The Sikhs [Hardcover]

Khushwant Singh (Author), Raghu Rai (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2004

Never before have the Sikh's way of life, their modes of worship, their baptisms, weddings and rustic dances and their attempts to keep alive their marital traditions been more vividly captured by the camera or as clearly explained in words by India's foremost author. Here is a rare collection of photographs taken by one of the country's best photographers.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Sikhism is one of the world's gentlest religions--a sort of eastern version of Anglicanism. It is as though someone had taken the best bits of Hinduism and Islam and merged them into a religion accessible even to the most secular of souls. There is no class or caste system, hence the men are all called Singh (Lion) and the women Kaur (Princess), and it makes no great claim to be the only way; indeed, unlike most religions, it actively promotes the idea that its followers may learn from other faiths. And yet, the popular image of Sikhs as fierce warriors is almost diametrically opposed to the tenets of their faith. Just how this came to be is wonderfully told in Patwant Singh's history of the Sikhs, published to coincide with the 300th anniversary of the Khalsa--the most important date in the Sikh calendar.

As may be expected, Singh is a highly partisan narrator. The Sikhs are always bold and noble, and those who oppress them--the Moghuls, the Hindus, and the British--are conniving and duplicitous. But this aside, he tells a truthful story of the early days of Sikhism up to the 20th-century partition of the Punjab and the diaspora to East Africa and Britain. But the book really takes off when we reach the modern era. He provides a moving account of the storming of the Golden Temple in Amritsar by Hindu troops acting on the authority of the Indian government in 1984. This led directly to the assassination of Indira Gandhi by her two Sikh bodyguards, which in turn brought swift and widespread retribution, as thousands of Sikhs were rounded up and massacred.

What Patwant Singh doesn't answer, though, is why so many people have felt so threatened by Sikhism over the centuries. Sikhs do not proselytize their religion and they make up only two percent of the Indian population, yet they have been persecuted throughout their history. Maybe, just as nature abhors a vacuum, so religions abhor moderation. --John Crace, Amazon.co.uk --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

In his preface, Singh, a Sikh writer and editor, explains that he wrote this book, in part, to counter the notion that Sikhs are little more than terrorists--a picture, he suggests, that's at least in part the product of a systematic disinformation campaign waged by the Indian government. In accessible if scholarly prose, Singh traces Sikh history from its origins in the 15th century through Indira Gandhi's 1984 storming of the Golden Temple (the holiest Sikh shrine and the event that led to Gandhi's assassination by her Sikh bodyguards). Sikhs, he argues, have for centuries been an embattled people because their culture and religion defy the predominant religions in the region, as well as the Indian caste system with its ruling elite. For this reason, Hindu and Muslim rulers strove again and again to violently crush the Sikh religion; over the centuries, Sikhs grew increasingly militarized in order to defend their religion and themselves. In the riots that followed the storming of the Golden Temple, for instance, 3,000 Sikhs were killed in New Delhi when, by Singh's account, government troops were withdrawn and the Sikhs were left unprotected. The author discusses how the partition of India, the rise of fundamentalism and the perceived indifference of the Indian government to their concerns led to Sikhs' desire for a separate state in the Punjab. He does occasionally criticize what he sees as indiscriminate Sikh violence ("less saintly companions" is what he calls those who commit violent deeds), but for the most part Singh keeps his focus on demonstrating that the word terrorist is used much too often to describe Sikhs. Although Singh sometimes steers clear of important complications in his story, on the whole, this is a balanced, nuanced and well-documented study of a people little understood in the West. 8 pages of photos and 7 maps. (Apr.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Roli Books (January 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 8174361324
• ISBN-13: 978-8174361325
• Product Dimensions: 12.3 x 12.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,935,359 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read to understand the misunderstood, July 15, 2003

By 

Seth J. Frantzman (Jerusalem, Israel) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sikhs (Paperback)

THe Sikhs are the least understood of the great religions of the world. In bookstores across America shelves and shelves are given over to Buddhism and Taoism but it is rare to find even one book on the Noble warriors, the Sikhs. Yet these people are in many ways a unique and amazing religious group that inhabits northwest India and has followers all over the globe(a diaspora due to their persecution). The story of the Sikhs, as painted so well in this book, shows how they have fought so hard against the attempts of the Muslims to create genocide upon them. Their Hindu neighboors have also been hostile, although this hostility has become more blatent recently under Indira Gandhi. The Sikhs were slughtered like animals during partition in 1948 by the Muslims who cleansed them from Pakistan, where not one Sikh remains in what had been their ancestral homeland. In the west Sikhs have been the target of racist attacks partly because neo-nazis think they are Muslim(due to the turbans) and partly due to jealousy since they own so many businesses. I recommend this book wholeheartedly. It is obviously partisan but the author has an intricate understanding of Sikh lure and history. The author does not touch on Sikh militism unfortunatly to an extent that should be touched upon. He does not explain the Sikh revenge attacks upon Muslims in 1948. He does not explain Sikh terror which is the reason so many Hindus dislike them. But the book is nevertheless excellent.

17 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "The Sikhs" by Patwant Singh, January 2, 2004

By 

Manbir Chowdhary (Orange County, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sikhs (Paperback)

In the wake of the September 11th tragedy, Sikh-Americans have been the target of misguided attacks due to their appearance. An appearance comprised of articles of the Sikh faith - a turban and unshorn beard.

Patwant Singh's book provides a vivid account of the origins, beliefs and subsequent history of this 500 year old, egalitarian faith that originated in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent.

The book explains the significance behind the unique identity of the Sikh people - their turbans and beards - and brings to mind the sad irony that they are being mistaken, by some in the US, for the very Islamic fundamentalism that they have been fighting against since their beginnings.

The Sikhs are disciples of Guru Nanak (1469-1539), the founder of the Sikh faith, who was succeeded by nine other Gurus (spiritual masters). Guru Nanak likened all religions to different travelers aiming at one and the same destination but following different paths and diverse ways. Guru Gobind Singh was the tenth and last living Guru who lived from 1666 to 1708. It was this tenth prophet, that gave the Sikhs their present form and appearance, which was a culmination of the constant endeavor, struggle and sacrifices of the Gurus as well as of their innumerable followers.

In Singh's analysis of Sikh relations with Hindus, he points out that the monotheistic and egalitarian principles upon which the Sikh faith was founded proved to be in direct conflict with the philosophy and thought of the "caste-conscious" ruling Hindu-Brahmins i.e. Indira Gandhi. Singh's point is not a new one; there have been other faiths in Indian history that have been repressed by the hands of Brahmin ideology. For example, a study of Buddhism's growth (or lack of) in the country of its birth, India, would also reveal a similar thesis.

This exceptionally well-written account is a must for every Sikh household seeking to attain a glimpse of its stoic and spiritual past, or for any individual wishing to gain an insight to the history and way of life of the Sikh people.

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An essential study of India's affairs and history., May 9, 2000

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sikhs (Hardcover)

Patwant Singh's Sikhs provides a comprehensive history of the Sikhs, from their origins and traditions to recent history, considering how a humane-based movement came to blend spirituality with military beliefs. This is an essential book for any studying Indian affairs and history, providing the depth of cultural and historical reflection lacking in more casual overviews of Indian's peoples.

Diane C. Donovan Reviewer Diane C. Donovan Reviewer