Unify, don’t divide

Since the SGPC was the country’s first quasi-religious body to reserve 30 per cent seats for women, she should increase their number from the present 30 in a house of 185 — to at least 60.

Politically, too, women lag behind. With Bibi Jagir Kaur’s resignation from the Punjab government’s council of ministers, there is just one woman minister left in the cabinet! She has to try and get this outrageous imbalance changed. The Bibi’s work is cut out for her. By handling it well she will earn the respect of all women and create an impressive vote bank for herself for the future.

There are numerous examples in Sikh history to show how women rosemagnificently to the occasion in times of crisis. In his History of the Sikhs, M.A. Macauliffe, describes the battle of Khidrana (now Muktsar) where a vastly superior Mughal force closed in on Guru Gobind Singh — and the 40 Sikhs who were accompanying him — in a bid to finish the Sikhs once and for all. The 40 “were joined by a heroine named Bhago, who through zeal for the Sikh cause had donned man’s attire and vowed to suffer death if necessary on the bloodstained field of danger on behalf of the Guru”. In the fierce engagement on December 29, 1705 “Bhago fought heroically in their ranks, disposed of several of her Muhammadan opponents, and transmitted her name as an Indian heroine for the admiration of future generations”.

Mai Bhago survived her wounds, was initiated into the Khalsa by Guru Gobind Singh at Talwandi Sabo, and journeyed with him to Nanded in the south. After his death she spent her last years in Jhinwara, about 11 km from Bidar in Karnataka, where Gurdwara Tap Asthan Mai Bhago wasbuilt in her memory.Mai Bhago fought to protect an emergent faith and played a key role at a critical juncture. What role are Sikh leaders playing today? While past battles were fought for ideals, they are now fought for the spoils of office. And they are not won by valour but through sordid deals conducted in the comfort of committee rooms.

At this point it wouldn’t be a bad idea to mention a problem Sikhs have: they are indifferent communicators. Even though the social ideals enunciated by Sikhism’s founders centuries ago were way ahead of their time, few people know about them because the unseemly squabbles of the “leaders” cast their shadow on all else. Like, for instance, the idea of equality between Sikh men and women. Guru Nanak gave it priority at the end of the 15th century.

The third Guru, Amardas, gave it specific form in the 16th century: he allowed widows to remarry, stopped them wearing veils, and prohibited self-immolation by women on their husband’s pyres. He also allowed women to headthe manjis, the equivalent of ecclesiastical districts of the Christian faith. The insistence on gender equality was both a pragmatic and a humane decision. A happy family represented a strong social structure, which was only possible if a woman’s status was not inferior to a man’s; so by enjoying the same rights, women could make the faith strong and vibrant.The fifth Guru, Arjan Dev, placed the secular principle in perspective by inviting Mian Mir, a Qadirite Sufi Saint of Lahore, to lay the foundation stone of the Golden Temple. Tegh Bahadur, the fifth Guru added yet another dimension to the list of human decencies by taking up the right of Kashmiri Pandits to practice their faith in freedom. He sacrificed his life to uphold this principle. And lastly, Guru Gobind Singh’s Zafarnamah to Aurangzeb was a challenge to the emperor, a demand that he establish the principle of openness and accountability in governance, and live up to his name, Aurangzeb, which broadly translated means `pride of the throne’.

Theblurring of distinctions between the honorable and the dishonorable has created a social and political environment in which moral outrage has been sidelined; in which the only sound heard is of sycophants. Did some of the players in the recent game played out in Punjab between the SGPC and the state government, pause to think of the damage they have done to the Sikh image by sinking to the level to which they did? Or the extent to which their actions made most Sikhs in India and abroad hang their heads in shame? If they haven’t had time to think for reasons of ego, ambition or whatever – there is still time for it.

With just 10 days left till Baisakhi, and the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Khalsa, it is necessary to impart nobility and grandeur to a uniquely significant event. No ego clashes must mar it. Last-minute arches, processions, pomp and such cannot make up for wasted years. The idea of painting the town of Anandpur Sahib white is excellent. But it cannot hide the fact that in symbolicterms it is a whitewash of the government’s failure to do anything meaningful at Anandpur.

Since men have failed to do it, Bibi Jagir Kaur can initiate steps to prevent warring groups from fighting over our places of worship and the events associated with them. She must also make sure the dignity, authority and sanctity of the Akal Takht and the man who heads it as Jathedar is not compromised. This symbol of Sikhism’s unity and cohesiveness must never be tampered with.