Sikh Religion: Its Gurus Sacred Writings and Authors

click here for more details, find new or used items	Max Arthur Macauliffe Our price £21.78 (£33.00) New from £21.76 Used from £5.00 Pages: 2498 (Hardcover) ISBN: 8175361328 Pub: Low Price Publications,India Pub date: 2000-01-31 Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 26239

Reader Reviews:

A great piece of honest, scholarly work by a non-Sikh. (15/15 people found this helpful)

I recently received my copy of The Sikh Religion by Max Arthur Macauliffe from amazon.co.uk. This is a great piece of work done by a highly placed British civil servant during the days of the British Raj in India. Originally published in 1909, it consists of six volumes covering the entire period from Guru Nanak's birth upto and beyond the passing away of Guru Gobind Singh. It also contains the musical notation for each of the raags (musical measures) in Guru Granth Sahib and numerous meticulous translations of Gurbani (Guru's hymns).

It has a comprehensive preface and introduction which sets the historical and religious scene leading up to the time of the Sikh Gurus. It also touches on different religious systems in history and how the Gurus' teachings fit in this setting. The author laments the lapse of Sikhism into Hinduism and refers to the latter as "the great boa constrictor of the Indian forests which crushes other religions and makes them disappear within its vast interior" (I'm quoting from memory). He also has some interesting things to say about getting Sikh teachings translated into English and other languages, and the opposition of some Sikhs to this.

He took many years and spent a lot of his personal money devoting himself to this work. Unlike previous attempts by European authors to undertake such work, the author took pains to get the approval of the natives before publishing his work. Each translation and historical detail was submitted to the most knowledgeable Sikh gyanis (priests) of the time. These Sikhs would subsequently take months to study his submissions. If there was disagreement over any detail, the learned gyanis would debate it and either approve the author's work or suggest changes. These are shown in the footers as possible alternative interpretations. The sources used for the work were meticulously examined. For example, the author describes the different Janamsakhis that exist for the life of Guru Nanak. Each of these sources was critically analysed. Some were found to be blatantly abusive works by writers of different sects attempting to promote themselves. Others are more reliable but still need a scientific treatment. Many many sources on the life of the Gurus were lost forever during the times of Mughal oppression. The author was, however, presented with a previously unknown Janamsakhi which was considerably more ancient than the known Janamsakhis and written in Pothhohari script. This he was able to use as a further tool for verification of historical details. The origin of works such as Gur Bilas and Suraj Prakash are also covered.

The books are written in chronological order. There are vast numbers of translations of various sections of Gurbani. These translations are given at the appropriate stages in the Gurus' lives. For instance, the acrostic spoken by Guru Nanak as a child when learning the alphabet at school is given at the point in the history that this occurred, rather than where it appears in Guru Granth Sahib. Even for this the author sought and obtained permission from the Sikhs.

In addition, at the end of each Guru's life history, full translations are given of some of that Guru's bani, e.g. Japji Sahib and Asa ki War of Guru Nanak. Throughout, the author maintains a pragmatic and realistic stance, yet retains full respect for the Sikhs' beliefs. As a Sikh born and bred in Britain, I personally find a resonance with this work. That is not to put down works done in English by Indian Sikhs, of which many are excellent. However, the monumental result of this Englishman's immense effort strikes a chord with me personally. I suppose, due to my British upbringing, I can see through his eyes and empathise with his descriptions and tone. In this light, I would recommend to others of non-Indian upbringing the refreshing feel of this work. I imagine that those of Indian upbringing would also find this work engaging from their own unique angle.

Finally, the author states that such a work can probably never be repeated. Much of the knowledge of those old gyanis would have been lost forever, but for this work. The author estimated that, at that time, there were probably less than ten such knowledgeable gyanis in the world (a questionable statement), and they too were old in 1909. Having made my way through some of the first book so far, I have already learned facts about Sikh history and the Sikh religion of which I was previously ignorant.

While some of the descriptions of events in the life of the Gurus may seem far-fetched, these are recorded to reflect the accepted belief by Sikhs of these occurrences. It is the reader's decision to treat these as allegorical or otherwise. The translations of Gurbani, however, are accurate and superb and need no sceptical treatment by the reader.

A note on the copy I received: this was a three-volume hard back set which contained two books each. I saw the original 1909 editions in my university library ten years ago. The copies I received are exactly the same in content. The only difference is that the originals were six separate books. The publisher of the copies that I received are Low Price Publications in Delhi. Although these are hard back, they are not of the best quality. Still, I recommend them.

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