INSIDE THE GURU'S GATE - Anpere

ATTENTIVE BODY POSTURE
The most distinct feature of congregational performances of the full Ardas lies in the
formal properties of bodily gestures and speech acts that have gained a highly formalized
character. During most ceremonies in the gurdwara or at home, people who
are in the spatial presence of Guru Granth Sahib should always be seated and remain
in a lower physical position than the scripture for the sake of reverence. In the enactment
of Ardas, however, people depart from this behavioral rule and stand up with
folded hands facing Guru Granth Sahib. With the exception of people who due to
handicap, illness or old age cannot stand up, it applies to all participants. If no scripture
is present people can face any direction or gather around the object of prayer,
such as in the case of cremation ceremonies during which all mourners are standing
in a circle around the pyre. In Sikh worship Ardas is one of the very few occasions
when the whole assembly rises to an erect posture higher than the scripture. In conversations
with granthis and lay Sikhs I was given various explanations as to why
people should stand during Ardas. More spontaneously some would simply state that
it is a tradition or just a fixed rule since long ago, while others described it as a habitual
practice they have learnt from childhood. The granthi stated that the bodily behavior
was simply due to the nature of the texts as an appeal:
During Ardas everyone stands because it is a request [vinti] to the
Guru, to Guru Granth Sahib, for happiness and prosperity [sukhsanpti]
and also for protection [raksha], so why everyone stands, it is
pleading.
Figuratively speaking many would liken it to other “proper” conducts in the Indian
public life and society, such as when a judge enters a courtroom, pupils’ attendance at
school, attitudes towards elders, or when meeting anyone who belongs to a higher
social strata. In any situation which involves interaction with a person of dignity and
higher status, they will keep an erected posture to express reverence according to the
cultural conventions. Standing in an upright position is an act of courtesy to superiors.
Correspondingly, when the Ardas is being read, “We think that the Gurus are in
front of us”, a middle-aged woman said. “We stand in the courtroom of God”, an
older man put it. Many would say the reading evokes experiences of being in a divine
presence, which entails these bodily postures. Irrespective of the different accounts,
the course of action in the enactment of Ardas is stipulated: everyone stands during
the reading of Ardas, preferably with folded hands and the face pointing downwards
to express a humble attitude. When the reciter utters the final lines of the text all do
matha tekna ‒ facing the scripture they fall down on their knees with their foreheads
touching the floor.
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Published on www.anpere.net in May 2008