Sohila

In the Guru Granth Sahib, five Sabads are recorded under the title ‘Sohila’ from pages 12 to 13. A note ‘sohila panc sabad’ (Sohila comprising five Sabads) or ‘sohila arti panc sabad’ (Sohila Arti comprising five Sabads) is found to be written under the ‘index of rags’ (musical modes) of the manuscripts of the Guru Granth Sahib. The details of these five Sabads are as follows:
sohilā rāgu gaüṛī dīpakī mahalā 1. jai ghari kīrati ākhīai... .4.1.
rāgu āsā mahalā 1. chia ghar chia gur chia updes… .4.2.
rāgu dhanāsarī mahalā 1. gagan mai thālu ravi candu dīpak bane... .4.3.
rāg gaüṛī pūrabī mahalā 4. kāmi karodhi nagaru bahu bhariā... .4.4.
rāg gaüṛī pūrabī mahalā 5. karaü benantī suṇahu mere mītā... .4.5.

This Bani is usually recited on three occasions: at night before going to bed, while doing the sukhasan of the Guru Granth Sahib, and after a deceased person’s cremation. It is also a part of the nitnem (daily routine) of the Sikhs. It is recorded in the Guru Granth Sahib after ‘So Daru’ and ‘So Purkh’ and before ‘Siri Rag.’ It seems that until the compilation of the Guru Granth Sahib, only the Banis from pages 1 to 13 (‘Japu’ Ji Sahib, So Daru, So Purkhu, and Sohila) were recited in the nitnem (daily routine). The following view of Giani Badan Singh also bears witness to this: “Just like there are three sandhyas of the three times, that is morning, afternoon and evening, similarly, in Guru ji’s tradition ‘Japu’ Ji is recited in the morning, ‘Rahras’ is recited in the evening, and ‘Sohila’ is recited before going to bed; these are the three sandhyas.”

This Bani is relatively short. Giani Haribans Singh is of the opinion that this is because a person gets tired of working all day, and so reading a short Bani is easier. According to him, ‘Sohila’ is a song of spiritual joy and gives happiness and optimism to the seeker. By reciting and listening to it with a focused mind, consciousness remains absorbed in IkOankar. It is a popular belief that nightmares do not appear in sleep at night then. The state of ‘soi acintā jāgi acintā’ (sleep without worry, awake without worry) is achieved. Bhai Santokh Singh, while urging all to recite Sohila at night, writes in ‘Gur Pratap Suraj Granth’ that by reciting it, many kinds of obstacles are destroyed: simran satinām ko karai. supatan same sohilā rarai. bighan anekan ko hoi nās. sadā dharai satigur kī ās [a person who remembers the true dentification Nam) and recites Sohila before going to bed, finds many of their obstacles destroyed, and always hopes for the Satiguru].

Meaning of ‘Sohila’
‘Sohila’ literally means a song of happiness or married bliss. But in the context of this Bani, ‘Sohila’ means the Bani, which represents the joyful songs of praises of the Creator.

According to Prof. Sahib Singh, “The songs that women sing on gathering together at night during a bride’s wedding are called ‘Sohilre.’ These songs contain some emotions of separation from friends and parents, which are experienced by the girl at the time of her marriage, and some blessings, that she may go to her husband’s house and live there happily.”

Dr. Sohinder Singh Vanjara Bedi has interpreted the meaning of ‘Sohila’ as a form of a wedding song, which is sung at the bridegroom’s house in his praise. Songs of Sohila are sung several days before the wedding when the guests, especially the married sisters, come to their maternal home. Sometimes songs of Sohila are sung during the engagement as well. The wishes, desires, and dreams of the sister, sister-in-law, and mother are expressed in the songs of Sohila. In some songs of Sohila, praises of the maternal home, praises of the father, the glory of the mother, admiration of the groom, and the wishes related to the arriving daughter-in-law are sung.

Subject of the Bani
The central idea of this Bani is that the lifespan of a human being is reducing day by day. The sole purpose of life is to earn the treasure of Identification (Nam) by joining the company of the truth-oriented beings (sat-sangat) to experience the presence of IkOankar. The Creator’s light is pervasive in the entire creation, which illuminates from within a being through the Guru’s teachings. The transcendent IkOankar has no form or color, but all visible forms and colors are IkOankar’s. The various elements of nature are at work under IkOankar’s order. This is the ‘Arti’ of the transcendent IkOankar, which is happening on its own. Through the grace of the Wisdom (Guru), the five vices (lust, anger, greed, ego, and attachment) are destroyed. Consciousness is connected to IkOankar, by which one easily crosses over the world-ocean.

According to Shabdarth Sri Guru Granth Sahib, this composition’s thought-flow saves the mind from distractions and helps it focus while also showing unity in the creation’s diversity. “Metaphor is repeatedly used to explain the message more easily. Somewhere, on the arrival of the newly-wed bride in the house, the female relatives are pouring oil at the door. Somewhere, IkOankar’s unity in diversity is shown by describing the same sun as the cause of many seasons, months, days, and nights. Somewhere, behind the physical world the illumination of one Divine light is described in the form of ‘Arti.’ Somewhere, the human is described to have been pricked by the thorn of ego and made to limp.”

