INSIDE THE GURU'S GATE - Anpere

etween human and God, either to seek divine assistance in a particular life situation
or to reciprocally express devotion and thanks on behalf of oneself or others. The
commitment is verbally articulated and confirmed by means of performing the Sikh
supplication (Ardas) before starting the reading. Which gurbani text is chosen usually
depends upon the particular reason for which a recitation is undertaken or selected
according to individual preferences. Some of my interlocutors had chosen individual
hymns from the scripture, which they always kept with them throughout life and
recited whenever they experienced a need to do so. Others consulted people, who
were considered knowledgeable in gurbani and possessed certain spiritual powers,
for guidance. Within the gurdwara, for instance, the granthi will frequently tell devotees
to recite JapJi Sahib or Sukhmani Sahib in the early morning hours for a month or
two in a row to attain mental peace. When the desired ends are more specified he will
supply special passages from the Guru Granth Sahib along with reading instructions.
Another way to choose hymns for defined purposes is to confer with the various
anthologies of selected verses from Guru Granth Sahib. A popular book in this
category is Sankat Mochan, or “the saviour from troubles”, a total collection of 108
quoted verses from the Sikh scripture. Today there exist various versions of Sankat
Mochan in both Devanagri and Gurmukhi script which have been compiled by different
religious scholars, some of whom claim to have been blessed with the knowledge
from descendants of disciples to the Sikh Gurus. 445 It would be correct to say that
Sankat Mochan constitute a sub-genre of ritual handbooks that aims to provide knowledge
of the range and methods of using gurbani in social life. In slightly different
ways the editions instruct readers on which verse is to be recited in which social context
to fulfil particular human needs or solve difficulties. In the introduction the compiler
may offer general advice to accomplish a recitation successfully. In one edition
the devout reciter is instructed to take a bath in amritvela, do the daily readings of panj
banian with punctuality, and in the evening read Rahiras Sahib and Kirtan Sohila before
going to sleep. Prior to a daily reading of the selected verse(s) from Sankat Mochan,
the reciter should create a seat at a “pure” (pavitra) place, either at the bank of a river
or a pool, and in solitude be seated facing the sun. The reciter is advised to use a
white woolen rosary, light incense, and before commencing the reading with a concentrated
mind repeat the mulmantra five times and read the Ardas at the “feet of the
respected Satguru”, as one edition stipulates. 446 According to this book, even non-
Amritdhari Sikhs should thus commit to a personal discipline similar to the Khalsa
standards for the period they undertake recitations and deliberately create a pure and
445
For instance, in one edition of Sankat Mochan the compiler Giani Gurcharan Singh claims that
the selection of hymns was made by a person in lineage of Baba Buddha, the first granthi of
Harimandir Sahib who ritually invested the Sikh Gurus to the office. The compiler, and/or the
person selecting gurbani hymns for ritual use, has been blessed with divine knowledge and is
therefore authorized to work as an instructive agent to others. The appeal to tradition, in this
case a relationship with contemporary disciples of the Sikh Gurus, sometimes legitimizes this
authority.
446
Sankat Mochan Shabad, Giani Gurcharan Singh, p. 4.
251
Published on www.anpere.net in May 2008