Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org
Raag MaalaThe basis of every religion is respect and faith. To
be a religious person, one must have complete faith in his/her
religion. For instance, Muslims believe that on judgment day all
Muslims will rise up from their graves and Mohammad will send them
to heaven based on their virtues. Christians believe that Jesus
resurrected the third day after he was sacrificed on the cross.
These people have complete faith no matter what others think. Just
like that every Sikh should have complete faith in Gurbani, in each
and every word. Guru Ji says: O GurSikhs, know that the Bani, the
Word of the True Guru, is true, absolutely true. (Pg. 308) A Sikhs
should believe in every single word of Guru. Unfortunately, some
Sikhs question the Guru and try to show their psuedo intellect.
These Sikhs question Raag Maala which was composed by none other
than Guru Arjan Dev Ji himself. They have raised many questions
regarding Raag Maala the answers to which can be found in the
writings from the Damdami Taksaal which was started by Guru Gobind
Singh Ji and many other books such as "Raag Maala Parbodh" by Sant
Tehal Singh Ji and "Guru Granth Sahib Kosh" by Bhai Veer Singh Ji.
On this page, I have written the answers to all the questions I
know of. The purpose of this page is to clear the doubts of Sikhs,
so we can have complete faith in Guru and unite together. These
kinds of questions really divide our community, that's why I
decided to write on this topic so that we may become one. First of
all, it is important that we learn from the story of Raam Rai, son
of Guru Har Rai Ji. He changed only one word of Gurbani and Guru Ji
never wanted to see his face again. He was kicked out and was not
accepted by the Guru. It clearly shows the consequences of changing
Gurbani. If Guru Ji did not accept his own son then why would Guru
Ji accept those who do not believe everything in Gurbani. In the
first two centuries of Khalsa, no Sikh ever questioned Guru but
then suddenly in the beginning of the 20th century some Sikhs
started questioning Guru Ji. They lost their faith and the only
thing they had was their pseudo intellect which is an act of
stupidity in Sikhism. Showing smartness in front of Guru is to try
to contradict Sikhi. Many famous Sikhs such as Bhai Veer Singh, Dr.
Charan Singh, Bhai Tehal Singh, Giani Sahib Singh, Sant Attar Singh
Mastuanne Wale, Sant Gurbachan Singh Bhindranwale and all other
Saints of Damdami Taksaal including Baba Deep Singh Ji, Bhai Mani
Singh Ji and his Taksaal (Started by Guru Gobind Singh Ji), Baba
Nand Singh Ji, Sant Isher Singh Ji, Sewa Panthis, Nirmalle Sadhu,
Udasi Saints and all Nihang Sampardas and many others believed in
Raag Maala and they tried their best to bring those lost Sikhs on
the right path and many of them did come but some didn't even
though all of their questions were answered. Some of the famous
Sikhs who were against Raag Maala are Shamsher Singh Ashok, Bhai
Kahan Singh Nabha (writer of Mahan Kosh), Sobha Singh, Teja Singh,
Randhir Singh and Sher Singh (who was blind). One thing common in
these people is that they all received education from the same
school or they had link with this anti Sikh school in one way or
another. So lets look at these people one by one.
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org The first person
who started this controversial topic was Giani Sobha Singh who
lived in a religious school (Dera) of Thakar Dyal Singh. According
to Sant Gurbachan Singh Bhindranwale, this man had some personal
business problems and went to government officials who were
Christians (English people who had control over India at the time).
They said he would get everything he wants and all of his problems
would be solved if he could divide the Sikh community by
questioning Gurbani. Christians thought if Sikhs were to loose
their faith in Gurbani, they will never become powerful and they
could never be real Sikhs because Sikhs get everything from
Gurbani. One who has complete faith in Gurbani is a Sikh. It was
because of the power of Gurbani that Baba Deep Singh fought with
his head on his palm. It was because of the power of Gurbani that
Bhai Mani Singh was cut limb by limb but never showed grief.
Gurbani is the soul of Sikhs. So Sobha Singh questioned Raag Maala
and mislead Bhai Santokh Singh to write in Sooraj Parkash that Raag
Maala is not Gurbani. Santokh Singh wrote on page 40 and 41: "Raag
Maala is not the composition of the Satguru, Mundavani is kept at
the end of the Granth Sahib as the Closing Seal." It did not end
here. Sobha Singh wrote a saroop Guru Granth Sahib without Raag
Maala and brought it to Akaal Takhat to seek approval of Sikhs.
Many famous Sikhs were present there at that time such as Granthi
Jwahar Singh, Bhai Bhagat Singh, Bhai Diwan Singh, Thakar Dyal
Singh, as well as many Nirmale and Udasi Saints. The Singhs turned
to Guru Ji for answers and they all decided to pray to the Guru Ji.
Sikh Sangat chose five Sikhs as Panj Pyare and prayed in front of
Guru that if Sobha Singh is right then he should stay healthy but
if he is wrong then he should suffer within a week so that other
Sikhs can learn a lesson from his mistakes. Within a week Sobha
Singh was afflicted with leprosy and died a painfully death soon
after. But before he died he learned his lesson. He asked some
Sikhs to take him to Akaal Takhat to ask for forgiveness. He
requested that his story should be published in weekly newsletter
of Darbar Sahib so that no one could make the same mistake again.
Guru Granth Sahib that he wrote was taken home by Bhai Aala Singh
Ji Patiala. Madan Singh questions this story and says its a fake
story. He says "If Sobha Singh was punished then why weren't others
punished who didn't believe in Raag Maala?" The answer is he wrote
Sri Guru Granth Sahib without Raag Maala and Ardaas was done to
only punish him if he was wrong. What was the point of punishing
everyone because Sikhs thought others will learn their lesson by
looking at Sobha Singh but unfortunately they were too ignorant to
learn anything. Madan Singh also says that record of this story is
no where found in Darbar Sahib. It is because most of the old
record was burnt in 1984 by the army. Now the next person comes
Bhai Kahan Singh Nabha who started writing in 1901 when the first
edition of Gurmat Sudhakar was published. He wrote that the Bir
Sahib (Saroop of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji) of Kartarpur has 974
pages and Mundavani is on page 973 and page 974 is blank. The page
number 974 is written on the page but it is blank. He said
everything after page 974 is not Gurbani. He said that the Bir
Sahib not only contains Raag Maala but also Rattan Maala, story of
Hikikat Raah Mukaam, dates of Jyoti Jot (ascension) of the first
six Gurus and praises of Niranjan Singh (grandson of Dhirmaliye),
mention of year of 'fire in
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org Kartarpur' and
also the year of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's visit etc. Bhai Kahan
Singh wrote a lot about the Bir Sahib but he didn't say a single
word about signature of Guru Arjan Dev Ji which was at the end of
Bir Sahib. In the Bir Sahib there exists a signature of Guru Ji
after the Raag Maala. The signature signifies the completion of
that saroop. Why did he keep quite about that? Because that was not
in his favor. People turn their backs on something that proves them
wrong and that is exactly what Bhai Sahib did. Later Dr Balbir
Singh and some other Sikhs went to see the Bir Sahib of Kartarpur
and they wrote that Raag Maala is written on page 974. Type of
paper and condition of the pages is the same as well as ink and all
the words. Therefore, there is no proof against authenticity of the
writing. The full report of these findings was published in Khalsa
Samachar. Dr Balbir Singh also said Raag Maala was not added
afterwards by anyone. It is part of Guru Granth Sahib. The names of
the Sikhs who went to see the Bir Sahib with Dr Balbir Singh are as
follows: 1. Maan Singh, member of judicial committee of Faridkot 2.
Hukam Singh (Sardar Sahib) retired district and sons judge,
Amritsar 3. Sodhi Jagat Singh, retired secretary of Chief Khalsa
Diwan, Amritsar 4. Harminder Singh, Krishan Nagar, Amritsar 5.
Mehar Singh Rawel, editor "Khalsa Advocate", Amritsar 6. Hajoora
Singh, engineer, Amritsar 7. Amar Singh, police inspector, Amritsar
8. Giani Mahan Singh, editor "Khalsa Samachar", Amritsar These
Sikhs carefully examined the Bir Sahib and came to the conclusion
that the ink, handwriting, grammar and everything was the same.
