Ishna Ji,
I've often wondered the same about why mention enemies? Isn't that a mark of insecurity? Doesn't God already KNOW? Why mention enemies and their motives amidst all the love and strength of God in prayer?
What I came up with is this: we have to deal with others, have to live the domestic life, we are told not to shut ourselves off. Although the intent of our interaction with others is to help others (sarbat da bhalla), however in dealing with others there are also some who are insecure and not content. Some do and will come after you. This could be jealous relatives, people who you don't even know, they will see that you are using your energy towards something other than contributing or worrying about the spectacle of worldly existence and try to pull you down. Their brains cant make peace with the fact that you don't value what they do, and if they don't have the strength to change, they wanna see you down. This is very real.
I think Guru Gobind Singh Ji dealt with this circumstance more than any previous Guru Ji's because at this point the panth was becoming solidified, it was becoming externally powerful... and of course, those who held power on a worldly platform wanted to taint the purity, to reduce, and to bestow their rules on Guru Ji. So it was out of NECESSITY, not insecurity or ill will that Guru Ji prayed for these "enemies" (the ill intent of others) to be destroyed. This is unfortunately a very real circumstance of life and so I think its legit to be a part of the daily prayers.
This "game face" soldier identity isn't just in Sikhism though, many faiths that have endured hold onto something similar. I don't know much about Christianity but I have come across "A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at they right hand, but it shall not come nigh thee." When I read that, I thought "sava lakh se ek laudon"... this warrior spirit is not out of insecurity or weakness but a projection of strength, an extension of faith (miri piri, right?). Of course, we wish it was just love but not giving in to the weakness of others is loving them in some way I suppose, it's an encouragement for them to let go of their own fears and inhibitions and to embrace faith.
Idk. :swordfight-kudiyan:
