Echoes of the Past: The Nihang Sikhs and the Interwoven Tapestry of
Indian Beliefs
By Sunil Kumar
Lord, Thou takest Khurasan under Thy wing,
but yielded India to the invader’s wrath.
Yet thou takest no blame;
And sendest the Mughal as the messenger of death.
When there was such suffering, killing,
such shrieking in pain,
Didst not Thou, O God, feel pity?
-Guru Nanak, Babar Vani
Verses penned by the first Sikh Guru on the impact of Babur’s invasion on the
Punjab and India. Guru Nanak is also reported to have visited the Ram
Janmabhoomi temple in 1511 CE. Guru Gobind Singh, the founder of the Khalsa
is also mentioned as visiting the desecrated remains along with his mother when
he was 7 years old.
“In diversity, there is beauty and there is strength.” – Maya Angelou
In the complex mosaic of Indian religious history, few groups capture the
imagination quite like the Nihang Sikhs. The brave warriors, guardians of the
faith, stand as steadfast sentinels of righteousness, where spiritual depth meets
the warrior’s resolve.
Great Indian scholars such as Shatavadhani R. Ganesh have bemoaned the
loss of Ksattra or the Kshatriya spirit as one of the greatest reasons for our
enslavement and colonisation for nearly a thousand years.
In line with the mystical poet founder of the Sikh faith Nanak’s vision,
Sikhism expanded into an activist but compassionate religion in line inspired by
the ancient Sanatana ideals of Seva and Karuna for all sentient beings.
The demolition of the ancient Rama Janmasthan temple in 1528 CE by Mir
Baqi was a cataclysmic event for all adherents of the Dharmic faiths in Bharat. As
per an early 20th century text by Maulvi Abdul Ghaffar, when Babur in disguise
visited the Avadh region for a fact finding mission, the Sufis Shah Jalal and
Sayyid Musa Ashiqan urged him to destroy the Ayodhya Janmasthan temple in
exchange for their blessings.
Hans Bakker, a historian and Indologist quoted in Dr. Meenakshi Jain’s ‘The
Battle for Rama’ observes, ‘The oldest pieces of archeological evidence are the
black columns which remain from the old Vishnu temple that was situated in the
holy spot where Rama descended to earth(Janma-Bhumi). The temple was
destroyed by the first Mogul prince Babur in AD 1528. The following specimens
of these pillars are known to exist: fourteen pillars were utilised by the builder
Mir Baqi in the construction of the mosque and are still partly visible within it;
two pillars were placed besides the grave of the Muslim saint Fazl Abbas alias
Musa Ashikhan, who, according to oral tradition, incited Babur to demolish the
Hindu temple.’
The incorporation of Hindu architectural members was symptomatic and
predictable of the tendency of Ghazis such as Mir Baqi to assert Muslim
authority.
Islamist invasions and desecration were so commonplace that a concerted
effort to reclaim the sacred place only started centuries later. In November 1858,
Nihang Baba Fakir Singh Khalsa stormed into the Masjid Janamsthan(Babri
Masjid) as a band of 25 Nihang Sikhs stood guard outside. He erected a symbol
of Sri Bhagwan(Lord Rama) inside the mosque and wrote ‘Ram Ram’ on the
walls with charcoal.
When the Supreme Court ordered the formation of a trust to construct a
temple for Lord Ram in the longstanding dispute over the religious site on
November 9, 2019, it even cited the event from 1858.
The apex court ruling mentioned a report by Sheetal Dubey, the Thanedar of
Oudh, in November 1858, which stated:
“Today Mr. Nihang Singh Faqir Khalsa, a resident of Punjab, organised
Hawan and Puja of Guru Gobind Singh and erected a symbol of Sri Bhagwan,
within the premises of the Masjid. At the time of pitching the symbol, 25 Sikhs
were posted there for security.”
That incident led to the installation of a railing in the form a grill-brick wall
outside the mosque. It was also the genesis of the division of the complex into an
inner and outer courtyard where the Hindus constructed a raised platform called
the Ramchabutara that was used for worship by the Hindus.
There are two possible origins suggested for the Nihangs or the Dal Khalsa.
The order can be traced back to the creation of the Khalsa by Guru Gobind Singh
in 1699, according to Sikh historian Dr Balwant Singh Dhillon. “Etymologically
the word nihang in Persian means an alligator, sword and pen, but the
characteristics of Nihangs seem to stem more from the Sanskrit word nihshank
which means without fear, unblemished, pure, carefree and indifferent to
worldly gains and comfort.’
The Nihang Sikhs, an intriguing and distinctive order within Sikhism, are
renowned for their unwavering adherence to the martial traditions established
by the Sikh Gurus.
Embodying the warrior ethos of the Khalsa, the community of initiated Sikhs
founded by Guru Gobind Singh, the Nihangs are instantly recognizable by their
striking blue attire and elaborate turbans, often adorned with traditional
weapons and symbolic artifacts.
This unique garb is not merely a sartorial choice but a profound embodiment
of their readiness for battle and their spiritual commitment.
Historically, the Nihangs played a pivotal role in defending the Sikh faith
during periods of persecution, particularly against Mughal oppression, as noted
by historians like Khushwant Singh and Hew McLeod.
The original Panj Pyaras or five first converts to the Sikh fold, were Hindus of
all castes and drawn from every region of Akhand Bharat.
When Guru Tegh Bahadur was beheaded at the hands of the Mughals for the
Kashmiri Pandits, he went along with 2 Hindu Brahmins Sati and Mati Das who
were also martyred by barbaric methods such as boiling and sawing alive. The
Sikh Panth started to develop a martial tradition a few decades earlier in the face
of constant persecution unleashed by the Mughal rulers.
The Nihang prowess was not merely a physical endeavor but a spiritual one,
seamlessly intertwining the practice of Sikh devotions with the art of warfare.
Kapil Kapoor, a prominent scholar of Indian philosophy, notes, “The Nihangs
embody a tradition where valor and spirituality confluence.’
Even in contemporary times, the Nihangs are revered in the Sikh community,
not only for their historical valor but also for being custodians of traditional Sikh
practices, often unchanged since the time of the Gurus. They represent a living
link to the past, encapsulating the spirit of the Khalsa in its original form and
serving as a vivid reminder of the resilience and devotion that characterizes Sikh
history.
The Nihang, being original Amrit Dharis and responsible for protecting
Dharma against invaders and the unjust, preserve the Sikh warrior scriptures the
Dasam and the Sarbloh Granth. They read more than the prescribed 7 daily
prayers(nitnem) including Chandi Da Vaar, Shastar Naam Mala.
According to the Guru tradition, the Khalsa is the lotus flower and the Hindus
are the roots of the tradition. The Nihang are considered to be as close to the
Miri-Piri(temporal and spiritual authority) and the Sikh Rehat
Maryada(guidelines for living) as preached by the original Gurus as possible.
The Sikh panthic worldview exhorts people to take up the Khalsa path and
become a karma yogi or a proactive renunciate.
In line with the Sikh tradition’s respect for the one formless divine(Ik Onkar)
again largely inspired by Sanatana Advaita belief, they respect Hindu deities
such as Bhagavan Shri Rama and Shri Krishna. Their traditions of Kar Seva that
were inspired by Sanatana practices in turn inspired the Ram Janmabhoomi
movement and kar sevaks in the 1990s.
All the Gurus were Hindu Khatris(Kshatriyas) and many Sikh customs have
been inspired by Sanatana ideas. Hinduism, with its diverse array of practices
and beliefs, provided a foundational cultural landscape for the early Sikh
community.
The Sikh Gurus themselves, as documented by scholars like Max Arthur
Macauliffe in “The Sikh Religion: Its Gurus, Sacred Writings and Authors,” were
born into Hindu families and were well-versed in Hindu scriptures and
philosophy. This background influenced their teachings, which, while distinct,
often dialogued with and reinterpreted Hindu philosophical concepts.
Ranjit Singh, the most prominent Sikh king is well known to have repaired
many temples in his kingdom, donated gold for the Kashi Vishwanath temple
and pledged the Kohinoor to Jagannath Puri, one of the most prominent Hindu
Vaishnava temples. Till the late 20th century, many Hindu families in the Punjab
and Sind made their eldest son a Sikh as a mark of respect to this great Dharmic
Kshatriya tradition.
In pre-independence India, the Punjabis including the Sikhs played a
prominent part in the freedom struggle both in India and abroad. Independent
India riddled with a Nehruvian ecosystem and vote bank politics assiduously
denied the majority community their rights and a claim to their temples.
Bogged down by false historiography and increased fault lines sown and
nurtured by the people in power including Dravidian politics, caste divisions,
separatism in Punjab, Kashmir and the North East, the legendary
interdependence and amity between all Indic faiths deteriorated. It is critical for
our sustained existence to ensure that leftist distortion and division does not act
like an insidious termite and ensure unity and prosperity.
After centuries of struggle, as a Ram temple emerges once again like a
phoenix from the ashes and a beacon of dharmic hope, we have to consider the
role of Indic faiths such as Sikhism in nurturing and supporting the fight against the great
injustice perpetrated on the heart of Indian civilisation by brutal Islamist
invaders in destroying symbols of profound reverence and devotion.
