| Sikhism |
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This article is part of a series on Sikhism
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| Sikh Gurus |
| Guru Nanak Dev · Guru Angad Dev Guru Amar Das · Guru Ram Das Guru Arjan Dev · Guru Har Gobind Guru Har Rai · Guru Har Krishan Guru Tegh Bahadur · Guru Gobind Singh Guru Granth Sahib |
| Philosophy |
| Nām Japō · Kirat Karō · Vaṇḍ Chakkō Caṛdī Kalā · Guru Maneyo Granth |
| Practices |
| Sikh Rehat Maryada · Prohibitions Ardās · Kirtan · Dasvand · Baptism Five Evils · The Five Ks · Five Virtues Langar · Simran |
| Scripture |
| Guru Granth Sahib · Adi Granth Dasam Granth · Sarbloh Granth Five Banis |
| General topics |
| History · Ik Onkar · Gurdwara Harmandir Sahib · Khalsa · Khanda Literature · Music · Names · Places Nanakshahi calendar · Sikhs · Waheguru Dastar |
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Sikhism Portal |
Khālsā (Punjabi: ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ (Gurmukhi), خالصہ (Shahmukhi); [xaːlsaː]) refers to one who has taken the step to live by the requirements of the Sikh religion, receiving Amrit (Sikh Baptism) in formal ceremony and continues to live the requirements of Sikh lifestyle and practice. The Khalsa was founded on March 30, 1699, by Siri Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, in the city of Anandpur sahib, Punjab. This day is know as Vaisakhi.
Khalsa refers to a status of total purity in thought, word, deeds, spirit, lifestyle , ect... The symbolic meaning of Khalsa also translates to "Sovereign"/"Free". Guru Gobind Singh describes in his scripture, the Sarbloh Granth the qualities of Khalsa:[1]
The Khalsa is the reflection of my form, The Khalsa is my body and life force, The Khalsa is my very life.... The Khalsa is my true Guru complete and beloved hero.... ....Our enemies are vanquished by the steadfastness of Khalsa, Unlike countless others, we are adorned by the Khalsa. ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂ ਜੀ ਕਾ ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ! ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂ ਜੀ ਕੀ ਫਤਿਹ!!.
The Sikhs of the Khalsa can be identified with the Five Ks and name Singh for men or Kaur for women. The tenth Sikh Guru, Siri Guru Gobind Singh at the event known as Vaisakhi day in year 1699 gave the gift of the Five Ks; these are not merely symbols but significant to the discipline of Sikh faith founded by Siri Guru Nanak. These visible symbols clearly identify a Sikh and communicate one's commitment. Furthermore, the 5 K are practical in nature, all having a basic technological function as well.
A Sikh who's been initiated into the Khalsa, becoming a baptized Sikh is known as Amritdhari some people refer to non-baptized Sikhs refer as Sahajdhari, although this is nothing to do with caste as that is specifically against the principle of Sikhism and Guru Gobind Singh has instructed all Sikhs to never view themselves (or anyone) as higher or lower but all equal, as is the message of Guru Nanak Dev.
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The usual interpretation of the Khalsa is made as "Pure" as in the following statement: (Arabic خالصة) ("pure/devoted") word khāliṣa[h] is the recognition of every Sikh that follows the discipline and text from the Guru Granth Sahib.
There is also another word from Arabic "خالسا" which is pronounced as "Khalsa" and is adapted in Punjabi/English/Hindi and many other languages. So, there are two different words in Arabic: "خالسا"(Khalsa) and "خالصة" (Khalisa(h)). Furthermore, there is a word in Persian "خالص" meaning "pure" and pronounced as "Khalis". A reader of Urdu can testify the "Khalis" in the Persian script and language as described below.
"Khalsa" is also used for a property which belongs to the emperor directly. The official language in the Mughal era was Persian and Persian language contains a word "Khalis" which directly translates to "Pure" in English. This may give a new meaning to the word "Khalsa". On these grounds and as per writings of the Guru Gobind Singh, the father of the Khalsa, wherein the great Guru describes the Khalsa as army of the timeless-being, it is evident that Khalsa means timeless sovereign. The Khalsa does not serve any monarch or a wordly sovereign country because it is a government in itself which acts only according to Guru Granth Sahib. A majority times "Khalsa" is presented as "Khalis" which, if not wrong, is an incomplete definition. As long as the Khalsa keeps on performing its duty (as assigned by the Guru and which remains forever) there is no problem as far the dictionary is concerned and could be a matter of individual research. As long as the Khalsa remains the collective body of the Singhs and Kaurs (the ones who have received the baptism of double-edged sword or "Amrit"), in contrast to someone individual (as "amritdharis" are usually referred as today), there is a ray of hope that it starts functioning again and sooner for benefit of the "Entire".
