'Sikhism is about compassion, forgiveness'

Vishal Sharma / TNN / Mar 21, 2009, 02:27 IST

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Friday’s hearing in the Punjab and Haryana High Court on the sensitive issue of importance of unshorn hair in Sikhism unfolded the unfathomable profoundness of the great religion.

'Sikhism is about compassion, forgiveness'

CHANDIGARH: Friday��s hearing in the Punjab and Haryana High Court on the sensitive issue of importance of unshorn hair in Sikhism unfolded the unfathomable profoundness of the great religion with every submission catapulting the raging debate to a new and daring horizon.
The quintessential query before the full bench headed by justice JS Khehar was how to reconciliate the strands of distinct Sikh identity, with ��Kesa�� as its most recognized symbol, and liberal interpretation of the religion��s tenets.
Pavit Mattewal, high court lawyer, came out with a 32-page synopsis on ��Significance of unshorn hair in Sikhism�� prepared according to instructions of Giani Harinder Pal Singh, a Sikh cleric, who had during previous hearings touched an emotional chord by asserting that ��those who don��t want to stay with Sikhism are free to leave, but once they leave, they shouldn��t claim to be a Sikh and crave for a place in the religion.��
The synopsis consisted of English translations of various Shabads from Gurbani with a visible stress on unshorn hair being an inalienable part of Sikh religion.

Assisting the full bench of justice Khehar, justice Jasbir Singh and justice Ajay Kumar Mittal, Pavit Mattewal hammered that ��a religion��s tenets should not be confused with its ultimate goal.�� He also made an assertion that the word ��Patit�� (apostate) implied fall from grace and was never used by Gurus, but by a scholar and that too in reference to some women.
��Everybody is a Patit till he becomes Khalsa or pure. Perfect Sikh is Khalsa. Tenets cannot be confused with goal and the final goal is union with God, to become Khalsa, to become Guru��s image,�� Pavit drove home the point. He also threw a rather controversial poser as to whether a reasonable differentiation could be drawn between a Sikh and a non-Sikh on the basis of keeping or non-keeping of unshorn hair.

Even as the hearing saw extensive quoting of scriptures and enlightened men, the submissions meandered on to a much broader query as to whether Sikhism was an inclusive religion or an exclusive one. Pavit also submitted that Gurus never ostracized a disciple who was unable to learn or who was slow to learn and the teachings of Gurus were inclusive in nature to hammer that the essence of Sikhism was love, compassion and forgiveness.
Sikh scholar and HC lawyer MS Rahi also made submissions before the full bench even as he hammered that ��Kesas or unshorn hair�� were a sine qua non for Sikh identity. Rahi went on to refer to different sets of discipline being enforced by various religions even though their spiritual essence remained the same.
The matter is before the HC following a plea by Gurleen Kaur who was denied admission in MBBS in SGPC-controlled Sri Guru Ram Dass Institute of Medical Education and Research on the ground that she plucked her eyebrows despite being a Sikh.

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