We as Sikhs of the Guru, view Baisakhi Day 1699, as the day on which the Khalsa was formed. Khalsa spirit however, emerged 230 years earlier with the birth of Guru Nanak.
Guru Nanak’s teachings had been in place for fifty years when Guru Amar Das Ji sent the word out to all Sikhs to come to Goindwal for Baisakhi, as the day for the annual gathering of Sikhs. He was the first Guru to call Sikhs together at the time of Baisakhi, the beginning of the spring harvest. This was a time of celebration and a time of blessings. Baisakhi was a time to express one’s gratitude to God for the blessings of the first harvest of wheat, of prosperity and abundance.
It was also a time to rejoice and celebrate the grace that comes of living in the company of the holy and walking on Guru’s path; a path of meditation, hard work and service; a path of living truth. Guru’s way represented a harmonious way of living, at one with God and all of nature, and in peace and truth with one another. It was a life resplendent with spiritual elevation and exaltation, punctuated by the values of equality and respect for all peoples regardless of social strata, race, caste, age, gender or religion. This was Guru’s path; the Sikh Dharma, the righteous way of living as a “Sikh,” a student of the Guru. This was what Guru Amar Das Ji gathered the community together to celebrate and radiate.
Khalsa mayro roop hai khaas. Khalsay meh haao karaao nivaas. Khalsa is my special Form; in the Khalsa, I reside.*
Many saints and sages for several hundred years predating Guru Nanak’s birth in 1469 spoke against the social injustices, hypocrisies and superstitions that were still prevalent in India in the 15th century. But it wasn’t until the time of Guru Nanak and his creation of new social institutions and practices that actual change occurred: his initiation of the concept of Langar, the sharing of a communal meal where all would sit and eat together in equality regardless of caste; his denouncement of the practice of sati (the sacrificial burning of a widow’s body upon her husband’s funeral pyre): and the challenge of the rigid Brahman elites who held sway over all religious rites and ceremony. All of these were actions that put centuries of spiritual darkness and social subjugation to the test.
Khalsa mayree jaat ar pat. Khalsa so maa ko utapat. Khalsa is my caste and honor; Khalsa has given birth to me.*
When the Mogul Emperor Akbar visited Guru Amar Das Ji, the Emperor willingly sat and ate Langar with the commoners. This was Guru’s prerequisite for Akbar to meet him and Akbar agreed. He was impressed with the spirit and intention of the Guru’s mission and out of good will to the Guru, he gifted Bibi Bani, Guru Amar Das Ji’s daughter, with the land where the Harimandir Sahib (the Golden Temple) would eventually sit. The Harimandir Sahib became the place where Guru Arjan first installed the Adi Granth, the collection of Sacred Songs of the Sikhs. The teachings of Guru Nanak and his successors were monumental in scope and magnitude, and eventually, a powerful backlash of hostility, outrage and intolerance among the social, religious and political elite would ensue.
Khalsa mayro isht suhirad. Khalsa mayro keheeat birad. Khalsa is my Beloved Object of Worship; Khalsa is the knower of my nature.*
Ninety-nine years from the date in August 1507 when Guru Nanak emerged from the River Bein after three days and spoke the words, “There is no Hindu; There is no Muslim,” Akbar’s successor, Jahangir, in brutal contrast to Akbar’s generosity to Guru Amar Das, sentenced Guru Arjan Dev Ji to death. It had taken nearly a century for the backlash to erupt, but once it did, the turbulent times for Sikhs would last more than 250 years. Feeling threatened by Guru Arjan Dev Ji’s popularity Jahangir came up with a scheme to impose taxes on the land where Harimandir Sahib resided. The Emperor, also, ordered the Guru to convert to Islam, an untenable proposition, especially as the major thrust of Guru Nanak’s message was spiritual and religious freedom.
Thus, in the company of many of his Sikhs as well as Mian Mir, the Sufi saint who had laid the cornerstone of the Harimandir Sahib, Guru Arjan Dev Ji gave us the first example of how we, as Sikhs, were to respond to tyranny. He made us bear witness to his personal sacrifice offered for the mission of upholding freedom and truth. He inspired us through his unflinching caliber and grace to live a life of spiritual fortitude that would give us the strength, and courage to face, head-on, whatever challenges would confront our identity and existence in times to come.