After that the S.G.P.C. sent another committee to Kartarpur Sahib
who explained in their report "We examined Bir Sahib from 12:30pm
till 5:45pm and we have looked at every single page and yet we did
not find any of the followings: 1. Jit Dir Likh Mohammada 2. Salok
Aatish Aaab 3. Rattan Maala 4. Hikikat Raah Mukaam 5. Total Pages
974 6. Ink Formula
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org These Sikhs
wanted to tell the people that the comments made by Bhai Kahan
Singh were wrong. In 1930 Bhai Kahan Singh corrected his mistake in
Mahan Kosh by writing "The Bir Sahib that Guru Arjan Dev Ji had
Bhai Gurdas Ji write became known as Gurdas Wali. This Bir is
present at Kartarpur and its total pages are 975." During this
short time he increased the number of pages by one. He even made
some comments and claimed those to be Bhai Chaupa Singh's. But in
Rehatnama of Bhai Chaupa SIngh these comments are no where to be
found. Instead Bhai Chaupa Singh Ji wrote "Jo Bhog Siahi Ki Bidh
Parh Pawe". This means where the ink ends that is the completion of
Guru Granth Sahib which automatically claims Raag Maala to be part
of Guru Granth Sahib. The next person is Kavi Bhai Santokh Singh Ji
who wrote in Sooraj Parkash: "Raag Maala is not the composition of
the Satguru, Mundavani is kept at the end of the Granth Sahib as
the Closing Seal." He wrote this in Pauri number 40. The last lines
of this pauris claim that Guru Ji himself did not write Raag Maala
and it was added by some other Sikhs afterwards. First of all, he
was a human being just like us so whatever he says is not a command
of God. Every human being makes mistakes. As Gurbani says only the
true Guru never makes mistakes. All others make mistakes. Even
though Bhai Sahib spent most of his lifetime in writing Historical
Granth but that doesn't mean everything he wrote is the truth. For
example he wrote in Sooraj Parkash that Guru HarGobind Ji became
afflicted with Seetla (Smallpox) and Mata Ganga Ji took Guru Ji to
Durgiana Mandir (Hindu Temple) to please Seetla Goddess. But Guru
Arjan Dev Ji says in Gurbani that his son got well because of God's
grace. The Divine Guru has opened his eyes. Doubt has been
dispelled; my service has been successful. || 1 || Pause || The
Giver of joy has saved him from smallpox. The Supreme Lord God has
granted His Grace. (Page 200) It clearly shows that Guru Ji prayed
only to the One True God and denounced all Hindu gods and
goddesses. Just like this Santokh Singh described Guru Gobind Singh
with his ears pierced and wearing big ear rings. This is described
in Rit 1, Ansoo 12, Pauri 7-8. But if we read Guru Gobind Singh
Ji's Gurbani we find that Guru Ji is totally against it. Guru Ji
said: "Na Jatta Sees Dharehon, Na Mundarka Sudharehon." Then in Rit
1, Ansoo 13 Bhai Sahib writes about Guru Ji's wedding that Guru Ji
took rounds around fire and Hindu God Ganesha was worshipped as
well as nine planets. This is totally wrong because Guru Nanak Dev
Ji took rounds around Mool Mantra and rejected the idea of
Hinduism. Guru Ramdas Ji composed Lavan to be read at weding in
Raag Suhi. Guru Gobind Singh Ji said: "I do not accept Ganesha as
important. I do not meditate on Krishna, neither on Vishnu. I do
not hear them and do not recognize them. My love is with the Lotus
feet of God. He is my protector, the Supreme Lord. I am dust of his
Lotus feet." (Guru Gobind Singh)
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org This is basic
concrete proof that it was important to Guru Ji to mention that we
are not to worship these deities and that he didn't. How can Bhai
Santokh Singh say Guru Ji worshipped Ganesha when he didn't believe
in them? He can't! I am not trying to make Bhai Santokh Singh Ji
seem bad. He was a great Sikh writer but we should not forget that
every human being makes mistakes. He did not provide any proof of
his hypothesis such as names of the people who added Raag Maala;
the place and date or anything like that. He himself wrote that if
Raag Maala is not Gurbani then he doesn't know who wrote Raag Maala
which shows that he wrote it without doing any research. He wrote
it because he was influenced by Sobha Singh and slipped in his
opinion about Raag Maala. We as Sikhs shouldn't take these two or
four lines of his and start fighting. We should trust Guru more
than a human. In the "Anti Raag Maala" team there was another
person Teja Singh Bhasoria. He claimed himself a Sikh but no one
has spoken against Sikhism more than him. He took out Raag Maala
and Bhatt Swayiyay from Guru Granth Sahib. He changed the grammar
of Vaars and added two Shabads: Mundavani Mahalla 5 and Salok
Mahalla 5 (Tera Kita Jato Nahin) in Kirtan Sohila. He also took out
the 13th Ashtpaddi of Sukhmani Sahib. He didn't stop there. He
added Guru Gobind Singh Ji's Bani in Guru Granth Sahib. He added
Jaap Sahib, Shabad Hajaare (leaving out the "Mittar Pyare Noo"
Shabad), Sudha Swayeyas, Akaal Ustat, Gyan Parbodh, thirty three
Swayiyas and Chaupai Shaib. He changed Gurmantar "Waheguru" to
"Wahguru". After making these changes, he printed his own copies of
Guru Granth Sahib Ji and shipped them to different countries
including Malyaisa, Burma and other islands. On his actions Sikhs
became very upset and a Hukamnama was released from Akaal Takhat
which declared him and his wife as anti Sikhs and was expelled from
Sikhism. He did excommunicated from the Panth. Teja Singh had his
own school and had full support from the British and had much power
of the press. This is how he was able to print altered copies of
Guru Ji. He also had received support from some Sikh kings because
he arranged the marriage of Ripduman Singh who was the king of
Nabha. These kings supported him because he was running a Sikh
school and seemed to be very devout. They didn't know that he was
actually involving in many anti Sikh activities. Teja Singh was
also the first person who changed fifth Sikh symbol of Kesh (hair)
to Keski (Turban). He started a new organization called "Panch
Khand Diwan Khalsa" and all anti Raag Maala people were part of
this organization, most of them being influenced by Teja Singh.
Among his followers was a person named Kartar Singh Kalaaswalia who
shortened Rehraas Sahib in Darbar Sahib after he became the head
Granthi. He was also a member of Teja Singh's organization. Later
on Teja Singh took out most of the Gurbani and left only 200
Shabads in Guru Granth Sahib. He claimed that this was the real
Gurbani but luckily they never were successful. Some Sikhs argue
that Raag Maala was not being read at Akaal Takhat Sahib which
proves that it is not Gurbani. But my point is if Akaal Takhat
didn't believe in Raag Maala then why did they keep it in Guru
Granth Sahib?? Then why would Akaal Takhat release Hukamnama
against this person who didn't believe in Raag Maala? Before
British annexed Punjab all five Takhats had same Rehat Maryada.
Akaal Takhat Sahib was under direct control of Nihangs and Nihang
Jathebandis read Raag Maala which means Raag Maala was being read
at Akaal Takhat Sahib when British took over and it is being read
now. If they want to go with Akaal Takhat Sahib then
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org why don't they
start believing in Kes as the fifth Kakkar because Akaal Takhat
Sahib does not recognize "Keski" as fifth Kakkar. The truth is
these person were successful in anti Sikh activities because they
had power of press and support from British. Some Dhirmalls were
also against Raag Maala. They said that Sher Singh Bhasoria has
checked the ink of Guru Granth Sahib and it is not the same with
Raag Maala. But the fact is Mr. Sher Singh was a blind man. How
could a blind man check for the ink? He couldn't even see then how
did he do this checking? Dhirmall used Sher Singh to prove his
point but he is wrong because Sher Singh was blind. Dhirmalls were
never given any respect in Sikhism because Guru Ji rejected them
then why should we trust them anyways? We shouldn't take their
words about Gurbani. Bhai Randhir Singh also didn't believe in Raag
Maala. There are a few related reasons that may have aid his
belief. First, he took Amrit along with Maulvi Karim Baksh and his
family Teja Singh Bhasoria who didn't believe in Raag Maala. Bhai
Randhir Singh took Amrit in village called Bakkapur near Falour
which is well stated in his book "Jail Letters". People question
that only Panj Pyare have the right to give Amrit not one person. I
do not mean Teja Singh directly gave Bhai Sahib Amrit but Panj
Pyare were from Teja Singh's school and organization "Panch Khand"
and they told their own Rehat Maryada. Second, Bhai Randhir Singh
believed that Gur Mantra was "Wahguru" not "Waheguru" because
that's what he was told by Teja Singh. Some people ask about
written proof. As I have said earlier Bhai Kahan Singh Nabha was
associated with Teja Singh also and he played a great role in
writing literature for Teja Singh's organization. Teja Singh was a
preacher and Kahan Singh was a writer. In Mahan Kosh Bhai Kahan
Singh Nabha wrote GurMantar as "Wahguru" not Waheguru. Read about
Amrit in Mahan Kosh and you will see this. This proves that Teja
Singh believed that MoolMantar was Wahguru which he told Bhai Sahib
Randhir Singh. Bhai Sahib was a complete Gursikh but he was also a
human. Humans make mistakes. As Gurbani says "Bhulan Andar Sab Ko
Abhul Guru Kartaar". Only Guru never forgets and makes mistakes.
