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The Mūl Mantar ( pa, ਮੂਲ ਮੰਤਰ, ) is the opening verse of the
Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ' ...
scripture, the ''
Guru Granth Sahib The Guru Granth Sahib ( pa, ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ) is the central holy religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and eternal Guru following the lineage of the ten human gurus of the rel ...
''. It consists of thirteen words in the
Punjabi language Punjabi (; ; , ), sometimes spelled Panjabi, is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language of the Punjab, Punjab region of Pakistan and India. It has approximately 113 million native speakers. Punjabi is the most widely-spoken first lan ...
, written in
Gurmukhi Gurmukhī ( pa, ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ, , Shahmukhi: ) is an abugida developed from the Laṇḍā scripts, standardized and used by the second Sikh guru, Guru Angad (1504–1552). It is used by Punjabi Sikhs to write the language, commonl ...
script, and are the most widely known among the Sikhs. They summarize the essential teaching of
Guru Nanak Gurū Nānak (15 April 1469 – 22 September 1539; Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ; pronunciation: , ), also referred to as ('father Nānak'), was the founder of Sikhism and is the first of the ten Sikh Gurus. His birth is celebrated ...
,Eleanor Nesbitt, "Sikhism: a very short introduction", ,
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...
, pp. 22-24
thus constituting a succinct doctrinal statement of
Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit= Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fr ...
. It has been variously translated, with the interpretation of the first two words particularly contested. These are rendered as "There is one god", "One reality is", "This being is one" and others. Sometimes the disagreements include capitalizing g in god, or r in reality, which affects the implied meaning in English. Some consider it
monotheistic Monotheism is the belief that there is only one deity, an all-supreme being that is universally referred to as God. Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxfor ...
, others monist. The general view favors the monotheistic interpretation, but not the Semitic understanding of monotheism. It is rather "Guru Nanak's mystical awareness of the one that is expressed through the many." The remaining ten words after the first two are literally translated as true name, the creator, without fear, without hate, timeless in form, beyond birth, self-existent, (known by) the grace of Guru. The verse is repeated in the Sikh scripture before numerous Shabad, or hymns. It existed in many versions in the 16th-century before it was given its final form by
Guru Arjan Guru Arjan (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਅਰਜਨ, pronunciation: ; 15 April 1563 – 30 May 1606) was the first of the two Gurus martyred in the Sikh faith and the fifth of the ten total Sikh Gurus. He compiled the first official edition of t ...
in the 17th century. The essential elements of the ''mantar'' are found in Guru Nanak's compositions, the various epithets he used for
Akal Purakh Akal Purakh ( pa, ਅਕਾਲ ਪੁਰਖ) is an interchangeable Sikh name used to denote God, or the omnipresent divine. Meaning Literally it means "a timeless being who never dies." The first word '' Akal'', literally "timeless, immortal, n ...
(Ultimate Reality).


Etymology

A '' mantar'' comes from the word
Mantri Mantri is a word of Sanskrit origin (meaning sage, i.e. the "person who thinks and says" in that language, cf. Mantra), and it is used for a variety of public offices, from fairly humble to ministerial in rank. The term was used in various Asian cu ...
or advisor and means "advice". The word ''mūl'' means "root, main or "fundamental." The ''Mūl Mantar'' is thus "root advice", or the root advice of how to hold oneself in Sikhism.


Text

The ''Mūl Mantar'' is: The extended version with the ''Jap'' verse is:


Grammar

The archaic language of the Guru Granth Sahib is highly
inflected In linguistic morphology, inflection (or inflexion) is a process of word formation in which a word is modified to express different grammatical categories such as tense, case, voice, aspect, person, number, gender, mood, animacy, and defin ...
; the suffixed short vowels parenthesized above indicate various
declension In linguistics, declension (verb: ''to decline'') is the changing of the form of a word, generally to express its syntactic function in the sentence, by way of some inflection. Declensions may apply to nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, and ...
s. In the Mūl Mantar, the suffixed -''u'' indicates nouns and adjectives in the masculine
singular Singular may refer to: * Singular, the grammatical number that denotes a unit quantity, as opposed to the plural and other forms * Singular homology * SINGULAR, an open source Computer Algebra System (CAS) * Singular or sounder, a group of boar ...
direct case, though some words ending with -''ā'' (like ''karatā'') can also indicate this case. This suffix can also indicate an imperative when attached to a verb, as in ''japu''. The suffixed -''a'' can indicate the masculine
vocative case In grammar, the vocative case ( abbreviated ) is a grammatical case which is used for a noun that identifies a person (animal, object, etc.) being addressed, or occasionally for the noun modifiers ( determiners, adjectives, participles, and ...
, as in ''Nānaka'', the masculine singular
oblique case In grammar, an oblique ( abbreviated ; from la, casus obliquus) or objective case (abbr. ) is a nominal case other than the nominative case, and sometimes, the vocative. A noun or pronoun in the oblique case can generally appear in any role ex ...
in compounds as in ''gura prasādi'', and a feminine singular direct adjective as in ''akala'', as well as the masculine plural direct case and the feminine singular direct case. The suffixed -''i'' can indicate the
possessive A possessive or ktetic form (abbreviated or ; from la, possessivus; grc, κτητικός, translit=ktētikós) is a word or grammatical construction used to indicate a relationship of possession in a broad sense. This can include strict owne ...
case in compounds (as in ''sati nāmu''), and the
locative In grammar, the locative case (abbreviated ) is a grammatical case which indicates a location. It corresponds vaguely to the English prepositions "in", "on", "at", and "by". The locative case belongs to the general local cases, together with the ...
(as in ''ādi'' and ''jugādi'') or instrumental case as in ''gura prāsadi''; these terms would be ''ādu'', ''jugādu'', and ''prasādu'' if taking the direct case. It is also another feminine singular direct case (as in ''mūrati''); ''-a'' and ''-i'' are among the predominant declensions for this case. Adjectives and
modifiers In linguistics, a modifier is an optional element in phrase structure or clause structure which ''modifies'' the meaning of another element in the structure. For instance, the adjective "red" acts as a modifier in the noun phrase "red ball", provi ...
also agree in number and gender with their dependent element, hence ''ikku oaṅkāru'', ''akāla mūrati'', and the term ''mūlu mantaru'' itself. Most of these cases still exist in the
modern language A modern language is any human language that is currently in use. The term is used in language education to distinguish between languages which are used for day-to-day communication (such as French and German) and dead classical languages su ...
in slightly different forms; features in the archaic language like the masculine singular direct suffix ''-u'' and feminine singular direct suffix ''-a'' parallel nominal declensions in other related languages. The included grave accent included in the above transliterations illustrates tones and guide the verbal pronunciation of the verse.


