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The '''Sant Nirankari Mission''' ({{lang-pa|ਸੰਤ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰੀ ਮਿਸ਼ਨ}}, {{lang-hi|संत निरंकारी मिशन}}, '''SNM''') and also known as '''Universal Brotherhood Mission''', is a religious or spiritual organisation based in India. The Sant Nirankari Mission identifies itself as "neither a new religion nor a sect of an existing religion, but an all-embracing spiritual movement dedicated to human welfare".<ref name="Baba Buta Singh Ji" group="SNM">{{cite web|title=History {{!}} Baba Buta Singh Ji (1873–1943) |url=http://www.nirankari.com/modules/founder/bababuta/|work=Sant Nirankari Mission|publisher=Sant Nirankari Mandal (Regd.) |accessdate=10 December 2010|location=Delhi, India }}</ref> Academics identify the group as an offshoot of ], which separated from orthodox Sikhism in 1929 CE.<ref name="Rangaswamy2007">{{cite book|author=Padma Rangaswamy|title=Namaste America|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=yy-2xNW84dsC&pg=PA269|accessdate=12 April 2012|date=30 December 2007|publisher=Penn State Press|isbn=978-0-271-02775-3|pages=269–}}</ref> The '''Sant Nirankari Mission''' ({{lang-pa|ਸੰਤ ਨਿਰੰਕਾਰੀ ਮਿਸ਼ਨ}}, {{lang-hi|संत निरंकारी मिशन}}, '''SNM''') and also known as '''Universal Brotherhood Mission''', is a religious or spiritual organisation based in India. The Sant Nirankari Mission identifies itself as "an all embracing spiritual movement, cutting across all divisions of caste, color, and creed. The Mission seeks to reveal God, also known as Nirankar, to all human beings irrespective of their religious faith, sect, or community and thus liberate them from the shackles of ignorance, superstition, ritualism, and dogmatism in the name of devotion to God." It firmly believes that the realization of God is the real objective of human life and this can be achieved only through the benevolence of the living true master: the Satguru i.e. the True Master.


The realization of God not only maintains balance between spirituality and materialism in day to day life, but also takes a person to the cherished achievement of brotherhood of mankind which leads to peaceful coexistence.
⚫ Despite the similarity of name, the group is not<ref name="Singh2009">{{cite book|author=Sardar Harjeet Singh|title=Faith & Philosophy of Sikhism|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=uhtzeompVAUC&pg=PA144|accessdate=12 April 2012|year=2009|publisher=Gyan Publishing House|isbn=978-81-7835-721-8|pages=144–}}</ref> (or is no longer<ref name="McLeod2005">{{cite book|author=W. H. McLeod|title=Historical dictionary of Sikhism|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=ma3G-hjh6SwC&pg=PA180|accessdate=12 April 2012|date=28 July 2005|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-5088-0|pages=180–}}</ref>) affiliated with the ] movement started by ]. The Sant Nirankari movement has been targeted for violence by some extremists among the orthodox ]s, who consider the group to be a heresy of Sikhism.<ref name="Gould2011">{{cite book|author=William Gould|title=Religion and Conflict in Modern South Asia|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=K2oexn_mLPIC&pg=PA237|accessdate=12 April 2012|date=31 October 2011|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-70511-0|pages=237–}}</ref>


The meditation here is to feel the existence of God all of the time and everywhere. The Mission also emphasizes the need and importance of the company of fellow enlightened beings (Satsang) and selfless service to humanity (Sewa).
⚫ The SNM has over 100 branches outside India, most prominently in Britain and North America. Its world headquarters is located in Sant Nirankari Colony, Delhi.<ref name="Organisational Outfit" group="SNM">{{cite web|title=Souvenir 50th Samagam – Organisational Outfit of Sant Nirankari Mission|url=http://www.nirankari.org/literature/books/souvenir50smg/origanisationaloutfit.htm|work=Sant Nirankari Mission|publisher=Sant Nirankari Mandal (Regd.) |accessdate=10 December 2010|location=Delhi, India}}</ref> Its leader, ], provides spiritual guidance for Nirankari devotees; the group is characterised by its focus on a living leader.<ref name="Knott">{{cite book |last=Knott |first=Kim |title=A new handbook of living religions |year=1998 |publisher=] |isbn=0-14-051407-4 |pages=756–774 |chapter=The Religions of South Asian Communities in Britain |editor1-first=John R |editor1-last=Hinnells |location=Cambridge, Mass |edition=2nd |oclc=317517572 }}</ref>
.<ref name="Baba Buta Singh Ji" group="SNM">{{cite web|title=History {{!}} Baba Buta Singh Ji (1873–1943) |url=http://www.nirankari.com/modules/founder/bababuta/|work=Sant Nirankari Mission|publisher=Sant Nirankari Mandal (Regd.) |accessdate=10 December 2010|location=Delhi, India }}</ref> Academics identify the group as an offshoot of ], which separated from orthodox Sikhism in 1929 CE.<ref name="Rangaswamy2007">{{cite book|author=Padma Rangaswamy|title=Namaste America|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=yy-2xNW84dsC&pg=PA269|accessdate=12 April 2012|date=30 December 2007|publisher=Penn State Press|isbn=978-0-271-02775-3|pages=269–}}</ref>

