This film was donated to the YFA by Bradford College, but there is no information as to who made the film, or what it was for. If the date of 1972 is correct, it may well be a film of the first purpose built Gurdwara (Sikh Temple) in Bradford, the Guru Gobind Singh Gurdwara in Malvern Street (off Leeds Road), which opened on the 12th March 1972 (it was subsequently renamed Gobind Marg in December 1998). In any case it is almost certainly the Guru Gobind Singh Gurdwara as the only other...

This film was donated to the YFA by Bradford College, but there is no information as to who made the film, or what it was for. If the date of 1972 is correct, it may well be a film of the first purpose built Gurdwara (Sikh Temple) in Bradford, the Guru Gobind Singh Gurdwara in Malvern Street (off Leeds Road), which opened on the 12th March 1972 (it was subsequently renamed Gobind Marg in December 1998). In any case it is almost certainly the Guru Gobind Singh Gurdwara as the only other Gurdwara in Bradford at that time was in an old Methodist church. The word gurdwara means gateway to the Guru’s house; these are open to everyone, non-Sikhs alike. As hospitality is an important part of Sikh custom all visitors are offered food, langar a shared vegetarian meal eaten with the right hand, prepared in turn by all members of the Sikh community.  There are now six gurdwaras in Bradford.

 

It is not clear whether the film shows a special ceremony or just an everyday reading from the Sikh Holy Book, the Adi Sri Guru Granth Sahib (usually abbreviated to Adi Granth), which is seen in the film. Communal readings from the Adi Granth take place every morning and evening.  In the evening, after the recitation, hymns are sung from the Adi Granth accompanied by music, as can be seen in the film. In this instance we see a harmonium, also know as a peti or baja, introduced in the nineteenth century by the British, and a drum that looks like a dholak – one of a wide variety of Indian drums. The Adi Granth consists of 1,430 pages of poems and hymns (sabads) that are often sung, in kirtan, or chanted (note that the spelling of some of the Sikh terms can vary).

 

The Adi Granth sits on a cushioned raised platform, called the Manji Sahib, under a canopied stand, called a palki. Later in the film the attendant can be seen with the chaur, a fan made from fine yak or horse hair which is continually waved over the Guru Granth Sahib when in use. The brightly coloured cloth in the film are the rumalas, made from velvety or satiny fabric, which cover the Adi Granth when it is not in use, and flowers are placed round it.  Also seen are the curtains that go around the top of the canopy which is engraved 'Waheguru', which means 'Wonderful Lord'.   Because of the veneration given to the Guru Granth Sahib, housed in a special room in the evening, copies are rare outside of temples, and instead Sikhs will normally have handbooks, gutka, at home. Although the script of the Adi Granth is Gurmukhi, the script of the state of Punjab, the language is more varied, being the common language of North India in the thirteenth century.

 

The Adi Sri Guru Granth Sahib has Guru in its title because the last of the ten Sikh human Gurus, Guru Gobind Singh (who died in 1708), abolished the practice of human Gurus and declared the Sri Guru Granth Sahib to be the Eternal Guru of the Sikhs. Unusually for a sacred text it includes poems that pre-date Sikhism, but which are nevertheless consistent with it.  The congregation, sangat, sits on the floor below the level of the Guru Granth Sahib, with feet pointing away. All who enter a gurdwara must pay their respects to the Guru Granth Sahib: kneel and touch the floor with your forehead, wear headwear and take off your shoes. 

 

It is probably fair to say that among the general population little is known of the Sikh religion, and so it is worth sketching in some background. Sikhism emerged through the Guru Nanak in the Punjab in India in 1469. A large chunk of historic Punjab is now part of Pakistan, after the division of India following Independence from Britain in 1947. It was made smaller still in 1966 when the Hindu speaking areas, after Sikh agitation, divided off – allowing Sikhs to be the majority in Punjab.  Sikhism is almost entirely bound up with the Punjab, and the Punjabi language, which, as an Indo-European language, has many affinities with English.  Although the word Sikhism had been adopted by Sikhs themselves, it was in fact coined by Europeans after the British annexed Punjab in 1849.

 

The Punjab at the time of Guru Nanak was mainly Hindu, and Sikhism was in effect a break off from Hinduism, and retains very many aspects of it, including the beliefs in karma and reincarnation. Yet despite sharing the same tradition, like many other similar breakaways, it emerged as a rebellion against many of the formal aspects of the tradition and a return to spiritual essence. Hence it rejected the caste system, stressing the importance of treating all as equal – although caste remains a major influence in family relations and marriage alliances.  Furthermore, none of the ancient Hindu texts are a part of Sikhism. Although much of Northern India was under Islamic rule at the time, and had won many converts, it is disputable as to whether Islam had any influence on Sikhism; even though, unlike Hinduism, they both believe that there is just one God and place great importance on sacred texts.

 

The principal tenet of Sikhs is to follow the one God and the teachings of the ten human Gurus – Guru Nanak and the nine that directly followed each other – and the Granth Sahib, the gurbani (‘utterance of the Guru’).  The word guru, with a lower case ‘g’ has come to mean any spiritual teacher in general. For Sikhs it is always spelt with a capital ‘G’ and simply means teacher, with God, or Vishiguru, the ultimate Guru representing truth. The word 'Sikh' in the Punjabi language means 'disciple'; Sikhs are the disciples of God who follow the writings and teachings of the Ten Sikh Gurus.