This panktee clearly tells us that only Guru Sahibs do not make
mistakes. Bhai Sahib Ji was a human being just like other GurSikhs
like Sant Gurbachan Singh Ji Bhindranwale, Bhai Veer Singh Ji etc.
I am not comparing each other. They were all GurSikhs but Bhai
Sahib Ji made a mistake by not believing in Raag Maala which he
corrected afterwards. But I would like to ask one question. Bhai
Sahib Ji wrote many books. Does he ever mention in any of his books
that Raag Maala is not Gurbani? I don't know any. So I ask
anti-Raag Maala for written proof that Bhai Sahib Ji didn't believe
in Raag Maala. Bhai Sahib Ji believed in Raag Maala and Gur Mantra
"Waheguru" after finding out about anti Sikh activities of Teja
Singh. After Bhai Sahib's release, Babu Teja Singh tried to meet
his old friend after twenty years and came to his house to
resurrect their old friendship. Bhai Sahib was not there at that
moment. When he came to know later of Babu Ji's visit, Bhai Sahib
wrote him a letter politely declining to meet him. "Babu Teja Singh
Ji, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh. You, dear Sir, have come to see this
humble servant of the Panth after one fifth of a century, i.e., 20
years. I was no
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org less eager to
have the chance of meeting with you and talking together. But I was
deeply pained when I learnt that you have been excommunicated from
the Panth by a congregation at Sri Akaal Takhat. What is even more
distressing, you continue to disregard the authority of the Panth.
It is now my request that you should be obedient to the Command of
the Guru Panth and return to its shelter. Then we shall meet like
brothers. It is my hope that you will accede to my request and
thereby please the hearts of all of us. I am confident that you
will not defy the Guru Panth and will abide by the tradition coming
down through generations. Your sincere well wisher (s) Randheer
Singh" Furthermore, when Bhai Randhir Singh met Sant Gurbachan
Singh Ji on 19th February 1960 in Ludhiana, Bhai Randhir Singh Ji
said in his own words that he believed in Raag Maala after reading
spiritual meanings of Raag Maala provided by Sant Gurbachan Singh
Ji. Bhai Sahib Ji admitted that he was mistaken (Read biography of
Sant Kartar Singh Ji Bhindranwale). The following page is taken
directly from this book.
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org Sant Gurbachan
Singh Ji wrote in "Gurbani Paath Darpan" that in village Ghungraane
Kartar Singh was reading Guru Granth Sahib and Arjan Singh was
doing the translation. Bhai Randheer Singh Ji was sitting in Sadh
Sangat too. Many other famous Sikhs like Jathedar Gurdial Singh
Boparai, Sant Ajaib Saingh and Sant Hazoora Singh were also sitting
there with Sant Giani Gurbachan Singh Ji Khalsa Bhindranwale. Sant
Ji wrote that when Kartar Singh reached Raag Maala Arjan Singh
asked if he should continue translating Raag Maala. In reply
Jathedar Gurdial Singh Boparai said "If I was in your place I
would've read it by now." Then Arjan Singh translated Raag Maala
and Bhog ceremony took place after reading Raag Maala in the
presence of Bhai Sahib Randheer Singh Ji. There are many other
incidents which show that Raag Maala was read in the presence of
Bhai Sahib and he did not leave the Sangat. But now some ignorant
people stick their fingers in their ears and run out of the
Gurudwara when the hear Raag Maala being read. These stories are
ignored by anti Raag Maala people. They say someone made them up.
They only say it because these true stories don't go in their
favor. They are not brave enough to accept the truth. Just like
Bhai Randhir Singh, Bhai Jodh Singh also accepted that Raag Maala
is Gurbani after seeing the Bir Sahib at Kartarpur Sahib. Bhai Jodh
Singh was Principal of Khalsa College, president of Chief Khalsa
Diwan and principal of Sikh Missionary College. Bhai Jodh Singh's
name is ignored by anti Raag Maala people because he accepted it as
Gurbani. Madan Singh have written many wrong things about Taksaal
and about Sant Gurbachan Singh Ji. He writes that " Jathedar Bhai
Mohan Singh Nagoke summoned a joint meeting of the saints and
scholars in 1945 AD at Sri Akal Takhat Sahib with the sole
objective of resolving the issue once and for all. Jathedar Nagoke
himself performed the initial ardas (prayer) and affirmed that if
it is proved after mutual discussion and debate that Ragmala is not
Gurbani, it would never be read at the Akal Takhat Sahib. The
proRagmala group could not give clear cut proof to establish that
Ragmala is Gurbani. They walked out in disgust. Thereupon Jathedar
Nagoke declared that in the interest of maintaining Panthic unity
the reading of Ragmala was to be optional." The above lines are
100% false because the meeting never took place. I have talked to
many Sikhs who stayed with Sant Gurbachan Singh Ji and they all
said the meeting was never held at Akaal Takhat Sahib to discuss
Raag Maala. If pro-Raag Maala people couldn't give a proof then why
didn't Jathedaar and other Jethbandis decide to take it out and
declare it as not part of Guru Granth Sahib and make it "not
Gurbani"? Why was it made optional? Had the meeting taken place the
Jathedaar would have released a Hukamnama declaring Raag Maala as
not part of Guru Granth Sahib. The meeting never took place. He
further writes: "After a few days, Master Tara Singh, who was
President of Shiromani Akali Dal, sent a special emissary Giani Lal
Singh of Sikh Missionary College Amritsar (exchairman Punjab Public
Service Commission Patiala) to Giani Gurbachan Singh to ascertain
as to whether he would be abiding by the decree of Akal Takhat
Sahib. Giani Lal Singh returned after a weeks stay at Bhinder
Khalan, with a written message that Jatha Bhindran bows before the
decree of Akal Takhat Sahib."
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org Companions of
Sant Gurbachan Singh Ji told me that Laal Singh was sent to get
signature of Sant Ji on SGPC Rehat Maryada. SGPC wanted Sant Ji to
prove their version of Rehat Maryada which Sant Ji denied and Laal
Singh returned a week later empty handed. Sant Ji never raised the
issue of Raag Maala because he never wanted Sikhs to fight and
never challenged the authority of Akaal Takhat Sahib although he
never agreed with it. But even if Sant Ji agreed with it then why
would he write books on Raag Maala and provide Sikh Panth with such
beautiful spiritual meanings of Raag Maala that no one could ever
come up with. Sant Jernail Singh Ji believed in Raag Maala but Sant
Ji punished his nephew Swaran Singh by for reading Raag Maala at
Akaal Takhat Sahib. This shows that Sant Ji never wanted to force
anything on anyone unlike anti-Raag Maala people who always tried
to force their beliefs on other Sikhs. Anti-Raag Maala people don't
bow to Akaal Takhat's decisions. Raag Maala is being read now at
Akaal Takhat Sahib and anti-Raag Maala people don't. WHY? They say
it was not being read before. As I have said earlier that Raag
Maala was being read at Akaal Takhat under control of Nihang
Jathebandis until 1849. Later British took over and control of
Gurdwaras was given to Brahmins. That time British bought some fake
Sikhs and had them start this controversy and question Raag Maala.
It was a tactic of British to weak the Sikh power which is derived
from Gurbani and Gurdwaras. Raag Maala is Gurbani. Bhai Shamsher
Singh Ashok was also among these people who tried to prove that
Raag Maala is not Gurbani. He wrote that "Raag Maala is written by
some poet named Alam who wrote a love story of Madhwanal Kaam
Kandlan by reading some old Kaam Kandlan story in Sanskrit.
Supposedly he wrote Raag Maala in his own words by reading some
other Raag Maala in Sanskrit. The story states that an unknown Sikh
wanted to memorize the names of all Raagas and Raag Maala. Perhaps
he didn't have any scratch paper to write on so he wrote it on the
last blank page of Guru Granth Sahib. But this mistake was done
unintentionally and afterwards Sikhs started printing it in every
copy of Guru Granth Sahib. None of the Sikhs ever questioned it in
first two centuries because Sikhs had been busy in wars and other
stuff so no one had time to pay attention to this matter." Now if
you are a Sikh, you would never buy this story of Shamsher Singh.
First of all, the name of the Sikh is not given who did this
unforgettable thing. Secondly, if Bir Sahib written by Bhai Gurdas
Ji had one blank page left then did all the Birs had one blank page
left? How did that Sikh get Guru Granth Sahib? Was it only one copy
that existed or were there more? If there was one copy then how did
he get it and why has the name of this famous Sikh (who had the
only copy of Guru Granth Sahib that existed) is unknown? If there
were more copies then why did Sikhs make copies of that Guru Granth
Sahib? That unknown Sikh added Raag Maala to Guru Granth Sahib he
had but how did Raag Maala appeared in other copies such as Bir
Sahib in Kartarpur? The year or place is not given. But we have to
take something in consideration which is that the unknown Sikh
didn't have any extra or scratch paper so he wrote it in Guru
Granth Sahib. This is the lamest story ever written. According to
the story this event happened in the first century of the Khalsa
because then the Khalsa was fighting with foreign invaders and
Muslims. We all know the Sikh history in 18th century. Those Sikhs
were real Sikhs and one with
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org Guru. Those
Sikhs would never do something like this to disrespect Guru Granth
Sahib. Was the last blank page for anyone to write on whatever they
wanted? Sikhs during that time respected Guru Ji so much. All of
them had a lot of Banis memorized because Gutkas were not widely
used at that time. Some Sikhs had the whole Guru Granth Sahib
memorized. Those Sikhs recited many Banis while fighting with
Muslims. My whole point is Sikhs who were one with Guru in 18th
century would never do something like this which shows disrespect
to the Guru. Those Sikhs had complete faith in Guru and this is why
they were able to fight although they were very few in numbers.
Sikhs in 18th century were real Sikhs and they followed exactly
what Guru Ji told them. This is why they were able to sacrifice and
end the Moughal empire. And Shamsher Singh expects people to
believe that one of those Singhs accidentally wrote Raag Maala in
Guru Granth Sahib thinking of it as a notebook? How ignorant of
him! If a Sikh wrote Raag Maala in Guru Granth Sahib during the
time of Guru Ji then why didn't Guru Ji punish him just like Raam
Rai? If he wrote it without telling Guru Ji and Guru Ji didn't know
about it then it means, Guru Ji is not omniscient and he fooled
Guru Ji which is impossible. If he wrote it after Guru Ji then
there were many powerful Sikhs like Bhai Mani Singh Ji, Baba Deep
Singh Ji, Bhai Taru Singh Ji and many other. Why didn't these Sikh
do anything about it? These Sikhs were one with Guru Ji. Did they
not know about it? How could they have not known if they were one
with Guru Ji? This all doesn't make any sense. No Sikh wrote it
afterwards. Raag Maala is Gurbani. In addition to this story Bhai
Shamsher Singh Ashok wrote that Pandit Tara Singh had written the
same thing as he did. Pandit Tara Singh wrote that Guru Ji took the
Raag Malla written by Alam and added more to it and wrote it in
Guru Granth Sahib. This is wrong because first they said some Sikh
wrote it and now they are saying some poet named "Alam" wrote it
and Guru Ji copied it. But first we have to know who this poet Alam
was and how he is related to Raag Maala? Did Guru Ji copy his Raag
Maala or did he copy Guru Ji's Raag Maala? As far as the name goes
there was only one poet Bhai Alam in Guru Gobind Singh Ji's Darbar
who wrote the story of Kaam Kandlan. Guru Gobind Singh Ji had 52
poets in his darbar and their names are: 1) Udeyar 2) Anirai 3)
Amritrai 4) Allu 5) Aaasa Singh 6) Alam 7) Iswardas 8) Sukhdev 9)
Sukha SIngh 10) Sukhia 11) Sudama 12) Senapat 13) Sheyam 14) Heer
15) Hussain Ali 16) Hansraam 17) Kallu 18) Kuvraysh 19) Khan Chand
20) Guniya 21) Gurdas 22) Gopal 23) Chandan 24) Chanda 25) Jamal
26) Tehkan 27) Dharam Singh 28) Dhanna Singh 29) Dhayan Singh 30)
Nannu 31) Nishchal Das 32) Nihal Chand 33) Nand Singh 34) Nand Lal
(Gurbakash Singh) 35) Pindi Das 36) Ballab 37) Ballu 38) Bidhi
Chand 39) Bulland 40) Brikh 41) Bridge Lal 42) Mathura 43) Maddan
Singh 44) Maddan Gir 45) Mallu 46) Maan Das 47) Malla Singh 48)
Mangal 49) Raam 50) Rawal 51) Roshan Singh 52) Lakha "According to
some scholars Alam was one of the poets of Akbar. He wrote Raag
Maala about 91 years before the Bir Sahib was compiled. When he
heard about Guru Arjan Dev Ji compiling the Bir Sahib, he went to
Guru Ji and
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org presented his
Raag Maala which Guru Ji accepted. Since the compilation had been
completed, Guru Ji put it at the end." First of all there has never
been poet Alam of Akbar because Akbar wrote the names of all of his
poets in his book of law. He even mentions the names of all his
scholars, Pirs, and singers but the name "Alam" does not appear
anywhere. Secondly, if Alam wrote Raag Maala 91 years before the
Bir Sahib was written then he was probably 25 years old the time he
wrote it. So according to this when Guru Ji compiled the Bir Sahib,
Alam was probably around 115 years old. So how did he get to Guru
Ji? He was too old to walk all the way to Guru Ji. But even if we
assume that he was able to walk to Guru Ji and Guru Ji accepted his
Raag Maala then what is the problem? It is Gurbani automatically
because Guru Ji accepted it just like Guru Ji accepted other Banis
of Bhagats and saints. If Guru Ji accepted it then why can't we
accept it? Another problem with the above statement is that Guru
Arjan Dev Ji left some space for Ninth Guru's Bani because Guru Ji
knew that more Gurbani would be added to the Bir Sahib. But why
didn't Guru Ji know about Alam? Did Guru Ji not know that Alam was
going to come to Him to present his Raag Maala? If Guru Ji didn't
know then that means Guru Ji is not omniscient. But that's
impossible. If we assume that Alam wrote Raag Maala and had been
dead the time Bir Sahib was being compiled then how did Guru Ji
find his Raag Maala? Did Guru Ji send any of his Sikhs to his house
to obtain Raag Maala? Nothing is known about this because it never
happened. Some people say Alam wrote it 21 years before the Bir
Sahib was compiled but this is also wrong and does not make any
sense because Akbar wasn't alive then. For more proofs read "Raag
Maala Parbodh" by Sant Tehal Singh Ji. I highly recommend it.
According to the Damdami Taksaal, Alam was one of the poets in Guru
Gobind Singh Ji's Darbar who copied Guru Ji's Raag Maala. He wrote
his Raag Maala in 1717 which is 1774 Bikarmi. One line of a poem
written by Alam in which he clearly states the nature of his
writing. He writes:
Translation: Some is mine, the rest is stolen from others.
Combined, this is my style of thought. Alam was accustomed to
copying Guru Ji's Bani and changing it to make his own poetry. For
instance, he copied Guru Gobind Singh Ji's Bani Chrittar number 91
and changed it to make his own. The following lines explain his way
of writing (these lines are in Punjabi because I want people to see
the real difference. English doesn't really show the
difference).
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org The following
lines are written by Alam.
Now you can clearly see that Alam copied Guru Gobind Singh Ji
not Guru Ji copied Alam. The poet Alam was also influenced greatly
by another one of Guru Ji's poets Tehkan Singh. It is believed that
they were probably close friends and Alam was influenced by Tehkan
Singh. For example the following words are from Tehkan Singh's
poem:
Alam changed this verse and made it:
Some Sikhs question that why he would copy somebody else's work
but as mentioned before Alam often changed other's poetry and made
his own because in these times it was a common thing. For instance,
one of Alam's writings is Madhwanal but he copied Guru Ji's story
and changed it to make his own. Guru Gobind Singh Ji described this
story in Chrittar 91. According to Guru Gobind Singh Ji there was a
Brahmin named Madhwanal. He had an affair with a woman named Kaam
Kandlan or Kaama. When the King of the city named Rao found it out
he exiled Madhwanal. He didn't kill him because he was a Brahmin.
Madhwanal went to Kamawati City. He went to Kaam Kandlan's house
and told her everything. Kaama insisted to go with him but he
refused to take her and left alone. Then Madhwanal went to a
country ruled by Bikram Rai and told him everything. Bikram Rai
promised him to get his lover back and declared war on Rao. After a
long time Bikram Rai sent a message to Rao to negotiate and then
they both ended the war. The whole story was written by Guru Gobind
Singh Ji and it was copied by Alam and changed a little bit. This
is another proof that Alam copied Guru Ji. Another thing is that
Maadwanal story was originally written in 991 Hijri in Sanskrit
which does not contain Raag Maala. Guru Ji presented this story in
Dasam Granth in his own way which was later copied and distorted by
Alam. Some scholars say that Raag Maala is part of Maadwanal but
this is wrong because Maadwanal Kaam Kandlan was written in a
Sanskrit Granth which does not have Raag Maala in it. Alam later
tried to translate it by using Guru Ji's story and copied Raag
Maala which he wrote in 1717.
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org If we take it
even further, we find many more proofs of Raag Maala being Gurbani.
Guru Nanak Dev Ji started Gurmat Sangeet and Gurbani was sung in
Ragas according to time. Gurmat Sangeet has considered only six
Ragas and others are considered their musical relatives. Alam was a
poet not a musician. If you read his Kaam Kandlan story which he
copied off of Guru Ji's original work, he writes that Kaama sang
Ragas and Raganis all together at the same time while dancing.
According to Gurmat Sangeet, it is impossible because Raagas cannot
be sung at the same time, only one Raag is sung at one time. This
shows that Alam knew little about music. The second reason is that
Alam wrote many names of Ragas which are fake. Those names of Ragas
are not found in any music school. Look at his Raag Maala below and
see how it differs from Guru Ji's Raag Maala. It clearly shows that
Alam forgot some names of Ragas and made up his own. I don't want
to give you the whole Raag Maala here just first Shabad and one
last Shabad is given. Left side is Alam's work and right side is
Guru Ji's work.
Now you know the difference. Some of the names of Ragas don't
exist and notice the difference in the last line. In Gurbani the
numbers are 18,10,20 which add up to 48. There are 48 sons of six
Ragas in Gurmat Sangeet which was started by Guru Nanak Dev Ji. But
Alam writes 48 and 36 which doesn't make any sense at all. Also
Guru Ji named it Raag Maala which claims it to be musical but Alam
didn't name it anything. People started calling it Alam's Raag
Maala afterwards. The above proofs were taken from "Guru Granth
Sahib Kosh" written by Bhai Veer Singh Ji. For more details, read
it yourself. It talks about Raag Maala in the end. Another note
Bhai Veer Singh Ji made was that there are many different Raag
Maalas. In his book he provided eleven different Raag Maalas. If
you read Bhai Ji's work you can get more proofs. Another mistake in
Alam's work is that his words are singular but Guru Ji's Raag
Maala's words are plural. Guru Ji says that all ragas and Raganis
sing God's glorious praises but Alam says only Kaama is singing all
the Ragas at the same time which shows his lack of knowledge of
singing ragas according to time. Going back to where we started if
we assume that Raag Maala was added in one Guru Granth Sahib by an
unknown Sikh then how was it added to different copies of Guru
Granth Sahib at different places and yet no name of place, date and
any
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org other
information is given. This is a very poor argument by those who
don't believe in Raag Maala. After all the previous questions were
answered, Shamsher Singh Ashok said that Raag Maala had no
spiritual meaning. But I would like to say if he never understood
the meaning of Raag Maala then whose fault is it? Did he ever try
to search for true meanings? How many religious teachers did he go
to to ask the spiritual meanings? If there are no spiritual
meanings then what kinds of meanings are there? He could never even
translate Raag Maala. We should pray to Guru Ji to give us purity
of mind so that we can understand Gurbani. Gurbani is like a sky in
which a bird (humans) can only fly (enjoy) but can never find its
limits. Sant Gurbachan Singh Bhindranwale gave more than ten
different meanings of every Shabad in Guru Granth Sahib and even
then he said there are many more that go into more depth. There are
spiritual meanings of Raag Maala and I have read them personally.
If anyone of you want to read those meanings then get the called
"Raag Maala is Gurbani" by Damdami Taksaal. it is a very good book.
Raag Maala includes 84. In other words it has 6 Ragas, 30 Raganis
and 48 sons which adds up to 84. This means if anyone recites
Gurbani from Mool Mantra and ends after reading Raag Maala with
love and devotion, he/she will be free of the cycle of death and
birth. Some Sikhs raise another question on Raag Maala. They say:
"Some supporters of Raag Mala assert that when the original volume
of Sri Guru Granth Sahib was completed, some Sikhs petitioned to
the Satguru, to bless them with some prem maala which would help
them in their deliverance from the cycle of birth and death.
Acceding to their supplication, Guru Sahib himself composed Raag
Mala and put it at the end! What logic! What a clever justification
constructed by Raag Mala supporters! The whole of Dhur-ki-Bani
contained in Sri Guru Granth Sahib, which is all full of praises of
the Lord and Naam, could not help the Sikhs attain salvation. And,
Raag Mala, wherein not an iota of Naam or God's Praise exists,
should help them to reach the highest State of Divinity! Then why
take the pains to read the whole of Sri Guru Granth Sahib when we
can achieve our ultimate goal by reading Raag Mala alone?" Now if
we read it carefully, it says "Prem Maala which would help them".
Now it helps which means everything is not up to Raag Maala. If you
read the spiritual meaning of Raag Maala, you can understand
clearly that the above comment is 100% wrong. I ask these people
who made this comment if they ever even have read Raag Maala. Those
people don't even read Raag Maala in the Gurdwara then how can they
understand the true meanings? If they are sitting inside the
Gurdwara and Baba Ji starts reading Raag Maala, they quickly leave
the building and walk outside. How can they learn about Raag Maala
if they just walk out? They say it just talks about Ragas and their
offspring. Well, literary it does but Gurbani has many different
meanings. Every meaning is more and more spiritual. If they try to
open their minds, do some research and study Raag Maala from
someone who knows the real meanings, then they would learn that
Raag Maala is Gurbani. Similarly, Sikhs requested Guru Arjan Dev Ji
to bless them with Barah Maaha (THE TWELVE MONTHS) in Raag Maajh
even though there were Barah Maaha in Raag Tukhari
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org composed by Guru
Nanak Dev Ji. Now should we just read the Barah Maaha by Guru Arjan
Dev Ji because it is easier to understand? Does the other Barah
Maaha not help? Well, they both do help and we should read both of
them. But my point is if Guru Ji could compose another Barah Maaha
to help Sikhs to achieve salvation then why could he not compose
Raag Maala? There are some other things in Gurbani that these
people never question some such Shabads include Rahao (Pause) four
times yet there is no Rahao in Raag Tukhari. Then these people
would ask what is the point of having four Rahao in one Shabad? We
shouldn't question Gurbani. It is the way Guru Ji wrote it and we
should learn to respect it. Some other points to look at in
Gurbani:
Now I ask those people to give me spiritual meanings of these.
Do they have any meanings? If we take above lines literally they
don't. But only Guru Ji knows for what purpose he wrote these lines
and only Guru Ji knows the true meanings. It's just like saying
"Ramkali Mahalla 3" and then asking for spiritual meaning. Now they
question Raag Maala but I think after a while they will question
the above lines too and say what's the point of having these lines
in Guru Granth Sahib. Even if these lines don't have any spiritual
meanings they are there and we read them because Guru Ji wrote
them. If reading these lines don't hurt anyone then reading names
of Raags at the end don't hurt anyone either. If we shouldn't read
Raag Maala because its just names of Raags then we shouldn't read
the above lines and all other lines that come in the beginning of
every Bani. Some Sikhs say old Birs don't include Raag Maala but in
fact all the Birs have Raag Maala written in them whether you talk
about Kartarpur Bir or Birs written by Baba Deep Singh Ji. One of
the Birs written by Baba Deep Singh Ji is present at Abchal Nagar
Hazoor Sahib and that Bir includes Raag Maala at the end. All the
old Bir Sahib have Raag Maala such as Aadi Bir Sahib of Bhai Gurdas
Ji and Boore Sandhu Bir samat 1662. These two Birs include
signature of Guru Arjan Dev Ji at the end after Raag Maala. Another
Bir Sahib of Bhai Banno Ji includes Raag Maala although an extra
Shabad of Bhai Surdaas, one Shabad of Miran Bai and other stuff
like Ratan Mala, Hakkikat Rah Mukaam etc. was added into it
afterwards. It also has signature of Guru HarGobind Sahib Ji but
right before the two extra Shabads start. Guru Ji signed the Bir
Sahib before the extra Shabads. This shows that He signed the
completion of the Bir Sahib.
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org Bir Sahib of
Bohat tehseel Phalia also includes Raag Maala in the end and it has
handprint of Guru Arjan Dev Ji as a signature. One Bir Sahib in
Gujrat which is known as Bir of Pindi Lalla includes not only Raag
Maala but also Gurbani of ninth Guru Ji. It was completed a month
after Guru Ji's martyrdom. There are two Birs in Gujrat which are
handwritten and they both include Raag Maala. Bir Wassu was written
during the time of Maharaja Ranjit Singh which also includes Raag
Maala. There are three old Birs in Jammu and the oldest one was
written in 1722 and all three of them have Raag Maala. One Bir
Sahib in Dehradoon was written in 1659. This Bir was completed by
Guru Har Rai Ji and it was sent with Ram Rai to Delhi. This Bir
does not include Gurbani of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji but does have Raag
Maala in it. Bir Sahib in Patiala was written in 1661 and it was
approved by Guru Har Krishan Ji and it does have Raag Maala. Bir
Sahib of Damdama Sahib also includes Raag Maala and all other old
Birs. If you still don't trust me, then go look yourself. You
wouldn't find me wrong here. All of the old Bir Sahibs have Raag
Maala written and many of them have the signature of Guru Ji. How
can this be wrong? It can't, of course because Raag Maala is of the
Guru. Guru Ji wouldn't sign anything they didn't believe in.
Anti-Raag Maala people wrote some Saroops of Guru Granth Sahib
without Raag Maala and claim these to be ancient Birs but these
Birs are not approved by anyone neither they have any history.
Reading Raag Maala is not bad at all. Whole Gurbani is written in
Ragas and when we read names of Ragas while reading Gurbani then
how can does it do harm to recite all the names at the end. Guru Ji
sang Gurbani in Ragas. Did he not? And Bhai Mardana Ji played
Rabaab. Some Sikh brothers question that Siri Raag comes first in
Guru Granth Sahib but Raag Bhairo comes first in Raag Maala? Guru
Ji himself answered this question. During the time of Guru Ji there
were two main Sampardas or schools. One was "Vaishno" and other was
"Shaaiv". Guru Ji declared Siri Raag amongst all other Ragas and
Bhai Gurdas Ji supported that. Siri Raag has special significance.
For instance by singing Raag, candles are lit themselves. By
singing Malaar Raag, clouds cover the sky and rain starts falling.
One time Bhai Hakko Ji did Kirtan in Darbar Sahib and it is said
that the sky was covered with clouds but rain didn't fall. On this
Bhai Hakko Ji said, we don't have complete faith in Gurbani. If
there was Bhai Mardana Ji in my place it sure would have rained but
due to lack of complete faith there was no rain. Siri Raag is held
as most important because if sung with full devotion it has the
power to rejuvenate anything (it can breath life into the dead).
According to Shaaiv samparda Bhairo Raag comes first. The reason
Bhairo Raag is placed first in Raag Maala is because it is sung in
the morning. Bhairo Raag is the first Raag that is sung in the
morning. All other Ragas are sung afterwards. Since Bhairo Raag is
sung in Amrit Wela, it is put in the first place because Amrit Wela
has a lot of significance in Sikhism. According to Guru Ji Siri
Raag is placed first but showing respect to other sampardas and
respecting their beliefs, Guru Ji accepted both ideas because they
both don't show anything wrong. Also, Gurbani is written in six
Ragas and in those Ragas, Bhairo comes first and Siri Raag is
fifth. Since Siri Raag is held most significant, it was written
first. But Raag Maala is like "Table of Contents". It is a list of
Ragas in order. Raag Bhairo
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org comes first and
Siri Raag comes fifth. This is the order they come in the list. So
Raag Bhairo was written first by order and Siri Raag on fifth
place. Some Sikhs question that Raag Maajh and Tukhari is not in
Raag Maala but it is in Gurbani. Why? Guru Ji had many smart people
with him who were great singers and knew all the ragas. Guru Ji
himself was expert in singing ragas. When Guru Ji went to the
grandson of Guru Amar Das Ji to take Gurbani Pothis, Guru Ji sang
at his door in ragas. There are many ragas and not all of them are
in Guru Granth Sahib. All ragas are sung according to the time.
Ragis often sing by mixing many ragas. Raag Maajh is a mixture of
five ragas: Sorath, Bilawal, Sarang, Dhanasri and Natt. These five
ragas combined make Raag Maajh and these five ragas are included in
Raag Maala. Some people call Raag Maajh a Raagni. Since it is from
Maajha country it is called Maajh. Raag Maajh is considered a
Raagni in Gurmat. Tukhari is mixture of ragas too. It is mixture of
Bhairo, Ramkali, and Todi. It is started by Gurmat Sangeet (Music)
and is not included in other music schools. Another thing there are
many ragas that are not in Guru Granth Sahib, should they not be
included too? If Guru Ji included more names of ragas in Raag Maala
then why does it hurt people? Names of ragas are put before Gurbani
but the fact is that the names are there because of Gurbani not
Gurbani is there because of Ragas. Guru Ji sang Gurbani in Ragas
according to time and month and in whichever Raag it was sung, Guru
Ji wrote it in Guru Granth Sahib. Gurmat Sangeet accepts only six
pure ragas which are included in Raag Maala and Gurbani was
composed in only two of these ragas. Again not that Guru Ji
purposely didn't compose Gurbani in other four Ragas, it was
because of time. when it was not the right time to sing a Raag,
Guru Ji didn't sing it and therefore, Gurbani was not composed in
that Raag. Guru Granth Sahib Ji is not a musical book that explains
all ragas. Raag Maala includes Ragas which are accepted by Gurmat
Sangeet whether or not Gurbani was composed in those ragas but we
can still sing it. Another question people ask is that Mundavani is
the closing seal of Gurbani and everything after that is not
Gurbani. They say the word Mundavani is derived from the word
Mundana, i.e., to close. Well this argument is totally wrong
because there is a Shabad after Mundavani which starts with "Slok
Mahalla 5" "Tera Kitta Jato Nahin". If Mundavani was the closing
seal then why did Guru Ji write this Shabad. People accept this
Shabad and say this is a closing Shabad with Mundavani and Raag
Maala is not Gurbani. But if Mundavani means "to close" then why do
we need the whole Shabad of Mundavani? Why don't we just read
"Mundavani" and not read the whole Shabad because Mundavani means
"to close"?? The next Shabad "Slok Mahalla 5" "Tera Kitta Jato
Nahin" is a separate Shabad because number "1" comes after it and
Mundavani Shabad also has "1" at the end. If "Tera Kitta Jato
Nahin" Shabad was part of Mundavani Shabad then there would be "2"
at the end of this Shabad which would show that this Shabad is the
second pauri of Mundavani Shabad. Since these two Shabad have "1"
at the end, it shows that these two Shabads are separate. If "Tera
Kitta Jato Nahin" Shabad is Gurbani which comes after Mundavani
then so is Raag Maala. But lets find out what Mundavani really
means.
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org Mundavani does
not mean to close. It means a "riddle" or "puzzle". If you read the
Mundavani Shabad carefully you will recognize that there is a
puzzle inside. If Mundavani is the closing seal then the same word
Mundavani comes on page 645. The Shabad is
Which translates to: SHALOK, THIRD MEHL: Upon the plate, three
things have been placed; this is the sublime, ambrosial food of the
Lord. Eating this, the mind is satisfied, and the Door of Salvation
is found. It is so difficult to obtain this food, O Saints; it is
obtained only by contemplating the Guru. Why should we cast this
riddle out of our minds? We should keep it ever enshrined in our
hearts. The True Guru has posed this riddle. The Gurus Sikhs have
found its solution. O Nanak, he alone understands this, whom the
Lord inspires to understand. The Gurmukhs work hard, and find the
Lord. || 1 || If Mundavani is the closing seal then what about this
Mundavani? This Shabad and the last Shabad are very similar and you
can try to compare them with each other. Madan Singh says this
Mundavani in the Shabad means something else and the land Mundavani
means "to close". How ridiculous? These two are the same words and
have same meaning. Guru Ji wrote it a different way just like Guru
Ji wrote many words in different ways. For example means God and
also means God. But these words words are written different ways.
