When Karl Marx was writing his book, “The German Ideology,” around 1845, he penned eleven short philosophical notes. Neither the book, nor these notes could be published during Marx’s lifetime, but we all remember the 11th note since it eventually turned out to be one of the most popular quotes on all sides of the political and religious divides in the world: “The philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point, however, is to change it.”
More than three centuries earlier, a philosopher walked the face of this earth — talking to people, engaging with scholars, travelling far and wide, touching the lands that today fall in many different countries — and attracted enough people to his idea and world view about life and the world that today, not only does he figure among the most respected figures in known human history but his followers form the fifth largest and the youngest religion in the world.
The precise reason for the universal popularity of Guru Nanak in a world where political leaders, army dictators, media moghuls and film stars are ready to kill for a fraction of that popularity index and likeability, is the fact that he dealt with the social, political, economic, spiritual and the temporal, and his message was meant for all, across the boundaries of space and time.
The philosophy of Sri Guru Nanak Dev touches all aspects of human experience, be these the questions of human mind, its relationship of Nirguna (Formless) and Sarguna (Form), the origin of the universe, its working, the relationship of the human being with the wider universe as well as with fellow brethren and all forms of animate and inanimate bodies, the layered and complex aspects of nature, science and society.
Guru Nanak directly engaged with the society, dealing with the philosophical, the political, the social, the economic and the spiritual aspects. His philosophy dwelled upon the then existing thought processes, the prevalent practices and the available alternatives. So, he was making a relentless effort to not only explain the world but also to change it, to turn it into a new egalitarian society free of discrimination, free of exploitation of humans by fellow humans and to end the exploitation of nature by humans. Five hundred years before a worried world was marshalling brains and forces to reach the Paris Climate Accord, Guru Nanak stressed upon the need to preserve nature and live in harmony with it.
At times, I wonder how, when pushed out of France and finding himself holed up in Brussels, Marx would have been greatly facilitated if he had had access to some great academic work about the life and times of Guru Nanak.
Alas, for a long time, this all-embracing rich philosophical heritage remained confined to the Punjabi knowing populace and merely a handful of scholars of other languages due to language barrier. Things have changed little till date, except for some deeply heartening efforts made by sections of the influential, evolved and engaged Sikh Diaspora, to open up the world of the Guru to the larger world outside.
Guru Nanak lived and treaded this world for seven decades from 1469 to 1539 AD, covering extraordinarily long distances, entering into dialogue, often contentious, in far off places. He was a keen observer and was endowed with a fearless personality, as evidenced by the fact that he treaded many a difficult and forbidden path. In the course of his life and travels, he touched upon many aspects of the knowledge and practices prevalent at that point of time, the ubiquitous religious bigotry and a society fragmented and fractured along caste and gender lines. He minced no words in addressing the almost taboo issues of subjugation of womenfolk and the lower castes as well as the tyranny of the rulers, and he did so without any fear or favour, but with a fervour that perhaps could be explained as originating from some grand inner divine force.
On this 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, it is an occasion for us to re-visit his philosophy of social, spiritual and political administrative transformation for building a humane society, a non-discriminatory environment in a better, non-exploitative, suppression-less society.
He says that the cornering of the rights of the labour of others is great sin as great as it is eating Pork for a Muslim or eating Beaf for a Hindu
हकु पराइआ नानका उसु सूअर उसु गाइ॥गुरु पीरु हामा ता भरे जा मुरदारु न खाइ॥
He explained that the society was being administered by the hawks and there was no justice. Every where all around is darkness of falsehood, the moon light of truth is no where to be seen, at this stage I have been searching and searching madly but as yet have not been able to find a way out, out of this mist of darkness.
कलि काती राजे कासाई धरमु पंख करि उडरिआ ॥
कूड़ु अमावस सचु चंद्रमा दीसै नाही कह चड़िआ ॥
हउ भालि विकुंनी होई ॥ आधेरै राहु न कोई ॥
He said that in the justice system the Kazi becomes the Judge, Sits on the seat of Justice, he keeps rotating his string of beads in name of God, but after receiving graft he decides in favour of the guilty, if the objection is raised and Kazi is asked the reason he tries to read out the scriptures.
