr.
O’Connell is so proud that it has not only supervised, supported
and approved of his thesis, but the examiners have awarded a
PhD degree. Further, on the basis of the ridiculous dating,
Pashaura Singh has indulged in many blasphemous statements,
including that Guru Arjun made theological changes in hymns
of Guru Nanak and passed his own words as those of Guru Nanak.
With all due respect Dr. O’Connel is blaming elderly India
educated men responsible for criticizing unethical academic work
of Pashaura Singh, while he is completely aware of the fact that a
research supervised by him has evoked widespread criticism from
several universities in India as well as North America. The
following Authors have reviewed his thesis and we request Dr.
O’Connell to publish all these articles in his publications of the
center for the study of religion, in Toronto. Because by doing so,
such a center can be regarded as an unbiased, literary endeavour,
rather than an apparent hot bed of calumny against the Sikhs, by
a medium of research :
 304

1] Dr. Surinder Singh Kohli (former Prof. and Head Dept. of

Punjabi, Punjab University, Chandigarh)
2] Dr. Balkar Singh (Prof and Head Dept. of Guru Granth Sahib
Studies, Punjabi University Patiala, India).
3] Dr. Darshan Singh (Prof. and Chairman Dept. of Guru Nanak
Sikh Studies, Punjab Univ. Chandigarh, India).
4] Dr. Gurnam Kaur (Reader Dept. of Guru Granth Sahib Studies,
Punjabi Univ. Patiala India)
5] Dr. Devinder Singh Cbahal (Prof. Univ. du Quebec Laval.
Quebec, Canada)
6] Dr. Sukhmander Singh (Prof. Cal State, Santa Clara, CA)
7] Dr. Ranbir Singh Sandbu (Prof. and Head Civil Engg. Dept.,
Ohio State Univ Columbus, Ohio)
8] Dr. Kharak Singh (Phd Ohio State Univ., Columbus, Ohio,
Editor Abstracts of Sikh Studies)
9] Dr. Gurbaksh Singh Gill (Phd Ohio State Univ., Columbus,
Ohio, Former Dean Agriculture Univ. Ludhiana, India)
10] Sardar Gurtej Singh (National Prof. of Sikhism, India)
11] Sardar Daljeet Singh (Retired IAS, author of several books on
Sikhism, India)
12] Dr. Gurmail Singh Sidhu (Phd Simon Fraiser Univ.,
Vancouver, Canada; presently Prof. at Cal State Fresno)
13] Sardar Kuldeep Singh (President Sikh Youth Federation,
Taledo, Ohio)
14] Sardar Iqbal Singh Sara (Barister and Solicitor, Vancouver,
Canada; President all Canada Sikh Federation)
15] Dr. Jasbir Sing Mann (Diplomat American Board of
Orthopaedic Surgery, and Fellow International College of
Surgeons, Anaheim, CA)
16] Dr. Harjinder Singh Dalgeer (Director Guru Nanak Institute
of Sikh Studies, Norway)
17] Sardar Manohar Singh Marco (Director Marco Research
Foundation, New Delhi; Authority on old manuscripts of Sikh
Religion)
18] Dr Hakam Singh (PhD UCLA, President Sikh Welfare
Foundation, LA)
19] Dr. I.J. Singh (Prof New York University)
20] Dr. Piara Singh (PhD Beverly Hills University, LA)
21] Sardar Manjit Singh Sidhu (Former Prof. Punjab University,
Chandigarh)
 305

It is beyond the scope of this letter to give detailed bio-data of

the above authors, but all above authors are well known in the
field of Sikh Studies and have published hundreds of books, and
contributed thousands of articles, and supervised many Ph.d thesis
in Sikh Studies. I humbly request Dr. O’Connell to respond to
the Academic issues raised in their articles.
The Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee, Amritsar
the apex body looking after Sikh Shrines and religious affairs,
took serious notice of the allegations, and in order to examine
the matters closely, appointed a committee consisting of eight
members including scholars : Prof. Jagjit Singh, Principal
Gurmukh Singh (Head Sikh Reference Library and former
Principal Gurmat College Patiala), Dr. Gurdarshan Singh Dhillon
(Punjab Univ., Chandigarh), Dr. Jagjit Singh (Principal Gurmat
College, Patiala, Director Guru Nanak Foundation, New Delhi),
Sardar Shamsher Singh (Principal Sikh Missionary College),
Principal Harbhajan Singh (Former Principal Sikh Missionary
College, Amritsar), and Sardar Waryam Singh (Editor, Gurmat
Prakash), Sardar Gurtej Singh (National Prof. of Sikhism). The
committee unanimously indicted Pashaura Singh of gross
blasphemy, holding that he had attacked the Gurus for doing the
selection of bani, and making changes in the Mul-Mantar.
The findings of the committee were unanimously endorsed
on the 28th of January, 1993 in a largely attended gathering of
practically all the representative organisations of the Panth,
including inter alia, Delhi Gurudwara Managing Committee,
Chief Khalsa Diwan, Damdami Taksal (both branches), Tarna
Dal (Harian Belanwale), Guru Nanak Chair Punjabi University
Patiala, Guru Gobind Singh Foundation, Guru Nanak
Foundation Kendri Singh Sabha, Institute of Sikh Studies
Chandigarh, U.P. Sikh Partinidh Board, Guru Granth Sahib
Studies dept. Punjabi University Patiala, Giani Amolk Singh, U.K.
Singh Sabha, Akhand Kirtani Jatha, Arjun Singh Ghuman
(representing the Canadian Sikhs), Mahant Tirath Singh of Sewa
Panthi Organisation, etc., besides senior scholars like Principal
Satbir Singh. The meeting was presided over by Sardar
Gurcharan Singh Tohra, President of the Shiromani Gurdwara
Prabandhak Committee, himself and lasted over four hours.
 306

Member after member who had studied the research supervised

by Dr. McLeod expressed their surprise that such blatantly
blasphemous observations could be made by a Sikh. Over seventy
scholars were present. They unanimously endorsed the
recommendations of the committee for referring Dr. Pashaura
Singh’s case to the Akal Takhat Sahib for decision according to
Gurmat tradition, set up by the Seventh Master. Dr. O’Connell
must know that SGPC did not make any decision hastily or under
any pressure group. Somebody at Toronto Univ. must investigate
how this Ph.d has been awarded as the physical evidence used in
this research is unauthentic and conclusions drawn directly attack
the Sikh Gurus, and Guru Granth Sahib, which is revered daily
in all Sikh homes and Sikh Gurdwaras. Thus, all this is a calculated
blasphemy.
The fundamental fact is that so as to avoid any confusion
about authenticity. Guru Arjun himself compiled an
authenticated Sikh Scripture which is the only scripture in the
world compiled by the prophet. Accordingly, the system of textual,
form or redaction analysis is inapplicable to it. It is to avoid such
exercises that the Guru compiled the Scripture himself. Hence,
methodologies only relevant to man-made scripture, as is the case
in all other Higher Religions, are inapplicable and irrelevant in
the case of Sikh scripture. In fact, the very concept is a
contradiction in terms.
For our part we are ready to prove before any academic forum
that Pashaura Singh has called a MS having date of demise of Guru
Arjun to be a draft by the same Guru and the other statements
mentioned above. May we ask the western academic world if it is
wrong to criticize such poor and ethically unsound work?
May 10, 1993
Enclosed : Editorial Article, Abstracts of Sikh Studies
January, 1993
Sincerely Yours,

Dr. Jasbir Singh Mann

(Editor, Advanced Studies in Sikhism,
Fundamental Issues in Sikh Studies,
and Recent Researches in Sikhism)
 307

APPENDIX-E
Dalhousie University

Dr. J.Robert S. Prichard 3 August 1993

President School of Education
University of Toronto Halifax, Nova Scotia
Toronto, Ontario Canada B3H 315
M5S IAI (902)494-3724
(416) 978-2001 Fax (902) 494-2847

Dear Dr. Prichad:

I had the honour of attending a very well organized Sikh
Education Conference in Toronto, (sponsored by Sikh Social and
Education Society Box 87600 Thornhill Square - Postal Outlet
Thronhill, Ontario, L3T 7R3), in July 93. Morning Session of
July 25 was exclusively devoted to “Sikh Studies Research”
conducted in various North American Universities with special
reference to Dr. Pashaura Singh’s, University of Toronto (1991)
Thesis. The presenters and persons in attendance agreed that
historians using Dr. McLeod’s model of research are intentionally
attempting to bring “correctness” to Sikh History and traditions
without involving the Sikh community. This “objective” research
done in the “secular” University of Toronto is causing turmoil
and pain to the Sikh community throughout the world (see
attached, especially the letter from S.G.P.C. Amritsar.)
In Canada, research on Sikhism has been mainly carried out
at St. Michael’s College University of Toronto, and University of
British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C. Sikhism with the history of
only 500 years has been selected for the application of objective
research using Social Science methods. This, so called
“sophisticated” research has started generating misinformation
about Sikh Gurus and their scriptures. Here are some examples
from Dr. McLeod’s and Dr. Pashaura Singh’s paradigms.
1. Guru Nanak was the founder of sikh religion in the
organizational sense and not in the religious sense.
2. Nath tradition was worked by Kabir, Guru Nanak provided
the extension.
3. Guru Nanak in a way is Sant Nanak.
4. Guru Nanak never went abroad.
5. Regression from Sikhism to Hindu religion took place at
the time of Guru Amardas.
 308

6. Jat influence got guruship to Guru Arjan Dev.

7. Guru Arjun corrected the Bani written by Guru Nanak.
8. Compilation of Aad Granth was a process. It is not Dhur
Ki Bani (revealed).
9. Bhagat Bani was included in Guru Granth Sahib to please
the minorities. Shabads of Dhanna were included to please the
Jats. There is no truth in using the term Damdama Sahib wali
Bir. It was compiled in Anandpur Sahib in 1680 A.D.
10. Singh Sabha imposed a single correct interpretation to
Guru Granth Saheb.
11. A rare undated manuscript No. G.N.D.U # 1245 should
be carefully studied. This is the first draft of Guru Granth Sahib
on which Guru Arjan Dev worked and produced Kartarpur Wali
Bir.
12. Exclusion of Mira Bai’s Shabad from Guru Granth Sahib
was done in an attempt to develop a Sikh Identity. Also the Shabad
was extremely erotic.
13. Khalsa was not given 5 Ks by Guru Gobind Singh on
Baisakhi day, 1699.
14. Hair and Turban and Sword entered Sikhism through the
Jat influence. “Jat did not enter Sikhism empty handed”.
15. Bachittar Natak was not written by Guru Gobind Singh.
16. Guru Granth Sahib became the Sikh Guru because Guru
Gobind Singh had no surviving children.
17. Guru Arjan was murdered and not martyred in 1604. One
could go on till one starts shaking one’s head in disbelief. The
conscious and unconscious motivations of the researchers to cause
hurt and pain to the Sikh Community becomes transparent.
Pashaura’s Singh Thesis (University of Toronto, 1991) was the
last straw that broke the “Camels” back.
It appears Pashaura Singh was provided a ready made
“McLeod” paradigm to fit his research if he wanted to get his Ph.
D. Pashaura’s “role dance” got him a doctorate as well as a job.
In their mystification the supervisors who incidentally were
non-Sikhs, and their student forgot the subjective and emotional
nature of the topic but hastened to bring historic correctness by
trampling on the Sikh traditions and their subjective Faith.
This type of disrespectful research has to stop. One way, the
 309

minorities and females have accomplished this in Canadian setting

is, by writing to the Presidents of those universities where such
research in conducted and demanding that an ethics committee
be set up that would review all research pertaining to the
community before it is allowed to progress.

On behalf of the Sikh Community of Canada, I am writing

to request you to set up an ethics committee to evaluate and
approve any research conducted on Sikhs at the University of
Toronto. I can assure you, it will partially remediate the harm
and hurt this research is causing to 16 million Sikhs living in
India and abroad. I am sending five hundred copies of this letter
to various Sikh organisations in India and abroad. I hope they
will be writing to you individually. Kindly feel free to contact me
if you need any further information.
With kind regards

S.S. Sodhi, Ph.D.

Professor of Sp. Education
School of Education
Dalhousie University
Halifax, N.S., Canada, B3H3J5
(902) 443-3269, 494-3724
c.c. Chairperson, Board of Governors, U. of Toronto
c.c. 500 Sikh organizations in India, Canada and Abroad
c.c. Ontario and Govt of Canada Human Rights Commission
c.c. Minister of Higher Education Govt of Ontario, Toronto.

Please Note :If you agree with the theme and contents of this letter
and want that Dr. J.R. Prichard should set up an ethics
committee to evaluate and approve research done on sikhs,
kindly sign it and mail it to him. Thanks.
 310

APPENDIX – F

UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO
OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT & PROVEST

27 King’s College Circle, TEL : (416) 978-6783

Simcoe Hall, Room 225 FAX : (416) 978-3939
Toronto, Ontario M5S IAI, CANADA
September 10, 1993
Dr. S. Sodhi
School of Education
Dalhousie University
Halifax, NS
B3H 3J5
Dear Dr. Sodhi :
The President has referred your letter of August 3, 1993 to
my attention and I apologize for the delay in responding to you.
As you may be aware, the University has had a number of
meetings with representatives of the Ontario Council of Sikhs.
At these meetings the issues of Dr. Singh and Professor McLeod’s
work have been discussed. The University understands and regrets
the harm and hurt the members of the Sikh community may
experience concerning the work of these two individuals. As you
may be aware, the University and the Ontario Council of Sikhs
have been attempting to increase the opportunities to study and
participate in the university community. It is thus especially
unfortunate that we have not been able to pursue this goal with
the success we had hoped.
In reference to the more specific points that you have raised
in your letter, I believe it is important to bear in mind that neither
Dr. Singh nor Professor McLeod are currently members of the
University of Toronto. Indeed, Dr. Singh has not been associated
with the University of Toronto beyond his receiving of the
doctorate and Dr. McCleod, while having taught for us, is not a
member of the permanent faculty of the University of Toronto
and is not scheduled to teach in our programs in the coming year.
You have raised the suggestion that the University should
establish an ethics committee that would review all research
pertaining to the Sikh community. The University has considered
a variant of this proposal earlier in our discussions with the
 311

Ontario Council of Sikhs. As I am sure you are aware, the

University’s tradition has been to foster in the academic
community an environment where the right of free inquiry and
expression is safeguarded with the responsibility of the individuals
who enjoy this freedom to be held accountable to their peers
though scholarly publication and debate. In particular, in areas
where there are allegations such as those against Pashaura Singh,
the University respects the authority of the various religious bodies
to rule on such matters and does not itself believe that it has or
should have jurisdiction with regard to the alleged blasphemies
in the thesis. It is for this reason that the University has not
established a committee that would review such research proposal.
The University of Toronto continues to maintain an
interest in the Sikh community and in furthering scholarship in
Sikh Studies. We will be looking to establishing in the next year a
number of seminars that will allow for the participation of a
number of scholars in Sikh Studies so that our students will be
exposed to a number of view points. We hope that this will
continue interest in Sikh Studies at the University and that we
will work in the future to overcome some of the difficulties that
we have currently.

Thank you for taking time to write to the President.

Yours sincerely,
Adel Sedra
Vice-President and Provost
xc :
D. Cook, Vice-Provost Staff Functions
M. Chander, Dean, Faculty of Arts and Science
J.Mc Auliffe, Centre for the Study of Religion
A.M. Castrilli, Governing Council
MS Bal, Secretary, Ontario Council of Sikhs
P.O Brien, Development
G. Singh, Governing Council
J. Cohen, Dean, School of Graduate Studies
 312

APPENDIX – G

University of Toronto
Office of the Vice-President and
Provost
27 King’s College Circle, Tel : (416) 978-6159
Simcoe Hall, Room 222 FAX : (416) 978-3939
Toronto, Ontario M5S IAI, CANADA e-mail :
[email protected]
September 17, 1993

Mr. Manohar Singh Bal

Secretary
Ontario Council of Sikhs
238 Davenport Road, Suite 10
Toronto, ON, M5R IJ6

Dear Mr. Bal :

I thought I would send you a short note just bringing you up
to date on some of the things that have transpired since I returned
from my leave.
As I know you are aware, the concerns that you and your
colleagues expressed to Provost Foley are shared by other members
of your community, some of whom have taken time to write to
the University. I enclose for your information a copy of the most
recent correspondence with Dr. Sodhi. As you have seen from
the earlier correspondence, the University basically believes that
the resolution of the charges against Pashaura Singh are
appropriately being explored outside the University and through
scholarly and other forms of debate. Pashaura Singh’s doctorate
was awarded following the University’s rules which we have a
legal obligation to honour.
There has obviously been considerable discussion of Dr. McLeod’s
work in your community and in scholarly forums. Again, I think
these are appropriate forums for raising issues that have troubled your
community and others. As you may also know, the University will
not be employing Dr. McLeod to teach in our program.
I appreciate very much that the recent past has made it very
difficult for the Sikh community to support the University at a
level we all hope for. I believe that the point that you and your
 313

colleagues raised concerning the availability of other Sikh scholars

to participate in the University’s programs, was an important one
and that the University should strive to widen the involvement
of individuals to be more reflective of the various prospectives in
the scholarly community I regret that the University, for a number
of reasons including our fiscal situation, is not able to mount the
courses that we have been able to offer, in part with your assistance,
over the last number of years. I am pleased to indicate that the
University will be supporting a series of seminars in the area of
Sikh Studies which we hope will involve a number of Sikh
scholars. I would hope that this measure would provide a bridge
to the future, whether this would be through a more formal
agreement with the Sikh community or through the active
participation of members of your community in the University.
I would be pleased to discuss this with you should you so desire.

Best wishes,
David Cook
Vice Provost

rk :
xc : A. Sedra, Vice-president and Provost
M. Chandler, Dean, Faculty of Arts and Science
J. McAuliffe, Centre for the Study of Religion
A.M. Castrilli, Governing Council
P.O’Brien, Development
G. Singh, Governing Council
J. Cohen, Dean, School of Graduate Studies
 314

APPENDIX H
THE FUTURE OF SIKH STUDIES IN NORTH
AMERICA
In recent months, an attempt has been made to create an
impression that the Sikhs are against academic freedom and
religious studies being conducted in foreign universities. The issues
of fundamentalism, religious beliefs and orthodoxy are wrongly
portrayed as the reason for this supposed reluctance to use the so-
called modern methodology. Recently, Dr McLeod in his article,
“Where it all started” published in the Sikh Review, Journal
(January, 1994), is sidetracking the charges against him once again,
by making erroneous personal generalizations; such as, being an
atheist, the issue of critical scholarship verses faith and believers,
issue of and other misunderstanding by the readers, limitations
of Punjabi and Gurmat, and not being a member of the Panth.
He is intentionally clouding the real issue, that has been raised
by Sikh scholars after reviewing research work in Sikh studies by
him and his followers. The real issues are unethical academics,
misstatements, use of fake writings and libel. When closely examined,
it is evident that the problem is very different and has arisen from
the work of McLeod and his student Pashaura Singh. It is therefore
necessary to impart facts so that it can be understood as to why
“generalities” are being indulged in, and realities obviated.
Encyclopaedia Britannica clearly defines that “Academic
Freedom is never unlimited. The general law of the society
including those concerning... and libel apply also to academic
disclosure and publications.” In the United States, for example,
scientific conclusions on questions of racial difference or
similarities have met with hostility in some communities. At such
times, individual citizens, pressure groups, or even community
at large may wish to interfere with teaching or research”. Ethical
Guidelines of Social Science Humanities Research Council of
Canada clearly protects the rights of the individual; “the right of
cultural groups to accurate and respectful description of their
heritage and customs and to the discreet use of information on
their lives and aspirations.” “Greater consideration must be given
to the risks of physical, psychological, humane, propriety, and
cultural values than to the potential contribution of the research
to knowledge.” “Research on cultures, countries and ethnic groups
different from one’s own requires a different ethic.” Taking the
 315

above rights of the individual and groups, the facts of unethical

and libel issues of Sikh studies are as follows.
In 1975 McLeod, a long time resident Missionary in Punjab,
wrote that the Sikh Scripture, the Adi Granth, prepared by the
Fifth Guru, suffered from motivated and “inept deletions”,
suggesting that whereas the Gurus had recorded a hymn involving
the “mundane” ceremony of his son, the Sikhs had later deleted
the hymn from the Guru Granth, because in the 18th century
the practice of unshorn hair had been started by them. This
statement was considered by competent lawyers to be blasphemous
or libellous, because (a) it was false, (b) McLeod knew it to be
such, (c) it was defamatory of the Guru and the Sikh Scripture
before whom millions of Sikhs pray everyday and (d) it was
prematurely motivated, since McLeod had made no sincere
attempt either to study the original Adi Granth, or the Banno
Bir, which he said was the original Bir or the related literature.
Four organizations including one headed by a former Judge of
the Punjab High Court and another headed by a former Minister
and senior advocate of the High Court, wrote to Toronto
University, complaining against the misconduct of McLeod. For,
he was then occupying a visiting professorship funded by the
Sikhs with the object of projecting Sikhism in its true light. The
University took no action. But in response McLeod again made a
misstatement saying that after reading Jodh Singh’s book of 1968,
which he had quoted in 1975, he had “abandoned” the notion
about the deletion. However, this is not the end of the story.
In 1992, Pashaura Singh supervised and guided by Dr McLeod,
produced a thesis in which on the basis of a manuscript # 1245 of
the GND University, Amritsar, he wrote that Guru Arjun had
linguistically and theologically changed the hymns (bani) of Guru
Nanak, and had instead passed his own bani as that of Guru
Nanak. Previously, McLeod had accused the Sikhs of removing
the Guru’s hymns by deletion, now Pashaura Singh accused Guru
Arjun for making alterations in Guru Nanak’s theology and hymns.
The assertion of Pashaura Singh guided by McLeod is also considered
libellous and unethical by competent scholars, because (a) the
assertion is false, (b) Pashaura Singh knows it to be so, (c) it is
defamatory of the Guru, and Guru Granth (which is asserted to be
 316

unauthentic and without the original words and theology of Guru

Nanak).
Pashaura Singh called MS # 1245 the original draft of the Adi
Granth by Guru Arjan and thus based his false assertions on it.
The features of MS # 1245 are : (1) it was never heard of before
1987, when Pashaura Singh started his PhD work in Toronto and
the manuscript was purchased by the GNDU at Amritsar, (2) it
has no history beyond 1987, and Pashaura Singh has not traced
any, (3) it has no date, and no scribe’s name, (4) It has numerous
forged hymns, (5) in addition, it has several modified hymns in so
far as parts of one hymn are linked to another hymn from the
Guru Granth to form a new hymn, (6) the index of the hymns
quite often tallies with the index of the Guru Granth, but the
hymns recorded in the text are entirely different, (7) it has a forged
nishan or mark of the Sixth Guru on page four even though
admittedly the nishan is of the Ninth Guru and (8) in its contents
on page 1255 the death date of Guru Arjun is recorded in the
same hand and ink as scores of other pages before and after the
death date. Dr Balwant Singh Dhillon, from GNDU, Amritsar,
has done a thorough scrutiny of this manuscript and in his article
“Myth of an Early Draft” he states : “Ironically, the learned scholar
(Pashaura Singh) has miserably failed in this respect, because
instead of making an honest and objective exercise, vital internal
evidence has been overlooked, and misstatements and
misrepresentation of facts have been made to prove the
preconceived idea of an earlier draft, which is totally untenable
and unjustified. Observations made on the Adi Granth on the
basis of this manuscript will certainly boomerang and meet a fate
similar to the one of the fake fossil research of Professor V.J. Gupta,
which has landed the Punjab University, Chandigarh, in the thick
of an international controversy, badly ravaging its reputation and
standing in academic fraternity”. “And yet, Pashaura Singh,
approved or abetted by McLeod, calls it a draft of the Adi Granth
made by Guru Arjun before 1604 A.D. All the above features and
facts of MS # 1245 are well known to Pashaura Singh, since he
came to Amritsar in 1990 and examined it. Evidently, no one
with any sense of reason or sanity can call a manuscript bearing
the death of a person to have been authored by the same writer.
 317

Thus, all the ingredients of the offence of unethical academics

and libel are present in the writing of Pashaura Singh who
knowingly made false and defamatory statements.
An important fact is a close link and identity between the
unethical statements of McLeod made in 1975, 1978 and 1989,
and Pashaura Singh’s statement made in 1992. In both the cases,
firstly, the statements were made without requisite analytical,
rational or academic effort or approach, secondly, they were made
in clear contradiction of academically known and authentic facts,
and, thirdly, the common objective of the statements has been
wanton attacks on the authenticity of the Guru Granth calling it
not revelatory but rather a response to the socio-political pressures.
The objectionable features of Pashaura Singh’s thesis are so
apparent that it created a spontaneous reaction from scholars all
over the world, more so, in the Western world. Of the 30 and
more articles, the majority of them were written by scholars
trained in foreign universities and institutions. An advocate of
the Panjab and Haryana High Court has brought out a publication
compiling them in a book entitled, “Planned Attack on Guru
Granth Sahib” with the foreword written by Dr Bishan Singh
Samundri, former Vice-Chancellor of GNDU. The book gives
the background and history of the related events of libel. The second
book by Dr Trilochan Singh titled, “Hew McLeod and Ernest Trump
as scholars of Sikh religion and history”, containing foreword by Dr
Neol King has also exposed the real scholarship of the two authors.
Once the scholars of Sikh Studies have reviewed these two books,
they will come to know the truth of the story.
Another feature of Pashaura Singh’s thesis is that he has quoted
a fake article published under the name of Loehlin in 1987 and
again in 1990. Loehlin was an ex-missionary well known to
McLeod who also worked as such in Punjab. Loehlin was admitted
into Westminister Gardens Presbyterian Retirement Community
Centre, Duarte, California in 1983, and died there in mid-1987.
The quarters of Loehlin denied the publication of any article by
him. McLeod could not be unaware of the demise or invalidity of
his old missionary colleague. And yet, Pashaura Singh approved
by McLeod, has quoted this fake article as a justification for taking
up the subject of his PhD thesis.
Similarly, MS # 1245 also seems to be a planned introduction,
 318

and was purchased at Amritsar at the appropriate time. It bears

apart from the forged nishan and hymns, lines in English and
Punjabi by a local Professor.
It is the use of seemingly fraudulent or fake documents,
unethical activities under the garb of research and all with the
object of attacking the authenticity of the Guru Granth Sahib
that have aroused, on the one hand, the spontaneous reaction of
Sikh Scholars, and on the other hand, the move of the SGPC for
dealing with Pashaura Singh according to the Sikh code of conduct.
Let it be known that the SGPC made the move only after
obtaining written reports of two expert committees, which
included Heads of Departments of Religion of Punjab University,
Chandigarh, and the Punjabi University of Patiala, and the
Principals of two colleges of Sikh religion. They recommended
action, both at Akal Takhat and under the law. Can anyone with
a sense of reason, propriety, or ethics blame the scholars or the
SGPC for a move against Pashaura Singh, when competent persons
consider that he as guided by McLeod had committed unlawful and
libellous acts? The President of Toronto University was addressed
by scholars in North America regarding the unethical work of
Pashaura Singh, supervised by McLeod. The University has now
said that they are not employing either Pashaura Singh or McLeod.
This being the reality, it is unfortunate that facts are being
concealed, and instead general statements are being made and the
wrong cry of “academic freedom in danger” raised. No one objects
to authentic research conducted in foreign universities by foreign
scholars of any hue or kind. The serious issue, however, is of
unauthentic, motivated, unethical and libellous production. The
following senior scholars of Sikh Studies have refuted Dr McLeod’s
various formulations in the past, but their work has been
purposely suppressed :
Dr Hari Ram Gupta Former Professor and Head
Dept. of history; Punjab Univ.
Chandigarh.
Dr Ganda Singh Former Director, Dept. of
Punjab historical studies;
Punjabi Univ.
Dr Surinder Singh Kohli Former Professor and Head
 319

Dept of Punjabi; Punjab Univ.

Dr Hal-bans Singh Former Director Guru Gobind
Singh religious studies, Punjabi
Univ.
Prof. Jagjit Singh Well known scholar of Sikh
history and religion
Dr Avtar Singh Head Dept. of philosophy and
dean of academic affairs,
Punjabi Univ. Patiala.
Dr Harnam Singh Shan Former Professor and Head
Dept. of Guru Nanak Studies,
Punjab Univ.
Dr Trilochan Singh Well known scholar of Sikh
religion and history.
Dr O’Noel King Former Professor of religion,
UC Santa Cruz.
Dr James Lewis Former Professor of philosophy
and religion, Appalachian
State Univ., Boone, North
Carolina.
Dr Madanjit Kaur Professor and Head Dept. of
Guru Nanak Studies,
GNDU, Amritsar.
Daljeet Singh Well known scholar of Sikh
religion.
Dr Gurdarshan Singh Dhillon Reader, Dept. of history,
Punjab Univ. Chd.
Dr Pashaura Singh’s PhD thesis has been reviewed and questions
have been raised by the following senior scholars of Sikh studies
Dr Surinder Singh Kohli Former Professor and Head
Dept. of Punjab Univ.,
Chandigarh
Dr Darshan Singh Professor and Chairman, Dept.
of Guru Nanak and Sikh
Studies, Punjab Univ. Chd.
Dr Balkar Singh Professor and Head Guru
Granth Sahib Dept. Punjabi Univ.
Gurnam Kaur Reader, Dept. of Guru Granth
 320

Sahib, Punjabi Univ.

Dr Balwant Singh Dhillon Dept. of Guru Nanak Studies,
GNDU, Amritsar.
Sardar Gurtej Singh National Professor of Sikhism,
appointed by SGPC, Amritsar.

