Introduction to the Sikh Prayer
Dr. Mohinder Singh
Session
Co-ordinator: Mohinder Singh
Ardas,
literally meaning supplication or petition to the higher authority,
is the ritual prayer which the Sikhs offer individually or
in congregation. This prayer is offered after the morning
and evening services, or to offer gratitude to the Almighty
for the favours. Ardas is invariably offered on all occasions
- both happy and sad. As per established practice, Ardas is
offered to the God Almighty in a supplicated mood standing
either in front of the Guru Granth Sahib where the holy book
is present or in a reverential posture where it is not possible.
Ardas
encapsulates a five hundred years long history of the Sikh
struggle, sacrifice, and ultimate victory. Ardas has three
major components. First, soon after the completion of singing
of hymns connected with the morning and evening services as
the audience rises for Ardas, the officiate leading the prayers
usually begins while reciting a Pauri from the Sukhmani -
Tun Thakur Tum Pai Ardas - 'Thou Art the Lord to Thee we pray.'
There follows the recitation of the prelude to Guru Gobind
Singh's composition - Var Sri Bhagauti Jiki - invoking the
Timeless One and the first nine Gurus. The name of the tenth
Guru and that of Guru Granth Sahib, which has become the Guru
Eternal for the Sikh community, were added to the Ardas later.
The
second part of Ardas is a recital of the Sikh community's
collective history of struggle, sacrifice and triumph. The
last part comprises the words improvised to suit the given
occasion. For instance, the Sikhs are supposed to offer thanksgiving
to God on all occasions - happy and sad -- by offering Ardas
and by repeating their commitment to live according to the
Divine Will. After the initial invocation, Ardas goes on to
recount and reflect upon memorable acts of the Sikh community's
martyrs and heroes - men and women of determination and fortitude
who sacrificed their lives but did not give up their faith.
During the Ardas, countless sacrifices of the Gurus and other
martyrs are recounted. During the Ardas, the Sikhs also fondly
remember their Gurus, including the ninth Guru Tegh Bahadur
who sacrificed his life for the protection of the frontal
marks of the Hindu community, thus becoming the precursor
of the I.A.R.F's principle of Religious Freedom. They also
remember those brave men and women who sacrificed their lives
for liberation of their historic Sikh shrines during the Gurdwara
reform movement (1920-25).
In
the course of Ardas, the Sikhs remember the trying circumstances
when the Government of the day had fixed prices for their
heads, but, through the Divine Grace, their faith still survives.
While the officiate is offering the Ardas, the whole assembled
congregation is supposed to keep on standing with folded hands
facing the Guru Granth Sahib. At prescribed intervals, the
entire congregation is supposed to repeat after the officiate
the word `Waheguru'. Towards the end, the collective welfare
of the whole world is sought for by uttering the following
concluding lines:
May
God's name, may the human spirit forever triumph, Nanak!
And in Thy Will may peace and prosperity come to one and all.
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