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Summary of Question:	Re: Miri & Piri
Category:	General Sikhism
Date Posted:	Tuesday, 7/29/2003 6:09 AM MDT

Sat Shri Akaal!

I just wanted to say that i found this post and reply very thought provoking.

First of all i just wanted to ask, The Miri & Piri are the two swords on each side of the tall sword in the Khanda arent they? If so what does the large sword stand for?

The truth is when i think of Miri, Piri i just think of it from something back in the day that symbolises sikhi. I have never thought of what it means to us in this day and age.

I once asked a question on sikhnet about Guru Nanak Dev Ji beliving in peace and Guru Gobind Singh Ji was a warrior and i thought it contridicted its self. However the reply said something like Guru Gobind singh ji had to be a warrior for sikhi to servive but was still very much a saint.

It makes a lot of sence to me now coz iv been reading a lot more, but i thought that in this day and age we all need to be warriors as more people are just giving in to the beliefs and norms of society, just to fit in instead of standing up for what they believe in, And we all need to be as 'saint'ly' as possible (if you get what i mean) to do our best to fulfill the guruji's wishes.

I dont know if im making much sence, but i think every one has their own 'demons' (so to speak) and whether there personal or external every day we have to be a warrior for some reason or an other, whether its just to make it safely through the day, or to put food on the table, or to stand up for what you believe in. & we have to be Kind, Loving , Foregiving and gentle which represents the saint.

Well im sorry for babbling on, the truth is i dont know whether i got what i was trying to say accross coz i found it quite difficult to write what i was feeling, & if i said it all wrong im sorry for wasting ur time.

Thank you for reading my confusing post.

God Bless

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I will try to pick out what was not confusing to me. The Khanda in the middle represents the yin/yang of life. With every darkness, there is a light; with every negative comes a positive. It also represents that with every action, there is a consequence.

You mentioned Guru Nanak and Guru Gobind Singh. Guru Nanak was a holy man for peace, but if you think about it, he was definitely a warrior of his own right. He "battled" with the narrow and corrupt minds of the time. It took great courage and warrior spirit to break away from the norm of the times and do what he did. One does not have to be violent to be a warrior. Guru Nanak is at the top of the list of non-violent revolutionaries, along with Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandella and anyone else who dared to challenge the powers that be. Guru Gobind Singh was a result of many years of bloodshed, betrayal, torture and manipulation of the Mogul rules of the time. If you remember, the Gurus before him tried to do things peacefully, without violence. Then, Guru Hargobind realized that the time had come to take up the sword. He was the first one to introduce the concept of Miri Piri. Guru Hargobind and Guru Gobind Singh took up the sword to defend righteousness, not just for Sikhs but for anyone. They did not attack, but defended what was precious, the right to worship God as one wishes. Some times taking up arms was justified. (I do not think that taking up arms today is justified under most circumstances, but thats a different subject.)

I hope this makes sense to you. Blessings. GTKK