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Guru Granth Sahib
Composition, Arrangement & Layout
ਜਪੁ | Jup
ਸੋ ਦਰੁ | So Dar
ਸੋਹਿਲਾ | Sohilaa
ਰਾਗੁ ਸਿਰੀਰਾਗੁ | Raag Siree-Raag
Gurbani (14-53)
Ashtpadiyan (53-71)
Gurbani (71-74)
Pahre (74-78)
Chhant (78-81)
Vanjara (81-82)
Vaar Siri Raag (83-91)
Bhagat Bani (91-93)
ਰਾਗੁ ਮਾਝ | Raag Maajh
Gurbani (94-109)
Ashtpadi (109)
Ashtpadiyan (110-129)
Ashtpadi (129-130)
Ashtpadiyan (130-133)
Bara Maha (133-136)
Din Raen (136-137)
Vaar Maajh Ki (137-150)
ਰਾਗੁ ਗਉੜੀ | Raag Gauree
Gurbani (151-185)
Quartets/Couplets (185-220)
Ashtpadiyan (220-234)
Karhalei (234-235)
Ashtpadiyan (235-242)
Chhant (242-249)
Baavan Akhari (250-262)
Sukhmani (262-296)
Thittee (296-300)
Gauree kii Vaar (300-323)
Gurbani (323-330)
Ashtpadiyan (330-340)
Baavan Akhari (340-343)
Thintteen (343-344)
Vaar Kabir (344-345)
Bhagat Bani (345-346)
ਰਾਗੁ ਆਸਾ | Raag Aasaa
Gurbani (347-348)
Chaupaday (348-364)
Panchpadde (364-365)
Kaafee (365-409)
Aasaavaree (409-411)
Ashtpadiyan (411-432)
Patee (432-435)
Chhant (435-462)
Vaar Aasaa (462-475)
Bhagat Bani (475-488)
ਰਾਗੁ ਗੂਜਰੀ | Raag Goojaree
Gurbani (489-503)
Ashtpadiyan (503-508)
Vaar Gujari (508-517)
Vaar Gujari (517-526)
ਰਾਗੁ ਦੇਵਗੰਧਾਰੀ | Raag Dayv-Gandhaaree
Gurbani (527-536)
ਰਾਗੁ ਬਿਹਾਗੜਾ | Raag Bihaagraa
Gurbani (537-556)
Chhant (538-548)
Vaar Bihaagraa (548-556)
ਰਾਗੁ ਵਡਹੰਸ | Raag Wadhans
Gurbani (557-564)
Ashtpadiyan (564-565)
Chhant (565-575)
Ghoriaan (575-578)
Alaahaniiaa (578-582)
Vaar Wadhans (582-594)
ਰਾਗੁ ਸੋਰਠਿ | Raag Sorath
Gurbani (595-634)
Asatpadhiya (634-642)
Vaar Sorath (642-659)
ਰਾਗੁ ਧਨਾਸਰੀ | Raag Dhanasaree
Gurbani (660-685)
Astpadhiya (685-687)
Chhant (687-691)
Bhagat Bani (691-695)
ਰਾਗੁ ਜੈਤਸਰੀ | Raag Jaitsree
Gurbani (696-703)
Chhant (703-705)
Vaar Jaitsaree (705-710)
Bhagat Bani (710)
ਰਾਗੁ ਟੋਡੀ | Raag Todee
ਰਾਗੁ ਬੈਰਾੜੀ | Raag Bairaaree
ਰਾਗੁ ਤਿਲੰਗ | Raag Tilang
Gurbani (721-727)
Bhagat Bani (727)
ਰਾਗੁ ਸੂਹੀ | Raag Suhi
Gurbani (728-750)
Ashtpadiyan (750-761)
Kaafee (761-762)
Suchajee (762)
Gunvantee (763)
Chhant (763-785)
Vaar Soohee (785-792)
Bhagat Bani (792-794)
ਰਾਗੁ ਬਿਲਾਵਲੁ | Raag Bilaaval
Gurbani (795-831)
Ashtpadiyan (831-838)
Thitteen (838-840)
Vaar Sat (841-843)
Chhant (843-848)
Vaar Bilaaval (849-855)
Bhagat Bani (855-858)
ਰਾਗੁ ਗੋਂਡ | Raag Gond
Gurbani (859-869)
Ashtpadiyan (869)
Bhagat Bani (870-875)
ਰਾਗੁ ਰਾਮਕਲੀ | Raag Ramkalee
Ashtpadiyan (902-916)
Gurbani (876-902)
Anand (917-922)
Sadd (923-924)
Chhant (924-929)
Dakhnee (929-938)
Sidh Gosat (938-946)
Vaar Ramkalee (947-968)
ਰਾਗੁ ਨਟ ਨਾਰਾਇਨ | Raag Nat Narayan
Gurbani (975-980)
Ashtpadiyan (980-983)
ਰਾਗੁ ਮਾਲੀ ਗਉੜਾ | Raag Maalee Gauraa
Gurbani (984-988)
Bhagat Bani (988)
ਰਾਗੁ ਮਾਰੂ | Raag Maaroo
Gurbani (889-1008)
Ashtpadiyan (1008-1014)
Kaafee (1014-1016)
Ashtpadiyan (1016-1019)
Anjulian (1019-1020)
Solhe (1020-1033)
Dakhni (1033-1043)
ਰਾਗੁ ਤੁਖਾਰੀ | Raag Tukhaari
Bara Maha (1107-1110)
Chhant (1110-1117)
ਰਾਗੁ ਕੇਦਾਰਾ | Raag Kedara
Gurbani (1118-1123)
Bhagat Bani (1123-1124)
ਰਾਗੁ ਭੈਰਉ | Raag Bhairo
Gurbani (1125-1152)
Partaal (1153)
Ashtpadiyan (1153-1167)
ਰਾਗੁ ਬਸੰਤੁ | Raag Basant
Gurbani (1168-1187)
Ashtpadiyan (1187-1193)
Vaar Basant (1193-1196)
ਰਾਗੁ ਸਾਰਗ | Raag Saarag
Gurbani (1197-1200)
Partaal (1200-1231)
Ashtpadiyan (1232-1236)
Chhant (1236-1237)
Vaar Saarang (1237-1253)
ਰਾਗੁ ਮਲਾਰ | Raag Malaar
Gurbani (1254-1293)
Partaal (1265-1273)
Ashtpadiyan (1273-1278)
Chhant (1278)
Vaar Malaar (1278-91)
Bhagat Bani (1292-93)
ਰਾਗੁ ਕਾਨੜਾ | Raag Kaanraa
Gurbani (1294-96)
Partaal (1296-1318)
Ashtpadiyan (1308-1312)
Chhant (1312)
Vaar Kaanraa
Bhagat Bani (1318)
ਰਾਗੁ ਕਲਿਆਨ | Raag Kalyaan
Gurbani (1319-23)
Ashtpadiyan (1323-26)
ਰਾਗੁ ਪ੍ਰਭਾਤੀ | Raag Prabhaatee
Gurbani (1327-1341)
Ashtpadiyan (1342-51)
ਰਾਗੁ ਜੈਜਾਵੰਤੀ | Raag Jaijaiwanti
Gurbani (1352-53)
Salok | Gatha | Phunahe | Chaubole | Swayiye
Sehskritee Mahala 1
Sehskritee Mahala 5
Gaathaa Mahala 5
Phunhay Mahala 5
Chaubolae Mahala 5
Shaloks Bhagat Kabir
Shaloks Sheikh Farid
Swaiyyae Mahala 5
Swaiyyae in Praise of Gurus
Shaloks in Addition To Vaars
Shalok Ninth Mehl
Mundavanee Mehl 5
ਰਾਗ ਮਾਲਾ, Raag Maalaa
