Norwich bulletin., 1922-06-03
NTHE DAYS NEWS
The Puniab and tho slkhs

Good weather in the DakOtas. plus adequate transportation, means an ample wheat supply for the United States. In Junjab, the Dakotas of India, there is a third factor, religion, which may affect materially the wheat supply of the Brit ish Empire. This unknown quantity. religion, plays part in the geography of the East which is ohen- puzzllng to the sons of the Occident." says a bull letIn from the Washington, D. C., head quarters of the National Geographic So- ciety, concerning recent revolutionary activities in the Punjab
 ''The Sikhs. who number fewer than nine per cent of the twenty-five millions crowded into this wheat field area of Klpling's tales, constitute the present disturbing factor. And, strangely enough. this religion which probably is the closest approach to Christianity that ever sprang from west of the Suezs shows a
 development exactly opposite to that which marked the prevailing religion of
 Europe and America
 "The Christian religions generally re-
 gard the eye for an eye doctrine of the
 Old Testament to have been superseded | by the teaching regarding forgivness unto seventy times seven which is to be
 found in the New Testament. The
 Granth. or Bible. of the sikhs has in , it's early portion this injunction. If any one treat you i'll. bear 1t. If you bear ii
 three times God himself will fight for you. and humble your enemies It is in-
 teresting to note that this philosophy forms the keynote of Gandhfs activities
 However, in a second book, or New
 Testament. called Granth of the Tenth
 Reign is to be found this bit of poetry:
 I bow to the Arrow and the Cannon
 Which destroy the enemy.
 II bow to the Sword and the Rapier | ,fa1,<
 And 1t is because the latter passage
 today Is more generally adhered to by . the Sikhs, with whom religion is the most intense reality of life, that their i minority population in the Punjab has
 become an important factor in India'a f geography, economies, and political his [ l tory.
 . STne region of the five rivers which i is, the meaning of Punjah, is one of the
 best known areas of India, since it not : only is favorite Kipling locale. but also contains the semi-capital,. Simla
 the Sikh Holy City. Amritsar. of niassa-
 ere memory; and the new capital. Delhi ' with it's world-famed bazaars- The en- 7 tire Punjab comprises an area about equal to that of North and South Dakota
 It rests upon a broad base along tho : foothills of the Himalayas, and a najoi ], portion slopes between the valleys of ths s Indus and the Sutlej to an apex south.
 west of their confluence. A rectangll lies west of the Indus along the Baluohis- I'll tan border, while second triangle, viti the upper Sutlej as its base, projects to
 ward the southeast
 Near the geographical center of tn Punjab is Amritsar, city of carpets sn' s | malaria to the outside world. but. wha ,f Is more important in India. holy city o n the Sikhs. Thirty-six miles to the yves
 Is Lahore. where the founder of Sikhism A lNanak, was born less than a quarter of 1 ! century before Columbus discovere' 'd America,
 " "Nanak was. succeeded by nina gurus h or teachers. The fifth of these. Ar5nr - compiled the Granth. and the tenth '' Govind, added those portions which exal
 the sword. The last of the gurus als i initiated the ceremony of baptizing Sfk " youths with water dripping from a two
 edged sword after which they must wea n- their hair long and carry a dagger. io 'sThe standard English work on th
 | Sikh religion comprises six volumes, an :, Sikhism is one of the newer and simple
 religions of India, at thati The Sik in teachings give their women greater fre'
 dom. break down rigid caste lines. forbi o- pflgrimages to Hindu holy places. an Ie discourage the use of wines and tobacc eo SIkhism embodies the concept of a un :. veysal god rather than tribal diety. Sos is strikingly akin to Christian teachinr
 regarding family life, but 1t differs fro ed Christianity in holding fast to the Or iid ental belief in transmigration of sou he and ip a fatalisp which Is accepted mol of literally than the western mind ever a
 cepted predestination.
 "The Sikh religion developed in fh . part of India which has been a corrid
 fot many migrations and battlefield f
 centuries It has reacted upon the hid
 bound and age-long beliefs that are mo - peculiarly of the East. and ye. 1t a :. caused clashes with the British. notab ,... during the Sikh wars, because tt VI ley able to meet sword with sword. whe ssr other Indian religions often employ ted 1otshiv tbs non-co-ooeratfon tactics we Gandhfs followers"
 os.