Daya (

Gurmukhi Gurmukhī ( pa, ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ, , Shahmukhi: ) is an abugida developed from the Laṇḍā scripts, standardized and used by the second Sikh guru, Guru Angad (1504–1552). It is used by Punjabi Sikhs to write the language, commonly r ...

: ਦਯਾ or ਦਇਆ) or compassion is a fundamental teaching of the Sikh religion and teachings can be found on Daya. The other four qualities are ''truth'' (

sat The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and scoring have changed several times; originally called the Scholastic Aptitude Test, it was later called the Schol ...

), ''contentment'' (

santokh {{Primary sources, date=June 2019 Santokh (Gurmukhi: ਸੰਤੋਖ) means "contentment" and is one of five virtues that is vigorously promoted by the Sikh Gurus. The other four qualities in the arsenal are: "Truth" ( Sat), "Compassion" ( Daya), ...

), ''humility'' (

nimrata Nimrata (Gurmukhi: ਨਿਮਰਤਾ ''nimaratā'') is an important virtue that is vigorously promoted by Gurbani and Sikh history. The literal translation of this Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or rel ...

) and ''love'' (

pyaar Pyār (Punjabi: ਪਿਆਰ ''pi'āra'') is the Punjabi and Hindi word for love. It is derived from Sanskrit priya (love) and kāra (act). It is one of the five virtues of Sikhism. See also * Five Virtues In Sikhism, the Five Virtues are ...

). These five qualities are essential to a Sikh and it is their duty to meditate and recite the

Gurbani Gurbani ( pa, ਗੁਰਬਾਣੀ) is a Sikh term, very commonly used by Sikhs to refer to various compositions by the Sikh Gurus and other writers of Guru Granth Sahib. In general, hymns in the central text of the Sikhs, the Guru Granth Sahi ...

so that these virtues become a part of their mind. The importance of Daya can be seen from the following Shabads from

Guru Granth Sahib The Guru Granth Sahib ( pa, ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ) is the central holy religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and Guru Maneyo Granth, eternal Guru following the lineage of the Sikh gur ...

: This concept says to not ignore tragedies that take place in the world but to face them head-on and do whatever is possible within one's means. As a

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

one must feel the pain and suffering of other people involved in any tragedy.

Daya in Sikhism

(usually spelt daia in Punjabi), from

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

"daya" meaning "to sympathize with, to have pity on, stands for compassion, sympathy". It means ‘suffering in the suffering of all others’. It is deeper and more positive in sentiment than sympathy. , cognitively, observes alien pain; affectively, it gets touched by it and moves with affectional responses for the sufferer; and cognitively it moves one to act mercifully, pityingly, with kindness and forgiveness. One imbued with “chooses to die himself rather than cause other people to die,” says

Guru Nanak Gurū Nānak (15 April 1469 – 22 September 1539; Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ; pronunciation: , ), also referred to as ('father Nānak'), was the founder of Sikhism and is the first of the ten Sikh Gurus. His birth is celebrated wor ...

(GG, 356). is a divine quality and a moral virtue highly prized in all religious traditions. In the

Sikh Scripture The principal Sikh scripture is the Adi Granth (First Scripture), more commonly called the Guru Granth Sahib. The second most important scripture of the Sikhs is the Dasam Granth. Both of these consist of text which was written or authorised by th ...

, (super compassionate), (lord of compassion), (merciful god), , (the merciful one), etc., have been used as attributive names of God (GG, 249, 991, 1027, 727). In

ethics, too, is inter alia, a basic moral requirement, a moral vow. “Keep your heart content and cherish compassion for others; this way alone can your holy vow be fulfilled” (GG 299). At the human level, one can comprehend feeling of another's anguish, but as a theological doctrine it is to risk allowing suffering in God's life. This has often caused much controversy in theological circles. God does not suffer in the sense of pain from evil as evil, but may suffer compassion () as bearing the pain of others to relieve them (of pain as also of evil). That is why at the time of Babar's invasion of India,

, when he witnessed the suffering of people, complained to God: The Guru, in the image of God, is also daial purakh (compassionate being) and (forgiver)—GG, 681. Daya is a virtue of the mind. In

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

n thought, virtues are classified into (i) those of the body: (charity), (giving succor to those in distress), (social service); (ii) those of speech: (veracity), (beneficial speech), (sweet speech), (reciting of scriptures) and (iii) those of the mind which, besides , also include (unworldliness) and (reverence and piety). In

thought is considered the highest virtue: {{Quote, Daya is, in reality, true action or action par excellence (karni sar)
as are truth and contentment, the other two high virtues, (GG, 51)

Bibliography

1. Sher Singh, The Philosophy of Sikhism. Lahore, 1944 2. Nripinder Singh, The Sikh Moral Tradition. Delhi, 1990 3. Avtar Singh, Ethics of the Sikhs. Patiala, 1970. Above adapted from article By J. S. Neki
Concepts In Sikhism - Edited by Dr. Surinder Singh Sodhi
Sikh terminology