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A Hukamnama ( Punjabi: ਹੁਕਮਨਾਮਾ, translit. ''Hukamanāmā''), in modern-times, refers to a hymn from the
The tradition of issuing ''hukamnamas'' began in the period of the early seventeenth century, during the time of Guru Hargobind. The Sikh gurus issued many edicts throughout their life, some of whom have been preserved and are documented in various writings by scholars. A collection of hukamnamas, whose gathering is attributed to Randhir Singh, have been studied. Serious academic research into the hukamnamas only began in the early 20th century. After the passing of Guru Gobind Singh, hukamnamas were also issued by his widow,
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 ...
which is given as an injunction, order, or edict to 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 ...
s. It also refers to edicts issued by the contemporary Takhts. In the historical sense, it was used to refer to an issued injunction, order, or edict given by one of the Gurus
Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan- Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverenti ...
of Sikhism
Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
or their officiated followers and associates during their lives.
Nowadays, after the period of human gurus, The Hukumnama refers to a hymn from a randomly selected left hand side page from the Guru Granth Sahib on a daily basis in the morning. This is seen as the order of God for that particular day. The Hukamnama is distributed and then read aloud in Gurdwaras throughout the world.
Etymology
Hukamnama, is a compound of two words ''hukam'', meaning command or order, and ''namah'', meaning statement.Collections and research
The tradition of issuing ''hukamnamas'' began in the period of the early seventeenth century, during the time of Guru Hargobind. The Sikh gurus issued many edicts throughout their life, some of whom have been preserved and are documented in various writings by scholars. A collection of hukamnamas, whose gathering is attributed to Randhir Singh, have been studied. Serious academic research into the hukamnamas only began in the early 20th century. After the passing of Guru Gobind Singh, hukamnamas were also issued by his widow, Mata Sahib Kaur
Mata Sahib Devan (1 November 1681 – 1747, pa, ਮਾਤਾ ਸਾਹਿਬ ਦੇਵਾਂ) was the wife of Guru Gobind Singh. She was the daughter of Har Bhagwan Devan (alias ''Ramu''), a Bassi Khatri of Rohtas, Jhelum District.
Mata Sahib ...
and by his disciple, Banda Singh Bahadur
Banda Singh Bahadur (born Lachman Dev) (27 October 1670 – 9 June 1716), was a Sikh warrior and a commander of Khalsa army. At age 15, he left home to become an ascetic, and was given the name Madho Das Bairagi. He established a monastery ...
.
The Sikh Reference Library
The Sikh Reference Library was a repository of an estimated 20,000 literary works located in the Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) at Amritsar, Punjab (India), Punjab which was destroyed during Operation Blue Star. Kaur, Jaskaran; Crossette, Barb ...
located at Amritsar held many authentic hukamnamas. These were lost after the events of Operation Blue Star
Operation Blue Star was the codename of a military operation which was carried out by Indian security forces between 1 and 10 June 1984 in order to remove Damdami Taksal leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and his followers from the buildings of ...
in 1984.Kaur, Jaskaran; Crossette, Barbara (2006)., http://ensaaf-org.jklaw.net/publications/reports/20years/20years-2nd.pdf This collection was studied and published in two separate books by Ganda Singh
Ganda Singh, whose home town was Ferozepur in India, was a prominent member of the Ghadar Party. He spent some time in Hankou, China, where he met Chiang Kai-shek. in 1926, and M. N. Roy, in 1927. On the occasion of the visit of the former, he w ...
and Shamsher Singh Ashok in the late 1960's.
Example
Taken from Advanced Studies in Sikhism page 33 by Jasbir Singh and Harbans Singh, the following is an example ''Hukamnama'' byGuru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh (; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), born Gobind Das or Gobind Rai the tenth Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed by Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind Sing ...
:
See also
•Gurmata
A Gurmata ( Punjabi: ਗੁਰਮਤਾ, literally, 'Guru's intention' or 'advice of the Guru'), alternatively romanized as Gurumatta, is an order upon a subject that affects the fundamental principles of Sikh religion and is binding upon all Si ...
, a term used to refer to binding resolutions issued by the Sarbat Khalsa
References
Bibliography
* {{Cite book , last=Sagar , first=Sabinderjit Singh , url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/55679906 , title=Hukamnamas of Guru Tegh Bahadur : a historical study , date=2002 , publisher=Guru Nanak Dev University , isbn=81-7770-047-2 , location=Amritsar , oclc=55679906 Sikh scripture