The misuse* of history among Sikhs

*Maybe misuse is the wrong word.

“The challenges posed to us by thinking about the past as shaped equally by social processes and cultural formations, by individuals and groups, by sudden events and long-term evolutions, by practices and beliefs, makes the historian’s task more exciting, as we strive to develop new methods that can capture the past in all its complexity. We may very well be on the edge of a cliff, but the view from here is breath taking.” - Victoria E Thompson

I deeply appreciate history. I find it fascinating. I see it as invaluable, and something we all should connect to and explore. However, it becomes disheartening when it is improperly used to push specific agendas. For me, history should be preserved in its autonomy - free from our nostalgic desires or attempts to revive it in the present. Times evolve, and we must embrace history for what it truly is: a slit in time, allowing us to observe a past. And we need to resist the urge to pull the past through the slit into the present.

The majority of us, I hope, can agree that history can be abused; that historical knowledge can be manipulated for various purposes beyond the academic pursuit of understanding the past. As Sikhs, I’d say we are highly aware of this, as we often find ‘our’ history being attacked and mis-constructed by others for their own agendas. However, this is something observable among Sikhs too.

The trend among Sikhs

A common practice among Sikhs who engage with history casually is to simply disseminate facts and information. Particularly online, through short TikToks, Instagram comments, and Tweets, it's become convenient to post brief historical information and then move on. While this approach increases accessibility and captures widespread interest by adapting to the concise, fast-paced nature of these social media platforms, it also tends to oversimplify complex historical narratives. The brevity required by these formats often strips away essential contexts and nuances, potentially leading to misinformation or a reductionist view of history. The simplistic approach to ‘dropping’ history and leaving, doesn’t allow space for meaningful dissection. Coupled with a lack of desire to engage in discourse, Sikh circles can become an echo chamber of sorts. Each Sikh ‘school’ engages with itself – which is no different to social media as a whole. We cater content for target audiences, and that’s plenty for us.

Recently, I have been coming across content that aims to share the ‘true’ history of Sikhs. These ‘true’ histories are shaped by heavy personal (and jathebandi) biases. It is exactly this misuse* of history, that inspired this post. In chase of immediate goals, we overlook the valuable insights historical study offers.

*Maybe misuse is the wrong word. This misuse (at least I hope) isn’t malicious, but maybe more due to inexperience.

All communities possess a historical consciousness, a lens through which they view their past to affirm their identity and beliefs. Like individual memories, collective memories can often become skewed by sentiments like nostalgia or a belief in continual progress. This is true for various groups. And it’s no different for us Sikhs, who, like others, interpret history in ways that reinforce cultural and religious identity.

History needs to be viewed from afar and understood as specific to its time. The past is sovereign, and needs to be viewed as such, which is the base of historicism.

Modern historians work under the principles of nineteenth-century historicism, striving to get at history ‘as it actually was,’ objectively. This can create tension with communities that hold their historical narratives close. History isn't just history for us Sikhs; it shapes our daily lives. Yet, many in our community explore our past through traditional, non-academic ways, which can clash with the academic approach to history.

History is not just about facts; it involves a unique and systematic method of reading, thinking, questioning, and analysing. Skills often missing among everyday users of history. Facts are just the start (and they’re not always readily available). Historians do not simply absorb information from texts. They actively analyse the authorship, genre, and intended audience, and cross-reference with other sources to grasp the text's full significance.

The autonomy of the past

Historicists believed in respecting the past's autonomy, asserting that each era is a distinct expression of human spirit, culture, and values. They argued that understanding a different age requires acknowledging how time changes life's conditions and human mentality, potentially even human nature itself.

It’s this understanding, that the passage of time alters the mentality of men and women that for me is crucial to understanding history and approaching history. And it’s this historical awareness that is missing among Sikhs that engage with history online.

Historical awareness is seen to be based on three key principles (difference, context, and process). The principle of difference acknowledges the profound changes that separate our own era from previous ones, emphasising how time has significantly altered our lifestyles. The primary duty of a historian is to recognise and assess these past differences. A major error to avoid is anachronism, meaning the mistaken belief that people in earlier times thought and acted as we do today. This difference includes not only the tangible aspects of life, such as architecture, tools, and clothing, but also, and more critically, the intangible ones like values, priorities, fears, and hopes that distinguish past generations from our own.

Context is the second key principle of historical awareness. A fundamental rule in historical research is to keep the subject within its original environment. Placing events or figures within their proper timeframe and conditions prevents the inappropriate application of values or practices.

Finally, we have process. History isn’t just a series of detailed glimpses from the past. It also involves understanding the historical process—the connections between events over time that give them greater significance than if they were viewed individually. So, if historical awareness relies on the notion of process, or continuum, we need to understand that this cuts both ways. Just as the past has shaped our current world, every aspect of our culture, behaviour, and beliefs has evolved over time. No human practice or tradition is static; all require a historical perspective to reveal the dynamics of change.

