In his autobiography Bachitra Natak, Shri Guru Govind Singh Dev has claimed that he was a descendant of Lord Rama's younger son Lava, and that Guru Nanak Dev was a descendant of Lord Rama's elder son Kusha (2/18-34, 2/52, 4/1-10 and 5/1-10). This statement is confirmed in several other authentic source-books of Sikhism. One would thus think that the birthplace of Lord Rama is a matter of deep significance to the Sikh Panth, and that the links of the Sikh tradition to the other Vaishnava traditions are very strong.
The birthplace of Shri Rama, and its liberation from alien occupation, are matters of great importance to millions of devotees throughout the length and breadth of India. The great pan-Indic Ramayana tradition has its regional counterparts in the form of many little traditions in the regional literatures and sub-cultures of India. Sikh traditions and history also have much to contribute in this regard, though their importance and centrality in this debate has often been overlooked. In the Hindi book under review, "Sikh Itihas Mein Shri Ram Janmabhoomi", the author Rajendrasingh, brings home this point, in his superb survey of the history of the Sikh Panth, in its interaction with the Mughal empire, from the dawn of Babar's misrule to the twilight of Aurangzeb's tyranny.
The name of God most often lauded in the Granth Sahib, after that of Hari is
Ram. Ram, Raja Ram, Raghunath and such other words occur approximately 2500
times in the Granth. In the Ramapurva Tapaneeya Upanishad, the various meanings
of the word Rama are explained as follows: "Raajate vaa maheem sthitah san iti
Raamah" that is, he who is on the earth and fulfills the deires of his devotees
and is hailed as a king, is Rama. In other words, when Sacchidanand or
Mahavishnu or Shrihari incarnated in the home of Dasharatha in the family of
Raghu, He was named Rama. At whose hands, Rakshasas are destroyed, He is Rama.
Or He who renders the Rakshasas powerless in His human form, is Rama. By his
ideal behaviour, He guides kings in the way of Dharma. The utterance of His name
results in the attainment of the way of Jnana. He grants Vairagya when He is
meditated upon. He grants prosperity when his image is worshipped. For these
reasons did His name become famous on the earth as Rama. The Vedas say that in
fact yogis dwell (Sanskrit: Ram-) in the endless, ever-joyous, self-absorbed
Brahma state, and so Parabrahma Universal Soul (Paramatma) is itself described
as the Rama state. Thus, although Brahma is self-absorbed, non-dual, undivided
and devoid of the five-elemental body, it manifests as a conscious body in order
to fulfil the Bhaktas' desires. For love of the Bhaktas, the Nirakar (formless)
Brahma assumes Narakaar (human form).