Just like these words Mundavani is also written in different ways
but has the same meaning. This clearly shows that Mundavani does
not mean "to close", instead it means a "riddle". Madan Singh
further states that "Tera Kita Jato Nahin" Shabad is a
Manglacharan. He says there is Manglacharan in the beginning and
Manglacharan at the end. But this argument is false because
Manglacharan always comes before the Shabad starts. Why would it
come at the end. Raagi Singhs sing Manglacharan before they start
Kirtan. In Guru Granth Sahib Guru Ji have used many Manglacharan
like
AND
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org These
Manglacharans come before Gurbani starts. This rule is used
throughout Guru Granth Sahib then why would Guru Ji put it at the
end? It does not make any sense because Manglacharan is sung or
written before the opening. If Mundavani means "to close" then why
would Guru Ji put a seal and then write Manglacharan afterwards.
Madan Singh is making stupid points. Raag Maala is Gurbani. The
next question our brothers ask is that Raag Maala does not have
Guru Nanak's name in it. They argue that Gurbani has "Nanak" name
in the end of every Shabad but Raag Maala doesn't? Well, this
argument is wrong too because if we carefully read JapJi Sahib we
find that there are twelve Pauris that don't have Nanak name in
them. If you read Pauris 6, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 19, 23, 28, 29, 30
and 36 you will not find name of Guru Nanak. So these Pauris are
not Gurbani either and we should leave them out???? There are many
Shabads in which there is not name of any author, neither Nanak nor
any other. For example in the Saloaks of Bhagat Farid Ji on page
1384 from Saloak 125 to 130 there isn't any trace of name of any
author. On page 1425, Shabad 17 and page 1426, Shabad 22 there
exists no name of author. This doesn't mean these Shabads are not
Gurbani. If we read these Shabads then what is wrong with reading
Raag Maala. If someone writes a poem and uses Guru Nanak's name in
it, does his poem become Gurbani? Absolutely not. Raag Maala is
Gurbani. There is no Rahao (Pause) in Raag Maala? There isn't Rahao
in JapJi Sahib, Barah Maha, Anand Sahib and in whole Raag Tukhari.
There is no Mahalla in the beginning of Raag Maala? We know there
isn't and it is right because there is no Mahalla in JapJi Sahib.
There is no Mahalla in the beginning nor in the end. Madan Singh
has taken these arguments little further and says that even though
there is no Mahalla in JapJi sahib but we do know the author and he
gives an example from Bhai Gurdaas Ji's Vaars. We all know JapJi
Sahib is Gurbani and it was composed by Guru Nanak Dev Ji but just
because Raag Maala doesn't have Mahalla in it does not mean it is
not Gurbani. For example, many people use "Kachhi Bani" and write
Mahalla in it. Take a look at the following verse :
Some stupid people made these lines and added Mahalla in it but
it does not become Gurbani. On one hand Madan Singh says it is the
message that matters then on the other hand he says there is no
Mahalla.
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org Furthermore he
says although in many Pauirs of JapJi Sahib there is no name of
Guru Nanak but JapJi Sahib should be taken intact as one Bani with
comparison to Raag Maala not Pauri by Pauri. Now, consider the
following line:
Above lines are not Gurbani. Even though there is Nanak name in
it. So it means just because there is no Nanak name or name of any
other author doesn't mean it is not Gurbani. JapJi Sahib was not
completed at one place by Guru Ji. Instead some Pauris were
composed some place and some others were composed at some other
place. For example, Pauri no. 16 "Panch Parvaan" was composed by
Guru Nanak while talking to Sidhhas and Pauri no. 22 "Pattallan
Pataal" was composed at Mecca which means Guru Ji connected these
Pauris afterwards and made it JapJi Sahib. But some people can
question that maybe those Pauris which do not include Nanak name in
were written afterwards by some person. Madan Singh is doing the
same thing. First he talks about Mahalla and when he is given an
answer he quickly jumps to author's name and Rahao which is as same
as what psuedo Gurus do. They never stay on one questions. They
keep jumping from one question to another and say "My mind is
already made up don't confuse me with the facts." This is what
Madan Singh does. At last, I just want to say if Gurbani does not
have Rahao, Mahalla and name of the author it does not mean it is
not Gurbani. It stays Gurbani. Some Sikhs say names of Ragas are
not important. Guru Ji taught us to attach ourselves with Amrit
Naam not names of any Ragas? To prove this they give quotes from
Gurbani. Raag Naad Sab Sohney Jau Laagey Sehaj Dhyan Raag Naad
Chhod Har Seviay Taa Darghey Payeeay Maan. (pg. 849) Beauteous are
the melody and music, if through Guru's word, one fixes his
attention on the Lord. One attains the honor in the Lord's Court
only when one rises above and gives up the means of the worldly
melody and music. Now do you notice that the above quote is talking
about worldly music but we as Sikhs sing Gurbani in ragas. If only
Amrit Naam is important, then what's the point of singing Gurbani.
Why did Guru Ji sing Gurbani in Ragas? There are names of Ragas in
the beginning of every Bani. For instance "Ramkali Mahalla 3",
"Raag Maajh Mahalla 5" etc. If we read these names then what bad
does it to do to read all the names all together at the end. This
is very poor argument made by Sikh brothers. Anti-Raag Maala people
say that: "In the fifth line of Ragmala the word Pun has been used.
This is a derivation of Sanskrit word Punah. On the other hand, in
Sri Guru Granth Sahib wherever the
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org derivation of
Sanskrit word Punah has been used it occurs in its prevalent
Punjabi version, i.e., as Phun . No where it has been written as
Pun ." This is very wrong. So I think it all boils down to just one
word or what? If we assume this word has not been used then what
about other words? Why don't they believe in other words and accept
them as Gurbani? Gurbani is written in many languages not just in
Gurmukhi. If Guru Ji used Sanskrit word then what is the problem?
Guru Ji wrote many Shabads in Sanskrit. But sticking to the point,
following Shabad is on page 992 in Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji by Guru
Nanak Dev Ji.
You can clearly see that the word "Pun" is used in the Shabad.
Furthermore, Bhai Gurdaas Ji used this word frequently. Take a
look.
These are just two proofs but Bhai Sahib has used this word in
Vaar 37 Pauree159, Pauree 220, Pauree 231, Pauree 235, Pauree 327,
Pauree 340, Pauree 341, Pauree 355, Pauree 379, Pauree 410, Pauree
491, Pauree 537, and Pauree 659. Now I ask these people if these
Pauris are not Gurbani either? To take this further Guru Gobind
Singh Ji used this word in his Gurbani. I would state part of one
Shabad which is easily accessible. The whole Shabad can be found in
Amrit Kirtan Pothi on page 238.
So again, anti-Raag Maala people are wrong as always. They will
never be able to change Sikhi and Gurbani. Raag Maala is Gurbani.
Madan Singh in his anti-Raag Maala book states that:
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org "If we closely
study Shabad, Ashtpadia, Chhand in Sri Guru Granth Sahib we find
that there is a unique system if serialization of stanzas with
numbers. When a band or couplet ends, it is given a number to
indicate its position in the hymn, and that it can now stand alone,
and is complete in its meaning. Stanzisation does not stand alone
but it is not the same in Raag Maala. See the following couplet
where the last line of Band (couplet) describes that from the next
Band will start Deepak Rag.
This way the couplet does not stand alone as is the system
followed in Sri Guru Granth Sahib." Well, I still don't find this
argument very strong. Perhaps he should have spent more time
studying Raag Maala. In JapJi Sahib in Pauree 35 Guru Ji says:
Now the first line says "This is the religion of Dharam Khand".
But the question is "what is that religion?" In order to understand
it fully you have to read the previous Pauree which is 34th. So as
you can see Pauree 34 does not stand alone because Guru Ji talks
about it in the next Pauree. Guru Ji starts talking about Gyan
Khand in 35th Pauree because Guru Ji says "Now I talk about Gyan
Khand." So shouldn't the Pauree start from the second line since
the first line talks about the previous Pauree? Furthermore, this
Pauree number 35 does not stand alone either. Look at the next
Pauree .
Now, Guru Ji already talked about Gyan Khand in 35th Pauree then
again 36th Pauree talks about Gyan Khand also which means these
Paurees do not stand alone. One is leading to the other. In
Sukhmani Sahib Slok comes first and then Ashtpadi which goes into
more depth and explains the meanings of Slok in more details. You
can easily tell what Ashtpadi will talk about after reading the
Slok. For example:
From reading the above Slok one can easily guess what the next
Ashtpadi will be. Now look at the Ashtpadi.