All the above authors are working presently or have worked in

the past in the field of Sikh studies, and are holding or held in the
past senior faculty positions in Indian and Western universities.
Is suppressing facts and the opposite point of view academic
freedom?
In fact, for years, Sikhs in the Toronto area have paid the University
for services of McLeod who has virtually abused his position and
privileges. Sikhism is the only religion, that doesn’t claim any
exclusiveness, rather it recommends, ideologically, inter-faith
dialogue and cooperation. This is laid down by their Gurus in
the Guru Granth Sahib. It was in this context that McLeod and
his friends were invited to conferences on Sikh studies in North
America and elsewhere. The issue is serious and specific, namely,
has Pashaura Singh, guided by McLeod, committed an offence
against the Law? Knowledgeable and competent scholars say that
he has violated both the law and the religious code. Is a person
working in University above the Law? Is a certificate of good character
enough to absolve a person of an offence, or to satisfy a person or
persons against whom the offence is committed by the accused?
Academically, scholars in universities either in India or abroad
study the same philosophy, sciences, and technologies, employing
same methods of criticism, the same modes of interpretation, and
the same principles of logic, ethics, jurisprudence and the Law. It
is therefore, time that we in the academic world at least come out
of the grooves of an old mentality and of making distinctions and
claims of superiority on the basis of a particular locale, or pulpit.
It is also equally clear that the universities, whether in the East or
in the West are mostly financed by the people and the state. In
early 1994, Conferences of Sikh Studies are being held at Toronto
and Michigan Universities, but the community whose issues are
being discussed is not allowed to participate. A written
communication by Lee I. Schlesinger (program officer, CSSEA,
 321

Univ. of Michigan) dated January 12, 1994 to one of the organizing

member of the Chair states that : “Only those scholars who have
been invited to present or to discuss papers and University of
Michigan Faculty and students are to attend the sessions, it did
not seem necessary to make the effort to publicize this conference
off-campus. “What kind of academic freedom is this? What is
there to hide? Is there any kind of hidden agenda?
Can anyone having respect for normal codes of Law and ethics
assert that a person having blatantly violated them should not be
dealt with under the prescribed codes, merely because he has a
certain colour or is product of a certain institution? It is impossible
not to believe that any honest academic scrutiny would not clearly
show that the articles and the manuscript # 1245, relied upon by
Pashaura Singh and McLeod are fake and could not have been
authored by Loehlin and Guru Arjun, respectively. Hence, the
evident offence against ethics and Law. In fact, it is very strongly
believed that had Toronto University heeded to the advice of the
four organizations that had specifically addressed the issues in
regard to McLeod’s conduct, the present unfortunate events of
Pashaura Singh’s affair would have been avoided.
Repeating again, Academic Freedom is never unlimited and the
general social law, including that of libel applies equally well to
it. Under academic freedom, individuals and groups have the right
to protest against research which can produce psychological pain,
suffering, and misinterpretations of doctrines. Many Sikh scholars
from different universities and various Sikh centres have published
several books and articles exposing unethical and libellous issues
in Sikh studies. The Sikh community at this time requests that
ethical committees for the review of the above issues in Sikh
studies, should be set up immediately by Toronto and Michigan
Universities, and impartial and independent opinions about the
above issues should be obtained and presented to the public. If
this is done, then the future of Sikh studies in North America
can very well be viewed optimistically and cooperation of all
concerned elicited. Only then, the academic freedom for the
scholars and the rights of the Sikh community will not be in
danger.
 322

Dr Jasbir Singh Mann Centre of Sikh Studies, Santa

Ana, CA.
Dr Sukhminder Singh Professor, Univ. of Santa Clara,
CA.
Dr Gurmail Singh Sidhu Professor, Cal State Fresno.
Dr Surjit Singh Professor, NY State Univ.
Buffalo.
Dr S.S. Sodhi Professor, Dalhousie Univ.,
Halifax Canada.
 323

OUR CONTRIBUTORS
EXPLAINING SIKH PERSPECTIVE ON
“TEXT AND MEANING OF AAD GRANTH”
DISSERTATION FROM TORONTO UNIVERSITY 1991
Dr. Balkar Singh Prof. and Head, Sri Guru Granth
Sahib Studies; Dean, Faculty of
Humanities & Religious Studies,
Punjabi University, Patiala; author
of several books on Sikhism.
Dr. Balwant Singh Dhillon Lecturer, Dept. of Guru Nanak
Studies at Guru Nanak Dev
University, Amritsar.
S. Daljeet Singh Author of Sikhism-A Comparative
Study of its Theology, The Sikh
Ideology and Authenticity of
Kartarpuri Bir; Delivered Guru
Nanak Dev Memorial Lectures, and
Guru Teg Bahadur Commemorative
Lectures at Punjabi University,
Patiala; contributor of several papers
on Sikhism.
Dr. Darshan Singh Prof. and Chairman, Dept. of Guru
Nanak Studies, Punjab University,
Chandigarh; author of several books
on Sikhism.
Dr. Devinder Singh Chahal Prof. Microbiology, Institute
Armand-Frappier University of
Quebac, Laval, Quebec, Canada;
author of many articles on Sikh
religion.
Dr. Gurnam Kaur Reader, Dept. of Guru Granth Sahib
Studies, Punjabi University, Patiala;
author of Reason and Revelation in
Guru Granth Sahib, and several
papers on Sikh religion.
S. Gurtej Singh National Prof. of Sikhism, India;
author of several papers on Sikh
religion and history. Editor,
Sikhism, An oecumenical Religion.
Dr. Gurbaksh Singh Ph.D., Ohio State University;
Professor of Religious Studies, Akal
University; author of numerous
books on the Sikh faith; organizer
of Sikh youth camps in the U.S.A.
Dr. Gurmail Singh Sidhu Ph.D., University British Columbia,
Vancouver; currently Prof. Cal-State
 324

University Fresno; author of 2

scientific books and half dozen
Punjabi literary books; formerly,
Editor, Sahit, Samachar, Ludhiana.
Dr. Gurdarshan Singh Dhillon Prof. Panjab University,
Chandigarh, Authors of many
papers on Sikhism and a book on
Punjab Problem.
Dr. Hakam Singh Ph.D., University of Los Angeles,
CA; author of several articles on
topics of science and Sikh Faith;
President, Sikh Welfare Foundation,
CA
Dr. Harjinder. Singh Dilgeer Director, Guru Nanak Institute of
Sikh Studies, Norway; author of
The Sikhs’ Struggle for Sovereignty,
The Akal Takhat and many English
and punjabi books on Sikhism;
author of many articles on Sikh
Religion; Editor of journal “The
Sikhs : Past and Present”
Principal Harbhajan Singh Scholar and author of several books
on Sikh Studies. “Gurbani
Sampadan Nimai (Punjabi)”,
Published by, Satnam Parkashan,
Chandigarh; Abstract : “Opening
the subject in the 5th and 6th
chapter, the author stresses the
Gurbani is revealed. He concedes
that during the time of Guru Arjun,
Meharban, son of Prithi Chand, was
- composing his own verses under
the name Nanak, which was causing
confusion among the Sikh masses,
for it was not easy for an ordinary
person to tell genuine Gurbani from
the fake verses of Meharban and
other Minas who had set up a rival
Guruship.”
S. Iqbal Singh Sara A Senior Barrister-at-Law and a
leading citizen of Vancouver; a keen
scholar of Sikh Studies; author of
many articles on Sikh religion and
history; President, Akal Federation,
Vancouver
S. IJ. Singh Prof. New York University, author
of many articles on Sikh Religion
Dr. Jasbir Singh Mann Diplomate American Board of
 325

Orthopaedic Surgery; Fellow

American Academy of Orthopaedic
Surgeons; Fellow International
College of Surgeons; presently
practicing orthopaedic surgery,
Anaheim, CA; Secretary, Centre of
Sikh Studies, Santa Ana, CA; Editor
of 3 books on Sikh Studies
Dr. Kharak Singh Ph.D., Ohio State University,
Columbus, Ohio; Editor Abstracts
of Sikh Studies and Fundamental
Issues in Sikh Studies; Secretary,
Institute of Sikh Studies,
Chandigarh
S. Kuldeep Singh Director of Ohio Clinical. Ref
Laboratories, Sylvania since Nov.
1986; Director & Manager, Alpha
Laboratories, Detroit, Michigan,
from 1975-1986; F.R.S.H. (London),
B.L.M. (AAB), C.L.S. (NCA),
C.L.T. (MDH); Member of the
Bilingual Advisory Committee,
Lansing Mich. (1974-84);
Distinguished service award by US
District Court-Monitoring
Commission in 1984; Edited Sikh
World, a quarterly Sikh Journal
from 1971-85; directed nearly 25
youth camps in U.S.A.
Prof. Manjit Singh Sidhu Punjab University, Chandigarh;
Former Editor World Sikh News,
Stockton, CA; author of several
articles on Sikhism
S. Manohar Singh Marco Director of Marco Research
Foundation, New Delhi & New
York; Authority on old manuscripts
of Sikh religion
Dr. Piara Singh Ph.D. P.E. (Civil), C.E., US Navy
MCAS El Toro CA; Director Pacific
West College of Law, Orange, CA;
author of several papers on Sikh
religion, presented at national and
international intertaith conferences.
Dr. Ranbir Singh Sandhu Prof. Ohio State University,
Department of Civil Engineering;
author of over 150 reports and
articles on topics in engineering and
 326

in Sikh faith; also heads Sikh

Religious and Educational Trust,
Dublin, Ohio
Dr. Surinder Singh Kohli Formerly, Prof. and Head Dept. of
Punjabi and Dean of University
Instructions, Punjab University,
Chandigarh, Director Guru Nanak
Foundation; author of six dozen
books on Sikhism
Dr. Sukhmander Singh Prof. and Head Civil Engineering,
Santa Clara University, CA; Editor
of 2 scientific books; author of a
number of articles on Sikh religion;
Former President, Sikh Council of
North America
Dr. Sahib Singh Former Professor, Religious Studies,
Author of dozen books on Sikhism
including “Aad Bir Bare (Punjabi)”,
Published by M/s Singh Brothers,
Amritsar; Abstract : “shows that
Guru Nanak carefully preserved his
Bani, and passed it on to Guru
Angad Dev Ji who succeeded him.
The practice was followed by the
subsequent Gurus also, so that the
entire bani of all the Gurus, was
available with Guru Arjun, when he
undertook compilation of the Aad
Granth.”
Dr. S.S. Sodhi Professor, School of Education,
Dalhousie University Halifax, Nova
Scotia
Dr. Trilochan Singh A world renowned Scholar, one of
the Authors who translated selective
Hymns from Holy Guru Granth
Sahib, Published by UNESCO,
Author of many books on the life
of Sikh Gurus and Sikhism.
 327

pMjwbI Bwg
(PUNJABI SECTION)
328
 329

< siqgur pRswid ]

Awid
sRI gurU gRMQ swihb qy
Xojnwb‘D hmlw

Akwdimk crcw jW Drm inMidAw

AYfItr
bic‘qr isMG igAwnI
AYfvokyt

ieMtrnYSnl sYNtr Aw& is‘K st‘fIz

koTI nM. : 1182, sYktr 44 - bI
cMfIgVH
330
 331

1
mu‘K-bMd

kYnyfw dI XUnIvrstI trWto vloN pSOrw isMG ƒ fwktr AwP iPlwsPI

dI ifgrI dyx leI “Awid gRMQ dw ivSw Aqy ArQ” dy isrlyK hyT iliKAw
QIss is`K pMQ ivc qkVy vwd ivvwd dw kwrx bx igAw hY [ pSOrw isMG
ny ieh Koj btwlw grup dy swbk iesweI pwdrI fblXU. AYc. mYklOf dI
ryK dyK hyT kIqI hY [ Koj dw ADwr gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvrstI, AMimRqsr
vloN 1987 eI. ivc mweI syvW bwjwr dy iek pusqk ivkryqw hrBjn isMG
Aqy hrcrn isMG cwvlw Awrt AYNf mYnUskirpt fIlrz pwsoN KrIdI h`Q
ilKq (KrVw) ijs ƒ XUnIvrstI ny KrVw nM: 1245 grdwinAw, bxwieAw
igAw hY [ lyKk ny Awid gRMQ dy ieqhws ƒ muV isrjn dI koJI hrkq krdy
hoey Awid sRI gurU gRMQ swihb dy mUl pwT dw ivSlySx, gurU Arjn dI
sMpwdnW pwlIsI Aqy BgqW dI bwxI Swml krn dw An-AwDwrq q`QW Aqy
gYr-juMmyvwrwnw FMg nwl kIqw hY ijs ƒ koeI vI SrDwvwn is`K Koj dI AwV
hyT ies qrHW nhIN kr skdw [
ies Kojkwr ny Awpxy Koj p‘qr dy pMnw 23 au‘qy ryKw ic‘qr
aulIkdy hoey goieMdvwl poQIAW (1570-72 eI.) ƒ sB qoN aupr Aqy dUjy
nMbr qy gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvrstI dI ilKq nM: 1245 rKI hY Aqy qIjy
nMbr qy krqwrpurI bIV ( 1604 eI. ) Aqy ies qoN ipCoN bMno bIV Aqy hor
ilKqW [
pSorw isMG Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw dw muK vsIlw goieMdvwl poQIAW
dsdw hY Aqy dUjy nMbr qy gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvrstI dI ilKq (KrVw) nM:
1245 [ ies ilKq iv‘c BgqW dI bwxI drj nhIN [ eysy ilKq dy AwDwr
qy mUl-mMqr, jpujI, sodr rihrws, gurU Arjn dyv dy sUhI rwg, iqlMg
rwg, rwmklI rwg ’c Sbd Aqy gurU Arjn dI Awid gRMQ bwry sMpwdnw
plIsI qy tIkw itpxI krsw hoieAw vwd-ivvwd dy Gyry ivc iGr jWdw hY [
 332

mUl-mMqr
Awid-gRMQ dy mu‘F ivc AMikq mUl-mMqr bwry pSorw isMG (pMnw
93) qy ilKdw hY ik goieMdvwl poQIAW dI ijld nM: 1 ivc mUl-mMqr ies
qrHW iliKAw hY :-

< siqgur pRswid [

scu nwm krqwr inrBau inrIkwr Akwl mUriq AjUnI sMBau [
pRMqU ies dy AMq qy ikqy-ikqy “gurU pUry ky prswid” BI AMkiq hY
[ AYpr Awid gRMQ iv`c AMikq mUl-mMqr nwl ikqy BI myl nhIN KWdw [
ies qoN Agy pSOrw isMG gurU rwm dws dy iek Sbd ’coN qukW lYky
is‘D krn dI koSS krdw hY ik ieh Awid gRMQ ivc AMikq mUl-mMqr nwl
imldIAW juldIAw hn jo ies pRkwr hn:-
jip mn inrBau [ siq siq sdw siq [ inrvYr Akwl mUriq [
AjUnI sMBau [ myry mn Anidno iDAwie inrMkwr inrwhwrI [ (mhlw 4,
swrMg 2 pMnw 1201)
aukq hvwly dy ky pSorw isMG ilKdw hY (pMnw 96) ik mUl-mMqr ƒ
AMqm Skl dyx leI gurU Arjx ny vKo vK KriVAW auqy ivcwr kIqI [ ieh
sujwx KojI eysy pMny qy ilKdw nY ik Awid gRMQ ivc AMikq mUl-mMqr qoN
pihlW gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvrstI h‘Q ilKq nMbr 1245 (pMnw 27 b)
ivc mUl-mMqr ies qrHW AMikq hY :-
< siqnwmu krqw purKu inrBau inrvYr Akwl mUriq AjUnI sYBM
siq gurU prswid [
iPr ilKdw hY ik gurU Arjx ny mUl-mMqr ƒ AMqm rUp dyx
ligAW ‘siqgurU prswid’ dI QW ‘gurpRswid’ ilK idqw qW jo mUl-mMqr ƒ
jcvW qy guMdvW bxwieAw jw sky [
pSOrw isMG dI Koj Anuswr ies dw Bwv ieh hoieAw ik Awid sRI
gurU gRMQ dy ArMB ivc AMikq mUl-mMqr gurU nwnk dw aucwirAw hoieAw hUbhU
auh nhI blik gurU Arjx ny keI KriVAW qy ivcwr krn auprMq
 333

mUl-mMqr ƒ AMqm rUp idqw [

Awpxy Koj-p‘qr ivc pSOrw isMG mMndw hY ik ieh iblkul sMBv
hY ik gurU nwnk ny AwpxI AwXU dOrwn hI swry SbdW ƒ ilKqI rUp idqw hovy
ikauNik dUjy DrmW dy moFIAW vWg auh AnpVH nhIN sn [ eyQy pSOrw isMG
BweI gurdws dI vwr 32 dw hvwlw idMdy hoey kihMdw hY ik Drm prcwr dOry
smyN gurU nwnk ikqwb nwl rKdy sn [
pRo: swihb isMG BweI gurdws dI vwr 32 dw hvwlw idMdy hoey ilKdy
hn ik jdoN gurU nwnk m‘ky ivc pujy qd hwzI qy mulW gurU nwnk pwsoN pu‘Cx
lgy “pu‘Cx Kol ikqwb ƒ v‘fw ihMdU ik muslmnoeI [ bwby AwKy hwjIAW suB
AmlW bwJoN dovy roeI” [
ienHW sqrW dy ilKwrI ƒ 1945-46 ivc Kwlsw kwlj AMimRqsr
dw ividAwrQI hox smyN pRo: swihb isMG dw swigrd bnx dw mwn pRwpq hY
[ bwbw johx dIAW poQIAW Aqy gurbwxI bwry audoN BI bihs joieAw krdI sI
[ pRo: swihb isMG BweI gurdws dI auprlI vwr dw hvwlw dyky kihAw krdy
sn ik gurU nwnk ny AwpxI bwxI ilKqi rUp ivc sMBwl ky rKI Aqy gur
g‘dI BweI lihxy (gurU AMgd) ƒ sOpx smyN ieh bwxI BI aunHW dy hvwly kIqI
[ iesy qrHW gurU AMgd, gurU Amr dws Aqy gurU rwm dws ny jo vwxI rcI auh
pihly gurUAW dI bwxI iv‘c AMikq krky pIVHI dr pIVHI Agly gurUAW ƒ
sOpdy gey [ eysy poQI ivc AMikq bwxI ƒ gurU Arjx ky hrImMdr swihb
ivc sQwpq kIqw Aqy kihAw ‘poQI prmySr kw Qwnu’ [
goieMdvwl poQIAW bwry pRo: swihb isMG kihAw krdy sn ik gurU
Arjx ny “mohn qyry au`cy mMdir mihl Apwrw” dI quk nwl ArMB hox vwlw
Sbd Akwl purK ƒ sMboDq kIqw hY [ ieh ikvyN ho skdw hY ik poQIAW
pRwpq krn leI gurU Arjx bwbw mohn dy cubwry hyT KVoky ieh Sbd
aùcwrn [
bwxI ivc kyvl Akwl purK dI hI ausq‘q hY iksy ivAkqI dI
nhIN ies qoN ielwvw bwbw mohn ny gurU Amr dws vloN gurU rwm dws ƒ gur
g‘dI sOpx dy PYsly ƒ BI svIkwr nhIN sI kIqw [ so gurU Arjx Aijhy
ivAkqI dI isPq ivc Sbd ikvyN aucwr skdy hn ?
 334

goieMdvwl poQIAW lgwqwr ausy grup dy kbjy ivc rhIAW jo bwbw

mohn ƒ gurU nw mMnx vwly isKW ƒ kosdy rinMdy sn Aqy kihMdy sn ik jo koeI
aunMW ƒ gurU nhIN mMnygw nrkW ƒ jwvygw [ ies leI bwbw mohn vwlIAW
poQIAW ƒ gurUAW dI bwxI Xw gurU Amr dws vloN ilKweI bwxI dsxw srwsr
glq hY [ goieMdvwl poQIAW ijnHW ƒ bwbw mohn vwlIAW poQIAW vi kihAw
jWdw hY dI dUjI ijld qy ies dw ilKq swl 1595 eI: hY [ ies ivc gurU
rwm dws Aqy gurU Arjx dyv dy Sbd AMikq hoxy swbq krdw hY ik ieh
poQI Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw qoN ipCoN ilKI geI [ ienHW poQIAW ivc AMikq
mUl-mMqr BI Awid gMRQ ivc AMikq mUl-mMqr nwloN vI iBMn hY [ so pSOrw
isMG vloN bwbw mohn dIAW poQIAW ƒ AwDwr bxw ky iliKAw Koj-p‘qr q‘QW
Aqy sbUqW dy AwDwr qy pUrw nhIN auqrdw [ inSwnw gur bwxI dI Koj nhIN
blik hor hI hY [
pSOrw isMG mUl mMqr qk hI sImq nhIN [ Koj-p‘qr dy pMnW 102
qy ilKdw hY ik Awid gMRQ ivc AMikq ‘Awid scu jugwid scu [ hY BI scu
nwnk hosI BI scu [’ qukW gurU Arjn ny jpujI ƒ AMqm Skl dyx smyN Swml
kIqIAW jo muFlIAW ilKqW ivc nhIN imldIAW [
Koj-p‘qr dy pMnW 100 Aqy 101 qy jpujI dy ArMB bwry ilKdw hY
ik gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvrstI dI h‘Q ilKq nM: 1245 Anuswr ieh ies
pRkwr hY:-
<
siqnwmu krqw purKu inrBau inrvYru Akwl mUriq AjUnI sYBM
siqgur prswid jpu [ mhlw 1
socY soic nw hoveI jy socI lKvwr [ cupY cup nw hoveI joie lwie
rhw ilvqwr [ BuiKAw BuK n auqrY jy bnw purIAw Bwr[ shMs isAwxpw
lK hoin qW iek nw clY nwil [ ikau sicAwrw hoeIAY ikau kUVY qutY pwil
[ hukm rjweI clxw nwnk iliKAw nwil [1[

pSOrw isMG ieh swbq krnw cwhuMdw hY ik h‘Q-ilKq 1245 ivc

mUl-mMqr aupr ilKy Anuswr hY Aqy ies ivc ‘Awid scu jugwid scu [
 335

hY BI scu nwnk hosI BI scu’, dIAW qukW AMikq nhIN jo gurU Arjx ny jpujI
ƒ AMqm rUp dyx smyN Swml kIqIAW [
Kojkwr ny Agy iliKAw hY ik Awid gRMQ ivc mUl-mMqr qoN ipCoN
mhlw ‘1’ BI drj nhIN kIqw igAw [ ies ky kwrn BI auh ibAwn krdw
hY [ aukq ilKI pihlI poVI bwry ilKdw hY ik ies ivc gurU Arjn ny
‘joie’ dI QW ‘jo’ ‘auqrY’ dI QW ‘auqrI’ ‘bnw’ dI QW ‘bMnW’ shMs dI QW
‘shs’ ‘hoin’ dI QW hoih Aqy ‘ikau’ dI QW ‘ikv’ iliKAw qW jo ivAwkrx
Aqy vzn dy nukqy qoN imAwrI bxwieAw jw sky [
jpujI dI 6 vIN poVI bwry Koj p‘qr ky pMnw 104 qy pSOrw isMG
ilKdw hY ik h‘Q-ilKq 1245 ivc ies pauVI dIAW hyT ilKIAW qukW
ies qrHW hn:-
“qIrQ nwvw jy iqsu Bwvw ivn Bwxy ikAw nwie krI [ jyqI issit
aupweI dyKw ibnu krmw ikAw imlY leI [ imiq ivic rqn jvwhr mwxk jy
gur kI ies is`K suxI [” ieh AnoKw Kojkwr ilKdw hY ik gurU Arjn ny
auprlIAW qukW ivc ‘ikA’ dI QW ‘ik’ (qIriQ nwvw jy iqsu Bwvw ivxu Bwxy
ik nwie krI) Aqy ‘imiq’ dI QW ‘miq’ (miq ivic rqn jvwhr mwxk jy
iek gur kI isK suxI ilKky ies ƒ imAwrI rUp idqw [
pSOrw isMG Agy ilKdw hY ik h‘Q-ilKq 1245 ivc jpujI dIAW
ieh qukW ies qrHW AMikq hn:-
“ijau ijau hukmu iqvY iqau kwr [”
“ikau sicAwrw hoeIAY kUVy qutY pwil”
aukq qukW ies qrHW AMikq hn:-
“ijau ijau hukmu iqvY iqau kwr [”
“ikau sicAwrw hoeIAY ikau kUVy qutY pwil”
aukq qukW ivc gurU Arjn ny ‘ijau’ dI QW ‘ijv’ Aqy ‘iqau’ dI
QW ‘iqv’ ilK ky drusqI kIqI [
jpujI dy AMq ivc AMikq slok bwry pSOrw isMG ilKdw hY ik h‘Q-
ilKq 1245 ivc ieh slok hyT ilKy Anuswr AMikq hY :-
“paux gurU pwxI ipqw mwqw Driq mhuq [
idnsu rwiq duie dweI dwieAw KylY sgl jgqu [
cMigAweIAw buirAweIAw vwcY Drmu hdUr [
 336

krmI Awpo AwpxI ky nyVy ky dUir [

ijnI nwmu iDAwieAw gey muskiq Gwil [
nwnk qy muK aujly kyqI CutI nwil [”
ies slok bwry pSOrw isMG ilKdw hY ik gurU Arjx ny ‘paux’ dI
QW ‘pvxu’ ‘idnsu’ dI QW ‘idvs’ Aqy ‘nyVy’ dI QW ‘nyVY’ ilK ky slok ƒ
AMqm rUp idqw ijvyN ik Awid gRMQ ivc AMikq hY [
ieh Kojkwr Agy ilKdw hY ik sMBv hY ik slok ilKx smyN gurU
nwnk Aqy gurU AMgd ny iml ky iliKAw hovy Aqy dovW ƒ ies dy sWJy lyKk
vI kihAw jo skdw hY [
ieh hY Koj pSOrw isMG dI kyvl jpujI bwry [ Awid gMRQ dI
sMpwdnw bwry ies Koj p‘qr dI hor Koj vKrI hY jo lyK lMmw hox dy froN eyQy
kuJ ilKxw sMBv nhIN [
is‘K Awid sRI gurU gRMQ swihb ivc AMikq bwxI ƒ Dur kI bwxI
gurU rUp ivc mMndy hn [ jpujI gurU nwnk dI muFlI rcnw hY ijs dI
ivAwiKAw Aqy iPlwsPI ibAwn krnI bVw hI kTn kMm hY [ kI ieh sMBv
Aqy mMnxXog hY ik gurU Arjx, gurU nwnk vloN rcI jpujI dI bwxI ivc
suDweI krn Aqy vK vK KriVAW qy ivcwr krky jpujI dI bwxI ivc
suDweI krn Aqy vK vK KriVAW qy ivcwr krky jpujI ƒ AMqm Skl dyx,
mUl-mMqr ivc BI soDW krn [
pSOrw isMG 1987 eI: ivc gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvrstI vloN KrIdI
h‘Q-ilKq 1245 Aqy bwbw mohn dIAW poQIAW ƒ AwDwr bxw ky im.
mYklof di dyK ryK hyT iqAwr kIqy Koj p‘qr ivc ieh swbq krn dI
koSS kry ik ieh Dur kI bwxI nhIN ies ivc qbdIlIAW Aqy soDW hoeIAW
hn, is‘K pMQ ikvyN brdwsq krygw ?
pRis‘D muslmwn ivdvwn pRoPySr SnswdAlI ny ‘AMimRq kIrqn’
dy nvMbr 1993 AMk ivc Cpy lyK ivc iliKAw hY ik gurU nwnk ny gurU
AMgd ƒ g‘dI dyx smyN bwxI dI poQI dyx dy nwl hI bwxI dw gwien krn
leI blvMf rbwbI BI gurU AMgd dy hvwly kIqw qW jo gurmq sMgIq dI
prMprw ƒ jwrI riKAw jw sky (rbwbI mrdwnw gurU nwnk dyv kwl smyN hI
 337

svrgvws ho igAw sI) [ gurU jI jdoN ivsmwd ivc Awky, ‘Dur kI bwxI’
aucwrdy qd mrdwnw rbwb vjwky AMgmI hulwry dI Cihbr lgw idMdw [ gurU
nwnk ny bwxI rwgW ivc rcI Aqy gurbwxI dy kIrqn dw AwdyS idqw [
AMimRq kIrqn, rswly dy AYfItr fw. jgIr isMG ilKdy hn ik
rwg gurbwxI dw rcnw mUl q‘q hY [ gurbwxI dy hr Sbd aupr rwg dw nW
pihlW iliKAw igAw hY [ jnm swKIAW Aqy KojIAW dIAW itpxIAW
Anuswr rwg Aqy gurbwxI iekTy hI aucwry gey [ purwqn jnm swKI ivc
Anyk hvwly imldy hn ijQy gurU nwnk dyv mrdwny ƒ kihMdy hn: -
“mrdwinAW rbwb vjw bwxI AweI”
qd mrdwny rwg kIqw
ies qrHW rwg dIAW surW pihlW vjweIAW geIAW iPr ausy rwg
iv`c bwxI rcI geI [
gurU nwnk qoN ipCoN gurU AMgd, gurU Amr dws Aqy gurU rwm dws ny
bwxI rwgW ivc rcI Aqy blvMf vrgy rbwbIAW ny rbwb vjweI [
gurU Arjn ƒ ikhVI loV pY geI ik gurU nwnk, gurU AMgd, gurU
Amrdws Aqy gurU rwm dws vloN ricq bwxI ƒ jo rwgW qy surW Anuswr rcI
qy gwien kIqI geI aus ivc soDW krn [ pSOrw isMG ƒ trWto XUnIvrstI
ivc puj ky hI ielhwm hoieAw hY ik bolI ƒ mWjvI, FukvIN Aqy gTvIN
bnwaux leI guurU Arjn ny mohx poQIAW Aqy h‘Q ilKq nM. 1245 ivc soDW
krky krqwrpurI bIV iqAwr kIqI [
swfy ijhVy ilKwrI eyh kMihdy hn ik pSOrw isMG dy QISs ƒ BMfxw
Aqy aus ƒ sRI Akwl qKq auqy bulwauxw gurbwxI dI Koj auqy pwbMdI
lgwauxw hY aunHW ƒ ies pusqk ky lyK pVn qoN ipCoN jrUr Aihsws ho jwvygw
ik ‘Dur kI bwxI’ Aqy sRI gurU gRMQ swihb dI pRmwixkqw ƒ cYlMj krnw hor
gl hY Aqy Koj krnI hor [

pSOrw isMG dw ieh kihxw ik gurU nwnk Aqy aunHW qoN ipCoN hoey
gurUAW dI bwxI Aqy isiKAwvW Anuswr cilAw jwvy jW gurU goibMd isMG dy
 338

Kwlsw pMQ Anuswr, isK pMQ ivc nvW Aqy vyloVw vwd-ivvwd KVw krnw hY
ijs dw pRis‘D isK ivdvwn icrokxw KMfn kr cuky hn jo dsW gurUAW ƒ
ieko joq smJdy hn [
Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw vwry gurU Arjn dI AYfItorIAl pwlIsI auqy
ikMqU krnw ik Bgq rivdws Aqy Bgq DMnw dI bwxI cimAwrW Aqy jtW ƒ
isKI dwiery ivc ilAwaux leI AMikq kIqI geI, gurU inMdk krvweI hY [
gurU Amrdws vloN Bgq kbIr Aqy Bgq nwm dyv dI bwxI ƒ poQI ivc
Swiml krn ƒ isKI dI ivsqwrvwdI pwlIsI dsxw bVI hI gYr-ijMmyvwrwnw
gl hY jo muAwP krn Xog BI nhIN [
gurU AMgd dyv jI dw gurU gRMQ swihb dy pMnw 146 auqy mwJ rwg
ivc ieh slok AMikq hY ijs dI pihlI qu‘k ieh hY :-

paux gurU pwxI ipqw mwqw Drq mhuq [

idnsu rwiq duie dweI dwieAw KylY sgl jgqu [
cMigAweIAw birAweIAw vwcy Drmu hdUir [
krmI Awpo AwpxI ky nyVY ky dUir [
ijnI nwmu iDAwieAw gey mskiq Gwil [
nwnk qy muK aujly kyqI CutI nwil [
ies dy nwl ieh pauVI AMikq hY ijs dI pihlI quk ieMJ hY :-
s`cw Bojnu Bwau siqgur disAw [

pSOrw isMG Awpxy QIss ivc ilKdw hY ik jpujI dy AMq ivc

AMikq slok ivc gurU Arjx ny ‘paux’ dI QW ‘pvxu’, ‘idnsu’ dI QW
‘idvsu’ Aqy ‘nyVy’ dI QW ‘nyVY’ ilKky slok ƒ AMqm rUp idqw ijvyN ik Awid
gRMQ iv`c drj hY [ pRMqU pSOrw isMG ƒ gurU AMgd dw mwJ rwg ivc aukq
mhlw 2 kzrIN nhIN AwieAw ijs ivc ‘paux’ Aqy ‘idnsu’ Sbd Awid gRMQ
ivc AMikq hn [ gurU Arjx ny gurU nwnk dy jpujI dy AMq ivc AMikq
slok ivc ‘paux’ dI QW ‘pvxu’ Aqy ‘idnsu’ dI QW ‘idvsu’ qW ilK idqw
 339

