Sikhi and Diwali — lessons from Bandi Chor Divas
Takeaways
· A spiritual meaning of the victory of light over darkness, of release from the prisons of our own expectations and habits
· A historical event highlighting the rise and fall of Muslim extremist influence in political decision-making
· A contemporary relevance in fighting for the rights of prisoners of conscience around the world.
In 1619 the first black American slaves landed in Virginia in the United States of America and the actor Richard Burbage, the actor who first played Lear, Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth, Romeo, Henry V and Richard III in Shakespeare’s plays died.
On the Diwali of 1619 Guru Hargobind, the sixth Guru of the Sikhs was released from prison. ‘Guru’ is made of two words — ‘gu’ and ‘ru’, and literally means a “destroyer of darkness”; in other words, an enlightener. It is this release that is celebrated today as Bandi Chor Divas — Prisoner Release Day. Some focus on the spiritual meaning of the victory of light over darkness, of release from the prisons of our own expectations and habits. In addition to this there is the historical and political impact and importance of the event that I believe has equal relevance today.
The Guru had been imprisoned in Gwalior Fort. This was a building much like the Tower of London in Britain. It was a castle but also a jail with a fearsome reputation. He had been imprisoned because the Emperor Jehangir had feared that he was a political enemy. Why would he think this?
The Emperor Jehangir had no claim to the throne. He was actually Prince Salim and the throne rightly belonged to his son, Prince Khusrau, whom his father, the legendary Emperor Akbar the Great favoured as his successor. However, the liberal attitude of father and grandson disturbed Muslim extremist elements. Their faction, therefore, promoted Prince Salim, through whom they thought they could push their agenda.
In some ways they were right. The Emperor came to power in October 1605. By June 1606 Guru Arjun, the fifth Guru of the Sikhs, had become Sikhi’s first martyr. They persuaded the Emperor that Guru Arjun posed a threat to the state and he was therefore executed by yasa. We can see this play out in the diaries of the Emperor, the Tazak-i-Jehangiri. He complains that Muslims as well as Hindus are accepting his authority and decides that he must do something about this. He decides to have him killed by yasa. Yasa was a Mongol form of punishment and involved ensuring that the blood of a holy person was not shed. In other words he regarded him as holy but also as a threat.
The power of the Muslim extremists grew and Guru Hargobind was also arrested. However, over time Jehangir realised that the extremists actually felt that they were the rulers. They were the biggest threat to his rule. When he rejected them, he decided to release the Guru.
However, he hit a problem — the Guru refused to be freed while other prisoners, innocent of any crime, in other words, prisoners of conscience, remained in custody. The Emperor made an offer — Guru Hargobind could release as many prisoners as could hold onto his robe. A robe was made with 52 tassels. Holding a tassel each, all the political prisoners were released.
The holding onto the cloak also has a symbolic meaning of which he can get a sense in the phrase, “hanging onto someone’s coat tails.” By holding the tassels the political prisoners, rulers in their own right, allowed the Guru to vouch for their future good conduct.
Almost half a century later Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Guru of the Sikhs visited Dacca, now the capital of Bangladesh. He visited between December 1666 and January-February 1668 to settle a dispute between rival neighbouring kingdoms. These were heirs of the rulers who had been freed by the intervention of Guru Hargobind on the Diwali of 1619. At the court of Shaista Khan, the ruler of Bengal, his painter, Ahsan, made a portrait of this arbitrator. It is the only known contemporary portrait of a Guru.
While people should focus on liberation from the prisons of their own beliefs and habits, they should also realise that oppressive and unjust political systems rise and will fall and that they should do their bit to make this world a better place. The portrait of 1666–1668 is a ripple from the stone tossed into the lake on the Diwali of 1619.
It is also useful to consider where Bandi Chot / Diwali fits into the wider story of Sikh social philosophy. The Gurus themselves enjoy a pantheistic vision in which they find God within themselves and all things. “One Light fills all creation. That Light is You” (Guru Granth Sahib, p.13). The implication of this is an attitude of meeri-peeri, mystic revolution, seeking God within yourself and serving God in others. The meeri-peeri ideology is formalized in the saint-soldier ideal of the Khalsa.
Guru Gobind Rai created the Khalsa and then became the first person to join it and became Guru Gobind Singh. Therefore, he is praised as being Guru and disciple. He showed that he would accept the will of the people, the Khalsa as his Guru. The rules of the Khalsa are made by consensus, the agreement of all members of the Khalsa, rather than voting. This is because rules are not just about intellectual debate and argument but also feeling the will of Waheguru. As the numbers of the Khalsa has increased, it is difficult to get everyone together and so different organisations and individuals represent people when making decisions.
Regarding what rules should be made, “From now: such is the Will of God: No one shall force another, no one shall take advantage of and use another. Everyone, each individual, has the right to look for and work for happiness and self-fulfilment. Love and persuasion is the only law of social cohesion.” (Guru Granth Sahib, p.74). Sikhs have an active obligation to disobey any law that violates its principles of freedom, e.g. Guru Nanak breaking the ban on music in Baghdad. Guru Hargobind commanding Sikhs to bear arms and ride horses in violation of Islamic law on dhimmitude is another example of an obligation to disobey a law that limits freedom.
Several of the Gurus took part in wars. The basic principle is that armed conflict is only acceptable when all peaceful methods have failed. No one should be attacked once they have surrendered since you are attacking oppression, not a person. This makes it important to distinguish between those who are fighting and those who are civilians and makes use of indiscriminate weapons, such as weapons of mass destruction, wrong. There is no enemy in the combat — what is being opposed is the oppression being resisted. Therefore, when any person is wounded they should be helped. Bhai Kannayya performed this noble service during the wars of the Tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh.
The Ninth Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was martyred, which means killed for his beliefs, for leading a non-violent political campaign to protect Hindus from forced conversion to Islam. “The first human right is to secure for everyone freedom to worship” (Dasam Granth, p.54). “The second human right is to protect the respect of every person’s private and personal point of contact with God” (Dasam Granth, p.54). The third human right is to promote every good person’s right to pursue their own vision of happiness and self-fulfilment (Dasam Granth, p.54).
Equality is a basic principle, which is implemented in the langar. People of any race or religion are welcome to eat and seek shelter. Basic needs should be provided for all. Inclusion is an important principle: as God is in every person, everyone should be treated with respect and honour. Progress in the world will be based on the spiritual sovereignty of the individual.
Guru Nanak did not recognise any borders and travelled 30,000 miles to places including Tibet, Mecca and Sri Lanka. Waheguru is the owner of the world and we should be free to travel all over it. He combined styles of music and collected holy writings. We should be open to diversity and use it to create fresh combinations.
N.B. I’d like to acknowledge suggestions by Gurpal Singh Khaira on an earlier version of this piece.
Other essays on Medium by the author:
Sikhi beyond the Singh Sabha story
Siddha Gosht: an exploration of Buddhist and Sikh spirituality
Azrael and Satan in Sikh scriptures
Sikh rites of passage and mystery traditions
Anti-Sikh riots of 1984: seeking justice at the United Nations
Sikhi and science
Is Sikhi a form of virtue ethics