Question: What plucked string instrument is associated with the singing of Shabad from the Guru Granth Sahib?

Context articles: 2015 Guru Granth Sahib desecration controversy
Sikh music
Mul Mantar
Sikh scriptures
Guru Granth Sahib
Seni rebab
Sadharan Paath
Harjinder Singh Dilgeer
Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University
Guru Gaddi

The 2015 Guru Granth Sahib desecration (also known as the "2015 Guru Granth Sahib sacrilege") refers to a series of desecration incidents of the "Sikh Guru" Guru Granth Sahib and subsequent protests that took place in Punjab, India in October 2015.
 The first incident of desecration was reported from Bargari, Faridkot district, where 110 torn Angs of the holy Guru were found on 12 October.
 On the early morning hours of 14 October, two protesters died during an unprovoked firing by the police forces, while they were sitting in on a peaceful protest.
 The incidents were also condemned by the Sikh diaspora in UK, US and Canada.
 On 20 November, the Punjab Cabinet proposed to increase the penalty for sacrilege from three years in prison to life imprisonment.
 The bill was passed on 22 March 2016.
Sikh music or Shabad kirtan is Kirtan-style singing of hymns or Shabad from the Guru Granth Sahib, the central text of Sikhism.
The Mul Mantar (Punjabi: ਮੂਲ ਮੰਤਰ , "Mūl Maṃtar ", pronounced Mool Mantar) is the first composition in the Sikh holy text and Great Living Guru, the Guru Granth Sahib, written in Punjabi.
 It is a series of affirmations and is the basis of Sikh theology, as well as the fundamental prayer.
 The Mul Mantar is the first composition of Guru Nanak Dev Ji.
 The Guru Granth Sahib begins with the Mul Mantar and it occurs more than one hundred times throughout the text where it is placed at the beginning of the particular Shabad.
 Bhai Mani Singh explains that the reason for placing the Mul Mantar at the beginning of a Shabad is that a Gursikh (Guru's Sikh) should remember that everything else will eventually be annihilated and only the Satnam (All-pervading Supreme Reality) will remain.
 It can be considered as the moral or the sole truth of the universe.
 The Mul Mantar is the most widely known part of Sikh scripture but it has posed a challenge to translators.
The principal Sikh scripture is the "Adi Granth" (First Scripture), more commonly called the "Guru Granth Sahib".
 The Sikhs do not regard this as their "holy book" but as their perpetual and current "guru", guide or master.
 It was called "Adi Granth" until Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth and final guru in human form, conferred on it the title of the guru in 1708, after which it was called "Sri Guru Granth Sahib", or "Guru Granth Sahib" for short.
 The "Granth" has 1430 pages and is divided into 39 chapters.
 All copies are exactly alike.
 The Sikhs are forbidden from making any changes to the text within this scripture.
Guru Granth Sahib (Punjabi (Gurmukhi): ("Gurū Gra°th Sāhib Jī"), ] , ) is the central religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and eternal living Guru following the lineage of the ten human Gurus of the sikh religion, of whom eight contributed the bulk.
 The "Adi Granth," the first rendition, was compiled by the fifth Sikh Guru, Guru Arjan Dev (1563–1606).
 Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, add one sloak, dhora mahala 9 ang, 1429 and he added all 115 hymns of Guru Tegh Bahadur .
 This second rendition became known as "Guru Granth Sahib".
 After Guru Gobind Singh died, Baba Deep Singh and Bhai Mani Singh prepared many copies of the work for distribution.
The Seni rebab (Punjabi: ਸੇਨੀ ਰੱਬਾਬ) is a plucked string instrument said to have been developed by, and to have taken its name from, the notable musician Tansen in the time of the emperor Akbar the Great.
 Today it is most associated with Sikh music.
Sahej Paath or Sadharan Paath or even "Khula Paath" literally means easy or simple recitation.
 It is a Paath (recitation) which can started and ended at any time; with as many or as few people participating as desired.
 The recitation of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib is started at the beginning of the Granth Sahib and the whole of the 1430 pages of the Guru Granth is read in a slow fashion over from 7 days to in some case over several months.
 It is a slow and non-regular, non-urgent reading of the whole of the Guru Granth Sahib.
Harjinder Singh Dilgeer (or Harajindara Siṅgha Dilagīra/Aeshaule) is considered an authority on Sikh history, Gurbani and philosophy.
 He is the only author who has written Complete History of the Sikhs (in 10 volumes) and has translated Guru Granth Sahib in English (7 volumes) and is in process of compiling Encyclopedia (New Mahan Kosh) of Sikh literature .
 He has written in detail about the concept and the history of Akal Takht Sahib, Sikh culture, Shiromani Akali Dal, the history of Anandpur Sahib, and Kiratpur Sahib, Dictionary of Sikh Philosophy etc. "The Sikh Reference Book" is his magnum opus.
 'The Sikh Reference Book' is an encyclopaedia consisting of more than 2400 biographies, complete chronology of Sikh history, 400 concepts of Sikh philosophy as well more than 800 Sikh shrines.
 He has produced a "Sikh Encyclopaedia" CD-ROM.
 His latest works are "Encyclopaedia of Jalandhar" (English), Banda Singh Bahadur (Punjabi and English), "Sikh Twareekh" in five volumes (a complete Sikh history, from 1469 to 2007, in Punjabi), "Sikh History" in ten volumes (a complete Sikh history, from 1469 to 2011, in English); and English translations of "Nitnaym" (the Sikh daily prayer) and Sukhmani Sahib.
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 His latest work is English translation (with explanation) of Guru Granth Sahib, in seven volumes (published in March 2016).
Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University (ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ ਵਰਲਡ ਯੂਨੀਵਰਸਿਟੀ) is a private university in Fatehgarh Sahib, Punjab, India.
 It was established under Punjab State Act 20/2008 (Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University Act) and is recognized by UGC under section 2(f) of the UGC Act, 1956.
 Sardar Prakash Singh Badal (Chief Minister of Punjab) announced the setting up of Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University at Fatehgarh Sahib, the holy place of martyrs, on the occasion of the fourth centenary celebrations of the compilation and the first installation of Sri Adi (Guru) Granth Sahib in 2004.
Guru-da-Gaddi is an important Sikh religious event held every 3 November.
 The event honors when the tenth and last Sikh Gurus when they said 'the next Guru would be the Holy Sikh Book' Guru Granth Sahib.
 Guru Gobind Singh, declared that Guru Granth Sahib would from that moment on be the Guru or the Guiding Force.
 The message was delivered on 3 November 1708 by Guru Gobind Singh at Nanded in the state of Maharashtra in India.
 Guru Gobind Singh Ji established Khalsa and conferred the status of the Guru to the Guru Granth Sahib and elevated it as the everlasting Guru.