Laudable Effort

By Jagpal Singh

Wednesday, November 06, 2002 - 06:30 AM IDLW

Hew McLeod needs no introduction to readers on Sikhism. He is a
well-recognised authority on the subject. S. Khushwant Singh, in a
recent article in his column, 'This Above All' (Tribune, September,
21, 2002) identified the four top scholars of Sikhism who have done
original research on the subject. Hew McLeod was the only one from
among the Western scholars.

The Historical Dictionary of Sikhism consists broadly of three
sections: The first part is a 15-page introduction to Sikh history,
up to the tumultuous times of Bhindranwale and its aftermath. He
briefly discusses such important topics as the teachings of Gurus,
Sikh identity and approaches towards history - traditional or
established. The second, and main, section has entries on Sikh terms
and concepts arranged in alphabetical order. The third section has an
extensive bibliography of books on Sikhism.

To call it just a dictionary is an understatement; it is a mini
encyclopedia. In a dictionary, entries are generally one or two lines
long. In this book, several entries cover three quarters of a page.
McLeod, being a trained historian, offers all the prevalent views and
interpretations, traditional or otherwise, though the traditional
view is the predominant. There are cross references within entries to
similar concepts at other places in the book. This provokes the
reader into reading more on the subject.

The coverage of the dictionary is quite comprehensive. Not only are
most aspects of Sikhi - religion, history, culture, social life, etc.
- described, McLeod goes beyond that and deals with Punjabiat as a
whole. He touches upon such words as 'Amavas', 'Arya Samaj', 'Basant
Panchami', 'Grahsti', 'Gugga pir', 'Izzat', 'Parmatma', 'Parja
Mandal', 'Pooran-Mashi', 'Rakhri', 'Shradh', and 'Sohagan'.

McLeod was not born in Punjab. He lives thousands of miles away in
New Zealand, but his grasp of the subject is amazing. He fully
understands Sikh people, their psyche, and all the nuances and
details of their lives. This is clear from the vast variety of topics
he covers like Amrit Sanskar, Amrit vela, Anahad Shabad, Bal gundan,
Bana (dress of the Khalsa), Dasvandh, Ishnan, Jalau, kana (having one
eye), Kar seva, Lavaan, Man (heart, mind and soul), Manji, Panchami,
Rabab, Rangraita, Sadh Sangat, Sangrand, Sukhasan, Thag, etc. He
defines Baba as old man, a title of great respect applied to men (or
even boys) of wisdom and piety. The janam-sakhis normally use this
title for Nanak in preference to Guru.

If one wants to check quickly when did Ahmad Shah Abdali die or Massa
Rangar was killed, there is a chronology of Sikh history brought up
to 1999 - the 300th anniversary of the founding of Khalsa.

The updated Bibliography at the end is quite extensive, covering
almost all-important books on Sikhism published up to 2002. Listing
entries under appropriate subject headings is a delight for
librarians, as it offers appropriate subject headings to catalogue
books in a library. This could be helpful to any one who wants to
arrange a library's collection under topics such as Reference, Gurus,
History, Doctrine, Sacred Literature, Sects, Society, and Sikhs
Abroad. Principal sources for Sikhism in Punjabi are also listed.
Important journals are listed, with The Sikh Courier being a notable exception.

This dictionary will appeal to all kinds of readers, from academics
to students of Sikhism in universities, colleges and Gurdwara Sunday
Schools. It is, therefore, strongly recommended for all libraries -
academic, public, and private - where there is interest on Sikhism.


Amazon Books sells this book for $62 (US), $98.18 (Canada); it is
available for $26(US) from South Asia Books.

http://sikhe.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=11

Jagpal Singh Tiwana
Dartmouth, Canada