The Bani, called Kirtan Sohila in Gurmukhi, is read before one goes to sleep at night. It is also a common practice to recite it at a funeral, when the body is cremated. Three Sikh Gurus - Guru Nanak, Guru Ram Das and Guru Arjan - contributed five shabads in total to this bani on the pain of separation, and celebrating the bliss of union with God. The first three shabads were uttered by Guru Nanak, the fourth by Guru Ram Das, and the fifth by Guru Arjan Dev. The first Shabad (verse) reminds us of the day, when death will eventually come. Those fortunate souls, that succeed in achieving union with God are referred to as happy brides, who attain union with their Husband (Lord) amid songs of joy. The second Shabad tells us that God is the Supreme Creator of all, including the Sun, which is the cause of time, days, nights, months, seasons etc. Likewise, God Who is One, is the cause of countless manifestations. Satguru reminds us that the school of thought, which teaches us to sing God's praises and worship Him sincerely, is the only profitable way. The third Shabad emphasizes that there is no benefit in the empty observance of the ceremony of Arti (worship with small lamps placed on a platter). Nature (Moon, Stars, and Sky) and the entire Universe is constantly performing the Divine and True form of Arti for God. This verse also requests God for His Mercy. The fourth Shabad describes the deplorable condition of a sinner. His love for ego causes him to suffer pain and grief. Emphasis is laid on achieving union with God, through living a virtuous life and the True Worship of God and His Name; for this is the True object of human life. The fifth Shabad asserts that man can only obtain union with God only in this life; he will repent in failing to do so. Pray to God to seek from Him the Divine Name and the society of True Saints (Enlightened Beings).

It Is A Biography Of Sant Attar Singh Of Mastuana, Who Preached The Sikh Religion Throughout India And Abroad, And Established Many Sikh Educational Institutions. Half Title Page Damaged.

The Adi Granth - the primary scripture of the Sikhs - comprises approximately 3000 hymns. This work attempts to construct a comprehensive picture of the making of Sikh "canon", drawing on the recently discovered early manuscripts as well as the extensive secondary literature on the topic.

This book examines three closely related questions in the process of canon formation in the Sikh tradition: how the text of the Adi Granth came into being, the meaning of gurbani, and how the Adi Granth became the Guru Granth Sahib. The censure of scholarly research on the Adi Granth was closely related to the complex political situation of Punjab and brought the whole issue of academic freedom into sharper focus. This book addresses some of these issues from an academic perspective. The Adi Granth, the sacred scripture of the Sikhs, means ‘first religious book’ (from the word ‘adi’ which means ‘first’ and ‘granth’ which means ‘religious book’). Sikhs normally refer to the Adi Granth as the Guru Granth Sahib to indicate a confession of faith in the scripture as Guru. The contents of the Adi Granth are commonly known as bani (utterance) or gurbani (the utterance of the Guru). The transcendental origin (or ontological status) of the hymns of the Adi Granth is termed dhur ki bani (utterance from the beginning). This particular understanding of revelation is based upon the doctrine of the sabad, or divine word, defined by Guru Nanak and the succeeding Gurus. This book also explores the revelation of the bani and its verbal expression, devotional music in the Sikh tradition, the role of the scripture in Sikh ceremonies, and the hymns of Guru Nanak and Guru Arjan.

Sikhism traces its beginnings to Guru Nanak, who was born in 1469 and died in 1538 or 1539. With the life of Guru Nanak the account of the Sikh faith begins, all Sikhs acknowledging him as their founder. Sikhism has long been a little-understood religion and until recently they resided almost exclusively in northwest India. Today the total number of Sikhs is approximately twenty million worldwide. About a million live outside India, constituting a significant minority in the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States. Many of them are highly visible, particularly the men, who wear beards and turbans, and they naturally attract attention in their new countries of domicile. This third edition of Historical Dictionary of Sikhism covers its history through a chronology, an introductory essay, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 1000 cross-referenced entries on key persons, organizations, the principles, precepts and practices of the religion as well as the history, culture and social arrangements. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Sikhism.

How does the sacred/secular opposition explain itself in the context of musical production? This volume traces this binary as it frames Western Classical music and Indian Classical music in the 18th and 19th centuries, laying the ground for a contemporary exploration of what is ostensibly sacred music in South Asia. Offering a potent critique of musicological knowledge-making, Virinder S. Kalra explores examples of South Asian musics in various domains and traverses a new cartography of music in which the sacred and the secular overlap. Drawing on examples which include Qawwali, kirtan and popular devotional genres, Sacred and Secular Musics offers new empirical material, as well as new insights into conceptualising religion and music, and the ways in which music performs sacredness and secularity across the contested India-Pakistan border in the region of Punjab. Through its deconstruction of the sacred/secular opposition, Sacred and Secular Musics explores the relationship of religion and music to wider questions of religion and politics. Its postcolonial approach brings Asia into the Western sacred/secular opposition, and provides a set of analytical tools - a language and range of theories - to allow further exploration of non-western religious music.