AYpr gurU AMgd dy mhlw 2 iv`c ‘paux’ Aqy ‘idnsu’ SbdW ƒ ausy qrHW
Awid gRMQ ivc ikauN AMikq kIqw ? ies dw pSOrw isMG pws koeI jvwb hY
? ies ƒ kihMdy hn au`G dIAW pwqwl mwrnIAW [ kI eysy ƒ pI AYc. fI.
kihMdy hn ?
BrosyXog vsIilAW qoN imlI jwxkwrI Anuswr h‘Q ilKq 1245
auqy iek pRoPysr dI hQIN AMgryjI A‘Kr Aqy pMjwbI dIAW kuJ lweInW
iliKAW hoeIAW hn ijs qoN swP pRgt hY ik ilKq iek DoKwdyhI Aqy Prwf
hY ijsdI pVqwl kIqI jwxI jrUrI hY [
pSOrw isMG dy ies Koj p‘qr bwry hQlI pusqk ivc AMgryjI Aqy
pMjwbI dy cotI dy isK ivdvwnW dy Koj BrpUr lyK Swml kIqy gey hn ijnHW
ƒ eyQy duhrwauxw auicq nhIN [ prMqU h‘Q ilKq 1245 dI pRwpqI Aqy ies
dy ipCokV dI pVqwl krn leI isK ivdvwnW, isK j‘jW, ieqhwskwrW
Aqy vkIlW pr inrBr iek pVqwlIAW kimSn inXukq kIqw jwxw cwhIdw
hY jo pUrI Koj qy pVqwl krky h‘Q ilKq 1245 bwry q‘Q isK pMQ dy
swhmxy ilAwvy Aqy aus ƒ GoKx ipCoN mYklOf Aqy pSOrw isMG auqy Adwlq
ivc Drm inMidAw Aqy gurbwxI dI byAdbI krn dw kys clwieAw jwvy qW
jo AgoN leI iksy ivdvwn ƒ Awid sRI gurU gRMQ swihb ivc AMikq bwxI dI
pRmwixkqw ƒ cYlMj krn dw hIAw nw pvy [
koTI nM: 1182, sYktr 44-ey,
bicqr isMG igAwnI
cMfIgVH, Bwrq
AYfvokyt
imqI : 19 dsMbr, 1993
pMjwb Aqy hirAwxw hweI kort
AYfItr rozwnw nvIN pRBwq
klkqw - cMfIgVH
 340

2
pSOrw isMG dy QIss dw Akwdimk AiDAYn
fw. gurmyl isMG is‘DU

pSOrw isMG ny trWto ivSv ividAwlw qoN 1991 ivc iek QIiss
“Awid gMRQ dw mUl kQn Aqy BwvwrQ” dy isrlyK hyT ilK ky pI.AYc.fI.
dI aupwDI pRwpq kIqI [ ies QIiss rwhIN aunHW ny isKW dy pwvn gRMQ dI
sMpwdnw, ies ivclI kuJ bwxI dI pRmwixkqw Aqy bwxI dy ielhwmI p`K
bwry kuJ ikMqU auTwey [ PlsrUp ies QIiss dI Dwrimk ivcwrDwrw Aqy
ies ivclI hor sm`grI bwry Anyk ivdvwnW ny Awpxy Awpxy mqBydW dw
iezhwr kIqw [ ies lyK rwhIN AsIN pSOrw isMG dy QIiss dI mOilkqw Aqy
pRmwixkqw dw lyKw-joKw krWgy [ sB qoN pihlW ieh ivcwrn dI loV hY ik
pI.AYc.fI. dy QIiss leI Koj dy mUl q`q kI hn Aqy ienHW dI pUrqI leI
Akwdimk ADwriSlw kI hY?
pI.AYc.fI. dI Akwdimk ADwriSlw
pI.AYc.fI. ArQwq iPlwsPI dI fwktryt (Doctor of Phi-
losophy) ivigAwn, Drm, swihq Aqy hor smwijk KyqrW ivc id‘qI
jWdI hY [ ieh aupwDI (Degree) iksy ivSy dI mOilk Koj (Original
research) dy ADwr qy iek ivSv ividAwlw jW Koj kyNdr qoN pRwpq kIqI
jWdI hY [ ies aupwDI dI mUl Av‘Skqw kyvl ieh hY ik Koj mOilk hovy
ArQwq AijhI Koj nw qW pihlW iksy ny kIqI hovy Aqy nw hI swimAk qOr
qy pRkwSq ho cu‘kI hovy [ Koj ivc auh q‘q hoxy cwhIdy hn ijnHW rwhIN
mwnvqw dw iksy nw iksy p‘KoN Blw ho sky [ pdwrQk, smwijk jW rUhwnI
qOr qy mwnvqw dw kilAwx Koj rwhIN huMdw AwieAw hY [ phIey, ibjlI,
tYlIPon dI kwF, jIv-ivigAwn rwhIN mnu‘Kw dIAW jmWdrU Aqy CUqCwq
dIAW bImwrIAW dI rokQwm, idmwgI soc ivcwr Aqy mnoivigAwnk gqI-
ivDIAW dw inrIKx, ielhwmI qOr qy gRihx kIqI r‘bI SkqI rwhIN mn dI
SWqI Aqy du‘K-su~K inhwrn dw bl Awid swrIAW pRwpqIAW v‘K-v‘K Koj
 341

KyqrW rwhIN ivigAwnIAW ny pRwpq kIqIAW hn [ AijhIAW KojW dI pRwpqI

leI Kojkwr AwpxI Koj leI iek Kws FWcw aulIkdy hn [ ies FWcy dy mUl
q‘q huMdy hn, Koj sm‘grI (material) kwrj pRxwlI (methodology or
procedure), q‘Q (date), is‘ty (results), ivcwr (discussion) Aqy incoV
(conclusions) [ ivSy Aqy Koj-Kyqr dy AwDwr qy ienHW mUl q‘qW ivc
QoVHI-bhuq Adlw-bdlI qW ho skdI hY pr QIiss dI mOilkqw hmySw
brkrwr rihMdI hY [ inSicq ivigAwn KyqrW ijvyN ik swihq Aqy Drm
(Literature and religion) Awid ivc q‘Q (data) Awid iek‘Tw krn dy
qrIky v‘Kry ho skdy hn, pr Koj dI mOilkqw dw hoxw bhuq zrUrI hY [

pSOrw isMG dy QIiss dI ivauNqbMdI

QIiss dI Koj sm‘grI (materials) : Awid gRMQ di bIV (krqwrpurI bIV)
dw inkwS, ivkwS Aqy pRmwixkqw [ ies ivclI bwxI dw AiDAYn [
QIiss dI kwrj pRxwlI (Methodology or procedure): kwrj pRxwlI
QIiss dy sPw 18 auqy id‘qI geI hY, jo ies pRkwr hY:
(1) vMngI ivDI (Sampling Method) jo lyKk Anuswr Awid
gRMQ dy pihly KriVAW (mohn poQIAW Aqy KrVw nMbr 1245)
dy inriKx leI vrqI geI [
(2) pVH q -ivSly S x (Textual analysis) : jo Awid gR M Q dI
pRmwixkqw Aqy ‘Dur kI bwxI’ dI Adlw bdlI (jo pSOrw isMG
Anuswr gurU Arjn dyv jI ny sMpwdnw dOrwn kIqI) leI
vriqAw igAw [
swrw QIiss s‘q kWfW ivc vMifAw hoieAw hY :
pihlw kWf: jwx pihjwx (Introduction)
dUjw kWf: Awid gRMQ dw KrVw (Manuscript of Adi Granth)
qIjw kWf: Awid gRMQ dw inkwS (Orgin of the Adi Granth
Tradition)
cOQw kWf: pVHq-ivSlySx (Textual anaylsis)
 342

pMjvW kWf: gurU Arjn dyv dI sMpwdn nIqI (Editorial policy

of Guru Arjan)
CyvW kWf: Awid gRMQ dw BwvwrQ (The meaning of the Adi
Granth)
s‘qvW kWf: is‘ty (Conclusions)
pihly kWf ivc QIiss dy pswr bwry jwxkwrI id‘qI geI hY [
Q‘ly id‘qy nukqy vrnxXog hn:
(a) Awid gRMQ is‘KW dw piv‘qr Drm gRMQ hY [
(A) Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw dy bIj gurU nwnk dy smyN qoN hI boey jw
cu‘ky sn [
(e) gurU nwnk dyv jI ƒ ies g‘l dw iDAwn sI ik bwxI zbwnI
jW ilKqI rUp ivc sWBI jwvy [
(s) gurU nwnk dyv jI Awpxy Awp ƒ Akwl purK dw pRvkqw
(Mouthpiece) smJdy sn [ (jYsI mY AwvY Ksm kI bwxI qYsVw krI
igAwn vy lwlo [)
(h) is‘KW leI gurU vwk ismrn Aqy ielwhI bwxI dw siqkwr
krnw Awm sI [
(k) k‘cI bwxI dy pswr ƒ rokx leI gurU Amrdws jI ny pRmwixk
bwxI iek‘TI kIqI Aqy goieMdvwl poQIAW dw sMkln kIqw jW krvwieAw [

it‘pxI
goieMdvwl poQIAW (mohn poQIAW) ijnHW ƒ pSOrw isMG ny Awid gRMQ
dy pihly KriVAW ivcoN d‘isAw hY Aqy jo gurU Arjn dyv jI ny Awid gRMQ
dI sMpwdnw smyN GoKIAW ivcwrIAW, bwry pihly kWf ivc BrpUr crcw hY [
ies dw kwrn ieh hY ik pSOrw isMG ny ienHW ƒ Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw dw mUl
sroq d‘isAw hY [ ies leI ienHW bwry vDyry cwnxw pwauxw bxdw sI [ pr
ienHW bwry pihly kWf ivc AYnI ivAwiKAw byloVI jwpdI hY [ cMgw huMdw jy
ieh ivAwiKAw dUjy kWf ivc KrVw nMbr 1245 dy nwl hI kIqI jWdI [
 343

(KrVw nMbr 1245 Awid gRMQ dw dUjw mUl sroq hY [)

(K) gurU Arjn dyv jI ny Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw AwrMbx qoN pihlW
keI KrVy vwcy Aqy aunHW KriVAW dy AwDwr qy bwxI dI qrqIb hI nhIN
iqAwr kIqI sgoN keI QweIN bwxI dI suDweI jW k‘t v‘F krky Awid gRMQ
ivc Swml kIqw [
(g) gurU Arjn dyv jI ny Awid gRMQ iqAwr krn smyN
bwxI dI (ijvyN ik mUl mMqr Awid) suDweI ies leI kIqI qW ik is‘K pRMprw
(tradition) ƒ nqwr (cyrstalization) ky pyS kIqw jw sky [

it‘pxI
pSOrw isMG Anuswr bwxI ƒ inqwrn dI loV is`K gurUAW vyly
smwijk Aqy rwjnIiqk Adlw bdlIAW hox krky peI [ ies dw mqlb
ieh hoieAw ik ielhwmI bwxI smwijk jW rwjnIqk pRBwvW ADIn bdldI
rihMdI hY [ ieh ivcwr kyvl is‘K Drm dw hI nhIN sgoN swry DrmW dI mUl
scweI jW ivcwrDwrw dw KMfn krdw hY [ iesy krky keI ivdvwnW ny pSOrw
isMG dy QIiss ƒ Drn-inMdw krwr id`qw hY [
(G) gurU Arjn dyv jI pws Awid gRMQ iqAwr krn smyN Anyk
KrVy sn ijnHW dy ADwr qy aunHW ny Awid gRMQ dI bIV BweI gurdws jI qoN
iqAwr krvweI, ilKweI [ eyQy pSOrw isMG BweI bu`Fw jI dw hvwlw vI idMdw
hY, ijnHW ƒ Awid gRMQ dI bwxI dI pRmwixkqw siQr krn leI md`d kIqI [
pihly kWf dI sm‘grI bwry itpxI
ies kWf ivc pSOrw isMG ny AwpxI Koj dy mUl mnorQ ƒ bVy rock
FMg nwl pyS kIqw hY [ ieh kWf aus ny idlcsm FMg nwl iliKAw hoieAw
hY [ ies kWf ivc aus ny Awpxy Agly kWfW bwry zmIn iqAwr kIqI hY ijs
ivc auh sPl irhw hY [ swry kWf ivc FukvIN pusqk sUcI vI Swml hY [
ies pusqk sUcI ivc pMjwbI ivdvwnW dy nwl-nwl p`CmI ivkvwnW dy hvwly
vI id‘qy hn, ijnHW ivc pRmu‘K qOr qy aus dy ingrwn (supervisor) fw.
mklwaUf Aqy dUsry is‘K Drm dy ivdvwnW, fw. Awrcr, fw. SYkl Aqy fw.
sim‘Q dy nW vrxXog hn [ ijvyN ik pihlW ilK cu`ky hW, pSOrw isMG dy
 344

QIiss dw mu‘K AwSw ieh hY ik Awid gMRQ dI sMpwdnw gurU swihb ny is‘K
pRMprw ƒ inqwr (Crystallization) ky pyS krn leI kIqI [ ieQy ieh
g‘l ivcwrn Xog hY ik Sbd Crystallization (ijvyN pSOrw isMG vI mMndw
hY) ivlPrf kYNtivl sim‘Q dI DrmW bwry crcw ivcoN AwieAw hY [ ies
bwry hor crcw A‘gy cl ky krWgy [ ieQy ieMnw d‘sxw hI auicq hovygw ik
ies Sbd dI vrqoN Awid gRMQ dy sMbMD ivc kuQweI hY [ fw. sim‘Q Sbd
Crystallization p‘CmI Aqy kurwn dy sMbMD ivc vrqdw hY [ is‘K Drm
qoN bgYr bwkI swry Drm gRMQ aunHW dy pYgMbrW jW AnuAweIAW dy imRqUkwl qoN
keI sdIAW bwAd ivc rcy gey [
aunHW dy sMbMD ivc Crystallization qW auicq hY pr is‘K Drm
dy gRMQ dI sMpwdnw jW ivcwrDwrw auqy lwgU nhIN huMdw, ikauNik Awid gRMQ dI
sMpwdnw Kud gurUAW nw Awp kIqI hY [ iesweI jW ieslwmI DrmW dy Dwrimk
gRMQ (bweIbl Aqy kurwn) aunHW dy pwdrIAW jW mOlvIAW ny bwAd ivc sInw-
b-sInw qurIAW AwauNdIAW ielhwmI bwxI dIAW XwddwSqW dy AwDwr qy
sMpwdq kIqy [ ies leI auhnW Dwrmk gRMQW dw inqwrw (Crystallization)
zrUrI sI [ p`CmI jW ieslwmI DrmW dI sMpwdnw dy AwDwr (Basis) ƒ gurU
gRMQ swihb dI sMpwdnw auqy lwgU krky pSOrw isMG Awpxy QIiss dy mUl
mnorQ qoN auk igAw hY [ ieh aukweI aus ny p‘CmI ivdvwnW, Kws krky
Awpxy ingrwn (fw. mklwaUf) dy pRBwv hyT kIqI hY [ ho skdw hY ik jy
aus ƒ pI.AYc.fI. ifgrI dI lwlsw nw huMdI qW Swied auh Awpxy is`Kqv dy
p‘Q ƒ nw Buldw [ Agly kWfW ivc pSOrw isMG ny Awpxy mUl mnorQ dI Koj
kIqI hY [ pl Br leI clo mMn lYNdy hW ik aus dw mnorQ TIk hY [ hux
dyKxw ieh hY ik ies mnorQ dI pUrqI leI aus ny Koj dI mOilkqw ƒ ikQoN
qk brkrwr r‘iKAw hY Aqy ies dI Akwdimk mh‘qqw kI hY [

dUjy kWf dw Akwdimk inrIKx

ies kWf dy do mu`K mnorQ hn:

(1) Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw dw ieiqhwsk p‘K [
 345

(2) Awid gRMQ qoN bwd dIAW imslW (recensions) AQvw bIVW dw lyKw-joKw
[

pSOrw isMG dw pihly mnorQ dw svwl ies klpnw auqy AwDwrq hY

ik Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw dw kwrj gurU Arjn dyv dy smyN qoN bhuq
pihlW AwrMB ho cuikAw sI Aqy aunHW dy kwl qoN bwAd ivc vI
cldw irhw [ ies dw ArQ pSOrw isMG ieh k‘Fdw hY ik Awid
gRMQ qoN pihlW bwxI dy keI KrVy sn, ijHnW dy AwDwr qy gurU Arjn
dyv jI ny krqwrpurI bIV jW Awid gRMQ ƒ iqAwr kIqw [ ienHW
KriVAW ivcoN auh do KriVAW ƒ Kws mh‘qqw idMdw hY, ikauNik
ieh do KrVy aus dy muqwibk Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw dw mUl sroq
bxy [ ieh KrVy hn:
(1) goieMdvwl poQIAW [
(2) gurU nwnk dyv ivSv ividAwlw vwlw KrVw nMbr 1245 [
ienHW KriVHAW ƒ Awid gRMQ qoN pihlW dy is‘D krn leI pSOrw
isMG ny ikhVy sbUq pyS kIqy hn Aqy ienHW sbUqW dI mOilkqw kI
hY ?
goieMdvwl poQIAW
ienHW poQIAW dI ilKx iqQI bwry koeI Tos sbuq nhIN [ pRMprwgq qOr qy
bwvw pRym isMG muqwibk ieh poQIAW 1570-72 eIsvI ivc ilKIAW geIAW
[ pr AwhIAwpur vwlI poQI (poQI nMbr 1) auqy ilKx qwrIK 1595 eIsvI
ilKI hoeI hY [ pr ieh qwrIK igAwnI gurid‘q isMG Anuswr bwAd ivc
ilK ky pihly sPy nwl icpkweI hoeI hY [ ArQwq ienHW poQIAW dI ilKx
iqQI bwry ikMqu hY [
pSOrw isMG ny poQIAW dI ilKx-iqQI bwry ho suJwA idqy hn:
(1) poQIAW dI AMdrUnI ivAwiKAw qoN pqw lgdw hY ik ieh gurU
Amr dws jI ny ilKvweIAW [
(2) poQIAW ƒ iqMnW pIVHIAW dw vrdwn sI [ (ieh BUqkwl, ivc
iliKAw hoieAw hY) ies qoN vI pqw lgdw hY ik ieh gurU
Amr dws vyly ilKIAW geIAW [
 346

A`gy jw ky pSOrw isMG Awpxy ienHW suJwvW ƒ ieh kih ky gMDlw vI

kr idMdw hY ik ienHW do poQIAW ivc iqMnW gurUAW dI pUrI bwxI drj nhIN [
ies g‘l qy prdw pwaux leI auh ieh ikAws krdw hY ik gurU Arjn dyv
jI ƒ ienHW do poQIAW qoN bgYr hor do poQIAW vI auplbD sn ijnHW dw izkr
igAwnI igAwn isMG ny ‘qvwrIK gurU Kwlsw’ ivc kIqw hY [ pRMqU auh do
poQIAW A‘j klH auplbD nhIN hn [
itp`xI
auprokq ivSlySx qoN ieh is‘D hoieAw ik goieMdvwl poQIAW bwry
aunHW dy purwqn hox dw doeI Tos sbUq nhIN Aqy pSOrw isMG ny vI aunHW dI
purwqnqw bwry jW qW dUsirAW dIAW g‘lW dw hvwlw id‘qw hY Aqy jW poQIAW
ivclI ilKq scweI dI ivAwiKAw dw Awsrw ilAw hY [ ies qoN ieh is‘D
huMdw hY ik pSOrw isMG ny poQIAW dI purwqnqw bwry koeI mOilk Koj rwhIN
scwei pyS nhIN kIqI [ Bwv ienHW dI purwqnqw bwry aus ny Awq kuJ vI
Swml nhI kIqw [
cwhIdw ieh sI ik auh BwSw ivigAwn dy isDWqw (linguistics),
KrVy dI mwlkI pRQw (history of ownership), pVHq ivslySx (textual
analysis) Aqy pMnw-dr-pMnw inrIKx Awid kwrj pRxwlIAW dw Awsrw lYNdw
[ iek QW auh BwSw ivigAwn dy isDWqw dI inrmUl ijhI vrqoN zrUr krdw
hY [ kihMdw hY ik gurmuKI dI sYNcI qoN ieauN lgdw hY ik ieh poQIAW solHvIN
sdI dy dUjy A‘D ivc ilKIAW geIAW [ gurmuKI ilpI ivcly sÍr A‘Kr
(Vowel) Ajy cMgI qrHW pRPu‘lq nhIN hoey jwpdy Aqy A‘Kr Ajy twkrI dI
bxqr nwl imldy juldy hn [ pSOrw isMG dw ieMnw du audm SlwGw Xog qW
hY, pr scweI qoN QoVw aUVw hY [ jy poQIAW dI ilKx iqQI 1570-72 vI
mMn leIey qW 32-34 swlW ivc (Awid gRMQ ilKx smyN q‘k) gurmuKI SYlI
Aqy A‘KrW ivc AYnw Prk pYxw AsMBv hY [ bolIAW dy ivkws leI sdIAW
cwhIdIAW hn, kuJ ku swl nhIN [ scweI qW ieh hY ik poQIAW dI bolI jW
bxqr ivc Awid gRMQ dI bolI jW bxqr vloN bhuqw swiKAwq Prk nhIN [
jo QoVw bhuqw Prk hY, auh lok bolI (Colloquial) krky hY jW Sbd-joVW dw
hY [
 347

KrVw nM b r 1245
KrVw nMbr 1245 dUjw KrVw hY jo pSOrw isMG Anuswr Awid gRMQ
dI sMpwdnw ivc shweI hoieAw [ ies KrVy auqy koeI ilKx iqQI nhIN
id‘qI hoeI [ ieQy Pyr kwrj pRxwlIAW rwhIN ies KrVy ƒ Awid gRMQ qoN
pihlW dw is‘D krn dI loV hY [ pSOrw isMG ny pVHq ivSlySx (textual
analysis) Aqy BwSw ivigAwn dy isDWq vrqy hn [ pVHq ivSlySx dy do
inXm pSOrw isMG ny vrqy hn:

(1) sMKypqw, ivsQwrqw qoN pihlW AwauNdI hY, (The Shorter

reading is to be preferred to the longer one) ArQwq do KriVAW ivcoN
ijs ivc G‘t ivsQwr hovy, auh purwxw smiJAw jWdw hY [ pSOrw isMG
Anuswr KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc krqwrpurI bIV nwloN G‘t ivsQwr hY, ies
leI ieh KrVw purwxw hY [

(2) AOKI ilKq, sOKI ilKq qoN pihlW AwauNdI hY, (The more
difficult reading is generally preferable) ArQwq jy do KriVAW ivcoN
ied AOKw pVHnw hovy qW auh purwxw smiJAw jWdw hY, ijvyN KrVw nMbr
1245 ivc bolI dw AOKw pRgtwau hY ies leI Awid gRMQ nwloN purwxw hY [

it`pxI
pSOrw isMG ny ienHW dI vrqoN krky Awpxy igAwn dw ivKwvw qW
kIqw hY pr ies dI auicq Aqy BrpUr vrqoN nhIN kIqI [ cMgw huMdw jy auh
KrVw nMbr 1245 ivcoN audwhrxW lY ky Awid gRMQ nwl qulnw krdw [ ieh
TIk hY ik KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc BgqW dI bwxI nhIN, ies leI sMKyp hY
[ iesy krky pVHq ivSlySx dy pihly inXm dI pwlxw krdw hY [ pr 1245
dI bolI koeI AOKI nhIN sgoN Awid gRMQ dI bolI vrgI hI hY Aqy pSOrw isMG
Anuswr KrVw nMbr 1245 dI SYlI Awm krky Awid gRMQ nwl imldI-juldI hY
[ BwSw ivigAwn KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc kMny dI QW nukqw (Dot) vriqAw
igAw hY, a dI QW E vriqAw igAw hY AqyC Ajy vI swrdw nwl myl KWdw hY
 348

[ ies qrHW dw ivSlySx SlwGwXog hY, pr BrpUrqw qoN aUxw hY [ Aijhy

pyqly p‘Dr qy ivSlySx dI vrqoN mOilk Koj nwl inAW nhIN krdI [

it`pxI

KrVw nMbr 1245 dI AMdrlI ivAwiKAw qoN pqw lgdw hY ik ieh

gurU Arjn dyv jI dI ShIdI qoN bwAd iliKAw igAw hY ikauNik ies ivc
pihly pMj gurUAW dIAW joqIjoq smwaux dIAW qwrIKW iek h‘Q ilKq ivc
ilKIAW hoeIAW hn [ pr pSOrw isMG ieh jwxidAW hoieAW vI ies q‘Q
ƒ ieh kih ky aury-pry kr idMdw hY ik ShIdI dI qwrIK mgroN pr ausy
kwqb ny ilKI [ ies KrVy auqy gurU hr goibMd isMG jI dy dsiq-mubwrk
nwl hsqwKSr vI d‘sy jWdy hn, pr pSOrw isMG ies g‘l ƒ ieh kih ky
iqAwg idMdw hY ik dsqKq vwlw sPw bwAd ivc joiVAw igAw hY [ pSOrw
isMG Anuswr ies KrVy ivc BweI bu`Fw jI dw iek slok hY [ ho skdw hY
ausdy auqrAiDkwrIAW pws ieh KrVw irhw hovy pr BweI bu‘Fw jI dy
auqrAiDkwrIAW ny mMinAw hY ik BweI bu`Fw jI ky kdy koeI slok nhIN
ricAw [ AKIr ivc pSOrw isMG iek hor hwsohIxI dlIl vI idMdw hY ik
ho skdw hY ieh KrVw vI BweI gurdws jI ny iliKAw hovy Aqy Awid gRMQ dy
ilKx q‘k aunHW ny AwpxI h`Q ilKq suDwr leI hovy [
ieMJ jwpdw hY ik pSOrw isMG ieh jwxidAW hoieAW vI ik KrVw
nMbr 1245 Awid gRMQ qoN ipCoN dI ilKq hY, Awpxw pUrw zor ieh is‘D krn
leI lweI jw irhw hY ik ieh Awid gRMQ qoN pihlW dw KrVw hY [ ieMJ
kridAW auh swiKAwq scweI ƒ A`KoN proKy hI nhIN krdw sgoN pVHq-
ivSlySx Aqy BwSw-ivigAwn dy inXmW dI durvrqoN vI krdw hY [ ies
durvrqoN qoN bwAd aud dI Koj dI mOilkqw qW iek pwsy rhI, aus dIAW
dlIlW vI mnGVq Aqy EprIAW-EprIAW lgdIAW hn [ ieMJ jwpdw hY
ik pSOrw isMG ny is`ty pihlW k‘F r`Ky hn Aqy ienHW dI pRoVqw leI q‘Q
(data) bwAd ivc l‘Bdw iPrdw hY [
 349

qIjy kWf dI ivAwiKAw

ies kWf ivc pSOrw isMG Awid gRMQ dI ivauNqbMdI leI gurU
Arjn dyv jI ƒ SrDw dy Pul cwVHdw hY Aqy mMndw hY ik gurU swihb dI
sMpwdnw ivDI Adu‘qI sI [Awid gRMQ dI sQwpnw qoN bwAd keI imslW
KVIAW hoeIAW, ijnHW ivc lwhOr imsl, bMno imsl Aqy dmdmw imsl
pRis‘D hn [ ienHW imslW bwry pSOrw isMG ny BrpUr crcw kIqI hY jo
ivrqWiqk izAwdw Aqy ivSlySnwqimk G‘t hY [

cOQy kWf dI ivAwiKAw

ies kWf ivc pSOrw isMG ny Awid gRMQ dIAW kuJ bwxIAW dw pVHq-
ivSlySx kIqw hY [ ies ivSlySx rwhIN aus ny ieh is‘D krn dI koiSS
kIqI hY ik gurU Arjn dyv jI ny Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw smyN do KriVAW dw
Awsrw ilAw [ ies kwrj dOrwn aunHW ny bwxI dI suDweI vI kIqI Aqy aus
ƒ mWijAw sMvwirAw vI [ ies ivcwr dI pRoVqw aus ny hyT ilKIAW pMj
bwxIAW dy qulnwqimk AiDAYn duAwrw kIqI hY:
(1) mUl mMqr [
(2) jpujI-rihrws ivAwiKAw [
(3) gurU nwnk ricq sUhI rwg dy Sbd [
(4) gurU Arjn ricq iqlMg rwg dy Sbd [
(5) gurU Arjn ricq rwmklI rwg dy Sbd [
ienHW bwxIAW sMbMDI pVHq-ivSlySx dI ivAwiKAw krn qoN pihlW
kuJ pVHq-ivSlySx dy inXmW bwry kihxw ieQy kuQW nhIN hovygw [
pVHq-ivSlySx (Textual Analysis)
AYksyjIisz (Exegesis) XUnwnI BwSw dw Sbd hY, ijsdI auqpqI
qy ivkwS purwxy Aqy nvyN tYstwmYNtW (Testaments) dI iviKAw ADIn hoieAw
[ ies dw Swbidk ArQ ‘Kurw k`Fxw’ jW ‘ivAwiKAw’ krnw hY, Kws krky
Drm ivAwiKAw [ Drm ivAwiKAw ivc Dwrimk pusqk dy kwqb ƒ bhuq
mh`qqw id`qI geI hY, ies leI kwqb bwry Koj ƒ bhuq mh`qqw id`qI geI
hY, ies leI kwqb bwry Koj ƒ vI ies Sbd dI pVHq-ivSlySx (Textual
 350

analysis) ikhw jWdw hY, pr Prk isrP AYnw hY ik pVHq-ivSlySx swihq

dw vI ho skdw hY Aqy Drm-pusqkW dw vI [
AwDuink pVHq-ivSlySx 19vIN sdI dI pYdwvwr hY [ ies dw
Akwdimk ADwr mnoklipq nw huMidAW hoieAw hux ivigAwnk q‘QW qy
vDyry zor idMdw hY [ Kws krky iksy Drm pusqk dw pVHq ivSlySx krn
leI keI KyqrW ArQwq purwq‘qv (archaelogy), drSn (philosophy),
ieiqhws (history), BwSw ivigAwn (linguistics) Aqy pVHq Awlocnw (tex-
tual criticism) dw pRXog kIqw jWdw hY [
AwDuink pVHq-ivSlySx ivc auprokq KyqrW dy nwl-nwl iel
g‘l qy vI zor id‘qw igAw hY ik r`bI Sbd (ielhwmI bwxI) dI Dwrimk
mh‘qqw ƒ hmySw brkrwr r‘Kxw cwhIdw hY [ jy nw r`Kogy qW Drm dy
AnuAweIAW vloN s^q pRqIkrm ho skdw hY Aqy Drm ivAwiKAw jW pVHq-
ivSlySx kurwhy vI pY skdw hY [

mUl mMqr
mUl mMqr Awid gRMQ dw pRq‘K ih‘sw hY [ ies ivc mu‘K qOr qy
Akwl purK dy guxW dI sMKyp crcw hY [ is‘K Drm ivc ies dI bhuq v‘fI
mh‘qqw mMnI geI hY [ kwrn ieh hY ik mUl mMqr jpujI swihb dw incoV
mMinAw igAw hY Aqy jpujI swihb gurU gRMQ swihb dw swrMS mMinAw igAw
hY [ mUl mMqr Aqy jpujI swihb dovyN gurU nwnk jI dIAW rcnwvW hn [
pSOrw isMG Anuswr mUl mMqr dw sB qoN pihlw ilKqI rUp goieMdvwl
vwlIAW poQIAW ivcoN imldw hY jo ies pRkwr hY :
< siqguru prswdu
scu nwmu krqwru inrBau inrIkwru Akwl
mUriq AjUnI sMBau (1)

ies mUl mMqr dw ivkws KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc imldw hY, jo ies
pRkwr hY :
 351

