History · Ch 6 — Bhakti–Sufi Traditions — Changes in Religious Beliefs and Devotional Texts
Baba Guru Nanak and the Sacred Word
Baba Guru Nanak and the Sacred Word
The Core Idea
Baba Guru Nanak (1469–1539) was not trying to start a new religion. He was a teacher who saw the empty rituals of both Hindus and Muslims and offered a simple, direct path to the Divine — one based on remembering God's name, singing hymns together, and living an honest life. His message was so powerful that after his death, his followers gradually formed a distinct community that eventually became the Sikh Panth.
Early Life and Context
Nanak was born in a Hindu merchant family in Nankana Sahib, a village near the river Ravi in Punjab. Punjab at the time was predominantly Muslim, and Nanak grew up familiar with both traditions. He trained as an accountant and studied Persian, the language of administration and Sufi literature. Though he married young, he spent most of his time with Sufis and bhaktas — the wandering holy men and devotional singers of the age. He also travelled widely, observing religious practices across the subcontinent.
The Message: Nirguna Bhakti and Rejection of Ritual
Nanak's hymns and teachings spell out a clear philosophy. He advocated a form of nirguna bhakti — devotion to a formless, absolute God. For him, the Divine (which he called rab) had no gender, no shape, and no physical form.
He firmly rejected the external practices of the religions around him. This included:
- Sacrifices and ritual baths
- Image worship and idolatry
- Austerities and bodily penance
- The scriptures of both Hindus and Muslims as authoritative in themselves
None of these, he said, brought a person closer to God.
The Simple Path: Remembering the Name
Nanak proposed a straightforward way to connect with the Divine: remember and repeat the Divine Name. He expressed his ideas through hymns called shabad in Punjabi, the language of the common people. He would sing these compositions in various ragas (melodic frameworks) while his companion Mardana played the rabab (a stringed instrument). The singing was not just performance — it was the core act of devotion.
Building a Community: Sangat and Guru
Nanak organised his followers into a community with clear practices:
- Congregational worship (sangat) — collective recitation of hymns, not individual meditation in isolation.
- Succession of preceptors (gurus) — he appointed his disciple Angad to succeed him, and this practice continued for nearly 200 years.
Nanak himself did not intend to found a separate religion. But after his death, his followers consolidated their own practices and consciously distinguished themselves from both Hindus and Muslims.
The Sacred Scripture: From Adi Granth to Guru Granth Sahib
The compilation of Nanak's hymns and those of later gurus was a gradual process:
| Preceptor | Contribution |
|---|---|
| Guru Arjan (fifth guru) | Compiled Nanak's hymns, those of his four successors, and hymns of other religious poets like Baba Farid, Ravidas (Raidas), and Kabir into the Adi Granth Sahib. These hymns, called gurbani, are in multiple languages. |