Experiential Sikhism Assignment

SRS2113

Written By:
Andro Shakir
8188392

Professor: Anne Vallely

April 15, 2019

 Whether you are driving, walking, working out or just simply doing the dishes, it is

almost evident that in one of those cases you have had music play in the background, but have

you ever wondered why that is? There is no doubt that music is a powerful form of art that is

meant to portray feelings in the listener, but rarely has it been thought of a form of praise from

the view of the singer. Sikhism is one of the few religions where singing and praising is ingrained

in the traditional doctrines. The Sikh religion is founded on the basis of God being the ultimate

guru, where God is without form and His divine presence can be felt everywhere; this also

stems to their belief that God is without attributes, yet we as humans give him attributes that

allow us to comprehend his nature. Sikh’s then have multiple names/attributes to address God,

such as ‘Waheguru’, meaning the wonderful God and ‘Akal Purakh’, meaning the timeless God.

Sikh’s tend to praise God through singing of hymns and poetry with accompanying

instruments, which they call ‘Kirtan’. Kirtan is typically performed in their temples (Gurdwaras),

but it can also be done in public settings when gathered together. The importance of singing is

to allow the Sikh’s to feel the sacred words in a different way, rather than reading them – by

singing the divine word, they feel the power and the full spirit of the words, and it brings a

sense of togetherness, since women, children, and men all are involved in Kirtan. Through this

method of praise, Sikhs strive to hear the ‘Shabad’, which is beyond the range of ear and mind,

but is produced by God and is able to be heard by only the soul.

Understanding the Sikh culture surrounding the importance of chanting hymns and

poems can be quite foreign to the regular person, but the method in which I was able to

comprehend this was by relating it to one of my most cherished songs – Changes, by Tupac

Shakur. When listening to this song, which is written in the time of police brutality, racism, drug
war and gang violence, I begin to place myself in that setting, where mothers are losing their

children to violence and equality seemed like a myth. This makes me wonder if Sikh’s feel the

same way when they recite their poems, if they begin to place themselves in the time of Guru

Nanak and other historical figures. Listening to ‘Changes’ is an experience in itself, written from

the point of view of Tupac himself, the listener is quickly subdued into his lifestyle. “I’m tired of

being poor and even worse I’m black, my stomach hurts and I’m looking for a purse to snatch”, I

quickly begin to feel for Tupac and his situation of living in the rough projects, where there is

limited opportunity for those of dark skin. Tupac continues to explain the struggles that him and

others face every day, and how the government isn’t doing all it can to provide a helping hand,

instead they are “… concealing the facts, the penitentiary is packed and its filled with blacks”. I

believe that the reason I indulge so deeply in this piece of music is because it tells a story of

history from a different perspective, they say that history is written by victors, well with people

like Tupac, one can now here the other side of the story.

Listening to music like Tupac’s Changes, I can now understand why Sikh’s place an

importance on sacred sound. By having vocals and instruments surround you, you are then

placed into a mental setting that cannot be done by reading alone. In addition, music releases

endorphins that allow you to feel what I call the “unsung melody”, which is feeling what the

artist/author has intended for you to feel; Sikh’s experience this through Kirtan, and when they

are gathered in numbers, the combined mindset begins to flow into the music and they become

immersed into the tone and the words of the hymns sung. The Sikh religion has lots in common

with modern day music; with its deeply rooted history, influential figures and creative methods

of expressing content, it is fair to say that their resemblance does not go unnoticed.