< siqnwmu krqw purKu inrBau inrvYru Akwl

mUriq AjUnI sYBM siqgurU prswid [

ies mUl mMqr dw ivkws Awid gRMQ ivc ies pRkwr hY :

< siqnwmu krqw purKu inrBau inrvYr

Akwl mUriq AjUnI sYBM gur prswid [

KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc idqy mUl mMqr Aqy Awid gRMQ ivcly mUl
mMqr ivc bhuq QoVw Prk hY [ KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc islP ‘siq’
(siqgurU) vwDU hY, bwkI dohW mUl mMqrW ivc kuJ Sbd-joVW (Spelling) qoN
isvwey hor koeI Prk nhIN [ Sbd-joVW dw Prk vI lokweI (Colloquial)
jW bol-cwl dI bolI kwrn hY [ nwly aus smyN q`k pMjwbI bolI ny Ajy
tkswlI rUp nhIN sI DwirAw, ies leI lok ijvyN boldy sn auvyN ilKdy sn
[ pSOrw isMG ny vI ienHW dohW mUl mMqrW ƒ Awpxy pVHq-ivSlySx dw ivSw
nhIN bxwieAw [ Xwd rhy, AsIN pihlW ilK cuky hW ik KrVw nMbr 1245
CyvyN pwqSwhI dy vyly qoN vI Swied ip`CoN dI ilKq hY [
goieMdvwl poQIAW Aqy Awid gRMQ dy mUl mMqr ivc Q‘ly id‘qy Byd
hn:
goieMdvwl poQIAW Awid gRQ
M
scunwmu siqnwm
krqwru krqwpurK
inrIkwru inrvYr
sMBau sYBM
siqgur prswdu gur prswid [

ienHW SbdW dy inkwS, ivkwS, Aqy ivAwpkqw bwry ivcwr zrUrI hY [

gurU nwnk dyv dI bwxI ivc ‘scu’ Aqy ‘siq’ dohW SbdW dw izkr
hY:
 352

(1) swcw swihb swic nwie [

(2) Awid scu jugwid scu [
(3) scu ibnu swKI mUlo n bwkI [
(4) scu kI bwxI nwnku AwKY [
(5) scu imly scu aupjY [
(6) scu qw pr jwxIAY jw irdY scw hoie [

kuJ audwhrxW ‘sq’ jW ‘siq’ dIAW vI dyKo :

(1) rj qm sq kl qyrI CwieAw [

(2) siq nwmu krqw purK [
(3) nw siq mUMif mufweI kysI, n siq piVHAw dys iPrih [
 353

it`pxI

‘krqwru’ jW ‘krqw’ pdW ivc ArQ dI koeI sm`isAw nhIN, dovy

pRmwqmw leI vrqy jWdy hn [ ieh dovyN Sbd gurU nwnk dI bwxI ivcoN iml
jWdy hn [ krqwpurK pRmwqmw dw hI rUpmwqr hY [ ieh Sbd pRmwqmw ƒ
isRStI dw sMcwlk inrDwrq krdw hY [ gurU nwnk dyv dI bwxI dw bhuqw
ih`sw r`b Aqy pRikrqI dy sMbMD Aqy ies ivc mnu`K dI hsqI ƒ siQr krn
vl zor idMdw hY [ vYsy vI is`K Drm ivc purKu ƒ pRmwqmw dy rUp ivc
icqivAw igAw hY [ ieh dlIl dI puStI bwxI ivc vrqy AnykW Sbd,
Awid purKu, Akwl purKu, siq purKu Awid [ kuJ nwnk bwxI dIAW audwhrxW
dyKo:

(1) ijsu sqguru purKu n ByitE, so Baujil pcY pcwie [

(2) ibn ipr purKu n jwxeI, swcy gur kY hyiq ipAwr [

auprokq crcw qoN ieh is‘D huMdw hY ik gurU nwnk dyv jI ny hI

krqwpurK mUl mMqr ivc vriqAw [

pSOrw isMG ny pVHq-ivSlySx dI vrqoN krky idiqhwsk p‘K vloN

‘purK’ pd dI auqpqI gurU Arjn dyv jI dy vyly dI d‘sI hY [ ieh
SlwGwXog audm hY [ pr cwhIdw ieh sI ik auh ‘purK’ Sbd dI BwSw
ivigAwn rwhIN auqpqI Aqy ivkwS dI crcw krdw [ ies pd dI hor
DrmW ’coN audwhrxW rwhIN, Dwrimk pDqI is‘D krdw [ gurU nwnk dy kwl
ivc ies Sbd dI hoNd Aqy mh`qqw bwry crcw krdw ivSyS krky jy ieh pd
 354

gurU nwnk dI bwxI ivc AwieAw sI qW aus dI dwrSink ivcwrDwrw dw

lyKw-joKw krdw, pr ienHW Akwdimk inXmW dI pwlxw dI Gwt krky auh
ieh is‘D nhIN kr sikAw, ik ‘purK’ Awid gRMQ dy mUl mMqr ivc gurU
nwnk dyv jI dI dyx nhIN [

goieMdvwl vwlIAW poQIAW ivc Sbd ‘inrIkwru’ AwauNdw hY [ ies

Sbd ƒ gurU rwmdws jI ny ‘inrvYr’ ivc bdilAw [ ieh aunHW ny Awpxy
ivroDIAW (bwbw mohn Awid dy vDdy vYr Bwv dy pRqIkRm vjoN) dieAw Drm
ƒ mh`qqw dyx leI kIqw [ Xwd rhy ik gurU Amrdws jI ny gurg`dI Awpxy
puqrW ƒ C`f ky (bwbw mohn Aqy bwbw mohrI) Awpxy juAweI rwmdws jI ƒ dy
id`qI sI [ ies krky gurg`dI leI kInw ivroD qW sI, pr ies ivroD ƒ
sMgq qy sMDrv ivc r`K ky ‘inrvYr’ pd ƒ mUl mMqr ivc joVnw koeI bhuqI
pRBwvSwlI dlIl nzr nhIN AwauNdI [

it`‘pxI

goieMdvwl poQIAW ivclw ‘inrIkwru’ (inr+Awkwr) dw ArQ hY

Awkwr-rihq, ijs ƒ inrgux srUq vI kihMdy hn [ jy gOh nwl dyiKAw
jwvy qW ‘inrIkwru’ Aqy mUl mMqr dy Agly do Sbd ‘Akwl mUriq’ Aqy
‘AjUnI’ vI dwrSink qOr qy ‘inrIkwru’ dw hI ArQI duhrwau hY [ inrvYr
is`K Drm ivc Swied dUsry DrmW dy AwpsI ivroD dy pRqIkrm vjoN AwieAw
[ gurU nwnk dyv jI ihMdU, ieslwm Aqy eIsweI DrmW ivclIAW KwmIAW ƒ
is`K Drm ivcoN sucyq qOr qy Kwrj krnw cwhuMdy sn [ ies leI ‘inrvYr’
Sbd dI mh`qqw aunHW leI sgoN vDyry hoxI sI [ mUl mMqr ivc ieh Sbd
gurU nwnk dyv jI dw hI l`gdw hY nw ik gurU rwmdws jI dw [ gurbwxI ivc
inrBau Aqy inrvYr ƒ bhuq mh`qqw id`qI geI hY [ (bisE inrvYr
inrMqr) [ Aijhy Sbd dw gurU nwnk dy mUl mMqr ivc hoxw suBwivk hI hY
pSOrw isMG ny ‘inrvYr’ pd ƒ smwijk p`KoN mUl mMqr ivc vI
AwieAw drswieAw hY [ ieh pVHq-ivSlySx dw Aihm gux hY, pr gurU
rwmdws jI vyly dy smwijk p`K ƒ gurU nwnk dyv vI BlIBWq jwxdy sn [
 355

pSOrw isMG Anuswr gurU rwmdws dy ivroDI qW Gr dy hI sn, pr gurU nwnk

dy ivroDI sMswrk sn, ijnHW ivc smwj ivroDI, k`tVpMQIey Awid sn [ gurU
nwnk dI bwxI ivc inrvYr Sbd dw nw hoxw AsuBwivk jwpdw hY [ ijvyN
pihlW kih cu`ky hW ik Sbd ‘inrMkwr’ dy nwl ‘Akwl mUriq’ Aqy ‘AjUnI’
SbdW dw hoxw duv`lw Bwv pYdw krdw hY jdoN ik mUl mMqr (Basic tenents)
dw qW iek`lw-iek`lw Sbd pRmwqmw dI aupmw pRqI ArQW ivc sImq hoxw
cwhIdw hY [ Awid gRMQ dy mUl mMqr ivc ieh vifAweI hY, pr goieMdvwl
vwlIAW poQIAW dy mUl mMqr ivc kuJ SbdW dy dUhry ArQ luBweymwn hoey hn
[
Xwd rhy ik bwbw mohn Awpxy ipqw Amrdws nwl gurg‘dI nw
imlx krky nwrwz sn [ aunHW ny Awpxy ipqw dy Drm (is‘K Drm) ivru‘D
Awpxw m‘q clwauxw cwihAw Aqy mohn poQIAW (goieMdvwl poQIAW) Awpxy
pu‘qr shMs rwm qoN ilKvweIAW [ ies qrHW dy ivroD Bwv r‘Kx kwrn ho
skdw hY ik aunHW ny gurUAW dI kuJ bwxI ivc Adlw-bdlIAW ilAWdIAW hox
[ mUl mMqr ivclIAW Adlw-bdlIAW vI Swied ies ivroDqw dw hI is‘tw
hox [

Sbd ‘sMBau’ dI QW Awid gRMQ dy mUl mMqr ivc ‘sYBM’ vriqAw

igAw hY [ ies bwry pSOrw isMG Awpxy QIiss ivc cu`p hY [ gurmu`KI ilpI
ivc Awau dI vrqoN pihloN pihl pRc`lq sI [ ieh ho skdw hY ik bwAd
ivc ieh mwmUlI ijhI (bgYr ArQW dy bdilAW) Sbd-soD ‘sMBau’ qoN ‘sYBM’
(sYBMg) ivc Aw geI hovy [ pMfq swDU isMG ny ‘gurU gRMQ pRdIp’ ivc sYBM dw
ArQ ‘AMqhkrx ivc pRkwS’ krky kIqw hY [ ieh mUl mMqr dI mUl Dwrw
dw AMg vI jwpdw hY [

Aglw mUl mMqr dw Sbd hY ‘sqgur prswdu’ (KrVw nMbr 1245

goieMdvwl poQIAW) Aqy ‘gur pRswid’ (Awid gRMQ) ies bwry vI pSOrw isMG ny
Awpxw pVHq-ivSlySx kIqw hY [ aus Anuswr gurU Arjn dyv ny ‘siqgur’
ƒ ‘gur’ ivc bdl id`qw hY [ pSOrw isMG Anuswr gurU Arjn dyv jI ny ieMj
 356

mUl mMqr ivc iekswrqw Aqy srlqw ilAwaux leI kIqw [ nwly gurU
Arjn dyv Anuswr Sbc ‘gurU’ ielwhI isDWq nwl vDyry myl KWdw hY Aqy
ies nwl pRBUs`qw (Sovereign) dI mh`qqw vDdI hY [

it`pxI
pSOrw isMG dw ieh inrIKx Akwdimk qW zrUr l`gdw hY, pr soc
ivcwr ADIn ies ivSy leI pRBwvSwlI pRqIq nhIN hMdw [ ijvyN ik pihlW
aupr ilK cu‘ky hW ik Sbd ‘siqgur’ jW ‘gur’ ivc koeI fUMGw m`q Byd nhIN,
dovyN Sbd Swied qol qukWq ƒ brkrwr r‘Kx leI burbwxI ivc QW-QW
vrqy gey hn [ ienHW ivc koeI isDWqk ivKryvW pRqIq nhIN huMdw [ jy guurU
Arjn dyv mUl mMqr ivc iekwrqw ilAaux leI ‘siqgur’ ƒ ‘gur’ ivc
bdl skdy hn qW gurU nwnk dyv jI eydW kr skdy hn [ pSOrw isMG ny
iek-pwsV dlIl isrP Awpxy mnorQ ƒ pUrn leI id‘qI jwpdI hY [ gurU
nwnk dyv jI dI bwxI coN kuJ audwhrxW dyKo:

(1) siqgur hiQ inbyVu JgVu cukwieAw [

(2) isKI isiKAw gur vIcwir [
(3) gur pRswdI jwxIAY qau AnBau pwvY [
(4) nwnk siqgur AYsw jwxIAY jo sBsY ley imlwie jIau [
Bwv ieh ik ‘siqgur’ Aqy ‘gur’ SbdW ivc koeI isDWqk AMqr
nhIN [
KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc pUrw mUl mMqr pMj QwvW ’qy imldw hY [
eyQy swfw KrVw nMbr 1245 nwl koeI m‘qByd nhIN, ikauNik ieh
KrVw Awid gRMQ qoN mgroN CyvIN pwqSwhI vyly iliKAw igAw sI [
jpujI Aqy rihrws ivAwiKAw
jpu j I: goieMdvwl vwlIAW poQIAW ivc jpujI swihb dI bwxI AMikq
nhIN Aqy KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc QoVy Sbd-joVW dI iBMnqw qoN auprMq ieh
bwxI drj hY [ pSOrw isMG ieh ikAws krdw hY ik jpujI swihb aunHW dy
goieMdvwl poQIAW ivc drj sI jo guAwc cu`kIAW hn [ jpujI swihb gurU
 357

gRMQ swihb dw muKVw hY Aqy ies dw goieMdvwl poQIAW ivc AMikq nw hoxw
vI ieho d‘sdw hY ik ieh poQIAW ivroDI DVy vloN rcIAW geIAW [ ienHW
poQIAW ƒ Awid gRMQ dw KrVw mMnxw iek byloVI g‘l jwpdI hY [
hux jpujI swihb dw vwd ivvwd KrVw nMbr 1245 Aqy Awid gRMQ
vwlI bwxI q‘k hI mihdUd rih jWdw hY [ KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc mUl mMqr
qoN bwAd ivc jpu ]mhl ]1] pihlI sqr ivc ilKIAw hY [ dUjI sqr
ivc jpujI dI pihlI pauVI, ‘socY soc nw hoveI’ jy socI lKvwr [ cupY cup
nw hoveI jyie lwid rhw ilvqwr” hY [ iDAwnXog g‘l ieh hY ik ies
KrVy ivc mu‘Flw Slok ‘Awid scu jugwd scu [ hY BI scu nwnk hosI BI scu
(1) nhIN hY [Awid gRMQ ivc ieh Slok hY [ pSOrw isMG Anuswr ieh Slok
gurU Arjn dyv jI dw hY [ ies dI puStI leI auh ieh dlIl idMdw hY ik
gurU Arjn dyv jI ny iehI Slok suKmnI swihb dI sqwrvIN AStpdI dy
mu‘F ivc vriqAw hY, jo pSOrw isMG Anuswr ies pRkwr hY, ‘Awid scu
jugwdu scu hY iB scu nwnk hosI iB scu’[

it`pxI

Awid gRMQ ivclw jpujI muFly Slok gurU rwmdws jI qoN nkl kIqw igAw [
ies bwry gurU Arjn dyv ny krqwrpurI bIV ivc pRq‘K iliKAw hY, ‘jpu
gurU rwmdws jI ky nkl kw nkl’ [ ies dw mqlb ieh hoieAw ik aus vyly
kuJ hor jpujI swihb dIAW nklW vI pRclq hoxgIAW [ AijhIAW nklW
inScy hI hor bIVW ivc vI drj hoxgIAW [ KrVw nMbr 1245 vI aunHW
bIVW ivcoN jwpdw hY [ pSOrw isMG dy pVHq ivSlySx dI mwmUlI ijhI Jwq
aus dy ieh kihx ivcoN imldI hY ik muFlw Slok inScy hI gurU Arjn dyv
jI dw hY, ikauNik iehI Slok aunHW AwpxI rcnw suKmnI ivc BI vriqAw [
pr auh jwx-buJ ky jW AxgihlI krky ieh tplw Kw igAw [ suKmnI
swihb vwly Slok ivc Sbd ‘scu’ dI vrqoN nhIN kIqI geI, sgoN ‘siq’
Sbd dI vrqoN kIqI hY [ jy gurU nwnk dI bwxI ƒ pVcolIey qW Awm krky
Sbd ‘scu’ dI hI vDyry vrqoN hoeI hY [ ieh Slok TIk pihly gurU dw hI hY,
hW ieh qW ho skdw hY ik gurU Arjn dyv ny ies ƒ AMikq AwpxI sMpwdn
 358

ivDI rwhIN jpujI qoN pihlW kIqw hovy [ pSOrw isMG ƒ ieMJ jwpdw hY, Sbd
‘scu’ AStpdI dy Slok dy ivc jwx-buJ ky drj kIqw qW ik auh Awpxy
isDWq dI puStI kr sky [ ieh bdidAwnqdwrI hI nhIN sgoN bwxI dI vI
byAdbI hY [ AijhI Koj pI.AYc.fI. dy QIiss dI SoBw nhIN bx skdI, sgoN
ies aupwDI dI hyTI hY [

KrVw nMbr 1245 Aqy Awid gRMQ dI bolI ivc jW ArQW ivc koeI
Byd nhIN, jy koeI Byd hY qW Sbd-joVW ivc hY [Awid gRMQ dI bolI srl hY
Aqy Sbd joV vDyry jOlk bolI nwl imldy hn [ Sbd-joVW ivc iviBMnqw
rcyq dI psMd jW aucwrx ivDI krky jwpdI hY [ gurU AMgd dyv jI ny bolI
dy A‘Kr bxwey pr lgW mwqrW dI iviBMnqw aucwrx nwl sMbMDq hY [ ies
leI bolI dy ADwr qy jW Sbd-joVW dy ADwr ’qy KrVw nMbr 1245 ƒ pihloN
iliKAw hoieAw is‘D nhIN kIqw jw skdw, pr iek g‘l mMnxXog hY ik
pSOrw isMG ny bolI dI ivBMnqw bwry pRBwvSwlI crcw kIqI hY [

pSOrw isMG ny gurU Arjn dyv jI dy rwmklI Sbd bwry jo BulyKw

sI, aus ƒ kwPI pRBwvSwlI FMg nwl inptwieAw hY [ ieh aus dy QIiss dI
pRwpqI khI jw skdI hY [

Awid gRMQ Aqy KrVw nM: 1245 dy ilKx kwl

ijvyN AsIN pihlW vI is‘D kr cu`ky hW ik KrVw nMbr 1245,

Awid gRMQ dI ilKx iqQI (1604 eIsvI) qoN bwAd ivc iliKAw igAw [
BwvyN ies pr swiKAwq qOr qy koeI ilKx iqQI nhIN id‘qI hoeI, pr AMdrly
inrIKx qoN is‘D ho jWdw hY ik ieh gurU Arjn dyv jI dy joqI joq smwaux
qoN bwAd kuJ SrDwlUAW ny Awid gRMQ iqAwr krn dI lwlsw ADIn sMpwdn
kIqw [ ieh nqIjw Q‘ly idqy nukiqAW ’qy inrBr hY :

(1) Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw ivc Sbc ‘suD’ jW ‘suD kIcY’ hY, KrVw
 359

nMbr 1245 ivc nhIN hY [

(2) Awid gRMQ ivc vwrW dy SlokW nwl mh‘ly drj kIqy gey hn,
qW ik hr gurU dI bwxI ivl‘Kx qOr ’qy drsweI jw sky [
KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc Aijhw nhIN [
(3) pMjvyN gurU dI vwDU bwxI KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc hY, ijvyN ik
Awsw mhlw 5 ivc gurU Arjn dyv dy 162 caupidAW qoN
auprMq iqMn hor nvyN caupdy drj hn [ iesy qrHW keI hor
rwgW ivc vI gurU Arjn dyv dI vwDU bwxI drj hY [ (rwg
soriT, rwg iqlMg Awid) [ ies qrHW dy Prk hor gurUAW
dIAW bwxIAW ivcoN vI auplbD hoey hn [
(4) AwnMd swihb, jo is`K Drm ivc bhuq mh‘qqw r‘Kdw hY,
ivd vI pwTW dy bhuq Byd hn, dyKo pauVI 26 Aqy 27 [
(5) sB qoN mh`qvpUrn g`l ieh hY ik KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc
pMjW gurUAW dy joqI joq smwaux dIAW qwrIKW ieko ilKwrI ny
ieko isAwhI nwl ilKIAW hoeIAW hn [ pr pSOrw isMG ies
scweI ƒ jwxidAW hoieAW vI ieh kih ky r‘d kr idMdw hY
ik pMjvyN gurU dy joqI joq smwaux dI qwrIK bwAd ivc ilKI
geI [
(6) KrVw nMbr 1245 ivc BgqW dI bwxI nhIN hY [ Aijhw nw
hoxw is‘K m‘q Aqy Drm qy is‘DI cot hY, ikauNik is‘K Drm
ivc jwq-pwq dw koeI Byd Bwv nhIN hY [ hr ivAkqI dI
bwxI ƒ is‘K Drm dy AsUlW ƒ mu‘K rK ky hI gurU gRMQ swihb
ivc cwiVHAw igAw [ ieh ABwv qW ieho is‘D krdw hY ik
KrVw nMbr 1245 dw sMpwidk Swied is‘K Drm dI mu‘K
Dwrw nwl juiVAw nhIN sI [ ho skdw hY ik aus dw ih‘q
rwmrwey jW imhrbwn sMpRdwie nwl hovy [

pMjvyN kWf bwry

ies kWf ivc gurU Arjn dyv jI dI sMpwdn klw bwry crcw hY [
pSOrw isMG pMjvyN pwqSwhdI sMpwdn cqurweI qy bhuq sMqust hY Aqy Awid
 360

gRMQ ƒ auc klw-ikrq mMndw hY [ ieh g‘l sMpUrn qOr qy hY vI s‘cI [

sMpwdn klw ivc gurU gRMQ swihb qoN auprMq A‘j qk koeI vI pusqk Adu‘qI
nhIN khI jw skdI [ sMq isMG syKoN ƒ iek vwrI pMjwb ivSv ividAwlw ny
koeI pusqk sMpwdn krn leI ikhw [ aunHW dw juAwb sI ik gurU gRMQ dI
sMpwdnw mgroN mYN kI sMpwdn kr skdw hW, myry qoN koeI mOilk swihq dI
pusqk ilKvw lE [Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw scmu‘c hI sMswr dIAW pusqkW
ivcoN iek v‘fI klw ikrq hY [ ies ivc ijvyN pSOrw isMG mMndw hY, gurU
Arjn dyv jI ny isDWiqk drSn dI iekswrqw, gurqw dI eykqw, Bwv dI
AKMfqw Awid dw bVI isAwxp nwl iKAwl r‘iKAw hY [ s‘B qoN v‘D
vifAweI vwlI g‘l ieh hY ik gurbwxI ƒ rwgW Anuswr qrqIb dy ky nwl
hI bwxI dI dwrSink mh‘qqw ƒ vI brkrwr r‘iKAw igAw hY [

BwvwrQ vjoN gurU swihb ny s‘cI mu‘cI izMdgI ’qy zor hI nhIN
id‘qw sgoN is‘K Drm dy isDWqW dy AwDwr ’qy cVHdI klw dw p‘K vI kwiem
r‘iKAw [

it`pxI
pSOrw isMG ies kWf ivc vI gurU Arjn dyv jI dI sMpwdnw dOrwn
bwxI dI suDweI qy zor idMdw hY, pr Awpxy mUl mnorQ ivc kwmXwb irhw hY
[ ies kWf ivc aus ny Awid gRMQ ƒ gurU Arjn dyv rwhIN 1604 eIsvIN
ivc sMpwdn kIqw hoieAw hI nhIN mMinAw sgoN iesdI aqikRStqw bwry vI
BrpUr crcw kIqI hY [ ies kWf ivc pVHq-ivSlySx dw aupXog koeI
bhuqI mh‘qqw nhIN r`Kdw, ies leI ieh swFI ivAwiKAw dw AwDwr nhIN
bixAw [

ieQy pSOrw isMG dy BgqW dI bwxI bwry Aqy aus dI sMpwdnW ivDI
bwry kihxw zrUrI bxdw hY [ pSOrw isMG Anuswr gurU Arjn dyv jI ny
gurUAW dI bwxI ƒ pihlW qrjIh id`qI, ieh dlIl TIk vI ho skdI hY [
 361

BgqW dI bwxI ƒn Awid gRMQ ivc drj krn dw kwrn BgqW dy cyilAW dw
is‘K Drm dy murId bxnw sI, iek glq nqIjw hY [ bwxI dI sMpwdnw smyN
bwxI dI mUl ivcwrDwrw (jo is‘K Drm dI ivcwrDwrw nwl myl KWdI sI) ƒ
hI iDAwn ivc r‘iKAw igAw, bwxI dy ilKxhwry ƒ nhIN [ ieh TIk hY ik
Awid gRMQ ivc BgqW dI bwxI ƒ sMpwdnw smyN sMpwdn kIqw igAw, pr ieh
sMpwdn is‘K Drm dI ivcwrDwrw ƒ mu‘K r‘K ky hI kIqw igAw [ ijvyN
vYSnv m‘q is‘K Drm nwl twkrw KWdw hY, jW bu‘q pUjw jW ivAkqI pUjw
dw is‘K Drm ivc koeI AsQwn nhIN Aqy ijxsI ipAwr Bwvnw vI is‘K
Drm ivc koeI mh‘qqw nhIN r‘KdI [ ijnHW SbdW ivc Aijhy ivcwr sn,
auh gurU Arjn dyv jI ny Awid gRMQ ivc drj nhIN kIqy [ pSOrw isMG dw
ieh inrxw ik keI Aprvwixq BgqW dy Sbd bwAd ivc ilKIAW bIVW
ivc drj kr ley gey (ieh aunHW dy ivroDIAW ny kIqw) TIk jwpdw hY [ pMQ
ivroDI keI DwrwvW c‘ldIAW rhIAW hn Aqy keI imslW dw AwrMB ies
g‘l dI puStI krdw hY [

gurU gRMQ dI sMpwdnw Awpxy Awp ivc Adu‘qI pRwpqI sI [ ies

pRwpqI ƒ sihx nw kridAW keI hor Drm ivroDI jW gurU Arjn dyv jI dy
ivroDI AMSW ny keI bIVW iqAwr krvweIAW hoxgIAW [ AijhI Bwvnw dw
auqpMn hoxw koeI AxhoxI g‘l nhIN smJI jwxI cwhIdI [ ienHW bIVW ivc
Awid gRMQ nwloN kuJ v`Krw kuJ G`t jW v`D AMikq krnw suBwivk g‘l hI sI
[

CyvyN kWf dI ivAwiKAw

ies kWf ivc pSOrw isMG ny Awid gRMQ dI bwxI dy BwvwrQ bwry
pVcol kIqI hY [ Awid gRMQ AnMqkwlI gurbwxI dw muj‘smw hY [ iesy krky
ieh is‘K Drm ivc ‘gurU gRMQ swihb’ krky jwixAw jWdw hY [ ‘Sbd’ jW
‘gurU Sbd’ ƒ bhuq mh‘qqw id‘qI geI hY, jo rozm‘rw dI izMdgI ivc
ivcrdw hY [ Sbd dI mh‘qqw ƒ mu‘K rK ky hI gurU gRMQ swihb dI
 362

ivAwiKAw kIqI jw skdI hY [

BwrqI ivcwrDwrw Anuswr Drm gRMQW dI ivAwiKAw cwr ivDIAW
Anuswr kIqI jw skdI hY:

(1) SbdwrQ (Meaning of the word)

(2) tIkw (Commentary)
(3) ivAwiKAw (Exegesis)
(4) pRmwrQ (Sublime meaning)

