My concept of Interfaith began to develop long before I joined the BILI Fellowship. Indeed, a diverse range of perspectives and backgrounds has always been at the center of my Sikh faith, our religion’s history, and our holy scriptures. 

To begin with, let’s start with a definition of interfaith: relating to or between different religions or members of different religions. 

The religious identity that I affiliate with is Sikhism. In the faith, the concept of interfaith is ingrained within our sacred text, the Guru Granth Sahib, in which there are two main components that point towards our concept of interfaith: (1) a diversity of writers in our holy book, and (2) the textual wisdom of our written passages. From the begining Sikhism has engaged different religions and backgrounds.

Writer Diversity in the Guru Granth Sahib

The first component is the interfaith diversity central to the Sikh faith is the Guru Granth Sahib’s diversity of writers. The text of the Guru Granth Sahib can be divided into four main categories of writers. These writers were not distinguished by their religion, caste, or background. The four main categories of writers, based on their titles (like Professor or Dr.), are known as: Gurus, Bhagats, Bhatts, and Gursikhs. All the writers, regardless of their backgrounds, are recognized as being at a stage where they are one with God.

Where the categories came from, or who they were does not really matter for the purposes of this blog. The main concept is that spiritual attainment and a sincere faith mattered more than the religion or identity from which the writers came. For example, Satta and Balvand are Muslim, Bhagat Kabir was Muslim, and Bhatt Kal Sahar was Hindu — and all have writings contained within the Guru Granth Sahib. When looking at the writers in greater detail, we see the diversity of background and caste, which emphasizes that one’s social class has no standing in the “Court of God”.

Of course, there are many religious undertones to what I mentioned above and it may seem that atheists or people of other faiths or traditions are not included. It is important to keep in mind that Sikhism is a religion that does believe in a higher power and the end goal is to reach “oneness” with that higher power. Because of this belief those who have no faith are often said to be “lost”. Because I have not reached that “oneness’’, I must therefore currently focus on myself to achieve that goal, and so judging another person’s faith is not of my concern, and nor is whether they believe or not. The only thing that I need to do in regard to others is treat them equally and justly as the scripture has suggested.  

Textual Wisdom of the Guru Granth Sahib

The second component of the religious text that points towards the concept of interfaith is in written passages of the text. Below is an example: 

ਮਾਟੀ (clay) ਏਕ (one) ਅਨੇਕ (many) ਭਾਂਤਿ ਕਰਿ ਸਾਜੀ ਸਾਜਨਹਾਰੈ ॥

ਨਾ ਕਛੁ ਪੋਚ ਮਾਟੀ (clay) ਕੇ ਭਾਂਡੇ (pot) ਨਾ ਕਛੁ ਪੋਚ ਕੁੰਭਾਰੈ (potter) ॥੨॥

(Referenced from Professor Sahib Sahib Guru Granth Sahib Steek, 1963)

In the lines above, the rough translation comes to (Translated and paraphrased in English By Simardeep Singh):

The clay is the same/one, but the Potter has fashioned it in many different ways

There is nothing wrong with the pot itself and nothing wrong with the potter

The potter, in this case, is a reference to God. Found on page 1349, the text tells us that differences are not to be pointed out and critiqued. Those differences are the result of a greater power and should be appreciated within their own context.

Interfaith and Me: a Reflection

The reason I have mentioned all the information above is because it is my identity. Interfaith, equality, and collaboration with others is a core part of the Sikh religion, and therefore a core part of my life, mindset, and identity. Through BILI, I have furthered my core Sikh commitment to interfaith and have learned through guest speakers and readings. For example, I learned how to use interfaith as a basis for reform when speaking to Elisa Rosoff and hearing about her work as a prison chaplain. Another example is how I learned about grant writing and the logistical processes that go into community and interfaith activities. There is no doubt that my knowledge has absolutely broadened and I have been introduced to a variety of new concepts, people, organizations, and thought processes invaluable to interfaith coalition building. I hope to continue this growth and development. Thanks to my Sikh Faith, I already have an interfaith mindset, and am glad to continue gaining greater insight into it. 

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*cover photo courtesy of the author.