Building on the understanding and implementation of historical awareness principles can substantially enhance the way we engage with our history online. However, even with these principles in place, I believe it’s crucial to examine the underlying intentions or agendas that drive our historical discussions.

Nostalgia and Tradition

As I briefly stated earlier, the desire to present 'true' Sikhi is becoming prominent online, and I see this as rooted in deeper emotional territories such as nostalgia and the reverence of tradition. These motivations, while powerful, can sometimes colour our interpretations and lead us away from objective historical analysis.

Tradition

In all areas of life, from judicial to political, from religious institutions to educational institutions, and from cultural practices to familial practices, we see the presence of precedent – the assumption that past actions are a definitive guide for, or an authority on, what we should do in the present. And we Sikhs have immense respect for tradition.

Adhering to ancestral traditions I understand to be valuable in communities that are static and change little; for these groups, the present closely resembles the past, but this is where I am personally conflicted. As Sikh, or Akaalis, are we timeless in the sense that we are stuck in a time, or timeless in the sense that we are free from the confines of time and thus proceed alongside the process of time. I am actively trying to avoid the use of ‘progress’ as that to me implies betterment, and could open introduce a new set of challenges. I see the term 'process' as neutral, and 'progress' as evaluative, suggesting that the present is better than the past.

So, while tradition may be sentimentally appealing, using it as a life guide could lead to conflict.

Nostalgia

Nostalgia, I fear, has a huge influence on Sikhs. Nostalgia, like tradition, looks backwards, but a key difference is that it acknowledges historical change. However, it views the change solely as a decline. It typically emerges in response to recent losses and is especially prevalent in rapidly changing societies. While progress often brings anticipation and optimism, it also frequently triggers regret or alarm over the disappearance of old ways and familiar landmarks.

Nostalgia often distorts history, presenting the past as ideal; and if the past is to be ideal, then all negative aspects need to be purged. This skewed perspective can make the past seem simpler and superior to the present. This perspective is not just a flawed way to view the past, but also encourages pessimism and inflexibility today. Nostalgia romanticises the past as a better alternative to the present, rather than a foundation for it. It fuels a longing for an unreachable golden age instead of inspiring us to creatively interact with the current world. While historical awareness should deepen our understanding of the present, nostalgia often seeks to avoid it.

Tradition and nostalgia (and even seeing history as progress) each fulfil a psychological need for security—offering promises of stability, improvement, or a return to a better past. However, as guiding principles, they often force history to align with our deep-seated desires rather than factual accuracy. They prioritise belief over analysis and seek a uniform view of history, often at the cost of a broader understanding.

Concluding notes

As I wrap this up, I must admit that I know this isn’t just applicable to Sikhs. I believe this to be the norm across the world, and across the internet. Easy access to information in bite-size forms doesn’t allow space for discourse or dissection. I myself enjoy this short form access to history. However, I wish to stress the need to be aware of the flaws.

We are quick to point out inaccurate history, distorted history or incomplete history when shared by our adversaries online, yet, happily accept it when we do the same.

I do believe I’ve gone on a tangent. I wanted to comment on specific cases. The rise of Nihangta is welcomed. I for one am very excited to see this pre-colonial expression of Sikhi grow amongst Sikhs. But the method of growth, or more so the byproduct of the growth where everyone is becoming an authority on its history, doesn’t sit right with the ‘historian’ in me. I wanted to go into more detail about this, but I will leave that for another piece, as I have a lot of reading to complete.

This piece is put together using research conducted on historical practices during my undergrad, and random notes on my phone over the years. It is far from being an authority on historical awareness, tradition and nostalgia. There is without a doubt more missing than covered, and I will certainly be updating this as I dive further. We root our approach to history in nostalgia, or at least I hope that’s the case, because as I will outline in a future post, this approach of history might actually be malicious and be prompted by a mixture of confusion, insecurity and heavy personal biases. I’ll stop before I ramble on more, and will start on presenting these thoughts more coherently.

In short, and to be very blunt, the approach to history among Sikhs online borders frustrating. The nuances are ignored, and we apply a rigid, black and white, lens. But, that all said, it undeniably adds to the thrill of playing with history.

“The challenges posed to us by thinking about the past as shaped equally by social processes and cultural formations, by individuals and groups, by sudden events and long-term evolutions, by practices and beliefs, makes the historian’s task more exciting, as we strive to develop new methods that can capture the past in all its complexity. We may very well be on the edge of a cliff, but the view from here is breath taking.” -

Victoria E Thompson ‘Working within the crisis, cultural and social history: meditations on the edge of a cliff’, Cultural & Social History, 6, no. 1, 95