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<blockquote data-quote="Harry Haller" data-source="post: 175004" data-attributes="member: 14641"><p>I disagree, one only has to look at the many variations of Sikhism that exist to see that nothing is well accepted. As a consequence many concepts have been twisted, modified and changed. One can either fight and shout for what one believes in, or accept that each is entitled to their own interpretation of the truth. I accept that you believe in reincarnation and have no wish to change your mind, however to say that this is well accepted Sikh philosophy is incorrect. </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>In my belief, in incarnation is merely a change in personality. When I was younger, I was arrogant, stupid, proud, egoistical, over the years my personality has changed, my thoughts have changed, and I am still changing, every day, What am I looking for? I am looking for my true personality, the personality of the Khalsa. The personality that knows exactly what to say, act, do, think. The personality that is aligned to God. </p><p></p><p>I dislike quoting, however, as you have asked, </p><p></p><p>p220</p><p></p><p> <span style="font-family: 'AnmolUniPr'"><span style="font-size: 9px"><span style="color: #800000"><a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%AE%E0%A8%BE%E0%A8%A8%E0%A8%B8" target="_blank">ਮਾਨਸ </a> <a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%A6%E0%A9%87%E0%A8%B9" target="_blank">ਦੇਹ </a> <a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%AC%E0%A8%B9%E0%A9%81%E0%A8%B0%E0%A8%BF" target="_blank">ਬਹੁਰਿ </a> <a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%A8%E0%A8%B9" target="_blank">ਨਹ </a> <a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%AA%E0%A8%BE%E0%A8%B5%E0%A9%88" target="_blank">ਪਾਵੈ </a> <a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%95%E0%A8%9B%E0%A9%82" target="_blank">ਕਛੂ </a> <a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%89%E0%A8%AA%E0%A8%BE%E0%A8%89" target="_blank">ਉਪਾਉ </a> <a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%AE%E0%A9%81%E0%A8%95%E0%A8%A4%E0%A8%BF" target="_blank">ਮੁਕਤਿ </a> <a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%95%E0%A8%BE" target="_blank">ਕਾ </a> <a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%95%E0%A8%B0%E0%A9%81" target="_blank">ਕਰੁ </a> <a href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%B0%E0%A9%87" target="_blank">ਰੇ </a> ॥</span></span></span> </p><p> <span style="font-size: 9px"><span style="color: #008080">मानस देह बहुरि नह पावै कछू उपाउ मुकति का करु रे ॥</span></span> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'TAHOMA'"><span style="font-size: 9px">Mānas ḏeh bahur nah pāvai kacẖẖū upā▫o mukaṯ kā kar re.</span></span> </p><p> <span style="font-family: 'TAHOMA'"><span style="font-size: 9px"><span style="color: #000080">You shall not obtain this human body again; make the effort - try to achieve liberation!</span></span></span> </p><p> </p><p></p><p>you may also find this article interesting from Baldev Singh, a writer I enjoy reading</p><p></p><p><em>The dictionary meaning of reincarnation is: the belief that after somebody's death their soul lives again in a new body</em></p><p> <em>Now let us explore this idea from the view point of Sikhism</em></p><p> <em>Sikh philosophy is based on logic, reason, skepticism, awareness, reality, and other factors often associated with critical thinking. It is not based on faith; Guru Nanak urges us to use critical (discerning) intellect in every walk of life.</em></p><p> <em>Guru Nanak wanted to preach and teach his message in the language of the masses. Therefore, he rejected Sanskrit in favour of Punjabi, which at that time was the language of the peasants, artisans, untouchables and traders. Moreover, there was no specific script for Punjabi language. Guru Nanak and Guru Angad constructed the Gurmukhi script from the crude scripts that were in vogue at that time. Before Guru Nanak there was no literature in Punjabi except the couplets of Baba Seikh Farid. So Guru Nanak is the father of Punjabi literature.