* Scholar of Oriental Lore. Address: 678 Marshall House, 25 Strand Road, Kolkata-700 001.

The highest aim of ethical system of Sikhism is the performance of one’s duties to man and God. The teachings of Sikhism have a spiritual dimension that aims at the discovery and perfection of human soul. To understand the ethical ideal of Sikhsm one must understand the uniqueness and individuality of man. The nature of man can be described as dual, i.e. the higher and the lower; the one tends to lift him up, while the other tends to pull him down. The aim of one’s life is to conquer the lower nature by the higher. Man is therefore an ethical being having a moral responsibility.

Realism: Sikhism looks upon the universe as real and recognizes as real all that is found in it. The seemingly destructive forces of Nature, if properly utilised by man, who is endowed with the power to understand and control them, can be transformed into sources of life. Ethically speaking, man is good and peaceful by nature. Metaphysically speaking, man is a unit of energy, a participant in the activity of world-process and can hold communion with God, provided he makes best use of the faculties endowed on him.

Sikhism does not encourage monastic renunciation and self-abnegation. It, in fact, aims at a progressive realization of the immense power of human soul. According to it, a life of action and struggle is an essential requisite. The manifold faculties of man have to be developed by bringing them under proper control. The ultimate aim of life is developing a personality with divine qualities which should culminate in perfect control of the self, under the guidance of reason.

Sahaj as harmony: Thus the ethical ideal of Sikhism is to maintain the harmony between religion and life. It synthesises the practical with the ideal and can satisfy both the spiritual and temporal aspirations of man. It provides an ethical code of human behaviour which represents a very high yet perfectly attainable ideal. In other words, to become a good Sikh is to become a good man. It is humanness at its best.

Morality and religion are intimately connected in the teachings of Guru Nanak. According to him, morality constitutes the primary test of a true religion. In fact, the intrinsic value of a religion is judged not by its metaphysical thoughts but by its ethical principles. Morality and religion, in Sikhism, are to be taken as instruments of creativeness. It is only by performing duties according to the moral laws that one can aspire to attain God’s grace and eventual union with Him. For Guru Nanak, enlightenment and true spirituality should inspire man to dedicate his life and genius for the service of humanity. He even went a step further, over his ethics of activism, when he emphasised that every enlightened man or women should cease to live for himself or herself and devote his or her life for the upliftment of humanity. Morality is the foundation of Sikh religion.

According to Guru Nanak, the following are moral virtues: Truth (Sat) as a virtue implies truthfulness in mind, body and action. Practice of truth is more laudable than truth as a principle. Truth is higher than all things, but higher than truth is the truthful living. "Truth is a remedy of all ills and washes away all sins". One must avoid falsity and remain truthful to others.

Contentment (Santokh) is having no ambition, envy, greed or jealousy. One must abide by the Will of God and, in that state, pleasure or pain makes no difference to him. Such a man is above ordinary happiness and misery.

Compassion (Daya) generates feeling to help and serve others. Service to mankind is service to God because the spirit of the Infinite resides in every soul.

Charity (Daan) means giving away things without any expectation or reward. It is compassion, which generates charitable disposition among men. Charity, in Sikhism, is invariably associated with tranquillity, humility and disinterestedness. It should not be construed or confused with begging. Begging, as a means to earn daily bread, is strictly taboo.

Purity (Shuddhi or Snan) of body and mind. Inner purity is more important than the purity of the body.

Forgiveness (Khama) It means pardoning an offender out of compassion and love for him. Forgiveness generates compassion and compassion encourages the concept of peace, tranquillity, humility and cooperation in men, which checks the tendency of men for supremacy over other fellowmen. ‘To err is human, but to forgive is divine’.

Humility (Garibi) In perfect humility all selfishness disappears and the soul no longer lives for itself. Everyone who humbles himself is exalted in spirit.

Tolerance (Sabr) To accept truth, whatever it is, and no matter where it comes from; even to die for the religious views of others.

Non-Injury (Ahimsa) According to Guru Nanak, when a man commits a sin, if it does not harm the social balance, we should over-look it. Cruelty to all living beings, men and animals, is decried.

Inspired Optimism (Chardi Kala) It means that everything should be faced and accepted in cheerful spirit as the Will of God.

