Why I Wear Kirpan Every Day

As part of the 5 Ks or Panj Kakaar, Sikhs that have been baptized or taken Amrit and have become part of the Khalsa are supposed to carry a Kirpan or Dagger, Sword on themselves in public, at all times. While keeping the other 4 Ks of is straightforward and rational, carrying a dagger around in this day and age seems impractical and dogmatic at times. These are my experiences and thoughts on carrying a Kirpan in its various forms.

The word “Kirpan” is not part of the lexicon of Indian languages, swords and blades are usually called talwar, churi, katari etc. Guru Gobind Singh ji, the tenth Sikh Guru, asked all Khalsa Sikhs to be warriors, to be Saints and Soldiers, the Sant-Sipahi. So at one level he gave us the bani, the teachings to come close to the One Divine Light and on the other hand he gave us the bana to live in the world and uphold those teachings. The word Kirpan is made of two words Kirpa or the grace, love, blessing and Aan or respect, righteousness and moral living.  Sikhism started as a peaceful and non-violent movement under Guru Nanak Dev ji and we are loving and kind people who are respectful towards other faiths and beliefs because of the emphasis of these things in the bani of the Gurus and in the Guru Granth Sahib.  However, as that philosophy came under attack by vested interests and we became actively persecuted to the point to extinction, it became important to take up arms and stand up for what is right. This is not something unique to Sikhi, in the Bhagvad Gita, the holy book of Hindus, Shri Krishna repeatedly talks about this point and implores Arjuna, a warrior in self-doubt to stand up and fight for what is right. At the same time, it is important to remember that the Mahabharata, the battlefield in which Shri Krishna is giving this teaching was the last resort, the final step in a series of strategies employed to prevent such a situation.

On the same lines, the Sikhs were forced to defend themselves against the onslaught of Mughal tyranny. After the torture and martyrdom of the fifth master, Guru Arjan Dev ji, who instructed on his deathbed that times are changing and Sikhs need to work towards defending themselves, the Sikh nation took up arms. In continuation of that pledge, Guru Gobind Singh ji, in his Zafarnama, an Epistle of Victory, to the then Mughal King Aurangzeb wrote,

I feel Guru ji was very serious about this point, on taking up arms, but only as a measure of last resort, only as a defense for those who can’t defend themselves. There are a number of occasions in Guru ji’s lifetime where he chose to move away from a tense situation, avoid confrontation and take care of his people. He mentions a couple of times in his bani that when faced with an inevitable battle, he had no choice but to enter it for the sake of justice. Yes, there were times later in history where the Khalsa made offensive maneuvers towards the enemy in a known battlefield and also to free bonded people, but these were well thought through and approved by the Sarbat Khalsa.

Now coming to my experiences of carrying a dagger as a Khalsa Sikh. For a very long time, I had intense debates on this point with myself and a few people around me. I have always been a pacifist, to the point of being a love-bliss, I hate war kind of hippie with thoughts to match it. My favorite musicians, pop idols are John Lennon and Bob Marley  Even though I had been baptized as a teenager, I only wore a small khanda around my neck that my mom gave me. Lots of folks, said that since the Kirpan is mostly symbolic in nature, its ok to wear just anything small that represents the ideal and it is fine. While I agree with this argument at some level, I think it misses the point of symbolism. Think about when people wear a wedding ring or band in some cultures, why is it worn on the ring finger and not kept in the pocket or hung around the neck. It is because others can easily recognize what it stands for and what to expect from that person. In the same light, while at one level it is not required to carry a huge sword or even wear it in the open, the Kirpan should be such that it carries some meaning. So about a few months back, I started wearing my Kirpan again. At that time, I was still conscious of it and didn’t want to reveal it in public, so I got a shoulder harness usually meant to carry small firearms. I felt all cool wearing it, even though it was concealed Since it was not very comfortable, in some time, I switched to a gatra with a smaller blade, that runs across my chest. Now, sometimes when I would hug friends or family, or when I would wear t-shirts, the gathra or kirpan became visible, people were surprised that I was carrying a kirpan. I usually just smiled and explained it away as something that I had to do as part of my faith. Then a few friends who know me as a rational, pacifist questioned me on this point and before I explain, let me talk about an incident that happened recently.