</em></p><p> <em>The Guru borrowed the vocabularies of other languages and terminologies of other religions to express his thoughts. In other words, he radically changed the meanings of Hindu or Muslim religious terminologies in the adoption process to express his philosophy. There are words from more than 25 languages in the Aad Guru Granth Sahib (AGGS).</em></p><p> <em>In the process of building his philosophy, Guru Nanak also coined his own words and new terminologies. Therefore, when we read the Gurbani, we are conscious of the facts that the Guru is fully aware in his expressions of both the Hindu and Muslim worldviews. Hence the use of similes.</em></p><p> <em>Most often we encounter his references to the ideas of reincarnation in the AGGS. Just because the Guru is expressing this idea, it doesn’t automatically mean he approves of it. At the least it means that the Guru is conscious of such Hindu beliefs and certainly not giving his accent to the belief as part of his own philosophy. We, Sikhs, must be extremely careful of this and approach the topic with caution, careful analysis, and proper discussion.</em></p><p> <em>Guru Nanak discussed and imparted credence to the subject of evolution of life about five hundred years ago, roughly 350 years before Charles Darwin. Moreover, the Entity (Creator) according to Guru Nanak is Itself evolving as in the very act of creation of the cosmos when the Transcendent became Immanent-the Invisible became Visible-the Un-manifest became Manifest.</em></p><p> <em>Let us do a small experiment; get your pencil and a piece of paper in hand. In the 21st century, we have come a long way in understanding the subject of evolution. Now take the expressed central basic proposition of the theory of evolution and translate that into our present-day Punjabi language in general and in particular to the Punjabi language of the 15th century, something akin to the written language of Guru Nanak as we encounter in Gurbani.</em></p><p> <em>You will be amazed to find that what you wrote sounds more like the language of reincarnation. And if your mind is already conditioned towards reincarnation, you will read this experimented material as justifying reincarnation. I am afraid that is what has exactly happened to the generations of Sikhs. To make the matter worse, our Sikh scholars too continued to express the same mode of routine ritual thinking. It only highlights the fact that we have failed to develop the Punjabi language in tune with the scientific progresses of the last century.</em></p><p> <em>In our existing Punjabi vocabulary and its former usage there is no expressed distinctions between reincarnation and the theory of evolution; they both lie on each other. It is only in the last few decades some of us have smelled the burning rat and decided to reassess what the Gurus espoused; thanks in part to the Western sciences imparting us the gift of critical knowledge of evolutionary biology. Given this, the new knowledge, it is incredibly refreshing to read Gurbani.</em></p><p> <em>One must remember that according to modern science all complex forms of life originated and evolved from a profoundly simple life. And it took millions of years for complex forms like the modern man to evolve through myriad forms of life to develop-—this fact amazingly is consistent with the Sikh philosophy.</em></p><p> <em>AGGS makes it clear that reincarnation of God, karma and transmigration, and hell and heaven, caste system and gender inequality, are not real; rather they are man-made concepts, as pointed out by Guru Angad.</em></p><p> <em>It is the teachings of Vedas, which has created the concepts of sin and virtue, hell and heaven, and karma and transmigration. One reaps the reward in the next life for the deeds performed in this life-goes to hell or heaven according to the deeds. The Vedas have also created the fallacy of inequality of caste and gender for the world. AGGS, M 2, p. 1243.</em></p><p> <em>Another relevant issue that needs addressing is of soul. Again, here the Sikh philosophy radically differs from other religions. In Sikhism, soul is God–the Transcendent One that permeates the entire cosmos and it is called as jyoti (light). Other synonyms used are hans (swan), atma, jio (spirit), Sabad-surat (God-consciousness) and moral principles that guide life (conscience).