Kirpan - The Sikh Sword

The Kirpan is an article of faith that was revealed to the last Sikh prophet, Guru Gobind Singh, and made mandatory by him for all initiated Sikhs on March 29, 1699. Attempts to change the nature of the Kirpan or to restrict it from the Sikh uniform have always been resisted by Sikhs in the past, just as impositions against wearing of the Cross are likely to be resisted by baptized Christians. A Sikh upon his or her initiation into the Sikh faith agrees to follow the Sikh Rehat Maryada, the Sikh code of conduct. The code of conduct calls to wear a "strapped Kirpan" that is suspended near one's waist. The original language of this document is in Punjabi. An English translation of the requirement in Article XXIV, (d) states:

". . . The person to be baptized must have taken a bath and washed his or her hair and must wear all five K's - Kesh (unshorn hair), strapped Kirpan (sword), Kachhehra (prescribed shorts), Kanga (Comb tucked in the tied up hair), Karha (Steel bracelet) . . ."

The original Punjabi version of this requirement is explicit. It states that the Kirpan is to be worn using a gatra (a strap that enables a kirpan to be suspended near one's waist or tucked inside one's belt). The implication of this explicit requirement is that the Kirpan cannot be worn as a symbol. To neglect to wear one or more of the Five Ks represents a serious lapse in the Sikh religion.

The nature or the definition of Kirpan cannot be changed and The Sikh Coalition has successfully challenged all such attempts.

Judge Painter in Ohio, concurring in a judicial opinion in 1996 wrote, "To be a Sikh is to wear a kirpan--it is that simple." (http://www.sikhcoalition.org/LegalUS6.asp)

Kirpan Related Resources