Source: Guru Gobind Singh, *Zafarnama* (Epistle of Victory), letter to the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, 1705.
"When all other means have failed, it is lawful to take to the sword. ... I have no faith in your oaths, even if you swear on the Quran. You [Emperor Aurangzeb] are neither sincere in your faith nor do you practice justice. ... Under the protection of the One True Creator, the Khalsa has been established to stand against oppression. No longer will the people of the Punjab submit to the cruelty of local governors or the imperial court."
Which of the following historical developments in South Asia during the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries best explains the change in the Sikh movement described in the passage?
- AThe conscious effort of Sikh leaders to merge elements of Hindu bhakti devotion and Islamic Sufism to create a syncretic religion that could unify the Mughal empire
- BThe spillover of the Sunni-Shi'a sectarian conflict between the Ottoman and Safavid empires into the Punjab, which forced Sikhs to adopt defensive military postures
- The growing political conflict and persecution by the Mughal state, which led Sikh leaders to organize a militarized community to resist imperial authorityCevap
- DThe assimilation of Sikh communities into the Mughal devshirme system, which compelled them to serve as military elites in exchange for regional autonomy
Cevap
The growing political conflict and persecution by the Mughal state led Sikh leaders to organize a militarized community (the Khalsa) to resist imperial authority.
The correct answer is correct because the passage reflects the final stage of Sikhism's transition from a pacifist devotional movement into a militarized community (the Khalsa) under Guru Gobind Singh. This transformation was a direct response to increasing political conflict, taxation, and religious persecution by Mughal authorities in the seventeenth century, notably the execution of Guru Tegh Bahadur by Emperor Aurangzeb.
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The militarization of the Sikh community (the Khalsa) arose in the context of political conflict and state persecution by the land-based Mughal Empire in South Asia.
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