Bibi Surjit Kaur Seramento has written two important articles recently in the Punjab Times, weekly published in the United States. She has highlighted some vital issues concerning the Sikh community. In her article of December 7, 2011 she has welcomed the Punjab High Court's decision to allow the Sehjdhari Sikhs to vote in the SGPC elections and has congratulated them for this decision. With convincing arguments she has made it clear that the Sehjdhari Sikhs, dubbed as 'patit' (defiled), are not only Sikhs with equal rights with others but are also the spinal cord of the Panth. They constitute a majority of all the congregations in the Gurdwaras and contribute a bulk of the offerings in them. It is a matter of surprise that this majority was denied their equal right to manage their shrines.
At the time of the creation of the Khalsa Guru Gobind Singh had baptized only those five Sikhs who had offered their life to him. He had initiated the organization of his army with this feat. In those days the Guru was surrounded by enemies who often engaged him in battles. He had numerous followers but no dedicated army of his own on which he could depend in case of sudden warfare. He, therefore, needed a permanent army with firm commitment, strong military discipline and training in weapons. The five “beloved ones” were the core of this army and they were decorated with the title Singh (lion). He, however, did not condemn the remaining Sikhs as “sehjdharis” or “patits”. Nor did he turn them out of the Sikh fold. Though the baptized Sikhs constituted the Guru's professional army which fought for him under his command, the non-baptized Sikhs also continued to serve him closely.
This article of Bibiji shows how much the contemporary Sikh thinking has drifted away from the basic principles of Sikhism. Everybody knows that the Khalsa was created in 1699. The modern concepts of Amrit, Khalsa, Singh, Sahijdhari etc. did not exist as part of Sikh thought prior to that. All the Sikhs of that time could be described as 'Sehjdharis' according to the present definition of this term. It is a matter of simple logic that if the Sikhs prior to the creation of Khalsa were deemed as merited Sikhs without baptism, the so called Sehjdhari or Patit Sikhs of the post-Khalsa period are also Sikhs of equal merit in the same way. Then why are they discriminated In matters of administration of the Sikh shrines?
The baptized Sikhs wear five Kakars and unshorn hair called baptismal symbols. That is a part of their martial identity given by the tenth Guru and it is matter of pride for all to respect all those wearing them. But when it comes to the basic principles of Sikhism there is no fundamental difference between the two. Sikhism believes in modesty and gradual development of the devotees toward their goal of realizing the Almighty. It is a practical religion which is practiced in sehaj (gradually) condition while doing the day's chores. The Sikhs try to achieve their spiritual goals through just deeds and practical behavior according to the teachings of the Guru. No body is perfect on this path; only the Absolute is deemed to be perfect. Even the baptized Sikhs seek pardon from the Guru at the time of the daily prayer for the mistakes made by them. It shows that all the Sikhs, including the baptized ones, are on a gradual path of spiritual growth where they could be subject to errors . So there is no difference between the baptized and the non-baptized Sikh for all of them are in the way of pursuit of their spiritual goals.
Whenever a voice in favor of the Sehjdhari Sikh's rights has been raised, it has been denigrated as a RSS or a Hindu intrusion. The Hindus are projected as an ocean or a dragon which will devour the Sikhs like it devored Buddhism. Horrors are created that if the Sehjdhari Sikhs were allowed to vote the Hindus would enroll as voters by posing as Sikhs and that they would usurp the administration of the Sikh shrines. No body questions them on this issue. Can anyone ever imagine that a clean shaven Sikh would enroll as voter for the administration of a Hindu temple? If not then why the followers of other religion are considered weak in their commitment to their faith that they would indulge in deception? This type of suspicion and hate propaganda earns disrepute for the community and lowers the morale of its members. It creates fear psychosis in the mind of young generations and creates aberration in outlook. Instead of thinking positively and growing morally, their minds are burdened with the horror that their religion is weak and that their community has a fragile existence. Can a scientific philosophy like Sikhism be displaced by a religion based on idol worship and irrational rituals? Rivers do not flow in the reverse direction. The Sikhs should have firm faith in the high values of their own religion and stop getting afraid of others.
In her article published on January 7, 2012 Bibi Surjit Kaur has laid bare the acts of complicity of some of the SGPC executives in human trafficking and making huge sums of money from this indulgence. She has also written that the members of many a Guru Ghar in the United States and the SGPC officials in India are a party to the immigration racket. She tells that they sponsor large number of Jathas of Ragis and Dhadis in exchange for money and charge big dollars from those whom they bring along in the garb of their troupe members. According to her, this is the main reason for the fierce race for control of the Gurdwara managements in this country and in India. The Bibi has spent her whole life in the Gurdwaras by serving as a Kirtania, her evidence can not be easily set aside. If the Amritdharis Khalsas, who have the sole right to manage the Sikh religious places, do such things which they ascribe only to the Sehjdharis, then what is their claim to superiority?
As mentioned above, today the Gurdwaras are controlled by the Amritdhari Sikhs and the Sehajdharis are not allowed to participate in the management. But in a majority of the Gurdwaras the managements have allegations of embezzlement and corruption leveled against them. In-fighting for power and positions is going on in almost all the managements. Members and groups are indulging in mud-slinging through paid advertisements in the newspapers. Court cases are going on in most of the Gurdwaras. Guns are fired and swords wielded in many of them. Some are under police surveillance and cops are frequently called when their management meetings. A few of these places of worship have even been locked out by the police. If the Gurdwaras are not made a source of personal income and influence, then why do the leaders fight for their control?
The managers of the Gurdwaras everywhere are baptized Khalsa Sikhs who are considered pure and above all type of greed. Why do not they quit their office when a finger of doubt is pointed at them? Why don't they start doing any other type of Seva e.g., cleaning of bathrooms, floor, shoes, utensils etc? All types of services in the Gurdwara are considered eligible for the same award in the court of the Akal Purakh. Yet no one has ever disassociated himself from the management to do the service of shoes and utensils. The reason is that the latter type of Seva keeps them away from the benefits of Golak and influence.
If the managers think that they are doing true and selfless service but their distractors make baseless allegations of misappropriation against them, then why do not they make this whole issue transparent? The fiscal administration can be handed over to paid MBA or CPA managers. Today all big and small establishments including hospitals are managed by qualified personnel. To enhance transparency, sensing slots can be fixed on the golaks which can keep accurate account of each inserted dollar offered to the Guru Maharaj. Such a step would be perfectly in tune with the Sikh principles for, as the Bibi has mentioned, Gurbani prohibits misappropriation of offerings as a vile sin.
But no managing leader supports this type of transparency despite being Amritdhari. All pay lip service to such suggestions and pursue self interest in the name of service. Because of self interest they have not only divided the community by highlighting the categories of Amritdhari and Sehjdharis, but have also denied the latter their right to freedom of conscience and equal right to manage the places of their worship. History tells Guru Tegh Bahadur the Ninth Lord of the Sikhs had sacrificed his life while fighting for a similar right to the Kashmiri Pandits. With the grace of the providence, the court has put the bar of balance right now as it has restored this right to them.
Bibi Surjit Kaur herself deserves felicitations for congratulating the so called Sehjdhari and the Patit Sikhs for getting a right to vote in the SGPC elections.
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