Learning Goal: I’m working on a religion question and need the explanation and answer to help me learn.
In Sikhism, their followers, the Sikhs, venerate and give great respect to the Guru Granth by holding different rituals and prayer readings daily, among other things that date back centuries. One of the more common occurrences is a bow down to the ground as their forehead touches the ground, showing respect to the book and submitting to the truths that it beholds to the user. Most times, offerings of food or money are also placed in front of the text as a sacrifice to its knowledge, much like ones given to Greeks gods at temples. Another way they respect the Guru Granth would be the singing of its texts after prayer, and typically have a banquet meal afterward. Although this is obligatory for all worshippers, it is not for observers who would rather just witness the experiences. By not having many ceremonies in place, Sikhs generally just worship by living morally and saying the name of the guru, to ensure that everyone can practice freely within their religion. One of the main reasons that Guru Granth is referred to as a guru, a spiritual leader/teacher, is because it is said that the book is the living word of the 10th Guru, making it his written word, similar to those of the bible. The major difference is that there were 10 gurus, the 1st and the 10th holding the most importance to Sikhism today.
