Nanakpanthi

A Nanakpanthi[1] (Gurmukhi: ਨਾਨਕਪੰਥੀ )is a follower of the teachings of Guru Nanak (1469-1539), the foundational guru of a spiritual community natively known to as Nanakpanth while known world-wide as Sikhism. Nanakpanth is an open frontier that references strongly an early Sikh community, and which it cannot be cordoned by the modern signifiers Sikhism and Hinduism.

Today a large fraction of the Sindhi Hindus consider themselves not simply as Sikhs, but more precisely as Nanakpanthi, both in Pakistan[2] and in India. They generally do not sport beards or wear a turban (i.e. are sahajdhari) unlike Amritdhari Sikhs.[3] Even in the 1881 and 1891 Indian censuses, the Sindhi Hindu community could not decide to collectively identify as Hindu or Sikh.[4] In the later 1911 Census Report, Shahpur District (Punjab) reported that 12,539 Hindus (being 20 percent of the total Hindu population) identified as Nanakpanthi along with 9,016 Sikhs (being 22 percent of the total Sikh population).[5] There is no data for specific number of Nanak followers in India, but they are believed to be in crores somewhere between 10-12 crores. Karnail Singh Panjoli, member, Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee, says that there are several communities within the term ‘Nanakpanthis’ too. Apart from Sindhi Hindus, “There are groups like Sikhligarh, Vanjaarey, Nirmaley, Lubaney, Johri, Satnamiye, Udaasiyas, Punjabi Hindus etc who call themselves Nanakpanthis despite being Hindus. They along with Bhagavad gita follow Nanak and Sri Guru Granth Sahib. Within India, they are spread across states like Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana among others,”.[6]

From its early times the Nanakpanthi community extended far beyond Punjab and Sindh. Maghar, a town in Uttar Pradesh has a high proportion of Nanakpanthis.[7]

Worldwide there are nearly 30 million Khalsa Sikhs who follows the 5 Ks strictly and tied turban having long hair with beard.[8] However, there are in addition roughly 120–150 million (12–15 crore) Nanak Naam Lewas people (also known as Nankpanthi) across the world who also believe in 10 Sikh Gurus and Guru Granth Sahib.[9]

See also

References
  1. Rose, H. A. (Horace Arthur); Ibbetson, Denzil; Maclagan, Edward (1911). A glossary of the tribes and castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province : based on the census report for the Punjab, 1883 vol 3. Wellcome Library. Lahore : Printed by the superintendent, Government printing, Punjab. pp. 152.
  2. Struggling to revive Gurmukhi, Amar Guriro, Express Tribune, OCTOBER 18, 2016
  3. ETPB could disbar non-Sikh pilgrims from visiting gurdwaras in Pakistan, Times of India, Apr 27, 2018
  4. Empires of the Indus: The Story of a River - Alice Albinia ISBN 978-1-84854-786-5
  5. A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province, Vol. 1
  6. https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-who-are-nanak-naam-lewa-and-why-kartarpur-corridor-cant-be-limited-to-sikhs-6100351/lite/
  7. Nanak Kuan gets a gurdwara - Sunday, May 8, 2011, The Tribune, Chandigarh
  8. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-birmingham-50374567
  9. Goyal, Divya (2019-11-10). "Explained: Who are Nanak Naam Lewa, and why Kartarpur Corridor can't be limited to Sikhs". The Indian Express. Retrieved 2020-11-30.


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