INSIDE THE GURU'S GATE - Anpere

individual or communal reasons. The granthis may select the stanzas freely from
Guru Granth Sahib and by years of practise they usually hold a repertory of memorized
scriptural excerpts to be evoked in the various ceremonial contexts. To exemplify
the method of selecting and inserting verses from the Sikh scripture, one of the
granthis in Varanasi rendered a few passages which he used in Ardas performances in
connection with ceremonies and special requests of community members. Basically
this method is based on semantic identification between the content and meaning
conveyed in the text and the situational context, in sense that the locutionary meaning
of each verse should correspond with the activity for which the Ardas is read. Broadly
he categorized the gurbani extracts into two major groups: hymns for times of happiness
(sukh) and sadness (dukh), which were further divided into subcategories related
to specific situations. Hymns for happiness could, for instance, be used for Ardas
performances in wedding ceremonies, after childbirth, inaugurations of new homes
or shops, or when family members celebrated birthdays. In all these ceremonial contexts
he would use two different verses from the Guru Granth Sahib:
If the True Guru casts His merciful glance, I enjoy the happinesses of
lakhs of empires. Were he to bless me with His Name even for a trice,
my soul and body will become cool. They, who are so pre-ordained,
hold fast to the feet of the True Guru. 561
The heart, wherein the love of Lord God abides, is like the beauteous
earth, studded with the gems of grass. Nanak, all the affairs become
easy, when the great True Guru becomes pleased. 562
Typically he interposed only the three first lines of the first verse when he performed
Ardas for a newborn child, while he would read the two verses jointly at the time of
wedding ceremonies. In times of sadness or when people were stricken with illness
he used the following excerpts, drawn from three separate verses in the Guru Granth
Sahib:
The Destroyer of sorrow is Thy Name, O Lord, the Destroyer of sorrow
is Thy Name. Throughout the eight watches of the day visualise
over the Divine comprehension imparted by the Perfect True Guru. 563
Thou blessest the poor with wealth, Oh Lord. Through Thee manifold
sins are washed off and the soul becomes immaculate. Through Thee
561
GGS: 44.
562
GGS: 322.
563
GGS: 218.
330
Published on www.anpere.net in May 2008