</em></p><p> <em>Guru Nanak rejected the idea that soul is something separate from God and that it leaves the body after death to seek punishment or reward depending upon the deeds of the person whose body it inhabits. Many verses in the AGGS attest to this fact that God is soul. For example:</em></p><p> <em>After death some bodies are burnt, some are buried and some are left to be devoured by animals/birds (dogs). Some are thrown in water while others are thrown in a dry well. There is no evidence/proof where the so-called soul ends after these different methods of disposal of the dead body,” opines Nanak. AGGS, M 1, p. 648.</em></p><p> <em>Do not believe that the benefits of deeds performed in the current life will be rewarded in the next world. AGGS, M 1, pp. 729-730</em></p><p> <em>Within all there is light (jyoti) and it is Your light which is in all. AGGS, M 1, p. 663</em></p><p> <em>The One God sustains all and It is also the Atma within all. In other words Atma is the Transcendent One. Nanak is at the service of one who understands this mystery, as such a person is God-like. AGGS, M 1, p. 1353 God is in soul and soul is in God. AGGS, M 1, p. 1153</em></p><p> <em>“O my mind, the Universal light is within you, recognize your roots-the source of your origin-the Primordial Light-Energy,” so says Nanak. AGGS, M 3, p. 441.</em></p><p> <em>Besides, the Sikh Gurus rejected the notion of past life or the life after death, and made it abundantly clear that the present life is the only chance to realize God. For example:</em></p><p> <em>O my mind, my dear friend, this is the time for you to meet the Creator. Moreover, this opportunity will last only as long as the body is healthy and full of vitality. AGGS, M 1, p. 20</em></p><p> <em>Take advantage of your birth as a human, this is your only opportunity to meet God. AGGS, M 5, p. 378</em></p><p> <em>Don’t look to the past, make efforts to make your future life successful by meeting God, because you won’t be born again, says Nanak. AGGS, M 5, p. 1096</em></p><p> <em>You won’t be born again, take some measures to obtain salvation right now. Praising the Merciful One, will take you across the ocean of worldly temptations, says Nanak. AGGS, M 9, p. 220</em></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Harry Haller, post: 175004, member: 14641"] I disagree, one only has to look at the many variations of Sikhism that exist to see that nothing is well accepted. As a consequence many concepts have been twisted, modified and changed. One can either fight and shout for what one believes in, or accept that each is entitled to their own interpretation of the truth. I accept that you believe in reincarnation and have no wish to change your mind, however to say that this is well accepted Sikh philosophy is incorrect. In my belief, in incarnation is merely a change in personality. When I was younger, I was arrogant, stupid, proud, egoistical, over the years my personality has changed, my thoughts have changed, and I am still changing, every day, What am I looking for? I am looking for my true personality, the personality of the Khalsa. The personality that knows exactly what to say, act, do, think. The personality that is aligned to God. I dislike quoting, however, as you have asked, p220 [FONT=AnmolUniPr][SIZE=1][COLOR=#800000][URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%AE%E0%A8%BE%E0%A8%A8%E0%A8%B8"]ਮਾਨਸ [/URL] [URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%A6%E0%A9%87%E0%A8%B9"]ਦੇਹ [/URL] [URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%AC%E0%A8%B9%E0%A9%81%E0%A8%B0%E0%A8%BF"]ਬਹੁਰਿ [/URL] [URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%A8%E0%A8%B9"]ਨਹ [/URL] [URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%AA%E0%A8%BE%E0%A8%B5%E0%A9%88"]ਪਾਵੈ [/URL] [URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%95%E0%A8%9B%E0%A9%82"]ਕਛੂ [/URL] [URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%89%E0%A8%AA%E0%A8%BE%E0%A8%89"]ਉਪਾਉ [/URL] [URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%AE%E0%A9%81%E0%A8%95%E0%A8%A4%E0%A8%BF"]ਮੁਕਤਿ [/URL] [URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%95%E0%A8%BE"]ਕਾ [/URL] [URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%95%E0%A8%B0%E0%A9%81"]ਕਰੁ [/URL] [URL="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=%E0%A8%B0%E0%A9%87"]ਰੇ [/URL] ॥