The great points, however, by which Gúrú Góvind has separated his followers for ever from the Hindús, are those which have been before stated;—the destruction of the distinction of casts, the admission of proselytes, and the rendering the pursuit of arms not only admissible, but the religious duty of all his followers. Whereas, among the Hindús, agreeable to the Dherma Sástra, (one of the most revered of their sacred writings,) carrying arms on all occasions, as an occupation, is only lawful to the Cshatríya or military tribe. A Bráhmen is allowed to obtain a livelihood by arms, if he can by no other mode. The Vaisya and Súdra are not allowed to make arms their profession, though they may use them in self-defence.
The sacred book of Gúrú Góvind is not confined to religious subjects, or tales of Hindú mythology, related in his own way; but abounds in accounts of the battles which he fought, and of the actions which were performed by the most valiant of his followers. Courage is, throughout this work, placed above every other virtue; and Góvind, like Muhammed, makes martyrdom for the faith which he taught, the shortest and most certain road to honour in this world, and eternal happiness in the future. The opinion which the Sikhs entertain of Góvind will be best collected from their most esteemed authors.
"Gúrú Góvind Singh," one[118] of those writers states, "appeared as the tenth Avatár. He meditated on the Creator himself, invisible, eternal, and incomprehensible. He established the Khálsa, his own sect, and, by exhibiting singular energy, leaving the hair on his head, and seizing the scimitar, he smote every wicked person. He bound the garment of chastity round his loins, grasped the sword of valour, and, passing the true word of victory, became victorious in the field of combat; and seizing the Dévatás, his foes, he inflicted on them punishment; and, with great success, diffused the sublime Gúrú Jáp (a mystical form of prayer composed by Gúrú Góvind) through the world. As he was born a warlike Singh, he assumed the blue dress; and, by destroying the wicked Turks, he exalted the name of Hari (God). No Sirdar could stand in battle against him, but all of them fled; and, whether Hindú Rájás, or Muhammedan lords, became like dust in his presence. The mountains, hearing of him, were struck with terror; the whole world was affrighted, and the people fled from their habitations. In short, such was his fame, that they were all thrown into consternation, and began to say, 'Besides thee, O Sat Gúrú! there is no dispeller of danger,'—Having seized and displayed his sword, no person could resist his might."
The same author, in a subsequent passage, gives a very characteristic account of that spirit of hostility which the religion of Gúrú Góvind breathed against the Muhammedans; and of the manner in which it treated those sacred writings, upon which most of the established usages of Hindús are grounded.
"By the command of the Eternal, the great Gúrú disseminated the true knowledge. Full of strength and courage, he successfully established the Khálsa (or state). Thus, at once founding the sect of Singh, he struck the whole world with awe: overturning temples and sacred places, tombs and mosques, he levelled them all with the plain: rejecting the Védas, the Puráns, the six Sástras, and the Korán; he abolished the cry of Namáz (Muhammedan prayer), and slew the Sultans; reducing the Mírs and Pírs (the lords and priests of the Muhammedans) to silence, he overturned all their sects; the Moullahs (professors), and the Kázis (judges), were confounded, and found no benefit from their studies. The Bráhmens, the Pandits, and the Jótìshis (or astrologers), had acquired a relish for worldly things: they worshipped stones and temples, and forgot the Supreme. Thus these two sects, the Muhammedan and Hindú, remained involved in delusion and ignorance, when the third sect of the Khálsa originated in purity. When, at the order of Gúrú Góvind, the Singhs seized and displayed the scimitar, then subduing all their enemies, they meditated on the Eternal; and, as soon as the order of the Most High was manifested in the world, circumcision ceased, and the Turks trembled, when they saw the ritual of Muhammed destroyed: then the Nakára (large drum) of victory sounded throughout the world, and fear and dread were abolished. Thus the third sect was established, and increased greatly in might."
These extracts, and what I have before stated, will sufficiently show the character of the religious institutions of Gúrú Góvind; which were admirably calculated to awaken, through the means of fanaticism, a spirit of courage and independence, among men who had been content, for ages, with that degraded condition in society, to which they were taught to believe themselves born. The end which Góvind sought, could not, perhaps, have been attained by the employment of other means. Exhortations respecting their civil rights, and the wrongs which they sustained, would have been wasted on minds enslaved by superstition, and who could only be persuaded to assert themselves men, by an impression that it was the will of Heaven they should do so. His success is a strong elucidation of the general character of the Hindú natives of India. That race, though in general mild and peaceable, take the most savage and ferocious turn, when roused to action by the influence of religious feeling.
I have mentioned, in the narrative part of this Sketch, the attempt of the Bairágí Banda to alter the religious institutions of Gúrú Góvind, and its failure. The tribe of Acálís (immortals), who have now assumed a dictatorial sway in all the religious ceremonies at Amritsar, and the Nirmala and Shahid, who read the sacred writings, may hereafter introduce some changes in those usages which the Sikhs revere: but it is probable that the spirit of equality, which has been hitherto considered as the vital principle of the Khálsa or commonwealth, and which makes all Sikhs so reluctant to own either a temporal or spiritual leader, will tend greatly to preserve their institutions from invasion: and it is stated, in a tradition which is universally believed by the Sikhs, and has, indeed, been inserted in their sacred writings, that Gúrú Góvind, when he was asked by his followers, who surrounded his death-bed, to whom he would leave his authority? replied, "I have delivered over the Khálsa (commonwealth) to God, who never dies. I have been your guide, and will still preserve you; read the Grant'h, and attend to its tenets; and whoever remains true to the state, him will I aid." From these dying words of Gúrú Góvind, the Sikhs believe themselves to have been placed, by their last and most revered prophet, under the peculiar care of God: and their attachment to this mysterious principle, leads them to consider the Khálsa (or commonwealth) as a theocracy; and such an impression is likely to oppose a very serious obstacle, if not an insuperable barrier, to the designs of any of their chiefs, who may hereafter endeavour to establish an absolute power over the whole nation.
THE END.
Printed by J. Moyes, Greville Street, London.
FOOTNOTES:
[96] This celebrated Súfi, or philosophical deist, lived in the time of the Emperor Shér Sháh. He was, by trade, a weaver; but has written several admired works. They are all composed in a strain of universal philanthropy and benevolence; and, above all, he inculcated religious toleration, particularly between the Muhammedans and Hindús, by both of whom his memory is held in the highest esteem and veneration.