Composition Of Guru Granth Sahib

[Brother Onam]

Dear Sikhi family, I have a question please.
As one who has never read the Guru Granth Sahib, I would like to know:
Are all the books, for instance the books of Sunder Gutka, contained in the Guru? When I see references to scriptures that I recognize as being in Jap Ji or Jaap Sahib or one of the other books, the location in GGS is given. So do all these books appear as passages of GGS, and is even Sukhmani Sahib contained within the body of the Guru?
Thank you in advance. Brother Onam

 

[Gyani Jarnail Singh]

Brother Onam Ji..welcome.

The SGGS is a Completed sealed Manuscript 1429 pages long. The SGGS was prepared in the way we see it being Parkashed in Gurdwaras in 1604 by GURU ARJUN JI and then by Guur Gobind Singh Ji who ADDED the Gurbanis of his ftaher GURU TEG BAHADUR SAHIB...resealed the SGGS at MUNDAWNNI MH 5 (THE SEAL) and bestowed Gurgadhee THRONE OF NANAK to SGGS in 1708 before passing away. The SGGS CANNOT be ALTERED/ADDED To or MINUS from adulterated in any way.

The GUTKAS..POTHIS..etc etc that we can get or buy in stores are...EXTRACTS from the SGGS...but whats essential to be remembered is that these "small books" are MAN MADE...selections of Gurbanis form the SGGS..and many have ADDED materials chosen by the "compiler/bookseller/author etc"....Its esssentially PRIVATE PREFERENCE chosen compositions ..some form SGGS..others form other granths/books... sources even ordinary poems sakhis vaars kabits etc added for pleasure...The SUNDER GUTKA is one of many such "perosnal" compiler books..NOT everything inside a Sunder Gutka or any other Gutka kirtan pothis etc is 100% Authentc SGGS Gurbani.

 

[Luckysingh]

The Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is a Completed sealed Manuscript 1429 pages long.

Why this number ? isn't it 1430 pages or am I missing something ?

 

[spnadmin]

Good question Luckysingh ji

The seal or ਮੁੰਦਾਵਣੀ Mundhaavanee is found on Ang 1429. That is the seal. Following is the Raagmala which was appended to SGGS sometime in the 19th Century. See Competing Perspectives on Raagmala at http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/sanatan-sikhism/26891-competing-perspectives-on-raagmala.html

Many Sikhs do not accept the Raagmala as Gurbani. The matter was so controversial in fact that Akal Takht in the end finessed the problem. Sangats may decide whether or not to recite Raagmala. All copies of SGGS must include it.

"Taking account of the Ragmala controversy, the first edition of the Sikh Rahit Maryada ratified at Sri Akal Takht Sahib in 1936 stated that bhog of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji’s paatth should be performed at Mundavani."

(Extract from the original edition of the 1936 Sikh Rahit Maryada)

" bhog should be performed at 'Mundavani or after Ragmala, according to local practice.' The concessions for allowing the reading of Ragmala were made in the spirit of Panthic harmony."

(Extract from the 1945 Sikh Rahit Maryada, accomodating the rcitation of Ragmala)

This is what you will find in SRM today.

Bhai Randhir Singh was vehemently opposed to Raagmala. Today followers of AKJ continue in those footsteps. Those who affiliate as SinghSabha for the most part do not consider Raagmala gurbani. That would include people like me who see its inclusion in SGGS as a political move. By including Raagmala you come up to 1430 pages. Without it you have 1429.

 

[Ishna]

Hi BrotherOnam ji

SGPC Rehat Maryada recommends daily recitaton of the following, which you'll find in some sunder gutkas:

Japji Sahib - Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji pages 1-8
Jaap - from the Dasam Granth (a totally different book)
Ten Sawayyas - also from the Dasam Granth

Rehras - Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji pages 8-12
Benti Chaupai, a sawayya and a dohira - Dasam Granth again
First 5 and last pauris of Anand Sahib - Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji
Mundavani and Sloka - Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji

Sohila - Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji pages 12 - 14

 

[Ishna]

I still think it's a bit trippy that the raag mala doesn't actually match the raags in SGGS. What's the point in having an index that doesn't go with body of text? There are raags left out and raags inserted that aren't even sung in SGGS.

 

[Gyani Jarnail Singh]

Lucky ji..

There are several Pages BEFORE the JapJi ..The SGGS is officially numbered PAGE ONE on the Page where Japji Begins. And The SGGS officially ends at Mundawnni mah 5
(Mundawwnni is NOT a RAAG..so its TITLE means this is the MOHR Chhap seal )
put in place by Guru Arjun ji and REAFFIRMED by GURU GOBIND SINGH JI in 1708..and this page is 1429.

ONE of the MAJOR "arguments" being put forward in favour of DG...being the "YOUNGER BRO..blah blah blah..Crown Prince etc etc..is that its Pages were DELIBERATELY KEPT at 1429..- that is one page SHORT of SGGS 1430...in order that the DG would NEVER CHALLENGE BIG BRO SGGS !!! What a CRAFTY argument...and i beleive thats why the Raagmala was ADDED after the SEAL of SGGS to make the ADDITIONAL PAGE....crafty dont you agree ??..Something like what the Fiction authors like Agatha Christie do..THEY FIRST THINK OUT and MAP the ENTIRE "WHO DID IT..did the Butler really do IT" stuff of the plot..and then begin writing the novel BACKWARDS....so in order to authenticate the DG as YOUNGER bro..Prince etc in the darbar of Big bro SGGS..they added one fictitious Page 1430....and worked backwards...WHO DID IT...must be the BUTLERS..there were many.. etc etc etc called KHIDAWEH/COOKS etc who were actually BRAHMINS..ha ha just wondering...mystery still around...japposatnamwaheguru:

 

[spnadmin]

Gyani ji

I never thought of that Agatha Christie comparison. It is very telling and helpful. Thanks welcomemunda

Ishna ji

That is a really important and semi hilarious observation about raagmala. It would be completely hilarious if it were not a matter of seriously contradicting everything else that is happening in Guru Sahib. The very first time I read Raagmala, and in those days I was basically skipping around in SGGS, I wondered,
"What is this doing here?" It seemed irreverent in its own way.

 

[Gyani Jarnail Singh]

This text from a book that syas Raagmala is from Kavis book and not Gurbani..

 

[Gyani Jarnail Singh]

Spnadmin Ji..

That about Agatha Christie used to make me wonder HOW she wrote her mysteries and solved them in the end...and then I had the good opportunity to meet in person a Hollywood actress ( whose name i cant recall off hand..) who plays MURDER SHE WROTE..almost similar murder mysteries..and i asked her this question..she laughed and said..we work BACKWARDS...First we IDENTIFY the MURDERER and how he did it..then we spin the story back into the PAST...so a person reading/watching form Page One..is kept mystified...

And then it struck me..OH..thats why Raagmala was ADDED to SGGS...working backwards to prove DG is one page SHORT..on PURPOSE !!! .when in fact BOTH granths are 1429 pages...