[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT] [SIZE=1][COLOR=#008080]मानस देह बहुरि नह पावै कछू उपाउ मुकति का करु रे ॥[/COLOR][/SIZE] [FONT=TAHOMA][SIZE=1]Mānas ḏeh bahur nah pāvai kacẖẖū upā▫o mukaṯ kā kar re.[/SIZE][/FONT] [FONT=TAHOMA][SIZE=1][COLOR=#000080]You shall not obtain this human body again; make the effort - try to achieve liberation![/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT] you may also find this article interesting from Baldev Singh, a writer I enjoy reading [I]The dictionary meaning of reincarnation is: the belief that after somebody's death their soul lives again in a new body[/I] [I]Now let us explore this idea from the view point of Sikhism[/I] [I]Sikh philosophy is based on logic, reason, skepticism, awareness, reality, and other factors often associated with critical thinking. It is not based on faith; Guru Nanak urges us to use critical (discerning) intellect in every walk of life.[/I] [I]Guru Nanak wanted to preach and teach his message in the language of the masses. Therefore, he rejected Sanskrit in favour of Punjabi, which at that time was the language of the peasants, artisans, untouchables and traders. Moreover, there was no specific script for Punjabi language. Guru Nanak and Guru Angad constructed the Gurmukhi script from the crude scripts that were in vogue at that time. Before Guru Nanak there was no literature in Punjabi except the couplets of Baba Seikh Farid. So Guru Nanak is the father of Punjabi literature.[/I] [I]The Guru borrowed the vocabularies of other languages and terminologies of other religions to express his thoughts. In other words, he radically changed the meanings of Hindu or Muslim religious terminologies in the adoption process to express his philosophy. There are words from more than 25 languages in the Aad Guru Granth Sahib (AGGS).[/I] [I]In the process of building his philosophy, Guru Nanak also coined his own words and new terminologies. Therefore, when we read the Gurbani, we are conscious of the facts that the Guru is fully aware in his expressions of both the Hindu and Muslim worldviews. Hence the use of similes.[/I] [I]Most often we encounter his references to the ideas of reincarnation in the AGGS. Just because the Guru is expressing this idea, it doesn’t automatically mean he approves of it. At the least it means that the Guru is conscious of such Hindu beliefs and certainly not giving his accent to the belief as part of his own philosophy. We, Sikhs, must be extremely careful of this and approach the topic with caution, careful analysis, and proper discussion.[/I] [I]Guru Nanak discussed and imparted credence to the subject of evolution of life about five hundred years ago, roughly 350 years before Charles Darwin. Moreover, the Entity (Creator) according to Guru Nanak is Itself evolving as in the very act of creation of the cosmos when the Transcendent became Immanent-the Invisible became Visible-the Un-manifest became Manifest.[/I] [I]Let us do a small experiment; get your pencil and a piece of paper in hand. In the 21st century, we have come a long way in understanding the subject of evolution. Now take the expressed central basic proposition of the theory of evolution and translate that into our present-day Punjabi language in general and in particular to the Punjabi language of the 15th century, something akin to the written language of Guru Nanak as we encounter in Gurbani.[/I] [I]You will be amazed to find that what you wrote sounds more like the language of reincarnation. And if your mind is already conditioned towards reincarnation, you will read this experimented material as justifying reincarnation. I am afraid that is what has exactly happened to the generations of Sikhs. To make the matter worse, our Sikh scholars too continued to express the same mode of routine ritual thinking. It only highlights the fact that we have failed to develop the Punjabi language in tune with the scientific progresses of the last century.