काजी होइ कै बहै निआइ ॥ फेरे तसबी करे खुदाइ ॥
वढी लै कै हकु गवाए ॥ जे को पुछै ता पड़ि सुणाए ॥
He envisaged a society where human inputs in the form of physical participation and bodily labour employed in earning one’s livelihood is the primary pursuit. Out of earnings thus gained, a part is donated for the advancement of the social causes, the greater good. Every body is supposed to earn livelihood by ones own labour and is also supposed to spare some part of the fruits of labour for the society. One should live the life of labour, and the fruits of ones own labour can give comfort.
घालि खाइ किछु हथहु देइ ॥ नानक राहु पछाणहि सेइ ॥१॥
If we want that our lives should remain happy then we should spare something out of our earning for the society and still remain low lying and call ourselves the lowest of the low:
जे लोड़हि चंगा आपणा करि पुंनहु नीचु सदाईऐ
This is a philosophy that talks, advocates, explains and entails a knowledge society, one that creates and nurtures knowledge through in-depth studies, observations and exchange of ideas from far and near. All kinds of the wealth of the universe is owned jointly by all, only those who are ignorant they feel that some things are owned by them singularly. However I am unable to understand this secret of knowledge, for which I am to blame myself and myself am ignorant, as I do not know how to understand the secret of joint ownership. If at all I am ignorant and superstitious because of the fact that I have been treading the same old path on which my elders have not succeeded to understand the great secret of joint ownership, in as much as I have not tried to find any new path. I have followed same old knowledge and kept on thinking with in the realm of established knowledge only. I have not created new knowledge.
साहुरड़ी वथु सभु किछु साझी पेवकड़ै धन वखे ॥
आपि कुचजी दोसु न देऊ जाणा नाही रखे ॥१॥
मेरे साहिबा हउ आपे भरमि भुलाणी ॥
अखर लिखे सेई गावा अवर न जाणा बाणी ॥१॥
Throughout life, one needs to engage oneself in exchange of knowledge and the method involves dialogue, listening to others and expressing oneself thereafter.
जब लगु दुनीआ रहीऐ नानक किछु सुणीऐ किछु कहीऐ ॥
One needs to stay away from those who pretend to be knowledgeable but themselves seek alms for their sheer physical survival.
गुरु पीरु सदाए मंगण जाइ ॥ ता कै मूलि न लगीऐ पाइ ॥
The idea that one can come to possess knowledge through extensive reading books scriptures, reading books filled in carts, boats filled with books, huge piles of books through out the years and the months of life, through out life in each breath till we breathe last, but without any real or innate understanding and practice, is a bogus one. Reading or reciting scriptures without an engagement with the crux is nothing but merely a ritual and a vain urge to subdue others.
पड़ि पड़ि गडी लदीअहि पड़ि पड़ि भरीअहि साथ ॥
पड़ि पड़ि बेड़ी पाईऐ पड़ि पड़ि गडीअहि खात ॥
पड़ीअहि जेते बरस बरस पड़ीअहि जेते मास ॥
पड़ीऐ जेती आरजा पड़ीअहि जेते सास ॥
नानक लेखै इक गल होरु हउमै झखणा झाख ॥१॥
Already, there are plenty of those in this world who read but sans any in-depth understanding, plenty of educators abound but only the rarest of the rare adopt knowledge as a way of life.
जगि गिआनी विरला आचारी ॥ जगि पंडितु विरला वीचारी ॥
Those who pretend from outward appearance to be good but do forbidden activities should not be trusted, they live at religious places like a crane but eat the water animals by throttling them.