As is traditionally said the soul/spirit is the Granth (Guru Granth Sahib) and body is the Panth (the Khalsa) (aatma Granth vich, Shreer Panth vich). In another analogy as every thought needs a body to be executed in this material world rendering the thought (or spirit) and body inseparable. Thought is the symbol of "spirituality" and Body is the symbol of "temporality", as far Sikhism is concerned they are inseparable. Miri-Piri are simply inseparable. So the Guru Granth Sahib (the word or thought) and the Khalsa (the executive body) are the two inseparable sides of a coin. The Khalsa is definitely the collective body of the Singhs and Kaurs, however for all temporal reasons it is led by Panj Pyare or the five-beloved. At the Battle of Chamkaur, the Khalsa led by Panj Pyare passed on an order/command to the Guru Gobind Singh to escape from the Chamkaur and the Guru had to obey it, because at that point of time, and as proclaimed by the Guru on March 30, 1699 about his absorption into the Khalsa and declaring the five-beloved being equal to him, the Guru was just a Singh of the Khalsa.
Also in Sikh tradition, the word Khalsa was already adopted by the sixth Guru as the term first appears in a hukmanama (order) by Sri Guru Hargobind (the sixth Guru) which refers to a sangat as "Guru ka khalsa" ("Guru's Khalsa"). It also appears in a letter by Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur (the ninth Guru), in the same sense.
| Panj Piare |
| Bhai Daya Singh |
| Bhai Dharam Singh |
| Bhai Himmat Singh |
| Bhai Mohkam Singh |
| Bhai Sahib Singh |
Although the early Mughal emperors had peaceful relations with the Sikh Gurus, the Sikhs started facing religious persecution during the reign of Jahangir. SriGuru Arjan Dev, the fifth Guru, was arrested and executed by Jahangir in 1606.[2]
n 1675, Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Guru of the Sikhs was executed by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb for saving the religious rights of Hindus. In 1699, his son and the tenth Guru, Gobind Singh sent hukmanamas (letters of authority) to his followers throughout the Ind0-Pak sub-continent, asking them to gather at Anandpur Sahib on March 30, 1699, the day of Baisakhi (the annual harvest festival).
Guru Gobind Singh addressed the congregation from the entryway of a tent pitched on a hill (now called Kesgarh Sahib). He drew his sword and asked for a volunteer who was willing to sacrifice his head. No one answered his first call, nor the second call, but on the third invitation, a person called Daya Ram (later known as Bhai Daya Singh) came forward and offered his head to the Guru. Guru Gobind Singh took the volunteer inside the tent, and emerged shortly, with blood dripping from his sword. He then demanded another head. One more volunteer came forward, and entered the tent with him. The Guru again emerged with blood on his sword. This happened three more times. Then the five volunteers came out of the tent unharmed. These five, who were willing to sacrifice their lives for their Guru, were called Panj Piare ("the five beloved ones").[3] These five volunteers were : Daya Ram (Bhai Daya Singh), Dharam Das (Bhai Dharam Singh), Himmat Rai (Bhai Himmat Singh), Mohkam Chand (Bhai Mohkam Singh), and Sahib Chand (Bhai Sahib Singh).
Guru Gobind Singh then took an iron bowl and poured some water in it. Sahib Devan (later Mata Sahib Kaur) added some sugar crystals to the water, and the Guru stirred this mixture with a double-edged sword whilst reciting the Five Banis. The resultant solution is called as "Khandey di Pahul" (ceremony of the double-edged sword) or commonly known as "amrit" (nectar)
These actions allude to the nature expected of the inductees to the Khalsa: that they must have the will and the strength to fight oppression (symbolized by the sword), but must always remember that their actions are born from protection and not hatred (symbolized by the sweetness of the sugar).
Each of the Panj Piares were given five handfuls of the Amrit to drink, and had amrit sprinkled in their eyes five times. Each time, they repeated the phrase "Vaheguru ji ka Khalsa, Vaheguru ji ki Phateh" ("The Khalsa belongs to Vaheguru (the wondrous teacher), the victory belongs to Vaheguru (the wondrous teacher)").
Guru Gobind Singh gave them the title (analogous to "Knight" or "Sir" in English culture) of "Singh" (meaning "lion"). Similarly, for female the title of "Kaur" (meaning "Princess"). As a matter of fact, nowadays the majority of Sikhs carry this title without taking the oath of double-edged sword.
Guru Gobind Singh is the "Father" of the Khalsa and Mata Sahib Kaur is the "Mother". One important outcome of joining the Khalsa is the abolition of one's previous caste, nation, race, rituals, customs, religion, clan, Karma. The new member is the citizen of Anandpur Sahib and their birthplace is the Kesgarh Sahib.
The uniform of a Singh/Kaur of the Khalsa comprises the Five Ks:
Besides this, there is a basic code of conduct to be followed and a breach of which requires the fallen to appear before the five beloved ones who award a suitable punishment. The basic code of conduct (Rehat Maryada) issued by the Khalsa is:
With the creation of Khalsa, Guru Gobind Singh had abolished all existing social divisions as was fundamental in the teachings of Siri Guru Nanak. In their new order, the former lowest of the low would stand with the former highest; all would become one and drink from one vessel.[4] All previous beliefs relating to family, occupation, customs and ceremonies were declared useless by the Guru and salvation could be achieved only by the ways of the Khalsa. This caused discomfort to the conservative followers of the Guru and they protested. Many departed from the ceremony, but the Guru declared that the low castes should be raised and would dwell next to him.[4]
The newswriter of the Mughal government, Ghulam Mohyiuddin, reporting to the emperor wrote:[5][6]
| “ | He has abolished caste and custom, old rituals, beliefs and superstitions of the Hindus and bonded them in one single brotherhood. No one will be superior or inferior to another. Men of all castes have been made to eat out of the single bowl. Though orthodox men have opposed him, about twenty thousand men and women have taken baptism of steel at his hand on the first day. The Guru has also told the gathering: "I' ll call myself Gobind Singh only if I can make the meek sparrows pounce upon the hawks and tear them; only if one combatant of my force faces a legion of the enemy" | ” |
Sri Gur Sobha (18th century) by Sainapati (Saina Singh) contains two sections (adhyays) on the controversies that arose, when Guru Gobind Singh's disciples in Delhi heard the news of his new order.[7] Much of the controversy stated in Sri Gur Sobha revolves around bhaddar, the ritual shaving of head after death of a close relative, which was discouraged by Guru Gobind Singh. According to Sainapti, while creating the Khalsa, Guru Gobind Singh said that bhaddar is bharam (illusion), and not dharam.[7]
Tensions developed between the Punjabi Khatri disciples of the Guru in Delhi, and members of the newly-formed Khalsa. A prominent Khatri disciple was expelled from the place of worship (dharmasala) for refusing to join the Khalsa. Another disciple was expelled for eating with him, starting a chain of further expulsions.[7] The expelled disciples convened a community gathering, at which two wealthy Khatris demanded that the Khalsa produce a written order from the Guru that a new mandatory code of conduct had been promulgated. A Khatri family that refused to follow the bhaddar ritual was boycotted by the Khatri community.[7] The Khatri council (panch) closed the bazaar to pressurize the Khalsa. The Khalsa petitioned the state officials to intervene, who forced reopening of the shops. Later, peace was established between the two groups in a sangat (congregation). However, hostility between some Khatris and the Khalsa persisted in the later years.[7]
One of the duties of the Khalsa is to practice arms. This has been deemed necessary due to the rising persecution from the rulers. Before joining the Khalsa, most of the people were from professions like farming, pottery, masonry, carpenters, Labanas, etc.
