Adi Granth
Publié le 22/02/2012
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Punjabi for "fi rst book"; the sacred
book of the Sikhs. It is also known as the Guru
Granth Sahib.
The Adi Granth contains almost 6,000 hymns
written by Sikh GURUs and other SAINTS (see SIKHISM).
The hymns are mostly arranged according to
the musical modes in which they are sung.
The fi rst and third gurus, NANAK and Amar
Das (1479–1574), made collections of their own
hymns and those of earlier religious poets. In
1604 the fi fth guru, Arjan (1563–1606), added
other hymns to the earlier collections to make the
fi rst version of the Adi Granth. He installed it in
the most sacred Sikh shrine, the Golden Temple
at Amritsar. In 1704 the last guru, Gobind SINGH,
completed the Adi Granth by adding hymns by his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, to the earlier version.
Before Gobind Singh died, he established the book
as the guru of the Sikhs. It is the ultimate authority
on religious matters.
Sikhs in fact treat the Adi Granth as their guru.
Copies of the book are enshrined in Sikh houses
of WORSHIP, known as gurdwaras. There they are
unwrapped in the morning and wrapped up at
night according to set RITUALS. During worship, the
sacred book is fanned, just as if it were a living dignitary,
and hymns from it are sung. In the presence
of the Adi Granth, one should have one's head covered
and remove one's shoes.