Sikhism was not manufactured in a ham-fisted way by an egomaniac emperor. Its founder, Guru Nanak (1469-1539), was a wise and deeply spiritual man who never identified as either Hindu or Muslim, as were the nine gurus who proceeded after him ending in Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708). While it has elements of both Hinduism and Islam, the Sikh religion has quite a few tenets and practices that are unique to Sikhism (for example, the "five Ks") that fit perfectly with the martial culture of the Punjabi people of the period. The religion is one with the people's culture and the land from which it sprang.
Religions have borrowed from other religions since the beginning of time (for example, the influence of Zoroastrianism on Judaism and the many elements of the Sabian religion that are found in Islam): it is how those borrowings are used and adapted to fit the deep (often unarticulated) needs of the people that makes all the difference. The same can be said of the pseudo-religions or religion substitutes (scientific materialism, Marxism and the latest manifestations of fascism), I suppose.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2022-11-13 04:24 am (UTC)Religions have borrowed from other religions since the beginning of time (for example, the influence of Zoroastrianism on Judaism and the many elements of the Sabian religion that are found in Islam): it is how those borrowings are used and adapted to fit the deep (often unarticulated) needs of the people that makes all the difference. The same can be said of the pseudo-religions or religion substitutes (scientific materialism, Marxism and the latest manifestations of fascism), I suppose.
Ron M