Khalsa mayro pachha ar paataa. Khalsa mayro sukh ahilaadaa. Khalsa is my Support and Protection; Khalsa is my Peace and Pleasure.*
By the time Guru Gobind Singh Ji sent out a letter calling all Sikhs to come to Anandpur Sahib for the celebration of Baisakhi in 1699, the Sikh sadh sangat had borne witness to over ninety years of Khalsa spirit triumphing over tragedy, as exemplified by Guru Arjan Dev Ji and all his successors. Much had changed from the time of Guru Amar Das Ji’s first call to Baisakhi. The trials and challenges to Sikh identity were intense and had come not only from outside forces, but also from family members of the Gurus themselves, and others, hungry for power and status.
On that day of destiny for all Sikhs, Baisakhi 1699, Guru Gobind Singh began by testing the strength of Sikhs with his call for someone to sacrifice their head, which five out of thousands did. He blessed those five beloved ones with the Guru’s Amrit, and then he, himself, asked to be blessed by the Panj Piare with the Guru’s Amrit. Thus he established the Khalsa, a community of equals in the status among each other, yet boundless in spiritual strength and purity in the world. They would be the custodians of this Dharma. At the same time, he prepared himself and the entire Khalsa Panth for the inevitable and ultimate transfer of spiritual stewardship to Siri Guru Granth Sahib Ji.
Khalsa mayro satigur pooraa. Khalsa mayro sajjan sooraa. Khalsa is my Perfect True Guru; Khalsa is my Brave Friend.*
There was an approximate hundred-year continuum of peace and expansion from Guru Nanak to the birth of Guru Arjan Dev Ji, and another hundred-year continuum of tyranny and oppression between Guru Arjan Dev Ji’s martyrdom and Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s passing of the Guru’s light to Siri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. Although the atmospheres were very different during the times of each of the ten Gurus, the background and complexity of change from peaceful to turbulent times further defined Khalsa as a people of higher consciousness and as a nation of soldier saints. The Khalsa Panth literally fought for its life for another 150 year after Baisakhi 1699. The popular saying, ‘What doesn’t destroy you, defines you,’ serves as an apt description of the evolution of the Khalsa. The steel of Khalsa was first forged, beginning with Guru Nanak, out of the fires of social injustice, hypocrisy and superstition and later, with Guru Arjan Dev Ji onward, in the fires of oppression, tyranny, betrayal, hatred and fear; and in the end, its sovereignty reigned supreme.
Khalsa mayro mukh hai angaa. Khalsay kay haaon sad sad sangaaa. Khalsa is the Fiber of my Being; I am ever and always with the Khalsa.*
Baisakhi 2012 marks, the 313th anniversary of the Birth of the Khalsa. Guru’s legacy carries on and, as Guru Gobind Singh predicted, “960,000,000 we shall be.” The history of Khalsa continues to be written anew every day. One of the chapters of that history is the story of Siri Singh Sahib Bhai Sahib Harbhajan Singh Khalsa Yogi Ji, who came to the West from Punjab, in 1969. Through his inspiration and life’s work, many individuals from around the world have had the opportunity to relate to Shabd Guru and experience the healing and inspiration which comes through chanting and singing Guru’s Word. Their lives, in turn, are inspiring others to the healing and blessings of Shabd Guru and as a result Gurbani is being listened to, read and enjoyed in many languages, as well as in the original Gurmukhi.
Siri Singh Sahib Ji said that, “Every Sikh of the Guru is a leader,” and therefore, each serves in his or her own way to share the light of the Guru with all they meet; and that is how the future legacy shall continue to be written.
Khalsa mayro svajan pravaaraa. Khalsa mayro karat udhaaraa. Khalsa is my Friend and Family; Khalsa brings me to liberation.*
The spirit of Baisakhi which we are celebrating is more vital today than ever. Let all of us who identify ourselves as Khalsa rise to our rightful place of honor today and remember all that we have been blessed with on this spiritual path and all that we have to share. Let us recognize the relationship that exists beyond time and space, that unites us as Siblings of Destiny, as Khalsa, and let us call one another to come together in “A Gathering of Spirit”: to recognize the Guru’s light among us and celebrate in His Name. Happy Baisakhi 2012.
Upamaa Khalsay jaat na kehee. Jihvaa ayk paar neh lehee…Haao Khalsay ko Khalsa mayro. Ot pot saagar boondayro. The Glory of the Khalsa cannot be described. I have only one tongue to describe; the Glory of the Khalsa has no end…I belong to the Khalsa and the Khalsa belongs to me; as the drop of water merges into the ocean.*
*Guru Gobind Singh Ji, Khalsa Mehima, Sarabloh Granth
