Women in Sikhism
Equality between women and men is written into Sikh teaching from the beginning — in principle and in the community's institutions.
Equal before God
From Guru Nanak onward, Sikhi taught the spiritual equality of women and men. The Gurus rejected the idea that women were impure or lesser, and Sikh scripture honours women’s role in the created order.1,2,3
Reform in practice
Guru Amar Das put the principle into practice: he appointed women to lead congregations, and spoke against sati (widow-burning), purdah (seclusion and veiling) and female infanticide. Mata Khivi, wife of Guru Angad, is remembered for organising the langar and is named in the Guru Granth Sahib.1,2,3
Kaur, and the field
With the founding of the Khalsa in 1699, women took the name Kaur (“princess”), holding their own standing rather than one derived from a husband. Sikh history remembers women such as Mai Bhago, who led Sikh soldiers in battle. Women and men share equally in prayer, service and the reading of scripture.1,2,3
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Sources
Numbers in the text link to the work the claim rests on. Naming a work is not the same as checking every sentence against it; how entries are checked.
- Eleanor Nesbitt. Sikhism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press (2005). no page given yet
- W. Owen Cole and Piara Singh Sambhi. The Sikhs: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices. no page given yet standard academic reference on Sikh belief and practice
- Khushwant Singh. A History of the Sikhs, Volume 1: 1469–1839. Oxford University Press (2004). no page given yet