Our knowledge of moral virtues expounded by the teachings of Guru Nanak gives us an idea of the moral vices. According to Guru Nanak moral vices are –

Falsity or lack of truthfulness; taking resort to dishonesty, injustice and unrighteousness; egoism; lack of humility; intolerance; discontent; lack of self-control; affliction of men and animals by thought, word and deed; remaining discontented in mind under the sway of greed, envy or jealousy; impurity of mind and body; intolerance to other’s beliefs and practices; falling a prey to the passions and instincts; pessimism; lack of self-dependence.

Social Mores: Sikhism further aims at an integration of the individual with the life of the community. While developing individual morality, social morality, must be developed, which connotes that individual must work for the sake of Society and if morality is social, the social machinery has to bring about the fullness and quality of life. Therefore, an individual must strive for the ideal for social good. The standard of value must be welfare of the society and moral principles must promote the ends of the society. The motive force of conduct should not only be individual responsibility to God, but also social obligations.

The difference between individual morality and social morality is: individual morality is a private matter between the individual and his Maker, whereas social morality asks individuals to find God in their fellow-men. In order to achieve this objective what is required is an ideal society and ideal environments where the individual should find best opportunities for all-round development of his self on the one hand, and identification of his interest with, and development of the society on the other. Human conduct, invariably, is socially conditioned. Man does not live only for himself, but he lives with others and for others; therefore, he must have social morals. The chief characteristics of social morality, promoted by Sikhism, are –

Firstly, every individual must be inspired by the belief that he is capable of developing a personality with divine qualities which should culminate in perfect control of the self under the guidance of the teachings of the Gurus.

Secondly, every individual must strive to integrate his life with the life of the society in which he lives.

Thirdly, an individual is not an isolated, separate being. He lives physically and mentally in and through an environment. The ideal he should strive for is the development of the environment for his own as well as for the social good.

Lastly, the standard of ethical value must be the welfare of the society and the moral principles must promote the ends of the society at large.

Right from the beginning the Gurus of the Sikhs have inculcated ethical principles to promote social morals amongst their adherents. Guru Nanak introduced Satsang, or holy congregation, to promote fellowship, amity and brotherhood amongst the members of the community. He also introduced Langar (free kitchen) where the great and the small, the rich and the poor, people drawn from diverse strata of society could partake the same food. Langar also generated the feeling of equality, simplicity, fellow feeling and service. This system of Langar was greatly extended by Guru Angad and has now become an essential part of the Sikh lore. Guru Arjun Dev exhorted all Sikhs to set aside one-tenth of their income, Daswand, for the Guru, the Panth and for the welfare of the less-privileged members of the community. He himself undertook many welfare projects for the general welfare of the community, such as, construction of a bauli (deep spring with steps) at Lahore for the benefit of the members of the society and, as an act of philanthrapy and munificence, he is reported to have built a home for the leprosy patients at Taran Taran. In this manner, he set an example for community service to be emulated by the faithful. Guru Govind Singh propounded a strict moral code for the faithful where he enjoined upon them to protect the unprotected, respect the women and fight corruption and tyranny perpetrated by whomsoever and wheresoever. All these steps were taken by the Gurus to strengthen and bring about homogeneity in the society.

Sharing: The principle of Wand Chhakna – to share with others who are less forrtunate and unable to help themselves – propounded by the founding Guru – is one of the cardinal fundamentals of Sikhism which underlines the ethical rule for rendering self-less service where needed for the good of the society. Thus the Gurus were not only responsible for persistently impressing upon their adherents high ethical principles but also for paving the way for bringing about social reform in the society.

The ethical objective of Sikhism is not only a holy life for an individual but also an ideal life for the society. Sikhism exhorts its adherents to maintain the harmony between religion and life, and develop materially and spiritually, to the advantage of the Society. According to it the society should be homogeneous and its constituents profess identical spiritual conviction. The society should gain supremacy over the forces of nature and face the odds boldly. Sikhism provides an ethical code of human and social behaviour which, if viewed with objectivity is very much akin to the dictum pronounced about two thousand five hundred years ago by the Chinese savant, Kung-Futze, commonly known as Confucius, viz. "What you do not want done to yourself, do not do to others."

As the society is based on certain principles for the welfare of its constituents, the interest of the society must always have a dominant place in all the undertakings of man. Man is to be judged not only by his pious habits, but also by his creative contribution to the widening of the horizon for the welfare of others Sarbatt-da-bhalla – that is the ethical basis of Sikhism.

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