SbdwrQ ivDI ivc ‘Sbd’ (word) dy ArQ auqy vDyry zor id`qw
jWdw hY [ iek Sbd (word) dw v`Kry-v`Kry SbdW (Hymns) ivc ArQ
smJx dI koiSS kIqI jWdI hY [
tIkw ivDI rwhIN swry Sbd (hymn) dw smu‘cw ArQ smJx dI
koiSS kIqI jWdI hY [
ivAwiKAw ivDI rwhIN iksy iek Sbd (hymn) dI iksy Kws
idRStI qoN ivAwiKAw kIqI jWdI hY [

pR m wrQ ivDI Anu s wr Sbd (hymn) dw AiDAwqimk p‘K

pVcoilAw jWdw hY [
gurU gRMQ igAwn dw AQwh somw hY [ v‘K-v‘K ivDIAW rwhIN ies
dI ivAwiKAw ies sovy ƒ GoKx ivcwrn dw kwrj hI ikhw jw skdw hY [
gurbwxI ivAwiKAw mUMh zubwnI (Oral) jW ilKqI Bwv (Written) ivc kIqI
jw skdI hY [ fw. qwrn isMG ny ijvyN pSOrw isMG mMndw hY, gurbwxI
ivAwiKAw ƒ s‘q v‘KrIAW-v‘KrIAW pRxwlIAW ivc vMifAw hY [ ieh
hn: sihj pRxwlI, BweI pRxwlI, pRmwrQ pRxwlI, audwsI pRxwlI, inrmlw
pRxwlI, igAwnI pRxwlI Aqy isMG sBw pRxwlI [ ienHW swrIAW pRxwlIAW dw
AwSw pSOrw isMG ny fw. qwrn isMG dI ivAwiKAw qoN auDwr ilAw hY [
 363

it`pxI
ieh kWf ivrqWiqk v‘D Aqy Alocnwqimk G‘t hY [ ies kWf
dI sm‘grI Drm gRMQW bwry imldIAW pusqkW ivcoN auplbD hY [ pSOrw
isMG dw isvwey ies g‘l ey ik A‘j klH Awid gRMQ ’qy swihqk p‘KoN ivcwr
ho rhI hY, Awpxw kuJ nhIN [ cMgw huMdw jy auh Awpxy pVHq-ivSlySx rwhIN
Awid gRMQ dI ivAwiKAw krdw, ArQwq Awpxy ivcwr hr pRxwlI dy sMbMD
ivc drswauNdw [ ikqy-ikqy aus dy Awpxy ivcwrW dI Jlk ijhI zrUr pYNdI
hY [ AwKIr ivc ausdw ieh ivcwr ik swihqk pRxwlI Awid gRMQ ƒ
ivAwiKAw rwhIN sMswr dy DrmW dy mukwbly qy KVw kr skdI hY, vrnx Xoh
hY [
is`ty (Conclusions)
pSOrw isMG dy QIiss “Awid gRMQ dw mUl-kQn Aqy BwvwrQ” bwry
AsIN ivcwr kIqI hY [ ies ivc pSOrw isMG ny iqMn Aihm msly auTwey hn:
(1) Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw vyly gurU Arjn dyv jI ny do KriVAW dw
Awsrw ilAw [ ieh hn: goieMdvwl poQIAW Aqy KrVw nMbr
1245 [
(2) gurU Arjn dyv jI ny ienHW KriVAW ivcoN cux-cux ky bwxI
ie‘kqr kIqI Aqy ies ƒ Awid gRMQ ivc sMpwdn kIqI [
ieh aunHW ny is‘K pRMprw Aqy ivcwrDwrw ƒ inqwrn (Crys-
tallization) Kwqr kIqw [
(3) Bgq bwxI aunHW ny bwAd ivc Bgq jnW dI SrDw dyK ky drj
kIqI [
bwkI swry QIiss ivc mMgvW ivrqWiqk izkr hY [
auprokq iqMn msilAW dy pRqIkrm vjoN is‘K jgq ivc iq‘Kw
vwd-ivvwd SurU hoieAw hY [ Anyk is‘K ivdvwnW dy ivcwr AMgryzI Aqy
pMjwbI dy AKbwrW ivc Cpy hoey hn [
ienHW swry ivdvwnW ny pSOrw isMG dy auprokq iqMn Aihm msilAW
bwry swriQk qOr ’qy Awpxy-Awpxy ivcwr pRgtwey hn [ ienHW swry lyKW
 364

ivc ivcwr ƒ Akwdimk p`Dr auqy hI r`iKAw igAw hY [ BwvyN ikqy ikqy
Bwvuk mnoBwvW dw JOlw vI pYNdw hY [ swry lyK iek g‘l qy rzwmMd hn ik
pSOrw isMG ny Awid gRMQ dy ielhwmI p`K qy s`t mwrI hY [
mYN ies lyK ivc pSOrw isMG dy QIiss dI pVcol p‘DqI, Koj dw
imAwr Aqy ies dy ivigAwnk p‘K ƒ ivcwrn dI koiSS kIqI hY [ ieQy
myrw AwSw isrP ieh prKx dw sI ik kI pSOrw isMG dw QIiss iek
pI.AYc.fI. dI auc aupwDI dy imAwr dw hY? myry is`ty ies pRkwr hn:
(1) Awid gRMQ dI sMpwdnw leI vrqy gey KriVAW dI pRmwixkqw
[

(a) goieMdvwl poQIAW: do auplbD poQIAW auqy koeI pRmwixk ilKq

iqQI nhIN hY jo ienHW ƒ inrsMdyh Awid gRMQ qoN purwxIAW is‘D kr sky [ jo
qrIk aupr imldI vI hY auh 1595 eIsvI hY, ijs muqwibk ieh Awid gRMQ
dy sMpwdnW kwl ivc hI rcIAW geIAW [ pSOrw isMG koeI FukvIN Koj pRxwlI
rwhIN ienHW ƒ purwxIAW is‘D nhIN kr sikAw [
(A) KrVw nMbr 1245: ies KrVy auqy koeI ilKx iqQI mUloN hI
nhIN hY [ ies dI AMdrlI ivAwiKAw qoN ieh BlIBWq is‘D ho jWdw hY ik
ieh CyvIN Aqy nOvIN pwqSwhI dy smyN ivc iliKAw igAw hY [ pMjW gurUAW dI
joqI joq smwaux dI qrIk dw hoxw Aqy nOvyN pwqSwh dy inSwn dw hoxw iehI
is‘D krdw hY [ ies s‘c qoN jwxU pSOrw isMG vI hY, pr AwpxIAW k‘cIAW
ijhIAW dlIlW rwhIN ies KrVy ƒ Awid gRMQ qoN pihlW dw isrP ies krky
d‘sdw hY qW ik ausdy QIiss dI zmIn iqAwr ho sky [ eyQy vI aus ny koeI
ivigAwnk FMg nwl ies KrVy ƒ Awid gRMQ qoN purwxw is‘D krn dI koiSS
nhIN kIqI [

(2) gurU Arjn dyv jI ny gurbwxI ivc suDweI kIqI Aqy ies ƒ
Awid gRMQ ivc drj kIqw [ aunHW ieMJ is‘K pRMprw ƒ inqwrn leI kIqw [
ies ivcwr ny bwxI dI ielhwmI mh‘qqw GtweI hY [ ieh bV
pIfw mslw hY [ pr ikauNik ies dw AwDwr Awid kwl qoN hI mwnv dIAW
 365

mnoBwvnwvW nwl juiVAw hoieAw hY, ies leI ies ƒ Koj dy Gyry ivc
ilAwauxw A‘g qy qyl iCVkx vwlI g‘l hY [ ieMJ krky pSOrw isMG ny
pVcol dI lwlsw ADIn, AwpxI ADogqI dw KUh Awp pu‘itAw hY [
mYN pSOrw isMG dI ivAwiKAw qoN BI pRBwivq nhIN hoieAw [ ijvyN
aunHW ny mUl mMqr ivc Awey SbdW dI Adlw-bdlI ƒ vI koeI Tos sbUqW
rwhIN nhIN drswieAw [ jy ieh mMn vI leIey ik SbdW dI Adlw-bdlI
gurU rwmdws Aqy gurU Arjn dyv jI ny kIqI, pr AMdrUnI ivAwiKAw qoN pqw
l‘gdw hY ik bdly hoey Sbd (purK, inrvYr) gurU nwnk dyv jI dI bwxI
ivcoN vI imldy hn Aqy siqkwrI rUp ivc QW-QW jVy hoey hn [ ieMJ jwpdw
hY ik ieh ‘inqwrn’ dw kwrj, jo pSOrw isMG ny gurU Arjn dyv jI dy isr
miVHAw hY, vI pSOrw isMG dI idmwgI kwF hY [ ieh kwF aus ny Awpxy
QIiss dw mswlw iek‘Tw krn kwrn k‘FI [
(3) BgqW dI bwxI bwAd ivc Bgq jnW dI SrDw dyK ky AMikq
kIqI geI [
ieh mslw is‘K ivcwrDwrw dI muFlI pRMprw ’qy s‘t mwrdw hY [
bwxI is‘K ivcwrDwrw jW dwrSink auqy prK ky hI Awid gRMQ ivc drj
kIqi geI hY nw ik iksy mnu`KvwdI jW rwjnIqk pRBwvW ADIn [

iek g`l pSOrw isMG dy h‘k ivc jWdI hY ik ausdy QIiss ƒ

piVHAW ieMJ jwpdw hY ik ieh bVI imhnq Aqy pRBwvSwlI SYlI ivc
iliKAw hoieAw hY, pr jy iek pI.AYc.fI. dy p`Dr dI Koj ies ivcoN l`BIey
qW ies aupwDI dy hwx dI Koj dI ies ivc Gwt hY [

ivcwrnXog g`l ieh hY ik pSOrw isMG ny Awpxy Awp ƒ gurU dw

is‘K mMnidAW hoieAW Aijhw ikauN kIqw ! myry ivcwr ivc ieh aus ny
pI.AYc.fI. dI aupwDI dI p‘CmI ivdvwnW vloN id‘qI geI lwlsw ADIn
kIqw hY [ ies dw pRmwx aus dy QIiss ivc QW-QW ieh mMnxw ik ‘Awid
gRMQ’ hI is`KW dI pRmwxIk bIV hY, ivcoN imldw hY [ myry ivcwr Anuswr
p`CmI ivdvwnW ny pSOrw isMG ƒ iek h`Q-kMfw bxwieAw hY qW ik auh
 366

AwpxI ivcwrDwrw iksy is`K ividAwrQI rwhIN is‘K m‘q aupr Tos skx [
ieh is`K ividAwrQI dw durBwg hY [ pr svwl ieh auTdw hY ik ies
dunIAW ivc ikMny ku ivAkqI AYsy hoxgy jo Drm Kwqr AwpxI rozI dy swDnW
ƒ l‘q mwr dyx ? ies svwl dw auqr l`Bx leI swƒ Awpxy AMdr fUMGI
nzr mwrnI pvygI, pr gurU ky AslI is`K Swied is`K Drm dy AsUlW ƒ hI
m`hqqw dyx [
 367

3
gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvristI dI h`Q ilKq
1245 dw qoV-swr

fw. KVk isMG mwn, cMfIgVH

auprokq h`Q ilKq dw ieh KrVw ijs dy AwDwrq-q‘QW dI GoK-

pVqwl qy trWto dy iek ivAkqI pSOrw isMG ny AwpxI pI.AYc.fI. dI
aupwDI leI kMm kIqw aus dw pihlw srvyKx hwzr hY [

1. purwqn h`Q ilKqW dy sMbMD ivc vriqAw igAw auprokq KrVw

nw qW sRI gurU gRMQ swihb dI h`Q ilKq hI AwKx dw h`kdwr hY qy nw hI muFly
pRwpq KriVAW ivc hI ies dI igxqI kIqI jw skdI hY [ ies ivc rwgW
dw Aqy bwxI dI SuDqw dw hlkw ijhw Jlkwrw vI iksy sbwpq h`Q ilKq
nwl myl nhIN KWdw, ijs ƒ siqgurU jI dI pRvwnqw kdI imlI hovy ijvyN
krqwrpurI bIV hY [
2. siqgurW dIAW keI bwxIAW Aqy BgqW dy keI SbdW dw vI ies
h‘Q ilKq ivc ABwv hY [

3. ies ivc BweI gurdws jI dy ilKqI FMg dw Jaulw vI nhIN

idsdw ijnHW ny SrDw pUrvk krqwrpurI bIV dI syvw Aqy sMpUrnqw kIqI [
4. ieh KrVw gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvristI ny 1987 eI: AMimRqsr
dy iek fIlr pwsoN KrIidAw [ XUnIvristI dw koeI vI sMbMDq ivAkqI
h‘Q ilKq dI iviQAw qoN jwxU nhIN [ ies Adwry dy pRqIinD jW ies dy
lwiebryrIAn Aqy nw hI kmytI dy mYNbr ies dI KrId qoN jwxU hn [ auh
dsdy hn ik iesdw ivkryqw-ivAkqI vI ies khwxI ƒ gupq rKxw cwhuMdw
hY [
5. ies KrVy aupr ivkryqw dw id‘qw iek not Aqy pSOrw isMG dy
Anumwn Anuswr, ieh KrVw bwbw bu`Fw jI dy pirvwr nwl sMbDq hY (bwbw
bu‘Fw jI siqgurW dy bhuq hI inktvrqI Aqy Ainn Bgq sn) [ ies
 368

KrVy ivc iek slok bwbw bu‘Fw jI vloN, “nwnk-Cwp” hyTW id‘qw hY ijs
dy pRXog dw AiDkwr kyvl g‘dI-sQwpq siqgurUAW ƒ hI huMdw sI [ bwbw
bu‘Fw jI dw AsQwn, jo hux aunHW dy nwl, “bIV bwbw bu‘Fw jI” kr ky pRis‘D
hY, auQy dy pRbMDk jW bwbw bu‘Fw pirvwr dw koeI ivAkqI ieho ijhy iksy vI
q‘Q qoN ienkwrI hn, qy d‘sdy hn ik aunHW kdy vI iksy ieho ijhI h‘Q
ilKq bwbq, jW bwbw jI vloN ikDry ilKy gey slok bwbq nW kdy suixAw hY,
nw XkIn vI kIqw jw skdw hY [

6. ies kiQq h‘Q ilKq aupr nw hI koeI ilKqI sMmq jW ikqy

koeI qrIk hY, qy nw hI ikqy ilKwrI kw koeI sMkyq hY, ijs qoN ies h‘Q
ilKq dI purwqnwq hI is‘D ho sky [ pUrn inscw hY ik ieh h‘Q ilKq
sMn 1608 qoN vI bhuq ip‘CoN dI hY [ ies h‘Q ilKq ivc iek “nIswx”
pMnw 1255 qy icpkwieAw hoieAw hY, ijs dw sMbMD CyvyN siqgurU jI nwl
disAw igAw hY [ ies dy sbUq vjoN pSOrw isMG ies h‘Q ilKq ƒ CyvyN
siqgurU jI dy smyN dI is‘D krnw cwhuMdw hY [ Xwd rhy, ik ieh inSwn ies
h‘Q ilKq aupr nhIN hY, bwAd ivc icpkwieAw igAw iek kwgz hY ijs
bwry pSOrw isMG Awp vI sMdyh ivc hY ik ieh inSwn Swied gurU qyg bhwdr
jI dw hovy [ ieh gurU CyvyN pwqSwh dI ilKq nwl myl nhIN KWdw [ ies
ieko q‘Q qoN hI ieh is‘D ho jWdw hY ik pSOrw isMG vloN ies KrVy ƒ gurU
Arjn dyv jI dy smyN jW 1604 sMn dw is‘D krn dI gl by-buinAwd hY [
7. jpujI dI ilKq, ies KrVy ivc, soFI imhrbwn dI ilKq nwl
imldI hY [ ijs soFI ƒ gurU-Gr dw ivroDI Aqy gurU pMQ dw CyikAw hoieAw
mMinAw igAw hovy, aus dI prMprw Anuswr “nwnk-Cwp” dI hoNd, ies KrVy
dy pMny 3 qy idqy Slok dy AwDwr qy ies ƒ mIxw-pirvwr nwl joVdI hY [
ieh fIlr vI dsdw hY ik ieh KrVw vI imhrbwn pirvwr dy iksy ivAkqI
qoN hI hQ l`gw hY [ inrsMdyh, ieh KrVw vI mIxw-swihq dI hI ikrq hY
[ ieho ijhI ilKq ƒ gurU Arjn dyv jI nwl sMbMDq krnw Asl q`QW ƒ
qoVn dw iek nw-bKSy jwx vwlw AprwD hY [ jwpdw hY ik ieh swrw
 369

kukrm 1987 eI: ƒ ies XUnIvristI ivc hI AwrMB hoieAw [

8. ikqny hor DrmW dIAW Drm-pusqkW, aunHW dy sMcwlk gurU-
pYgMbrW dy clwxy qoN bwd hI hoNd ivc AweIAW [ btwlw sMsQw dy ieh rih
cu‘ky pRcwrk, swfI prvwinq Drm pusqk sRI gurU grMQ swihb jI dI
“krqwrpurI bIV” dI SuDqw Aqy prmwixkqw ƒ mno-klpq glq q‘QW dy
ADwrw qy vMgwr rhy hn [ ieh ivroDI-Xqn, ijs rwhIN gurbwxI ivc
Adlw bdlIAW vI gurU Arjn dyv jI nwl sMbMDq krnIAW, iesy kukrm dw
hI iek AMg hn [

9. KrVw # 1245 dy pMnw 1255 aupr id‘qI tUk “cilq joqI

joq smwxy ky” pihly pMj siqgurW bwry ieko ilKwrI h‘QIN Aqy ieko hI
isAwhI nwl ilKy hn [ ieh ieko q‘Q hI ieh is‘D krn leI kw&I hY ik
ieh KrVw 1245, sMn 1606 eI. sMmq 1663 dy ip‘CoN dI kwF hY qy pSOrw
isMG , ies jugq qoN BlI pRkwr jwxU vI hY [ auh ies rwhIN CyvyN pwiqSwh
dI joqI joq smwaux dI iqQ ƒ ies qoN bwAd dI is‘D krnw cwhuMdw hY [

10. iek hl hor ik pMnw 1255 aupr id‘qy, “cilq joqI-joq

smwxy ky” dy nwl h‘Q ilKq dw Bog nhIN pY jWdw, sgoN ies dy bwAd vI hor
slok jW bwxI leI 22 pMny vrqy gey hn ies q‘Q dI vI puStI huMdI hY ik
sMn 1606 eI. dy bwAd vI ies h‘Q ilKq dI ilKq cldI rhI [
11. ieh dUSn vI AsloN inrmUl hY ik “mMglw-crn” ivc, A`Kr
“inrMkwr” jw “krqwr” ikauN vriqAw igAw, ieQy A`Kr inrol “krqw-
purK” iliKAw jwpdw hY [
12. ieho ijhI dUSq Aqy ipCoN ilKI h‘Q ilKq ƒ iks cqurweI
nwl pihlI h‘Q ilKq is‘D kr ky, pSOrw isMG ny iek gurU-inMdk Aqy
ivdrohI dw p‘K pUirAw hY, ijs dy cwr muK Bwg hn ijvyN :-

(a) gurU nwnk dyv jI sxy cwr hor gurUAW dI bwxI, “Dur kI bwxI”
 370

nhIN [ ies ivc bwAd ivc Adlw-bdlI huMdI rhI hY, qy gurU Arjn dyv
jI Awp vI krdy rhy hn [
(A) gurU Arjn dyv jI ny AiDAwqmk pKoN, ies ivc keI vwDy-
Gwty kIqy hn [
(e) gurU Arjn dyv jI ny bwxI dI glq-vrqoN kridAW bwxI ƒ
gurU nwnk dI bwxI disAw [
(s) ijhVw Slok, gurU jI dI pkI bwxI nhIN sI, aus dy gux
gWidAW pSOrw isMG ny aus ƒ isr qy cu‘k ilAw [
koeI d`sy ik A`KrW ƒ qroV-mRoV krn dw ieh krm, jy kuPr nhIN,
qW hor kI hY ?
 371

4
iek pRwcIn h‘Q-ilKq dI cox
mnohr isMG mwrko
ieh gl vI pSOrw isMG bwry hI hY, qy hY vI gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvristI
dI h‘Q-ilKq 1245 bwry [ ivdvwn lyKk ƒ ieh h‘k hY, ik s‘c ƒ
DuMDlw dsx leI, JUT dw koeI vI prpc KVw kr lvy, pr socx dI gl qW
ieh hY, ik fwktr dI aupwDI leI Awpxy gurU qoN muK moVn dI Srq qy zrUrI
nhIN huMdI [ KYr ! ieh cox hr mnuK dI AwpxI hY [
socdw hW, ies by-nvIN h‘Q ilKq dw ipCokV ikQoN liBAw jwvy, jy
ikDroN vI ies dw izkr pihlW cilAw huMdw, qW ies bwry gl krn dI koeI
duvDw vI nhIN sI hoxI [ ies h‘Q-ilKq 1245 dw iksy nW vI nhIN suixAw
[ ies ƒ sMmq 1663 ( sMn 1604) qoN pihlW dw is‘D krn dw Xqn,
krqwrpurI bIV jW BweI bMno jI vwlI bIV ƒ ies qoN nkl hoeIAw is‘D
krn dI iek cwl hY [
A`j qk isK ieiqhws ivc AweIAW bIVW ivcoN sMmq 1661 qoN
sMmq 1870 q`k kyvl cwr ilKqI bIVW dw izkr hY:-
1. Awid bIV qoN is`DI nkl BweI bMno vwlI bIV sMmq 1661
2. BweI bMno qoN nkl, bohV vwlI bIV sMmq 1662
3. ipMfI - lwlw vwlI bIV sMmq 1663
4. bUVw sMDU vwlI bIV sMmq 1662
auprokq cwroN bIVW qy swihb gurU Arjn dyv jI dy nISwx mOjUd
hn, qy ienHW dI nkl hox dw AsQwn kuJ mIlW dy hI Gyry ivc BweI bMno jI
dy ipMf Kwrw mWgt dy igrdy sI [
sMmq 1770 qk hor cwr bIVW nkl hoeIAW, ijnHW dI pCwx leI,
aunHW dy nwvW dw vrnx ieh hY :-
5. rUs dI lwiebryrI ivc bIV sMmq 1661
6. lwhOrI bIV pwqSwhI CyvIN sMmq 1667
7. bIV rwg goNf qoN ArMB is: rY: l: sMmq 1667
8. BweI pYNDw jI (hkIm bUtw isMG rwvlipMfI) sMmq 1663
 372

ies ibaury Anuswr sMmq 1700 (sMn 1643) qk iksy vI ieho

jhI bIV dw izkr nhIN, jo KrVw nMbr 1245 vwlI h‘Q-ilKq nwl myl
KWdI hovy [
kuJ purwqn-ilKqI A‘KrW qoN, kuJ kwgz dI bxqr qoN, kuJ
isAwhI qoN, qy bhuqw lgW-mwqrW dI purwqnqw qoN hI kuJ is`D krn dw Xqn
kIqw jweygw [ ies dI purwqnqw is`D krnw, QIiss dy lyKk dw kMm sI, pr
aus ny qW jwx-buJ ky ieh JMmylw KVw kIqw hY, qy Awp qmwSbIn bx ky swrw
qmwSw vyK irhw hY [
myry swhmxy ies vyly ies bIV dy pihly pMny dI ilKq dw iek
nmUnw hY ijs qoN ilKwrI-hQIN “<”dI bxqr, AKrW dI qy l`gw mwqrW dI
purwqnqw hI isD kIqI jw skdI hY [ ies ilKwrI dI ilKq dy A`Kr purwqn
hn, pr h`Q-ilKq smyN qk nvIn-mwqRW dw prcln ho cukw sI qy h`Q-
ilKq sMmq 1700 qoN pihlW dI kdwicq is`D nhIN ho skdI [ “<”
ivc E dI GuMfI, Agy vl ƒ muVn dI QW, ipCy vl ƒ hY, qy ieh q`Q ies
ƒ gurU CyvyN pwqSwh dy smyN qoN vI Agy lY AwauNdw hY [
 373

duSmx bwq kry AnhoxI

mnohr isMG mwrko
gl pSOrw isMG dI krn l‘gw hW, jo AsloN swfw duSmx nhIN, sgoN
iek s‘jx hY [ g‘l vI aus dy huxy hI inbyVy SoDpRbMD jW QIiss bwry hY
ijs dw ivSw hY, “THE TEXT & MEANING OF THE ADE-
GRANTH” [ ies dy AwrMB ivc smrpx vjoN ilKdy hn, “mYN idloN
Awdr sihq Awpxy mwqw jI dw dyxdwr hW, ijnHW gurbwxI dI dwq nwl mYƒ
invwijAw” [ zrw socy qW shI, ik ieho ijhw bMdw, swfw duSmx ikvyN ho
skdw hY, ijs ƒ guVHqI gurbwxI dI imlI hovy, pr jwpdw ieh hY ik Swied
Awpxy SoD-pRbMD leI iksy lwlc jW iksy dy vrglwvy ivc Aw igAw hovy [
BilAw lokw [ ieqnI ijhI g‘l bdly qYƒ gurU qoN bymu‘K hox dI kI loV sI
? ieqnw ijhw qyrw kMm qW Bwvy myry pwsoN hI inbV jWdw [ qYƒ ieh loV vI
kI sI, ik Axigxq mh‘qv-pUrn ieiqhwsk bIVW CoV ky Awpxy leI qUM
koeI AijhI h‘Q-ilKq , iksy KUMjy qoN jo toldw ijs dw nW vI iksy KojI ny
kdy nhIN suixAw, ijs dy ilKwrI dw koeI Aqw-pqw nhIN, ijs dy sMn-sMmq
dw ikqy koeI sMkyq nhIN, qy ieh sB ies leI ik qyry ies kMm qy koeI ikMqU
nw kr sky [ qUM Awp hI d‘s ik qyrI ies h‘Q-ilKq dw jy koeI KojI jwxUM
hI nhIN hovygw qW auh qyry kMm qy ikMqU kI kr skygw ? vIr ! qUM Awp hI soc
ky ds ik ieho ijhI bynwvI h‘Q-ilKq dy tply ivc aulJ ky, qUM ikauN
Awpxy ieSt dy, swry jg qoN v‘Kry qy ivl‘Kx kMm qoN mUMh moV ky aunHW ƒ
kyvl iek Awm ilKwrI dI p‘Dr qy ilAw ky GoK-pVqwl AwrMB kr id‘qI
ijvyN auh vI qyry vWg hI AwpxI iksy pirvwrk loV smyN, Awpxy is`KW ƒ
‘inrvYr’ hox dw aupdyS idMdw hY [ myry isAwxy vIr, iek ivdvwn hox dy
nwqy, kI qyrw ieh Prz nhIN sI bxdw, ik ijs ‘gur prswid’ dy sMkyq dw
qUM ieqnw ivvwd AwrMiBAw hY, aus ilKq dI iek Poto hI Cwp idMdw qW jo
iksy KojI ƒ ieh pqw hI cl skdw ik ieh ilKq iks gurU jI dI hY, BweI
 374

gurdws jI dI hY, jW iksy ksbI-ilKwrI dw iksy ƒ tplw dyx dw Xqn hY

[ ies ‘siqgur pRswid’ vwly nISwx, mYN pihlI vwrI BweI bMno jI vwlI bIV
ivc byitkwxy icpky hoey vyKy sn, jo iek kwgz dy tukVy ƒ bIV dy iek pMny
qy icpkwieAw hoieAw sI qy aus ilKq dw sMbMD gurU hirgoibMd jI nwl
d‘isAw igAw sI [ myrw ieh iKAwl sI ik ieh ‘gur pRswid’ dI QW
‘siqgur pRswid’ dw vwDw Swied gurU Arjn dyv jI qoN pihlW dy iksy
gurU ivAkqI dw hovy ik aunHW dy jIvn kwl ivc hI, aunHW dy soDy qy
sQwpq mU l -mM q r ivc, au n H W dy Awpxy hI sihXo g spu ‘ qr ikvy N ko e I
vwDw kr skdy hn [ hux q‘k bIVW dI ilKq, aunHW dI ilKq sMmqw dy
AwDwr qy mMnI jwx ivc kw&I crcw rhI hY, pr ikauN jo keI loBI purS
Awpxy pws peIAW bIVW dw mu l vDwx leI hI ienH W dy sM m qW ivc vwDw
Gwtw krdy Awey hn, qy ijs dw kuJ pRXog BweI bMno vwlI bIV ivc vI
ho i eAw hY [ ies bIV dw sM m q ilKx dy bwAd au s ilKweI au p r
hVqwl Pyr ky hyTly AMk ƒ 1659 bxw id‘qw igAw (iKAwl hY ik ieh
AM k 1699 sI) ku J vI ho v y , ieh sM d y h nhIN kihAw jw skdw ik ieh
sMmq ikauN qoiVAw igAw pr iek inrnw nW inSicq hY ik ieh bIV
Asl ‘Awid bIV’ dw au q wrw hY , qy bwkI swrI iviQAw ies dI ijld
bxwaux Awid dI pRclq hY qW ik ies bIV dy sMmq Awid dI g‘l, ies
lyKk (p. s.) ny qW AwrMBI hY qw ik ieh swbq kIqw jw sky ik sMmq
1699 (1659) vwlI bIV, sMmq 1661 vwlI Awid-bIV qoN pihlW dI
hY qy hux ijs ibnW-sMmq vwlI gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvristI dI nM. 1245
h‘Q ilKq ijsqy ieh QIiss ADwrq hY aus ƒ ienHW auprokq dohW bIVW
qoN vI purwqn is`D kIqw jw sky [
auprokq ivSy bwry mzy dI g`l ieh hy ik QIiss ilKx vyly qk
lyKk ny aus bIV ƒ q‘ikAw nhIN, ivcwirAw nhIN, qy bs inrnw lY ky
ilKxw ArMB kr id‘qw hY [ ‘gurU ijnHW dy t‘pxy cyly jwx CV`p’ [
 375

iek hor hwso-hIxI g‘l v‘l iDAwn jWdw hY ik BweI bMno dI bIV,
ies leI bhuqI ivSvwsXog hY ik aus ivc kuJ vwDU bwxIAW hox kwrn aus
dw Akwr v`fw hY [ Akwr p‘KoN qW hux q‘k auplbd swrIAW bIVW ivcoN
‘hkIm bUtw isMG vwlI (jW BweI pYNDw jI rwvlIipMfI vwlI bIV) bhuq BwrI
vI sI qy bhuqIAW bwxIAWvI aus ivc sn, pr aus ƒ krqwrpurI bIV hox
dw mwx iksy nw id‘qw [ ies dw mqlb hoieAw, ik jy pSOrw isMG bhuqIAW
g‘lW kry qW auh mYklIEf dw vI gurU hoieAw [
hr purwqn h`Q-ilKq bIV ivc iek tUk qqkry dy ArMB ivc
id‘qI huMdI sI, ‘jpu gurU rwm dws jI ky dsKqW kI nkl’ pr aus g`l ƒ
inKyiVAw ikqy nhIN igAw ik aunHW dsKqW dy ArQ kI sn? mUl-mMqr dw
isrlyK, ‘< siqgur pRswid’ hI hY [ ho skdw hY ik ‘AjUnI sYBM, gur
pRswid’ ivc qukWq dy qol ƒ SuD r‘Kx vwsqy ies qrHW kIqw igAw hovy [ jy
s‘cmuc ikqy pSOrw isMG , gurU kwl vyly huMdw, qW Swied swfy ies SuD mUl-
mMqr dw srUp kuJ hor hI huMdw [
Bgq-bwxI dw gurU grMQ swihb ivc Swml krn dw ieh mqlb
lYxw, ik BgqW dy BgqW ƒ AwpxI is‘KI dy Gyry ivc ilAwaux dI iek gurU
cwl sI byqukI gl hY [ jy ieh g‘l huMdI, qW iPr Bgq PrId jI dy ieh
A‘Kr ik ‘PrIdw by-inmwzw kuiqAw, ieh nw BlI rIq…’ vrgy s^q
A‘Kr, bIV ivc Swml kr ky siqgurU jI Awpxy keI muslmwn snyhIAW qon
dUr ho jWdy [