[/I] [I]In our existing Punjabi vocabulary and its former usage there is no expressed distinctions between reincarnation and the theory of evolution; they both lie on each other. It is only in the last few decades some of us have smelled the burning rat and decided to reassess what the Gurus espoused; thanks in part to the Western sciences imparting us the gift of critical knowledge of evolutionary biology. Given this, the new knowledge, it is incredibly refreshing to read Gurbani.[/I] [I]One must remember that according to modern science all complex forms of life originated and evolved from a profoundly simple life. And it took millions of years for complex forms like the modern man to evolve through myriad forms of life to develop-—this fact amazingly is consistent with the Sikh philosophy.[/I] [I]AGGS makes it clear that reincarnation of God, karma and transmigration, and hell and heaven, caste system and gender inequality, are not real; rather they are man-made concepts, as pointed out by Guru Angad.[/I] [I]It is the teachings of Vedas, which has created the concepts of sin and virtue, hell and heaven, and karma and transmigration. One reaps the reward in the next life for the deeds performed in this life-goes to hell or heaven according to the deeds. The Vedas have also created the fallacy of inequality of caste and gender for the world. AGGS, M 2, p. 1243.[/I] [I]Another relevant issue that needs addressing is of soul. Again, here the Sikh philosophy radically differs from other religions. In Sikhism, soul is God–the Transcendent One that permeates the entire cosmos and it is called as jyoti (light). Other synonyms used are hans (swan), atma, jio (spirit), Sabad-surat (God-consciousness) and moral principles that guide life (conscience).[/I] [I]Guru Nanak rejected the idea that soul is something separate from God and that it leaves the body after death to seek punishment or reward depending upon the deeds of the person whose body it inhabits. Many verses in the AGGS attest to this fact that God is soul. For example:[/I] [I]After death some bodies are burnt, some are buried and some are left to be devoured by animals/birds (dogs). Some are thrown in water while others are thrown in a dry well. There is no evidence/proof where the so-called soul ends after these different methods of disposal of the dead body,” opines Nanak. AGGS, M 1, p. 648.[/I] [I]Do not believe that the benefits of deeds performed in the current life will be rewarded in the next world. AGGS, M 1, pp. 729-730[/I] [I]Within all there is light (jyoti) and it is Your light which is in all. AGGS, M 1, p. 663[/I] [I]The One God sustains all and It is also the Atma within all. In other words Atma is the Transcendent One. Nanak is at the service of one who understands this mystery, as such a person is God-like. AGGS, M 1, p. 1353 God is in soul and soul is in God. AGGS, M 1, p. 1153[/I] [I]“O my mind, the Universal light is within you, recognize your roots-the source of your origin-the Primordial Light-Energy,” so says Nanak. AGGS, M 3, p. 441.[/I] [I]Besides, the Sikh Gurus rejected the notion of past life or the life after death, and made it abundantly clear that the present life is the only chance to realize God. For example:[/I] [I]O my mind, my dear friend, this is the time for you to meet the Creator. Moreover, this opportunity will last only as long as the body is healthy and full of vitality. AGGS, M 1, p. 20[/I] [I]Take advantage of your birth as a human, this is your only opportunity to meet God. AGGS, M 5, p. 378[/I] [I]Don’t look to the past, make efforts to make your future life successful by meeting God, because you won’t be born again, says Nanak. AGGS, M 5, p. 1096[/I] [I]You won’t be born again, take some measures to obtain salvation right now. Praising the Merciful One, will take you across the ocean of worldly temptations, says Nanak. AGGS, M 9, p. 220[/I] [/QUOTE]
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