A Better World Volume 1

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Gender equality and women’s empowerment

in Sikhism – the epitome of womanhood

Prabhjot Kaur, Member, and Birendra Kaur, Vice-President, Institute of Sikh Studies

he times of Guru Nanak (1469-1538 CE), founder

of Sikhism,

were fraught with social inequali-

ties of every kind, be these based on religion,

race, caste or gender. ‘Might is right’ was the law of the

land. Centuries-old social stratification was the cause of

exploitation and the degradation of man. In the midst

of such an utterly deplorable scenario, the condition

of woman was even worse, irrespective of the stratum

to which she belonged. She was at par with animals,

untouchables, and considered the lowest of the low, a

gateway to hell. Her existence was, thus, subhuman.

The Guru, however, by arousing the conscience of the

people, raised a powerful voice in her favour. In those

times of monarchy, kings were considered God-incarnate

and, like God, without any blemish. Guru Nanak reasons

in the Sikh scripture,

Guru Granth Sahib

: ‘How could

woman from whom kings are born be reviled?’

The Guru’s ideology of ‘one God of all humanity’ addresses

not only gender inequality, but every kind of inequality

that may be prevalent in any society. He pronounced that

‘Almighty is the Father, Almighty is the Mother; and all

human beings are God’s children’. Guru Nanak also sees

a friend/relative in God, and a husband with every devotee

denoted a woman. Reference to God with both genders, and

reference to men and women with the same gender, renders

the issue of gender inequality non-existent, a non-issue. To

him, the issue was neither man in relation to man nor man

in relation to woman, but to weave a beautiful relationship

between the All-Powerful and the person, be it he or she, or

be one from any religion, region, race or caste.

The Guru, thus, bestows equality as well as dignity to

women. A Sikh woman does not have to ask for these; they

are her birth rights. Consequently, her life changed drasti-

cally as the taboos related to her gender were now gone:

now, she was not considered impure during her menstrual

cycle or after childbirth; she began to participate in all

religious activities; she could be initiated and also initiate

others; she could be a religious head; she was not to wear

a veil to cover her face; families that indulged in female

infanticide were to be socially boycotted; child marriage

and dowry were prohibited; widows could remarry.

The Guru created an environment where women could

live a life free from any indignities. They recognized as

real all feminine urges and emotions. Household duties

performed by women were not considered insignificant.

Rather, caring for the family, performed so naturally and

lovingly by women, is seen as godlike. Spiritual flavour is

lent to these activities by comparing the love of a mother for

her child to the love of God for His creation.

The nine succeeding Gurus further provided equal oppor-

tunities of education, training in martial arts, religious and

political leadership roles, and endowed responsibilities

and duties on women. Women thus involved themselves

wholeheartedly in the making of a new social order. This

journey started with Mata Khivi, wife of the second Guru,

Guru Angad Dev (1504-1552), who became the first

administrative head of the Guru’s free communal kitchen,

langar

, and helped establish it as a permanent institution in

Sikhism. Years later, when the third Guru, Guru Amar Das

(1479-1574), gave structure to the Sikh

panth

(nation) and

organized his preachers into 22 teaching districts or

manjis

(literal translation: type of seat), he put Bibi Amro, daughter

of the second Guru, in charge of one of these districts. As

the Guru’s representative, she also had the responsibility of

collecting revenues and making decisions for the welfare of

her diocese. By the time of the tenth Guru, Guru Gobind

Singh (1666-1708), women were even confident enough

to fight in the battlefield alongside men if needed. Women

would also nurse the wounded in the battlefield, and under-

take daring activities. Mata Sundri, the tenth Guru’s wife,

Image: www. PunjabiTurban.com

Men and women worshipping inside Harmandir Sahib (the Golden Temple)

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