Guru Gobind Singh in Oct, 1708 deputed his disciple Banda Singh Bahadur to lead the Khalsa in an uprising against the Mughals. Banda Singh Bahadur first established a Sikh kingdom and then brought in the Land reforms in the form of breaking up large estates and distributing the land to peasants. He and his comrades were eventually defeated and executed, but he became an icon among the Sikhs. After a long exile the Khalsa regrouped under Nawab Kapur Singh, who gathered local Khalsa leaders and created Dal Khalsa, a coalition army. The Dal Khalsa fought against the Mughals and the Afghans, eventually resulting in the establishment of a number of small republics called misls (autonomous confederacies) and later in the form of the Sikh Empire.
After the fall of the Mughal empire and the later establishment of a Sikh Empire in the Punjab, the Khalsa became an instrumental force in the new risen political frames with the inception of a Sikh monarchy: the Khalsa was created a democratic body, and could oppose the Maharaja of Punjab. By the time of death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1839, the regular army of Sikh Empire was assessed by Sir Lepel Griffin at 29000 men, with 192 artillery guns. The irregular levies were estimated at a similar number.[8]
The official name of the state (Sikh empire) of Sikhs was "Sarkar Khalsa": government of the Khalsa. The boundaries of this state stretched from Tibet to Afghanistan and from Kashmir to Sutlej in the south and included countries of Punjab, NWFP, Kashmir, Jammu, Ladakh, etc.
After the bravery of the 10th Sikh Guru, the Khalsa order attracted the vast number of Jatts of middle and eastern Punjab, because of the potential social uplift it promised them,[9] and over the years.[10] The rise of Khalsa dominance in the Sikh nation is sometimes associated with rise of Jat influence in the Sikhs and the decline of the Khatri influence.[11] However, W. H. McLeod states that while the Khalsa may incorporate powerful Jat influences, it would be a "naive interpretation" to regard the Khalsa as an "institutionalized conquest of the (Sikh) Panth by its Jat constituency".[11] Under the Khalsa dominance, the Sikh religion came to be identified with the Khalsa and the Jats, although not all of the Sikhs of Khalsa are Jats, and not all Sikhs subscribe to the Khalsa code of conduct.[10]
Jat Sikhs (as well as Sikhs in general)[12] appeared to possess more of a martial streak than their non-Sikh brethren. The reason for this was summed up by Major A.E. Barstow as being due to the influence of Sikhism.
"As has already been explained the virtues of the Jats are identical with those of the Sikhs, but the latter possess in a higher degree the ardent military spirit which had its origin in the warlike precepts of Gobind Singh."[12]
Dr. Irfan Habib, professor emeritus, Aligarh Muslim University, argues that Sikhism did a lot to uplift[13] the status of Jats in general. The late professor Kishan Singh[14] states:
"A serious contradiction afflicts the Jat farmer of the Punjab. He has unflinching faith in Guru Gobind Singh, yet at the same time he is inbued with traits typical of a Jat. There are two sides to the Jat's known traits. One has a positive effect in the sense that it saves him from feeling inferior; and the other side is negative. It makes him overbearing and arrogant which is a disease. A jat's negative traits can be suppressed only through the true spirit of Sikhism."
Today, the Khalsa brotherhood is respected by the entire Sikh nation; however, not all Sikhs are Amritdharis.[3] The issue of Khalsa code of conduct has led to several controversies. In the early 1950s, a serious split occurred in the Canadian Sikh community, when the Khalsa Diwan Society in Vancouver, Canada elected a clean-shaven Sikh to serve on its management committee.[15] Although most of the early Sikh immigrants to Canada were non-Khalsa, and a majority of the members of the society were clean-shaven non-Khalsa Sikhs, a faction objected to the election of a non-Khalsa to the management committee. The factions in Vancouver and Victoria broke away from the Khalsa Diwan Society, and established their own gurdwara society called Akali Singh.[15]
In the United Kingdom there have been tensions between the Khalsa Sikhs and the non-Khalsa Sikhs. Many Sikhs in Britain have insisted on their right of not confirming to the Khalsa norms, while maintaining that they are truly Sikh. On the other hand, some of the Khalsa Sikhs think of the non-Khalsa Sikhs as having abandoned the Sikh faith altogether.[16]
The Khalsa needs to follow rules and codes of conduct set by Guru Gobind Singh. The Reht Maryada (code of conduct) is based upon guidelines laid down by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699.
They are for identification and representation of the ideals of Sikhism, such as honesty, equality, fidelity, meditating on God, and never bowing to tyranny,[17] and for helping/protecting the weak, and self defence.
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