Spice of Life: Honour history, respect differences to coexist
Nearly 300 years ago, the Father of the Khalsa had sacrificed his entire family for the Panth, for righteousness, for the freedom to follow one’s spiritual path. They gave their lives so that we could live.
I recently overheard a fascinating conversation between my daughter and her delightful, Caucasian friend. They were talking about how their celebratory days conflicted with one another. “When we mourn Jesus over Easter, you celebrate with Khalsa Day (Baisakhi). The joyful Christmas days are also the days when you commemorate the martyrdom of your Guru’s sons. And on our Halloween, when everything is dark and spooky, you celebrate Diwali, the festival of lights and joy!” remarked Chelsea.
My daughter giggled at the parallels. They were not untrue. They highlighted the beautiful complexity of cultural differences in their friendship. She asked me, “Which one of us is celebrating it wrong, mama?” “Neither,” I said instinctively, “There are so many parallel stories in the world which continue to happen at different points in history. Our job is to honour the history we know and respect the differences.”
These December days, the cold dark days of the month of Poh are commemorated as the Shaheedi Week in Punjab. During this dreadful week, Guru Gobind Singh’s older sons, Baba Ajit Singh, 17, and Baba Jujhar Singh, 13, along with countless other Sikhs were martyred in the Battle of Chamkaur. We also remember the martyrdom of Guru Sahib’s younger sons, Baba Zorawar Singh and Baba Fateh Singh, who refused to renounce the Sikh faith and as a result were bricked alive by Mughal governor Wazir Khan at the tender ages of 9 and 6, respectively. Guru Sahib’s mother, Mata Gujri too passed away in captivity in the Thanda Burj (cold tower).
The Shaheedi Week is marked by regaling the tales of valour to children and seeking solace through Gurbani. Some Sikhs sleep on the floor during this week to honour the supreme sacrifice of the Tenth Guru’s family. It is common to find langars being organised on roadsides all over Punjab. It feels like all roads lead to Fatehgarh Sahib, where stands the magnificent gurdwara built to commemorate the younger Sahibzadas’ sacrifice.
The Sahibzadas (Guru’s sons) followed the courageous path laid by their grandfather, Guru Tegh Bahadur. He too had sacrificed his life to save Kashmiri Pandits from forced religious conversion.
This year also saw a large rally being organised in Punjab to celebrate Christmas. According to the 2011 census, Punjab has 1.26% Christian population. The latest census (2021) is yet to be updated, but reports highlight rising conversion to Christianity over the past few years. In an evolving, porous world, faith conversions are not viewed in a negative light. In fact, they rightly highlight agency and freedom of choice.
The beautiful complexity of religious and cultural differences can coexist only when no religion and culture is exploited by the other. This exploitation ought to be addressed at an institutional level, as a collective societal responsibility. Nearly 300 years ago, the Father of the Khalsa had sacrificed his entire family for the Panth, for righteousness, for the freedom to follow one’s spiritual path. They gave their lives so that we could live. So, an ode to Guru Sahib and the Sahibzada’s sacrifices would be to live by truly honouring our unique histories and cultures. Only then can we truly celebrate the richness of human existence.
The writer is a Canada-based freelance contributor and can be reached at seeratsandhu25@yahoo.com