inrMkwr, krqw-purK jW siqgurU ivc koeI Byd-Bwv smJ ky koeI

Adlw-bdlI nhIN hoeI jwpdI [ vwihgurU dy byAMq nW swihb dSmyS jI ny
‘jwpu swihb’ ivc vrqy hn, auh koeI nwvW dw Byd-Bwv nhIN sI, auh qW
inrMkwr dw SrDw-meI aucwrn sI [ jy gurU Arjn dyv jI ny mUl mMqr dw
iek Tuk bMnH id`qw, qW auh swfw srv-pRvwnq mUl-mMqr is`D hoieAw qy aus
ivc koeI vI Adlw-bdlI bwAd ivc hoxI sihn nhIN kIqI jw skdI [

iesy sMbMD ivc ieQy ivcwrn vwlI g‘l iek hor hY, ijs leI
 376

lyKk ny bhuq zor lw ky keI vwrI duhrwieAw hY ik gurU Arjn dyv jI ny

mUl-mMqr ƒ AwKrI Skl dyx leI bVI vwrI KrVw bdilAw qy bVw icr
k`t-v`F krn dy bwAd ies ƒ hux vwlw rUp idqw [ ieh ‘keI icr’ Aqy
‘bVy XqnW’ vwlI g‘l dI smJ nhIN Aw skI ik ieh ikho ijhI sm‘isAw
sI ijs q`k pu`jx ivc keI Xqn krny pey ? ieh Xqn ikauN krny pey qy
ieauN bwr-bwr ktx-ktwx dI loV BwsdI rhI ? Awpxy ‘cwcy’ ƒ ‘qwieAw’
kihx nwl kI phwV ault pYxw sI ? SrDw dI h`d ivc rih ky hr sMboDn
AwpxI QW bxw ilAw krdw hY [ ies ivc gurU Bwvnw qW ikqy bdlI nhIN
jwpdI [ ‘gur pRswid’ Aqy ‘siqgur pRswid’ qy ivcwr bVI mwmUlI g`l sI,
ies qy ieqnw zor lgw ky g`l krn dI Bwvnw bwbq socxw pY irhw hY [

mUl mMqr ivc gurU nwnk dyv jI dy ‘inrMkwr’ dy audwhrx ƒ

‘Akwl purK’ ivc ikauN bdilAw igAw ? ieh vI tUk, bVy zor nwl prKI
geI hY [ ieh mUl-mMqr dw SuD-srUp swihb gurU Arjn dyv jI ny sMgqW
dI AgvweI leI iek Tu`k jW Standard vjoN bKiSAw qy sMgqW ƒ inrMkwr
jW Akwl purK dy sMboDn nwl koeI ivGn vI kdy nhIN ipAw [

gurU nwnk dyv jI, iksy ƒ imlx vyly ‘Piqh’ nhIN sn bulwauNdy qy
ijvyN swKIkwr d`sdw hY ik auh kihMdy sn, bol mrdwinAw ‘siq krqwr’ [
bwAd ivc goieMdvwl dIAW poQIAW Anuswr gurU Amrdws jI ny aus ‘krqwr’
ƒ ‘inrMkwr’ dw sMboDn bKiSAw [ gurU Arjn dyv jI ny ies ƒ ‘krqw-
purK’ AwiKAw [ hux ijvyN pSOrw isMG ny AwpxI cox nM. 1245 vwlI h`Q-
ilKq ivc kiQq nIswx ‘siqgurU’ ƒ swihb hirgoibMd jI dw sMboDn
mMinAw hY [ gurU dsm pwqSwh Awpxy Kwlsy ƒ ‘vwihgurU jI kw Kwlsw’
mMndy hn, qW ieqny nwvW aupnwvW dy sMboDn nwl swfI SrDw ivc koeI
ivGn kdy nhIN AwieAw qW mUl-mMqr ivc vrqy gey ‘gurU jW siqgurU’ dy
aucwrn nwl vI swfw kuJ ivgV nhIN cilAw, ieh qW kyvl iksy skwlr dI
ivdvqw dw ivKwlw hY [
 377

jwpdw hY, ieh iek cqur ivdvwn dw A‘KrI Xu‘D hY, ijs ivcoN
iSStwcwr jW snyh Bwvnw dw kyvl ABwv hI nhIN, sgoN ivroD-BwvI duSW-
Bwvnw prq‘K hY [ ieauN pqw cldw hY, ijvyN koeI iz‘dI b‘cw Awpxy ipqw
dI iksy g‘l qoN nwrwz ho ky aus ƒ Gr inptwaux dI QW glI, ivc Klo ky
gwlHW k‘Fx l‘g ipAw hY, ik ies nwl auh Swied Awpxy iksy gvWFI dw
smrQn kr sky [

sMKypqw vjoN dsidAW, ieh zrUrI ho jWdw hY ik nIswx mwr aupr

ivcwr kridAW aunHW nISwnW dI pVqwl kr leI jwey ik ieh koeI iksy di
Gr dI KyqI nhIN, ik JUT-s‘c ijvyN jI kry g‘l ƒ mRoV-qRoV ky swfy pMQ ƒ
BMifAw jwvy qy A‘goN leI JUTy q‘QW dI Brmwr, is‘K ieiqhws ivc Swml
kr id‘qI jwey [ ienHW Axis‘K cODrIAW dI pRMprw hI is‘K pMQ ny ikvyN
pRvwn kIqI [ gurduAwirAW dw ijhVw Dn, auswrU kMmW v‘l vriqAw jwxw
sI, auh AsIN BVUAw AKvwx qy vrq rhy hW [ kI iksy purwxy gurU nISwx dI
prK vI swƒ pwdrIAW koloN krvwaux dI loV pvygI ? swfy purwqn ivrsy
ivcoN koeI dUSq-q‘Q iksy Ax-pRvwnq pusqk ivcoN l‘B ky iksy pRdysI
Adwry ivcoN ifgrI lY ky swrI aumr swƒ BMfx dw Tykw lY ilAw jwvy [
dsKq prKx dw mslw koeI muSkl nhIN, jy AwpxI nIAq SuD r‘K ky iksy
s‘c ƒ s‘c AwKx dw hOslw hovy [ iksy sQwpq is‘K sMsQw qoN ieh
shwieqw leI jw skdI hY, pr jy koeI sm‘isAw Awvy qW byS‘k myrI syvw lY
lE [
AsIN Awpxy AiDAwqm-vwdI h‘k vjoN ieh inrnw lY leIey ik
A‘gy qoN swfI Drm-pusqk qy koeI kMm krn leI iksy vI ivdvwn ƒ swfI
pRvwnq sMsQw SRomxI pRbMDk kmytI qoN ilKqI AwigAw lYxI Av`S hovy [
auprokq QIiss bwry bhuq kuJ iliKAw jw cu‘kw hY qy bwr-bwr
ies nukqy ƒ duhrweI jwxw inrmUl hY [ ies bwry pMQk inrnw lYxw bhuq
hI zrUrI hY [
 378

sRI gurU gRMQ swihb bwry ipSOrw isMG dw QIiss

is‘K Drm dy iKlw& iek v‘fI swizS

hrijMdr isMG idlgIr

sRI ipSOrw isMG (ausdy nW nwl isMG ilKxw munwisb nhIN) ny

1991 dy AKIr ivc “kwhlI kwhlI” Awpxw pI.AYc.fI., QIiss trWto
XUnIvristI ƒ pyS kIqw Aqy aus qy pI.AYc.fI. iml vI geI [ (DMn
stYNfrf ies XUnIvristI dw) [ QIiss pVHn mgroN jo Aihsws hoieAw
aus dw nW gu`sw, roh, nPrq, iGRxw jW kuJ hor riKAw jwey, ieh mYN PYslw
nhIN kr sikAw [ iek g`l sw& hY ik ieh ie`k v`fI swizS dw Awgwz
trMp ny kIqw sI [ aus mgroN hYnrI kort qy SrDw rwm iPlorI, iPr
mYkilEf, iPr hrjoq Ebrwey qy hux ipSOrw [ jy.AYs. gryvwl, rwhul,
surjIq hWs ies lVI dw dUjw isrw hn [ iesy lVI ivc Ajy iek hor
QIiss guirMdr mwn (AmrIkw) dI vI ieMqzwr hY [ aus dw gweIf vI
mYkilEf (AYNtI-is`Kprcwrk) hI hY [ aupr izkr kIqy QIiss dy kuJ
nukiqAW bwry ivcwr hyT ilKy Anuswr hY :-
1. sB qoN pihlW qW “AYbstrYkt” dw s&w hY [ aus ivc lyKk
AwKdw hY ik sRI gurU gRMQ swihb dIAW sRI gurU Arjn swihb qoN pihlW iqMn
prMprwvW sn [ sRI gurU Arjn swihb ny aunHW ƒ “imAwrI” bxwieAw [
lyKk muqwibk sRI gurU Arjn dyv swihb ny ikMny frwPt iqAwr krqwey qy
AKIr krqwrpurI bIV ƒ AwKrI frwPt mnzUr kIqw [ lyKk swry QIiss
ivc ikqy vI swibq nhIN krdw ik pihloN koeI hor frwPt vI sI [ iksy
Ais`Dy smyN qoN vI auh ieh swibq nhIN krdw [ XkInn aus dw inSwnw gurU
swihb dI kwblIAq, rUhwnIAq, ielm auqy hmlw krnw hY [ lyKk dw
l&z “imAwrI” (Standardization) bxwauxw vI aulJx ivc pwaux vwlw
hY [ kI auh bwxI ƒ iksy imAwr dw bxw ky sMpwdn krn v`l ieSwrw kr
 379

irhw hY ? jW ik Awm Dwrimk jW AdbI pKoN aus dy imAwr dI g`l krdw hY

? dovW ivcoN koeI vI jW kuJ vI vjHw hoey pRMqU iek gl qW swP hY ik lyKk
gurU swihb, gurbwxI qy gurU grMQ swihb dI qohIn krn dI koiSS kr irhw
hY [
s&w 1 qy ilKdw hY ik “grMQ” dw mqlb “isrP ikqwb” huMdw hY
[ lyKk eySIAw dw qy pMjwb dw hox dy bwvjUd eynw bysmJ hY ik gRMQ l&z
hr ikqwb vwsqy nhIN vriqAw jWdw, isrP Dwrimk ikqwb vwsqy vriqAw
jWdw hY [ Swsqr, gurU swKI L&z vI Awm mwAinAW ivc nhIN vrqy jWdy
[
s&w 2 qy jy. AYs. gryvwl dI tUk dyx dI vI koeI quk nhIN [
isrP aus dw nW dyx vwsqy AYvyN BrqI kIqI geI hY [ AwKrI lweIn ‘c
lyKk ilKdw hY ik “auh (gurU nwnk swihb) Awpxy Awp ƒ Akwl purK dw
“mwaUQpIs” smJdy sn qy ies auqy XkIn kr ky, aunHW ny ies ƒ zbwnI qy
ilKqI rUp ivc sMBwlxw cwihAw hoeygw [ ies g`l ƒ lyKk ‘Koj’ AwKdw
hY [ dUjw, eyQy L&z mYsMjr jW spoksmYn nhIN blik “mwaUQpIs” pwglpn
vrgI g`l hY jo lyKk ky hoCwpx qy qohIn krn dy ierwdy dw iezhwr hY [
s&w 3 qy auh bwxI dI iek tUk dyNdw hY ‘ilKy bwJhu suriq nwhI
boil boil gvweIAY” (gurU gRMQ swihb, pMnw 566) qy ies dw ArQ ilKdw hY
ik jy zbwnI bwxI r`KI qW guAwc jweygI, ilKxw zrUrI hY [ ipSOrw kYlgrI
ivc grMQI lgw irhw hY qy keI swl pUjw dy Dn qy pldw irhw hY [ aus vloN
bwxI dy AnrQ krn AikRqGxqw nhIN qW hor kI hY [ ijs tUk dI auh g`l
krdw hY auh pMnw 565 qoN SurU huMdI hY (vfhMs mhlw pihlw) aus dw mwAnw
swP spSt hY ik “vwihgurU vloN (krmW ivc) ilKy bwJoN suriq (igAwn,
s`c dw cwnx) nhIN ho skdw qy &OkIAW g`lW (boil boil) ‘c AsI izMdgI
gvWdy hW” [ ieh ipSOrw isMG dI bwxI ƒ AwpxI JUTI “Koj” vwsqy glq
mwAny k`F ky vrqx dI swijS hY [

iqMn s&y dI AwKrI lweIn jo s&w 4 qy jWdI hY, ivc hor J‘K
mwrdw hY [ auh ilKdw hY ‘DMn su kwgdu klm DMnu DMnu BWfw DMnu msu [ DMnu
 380

ilKwrI nwnkw ijin nwmu ilKwieAw scu” [ qoN auh mwAnw k‘Fdw hY ik gurU
swihb ny ilKqI rUp SurU kr id‘qw sI jdoN ik ies tUk dw mwAnw ieh hY
ik auh ilKwrI, klm, isAwhI, kwgz, isAwhI dw BWfw krmW vwlw huMdw hY
jo s‘cw nW, r‘b dI is&q slwh ‘c ilKdw hY [ ies dy nwl iek hor XBlI
mwrI hoeI hY (Q‘ly Put not nMbr 10) ik jo bwxI dIAW kwpIAW kr ky vycdy
hn, gurU jI aunHW ƒ inMddy hn hwlW ik vwr swrMg ivc ilK ilK vycy nwau
pMfqW dy jwdU tUxy vycx qy it`pxI hY [

s&w 5 qy Pyr bwxI dy glq mwAny krdw hY [ “iqn kau ikAw

aupdySIAY ijn gurU nwnk dyau” eyQy dyau dw mwAnw dyx (nW) nhIN hY blik
ieh mwAnw hY ik ‘ijnHW ƒ (hy nwnk) gurU ny hI (ielm) id`qw hY (dyau) aunHW
ƒ vDyry smJwaux dI zrUrq nhIN hY [ gurU gRMQ swihb dy pMnw 150 qy iesy
slok qoN Aglw (mh`lw) ivc vI iehI ibAwn hY [ “Awip buJwey soeI bUJy [
ijs Awip suJwey iqs sBu ikC sUJY” [ iPr byQvI dyKo, lyKk AwKdw hY ik
gurU AMgd swihb ny isr& 62 slok ilKy qy auh vI ies krky ijnHW dw gurU
nwnk hY aunHW ƒ hor bwxI dI zrUrq nhIN [ ikAw Koj hY ?

pMnw nMbr 7 qy auh gurU Amr dws jI dI tUk “bwxI q gwvhu gurU
kyrI, bwxIAW isir bwxI” ivc auh iek gurU dI bwxI vl ieSwrw krdw hY
jd ik ieh Du`r kI bwxI dy mwAinAW iv`c vriqAw igAw hY [ vwh Koj ey
[ aus ieh igxw id`qw ik gurU Amr dws ny bwxI l&z 170 vwrI vriqAw
hY pr gurU nwnk swihb ny isrP 62 vwrI [ ieh Akwdimk ‘Koj’ hY ?

pMnw 9 qy ‘k`cI bwxI’ Pyr l&zI byeImwnI dw iSkwr hY [ eyQy

Kvwjy dw gvwh f`fU vWg auh Awpxy bOs is`KinMdk mYklEf (AYNtI-isKiezm
lihr dw ‘cyArmYn’) dy GVy mwAny dyNdw hY [ auh ‘k`cI AwK vKwxI’ ƒ
“prcwrnw” AwKdw hY [ iek b`cy ƒ vI vKwxI sw& smJ Aw jWdw hY [

s&w 13 qy ‘iPr is`K-inMdk mYklEf ƒ gurbwxI dy mwAinAW dw

 381

mwihr mMn ky aus dw qrzmw mnzUr kIqw hY [ eyQy aus ny ‘gurbwxI khY
syvku jnu mwnY’ ƒ “jdoN gurU bwxI aucwrdw hY qy isK mMndw hY” dy mwAinAW
ivc ilAw hY jdoN ik Asl mwAnw hY “jo gurbwxI AwKdI hY is`K aus qy
Aml krdw hY” hwlW ik s. gurbcn isMG qwilb, ipRMsIpl swihb isMG,
gopwl isMG, mnmohx isMG dy tIky imldy hn pr ipSOrw isMG ƒ mYklEf qoN
v`fw gurbwxI dw tIkwkwr hI nhIN lBdw [ iPr s&w 14 qy auh AwKdw hY
ik gurU Arjn swihb ny jdoN Awpxy qoN pihly gurU swihb dIAW poQIAW
(bwxI dIAW) hwisl kIqIAW qy aunHW dw muqwilAW kIqw qW aunHW dw idl
prsMsw nwl Br igAw [ lyKk dsxw cwhuMdw hY ik gurU Arjn swihb ny
1581 qoN pihlW bwxI pVHI nhIN sI jo aunHW poQIAW dw “muqwilAw” krn
mgroN bwxI dy pRsMsk bxy [ ieh gurU Arjn swihb ƒ AlHV AwKx vrgI
hI g`l nhIN qW hor kI hY ? iPr iesy nukqy ivc (s&w 15 qy) iek hor
byQvI mwrI hY ijs qoN pqw lgdw hY ik BweI ipSOrw isMG ƒ nW qW gurU -
qvwrIK dw pqw hY qy nw bwxI dy mwAinAW dw pqw hY [ auh hvwlw idMdw hY
ik rwg gujrI (pMnw 186)” [ auh AwKdw hY ik gurU Arjn swihb kol
bwxI dy do KrVy pu`jy : iek bwp dw, iek dwdy dw [ swbk grMQI ƒ ieh vI
nhIN pqw ik gurU Amrdws aus dy dwdw jI nhIN, nwnw jI sn [ AMgryzI
ivc “grYNfPwdr” dw qu`kw qW cl jwxw sI pr bwxI ivc qW sw& “Kol ifTw
Kzwnw” dw mqlb swry Sbd ivcoN ikqy poQIAW nhIN inkldw [ swry Sbd
dw swr smJIey qW pqw lgdw hY ik ^zwnw ‘vwihgurU dw nwm jpnw” hY nw
ik koeI poQI Prolxw [

s&w 15-16 qy auh ilKdw hY ik kw&I icr qoN is‘KW ivc ieh
ivcwr mnzUr kIqw jWdw sI ik mIixAW vloN bwxI ivc Kot rlwaux dI
swijS ƒ m‘dy-nzr rKidAW gurU Arjn swihb ny Awid gRMQ dI bIV
iqAwr krvweI [ ‘KojI’ AwKdw hY ik ies ivcwr bwry koeI smkwlI sbUq
nhIN imldw [ auh ies ivcwr ƒ 18vIN sdI dy is‘KW dI soc AwKdw hY [
auh kysr isMG iCbr dw “bMswvlInwmw (1769) Aqy cOpw isMG dw rihqnwmw
(1765) ƒ nw-mnzUr kr ky 1848 ivc CpI Awrcr dI g‘l mMn lYNdw hY
 382

ik ‘is‘KW ny iek ikqwb bxwaux dw qh‘eIAw kIqw hoieAw sI” [ vwry vwry
jweIey ‘Koj’ dy ik jo g‘l is‘KW 1765 ’c ilKI, auh r‘dI dI tokrI ivc
qy jo Awrcr (gYr-is‘K) ny 1946 eI. ivc AwKI auh snd [ ies qoN v‘D
byhXwdI kI ho skdI hY ?

s&w 20 qy auh Pyr mYkilEf ƒ v‘fw swibq krn vwsqy r‘jvIN

qwrI& kr ky aus ƒ ‘mhwn ivdvwn’ qy is‘KW ƒ “Coty idl vwly” AwKx dI
hrkq krdw hY [ auh ilKdw hY ik (s&w 21) Ajoky pMQ ivc ieh SryAwm
nzr AwauNdw hY ik AwlmI pVcol ƒ isK Drm qy hmlw smiJAw jWdw hY [
Swied iesy kr ky hI is‘K skwlrW dw iek tolw Awpxy bcwA vwsqy eynI
koiSS kr irhw hY ik aunHW di socxI ’c mihPUzhIxqw dw Aihsws AwswnI
nwl nzr Aw jWdw hY [ ienHW ivc bhuqy mShUr auh bMdy hn jo Bwrq srkwr
dy irtwief A&sr jW mYfIsn dy fwktr hn [ ies dy ipCokV ivc 1984
eI. qoN bwAd dIAW GtnwvW hn [ ieQy swbk grMQI ieh swibq krnw
cwhuMdw hY mYkilEf ny jo bkvws ilKI sI auh qW AkYfimk pVcol sI qy kuJ
AweI. ey. AYs. A&sr 1984 eI. qoN mgroN aus dy ip‘Cy pey hoey hn [
ipSOrw isMG ƒ pqw hoxw cwhIdw hY ik 1975 eI. qoN mgroN hI (jdoN
mYkilEf ny is‘KW qy v‘fy hmly SurU kIqy) is‘K skwlrz mYkilEf ƒ nMgw
krn lg pey sn [ dUjw ipSOrw ijs mYkilEf ƒ “bwrIkI qy ivdvqw
vwlw” Aqy sMjIdw KojI AwKdw hY, aus ny jo kuPr qoilAw aus coN kuJ pyS hn
(cyqy rhy ik mYkilEf ny krqwrpurI bIV vyKI hI nhIN sI):

1. BweI bMno vwlI bIV Asl bIV hY [

2. is`KW ny krqwrpurI bIV ’coN “is`K gurU dy kys k`tx vwlI
rsm” k‘t id‘qI sI [
3. krqwrpurI bIV bMno vwlI bIV qoN nkl kIqI geI sI, ieh
kwpI hY [
4. gurU goibMd isMG swihb ny gurU gRMQ swihb ƒ gur-g`dI nhIN
id‘qI [ is`KW ny Awpxy Awp ies ƒ gurU mMn ilAw [
 383

5. pMj kkwr isMG sBw lihr ny prvwn kIqy [

6. AjokI jdojihd ’c Bwrq srkwr TIk hY qy is`K glq hn [
so mYkilEf isrP Drm, gRMQ, klcr bwry hI nhIN blik
isAwsq bwry vI “AYNtI-isKiezm qihrIk” dw AwgU bxdw
hY qy iPr vI ipSOrw isMG aus ƒ “inrp`K, sMjIdw, skwlr”
AwKdw hY [ drAsl ieh ‘Koj’ nhIN blik mYkilEf dy
bynkwb ho jwx mgroN, aus ƒ dobwrw kwiem krn vwsqy iqAwr
kIqI ikqwb hY [ ies ivc nW qW Koj hY, nw dlIl, nw
hkIkq, nw q`Q [ ies ivc isrP AMdwzy, qu`ky, g`pW, byQvIAW,
QoQy iPkry, glq qrjmw qy keI jgHw iek dUjy dy ault g‘lW
vI hn [ auNj idlcsp g`l ieh hY ik Kud ipSOrw isMG
mYkilEf ƒ keI jgHw glq swibq kr jWdw hY [

kI irtwierf AweI. ey. AYs. A&sr jW hor ivdvwn Drm qy

&ls&y dy skwlr nhIN ho skdy ? ipSOrw isMG dI ivdvqw dw imAwr qW
idsdw hI hY [ ho skdw hY auh ielm dy pKoN aUnw hovy pr koeI vI Awlm
&wzl iksy vI ivSy qy Koj kr skdw hY [ ieh qW XBlI mwrn vwlI g‘l
hY ik Amkw AweI. ey. AYs. jW mYfIfl fwktr hY [ Aijhy &qvy dyx dI
ibjwey ienHW au~lmW dy nukiqAW dw jvwb dyxw cwhIdw hY (jy jvwb hoey qW)
[ s&w 23 qy bxwieAw igAw nkSw vI AMdwizAW qy hI KVHw hY [ goieMdvwl
dIAW poQIAW qoN bwAd auh iek dm gurU nwnk XUnIvristI dy KrVw nMbr
1245 qy AwauNdw hY [ Bgq bwxI qy hor gurU bwxI bwry KrVy vI auh
AMdwizAW ivc hI r‘K lYNdw hY [ Asl byeImwnI eyQoN hI SurU ho jWdI hY [
ies swijS ƒ auGyVnw sB qoN v‘D zrUrI hY [ ipCly 383 swl iv‘c
(1604 qoN 1987) ieh bIV ikqy lukI rhI qy Acwnk 1987 ivc prgt
kr id‘qI geI qy auh vI AMimRqsr dy iek dukwndwr rwhIN [ cyqy rhy ik
jUn 1984 ’c is‘K rYPrYNs lwiebryrI dI iemwrq swVy jwx mgroN lwiebryrI
suAwh ho jwx dw crcw cilAw sI [ keI kWgrsI vI mMndy hn ik aus
rY&rYNs lwiebryrI dIAW bhuqIAW cIzW Bwrq srkwr dI POj kol hn [
Acwnk 1987 ivc iek purwxI hQilKq bIV lB ky AYlwn kr id`qw
 384

igAw ik “Awid gRMQ dw sB qoN pihlw KrVw lB ipAw hY” [ 30 mwrc,

1987 ƒ ieh KrVw XUnIvristI dI lwiebryrI ivc phuMicAw Aqy ausy swl
ipSOrw isMG ny Koj SurU kr id‘qI [ kI ieh swijS nhIN sI ik aus KrVy
ƒ Kws qOr qy ies mksd vwsqy ilAWdw igAw qW jo ipSOrw isMG iek qW
mYkilEf ƒ “mhwn” swbq kr sky qy is‘K ivdvwnW ƒ llU pMjU AYlwn kr
dyvy Aqy Awid gRMQ dy mwx qy siqkwr ƒ fyg ky is‘KW ƒ Drm, SrDw,
&ls&y dy pKoN nukswn phuMcwieAw jw sky [ pr swjSI mYkilEf, hrjoq
Ebrwey, ipSOrw isMG qy AYNtI-is‘K skUl dI swijS kwmXwb nhIN hoeI [
p‘g bMnH ky, gurU Gr ’c gRMQI rih ky, pUjw dw Dwn Kw ky ipSOrw BweI vrgy
ikMny nIvyN drjy q‘k jw skdy hn [

hux BweI ipSOrw dIAW QoQIAW dlIlW vyKo ik ikvyN auh (mYkilEf
ny krqwrpurI bIV dw mwx Gtwaux leI bMno dI bIV shI qy pihlI AwKI sI)
krqwrpurI bIV ƒ r‘d krn vwsqy KrVw nMbr 1245 ƒ shI qy pihlI
bIV swibq krn dI nwkwm koiSS krdw hY [ lyKk dy ieh nukqy ivcwrn
Xog hn :-

1. KrVy ’c 1267 vrky hn [ XwnI gurU Arjn swihb Ajy ies

qy kMm kr rhy hoxgy [ ik ieh dlIl hY [ keI Aijhy
KrVy cMfIgVH, AMimRqsr, pitAwly ’c pey hoxgy ijMnHW ’c
ies qoN v‘D vrky hoxgy [ iPr qW auh ies qoN vI pihlW dy
KrVy hoxgy [
2. rwgW dI qrqIb vKrI hY [ kI ieh dlIl ies ƒ purwxw
KrVw swibq krdI hY ?
3. Agy ies ivc keI Sbd AYsy hn ijnHW ivcoN kuJ krqwrpurI
bIV ’c ‘soDy’ hoey mMndw hY [ ieh ikau nhIN ho skdw ik
1245 ’c mgroN glq nkl kIqw igAw hovy [
4. ies ivc Bgq bwxI nhIN hY [ ipSOrw isMG ƒ ieh nhIN pqw
ik gurU grMQ swihb qoN Bgq bwxI v`K krn dI jur`Aq qW pMc
Kwlsw dIvwn (qyjw isMG BsOV) ny vI kIqI sI [ AijhIAW
 385

koiSSW XkInn KrVw nMbr 1245 vyly qoN mgroN vI huMdIAW

rhIAW hoxgIAW [
ies ivc swijS dw iek koJw iPkrw hY ik ‘bygmpurw Sihr kw
nwau’ Aqy ‘gopwl qyrw Awrqw’ krqwrpurI bIV ivc mgroN pweIAW geIAW [
auh ies vwsqy kIqw igAw ik cmwr qy j`t is`K Drm ’c Swiml ho jwx [
ipSOry muqwibk gurU swihb ny ieh ‘dMB’ kIqw sI [ ieh dMB hI sI ik “Dur
kI bwxI” ’c iek j`t qy iek cmwr dy Sbd ies inSwny nwl pwey ik dohW
ibrwdrIAW ’coN cyly vDwey jwx [ ipSOrw BweI ƒ ieh pqw hoxw cwhIdw hY
ik Awid grMQ ’c Bgq rvIdws dy 40 slok hn qy Bgq DMnw dy 4 slok
[ ies lyKk dw eynw vI mMnx qy idl nhIN kIqw ik jy 39 slok pihloN pwey
hn qW iek XkInn, mgroN imlx kr ky bwAd ’c Swiml kIqw igAw hoeygw
[ gurU swihb qy Aijhy nIc ielzwm, bybuinAwd hI nhIN blik iek swijS
hY [
5-6 qy 7 nukqy jo dlIlW pyS krdy hn auh QoQIAW hn [ aunHW
idnW ’c kIqIAW kwpIAW XkInn ikSqW ivc huMdIAW hoxgIAW [ ies krky
1245 nMbr KrVw jdoN nkl kIqw igAw hoeygw aus kwiqb dI kmzorI kr
ky Aijhw hoieAw hoeygw [
8 nukqw vI hwsohIxw hY [ a dI jgHw E, jW C dyvnwgrI dw hoxw
ieh swibq krdw hY ik ikqwb pMjwboN dUr dI hoey [
ieMJ hI lyKk 27 s&w qy BweI bu‘Fw dI h‘Q ilKq “mgroN pweI”
mMndw hY (ho skdw hY, AwK ky) ikauNik vrnw ieh KrVw CyvyN pwqSwh dy vyly
dw bx jwxw sI [ bwbw bu`Fw CyvyN pwqSwh vyly ijauNdy sn [
ieMJ hI lyKk “cOQy pqry qy gurU hrgoibMd swihb dI h`Q ilKq” ƒ
vKrw kwgz AwK ky mgroN pwieAw AwKdw hY [ auh ieh AwKdw hY ik auh
ilKq gurU qyg bhwdr swihb vrgI hY [ kI auh KrVw gurU qyg bhwdr
swihb dy vyly dw nhIN ho skdw ? kwwiqb ny kwpI iqAwr kr ky gurU swihb
kI h`Q ilKq, KrVy dI pwkIzgI vDwaux dI SrDw nwl v`Kry kwgz qy
ilKvweI hoey ?
s&w 28 qy lyKk AwKdw hY ik KrVy ’c pMj gurU swihbwn dy joqI
 386

joq smwaux dIAW qwrIKW hn qy AwKrI (gurU Arjn swihb jI dI) ausy
kwiqb ny mgroN ilKI hoeygI [ SwbwS ies Koj dy [ lyKk ƒ ‘ielhwm’ ho
igAw ik auh qwrIK mgroN hI ilKI hoeygI [
iesy s&y qy hor byQvI mwrI hoeI hY ik “BweI gurdws ny mgroN
Awpxw ^q suDwr ilAw hoey” [ ieh nhIN ik 1245 nMbr KrVw vwlw
kwiqb, XwnI kwpI krn vwlw, koeI nv-isiKAw jW ApUrn hoeygw [ g`l
qW, hr hwlq iv`c, dMB ƒ s`c swibq krn dI nwjwiez koiSS hY [ qu`ky,
AMdwzy, PYsly, iPkry, ikAws ArweIAW Koj nhIN huMdy [ BweI pSOrw ies
KrVy ƒ CyvyN jW nOvy gurU swihbwn qoN pihlW dw swibq qW nhIN kr sikAw
pr ieh zrUr swbq kr igAw hY ik ieh ‘Koj” nhIN iksy “v`fI swijS” dw
iek Aihm ih`sw zrUr hY [
1245 nMbr KrVw bwry ikqy sbUq nhIN imldw ik ieh 1604 eI.
qoN 1987 eI. q`k 383 swl ikQy rhI [ ies dy lyKk, qwrIK, kwiqb qy
hor swrw kuJ ivcoN kuJ vI nhIN [ iPr vI ies ƒ krqwrpur vwlI bIV qoN
pihlW dI mMn lYxw vIhvIN sdI dI sB qoN v`fI Akwdimk swijS hY [
XkInn ies ip`Cy zrUr koeI v`fw h`Q hI hoeygw [
eIsweI pwdrI imSnrI mYklEf dI ies ƒ srprsqI iksy kOmWqrI
swijS vl ieSwrw krdI hY [ ies ivc kOx kOx Swiml hY ? aunHW dy
bynkwb hox dI SurUAwq auQoN hI ho jweygI ijQoN lok ies jwAlI-KojI dI
hmwieq krn jW aus dI sPweI pyS krn dI koiSS krngy [
 387

AMimRq kaurw ibiKAw mITI

gurqyj isMG, pRo&Ysr Aw& is‘Kiezm

AKwx hY ik jdoN musIbqW AwauNdIAW hn qW iek-iek krky nhIN

blik fwrW bMnH-bMnH AwauNdIAW hn [ k‘cy GVy au~qy nYN ivc iT‘lHx l‘gI
sohxI Awly-duAwly nzr mwrdI hoeI kihMdI hY, “A‘j qUPwn hnyrI C‘lW sB
ny krI slwh, ieh vI pwpx dunIAW vWgUM pRIq dw rokx rwh” [ eysy qrHW
A‘j ijs pwsy vI ingwh mwro, koeI n koeI Kwlsy dw isdk prKx leI Pn
PYlweI KVHw hY [

A`j dw mslw btwlw imSn dy sRI ihaU mklwauf dI imhrbwnI

sdkw 1975 ivc auiTAw [ ies AMgryz pwdrI leI eIsweI m`q dy vwDy
Kwqr Aqy Bwrq dI rwjsI sm‘isAw dy p‘ky isAwsI h‘l vwsqy, is`KI
dIAW cMd ivl‘KxqwvW ƒ mlIAwmyt krnw zrUrI sI [ ies ny sRI gurU gRMQ
swihb au~qy iek zbrdsq hmlw ieh ilKky kIqw : ‘krqwrpurI bIV dy
keI ih‘sy bVy koJy FMg nwl mysy gey hn … jwpdw hY ik bMno vwlI hI AslI
bIV hY Aqy krqwrpurI bIV aus dw sMKyp rUp hY [ kuJ ih‘sy imtw id‘qy gey
ikauNik ieh bwAd ivc bxI pMQk pirAwdw dy AnukUl nhIN sI [ eynw ku
qW sp‘St hI hY’ [ 1979 ivc ies pRcwrk ny iliKAw, ‘gurU Arjn ny
sB qoN pihlW bMno vwlI bIV ilKvweI [ ivc-ivcwly soD dy inSwnW vwlI
krqwrpurI bIV nY ijs ivcoN kuJ sm‘grI k‘F id‘qI geI hY [ 1989 eI.
ivc ies ny mUMh dUjy pwsy kr ilAw Aqy iliKAw, ‘donW dw myl krn nwl qW
iehI jwpdw hY ik bMno vwlI bIV Asl hY jo BweI gurdws ny ilKI sI [
lyikn sB jwxdy hn ik bMno bIV qW 1642 eIsvI ivc ilKI geI sI’ [
ieauN is‘KI dy Dury sRI gurU gRMQ swihb au~qy ies dy pihly h‘ly dw AMq hoieAw
[ trMp qoN bwAd jugo jug At`l gurU au~qy ieh sB qoN v`fw hmlw sI [
muFly qor au~qy mYklwauf ny rwmklI rwg dy Sbd au~qy hVqwl
 388

Pyrn dw doS lwieAw sI hwlW ik sB ivdvwn jwxdy hn ik ieh q‘Q glq

hY [ auh is`D krnw cwhuMdw sI ik is`K bwhrI kwrnW krky gurbwxI ivc
vwDw-Gwtw krdw rhy hn [ m`uK mksd sI ik gurU gRMQ swihb dI Asl bIV
ƒ AwKyp is`D krky is`K isDWq ivc BMblBUsy dw rwh KoilHAw jwvy [
byeImwnI dI h`d ieh sI ik aus ny auprokq sB kuJ ilKx qoN pihlW nw qW
bMno bIV ƒ vyiKAw Aqy nw hI krqwrpurI bIV ƒ [ 1968 ivc CpI BweI
joD isMG dI pusqk Aqy 1987 ivc CpI s. dljIq isMG dI ikqwb ivc
ies q‘Q ƒ JuTlwieAw igAw hY ik iksy Aijhy Sbd au~qy hVqwl PyrI geI
hY [ s. dljIq isMG dI pRmwxIk ikqwb Cpx qoN ies ny BWp ilAw ik kwT
dI hWfI dubwrw nhIN cVH skdI ikauNik ies ny donW ƒ nzrAMdwz kIqw sI
[ ies leI ies au~qy vwjb ielzwm l‘igAw sI ik aus ny pRmwixk q`QW qoN
lWBy jw ky kuPr qoilAw hY [ 1990 ivc BweI bMno vwlI bIV ƒ Asl swbq
krn dw dwAvw vwps lYx dw ieho Asl kwrn sI [ KoqI dy gl l‘g ky
prqI GuimAwrI ny ibAwn kIqw ik aus ny BweI joD isMG dI ikqwb pVH ky
ieh ivcwr bdilAw hY [ pr BweI swihb joD isMG dI pusqk qW 1968
ivc CpI sI Aqy 1975 vwlI mYklwauf dI ikqwb ivc ies dy hvwly qoN
sp‘St hY ik ‘sRI krqwrpurI bIV dy drSn’ dy q‘QW qoN mYklwauf SurU qoN hI
vwk& sI [ kyvl eysy g‘l qoN hI ies dy isDw byeImwn hox dw AMdwzw l‘g
jWdw hY [ r‘sI sV geI, pr v‘t nw igAw [ Akwdimk dunIAW ivc
byeImwnI qoN munkr hoxw zrUrI sI, pr ivcoN idl sw& nw hoieAw [ ‘rUh B‘j
vVy bu‘qKwny’ qy ‘zwhr ijsm inmwjI’ [ so dubwrw ipSOrw isMG rwhIN sRI gurU
gRMQ swihb ƒ FwA lwaux dw islislw SurU kIqw igAw [ aus ny mYklwauf
dI dyK-ryK hyT Awpxw pI.AYc.fI. QIiss iliKAw ijs ivc trMp dI rUh ƒ
dubwrw ijMdw kIqw igAw [
ieiqhws gvwh hY ik sRI rwm rwey muslmwn dI QW byeImwn pVHn
krky (ilKx krky nhIN) gurU Gr qoN Cyky gey sn qy dsvyN pwqSwh ny ‘kY’ dI
QW ‘ky’ pVHn vwly is`K ƒ BMf ky sp`St kIqw sI ik gurbwxI dI quk, mwqrw,
kMnw, hoVw Awid bdlxw vI is`KI isDWq au~qy hmlw krnw hY [
 389

Koj-p‘qr (QIiss) jW
Awid sRI gurU gRMQ swihb qy is‘Dw hmlw
gurqyj isMG pRo&Ysr Aw& is`Kiezm

iek sdI qoN vI v`D smW ho cu`kw hY jd qoN is`K m`q bwry BulyKy
pwaux leI AnykW koiSSW ho rhIAW hn [ kdy nklI gurU gRMQ swihb
ilKvwey gey, kdy rihq mirXwdw bwry ikMqU kIqy gey, kdy mIt bwry SMkw
auTweI geI, kdy kkwrW bwry, kdy AMimRq Ckwaux dI ivDI bwry qy kdy hor
AnykW p`KW bwry [ 1984 ivc nIlw qwrw ApRySn smyN qW swrI is`K rYPrYNs
lwiebryrI hI swV id‘qI geI qW ik nw rhy bWs qy nw bjy bMsrI [ Xwd rhy
ik 1965 qy 1971 dIAW pwiksqwn nwl lVweIAW smyN vI pwiksqwn ny sRI
hirmMdr swihb jI dI piv‘qrqw dw iKAwl r‘Kdy hoey bMbwrI nhIN kIqI
sI [ ivdySW ivc pI.AYc.fI (fwktr AwP iPlws&I) dIAW ifgrIAW vI
is‘K Drm dI Koj krn vwilAW ƒ vMfIAW geIAW [ ies ivSy qy QIiss
sMbMDI is‘K ivdvwnW dI 30 mYNbrI kmytI bxI hY jo Akwdimk p‘Dr qy
is‘K Drm dy buinAwdI AsUlW qy bwxI (ijs ƒ is‘K Drm ivc ‘Dur’ kI
bwxI ikhw igAw hY) sMbMDI SMky pYdw krn vwilAW ƒ auqr dyvygI [ ieh
pusqk ies pwsy vl inmwxw jyhw Xqn hY ijs ƒ isK pMQ vloN BrvW huMgwrw
imln dI Awsw hY [
eyny pRmwx huMidAW ipSOrw isMG ilKdw hY ik gurU Arjn ny mUlmMqr
(jW mMglwcwr) ƒ AwKrI Skl dyx qoN pihlW keI KrVy bxwey [ gurU nwnk
dyv XUnIvristI kol pihlI bIV hY ijs ivc AwKrI Skl dyx qoN pihlW dw
mUlmMqr drj hY [ ies ivc ‘purK’ l&z bwAd ivc pwieAw igAw ijs
qoN sp`St hY ik gurU Arjn dy smyN qoN pRmwqmw dw purK srUp pRc`ilq
hoieAw jdoN ik gurU nwnk dyv dy smyN qoN bwAd is`K Drm isDWq Aqy is`K
pMQ dw bdilAw hulIAw ieauN sp`St ho jWdw hY [ iesy qrHW gurU rwmdws ny
mUl mMqr ivc ‘inrvYr’ l&z pwieAw jo ik auhnW dy GrylU ivroD ivc
 390

inrvYr rihx dw sUck hY [ pr swbq krn leI aus prMprw ƒ cuxOqI dyxI
pvygI ijs Anuswr mUl mMqr gurU nwnk dI rcnw hY [ ieauN is`KI isDWq
ivc nvyN sMklp juVy… AwKrI KrVy ivc gurU Arjn ny siqgur pRswid
(s`cy gurU dI ikRpw) ƒ ‘gur pRswid ( gur dI ikRpw) kr id`qw [ hor l&z
Aqy CMd bMdI bdlx dy keI ieljwm gurU hzUr au~qy lwauNdw hoieAw ieh gur
inMdk ilKdw hY, ‘kuJ KojI jpujI swihb dy AwKrI slok ƒ gurU nwnk dI
nhIN blik gurU AMgd dI rcnw mMndy hn’ Aqy auh ‘KojI’ mYklwauf dw
hvwlw idMdw hY [

gurU inMdk ipSOrw isMG swbq krnw cwhuMdw hY [ (1) ik gurbwxI

is‘K bcnW Aqy is‘K mnoq Anuswr ‘Dur kI bwxI’ nhIN blik duinAwvI
p‘K pUrn vwsqy gwhy-bgwhy rcI geI kivqw hY [ (2) ik pMjvyN pwqSwh
Aqy bwkI gurU swihbwn ny vI in‘jI loV Anuswr is‘K isDWq ƒ qRoV-mRoV ky
pRc‘lq kIqw ; (3) ik gurU gRMQ swihb ƒ is‘K Drm isDWq jwxn leI
pRmwxIk nhIN mMinAw jw skdw [ ieh gurU isDWq Aqy is‘K m‘q isDWq
au~qy mMdBwvnw qoN pRyirq koJy hmly hn, ijhnW dw Akwdimk suqMqrqw Aqy
ilKx qy Kojx dI AwzwdI nwl dUr dw vI sMbMD nhIN [ hor sp‘St AwKIey
qW is‘K Drm dIAW jVHW ivc qyl dyx dI koiSS kIqI geI hY qW ik dUsry
DrmW dI swrQkqw ƒ AWc nw Awvy”[

BweI gurdws jI PurmwauNdy hn:

ijauNkr sUrj inkilAw qwry Cpy AMDyr ploAw

ieh mMqv hor vI sp`St ho jWdw hY jdoN AsIN jwxdy hW ik hmly

dw iek AwDwr hY h`Q-ilKq nM. 1245 jo ik gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvristI ny
1987 ivc bwzwr mweI syvW ivcoN KrIdI sI [ ieh auQy ikvyN phuMcI, iks
ny phuMcweI, ikauN phuMcweI ies dw qW Koj auprMq hI pqw c`lygw, pr eynI ku
jwxkwrI qW hY ik ieh 1984 dy G`lUGwry qoN bwAd pRgt hoeI [ cyqy rhy ik
AYn aus vyly jdoN ik is`K rYPrYNs lwiebryrI ivc pRwpq sB purwqn bIVW
Agn Byt kIqIAW jw cu`kIAW jW srkwrI kbzy ivc leIAW jw cu`kIAW sn
 391

ieh h‘Q-ilKq prgt hoeI [ kbzy ivc leI sm‘grI dw mslw aus vyly
dy pRDwn mMqrI kol au~iTAw sI Aqy bVI aumId sI ik vwpsI ho jwvygI pr
Ajy q‘k kuJ nhIN inkilAw [ drbwr swihb au~qy hmly qoN keI idn bwAd
ikqwb Gr swVn dw ikqy ieho mMqv qW nhIN sI ? eIsweI m‘q nwl sMbMDq
fY~f sI krlOl qW pMjwh swl bwAd vI gupq r‘Ky jw rhy hn pr is‘K Drm
au~qy hmly leI ies h‘Q-ilKq ƒ qurMq vrq ilAw igAw [ vihVkw KUh
ivc if‘g ipAw hY qW n`Q vI huxy pw leI jwvy dI Bwvnw ADIn ieh hoieAw
[
ies h`Q-ilKq dI hor qwrIP ieh hY ik ies au~qy koeI qwrIK
nhIN ilKI hoeI [ nw ilKwrI dw Aqw-pqw hY [ ilKwrI ny CyvyN pwqSwh
dw (JUTw s`cw) inSwn iek pMny au~qy icpkwieAw hY ijs qoN zwihr hY ik auh
ies ƒ G`to-G`t CyvyN pwqSwh vyly ilKI geI pRc`lq krnw cwhuMdw hY [
ipSOrw isMG dw Awpxw m`q hY ik ieh inSwn Swied novyN pwqSwh dw hY [
AijhI h`Q-ilKq ƒ ipSOrw isMG krqwrpurI bIV qoN pihlW dw iliKAw ausy
dw KrVw ibnW hIl hu`jq dy J`t pRvwn kr lYNdw hY [ auh ieh vI pRvwn kr
lYNdw hY ik ieh h`Q-ilKq ilKI vI BweI gurdws jI dI hY [ ieh zrUrI sI,
nhIN qW ikvyN d‘isAw jWdw ik KrVw ilKx vwly is`K koloN hI krqwrpurI
bIV ikauN nw ilKvweI geI [ ies muSikl ƒ h‘l krn leI ipSOrw isMG
ilKdw hY ik BweI gurdws ny krqwrpurI bIV ivc AwpxI h‘Q-ilKq ƒ
suDwr ilAw sI [ Sukr hY ik aun ny ieh vI nhIN ikhw ik BweI gurdws ny
DoKw dyx leI ies KrVy ƒ iksy hor dI h‘Q-ilKq ivc ilD id‘qw hovygw
[ ‘AYils ieMn vMfrlYNf’ ivc qwS dy goly dw vkIl kihMdw hY ik bgwvq
krvwaux vwlI ic‘TI goly ny nhIN ilKI ikauNik ieh aus dI h‘Q ilKq ivc
nhIN hY [ ivroDI vkIl kihMdw hY ik vyKo ieh golw ikMnw DUrq Aqy mkwr
hY ik aus ny ic`TI AwpxI h`Q ilKq ivc nhIN ilKI [ ipSOrw isMG pRmwx
isrP ieh pyS krdw hY ik ies h`Q-ilKq ivc lgW-mwqrW qoN ibnW
gurmuKI ilKI hY jo ik gurU nwnk qoN pihlW pRc`lq sI [ vwry vwry jweIey
swdgI dy [ myry bwbw jI srdwr eISr isMG vI gurU nwnk swihb qoN pihlW
hoey swbq huMdy hn ikauNju auh vI lgW-mwqrW nhIN sn vrqdy, ipMfW ivc
 392

kl q`k ibnW lgW-mwqrW qoN lMfy pRc`lq sn [ vyKo ! ikvyN AwkwS vyl ƒ
p‘qy, Pu`l Aqy &l l`gy hn [
ies dw gurU kihMdw sI BweI bMno vwlI bIV Asl hY, ikauNik aus
ivc sm`grI krqwrpurI bIV nwloN v‘D hY [ hux gurU dI sihmqI nwl cylw
kihMdw hY ik nvIN h`Q-ilKq 1245 Asl KrVw hY, ikauNik aus ivc
sm‘grI G‘t hY [ kOfI ic`q pvy qW mYN ij`iqAw p`t Awvy qW qusIN hwry [
eIsweI m`q dI AMjIl qkrIbn 1400 swl ivc mukMml hoeI sI, bu`D Drm
dy aupdyS mhwqmw qoN sO swl bwAd klmbMd hoey, kurwn SrIP ƒ hzrq
muhMmd swihb qoN bwAd iek`Tw kIqw igAw [ eIsw msIh dy phwVI aupdyS
dw eIsw dy jnm qoN pihlW dw KrVw vI imldw hY [ iehnW swry Drm gRMQW
dI pVcol pRmwxIk purwxIAW ilKqW nwl kIqI jw skdI hY [ auQy ieh
pVcol jwiez hY [ Pyr vI bVy TrHMmy Aqy izMmyvwrI nwl kIqI jWdI hY
ikauNik kroVW lokW dIAW BwvnwvW nwl ies dw sMbMD huMdw hY [ pr is‘KW dw
kI hY, ieh qW A`jklH ijaux dy h‘k qoN vI vWJy hn [
sRI gurU gRMQ swihb qW pMjvyN pwqSwh ny Awp ilKvwieAw hY [
ilKvwaux dw iek kwrn ieh vI sI ik AwKyp k‘cI bwxI gurU swihbwn dy
nW hyT pRc‘lq ho rhI sI [ zwihr hY ik k‘cI bwxI nwl gurU gRMQ dw myl
krnw isDw kuPr hY [ jo gurU nwnk pwqSwh ny aucwirAw sI, auho pMjvyN
pwqSwh ny bIV ivc drj kIqw, bwkI sB k`cI bwxI hY [ krqwrpurI bIV
dI, gurU gRMQ dI ivl`Kxqw ieho hY ik ieh ibnW SMky Dur kI bwxI dw Asl
somw hY [ kI SRomxI gurduAwrw pRbMDk kmytI Aqy qKqW dy jQydwrW qoN aumId
r‘KIey ik auh ku&r ƒ T`lH pwauxgy ? sMswr dy sdIvI kilAwx leI sRI gurU
gRMQ swihb dw ivl`Kx srUp jugo-jug At`l rihxw zrUrI hY [
 393

9
Awlocnwqimk AiDAYn
^oj dy nW qy Drm inMidAw
pR.o mnjIq isMG is‘DU

“eyvfu aUcw hovY koie ] iqs aUcy kau jwxY soie ]”

pRmwqmw ƒ isr& auh hI smJ skdw hY jo aus vWg hI mhwn qy
srv-sRyST hovy [ gurbwxI pRmwqmw dy auhnW SbdW dw rUp hY jo is‘K gurUAW
dy mwiDAm rwhIN idRStweI geI hY [ gurU jI dI imhr Aqy Apwr dwq qoN
bgYr pRmwqmw dy iehnW SbdW dI ivAwiKAw krn dw Xqn krnw Asmwn
ivc aufdy pMCIAW dy DrqI qy pYNdy prCwvyN ƒ prVn dI inAweI hY [ ipSOrw
isMG dw Koj-p‘qr ‘dI tYkst AYNf mIinMg Aw& dI Awid gRMQ’ vI kuJ ies
qrHW dw hI auprwlw hY [ gurbwxI dI ivcwrDwrw ƒ CuitAwaux dw ieh sB
qoN nvInqm Xqn hY [ ipSOrw isMG ny ies Koj p‘qr rwhIN pRo. mYklwauf
dI purwxI Srwb ƒ nvIAW boqlW ivc hI nhIN pwieAw sgoN auhnW vWg hI
gurbwxI dI piv‘qrqw ƒ bhuq hI sUKm FMg duAwrw BMg krn dy koJy Xqn
vI kIqy hn [ ipSOrw isMG ny ieh gl qW svIkwr kIqI hY ik jI.bI. isMG
ny krqwrpur vwlI gurU gRMQ swihb dI bIV ƒ pRmwixk nw mMn ky AwrIAw
smwjIAW dI socxI dI ip‘T TokI hY pr Kud fw. mYklwauf dI Kqrnwk soc
ƒ Agy vDwaux ivc koeI hrz nhIN smiJAw ikauNik pRo. mYklwauf aus dI
pI.AYc.fI. dI ifgrI leI suprvweIzr sI [
fw. mYklwauf pMjwb ivc jd eIsweI imSnrI sMsQw dw pRcwrk sI
q auh smJdw sI ik eIsweI imSnrI AgMmI bwxI dy igAwn dw twkrw nhIN
kr skxgy Aqy ies ƒ eIsweI m‘q dy pRcwr leI auh iek rok smJdy sn
[ ies leI aus ny gurbwxI ivc drswey pRkwSmeI igAwn ivru‘D mnGVq
SMikAw dw jwl buxnw SurU kr id‘qw [ gurU gRMQ swihb dI krqwrpur vwlI
bIV dy mukwbly ivc aus ny BweI bMno vwlI bIV ƒ pRmwink hox dw AYlwn
 394

bgYr iksy Koj dy AwDwr qy kr idqw Aqy scweI qW ieh hY ik jd aus ny

ieh AYlwn kIqw qW aus smyN q‘k aus ny dovW bIVW ivcoN iksy dy vI drSn
nhIN kIqy sn [ ipSOrw isMG ny vI fw. mYklwaUf dw SrDwlU hox dy nwqy
Awpxy gurU vWg hI Aksr ieiqhwsk q‘QW dI qoV-mroV kIqI hY [ pihlW
iek Atkl p‘cU ijhI Dwrnw KVHI kIqI geI Aqy iPr ies dy duAwly vwr-
vwr lMmy cOVy qrk qy dlIlW dI GuMmxGyrI KVHI krky AMq ieh pRBwv dyx dI
koiSS kIqI geI hY ik ArMB ivc jo ingUxI ijgI BUimkw id‘qI geI sI, auh
vI ijvyN koeI ieiqhwsk scweI hovy [ mOky qy Kwlsw pMQ dI isrjnw Awid
bwry ieiqhwsk q‘QW dy ivroD ivc AwpxI igxI-imQI soc Anuswr Aijhy
SMky KVy kIqy qWik gurbwxI dy AgMmI igAwn ivc Awm lokW dI SrDw ƒ
GtwieAw jw sky [ ies kMm leI aus ny kuJ Aijhy ivAkqI vI iqAwr
kIqy jo pqw nhIN ikauN AwpxI nyk-nIqI qy iemwndwrI nwl smJOqw krn
leI vI rwzI ho gey [ Aijhy ivAkqI hI hux mUhry ho ky is‘K Drm Aqy
ies dIAW piv‘qr rvwieqW qy vwr-vwr hmly kr rhy hn [

ipSOrw isMG dw ieh suJwauxw ik gurU Arjn dyv jI ny mUl-mMqr

ƒ soD ky ies ƒ mOjUdw rUp id`qw hY, srwsr gurbwxI dy r`bI rUp hox ƒ
vMgwrxw hY [ auh ieh vI dwAvw krdw hY ik gurU Arjn dyv ny mUl-mMqr
ƒ in`jI gurU dI Dwrnw dy AnukUl bxw id‘qw jd ik gurU nwnk Awkwr rihq
r‘bI gurU ivc ivSvws r`Kdy sn [ aus dw kihxw hY ik gurU nwnk Awkwr
rihq r`bI gurU ivc ivSvws r`Kdy sn aus dw kihxw hY ik gurU rwm dws ny
‘inrMkwr’ Sbd ƒ ‘inrvYr’ ivc bdl id`qw qW ik Asl jIvn dy ivroDqw
vwly hwlwq dw ipAwr Aqy dosqI dI Bwvnw nwl mukwblw kIqw jw sky [

ieh Aqy AijhIAW hor keI DwrnwvW jo ipSOrw isMG dy Koj-p`qr

 395

ivc drsweIAW geIAW hn, aunHW qoN ies g`l dy sMkyq id`qy gey hn ik
gurbwxI koeI r`bI ielhwm nw ho ky iek Awm kwiv-meI ikRq hI hY ijs
ivc smyN qy hwlwq Anuswr qbdIlI kIqI jWdI rhI hY [ ies qrHW krky
auhnW ny gurU nwnk dyv dy ies vwr-vwr Awey kQn ƒ JuTlwaux dI koiSS
kIqI hY ijs ivc d‘isAw igAw hY ik gurbwxI dw ielhwm r‘bI hY [ gurU
gRMQ swihb dy pMnw 722 qy gurU nwnk dyv &urmwauNdy hn ik hy lwlo, mYN auh
hI bcn krdw hW jo pRmwqmw mYƒ krn leI kihMdw hY [ pMnw 763 qy
AMikq hY ik myrI Awpxi koeI Awvwz nhIN, jo vI aucwrn kIqw hY, auh aus
pRmwqmw dy hukm Anuswr hI kIqw hy [ pMnw 308 qy &urmwieAw hY ik
siqgurU dI bwxI ƒ s`c krky jwxo, ikauNik pRmwqmw ieh aucwrn krn leI
kih irhw hY [

ies qoN pihlW ik ipSOrw isMG jW aus ny hor AnuAweI gurU gRMQ
swihb dI tYkst, ies dy ArQ Aqy ieiqhws sMbMDI koeI Koj kw kwrj SurU
krn, auhnW ƒ cwhIdw hY ik auh ies ieiqhwsk Dwrnw ƒ pRvwn krn ik
gurUAW ny auh hI bwxI aucwrn kIqI ijs ƒ pRmwqmw ny mnu`Kqw q`k phuMcwaux
leI hukm kIqw sI [ koeI vI Koj audoN q`k shI nhIN khI jw skdI jdoN q‘k
ik auh ies muFlI scweI ƒ mMn ky Agy nhIN qurdw [ ijvyN eIsweI m`q jW
ieslwm dw koeI vI AiDAYn au~nI dyr q`k ADUrw hY, ijMnI dyr auh eIsw
msIh jW muhMmd swihb ƒ pYgMbr svIkwr nhIN krdw [ TIk ausy qrHW is`KW
dy Dwrimk gRMQ sMbMDI iksy vI Koj jW ivcwr ƒ pRvwn nhIN kIqw jw skdw
jd q`k ik isK gurUAW ƒ rb dy dUq dy qOr qy prvwn nhIN kIqw jWdw [
ipSOrw isMG dI AsPlqw dw kwrn hI ieh hY ik aus ƒ gurU nwnk Aqy aus
dy jwnSIn gurUA ƒ pYgMbr mMnx ivc muSkl pyS Aw rhI hY [ aus dy kihx
Anuswr gurU nwnk Awpxy Awp ƒ Akwl purK dw bulwrw smJdy sn [ ies
dw Bwv eyh hoieAw ik auh gurU nwnk Akwl purK dy shI qOr qy bulwry nhIN
sn Aqy kyvl bulwry hox dw dwAvw hI krdy sn [ ieh mUl glqI hI aus
 396

dI Koj ƒ iek Bu‘l qoN dUjI Bu‘l v‘l ƒ iK‘cI qurI jWdI hY [ ipSOrw isMG
dI glqI hor vI guMJldwr ies krky bx geI ikauNik aus ny Koj dI tyk
iek AijhI ilKq ƒ bxwieAw hY jo 1987 eI. ivc gurU nwnk dyv
XUnIvristI ny AMimRqsr dy bwzwr mweI syvw dy fIlr hrBjn isMG Aqy
hrcrn isMG cwvlw qoN KrIdI sI [ ies ilKq qy nw koeI qwrIK AMikq hY
nw ilKx vwly dw nW Aqy nw hI koeI Aijhy inSwn hn ijs qoN ik ies
ilKq ƒ gurUAW dy kwl nwl joiVAw jw sky pr ipSOrw isMG ies Dwrnw ƒ
lY ky quirAw hY ik ieh ilKq aus kwl dw hI ibRqWq krdI hY jo ik shI
nhIN hY [ Awpxy Koj-p‘qr dy pMnw 4 qy ipSOrw isMG ies g‘l dI sMBwvnw
vI pRgt krdw hY ik ho skdw hY ik gurU nwnk dyv ny Awpxy jIvn kwl
dOrwn hI AwpxIAW rcnwvW AMikq kr id‘qIAW hox, ikauNik aus smyN dy
bhuq swry Dwrimk AwgUAW vWg auh AnpVH nhIN sn [ BweI gurdws ny vI
ieh vrnx kIqw hY ik gurU nwnk Awpxy imSnrI dOirAW dOrwn iek ikqwb
Awpxy kol r‘Kdy sn [ ipSOrw isMG ny ieh vI mMinAw ik SrDwlU is‘KW
ivc Awpxw rsUK vDwaux leI keI hor v`Ko-v`Kry gru`p vI nwnk dy nW qy
Awpxy SbdW dw gwien kr rhy sn Aqy ies sMbMD ivc gurU rwm dws vloN
Aijhy SbdW dy gwien ivru`D idqI icqwvnI dw izkr vI QIiss ivc kIqw
igAw hY ijs ivc ikhw igAw sI ik gurU jI dI aucwrx kIqI hoeI bwxI qoN
ielwvw bwkI swry Sbd nklI hn Aqy jo lok ienHW dw gwien krdy hn,
auh ivAkqI vI Aijhy SbdW ƒ sunx Aqy pRcwr krn vwilAW vWg hI
nklI hn [ pr ieh swrI Koj aus nklI h‘Q ilKq qy AwDwirq hY [ jo
Aijhy SbdW ƒ sundy jW gwien krdy hn, auh ivAkqI vI Aijhy SbdW ƒ
sunx Aqy pRcwr krn vwilAW vWg hI nklI hn [
pr ieh swrI Koj aus nklI h‘Q ilKq qy AwDwirq hY ijs dI
tyk lY ky ipSOrw isMG ny gurbwxI dy r`bI ielhwm hox dI ieiqhwsk muFlI
scweI qy ikMqU kIqw hY jd ik hkIkq ieh hY ik krqwrpur dI Awid bIV
Aqy gRMQ swihb qoN bwhr dI swrI rcnw nklI hY ijs dy AwDwr qy gurbwxI
 397

