By Karminder Singh Dhillon | The Sikh Bulletin |
Ever since Sikh scholar and author of The Sikh Encyclopedia Bhai Kahn Singh Nabha raised the issue of errors within the Sri Guru Granth Sahib (SGGS) in 1918, Sikh intellectuals, thinkers, writers and researchers have raised the matter continuously. They called for the Sikh world to do something about it. So strident were these calls that even groups that are considered anti-thesis to intellectualism – deras and taksals have come on board. Gurbachan Singh, the head of the Bhindran Mehta Dera published a book on the matter. Former Akal Takhat (AT) Jathedar Ranjit Singh said in a recorded sermon that the “SGGS that we have today contains thousands of errors.” Another AT Jathedar and dera trained Joginder Singh Vedanti created a list of 5,000 errors that he said existed within the SGGS. A one-time head granthi of Darbar Sahib Gyani Jagtar Singh Jachak lent his voice and expertise to bringing about awareness of the deep-seated and sensitive problem. It appeared that for once, Sikh intellectuals, thinkers, writers and researchers had energized even those groups that were disagreeable and opposed to them.
But nothing was ever done about correcting the errors that existed within the SGGS. At least not openly and officially.
Then in early 2022 somebody actually did something. A “corrected” version of the SGGS was uploaded on a website and saroops of the SGGS were said to be made available.
The outcome was startling. The entire community of Sikh intellectuals, thinkers, writers and researchers fell silent. When the silence was broken, it was to say things like what missionary preacher Sarabjit Singh Dhunda said to a gurdwara audience: “By the way, I do not agree with what Sardar Tharminder Singh has done.”
SEE ALSO: Explainer: Guru Granth printing error and how Akal Takht handled it
Tharminder Singh is the owner of the Sikh Book Club – the name of the website where the “corrected” version of the SGGS was uploaded. He is also part of a group of Gurbani Scholars who had come together to work on the issue. It is said that Jathedar Vedanti had bequeathed his entire work on Gurbani errors in the form of thumb drives to this group. Essentially then, the work of Tharminder Singh, the Sikh Book Club and the team that put up the “corrected version” of the SGGS was the outcome of cooperation amongst groups that were disagreeable and opposed to each other on just about every other issue. One would think that this alone was an accomplishment of sorts. Yet Sikh intellectuals, thinkers, writers and researchers maintained their deadly silence.
The segment of the Sikh masses who have never read the SGGS and are guided by dark emotions of unenlightenment stepped in to fill the vacuum of silence. They flooded the social media space to pour scorn on Tharminder Singh, the Sikh Book Club and the job that his group had done. He was accused of “altering Gurbani,” “editing the SGGS” and “changing Dhur Ki Bani.” Some took to reminding Tharminder Singh of “what happened to Baba Ram Rai”– the eldest son of Guru Har Rai who was said to be expelled from the Guru household for altering one word – according to a concocted narrative by nirmla writer Kavi Santokh Singh in his Gurpartap Suraj Granth.
ਡਾ: ਕਰਮਿੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ ਦੀਆਂ ਪ੍ਰਚੱਲਤ ਬੀੜਾਂ ਵਿਚ ਪੈ ਚੁਕੀਆਂ ਅਸ਼ੁਧੀਆਂ ਵਾਲੇ ਵਿਸ਼ੇ ਤੇ ਸਾਡੇ ਬੁੱਧੀਜੀਵੀ ਵਰਗ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਧਾਰਨ ਕੀਤੀ ਚੁੱਪ ਦੇ ਅੰਜਾਮ ਵਾਰੇ ਵੀਚਾਰ।
The deafening silence of Sikh intellectuals and the loud empty-vessel portion of Sikh masses gave our Panthik Jatheybandees an opportunity to gather under the auspices of the SGPC and take aim at Sikh intellectuals, thinkers, writers and researchers. On May 3rd, the Jathedar of AT declared Tharminder Singh a tankhayia. On the same day, the AT issued a stop work order to another Sikh intellectual Dr Oangkar Singh of USA. This Gurbani scholar was in the midst of producing a translation of the SGGS.
What possible conclusions can one make pertaining to Sikh intellectuals then? That the primary driving force for our intellectuals – at least on the matter of errors within the SGGS – is cowardice? Or that they are driven primarily by self-preservation? That they they fall silent when the establishment wields the sword of compliance on one of their kind? That they are vocal and brilliant at airing the problem, but silent and indifferent when it comes to actually doing something about the solution? That they drop the issue they themselves championed once the heat begins to build up? Some of the above? All of the above?
Credit must be given to those who did indeed speak up – not just courageously, but intelligently indeed. At the time of this writing, Radio Virsa New Zealand host Harnek Singh and his co-host Gyani Lakhbir Singh of Canada had done six continuous segments in which they analyzed the issue logically for their listeners. They asked of our intellectuals: “Now that someone has done something about the issue, isn’t it your duty to at least examine the work; to see which corrective actions are acceptable and which need more deliberation?
Given that the issue is one that needs our intellectuals to come on board, and given the character of our intellectuals as displayed thus far, the only question that remains is: Is there any hope at all in resolving this problem?
Sikh thinker, writer and parcharak Karminder Singh Dhillon, PhD (Boston), is a retired Malaysian civil servant. He is the joint-editor of The Sikh Bulletin and author of The Hijacking of Sikhi. This article appeared as the editorial of the The Sikh Bulletin – 2022 Issue 3 (July-September 2022). Click here to retrieve archived copies of the bulletin. The author can be contacted at dhillon99@gmail.com.
RELATED STORY:
Printing errors in Guru Granth: This issue is not about to go away (Asia Samachar, 24 June 2022)
Grappling with Guru Granth printing errors. Thaminder takes the hit (Asia Samachar, 7 May 2022)
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