Gurbani teaches that “the tongue utters Your (Divine) many made names, but Nam, your Being is true and is existent from the beginning (and beyond designates).” That means the titles mentioned in Gurbani possess the quality of adjectives that relate to one certain aspect of the Divine Being among the infinite; they are only based on the experience or context of a particular passage.

The purpose of the Divine Names course is to familiarize oneself with and gain appreciation for the usage of major Divine Names in Gurbani, understanding the qualities they symbolize. Some of them are easily relatable, due to their presence in the contemporary colloquial vocabulary. But some will reveal themselves in the new light, as they are rooted in the larger South Asian religious and cultural traditions.

Divine Names will discuss the etymology and connotations of each title, a lot of which emerged in the dialogue of religious, political, and social systems prevailing during the writing of Gurbani. The course will also explore how Gurbani uses, defines, and interprets these names in Gurmat perspective, if they are clearly articulated within the Guru Granth Sahib.

Interesting to anyone seeking a deeper understanding of Gurbani, we hope that this knowledge will inspire a continued engagement with the Sabad, the Guru-Word.

Find out more and register for Divine Names here.

This course has been made possible by the generous support of Dr. Arinder Singh Chadha and Manpreet Kaur Chadha.