INSIDE THE GURU'S GATE - Anpere

ought to an end by reading Kirtan Sohila, or the “Hymn of Praise”, made up of three
verses of Guru Nanak and one each by Guru Ramdas and Guru Arjan. Kirtan Sohila is
also included in Guru Granth Sahib (on page 12 to 13). Altogether these seven hymns
frame ordinary days of Amritdhari Sikhs throughout the year and constitute the nitnem,
their “daily routine” or order of reciting compositions of the Gurus. 436
That local Sikhs ascribe soteriological values to the formal and routine performance
of these hymns is indisputable. To take the nectar of panj banian and adopt an
Amritdhari identity is to become a “true” and “complete” disciple of the Guru, who
outwardly wears the five Sikh symbols and daily recite the compositions. 437 At the
time of the Khalsa ceremony, Sikhs are ritually appropriated the panj banian by means
of ingesting the nectar-water of the texts. As the rite is designed and practiced today,
the five men symbolizing the panj pyare will recite one hymn each – first JapJi Sahib,
then Jap Sahib, Tav Prashad Savaiyye, Chaupai Sahib and finally Anand Sahib ‒ while
stirring the water with the double-edged sword (khanda). The neophytes will then be
given the nectar-water, imbued with the five compositions, for ingestion and then
have it sprinkled onto his or her eyes and hair five times each. These acts of imbibing
gurbani are believed to purify and recompose their previous identities to a new and
shared identity as Sikhs of the Guru. As locals look upon the nitnem, it is not merely a
precept stipulated by tradition but a “gift” (den) and “command” (hukam) ordained
by Guru Gobind Singh which will bestow spiritual merits, even liberation from the
cycle of birth and rebirth. A woman in her fifties illustratively said:
The Sardars [Sikhs] are surviving because of their nitnem. One day all
humans will get a chance to go on the right path in life. The Hindus believe
in the planet mars (mangal)… if you would do bad actions (karma)
the planet will not forgive you, not even after death. You will have to
suffer. That will not affect the person who does nitnem.
The regular discipline of reciting or hearkening the panj banian in the morning and
Rahiras Sahib and Kirtan Sohila at night is crucial for gaining benefits and maintaining
a Khalsa identity. The daily recitations should be continuous, without fail, lest the
individual Sikh would “break the amrit” and be considered apostate (patit). The stress
on regularity is given various significations: it is the Guru’s order that should be
obeyed. It is also a means to acquire recitations habits which will create deep interest
in the Gurus’ teaching that will eventually bring about a change in the moral and
bodily constitution of people.
When I asked a local granthi if he had observed any apparent changes in those
who are nitnemi, or “regular in routine”, he replied:
436
Nitnem is similar to the Sanskrit compound nitya karm, meaning a daily act, rite or obligation.
437
For local views on Amritdhari identity, see Chapter 2.
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Published on www.anpere.net in May 2008