 

Sikhism developed shortly after Martin Luther’s rebellion led to the Reformation in Christianity, and there are some interesting similarities: both rejected many of the prevailing rituals and religious orders, believing in an equal and direct relation to God. However, with the advent of the last Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1658, Sikhism went through a radical change. Up until then the Islamic Mughal Emperors had been extremely tolerant of other religions. Aurangzeb changed that, expanding his empire and repressing both Hindus and Sikhs. In response to this, under the tenth and last Guru, Gobind Singh, Sikhs fought back, and a part of the traditionally peaceful Sikh community, panth, became transformed into a military brotherhood, the Khalsa. This was established by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699 and is celebrated each year on 14th April as Vaisakhi day. Resistance to persecution continued after the death of Aurangzeb, in 1707, and that of Gobind Singh the following year, and stories of the heroism of Sikh martyrs from this time remain very important to Sikhs.

 

For Sikhism the mission of human life is the attainment of God, or the realisation of the divine within each, through observing the principles of truth in their true spirit. Guru Nanak emphasised that this was an individual quest to achieve an inner harmony, and hence could not be forced.  Yet although this is an inward and solitary path, it is also a communal one requiring discipline and a code of conduct: summed up as meditation, discipline and generosity. The Sikh Code of Conduct is called the Rahit Maryada.  An updated version of this was published in 1945, authorized by the Akal Takht, the seat of supreme temporal authority for Sikhs. Among the tenets of this is to, ‘adopt and practice compassion, honesty, generosity, patience, perseverance and humility’. 

 

Another defining part of Sikhism are the ‘Five Ks’: Kesh (uncut hair), Kangha (comb), kirpan (sword), kachh (cotton breeches) and kara (steel or iron bangle). The turban, which is perhaps the most identifiable aspect of Sikhs (at least of men), is not one of these although it is an integral part of Khalsa.

It will be observed in the film that women sit separate from the men, but women are regarded as being equal and Sikhism and can equally perform any of the many ceremonies within the Sikh Nanakshahi calendar – although the noted Sikh scholar Hew Mcleod notes that in practice most high positions within congregations are held by men (Mcleod, p. 109, see References). The Sikh religion is far from being uniform; it has developed much over the centuries and has many strands: some for example are vegetarian, others are not.  Furthermore, whether disregarding certain codes, such as cutting ones hair or smoking, disqualifies one from being a Sikh is a contested issue, and may well depend upon the caste of the individual and other factors (see Mcleod) – in the film it is noticeable how many of the men are wearing white handkerchiefs rather than turbans. Although alcohol is prohibited by the Rahit Maryada this is not always observed.

  

British rule followed on from a period of stability and prosperity following the Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1799 to 1839), and was openly fought on two occasions, and actively resisted through non-aggressive campaigns. Yet Sikhs sided with the British against a Hindu and Muslim rebellion in 1857-8, and also fought with the British in both world wars, with a loss of 83,000 soldiers’ lives and 109,000 wounded. The division of India in 1947 was essentially that of two states, Bengal and Punjab. It led to the dislocation of 12 million people and the deaths of 500,000.  Subsequent to this the Sikh political party, the Akali Dal, have fought for a Sikh independent state, Khalistan. This demand was given greater impetus with the tragic events of 1984 when the Indian government sent in troops, in Operation Bluestar, to capture the leader of the separatist movement Damdami Taksal, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. This led to thousands being killed, including Bhindranwale. Many more Sikhs were later killed in revenge for the murder of Mrs Indira Gandhi by two Sikh bodyguards.

 

Reputedly, Britain's first Sikh settler was the Maharaja Dalip Singh Sukerchakia, befriended by Queen Victoria, even though he was dethroned by the British from his own country, and arriving here soon after then in 1854.  Although as a boy he was converted to Christianity, he later returned to Sikhism against the wishes of the British government, who also prevented him from returning to India.  For a time he lived in Yorkshire, not far from Whitby.
Sikhs have settled in various parts of the world; in Australia, North Africa and North America, and of course Britain – about 330,000 at the time of the 2001 census.  Asian immigration to Britain came in three main phases: phase one from the nineteenth century until 1945, the ‘pioneer phase’; phase two from 1945-1960, unskilled workers being encouraged to take up unwanted jobs; and phase three, 1969-1978, when a change in immigration policy allowed family members to settle here (see Richardson, References).  About half of all Indians living in Britain are Sikhs, and this is about the same for Bradford also. Around 90% of Sikhs in Bradford come directly from India, with the rest mainly from East Africa – see Ramandar Singh (References) on this and for a detailed analysis of the Sikh community in Bradford.  In his book Ramandar Singh demonstrates the efforts that Sikhs have made to accommodate to living in Britain, and the major contribution they have made to race and community relations in Bradford.


 

References

 

Sewa Singh Kalsi, Sikhism, Cheslea House Publishers, Philadelphia, 2005.

Hew Mcleod, Who is a Sikh?, Oxford University Press, 2nd ed., 2002.

Eleanor Nesbitt, Sikhism, Oxford University Press, 2005

C. Richardson, Bradford Region: Studies in its Human Geography, Bradford Libraries and Information Services, 2002.

Ramandar Singh, Sikhs and Sikhism in Britain: fifty years on the Bradford perspective, Bradford Libraries, 2000.

Sandeep Sigh Brar’s Sikhism Home Page

Indian musical instruments

All about Sikhs

the Ramgarhia Gurdwara in Bradford