⚫ Despite the similarity of name, the group is not<ref name="Singh2009">{{cite book|author=Sardar Harjeet Singh|title=Faith & Philosophy of Sikhism|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=uhtzeompVAUC&pg=PA144|accessdate=12 April 2012|year=2009|publisher=Gyan Publishing House|isbn=978-81-7835-721-8|pages=144–}}</ref> (or is no longer<ref name="McLeod2005">{{cite book|author=W. H. McLeod|title=Historical dictionary of Sikhism|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=ma3G-hjh6SwC&pg=PA180|accessdate=12 April 2012|date=28 July 2005|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-5088-0|pages=180–}}</ref>) affiliated with the ] movement started by ]. <ref name="Gould2011">{{cite book|author=William Gould|title=Religion and Conflict in Modern South Asia|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=K2oexn_mLPIC&pg=PA237|accessdate=12 April 2012|date=31 October 2011|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-70511-0|pages=237–}}</ref>

⚫ The SNM has over 100 branches outside India, most prominently in Britain and North America. Its world headquarters is located in Sant Nirankari Colony, Delhi.<ref name="Organisational Outfit" group="SNM">{{cite web|title=Souvenir 50th Samagam – Organisational Outfit of Sant Nirankari Mission|url=http://www.nirankari.org/literature/books/souvenir50smg/origanisationaloutfit.htm|work=Sant Nirankari Mission|publisher=Sant Nirankari Mandal (Regd.) |accessdate=10 December 2010|location=Delhi, India}}</ref> Currently, ], provides spiritual guidance for Nirankari devotees; the group is characterised by its focus on God Realisation and Universal Brotherhood.<ref name="Knott">{{cite book |last=Knott |first=Kim |title=A new handbook of living religions |year=1998 |publisher=] |isbn=0-14-051407-4 |pages=756–774 |chapter=The Religions of South Asian Communities in Britain |editor1-first=John R |editor1-last=Hinnells |location=Cambridge, Mass |edition=2nd |oclc=317517572 }}</ref>


==History== ==History==
The founder of the Sant Nirankari Mission, Baba Buta Singh Ji was born in the year 1873 at Village Hudwal, Distt. Kaimalpur, in Pakistan. He had spiritual leaning from the very childhood and had developed a special aptitude for reciting Gurbani (holy verses from the Adi Granth).
The original Nirankari sect of Sikhism began with the reformist movement of Baba Dayal in the early 19th century. Dayal's movement emphasised the importance of a living guru, while mainstream Sikhism accepted the Sikh scriptures as the final, and current, guru of the faith. The Nirankari movement remained small and somewhat tolerated by orthodox Sikhs. In 1929, one segment of the movement, now known as the Sant Nirankari, disassociated itself from mainstream Sikhism and became an independent organisation.<ref name="Rangaswamy2007">{{cite book|author=Padma Rangaswamy|title=Namaste America|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=yy-2xNW84dsC&pg=PA269|accessdate=12 April 2012|date=30 December 2007|publisher=Penn State Press|isbn=978-0-271-02775-3|pages=269–}}</ref>

The Sant Nirankari Mission had its formal beginning on May 25, 1929, the day when Baba Avtar Singh Ji received God-knowledge from Baba Buta Singh Ji and joined him in taking the spiritual light to as many people as possible.

On December 3, 1962, while addressing a gathering of devotees at Paharganj in Delhi, Baba Avtar Singh Ji declared that hereafter they should address Gurbachan Singh Ji as Satguru, the True Master. On November 5, 1963, the entire Nirankari world saw the Satguru already manifested in him when they assembled in Delhi for the 16th Annual Nirankari Sant Samagam.

Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji was one of those great masters who lived and died for the noble cause of human unity through spiritual awakening. Throughout, he endeavored to transform the demoniac face of human society and inculcate the spirit of peaceful co-existence, love and harmony. He was pained to find people quarrelling and suffering because of hatred generated by ignorance, blind faith and superstition.
<ref name="Rangaswamy2007">{{cite book|author=Padma Rangaswamy|title=Namaste America|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=yy-2xNW84dsC&pg=PA269|accessdate=12 April 2012|date=30 December 2007|publisher=Penn State Press|isbn=978-0-271-02775-3|pages=269–}}</ref>


In the 1960s, the sudden growth of the Message of Truth delivered by Sant Nirankari Mission aroused the ire of some fundamentalists, but wi th the passage of time everyone could understand the Universality of the Mission's teachings.<ref name="Marty1996">{{cite book|author=Martin E. Marty|title=Fundamentalisms and the State: Remaking Polities, Economies, and Militance|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=doCmVaOnh_wC&pg=PA273|accessdate=12 April 2012|date=1 July 1996|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0-226-50884-9|pages=273–}}</ref> The Sant Nirkankari ''satguru'' ] was assassinated in 1980, by one Ranjit Singh, a member of the ]. The AKJ had, shortly before the killing, had been involved in protests against the Sant Nirankaris as heterodox.<ref name=SATP>{{cite web |url=http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/publication/nightsoffalsehood/falsehood4.htm |title=Punjab: The Knights of Falsehood – Psalms of Terror |date=31 December 2001 |work=South Asia Terrorism Portal |publisher=Institute for Conflict Management |location=New Delhi |accessdate=13 December 2010 }}</ref> <ref name="Marty1996">{{cite book|author=Martin E. Marty|title=Fundamentalisms and the State: Remaking Polities, Economies, and Militance|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=doCmVaOnh_wC&pg=PA273|accessdate=12 April 2012|date=1 July 1996|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0-226-50884-9|pages=273–}}</ref> <ref name=SATP>{{cite web |url=http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/publication/nightsoffalsehood/falsehood4.htm |title=Punjab: The Knights of Falsehood – Psalms of Terror |date=31 December 2001 |work=South Asia Terrorism Portal |publisher=Institute for Conflict Management |location=New Delhi |accessdate=13 December 2010 }}</ref>


== ''Avtar Bani'' == == ''Avtar Bani'' ==

Revision as of 09:48, 20 June 2012

Sant Nirankari Mission
AbbreviationSNM
FormationMay 1929
Purpose"Universal Brotherhood"
HeadquartersNirankari Colony, Delhi
- 110 009. India.
Main organSant Nirankari Mandal
Websitenirankari.org

The Sant Nirankari Mission (Template:Lang-pa, Template:Lang-hi, SNM) and also known as Universal Brotherhood Mission, is a religious or spiritual organisation based in India. The Sant Nirankari Mission identifies itself as "an all embracing spiritual movement, cutting across all divisions of caste, color, and creed. The Mission seeks to reveal God, also known as Nirankar, to all human beings irrespective of their religious faith, sect, or community and thus liberate them from the shackles of ignorance, superstition, ritualism, and dogmatism in the name of devotion to God." It firmly believes that the realization of God is the real objective of human life and this can be achieved only through the benevolence of the living true master: the Satguru i.e. the True Master.

The realization of God not only maintains balance between spirituality and materialism in day to day life, but also takes a person to the cherished achievement of brotherhood of mankind which leads to peaceful coexistence.

The meditation here is to feel the existence of God all of the time and everywhere. The Mission also emphasizes the need and importance of the company of fellow enlightened beings (Satsang) and selfless service to humanity (Sewa). . Academics identify the group as an offshoot of Sikhism, which separated from orthodox Sikhism in 1929 CE.

Despite the similarity of name, the group is not (or is no longer) affiliated with the Nirankari movement started by Baba Dayal.

The SNM has over 100 branches outside India, most prominently in Britain and North America. Its world headquarters is located in Sant Nirankari Colony, Delhi. Currently, Satguru Baba Hardev Singh Ji Maharaj, provides spiritual guidance for Nirankari devotees; the group is characterised by its focus on God Realisation and Universal Brotherhood.

History

The founder of the Sant Nirankari Mission, Baba Buta Singh Ji was born in the year 1873 at Village Hudwal, Distt. Kaimalpur, in Pakistan. He had spiritual leaning from the very childhood and had developed a special aptitude for reciting Gurbani (holy verses from the Adi Granth).

The Sant Nirankari Mission had its formal beginning on May 25, 1929, the day when Baba Avtar Singh Ji received God-knowledge from Baba Buta Singh Ji and joined him in taking the spiritual light to as many people as possible.

On December 3, 1962, while addressing a gathering of devotees at Paharganj in Delhi, Baba Avtar Singh Ji declared that hereafter they should address Gurbachan Singh Ji as Satguru, the True Master. On November 5, 1963, the entire Nirankari world saw the Satguru already manifested in him when they assembled in Delhi for the 16th Annual Nirankari Sant Samagam.

Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji was one of those great masters who lived and died for the noble cause of human unity through spiritual awakening. Throughout, he endeavored to transform the demoniac face of human society and inculcate the spirit of peaceful co-existence, love and harmony. He was pained to find people quarrelling and suffering because of hatred generated by ignorance, blind faith and superstition.

Avtar Bani

The Avtar Bani outlines the key philosophy of the Sant Nirankari Mission, and serves as a holy book for the devotees. It is named after its author Shahenshan Baba Avtar Singh. Its initial version was first published in 1957. Its predecessor, the Sampuran Avtar Bani ("complete Avtar Bani") was published in 1965. The Avtar Bani was originally written in Punjabi verse, but some stanzas were in the Urdu and Sindhi language. It contains 376 hymns which describe the qualities of Formless God (Nirankar), the important role of a spiritual in attaining God-realisation, the kindness and grace of the "True Master", the purpose of human life, the five fundamental principles, true devotion and how a man can lead a saintly life. It has been published in Gurumukhi, Devnagari, Urdu and Roman scripts. It has also been translated and published in English (verse and prose), Hindi, Bengali, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Nepali and Marathi verse.

Nirankari Museum

The Nirakari Museum was officially launched by Satguru Baba Hardev Singh Ji Maharaj on 22 February 2005. The museum is located within the Sant Nirankari Sarovar in North Delhi, and depicts the history of the Nirankari Mission through audio-visuals and pictures.

Notes and references

  1. ^ Padma Rangaswamy (30 December 2007). Namaste America. Penn State Press. pp. 269–. ISBN 978-0-271-02775-3. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
  2. Sardar Harjeet Singh (2009). Faith & Philosophy of Sikhism. Gyan Publishing House. pp. 144–. ISBN 978-81-7835-721-8. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
  3. W. H. McLeod (28 July 2005). Historical dictionary of Sikhism. Scarecrow Press. pp. 180–. ISBN 978-0-8108-5088-0. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
  4. William Gould (31 October 2011). Religion and Conflict in Modern South Asia. Cambridge University Press. pp. 237–. ISBN 978-0-521-70511-0. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
  5. Knott, Kim (1998). "The Religions of South Asian Communities in Britain". In Hinnells, John R (ed.). A new handbook of living religions (2nd ed.). Cambridge, Mass: Penguin Books Canada Ltd. pp. 756–774. ISBN 0-14-051407-4. OCLC 317517572.
  6. Martin E. Marty (1 July 1996). Fundamentalisms and the State: Remaking Polities, Economies, and Militance. University of Chicago Press. pp. 273–. ISBN 978-0-226-50884-9. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
  7. "Punjab: The Knights of Falsehood – Psalms of Terror". South Asia Terrorism Portal. New Delhi: Institute for Conflict Management. 31 December 2001. Retrieved 13 December 2010.
  8. Singh, Nirankari Baba Avtar (2001) . Sagar, Kirpa (ed.). Sampūraṇa Awatāra bāṇī (in English and Panjabi (Panjabi in roman script)). Translated by Amrik Singh (3rd ed.). Delhi: Sant Nirankari Mandal. OCLC 54861839. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |laydate= (help); Unknown parameter |laysummary= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  9. "Our Staff Reporter" (23 February 2005). "Nirankari Museum inaugurated". The Hindu. Chennai, Madras, India: Kasturi and Sons Ltd. OCLC 35304678. Retrieved 11 December 2010.
  10. Tribune News Service (24 February 2005). "A museum of spiritual panorama". The Tribune, Chandigarh, India. Chandigarh, Indi: The Tribune Trust. OCLC 47351219. Retrieved 11 December 2010.


References from Sant Nirankari Mandal website

  1. "History | Baba Buta Singh Ji (1873–1943)". Sant Nirankari Mission. Delhi, India: Sant Nirankari Mandal (Regd.). Retrieved 10 December 2010.
  2. "Souvenir 50th Samagam – Organisational Outfit of Sant Nirankari Mission". Sant Nirankari Mission. Delhi, India: Sant Nirankari Mandal (Regd.). Retrieved 10 December 2010.
  3. Singh, Nirankari Baba Avtar (1976). Awatāra bāṇī. English version by Gurbachan Singh Nirankari (G.S. Bhatia). Delhi: Sant Nirankari Mandal. OCLC 13611411. ASIN B0006E107M, Avtar bani. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 January 1999. Retrieved 11 December 2010. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |laydate= (help); Unknown parameter |laysummary= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  4. "SNM History – Baba Avtar Singh Ji". Sant Nirankari Mission. Delhi, India: Sant Nirankari Mandal (Regd.). Retrieved 11 December 2010.

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