The Discovery of Purpose
Translation of two events from Professor Sahib Singh’s autobiography that led him towards compiling his magnum opus, Sri Guru Granth Darpan.
Professor Sahib Singh is one of the most renowned Sikh grammarians and theologians, whose tomes Sri Guru Granth Darpan and Gurbani Vyakaran are among the foremost references for many a preacher to widen their perception of Sikh scripture and philosophy.
Born as Nathu Ram in a Hindu Khatri family, he was inspired as a young boy by the Singh Sabha movement into adopting the Khalsa faith and renaming himself to Sahib Singh.
In his 1977 autobiography “Meri Jivan Kahani”, Sahib Singh narrates two episodes from his early life that led him towards his life’s purpose of discerning a singular interpretation of Gurbani. Below are two stories translated from the original Punjabi.
A religious insult
Four roads crossed from the Tehsil of our village Tharpal, Rayya. One went towards Narowal-Shakargarh, the second towards Shahdara-Lahore, the third towards Sialkot and the fourth to Amritsar. Amritsar was on a distance of 27 miles from the Tehsil of Rayya. On this road one could reach the shores of the river Ravi in a mere 3 mile journey.
On a cloudy day, I woke up early at dawn and ventured straight to a path that eventually led me to the Ravi river. On the opposite end of the stream I noticed a small boat that was making its way towards me, full of passengers. The boat reached the shore. The travellers began exiting it. I was able to recognise one of them. He was a pandit from the vicinity of Datewal, which was a hamlet situated in the three miles between Phatewali and Gota-Fatehgarh. Every member of our household held him in a high regard. I stepped forward and, picking up his luggage, brought him to my village.
All of us three brothers had adopted the Sikh faith. The panditji1 beheld this and sighed in disbelief. He grabbed the bundle of his belongings from my hands and exclaimed, “Come, kaka2. Let me enlighten you about what your Guru hath said about you.” As soon as he said that, he pulled a book from his bag and read aloud one verse:
ਕਾਜੀਆ ਬਾਮਣਾ ਕੀ ਗਲ ਥਕੀ,
ਅਗਦੁ ਪੜੈ ਸੈਤਾਨੁ ਵੇ ਲਾਲੋ॥
The function of the Qazis and the Brahmans is over and the Satan now reads the marriage rites.
- Raag Tilang, Guru Nanak Dev, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, Ang 722.
The panditji went on, “Your Guru declared that those whose marriages are conducted by neither a Pandit or a Qazi, receive sanction from Satan himself.”
He spoke again. “Kaka! See, your Guru had made his apology to us. Guru Gobind Singh had conducted a yagya prior to the occasion of administering Amrit. During that yagya ceremony, he had forsaken the primacy of the Brahmins when organising the feast. The Brahmins resented this and the Guruji expressed his profound regret in the following words:
ਮੇਰੋ ਕਛੂ ਅਪਰਾਧ ਨਹੀ,
ਗਇਓ ਯਾਦ ਤੇ ਭੂਲਿ, ਨ ਕੋਪੁ ਚਿਤਾਰੋ॥
There is no fault of mine in this matter. There was a lapse in my judgment and do not look at me in anger.
-Swayya, Sri Khalsa Mahima, Guru Gobind Singh.
I felt tremendous temper at Panditji’s repetitive reproval. I retorted, “Panditji! I may not yet be able to provide sufficient ripostes to your incessant carping. But do be advised that we shall never let the yoke of your dogmatic noose overtake our necks ever again.”
The panditji finished his meal and promptly left our residence.
A very small spiritual awakening
A pond used to exist on the Western side of our village. On its edge stood an enormous Banyan tree, near which a Thakurdwara3 overlooked the shore of the pond.
During my summer holidays, I used to bring a charpai from home and prop it directly under that Banyan tree, falling asleep every afternoon under its thick shade. Prior to that I would almost always travel to the Tehsil and spend around two or three hours at the Gurdwara there.
One day I remember being surrounded by a wedding party, which briefly halted expecting the rest of the family to gather there. Their path was planned to traverse beyond the Ravi. The wedding party was made up of Arya Samajist4 brothers. One of their spiritual leaders came and sat near me. He began to speak, “If a man is asked to utter his father’s name and replies with “him or….or him,” followed by 8-10 names, what conclusion does one arrive at? Surely, that the respondent is either mentally deficient, or does not recall his father’s name.”
With this tactic in mind, the fellow (now confident to strike his blow) resumed speaking, “You Sikhs proudly state that your Guru has penned this Granth in your own common tongue. But your state is quite pitiful, you interpret each hymn in myriads of contradictory terms and consider yourselves as grand and wise for doing so. Do you not wonder whether this is wisdom or foolishness?”
The Arya Samajist man’s argument made me ponder for sometime and consumed my mind. In the year 1909, I had listened to a few recitations of Bhagat Bani5 performed at Sangla by Bhai Giani Singh of Daska and requested him to expound upon some of their meanings, which transformed me into an enthusiastic admirer of his sagacity. But after this encounter, I was awakened. Interpreting one hymn in multiple manners is not wise but ignorant. One does not feel a firm conviction upon any one interpretation.
These events occurred in August of 1913.
A Hindu Brahmin priest learned in the Sanskrit language.
Affectionate term used for a young child.
A small temple which housed idols of Hindu deities.
Arya Samaj was a Hindu reformist movement which placed an emphasis upon the monotheistic nature of the Vedas and the teachings of Dayanand Saraswati. Its adherents in Punjab were particularly hostile against Sikh beliefs and lambasted the Sikh Gurus in publications. The Singh Sabha movement was the Sikh reformist reaction to the Arya Samaj.
Bhagat Bani refers to Gurbani found in Guru Granth Sahib that is attributed to the 15 Bhagats of the Bhakti movement.