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org
You can see that Slok talks about "Brahmgyani" which further
leads to the Ashtpadi. This is exactly the same way as Raag Maala.
Thus Raag Maala is Gurbani. Guru Ji wrote Gurbani the way He wished
and wanted to. Who are we to question it? What right do we have to
dislike the way Gurbani is written? Guru Ji does not need us. We
need Guru Ji. So walk on the true path of Guru Ji and believe in
every single word of Gurbani. Raag Maala has no historic
significance? Yes, it does. Guru Arjan Dev Ji wrote Raag Maala and
added it at the end of Guru Granth Sahib. According to Guru
HarGobind Ji Ragas, Raganis and their sons came to Guru Arjan Dev
Ji and requested him to put them in order and make a garland of
them. Based on their request Guru Ji composed Raag Maala. Guru
HarGobind Ji wrote this in Gur Bilas on page 74-75. You can read
the whole Gur Bilas but to prove my point I will give a few
Shabads.
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org
This proves that Raag Maala is Gurbani. Guru HarGobind Ji
himself says so. Should we not trust our own Guru? We all should
and have complete faith in Gurbani. The meticulous uniform system
of numbering of all the Shabads in Sri Guru Granth Sahib, has not
been used in Raag Maala. Raag Maala has no system of numbering as
each portion has been numbered as one (1) which reveals nothing and
is confusing? These twelve ones (1) represent different Chaupai and
Dohras. This rule is used in Guru Granth Sahib before Raag Maala.
if you read Shabad Hazaare you can clearly see that number "1" is
written four times, one after every Shabad. Here is the Shabad.
MAAJH, FIFTH MEHL, CHAU-PADAS, FIRST HOUSE: My mind longs for the
Blessed Vision of the Gurus Darshan. It cries out like the thirsty
song-bird. My thirst is not quenched, and I can find no peace,
without the Blessed Vision of the Beloved Saint. || 1 || I am a
sacrifice, my soul is a sacrifice, to the Blessed Vision of the
Beloved Saint Guru. || 1 || Pause || Your Face is so Beautiful, and
the Sound of Your Words imparts intuitive wisdom. It is so long
since this sparrow-hawk has had even a glimpse of water. Blessed is
that land where You dwell, O my Friend and Intimate Divine Guru. ||
2 || I am a sacrifice, I am forever a sacrifice, to my Friend and
Intimate Divine Guru. || 1 || Pause || When I could not be with You
for just one moment, the Dark Age of Kali Yuga dawned for me. When
will I meet You, O my Beloved Lord? I cannot endure the night, and
sleep does not come, without the Sight of the Beloved Gurus Court.
|| 3 || I am a sacrifice, my soul is a sacrifice, to that True
Court of the Beloved Guru. || 1 || Pause || By good fortune, I have
met the Saint Guru. I have found the Immortal Lord within the home
of my own self. I will now serve You forever, and I shall never be
separated from You, even for an instant.
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org Servant Nanak is
Your slave, O Beloved Master. || 4 || I am a sacrifice, my soul is
a sacrifice; servant Nanak is Your slave, Lord. || Pause || 1 || 8
|| This Shabad is on page 96 and you can see "1" comes after 1,2,3
and 4. So why having "1" more than once is not okay? This is the
way Guru Ji wrote it. Look at another Shabad on page 81-82. SIREE
RAAG, FOURTH MEHL, VANAJAARAA ~ THE MERCHANT:
ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. TRUTH IS THE NAME. BY GURUS GRACE:The
Name of the Lord, Har, Har, is Excellent and Sublime. He created
everyone. The Lord cherishes all beings. He permeates each and
every heart. Meditate forever on that Lord. Without Him, there is
no other at all. Those who focus their consciousness on emotional
attachment to Maya must leave; they depart crying out in despair.
Servant Nanak meditates on the Naam, the Name of the Lord, his only
Companion in the end. || 1 || I have none other than You, O Lord.
In the Gurus Sanctuary, the Lord is found, O my merchant friend; by
great good fortune, He is obtained. || 1 || Pause || Without the
humble Saints, O Siblings of Destiny, no one has obtained the Lords
Name. Those who do their deeds in ego are like the prostitutes son,
who has no name. The fathers status is obtained only if the Guru is
pleased and bestows His Favor. By great good fortune, the Guru is
found; embrace love for the Lord, day and night. Servant Nanak has
realized God; he sings the Lords Praises through the actions he
does. || 2 || In my mind there is such a deep yearning for the
Lord, Har, Har. The Perfect Guru has implanted the Naam within me;
I have found the Lord through the Lord Gods Name. || 1 || Pause ||
As long as there is youth and health, meditate on the Naam. Along
the way, the Lord shall go along with you, and in the end, He shall
save you. I am a sacrifice to those, within whose minds the Lord
has come to dwell. Those who have not remembered the Name of the
Lord, Har, Har, shall leave with regret in the end. Those who have
such pre-ordained destiny written upon their foreheads, O servant
Nanak, meditate on the Naam. || 3 || O my mind, embrace love for
the Lord, Har, Har. By great good fortune, the Guru is found;
through the Word of the Gurus Shabad, we are carried across to the
other side. || 1 || This is the half of the Shabad but you can look
at the full Shabad yourself to check the numbering. You can see
clearly how "1" comes after 1, 2 and 3 and it goes up to 6. In
JapJi Sahib "1" comes after Mool Mantar and then same number comes
after first Pauri. Then again "1" comes after Slok. Guru Ji wrote
numbers the way he wants. Is it really the numbers that make
Gurbani "Gurbani" or is it the message? You guys think about it. If
you go to Abchal Nagar Hazoor Sahib to see the Bir Sahib written by
Baba Deep Singh Ji, you will find that Raag Maala is written in
Pauris and these Pauris are numbered as 1, 2, 3... and after each
number "1" is written. So this argument is wrong. Plus numbers are
not confusing at all, it's just a mere excuse to not believe in
Guru Ji.
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org Moreover, Bhai
Mani Singh Ji, writer of the Damdami Bir, wrote in his book called
Shaheed Bilas that Raag Maala is Gurbani He writes:
Anti-Raag Maala people say Raag Maala has no spiritual meanings
like they have grasped the meanings of every single word of Gurbani
before Raag Maala. Sant Gurbachan Singh Ji Khalsa Bhindranwale gave
the Sikh Panth beautiful meanings of Raag Maala which cannot be
found else where. Perhaps these people could learn something after
reading the spiritual meanings. These meanings are taken directly
from the book "Raag Maala is Gurbani" by Damdami Taksaal. I scanned
the pages.
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So to summarize this, we can say: 1. Raag Maala in Guru Granth
Sahib is not written by any poet called Alam 2. Raag Maala is in
all old Birs signed by Guru Ji
Raag Maala GursikhiJeevan.Com DamdamiTaksal.Org 3. Same
numbering system is used in Raag Maala as in other Shabads of
Gurbani 4. No one inserted Raag Maala afterwards 5. Raag Maala is
not part of any Madhwanal Kaam Kandlan story 6. Rahao is neither in
the beginning (JapJi Sahib) nor in the end (Raag Maala) 7. Some
Shabads in Guru Granth Sahib don't have name of the author 8.
Mahalla is neither in the beginning (JapJi Sahib) nor in the end
(Raag Maala) 9. Guru Arjan Dev Ji himself composed Raag Maala which
is further supported by Guru HarGobind Ji and Bhai Mani Singh Ji.
10. Guru Ji started Gurbani with sound "S" (Satnaam) and ended it
with the same sound (Bees). Therefore, Raag Maala is Gurbani and
will always be Gurbani. I request my brothers and sisters to study
Raag Maala carefully and clear your doubts. Do not stay in the
darkness. Do not say I don't believe in Raag Maala because my
parents said so. My whole point is we are human beings and all
human beings make mistakes but correcting these mistakes is what
makes us Sikhs. Guru Ji will dispel the darkness of our minds if we
want that to happen. I have answered all the questions to the best
of my ability. If one or two questions were left which I don't know
about then try to find the answers yourself and email them to me
too. Don't keep on holding to one or two questions that were left
out. Pray to Guru Ji to clear our doubts. We all should have
complete faith in Gurbani and believe that every single word in
Guru Granth Sahib is Gurbani starting from Mool Mantra to Raag
Maala. That's about it. Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa Waheguru Ji Ki
Fateh.