Gurdino
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Gurdino ("giving to the gurus"; also spelt as Gurudino) was a traditional practice of some Hindu families living in Punjab, Sindh, and Balochistan to raise a child, usually the eldest son, as a Sikh.[1][2][3] The son would be baptized as a Sikh.[1][2] The tradition had been followed for centuries.[1] Households that followed the tradition tended to follow both Hindu and Sikh practices.[2]
During Islamic-rule in Punjab, Hindus raising a child as a Sikh would have been similar to preparing their child to fight in a war, as Sikhs were conceptualized as being the "sword arm of Hinduism".[4][5] The present understanding of the historical prevalence of this practice amongst the Punjabi Hindus may be exaggerated and it was followed less in-reality.[6] In Punjab during the British colonial-period, the practice was generally done for economic motivations rather than religious ones, based upon aspirations for admissions into the military, as Sikhs were preferred for these roles.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Sikhism in Sindh". Regional perspectives on India's Partition: Shifting the Vantage Points. Anjali Gera Roy, Nandi Bhatia. Taylor & Francis. May 4, 2023. ISBN 9781000829242.
He [Thariya Singh] played a significant role in baptising the eldest male sons of many Hindu Sindhi trading families to become Sikhs of the gurudino (giving to the gurus) tradition which was popular in Sindh, Baluchistan and Punjab for many centuries (Vagtiani 2017; Nanda 2018).
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: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ a b c Kothari, Rita; Thadhani, Jasbirkaur (2016). "Sindhi Sikhs in India: The Missing People". South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies. 39: 8. doi:10.1080/00856401.2016.
Here Gulrajani affirmed a common practice among Hindu families in both Sindh and Punjab whereby one of the children (usually the eldest) was 'gurdinno' or 'given to the Guru'. In such a scenario, the atmosphere at home was a mixture of Hindu and Sikh practices, leaning sometimes more towards one than the other.
- ^ Mangat, Devinder Singh (Feb 11, 2023). A Brief History of the Sikhs (Multidimensional Sikh Struggles). SLM Publishers. p. 2. ISBN 9789391083403.
Culturally Sikhism is much closer to Hinduism. Their customs and traditions are very similar to each other. They allow inter marriages. Some of the Hindu families used to raise their eldest son as a Sikh.
- ^ Mahmood, Cynthia Keppley (2015). "Part I: Overview of Religious Traditions - 3. Sikh Traditions and Violence". The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Violence. Mark Juergensmeyer, Margo Kitts, Michael K. Jerryson. Oxford University Press. p. 70. ISBN 9780190270094.
Sikh and Hindu communities at the time [during Islamic-rule] had permeable boundaries in the region; they intermarried; they worshipped at each other's temples; they enjoyed each other's festivities. In particular, the Sikhs of Punjab, who ended up fighting the long line of invaders coming into the subcontinent from the west, became colloquially known as "the sword arm of Hinduism." Many of the eldest sons in Hindu families were reared as Sikhs, just as a family might send one son off to military duty.
- ^ Akhtar, Nazia (Jun 15, 2016). Revisiting India's Partition: New Essays on Memory, Culture, and Politics. Amritjit Singh, Nalini Iyer, Rahul K. Gairola. Lexington Books. p. 322. ISBN 9781498531054.
- ^ a b "Part III: Caste Beyond Hinduism - Conclusion". Caste Matters in Public Policy: Issues and Perspectives. Rahul Choragudi, Sony Pellissery, N. Jayaram. Taylor & Francis. Aug 19, 2022. ISBN 9781000631975.
Third, there has been a widespread impression that the Hindu Punjabis converted the eldest son in their family to Sikhism. This practice is often overstated. ... The arrival of the British and through their census enumeration of people, the issue of religion became a serious social construction of identity. At the same time, the interfaith marriages among the Sikhs and Hindus were invariably confined to the same caste, implying the primacy of caste endogamy. The conversion to Sikhism was not limited to the effort of the Singh Sabha movement alone; it was also guided by the economic logic in the face of epidemics and famines. The canal colonies gave impetus to the joining of the army and the Sikhs were preferred. It is important to keep in mind that it was not the social custom of the Hindu families converting their eldest sons to Sikhism, but it happened due to the economic logic, which was employment through joining the army. The Sikhs were not the only community recognised as martial by the British, but here I have confined my discussion to the Sikh community.
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: CS1 maint: others (link)