Recently I came across a news story on how some Amirtdharis were not allowed into a Gurudwara because they were carrying a Kirpan. While this is a disturbing incident, things similar in nature have happened in the past. Indian Sikhs had to fight for their right to carry Kirpan when India became independent and was writing a new constitution. Article 25 of the Indian Constitution states that all Sikhs who are baptized or Amritdharis are allowed to wear a Kirpan where the blade is blunt and not more than 6 inches in length. We can carry this even on airplanes in India, unlike the west where it has to be checked in. A funny incident happened to me recently where a security guard at the Mumbai Airport found my Kirpan in the carry on bag as I forgot to put it in the check in. Instead of sending me back to check in the Kirpan, he made me take off my shirt and wear the Kirpan on me, in full  public! So this is the level of trust that people in India have for Khalsa Sikhs! Anyways, the point I’m coming is that I look at my faith and its teaching not as dogma or rituals that need to be followed out of fear or supplication, but as rational and scientific strategies to live a joyous and just life.

Coming back to the current issues and problem around wearing and carrying a Kirpan. What we need to ask ourselves is, whether we are giving the Kirpan the respect it deserves. We would not even think of or even tolerate anyone desecrating the Guru Granth Sahib or any of the Guru ji’s banis.  For that matter, we would not tolerate anyone misusing artistic renditions of the Gurus. So then why are we ok with unsheathed swords being strutted around as if they are some sort of personal firearms to terrorize people, settle scores or worse make vindictive offensive attacks. Is that not disrespect of the Guru and his words? When a sword picked up in offence, without exhausting all other means, does it not go against the teaching of Guru Gobind Singh ji?

Someone once said that a pen is mightier than a sword. In my opinion, when the battle is for the mind, when the battle is for the protection for the meek, for those that are afraid to speak up for the fear of retribution, the sword is the pen, umm well ok, the keyboard is But the point I’m trying to make is that a few people need to stand up in the battlefield, and fight for what is just, with Nirbhau or without fear and Nirvair or without vindictiveness.

Lets find the facts before we start judging people, getting all worked up or being indifferent and running away from the issue. There is a dispute, lets find the cause before we can figure out a solution. Guru Gobind Singh ji said,

When there are disputes among people, organizations and nations there are ways and means of solving them respectfully, amicably and in a democratic fashion. This applies to a lot of panthic debates and issues that are swirling around. Have the two opposing parties been sat down in a room, maybe even outside the Gurudwara, with an objective and independent mediator to listen to grievances on both sides? This mediation should be done in public or the at the very least video recorded for the Sarbat Khalsa and the Sangat to see, review and comment on. Have there been any petitions signed by the Sangat and submitted to the local governing authorities that detail our faith and the dispute, while also suggesting solutions? Has any investigation been done to figure out what led to the dispute in the first place?

To me my Kirpan stands as an eternal symbol for standing up for not only what I believe in but also for the beliefs and freedom of others. When the blade rubs against my body all day, when I feel it’s heat in hot  weather and feel it’s cold steel in rough weather, it reminds me of the vagaries of life that we need to live through. Yet at the same time, the gathra that hold its, symbolizes peace and restraint, it says, hold your guns, be patient. The sheath of the blade reminds me that it is to cover the sharpness, the dangerous elements of ones mind and ego. It holds the Kirpan in, until it absolutely needed, for it knows that once the Kirpan is unsheathed, the sword will demand blood, mine and of me fellow humans. A blade doesn’t distinguish between the skin it is going through, it cuts and it cuts deep. So it is absolutely imperative for a warrior to understand its nature and be very careful.

Now, how does this all relate to the current times, why is there still a need to carry a Kirpan when the times are mostly peaceful and people are not jumping for each others throats. Here is the thing, the times may have changed, but we humans don’t change very quickly. The battles of today are not for our physical heads, it is for our minds, for our beliefs, on what our faith means to us and are we willing to stand up, show our real selves and not be bothered by what other people think. There was a time when Guru Gobind Singh ji came out and asked for the heads of his disciples. A few stood up and offered theirs with utmost grace and humility. In my opinion, today Guru ji asks for our heads too, but not the physical ones, but what is inside them. The Gurus want our minds, they want us to offer our brains, our ego, our Haume, our Ahankar on a platter. This thought had been there for a while, until one day it came as a lightening bolt and burned my entire being. That day I decided to offer my head to the sword of Guru Gobind Singh. The question now is, how many more are doing or willing to do the same?