Sohila or Kirtan Sohila?
In the Guru Granth Sahib, the title of this Bani is ‘Sohila,’ but it is popularly known as ‘Kirtan Sohila.’ It is possible that due to the combination of the word ‘kirati,’ which appears in the first line of the first Sabad, and the word ‘sohila’, which appears in the second line, it became popular as ‘Kirati Sohila’ and then as ‘Kirtan Sohila.’ But Giani Haribans Singh says that in the past, kirtan was performed at Gurduaras after the recitation of So Daru. After kirtan, the Sabads of Arti and the Bani of Sohila were recited. As stated in Bhai Mani Singh’s Gyan Ratnawali, ‘Recite Rahiras in the evening, then sing kirtan, then read Sohila when the first quarter of the night has passed.’ Because of the kirtan being sung before this Bani, its name became popular as ‘Kirtan Sohila.’ Bhai Kahn Singh Nabha and Bhai Joginder Singh Talwara are of the opinion that the line ‘titu ghari gāvahu sohilā’ gives a clear indication that this Bani is for singing, and that is why it is called ‘Kirtan Sohila.’ The Puratan Janamsakhi also confirms the singing of this Bani:
“Then Baba ordered the congregation to sing kirtan. Then the congregation started singing kirtan.1. Rag Gauri Purbi, First Embodiment.
tab bābai saṅgati nūn hukamu kītā kīrtanu paṛahu. tab saṅgati lagī kīrtanu paṛaṇi.1. rāg gaüṛī pūrbī mahalā 1
sohilā rāgu gaüṛī dīpakī mahalā 1. jai ghari kīrati ākhīai...nānak se dih āvanni.4.1.
rāg āsā mahalā 1 chia ghar chia gur chia updes...nānak karte ke kete ves.2.2.
dhanāsarī rāg hoyā. ārtī gāvī. titu mahil kīrtanu hoā sabadu. tab salok paṛiā pavaṇu gurū pāṇī pitā....ketī chuṭī nāli.1.”

This narrative is related to Guru Nanak Sahib’s event merging into the eternal Light (joti jot samana). Consequently, it is also thought that the recitation of this Bani after lighting the funeral pyre of the dead started during Guru Nanak Sahib’s lifetime.

Sabad 1
Out of the five Sabads under the title ‘Sohila,’ this is the first Sabad recorded on page 12 of the Guru Granth Sahib. This Sabad is revealed by Guru Nanak Sahib (1469-1539) in Rag Gauri Dipki. This Sabad has four stanzas, with one stanza of ‘rahau’ separate from these. This Sabad is also recorded under the title ‘gaüṛī purbī mahalā 1,’ on page 157, in Rag Gauri Purbi with a slight difference of a few letters/ending vowel symbols.

Sabad 2
Out of the five Sabads under the title ‘Sohila,’ this second Sabad is recorded on page 12 of the Guru Granth Sahib. This Sabad is also revealed by Guru Nanak Sahib (1469-1539) in Rag Asa. This Sabad comprises two stanzas. One stanza of ‘rahau’ is separate from these. This Sabad is also recorded on page 357 in Rag Asa with a slight difference of a few letters/ending vowel symbols. There its title is ‘āsā mahalā 1.’

Sabad 3
Out of the five Sabads under the title ‘Sohila,’ this third Sabad is recorded on page 13 of the Guru Granth Sahib. This Sabad is revealed by Guru Nanak Sahib (1469-1539) in Rag Dhanasari. This Sabad comprises four stanzas. One stanza of ‘rahau’ is separate from these. This Sabad is also recorded on page 663 in Rag Dhanasari with a slight difference of a few letters/ending vowel symbols. There its title is ‘dhanāsarī mahalā 1 ārtī.’

Regarding ‘Arti,’ it is also said that once the celebrated Panjabi actor Balraj Sahni asked the famous Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore [Nobel Laureate], you have already composed a national song for the country [India], why don’t you write a global song, common for all of humanity? Tagore replied that a song even greater in scope than a global song, written for the entire creation, had already been composed in the sixteenth century by Guru Nanak in the form of ‘Arti.’ Tagore has also translated ‘Arti’ in the Bengali language.

According to the Hindu belief, worshipping an idol of a deity or a revered personality by rotating the lamps in a circular motion is called ‘Arti.’ These lamps, numbering from one to hundred, are lit and rotated four times up and down in a circular motion in front of the feet, twice in front of the navel, once in front of the face, and seven times in front of the whole body.

Sabad 4
Out of the five Sabads under the title ‘Sohila’ this is the fourth Sabad recorded on page 13 of the Guru Granth Sahib. This Sabad is revealed by Guru Nanak Sahib (1469-1539) in Rag Gauri Dipki. This Sabad has four stanzas. One stanza of ‘rahau’ is separate from these. This Sabad is also recorded on page 171 in Rag Gauri Purbi with a slight difference of a few letters/ending vowel symbols. There its title is ‘gauri purbi mahalā 4.’

Sabad 5
Out of the five Sabads under the title ‘Sohila,’ this is the last, recorded on page 13 of the Guru Granth Sahib. This Sabad is revealed by Guru Arjan Sahib (1563-1606) in Rag Gauri Purbi. This Sabad has four stanzas, with one stanza of ‘rahau’ separate from these. It is also recorded on page 205 in Rag Gauri, under the title ‘gaüṛī mahalā 5,’ with a slight difference of a few letters/ending vowel symbols.