Sanatan Sikh

Sanatan Sikh (Gurmukhi: ਸਨਾਤਨ ਸਿੱਖ sanātana sikha), a term and formulation coined by Harjot Oberoi,^[1] referred to Sikhs who formed a traditionalist faction during the Singh Sabha Movement in 1873.^[2]

Sanatan Sikh
ਸਨਾਤਨ ਸਿੱਖ

Sanatan Sikh artwork of the Sikh Gurus with Indic deities, ca.1800–1850
Regions with significant populations
Punjab
Religions
Sikhism
Languages
Punjabi

In colloquial language, the term "Sanatan Sikh" or "Snatan Sikh" has also been used by Sikhs to differentiate mainstream Sikh theology and practice from Sampardaic and Puratan Sikh theology, namely from 4 Sikh orders: Akali Nihungs, Sevapanthis, Nirmalas, and Udasis

History

They campaigned for a Dharmic interpretation that accepted a wide range of beliefs drawn from Hinduism.^[2] The Amritsar Singh Sabha was led by Khem Singh Bedi, Avtar Singh Vahiria and others. Sanatan Sikhs accept beliefs and practices such as the belief in the teachings of the Vedas, Puranas, and Hindu epics.^[2][3][4] They also were tolerant to the use of idols and images of Sikh Gurus as well as other icons within Gurdwaras. Instead of treating scripture as the only guru, Sanatan Sikhs campaigned for acceptability of living gurus to guide those Sikhs who seek one.^{[3] [5]} Amid factional rivalry, the influence of the dominant Tat Khalsa ("true Khalsa"),^[6] due to the support of the Sikh masses, resulted in the decline of Sanatan Sikhs.^[2][3][7] Today, it is a marginalized interpretation of Sikhism.

See also

• Keshdhari Hindus
• Rashtriya Sikh Sangat
• Sikh sects
• Hinduism and Sikhism

References

1. Grewal, J. S. (2010). "W.H. McLeod and Sikh Studies" (PDF). Journal of Punjab Studies. 17 (1–2): 125, 142. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
2. Louis E. Fenech; W. H. McLeod (11 June 2014). Historical Dictionary of Sikhism. p. 273. ISBN 978-1-4422-3601-1.
3. Pashaura Singh; Louis E. Fenech (2014). The Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies. Oxford University Press. pp. 28–29, 73–76. ISBN 978-0-19-969930-8.
4. Arvind-Pal Singh Mandair (2013). Sikhism: A Guide for the Perplexed. Bloomsburg Academic. pp. 85–86. ISBN 978-1-4411-0231-7.
5. Stanley J. Tambiah (3 January 1997). Leveling Crowds: Ethnonationalist Conflicts and Collective Violence in South Asia (Comparative Studies in Religion and Society). p. 154. ISBN 978-0520206427.
6. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. (2009). Britannica Guide to India. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. p. 187. ISBN 978-1-59339-847-7.
7. Harjot Oberoi (1994). The Construction of Religious Boundaries: Culture, Identity, and Diversity in the Sikh Tradition. University of Chicago Press. pp. 382–. ISBN 978-0-226-61593-6.