1 B&bi Ndnak. 27
2 have a right to seek it for themselves. Similarly,
3 tyie worship of God is not the exclusive privilege of
4 a priesthood ; it is a service in which every man has
5 an equal right to participate, a duty which cannot
6 T^e performed by one man on behalf of another.^ It
7 must be conducted, in the spirit of truth and sim-
8 plicity, and needs neither incense, nor burnt-offering,
9 nor sacrifice. >
10 In the doctrines of Nanak morality holds a higher
11 place than in those of any other Hindu reformer.
12 Few, even of the world's greatest philosophers, have
13 laid down a more exalted moral code than is to be
14 found in the pages of the Granth Sahib. Purity of
15 life is set forth as the highest object of human
16 endeavour. Nothing to which man can attain is
17 more acceptable to God. Without it even faith is
18 unavailing. Loyalty, chastity, honesty, justice, mercy,
19 charity, and temperance are among the virtues on
20 which vital stress is laid ; while evil-speaking,
21 covetousness, anger, selfishness, extravagance, and
22 cruelty are denounced with equal vigour. The daily
23 practice of cleanliness, of almsgiving, and of absti-
24 nence from animal food is strictly enjoined, and
25 obedience to the guru is demanded of every Sikh
26 as his first duty.
27 Though for many years Nanak led the life of
28 an ascetic, he did not advocate this practice in
29 others. He taught that the dress of a fakir and
30 acts of penance were not in themselves evidence of
31 a life of purity, and that men could practise virtue
32 while engaged in the ordinary business of the world
33 as well as, or even better than, they could by with-