Modern Sikhs and knives?

[MatthewVanitas]

Greetings. I know that one of the required practices of Sikhism (a religion native to Northern India) is that adherents carry a knife at all times.

I understand that, in the modern day, most practitioners carry small, unsharpened ceremonial knives. But I assume that the original intent was for the purposes of self-defense, as early Sikhs were persecuted by both Muslims and Hindus.

Do any modern-day Sikhs carry practical fighting knives, rather than little ceremonial blades? It is worth noting that many locations (even in Canada and Great Britain) allow Sikhs to carry their small knives in places where all other forms of knives are banned (airports, etc).

Just curious whether any modern Sikhs believe that tiny, cermonial knives defeat the original intent of their religion. Is the ceremonial vs. tactical knife a debated issue in the Sikh community?

Thanks for any info from the Sikhs or friends of Sikhs on the board. -MV

 

[Esav Benyamin]

I can't answer the question myself, not being a Sikh, but I will note that Victorinox is now making a Sikh knife, so they do think there's a market for a higher end, seriously functional production item.

I wear a "Life Knife" I bought from the knifemaker Jot Singh Khalsa. This is a tiny knife-shaped piece of jewelry on a chain, which he does very well. It's not exactly a religious emblem, but an appropriate piece of jewelry for a knife knut

I would imagine in the early days of Sikhism, since most everybody carried at least a working knife of some kind, anyway, that their martial philosophy simply stressed the idea that the knife would also be used in defense of the community.

 

[Dijos]

When I was a kid, I had a good friend that was/is Sikh. His family had the ceremonial daggers, but I don't think that any of them carried actual fighting knives. The knives were bound shut by a ribbon of some sort if I remember correctly. Jot would probably be able to answer the question best though, with his line of work&religion.

 

[Fraser]

We have many Sikhs in our neighborhood. I notice that adult males carry small knives. The children do not. Neither are allowed to carry a knife in a school environment.

 

[Thirteenth Star]

Didn't carrying a knife also become a Judeo-Christian tradition after the invasion of the Moors?