The Sikh day is built of hymns: Japji Sahib at dawn, Rehras at evening, Kirtan Sohila before sleep — the Guru's word as the day's frame.
Tagged: Daily Prayer Prayer Scripture Sikh
How It Is Practiced
Nitnem, 'the daily rule,' gathers the banis (sacred compositions) appointed for the hours: Japji Sahib, Guru Nanak's morning hymn of thirty-eight verses and the Mul Mantar, at dawn; Jaap Sahib and the Ten Savaiye in the fuller morning rule; Rehras Sahib as the sun sets; and Kirtan Sohila at bedside. The initiated (Khalsa) keep the full rule; all Sikhs are formed by its rhythm. The hymns are sung or recited from the gutka, the small prayer book, in Gurmukhi, after bathing, before the day's work.
Purpose and Meaning
In Sikh devotion the scripture is the Guru: to recite the bani is to sit in the Guru's presence and hear him. Nitnem therefore is not preparation for devotion but the devotion itself — the Word keeping the hours. Its morning begins with Japji's question ('How is truth attained, how the wall of falsehood broken?') and its answer: by living in the flow of the divine command.
References
- Nitnem — Wikipedia Free / open access
Related Practices
- Nām Simran — Meditation on the Name — The repetition of the divine Name — Vāhigurū — in meditation and through the day: the central interior practice of the Sikh path.
- Kīrtan in the Gurdwara — In the gurdwara the scripture is sung: professional and congregational singers (ragis) perform the hymns in their appointed ragas before the Guru Granth Sahib.
- The Three Daily Prayers — Jewish devotion is structured by three daily services — morning, afternoon, and evening — built around the Shema and the Amidah.
Related Across the Site
- Al-Fatiha Prayer or Creed — The opening chapter of the Qur'an, recited in every unit of the ritual prayer.
- Amidah Prayer or Creed — The standing prayer at the center of every Jewish prayer service, recited silently while standing.
- Ardas Prayer or Creed — The formal standing prayer of supplication and remembrance that frames Sikh worship and undertakings.
- Jesus Prayer Prayer or Creed — A short, repeated invocation of Jesus asking for mercy, central to the Orthodox hesychast tradition.
- Nitnem Prayer or Creed — The daily banis (hymns) prescribed for Sikh devotion: morning, evening, and night prayers from the Sikh scriptures.
- Shema Prayer or Creed — Judaism's central affirmation of the one God, drawn from Deuteronomy 6:4 and recited morning and evening.
- The Angelus Prayer or Creed — A thrice-daily prayer of versicles and Hail Marys commemorating the Annunciation and the Incarnation.
- The Lord's Prayer (Our Father) Prayer or Creed — The prayer Jesus taught his disciples in Matthew 6 and Luke 11, shared by Christians of every tradition.