Discourse

The ''Mūl Mantar'' is a widely known part of Sikh scripture, but it has posed a challenge to translators. The first two words
Ik Onkar , also spelled (Gurmukhi: or ; ); literally, "There is only one God or One creator or one Om-maker") is a phrase in Sikhism that denotes the one supreme reality. It is a central tenet of Sikh religious philosophy. are the first words of the ...
has been rendered multiple ways. It has been translated as "'There is one god', as 'One reality is', 'there is one God', 'singularity despite seeming plurality,' and 'This being is one,' and asserts the "distinctively Sikh theological emphasis" on "the ineffable quality of God" as "the Person beyond time," "the Eternal One," and "the One without form," and is canonically understood in Sikhism to refer to "absolute monotheistic unity of God". The varying capitalization of "God", "Reality", or "Being" affects the meaning in
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...
. A number of translations erroneously change the ''Mūl Mantar'' from a list of qualities to a statement of facts and possessive adjectives. For example, they may change
Satnam Satnam (Gurmukhi: ਸਤਿ ਨਾਮੁ) is the main word that appears in the Sikh sacred scripture called the Guru Granth Sahib. It is part of the Gurbani shabad called Mool Mantra which is repeated daily by Sikhs. This word succeeds the wor ...
from "truth by name" to "His name is truth", which adds a masculine quality to the ''Mūl Mantar'' which does not appear in the original
Gurmukhi Gurmukhī ( pa, ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ, , Shahmukhi: ) is an abugida developed from the Laṇḍā scripts, standardized and used by the second Sikh guru, Guru Angad (1504–1552). It is used by Punjabi Sikhs to write the language, commonl ...
. These sacred words of Sikhism do not presume a particular gender. the ''Mūl Mantar'' serves as a "succinct statement which set the Sikh doctrine apart from the philosophical systems of both Indic and Semitic religious traditions." Some Sikh institutions, like the
SGPC The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee ( SGPC; "Supreme Gurdwara Management Committee") is an organization in India responsible for the management of Gurdwaras, Sikh places of worship in states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh and the union ...
, consider the ''Mūl Mantar'' proper to end at ''gura prasādi'', arguing that what follows is the name and first line of the ''
Japji Sahib ''Japji Sahib'' (Punjabi: ਜਪੁਜੀ ਸਾਹਿਬ ) is the Sikh thesis, that appears at the beginning of the ''Guru Granth Sahib'' – the scripture of the Sikhs. It was composed by Guru Angad, and is mostly the writings of Guru Nanak. I ...
'' composition, citing the number of times that the verse appears as such preceding
Gurbani Gurbani ( pa, ਗੁਰਬਾਣੀ) is a Sikh term, very commonly used by Sikhs to refer to various compositions by the Sikh Gurus and other writers of Guru Granth Sahib. In general, hymns in the central text of the Sikhs, the Guru Granth Sahi ...
compositions. On the other hand, other historic institutions, like some '' taksals'' (traditional Sikh religious educational institutions) and ''gurmat'' schools, hold the ''Mūl Mantar'' to be the full following verse, contending that this form has been used in the
Amrit Sanchar Amrit Sanchar (Gurmukhi: ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤ ਸੰਸਕਾਰ "nectar ceremony"; also called Amrit Parchar, or Khande di Pahul ਖੰਡੇ ਦੀ ਪਾਹੁਲ) is one of the four Sikh Sanskaars. The Amrit Sanskar is the initiation rite ...
baptizing ceremony since its inception. This is in line with the stand taken by the ''
nihang The Nihang or Akali (lit. "the immortals") is an armed Sikh warrior order originating in the Indian subcontinent. Nihang are believed to have originated either from Fateh Singh and the attire he wore or from the "Akali" (lit. Army of the Immort ...
s'' and other groups who stress the recitation of the complete ''Mūl Mantar'', arguing that this tradition has come directly from the time of the Gurus, and there is reliable evidence to support this contention; like the ''kamar kassā'', or waist-belt body armor of
Guru Gobind Singh Guru Gobind Singh (; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), born Gobind Das or Gobind Rai the tenth Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed by Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind ...
, preserved at
Moti Bagh Palace Moti Bagh Palace is a palace in Patiala, also known as Pearl Garden Palace. The word "Moti" means "pearl", and "Bagh" means "garden". The Palace was built by Maharaja Narinder Singh, the great- grandfather of Maharaja Bhupinder Singh, in 1847 ...
Museum in
Patiala Patiala () is a city in southeastern Punjab, northwestern India. It is the fourth largest city in the state and is the administrative capital of Patiala district. Patiala is located around the '' Qila Mubarak'' (the 'Fortunate Castle') constru ...
, bearing an inscription of the long form.


References


Further reading

* * * * * * * *


External links


Mool Mantar, Damdami Taksaal

English and Hindi translations

Translation of Sri Guru Granth Sahib in >52 languages
Machine translation of SGGS can be read from linked site by choosing appropriate language in transliterate and translation fields {{Sikhism Adi Granth