बगा बगे कपड़े तीरथ मंझि वसंन्हि ॥ घुटि घुटि जीआ खावणे बगे ना कहीअन्हि ॥
Everything is below truth, but truthful living and actions are higher than truth. He said truth is highest, but truthful living is still higher.
सचहु ओरै सभु को उपरि सचु आचारु ॥
In Guru Nanak’s worldview, huge wealth cannot be collected without exploitation but at the same time, cannot be transported to any netherworld after death.
इसु जर कारणि घणी विगुती इनि जर घणी खुआई ॥
पापा बाझहु होवै नाही मुइआ साथि न जाई ॥
Exploitation is nothing but equivalent to sucking the blood of other human beings. If one pretends that the robe no more remains pious if even a single drop of blood stains it, then how can those who indulge in naked exploitation, akin to human blood sucking, can be termed pious?
जे रतु लगै कपड़ै जामा होइ पलीतु ॥
जो रतु पीवहि माणसा तिन किउ निरमलु चीतु ॥
Instead of engaging in useless and contentious fights about whether a vegetarian regimen is more privileged than a non-vegetarian one, or whether robes and rituals make one a better person, one needs to shun greed, lies, lust, wealth and back biting.
मासु मासु करि मूरखु झगड़े गिआनु धिआनु नही जाणै ॥
कउणु मासु कउणु सागु कहावै किसु महि पाप समाणे ॥
गैंडा मारि होम जग कीए देवतिआ की बाणे ॥
मासु छोडि बैसि नकु पकड़हि राती माणस खाणे ॥
One needs to desist from discriminating with fellow human beings on the basis of caste, creed, riches or poverty. What can make you more religious in true terms is a resolve to stand by the exploited, the marginalised, the poor, the weak, the have-nots, and not to be obsequious towards the wealthy and the powerful.
नीचा अंदरि नीच जाति नीची हू अति नीचु ॥
नानकु तिन कै संगि साथि वडिआ सिउ किआ रीस ॥
He said that collection of capital by exploitation of others is a sin. To take away the fruits of labour of others is like pork for Muslims and like beef for Hindus. It is just like eating on corpse.
हकु पराइआ नानका उसु सूअर उसु गाइ॥ गुरु पीरु हामा ता भरे जा मुरदारु न खाइ
Where in our social, religious or political spheres today are leaders who can say and live by the words of Nanak? Hear him: Kings are greedy lions and those who enforce their writ are akin to dogs:
राजे सीह मुकदम कुते ॥ जाइ जगाइन्हि बैठे सुते ॥
They need to be awakened. However the kings are behaving like butchers and the rule of law is no where to be seen:
कलि काती राजे कासाई धरमु पंख करि उडरिआ ॥
कूड़ु अमावस सचु चंद्रमा दीसै नाही कह चड़िआ ॥
The Guru says that in such a situation if the ylive by losing self respect then what ever they eat is illegitimate. So one should live with self respect,
जे जीवै पति लथी जाइ ॥ सभु हरामु जेता किछु खाइ ॥
In such a situation we have to join hands for common cause but the basis of joining hands should be common aim. In such joint venture we should leave our ideas that are alien to the unity. The alien ideas are to be treated as bad quality.
Tyranny and the tyrant need to be opposed by the oppressed.
How close Marx came to Nanak? Just recall Nanak’s guidelines that in the struggle of the oppressed against the tyrant, the oppressed have nothing to lose, so why should they be fear-stricken whereas the tyrant shall always be the losers. If the tyrant is chained by the oppressed, the tyrant shall get killed at the hands of the oppressed.
जिसु सिकदारी तिसहि खुआरी चाकर केहे डरणा ॥
जा सिकदारै पवै जंजीरी ता चाकर हथहु मरणा ॥
Can anything be more revolutionary than that? That is why we fall back upon these words 550 years after this man blessed this planet. Guru Nanak has the power to bring people across oceans to come and talk about the highest ideals of humanity.
(Dr. Pyare Lal Garg retired as professor of surgery from Government Medical College Patiala and later became registrar of Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, Faridkot.)
