Sikh art and culture

Artistically illuminated folios from a Goindwal Pothi of the Pinjore recension, late 16th century. It is one of the earliest surviving examples of Sikh art

The earliest extant Sikh artwork appear in scriptural texts in the decoratively designed opening folios of the Goindwal pothi, dated to the third quarter of the 16th century during the period of Guru Amar Das.[4] The scripture compiled by Guru Arjan in 1604, known as the Kartarpur Bir, features extensive illumination artwork. Later on, the Sikh gurus produced calligraphic Gurmukhi autographs of the Mul Mantar known as nishans, those belonging to gurus Arjan, Hargobind, Har Rai, Tegh Bahadur, and Gobind Singh have been identified and dated between 1600 and 1708. The written orders of the later gurus known as hukamnamas, were also decorated and inscribed with a calligraphic style. B.N. Goswamy argues that painting in the Punjab goes back to the 16th century and became influenced by the Mughal school in the early half of the 18th century.[5] There exists a reference to a painter arriving at Ramdaspur (Amritsar) for the purpose of creating a portrait of Guru Hargobind. In the Roopa-lekha commissioned by Ram Rai, the eldest son of Har Rai, there exists portraits of the Sikh gurus from Nanak to Har Rai by a Mughal artist. This work was completed before 1688, the year that Ram Rai passed away. Various contemporary paintings of Guru Gobind Singh dating to the late 1600's gives evidence of accomplished artists of the time working under Sikh patronage.[6] Sikh art is the third largest collection in the subcontinent after Hindu and Islamic art but it remains severely under-studied and under-appreciated in academia.[7]

Photograph from 1902 of a mural depicting a Sikh warrior on horseback from the wall of the Harmandir Sahib prakaram. It is no longer extant

Many priceless Sikh heritage sites (including their architecture and artwork) have been destroyed or altered beyond recognition under the guise of "kar seva" renovations by various institutions and groups in recent-times.[8][9][10][11][12] An example of these haphazard and destructive renovations is an incident involving some of the frescoes at Gurdwara Baba Atal, which were replaced with bathroom tiles and plaster by kar seva groups.[13] Many groups are rushing to digitize what remains for posterity before they are lost, such as Panjab Digital Library.[14][15][16]

True-colour photograph - ‘Group of Tibetans at the “Golden Temple” of the Sikhs’, 15 January 1914

There is a common misconception that all Sikhs belong to the Punjab region. The religion's birthplace of Punjab itself has been called "India’s melting pot",[17] and many other parts of Northern India due to the heavy influence of invading cultures, such as Mughal and Persian, that mirrors the confluence of rivers from which the region gets its name(from Persian,"panj" پنج meaning "five" and "-āb" آب meaning water thus meaning land of the five waters). Thus, Sikh culture is to a large extent as a result by groups of various cultures uniting together, thus forming a unique one.

Sikhism has forged a unique form of architecture which Bhatti describes as being "inspired by Guru Nanak’s creative mysticism" such that Sikh architecture "is a mute harbinger of holistic humanism based on pragmatic spirituality".[18] The keynote of Sikh architecture is the Gurdwara which is the personification of the "melting pot" of Indian cultures, full of Mughal, Aryan and Persian influences. The reign of the Sikh Empire was the single biggest catalyst in the creation of a uniquely Sikh form of expression, with Maharajah Ranjit Singh patronising the building of forts, palaces, bungas (residential places), colleges, etc. that can be said to be of the Sikh Style. The "jewel in the crown" of the Sikh Style is the Harmandir Sahib.

Sikh culture and identity is heavily influenced by militaristic motifs, with Khanda being the most obvious; thus it is no surprise that the majority of Sikh artifacts, independent of the relics of the Gurus, have a military theme. This motif is again evident in the Sikh festivals of Hola Mohalla and Vasakhi which feature marching and practicing displays of valor, respectively.

The art, culture, identity and society of the Sikhs has been merged with the different localities and ethnicities of different Sikhs into categories such as 'Agrahari Sikhs', 'Dakhni Sikhs' and 'Assamese Sikhs'; however there has emerged a niche cultural phenomenon that can be described as 'Political Sikh'. The art of prominent diaspora Sikhs such as Amarjeet Kaur Nandhra,[19] and Amrit and Rabindra Kaur Singh (The Singh Twins),[20] is partly informed by their Sikh spirituality and influence.

