The Sikhs. John James Hood Gordon
a crusade against Hindu and Sikh alike. He called upon his disciples by all that was dear to them, in defence of their faith and in the name of their martyred Guru to exchange their rosaries and ploughs for swords: now was the time to raise their fallen race and to overthrow the hated Mahomedans, who were bent on subverting their religion. There could be no religious freedom while the Moslem ruled the land.
He then announced that converts to the Sikh faith would be admitted from all tribes, and caste abolished. In order to effect this he revived in the form of baptism an old initiatory ceremony called the pahal, which had ceased to be observed during the persecutions, administering it first to five of his most resolute disciples who had given marked proof of devotion. After bathing and putting on clean garments they were seated side by side, each with his sword girded on. With a two-edged dagger the Guru stirred a mixture of sugar-and-water in an iron dish, reciting over it verses in praise of God.[1] Some of this they drank, part was poured on their heads, and the rest sprinkled on their faces. Then patting them with his hand, he commanded them to say, "The Khalsa of the Vah Guru, victory to the Vah Guru." They were then hailed as "Singhs" or lions of their race, and declared to be the Khalsa—the select, the purified, God's own—the Sikh brotherhood or commonwealth, which he foretold would grow up as a forest of trees firmly rooted, multiplying their leaves, become a nation and rule the land. Govind then took the pahal from their hands in the same manner and exclaimed, "The Khalsa arose from the Guru and the Guru from the Khalsa. They are the mutual protectors of each other." All the rest of the disciples present were similarly baptised and declared Singhs. The Guru then announced that wherever five Sikhs should be assembled together, it should be considered as if the Guru was himself present; that those who wished to see the Guru would see him in the Khalsa. From this time he changed his name to Govind Singh, and he added "Singh" to his baptised followers' names, an affix which up till then was exclusively assumed by the Rajputs, the first military class of the Hindus, who alone were entitled to carry arms.
This baptismal rite is observed to this day—administered when five or more Sikhs are present, and not before the attainment of years of discretion.
The members of the Khalsa were required to carry arms and to salute one another with "The Khalsa is of the Lord Guru, victory attend the Lord!" as an acknowledgment of obligation to the brotherhood. In order to mark them as a select body who should be known by outward signs, it was declared that every true Sikh must always have five things with him, their names all commencing with the letter k—namely, kes (long hair of the head: the Sikh must never cut his hair or beard); kangi (comb), to secure the hair tied up in a knot on the top of the head; kachh (breeches reaching to the knee), kard (knife), and kirpan (sword). Rules of conduct were also enjoined by which they were to be known to all the world. All was designed to give the Sikhs a distinct national character in opposition to the ways of other people, and to keep alive a sense of duty and profession of faith. Hindus and Mahomedans are much given to shaving heads and beards: among the Scythians and ancient Hindus shaving the head was an infamous punishment. "Come out from among them, and be ye separate; take the pahal of the Khalsa," was Govind's call to the Sikhs. "I bow with love and devotion to the Holy Sword,"[2] was his address to the sword, by which religious liberty was to be won; and his prayer enjoined to every Singh, "Grant, O God, that I may never hesitate to perform good and meritorious deeds, nor flee from my enemy in fear when I go to fight with him with the determination and certainty of victory. When the period of life may draw to its close on the field of battle, may I die like a hero. Let us prove our loyalty to our sovereign and master, and leave our life and death to God." His definition of the true Sikh was he who never fears though often overcome. Personal courage in the fight for the cause was to be the highest of virtues, cowardice the basest of crimes. Neither loss of life nor loss of property in maintaining their cause was to be lamented.
Govind's next move was to issue orders that every Sikh house inhabited by four adult males should contribute two for service under him. In a short time 80,000 men were gathered round him. In
GOVIND SINGH'S ARMED DISCIPLES.
The Early Soldiers of the Khalsa.
addressing them he commenced by praising God as the Omnipotent, Almighty, Invincible, and Merciful, who must be worshipped in truthfulness and sincerity, and that no material resemblance must degrade Him. He could only be beheld by the eye of faith in the general body of the Khalsa. All Sikhs must be united in one chain of brotherhood. "Ye Sikhs are all brothers, all equal; there must be no caste among you, you must all be equal, no man greater than the other. All must eat together and drink from the same cup. Caste must be forgotten, idols destroyed, the Brahmanical thread broken, the graves of saints abandoned, Korans and Purans torn to pieces." The only way to salvation was through the pahal [lit. gate] of the true Guru.
He appealed to the eternal human instinct of equality, liberty, and brotherhood, broke for ever with caste prejudices, and received into the Khalsa people of all classes who had hitherto been debarred from bearing arms. The Singhs of the Khalsa felt themselves at once elevated to rank and equality with the proud martial Rajputs. Personal pride and vigour were infused into them, and Sikhism knitted them together in the brotherhood of the Sword. Each became great in his own eyes, as forming one of the select Khalsa whom the Guru regarded as his own. The contagious momentum of enthusiasm created by Govind Singh's irresistible appeal brought thousands of the lower orders to receive the pahal and enter the Khalsa. The pride and prejudices of the Brahmans and Rajputs among his followers were offended by this levelling up of caste to such a degree that many of them left him, but he knew that his great strength lay among the Jat peasantry, who welcomed the brotherhood. The disciples who did not acknowledge these innovations of Govind simply called themselves Sikhs, without adding to their names the title of "Singh."
He now disciplined his followers to some extent, exercised them in the use of arms, organised then into troops and bands, and built forts along the skirt of the hills between the Jumna and the Sutlej where their retreats lay. At the end of the century he felt his power equal to the hazard of a rebellion against the Imperial Government. He routed the hill rajas who opposed him, and defeated the Moghul troops sent to aid them, but the Emperor, roused to greater action, sent a powerful army, which eventually scattered the Sikhs for a time. His mother with his two youngest sons, mere boys, escaped to Sirhind, where they fell into the hands of the Mahomedan governor. One day as they were sitting in his durbar he kindly said to them, "Boys, what would you do if I gave you your liberty?" The boys answered, "We would collect our Sikhs, tight with you, and put you to death." The Governor said, "If you were defeated in the fight, what would you do then?" to which they replied, "We would collect our army again, and either kill you or be killed." The Governor, enraged at this spirited answer, ordered them to be taken away. They were buried alive under a wall, and Govind's mother died of grief.
The Guru himself was hard pressed by the Moghul troops, and held a post with a small devoted band of his men against overwhelming numbers, indignantly refusing to surrender and embrace the Mahomedan faith. His two surviving sons and their mother were killed by his side. Escaping with five followers, he made his way to the jungles and desert south of the Sutlej. He met his adversities with undaunted resolution; submitted to the will of God, and rallied his Sikhs round him again, saying, "The affairs of this sorrowful world are transitory. God makes a thing and unmakes a thing; who are we to grumble since the rein is in His hand? Rely then firmly on His will, for He is the Almighty; what are we poor mortals before Him?" His disciples, seeing their Guru so firm and resolute, recommenced fighting with the enemies of their faith, and defeated the imperial troops sent to disperse them, when great numbers fell on both sides. They were now left there undisturbed for some time, during which thousands of the Jat peasantry joined the Khalsa.
Later on Govind Singh returned to his old retreat near the Sutlej, passing by Sirhind, the scene of the murder of his two little sons. His Sikhs implored him for orders to burn the town. He said that the death of his sons would not be avenged by the destruction of the town, which had done no harm, but that for the future every