dI kIqI Koj dy koeI ArQ hI nhIN rih jWdy [

gurU nwnk dyv jI vloN gurbwxI sMpwidq krn dy isDWqW dI ivAwiKAw
krdy hoey ipSOrw isMG ny ieh is‘D krn dI koiSS kIqI hY ik gurU Arjn
dyv jI ny pRwpq tYkst ivc soD ies leI kIqI qW ik ies ƒ r‘bI ielhwm
dw gRMQ is‘D kIqw jw sky [ pr pRmu‘K pihlU ijs ƒ aus ny jwx-bu‘J ky
jw suqy isD AKoN auhly kIqw hY auh ieh hY ik gurU Arjn dyv jI ny Awpxy
qoN pihly gurUAW dI bwxI isrP auhI iek‘TI kIqI jo aunHW kol mOjUd nhIN sI
Aqy gurUAW dI bwxI dw bhuq hI mwmUlI ih‘sw Aijhw sI jo auhnW kol
auBlbD nhIN sI [ auhnW ny mu‘K qOr qy auhnW BgqW qy sMqW dI bwxI hI
iek‘TI kIqI ijs ƒ ik auh Awid gRMQ ivc Swml krnw cwhuMdy sn [ gurU
Arjn dyv jI ny gurU nwnk dyv, gurU AMgd dyv, gurU Amrdws Aqy gurU rwm
dws dI aucwrx kIqI hoeI bwxI ƒ aus ivc bgYr koeI A‘Kr v‘D-G‘t
kIqy ieMn-ibMn ausyrUp ivc AMikq kIqw [ gurUAW dI bwxI dI piv‘qrqw ƒ
BMg krnw iek mhwn glqI hY Aqy ies pRqI gurU Arjn dyv qoN v‘D hor
koeI jwgrUk nhIN ho skdw sI [ gurU Arjn dyv jI ny bhuq hI Swndwr
ivvsQw rwhIN rwgW dy AwDwr qy bwxI ƒ qrqIb id‘qI (hor vyrvy leI
krqwrpur vwlI bIV dI pRmwixkqw Aqy is‘K m‘q dI eykqw qy eykIkrn
isDWq sMbMDI dljIq isMG dw lyK vyiKAw jw skdw hY) [ swrI pRwpq bwxI
BweI gurdws dy hvwly kr id‘qI sI qW ik auh ies dy rcnhwr Aqy bwxI
dI auic‘qqw Anuswr aus ƒ Xog QW qy AMikq kr skx [ gurU Arjn dyv
jI ny bwAd ivc kuJ BgqW qy sMqW dy auh Sbd ies ivcoN k‘F id‘qy jo r‘bI
bwxI dI AwlOikkqw nwl myl nhIN KWdy sn [ gurUAW dI bwxI ivc nw koeI
Sbd joiVAw igAw Aqy nw hI GtwieAw igAw [ ieQoN q‘k ik jdoN auhnW
ny vyiKAw ik auhnW dw Awpxw iek Sbd do QwvW qy AMikq hY qW auhnW ny
ies ƒ k‘itAw nhIN sgoN ies sMbMDI auhnW ny iek vyrvw drj kr id‘qw [
iek pwsy qW ipSOrw isMG krqwrpur bIV ƒ pRmwixk bIV pRvwn
 398

krdw hY Aqy ieh vI svIkwr krdw hY ik gurU Arjn dyv jI ny gurU

swihbwn dI rcnw qoN bwAd hr Bwg qy AwpxI h‘Q-ilKq duAwrw pMny dI
nu‘kr ivc ‘suD’ Sbd AMikq kIqw hY, pr dUjy pwsy ies pRmwixk bIV ƒ
gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvristI kol peI nklI bIV dw soiDAw hoieAw rUp
drswaux dw Xqn kIqw hY [ ipSOrw isMG vloN kIqy gey Xqn ik XUnIvristI
kol peI bIV krqwrpur vwlI bIV qoN pihlW dI ilKq hY, ivAwrQ hox dy
nwl nwl q‘QhIx vI hn [ aus dI ieh dlIl ik ApRc‘ilq BwSw jo
XUnIvristI kol peI bIV ivc vrqI hoeI hY, aus ƒ bwAd ivc krqwrpur
vwlI bIV ivc soD id‘qw igAw hY, aus dI AigAwnqw dw pRqIk hY ikauNik
ieh ApRc‘ilq BwSw qW mOjUdw smyN q‘k vI Kws krky swDW-sMqW vloN vrqI
jWdI rhI hY [ mYƒ iek Aijhy rmqy swDU dw pqw hY jo ik pMjwbI ƒ lMifAW
ivc ilKdw sI [ ies qoN ieh sp‘St qOr qy is‘D huMdw hY ik is‘iKAw Aqy
ipCokV Anuswr Awpxy srDwlUAW dI igxqI ivc vwDw krn leI gurbwxI
dIAW nklI kwpIAW ilKIAW geIAW [ iesy qrHW XUnIvristI kol peI bIV
ƒ krqwrpur vwlI bIV qoN pihlW dI rcnw is‘D krn dIAW dlIAW vI
glq hn [ ipSOrw isMG ny Koj-p‘qr ivc huiSAwr isAwsI lokW vWg
SbdwvlI vrqI hY ijvyN ik ‘ieh l‘gdw hY’, ‘ieh pRqIq huMdw hY’, ‘Swied’,
‘ho skdw hY’, ‘ieh sMBv hY’ Awid Awid [ pr scweI ieh hY ik prK qy
pUrIAW auqrIAW rvwieqW ƒ mnGVq iKAwlI pRCwivAW dI shwieqw nwl
JuTlwieAw nhIN jw skdw [ iek cMgy Kojkwr leI ieh zrUrI hY ik aus
dI Koj dy q‘QW ƒ ivAwpk sbUqW rwhIN is‘D kIqw jw sky Aqy Koj dI tyk
Aijhy soimAW qy hovy ijnHW qy koeI ikMqU nw kIqw jw skdw hovy [ Kojkwr ƒ
hr hwlq ivc Aijhy suAwrQI ivdvwnW dw dumClw bxn qoN guryz krnw
cwhIdw hY ijnHW dw mMqv dUijAW dIAW rvwieqW ƒ nSt krnw hovy [
ipSOrw isMG ny iek Aijhy mu‘dy ƒ muV surjIq krn dI vI koiSS
kIqI hY jo isKI pihcwx nwl sMbMDq hY [ ausdw ieh ilKxw ik kI gurU
 399

nwnk Aqy aus qoN bwAd dy gurUAW ijnHW dI bwxI Awid gRMQ ivc drj hY,
dIAW isiKAwvW qy cilAw jwvy jW gurU goibMd isMG dy Kwlsw pMQ Anuswr
isK pMQ ivc nvW vwd ivvwd KVw krxw hY [ isK ivdvwnW ny vwr-vwr
ies Dwrnw dw KMfx kIqw hY ijs ivc ieh ikhw igAw hY ik gurU nwnk, gurU
goibMd isMG dIAW isiKAwvW qoN vKry sn [ auh swry ies ƒ glq hI nhIN
mMndy sgoN ies dI inKyDI vI krdy hn [ gurU goibMd isMG ny Kud vI is‘K
isDWq dI AxiKVvI soc Aqy eykqw dy bwry PurmwieAw hY [
muqbkr nwnk ƒ AMgd dy rUp ivc siqkwirAw igAw, AMgd dI
pihcwx Amr dws ivcoN hoeI Aqy Amrdws ny rwm dws dw rUp DwirAw [
ijhVy pwik piv‘qr hn, aunHW ƒ qW ieh sB ivKweI idMdw hY pr mUrKW ƒ
nhIN, jo ienHW ƒ v`Kry-v`Kry smJdy hn [ koeI ivrly hI mnu`K hn ijnHW ƒ
ies dI pCwx hY ik ieh swry hI iek srUp hn [ jo ies scweI ƒ smJdy
hn auh sMpUrn ho gey hn, ies smJ qoN bgYr sMpUrnqw pRwpq kIqI hI nhIN
jw skdI [
gurU gRMQ swihb ivc gurU qyg bhwdr dy SlokW AMdr gurU goibMd
isMG dw iek hI Sbd drj hox bwry ipSOrw isMG ny glq qOr qy pRyirq hox
sdkw is‘ty vI qoV-mroV ky k`Fy hn [ aus dw ieh kihxw ik gurU goibMd
isMG ny AwpxI rcnw ƒ dsm gRMQ q‘k hI sImq r‘iKAw hY, TIk nhIN hY [
jykr gurU goibMd isMG dy isDWq Aqy gurU gRMQ swihb dI ivcwrDwrw ivc koeI
duPyV huMdw qW aunHW gRMQ swihb ƒ gurU dw drjw nw id‘qw huMdw Aqy ieh mwx
auh dsm gRMQ ƒ idMdy [ ies qoN ielwvw gurU goibMd isMG ny jo vI kIqw Aqy
jo vI aucwrx kIqw, auh pUry qOr qy gurU nwnk dyv dy imSn qy iPlwsPI nwl
myl KWdw hY [ gurU nwnk dyv ny jYn mq, bu‘D mq, Aqy ies qrHW dI soc vwly
hor plwienvwd dy AnuAweIAW dy mwrg ƒ mUloN hI r`d id`qw sI [ aunHW
PurmwieAw ik BwvyN s`c dy swhmxy sMswr dIAW hor swrIAW cIzW hyc hn pr
SuB kMmW qy AwDwirq jIvn ies qoN vI v`D mh`qvpUrn hY [ jpujI swihb
 400

AMdr Awqimk ivkws leI d‘sdy hoey pRmwqmw dI mhwn Gwlnw dw aupdyS
id‘qw igAw hY [ gurU goibMd isMG ny vI ikhw hY ik bhwdr AwdmIAW leI
mOq iek r‘bI dwq hY, pr ieh qW hI sMBv hY jy ieh iksy srv pRvwinq
audyS leI shyVI jwvy [ bwbr bwxI ivc gurU nwnk ny DwVvIAW dy jbr
zulm dI inMdw hI nhIN kIqI sgoN ieh vI ikhw hY ik Aijhy zulm Aqy jbr
dw twkrw krnw hr Dwrimk ivAkqI dw Drm vI hY qy izMmyvwrI vI [ ies
leI gurU goibMd isMG vloN Kwlsw pMQ dI isrjxw gurU nwnk dyv dIAW
isiKAwvW dw kudrqI Aqy qrkSIl isKr hI hY [
r`bI bwxI hox kwrn gurbwxI srv-ivAwpk hY Aqy BgqW dI
AijhI bwxI hI gurU gRMQ swihb ivc Swml kIqI geI hY ijs dw srUp
srv-ivAwpI hY [ ipSOrw isMG dw ieh kQn TIk nhIN hY ik BgqW dI bwxI
gurU gRMQ swihb ivc ies leI Swml kIqI geI qW ik SrDwlUAW dI igxqI
vDweI jw sky jW is‘KW dy srv-ivAwpkqw dy dwAvy ƒ shI is‘D kIqw jw
sky [ ieko-iek AwDwr ijs dI ibnw qy BgqW dI bwxI gurU gRMQ swihb ivc
Swml kIqI geI, auh sI aus dw gurbwxI dw eykIkrn qy eykqw dI ivcwrDwrw
nwl myl Kwxw [
gurU Amr dws vloN Bgq kbIr Aqy Bgq nwmdyv dI bwxI ƒ
Swml krn sMbMDI ipSOrw isMG dw ieh kihxw ik Aijhw sMqW dy SrDwlUAW
ƒ is‘KI dy dwiery ivc ilAwaux leI ivsqwrvwdI pwlsI qihq kIqw
igAw iksy vI izMmyvwr Koj dIAW swrIAW h‘dW-bMny t`p jwx vwlI g`l hY [
aunHW dw Koj-p`qr bhuq DwrnwvW dw pulMdw hY, ijs ivc aunHW Awpxy vloN
k‘Fy gey is`itAW dy smrQn ivc koeI sbUq nhIN id`qy Aqy aunHW AMdr
Aijhy Koj p`qr ƒ pUrw krn leI loVINdI Xogqw dI vI Gwt hY [
AMq ivc ieh d‘sxw bhuq hI mh`qvpUrn hY ik is`K gurbwxI dy
gihr-gMBIr AiDAYn dy ivruD
` nhIN hn bSrqy ik ieh AiDAYn vwsqivkqw,
suihrdqw Aqy Akwdimk AsUlW qy c`ldy hoey gurbwxI dI ivAwiKAw srv-
pRvwinq dwiery dy AMdr rih ky ies dI kwiv-meI pRqISTw Aqy audySW pRqI
 401

hovy [ hor mMqvW qoN pRyirq ho ky bOiDk jwxkwrI dy ByK hyT kIqy gey Dwvy
ivru‘D qnwau Aqy ql^I pYdw hoxI kudrqI hY [ ipSOrw isMG ƒ cwhIdw hY ik
pRmwqmw ivru‘D kuPr qolx leI mwPI mMgy Aqy AwpxI Bul dI soD leI ies
g`l ƒ iDAwn ivc r‘Kdy hoey ik piv`qr gurbwxI dw aucwrx pRmwqmw ny
mnu`Kqw dy Bly leI gurUAW dy muKwribMd qoN krvwieAw hY, Awpxy Koj-p`qr
ƒ muV nvyN isry qoN ilKy [
 402

The present volume seeks to disclose how some

quarters have been uneasy at the unique vision of
the Sikh Gurus who have given the Sikhs an au-
thentic scripture, Sri Guru Granth Sahib; and how
they have repeatedly tried one way or the other to
erode the authenticity of the Gurbani. The book
graphically reveals the story of these continuous
activities, the frustration of their authors, and the
account of how a manuscript, unknown until 1987
was planted, and how ground was prepared for the
so-called ‘textual analysis’ and ghost articles were
got contributed to enable a university student to
make baseless and blasphemous observations on the
Aad Granth. Watchful scholars discovered and ex-
posed the plan. Never has the community been so
united in its universal condemnation of the nefari-
ous designs. Never before has the reaction been so
spontaneous as in this case. The entire Sikh com-
munity from all quarters of the globe rose like one
man. The present volume reproduces the dismal
story and true facts about the subject, showing a
high degree of alertness on the part of the commu-
nity. The book, besides providing valuable infor-
mation on the authenticity of the bani is a clear
warning against any repetition of similar attacks.
 403

“It has been my pleasure to glance through ‘planned

attack on the Aad Granth’. It is a ery welcome
contribution exposing the ugly and sinister designs
of the group ending in the thesis of Pashaura Singh
aimed at eroding the originality and authenticity,
of Guru Granth Sahib as is evidenced by the
Kartarpuri Bir. It is intriguing to know how an
unreliable manuscript, with forged Nishan of the
Guru and forged hymns attributed to the Guru, was
suddenly adopted to form the shaky basis of a Uni-
versity thesis. Tis unauthentic manuscript is treated
as a draft of the Adi Granth even when the author
knows that the date of demise of Guru Arjun Dev
clearly stands recorded in its contents. Equally in-
triguing is the unexplained fact how a dead scholar
was resurrected to contribute a new article to the
sikh Review which has been used as a justification
for choice of the subject of the thesis.

We should be grateful to the contributors to this

volume and particularly to S Bachittar Singh for
exposing these activities, which are galling to the
established views of Sikh religious scholars, both
present and past.

Justice Ram Singh Bindra (Retd.)

High Court of Assam and Nagaland
 PLANNED ATTACK ON
AAD
SRI GURU GRANTH SAHIB
Academics or Blasphemy
 < siqgur pRswid ]

PLANNED ATTACK ON
AAD
SRI GURU GRANTH SAHIB
Academics or Blasphemy

Editor
BACHITTAR SINGH GIANI
Advocate

INTERNATIONAL CENTRE OF SIKH STUDIES

CHANDIGARH
 ©
International Centre of Sikh Studies
Chandigarh

PLANNED ATTACK ON
AAD
SRI GURU GRANTH SAHIB

Academics or Blasphemy

Editor
BACHITTAR SINGH GIANI

1994
First Edition : 1100
Price : Rs 300.00 In India & SAARC Counries
US $ 20.00 in other Countries

Published by : International Centre of Sikh Studies, 1182, Sector 44-B, Chandigarh

Printed at : Azad Hind Stores (P) Lted 34/17-E, Chandigarh

 Dedicated
to
The Sikh in India
and Abroad
Who preserve and uphold
the originality and
authenticity of
The Adi Sri Guru Granth Sahib
 mUl-mMqr MUL-MANTER

< Ek Omkar
siqnwmu Satnam
krqwpurKu Kartapurkh
inrBau Nirbhau
inrvYr Nirvair
Akwl mUriq Akal Murat
AjUnI sYBM Ajuni Saibhan
gurpRswid Gur parshad
MUL-MANTAR IN AUTHENTIC GURU GRANTH COPIES
Mul-Mantar and Gur-Mantar in Sikh scriptures have been
one and the same ever they were revealed to Guru Nanak. They
have come down to us only through written tradition. Cul-groups
virtually disassociated from Sikhism even during the Guru-pe-
riod have tried to corrupt the Mulmantar, Gurmanter and also
distort Gurbani, but the Mulmantra and gurmantar of Guru
Nanak has been recorded in all authentic recensions of Ada Sri
Guru Granth Sahib, historically acceptable Janamsakhis,
Gurbilases is absolutely correct, the correct Mulmantar is
Ek: The One Transcendent God
Omkar: All-pervading Immanent Spirit
Satnam: His Name is Eternal Truth
Karta Purkh: Creator, Perfect Being
Nirbahu: Without Fear
Nirvair: Without Enemity
Akal murat: Immoratal His divine Image
Ajuni : Unborn
Saibhan: Self-Existent
Gurparsad: By his Grace attained
The Mulmantar is based on Guru Nanak's experience and
vision of the Unmanifest Absolute one and only one God, and
His Manifest Immanent, all-pervading Light Omkar. This ek
Omkar is also called the Bij mantar and is present in all invoca-
tions. It embodies the luminosity of the Unmanifest Absloute
God and His All-pervading Light which gives Life and divine
speak to all living creatures. It unfolds a vision of the Ultimate
Reality and the Creative Power behind the universe.
 Contemplation and mediation on the Mulmantar opens the
inner most being of man to the spiritual consiciousness of the
Immanent and Transcendent Presence of God. In the Guru Granth
we find it in 33 places, besides being placed at the opening of new
Ragas it is particularly attached to two major compositions of
Aad Guru Granth Sahib namely Japji and Asa-Ki-Var. It appears
it was inseparably associated with these compositions from the
time of Guru Nanak.
Minor Invocations: For invocations as minor sub-headings a
part of it ek Omkar satnam kartapurkh gurparshad is used only
eight times, while a still shorter invocation ek Omkar
satgurparshad is used 525 times. These minor invocations are not
Mulmantar. They are used even while writing a letter. For writ-
ing encyclic letters (Hukamnamas) these invocations were still
reduced to brief statements and ekomkar guru sat. Guru Gobind
Singh introduced a number of other invocations such as Vahigur-
ji-ki Fateh, tav parshad, Akal Sahai. These Invocations are not
mantras and are not used for meditations.
 CONTENTS
ENGLISH SECTION

Preface xiii
Foreword xv
1.Introduction 1-38
2.Blasphemous attacks Dr. Gurnam Kaur and 39-62
Dr. Kharak Singh Mann
3. An Academic Analysis of a Ph D Thesis Dr Gurmel Singh Sidhu 63-84
4. Myth of early draft of Adi Granth
(Manuscript 1245) Dr Balwant Singh Dhillon 85-107
5. The Text & Meaning of Adi Granth Dr Balkar Singh 108-111
6. Manuscript : A post 1606 Collection. Dr Kharak Singh Mann 112-114
7. Goindwal Pothis : A post Daljeet Singh &
1595 production Dr Kharak Singh Mann 115-121
8. Pashaura Singh’s “The Text & Ranbir Singh Sandhu 122-138
meaning of Adi Granth”
9. If it is a Ph D Thesis ...? Dr Darshan Singh 139-152
10. The Text & Meaning of the Adi GranthDr Devinder Singh Chahal
11. Can Pashaura Singh be defended? Gurtej Singh
12. Pashaura Singh’s Thesis on “The Dr Trilochan Singh 153-175
Text & Meaning of Adi Granth”
13. Research-Coverage of Blasphemy Dr Surinder Singh Kohli 176-182
14. Sacrilege in the name of Research Prof. Manjit Singh Sidhu 183-209
15. Text & Meaning of Adi Granth : Gurbax Singh 210-218
Pashaura Singh
16. The Text and Meaning of Adi Granth I.J. Singh 232-234
17. Pashaura Singh : Kuldeep Singh 235-244
Provocative, contentious, Controversial
18. Mul-Mantar Revelation Dr Piara Singh 245-253
19. You call it a research Dr McLeod? Dr. Hakim Singh 254-257
20. Pashaura Singh’s Thesis on Adi Granth Iqbal Singh Sara258-265
21. Centre of Sikh Studies or Dr. Sukhmander Singh
Blasphemy 266-271
22. Mul-Mantar Revelatory Dr Jasbir Singh Mann 272
23. Pashaura Singh & his Thesis -
An Analysis Sikh Missionary
Centre Michigan 277
24. Pathology of Pseudo-Sikh Researchers Dr S.S. Sodhi 281
with Linear, Myopic, Left Brain,
and Mystified Western Realities
25. Aad Bir Bare (Punjabi) Prof. Sahib Singh 287
26. Gurbani Sampadan
Nirnai (Punjabi) Prin Harbhajan Singh 291
27. Blasphemy Prohibited not Dr Gurdarshan Singh 298
research Dillon

APPENDIX
A Xerox copy of death dates & page in Manuscript 1245 300
B. Xerox Copy of a leaf from Goindwal Pothi Vol 1 301
C. Letter To Dr McLeod Dr Jasbir Singh 302
D. Will Dr O’Connell Dr Jasbir Singh 303
respond to real issue ?
E. Letter dated 3rd Aug. 307
1993 by Prof S S Sodhi to Dr
J Robert S Prichard, President
university of Toronto
F. Reply dated 10th Sept. 310
1993 by Adel Sedra, Vice -President
Provost, Toronto University, Toronto
G. Letter dated 17th Sept. Sent to Mr Manohar 312
1993 by David Cook Singh Bal, Secretary
Vice-Provost, Toronto Ontario Council of Sikhs
University, Toronto Toronto
H . The Future of Sikh Studies 314
in North America
Our Contributors 323
 pMjwbI Bwg
(Punjabi Section)

1. mu‘K-bMd sMpwidk 331

2. pSorw isMG dy QIss dw Akwdimk

AiDAYn fw. gurmyl isMG is`DU 340

3. gurU nwnk dyv XUnIvristI dI

` h`Q-ilKq nM: 1245 fw. KVHk isMG mwn 367
dw qoVswr

4. iek pRwcIn h‘Q-ilKq dI cox s. mnohr isMG mwrko 371

5. duSmx bwq kry AnhoxI s. mnohr isMG mwrk 373

o
6. is`K Drm dy iKlw& iek v`fI swizS s. hrijMdr isMG dlgIr378

7. AMimRq kaurw ibiKAw mITI s. gurqyj isMG 387

8. Koj-p`qr jW Awid sRI gurU gRMQ

swihb qy is`Dw hmlw s. gurqyj isMG 389

9. Koj dy nW qy Drm inMidAw pRo. mnjIq isMG 393

 PREFACE
Academic Circles are aware that a group of scholars generally
concerned with the Christian Mission in Punjab have researched
or even unbiased. But, it is now well known that Pashaura Singh
in his present work guided by the ex-missionary W.H.Macleod
has evidently crossed all limits of propriety. For, he calls a manu-
script, which admittedly bears in its contents a forged 'Nishan' of
a Guru and the date of demise of the Fifth Gurn, a draft of the
Aad Granth by Guru Arjun. The Manuscript has no date and no
name of the scribe nor any history beyond its sudden appearance
at Amritsar in 1987, when curiously Pashaura Singh started his
textual research at Toronto. Surprisingly, the manuscript is un-
derstood to have on it some words in English and few lines in
Punjabi supposed to have been written by a professor. On the
basis of this manuscript Pashaura Singh has accused the Fifth
Guru of Granth Sahib. By any measure Pashura Singh has gone
beyond the bounds of rationally, ethics or even the Law. It is
indeed amazing that such a sub-standard work, which appears
evidently motivated should have been accepted in a foreign Uni-
versity. The only reason for such spurious work having been
passed as academic activity could be an ignorance in the Western
world of essentials of Sikh Studies and literature on the subject.
It is, evidently, the baseless, content and character of
Pashaura Singh's work that has aroused a spontaneous reaction
and response from the Sikh literate world both in India and abroad.
So far as the Sikh academic world is concerned they know by
now the facts of the matter, But, these are known nether to the
public at large nor generally among which the western academic
world. It is this aspect of the matter which we feel needs to be
well known. Hence, the necessity of present publication so that
the shoddy nature of the work is exposed and well known.
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee a rep-
resentative body of the Sikhs and a final authority on religious
affairs after having received reports of two experts Pashaura
Singh to appear before Sri Akal Takhat to explain his acts of
blasphemy. Mr. Pashaura Singh is still evading to
appear apparently because he has hardly any ground to defend
himself.
, It is our great pleasure that a galaxy of scholars, from Guru
Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjabi University, Patiala,
Punjab University, Chandigarh, Institute Aramand Frappier,
University of Qubec, Canada. Ohio State University, U.S.A.,
'University British Columbia, Vancouver, New York University,
Santa Clara University, C.A., Dalhousie University, Dr. Trilochan
Singh, Editors of Sikh Journals, many other Academicians and
representatives of Sikh Organisations have contributed to his book
b their thoughtful and valuable writings.
It is under the inspiration and blessings of the Guru that this
book has been undertaken and the project was completed within
a short period. Because of pressures and the need to bring out the
publication early, the errors and omissions in it are deeply regret-
ted.
We also take this opportunity profusely to thank all the schol-
ars who have very kindly contributed their articles for this book.
We are deeply grateful to the members of this organisation for
their generous help in publishing of this book. In this regard our
thanks are also due to Dr. Bishan Singh Samundri Formerly Vice-
Chancellor, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, for writing
a forword. '
In the end, we should suggest to the S.G.P.C., Chief Khalsa
Diwan and other Sikh Organisations in India and abroad to see
the proper distribution of this book amongst all circles, so that
they become aware of the Truth of the matter and get educated in
order to take adequate measures to stop any mischief of this kind.

Dated: 19th January, 1994 PARAMJIT SINGH

Advocate
Secretary
International Centre of Sikh Studies,
Chandigarh
 FOREWORD
Ideological challenge is a normal phenomenon not uncom-
mon in the history of religious thought. In fact it may even by
desirable, since it leads to better understanding of religious doc-
trines and provides an opportunity to its adherents to affirm their
faith. Sikhism has faced such challenges in the past. Because of its
origin and history Sikhism has often been confused with Hindu-
ism, and described as one of its sects. Such a view has often been
expressed not only by opponents of Sikhism, but also by those
whose study of it is superficial or casual. No one can ignore the
too visible existence and achievements of the Sikh movement and
the transformation of society from a divided down-trodden and
helpless lot to a virile and proud community based on a degree of
equality unknown to humanity in earlier history.
While well-meaning quarters of the Hindu society have al-
ways been anxious to retain this powerful community as its limb,
though the Sikhs have, without wavering from their ideological
course, always maintained close and fraternal ties with it through-
out history. Even at the time of the Partition of India in 1947,
when the country was divided on a communal basis, Sikhs de-
cided to throw in their lot with India, spurning offers of autonomy
in the India subcontinent from the ceding Muslim community.
The decision cost millions of Sikhs their very hearts and homes
and their fertile lands and property. In this migration lacs lost
their lives, and the community underwent suffering on a scale
unparalleled in human history. It is no exaggeration to say that it
was largely the Sikhs who paid for the freedom of India in blood,
distress and property. Since the Sikhs have a long history of struggle
for their political rights culminating in the gory events of 1984,
any suggestion that Sikhs are Hindus, has obviously political
implications for the socio-religious identity of the Sikhs. Unfor-
tunately, ideological challenges, motivated or otherwise, have been
made with renewed zeal, saying that Sikhism is a part of the
Vaishnava Bhakti or Sant movements. Such claims ignore two
obvious facts. Sikhism is a whole-life religion, which is strictly'
mono-theistic and is committed to perfect egalitarianism, house-
holders life and acceptance of social responsibility. The system is
opposed to the earlier Indian tradition that believes
in personal salvation, social hierarchy, withdrawal and sanyasa as
religious values. Since the divergence on these basic issues is too
glaring, it was not difficult for Sikh scholars to meet the chal-
lenge. Such attacks were effectively repulsed in the end of the last
century by leaders of the Singh Sabha Movement as also during
the present century.
Recently, however, the situation has taken a different turn.
Opponents have blatantly started striking at the very roots of the
Sikh faith. The challenge is directed at the authenticity and integ-
rity of Aad Sri Guru Granth Sahib, which is not only the sole
Scripture of the Sikhs, but their Living Guru, embodying the
spirit of the Ten Masters. Pashaura Singh's thesis supervised by
an ex-missionary of Batala is an example in question. It was fol-
lowed closely by a publication of Piar Singh. Both came out with
preformulated and heretical propositionsbased on bogus and pur-
posely selected material, suggesting a motivated attempt.
It is indeed very unfortunate that Pashaura Singh's attack on
the authenticity of Guru Granth Sahib is sought to be based on a
manuscript called a draft by Guru Arjun Dev, when its text bears
in its contents the date of demise of the Fifth Master. It is also
unfortunate that use has been made of an article of doubtful au-
thorship, because the recorded name is considered to have been
wrongly used. Such tactics can hardly do credit to a scholar or to
any academic institution.
It is gratifying that Sikh scholars as well as the common man,
took the challenge as soon as it came. The SGPC also took cogni-
zance of the attack. The present volume is a story of the sponta-
neous reaction of the community to the blasphemous attacks on
Sikhism, and it thoroughly exposes the designs of the quarters
known for their hostility to Sikhism. I congratulate the scholars
and the publishers for the production and publication of this
important material in one volume for the benefit of readers so'
that they know the truth.
Dr. Bishan Singh Samundri
Formerly Vice-Chancellor,
Guru Nanak Dev University,
Amritsar Amritsar,
December 25, 1993