Dusenbery (2014) states that Punjabi Sikhs form the majority of the Sikh population. He notes that "some Sindhis and other South Asians have been affiliated at the margins as Nanakpanthis (‘followers of Nanak’s path’) or Sehajdhari (‘slow adopter’) Sikhs" but in the main, "the Sikh Panth has remained largely a Punjabi affair".[21] However, the Sikh community is varied and includes people who speak the Pashto language, the Sindhi language, the Telugu language and many more. The many communities following Sikhism are detailed below.

Dakhni Sikhs

See also: Sikhism_in_India § South_Indian_Sikhs

Painting depicting the wedding of Guru Nanak from a 19th century illustrated manuscript of the Janamsakhi from Maharashtra

Dakhni Sikhs are from the Deccan Plateau in India located within the states of Maharashtra, Telegana and Andhra Pradesh.[30] The traditional dress of women is the sari. The native languages of Dakhni Sikhs include Marathi and Telugu.[31]

South Indian Sikhs

See also: Sikhism_in_India § South_Indian_Sikhs

Tanjore-style painting of a Sikh couple from South India, circa 1805

There are Sikh communities in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra who converted to Sikhism centuries ago.

The Sikhs comprise Banjara and Satnami. The process of blending the religion into southern India for the Sikligars began at the time of 10th Sikh Guru Gobind Singh, who came to the Deccan and died in 1708 at Nanded (Maharashtra).

It all came by the Sikligars as they cane to southern India as expert arms-making camp followers of the tenth Guru. Sikligar is a compound of the Persian words `saiqal` and `gar` meaning a polisher of metal.[30] The traditional occupation of the Sikligars is crafting kitchen implements.

Banjaras are a nomadic tribe who traditionally travelled with merchandise and are found across a large swathe of northern India, as well as in the south. Sikh Banjaras too travelled with armies of the past supplying them with provisions.[30]

• 
  A frontispiece to the Dasam Granth.
• 
  The Bardari of Ranjit Singh, built in the Hazuri Bagh.
• 
  Gateway of the Ram Bagh, North-East of Amritsar; built by Maharajah Ranjit Singh.
• 
  A Sikh helmet from the late 18th century. Note the adaptation on the helmet's crown to allow for a Sikh's uncut hair.
• 
  One of the gates at the Sikh temple called Gurdwara Bangla Sahib, in Delhi.
• 
  Illuminated Adi Granth folio with nisan (autograph or signature) of Guru Gobind Singh.
• 
  Detail from Gurdwara Baba Atal.
• 
  A Opaque Watercolour on paper copy of Nakashi 1880c
• 
  Harmandir Sahib or the Golden Temple, Amritsar, India.
• 
  Interior of the Akal Takht.
• 
  Painting of the durbar of Maharaja Dalip Singh Sukerchakia.
• 
  Painting of Ranjit Singh and Hira Singh of Nabha.
• 
  The Sikh Order of Merit with a Portrait of Ranjit Singh, directly inspired by the French Légion d'honneur
• 
  Ceiling fresco of female figures from an abandoned Gurdwara located in Mangat village in Pakistan
• 
  Guru Granth Sahib manuscript housed at Sri Keshgarh Sahib, Anandpur and dated to 1803 B.S. (1746 C.E.) beautifully decorated with gold and floral arabesques
• 
  Equestrian portrait of Guru Gobind Singh attended upon by a Nihang, circa 1850
• 
  Guru Nanak engaged in an interfaith dialogue, Janamsakhi painting
• 
  Holy men visiting Guru Nanak in a mountainous forest, Mewar painting
• 
  Illustrations of female figures on a chola (chogha) robe that is said to have belonged to Guru Nanak which was made by and given as a gift by his sister, Bebe Nanaki

• Pahari painting
• Kangra painting
• Rajput painting
• Mughal painting
• Indian art
• Turban training centre
• Sikh architecture
• Sikh scriptures
• History of Sikhism
• Punjabi culture
• Shastar Vidya
• Sikh chola
• Sikh Ajaibghar
• Mehdiana Sahib