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[[File:Sikh woodcut of a battle scene from the Ramayana, Lahore or Amritsar, about 1870.png|thumb|Sikh woodcut of a battle scene from the Ramayana, Lahore or Amritsar, about 1870]]
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[[Rama]] ([[Punjabi language|Punjabi]]: ਰਾਮ {{Small|([[Gurmukhi]])}}), known as '''Ram Avatar''' (ਰਾਮ ਅਵਤਾਰ)<ref group="note">Rama is described as ''Ram Avatar'' in the ''[[Dasam Granth]]'' by the 10th [[Sikh guru]], [[Guru Gobind Singh]].{{Harvard citation|Singh (Guru)|2005|p=7}}</ref> or '''Raja Ram''' (ਰਾਜਾ ਰਾਮ), is considered an important figure in [[Sikhism]],{{Sfn|Swami|p=9}} due to his inclusion as one among the 24 incarnations of [[Vishnu]] in the [[Chaubis Avtar]], a composition in the ''[[Dasam Granth]]'' traditionally and historically attributed to [[Guru Gobind Singh]]. The discussion of Rama and [[Krishna]] is the most extensive in this section of the secondary Sikh scripture.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Rinehart|first=Robin|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qe6WnpbT2BkC|title=Debating the Dasam Granth|date=2011-02-02|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-984247-6|language=en}}</ref>{{Sfn|Jakobsh|2010|p=47-48}}{{Sfnm|1a1=Singh (Guru)|2a=Mehta|1y=2005|1p=intro.|2y=1996|2pp=78-79}} The composition is martial, stating that the avatar of Vishnu appears in the world to restore good and defeat evil, but asserts that these avatars are not God, but agents of the God. God is beyond birth and death.<ref name="Kapoor">SS Kapoor, Dasam Granth, Hemkunt Press, pages 68-74</ref> The famous ''Savaiya'' and ''Dohra'' from the Rehras Sahib, read daily be devout Sikhs, comes from Ram Avtar Bani.

There have been claims that the ''Ram'' in [[Sikhism]] is not related to the Rama described in the ''[[Ramayana]]''.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Doniger|first1=Wendy|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780877790440|title=Merriam-Webster's encyclopedia of world religions ; Wendy Doniger, consulting editor|last2=Merriam-Webster|first2=Inc|date=1999|publisher=Springfield, Mass. : Merriam-Webster|others=Internet Archive|isbn=978-0-87779-044-0|pages=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780877790440/page/503 503]|author-link2=Merriam-Webster}}</ref> In [[Guru Granth Sahib]], there are differences between ''Ram Chander'' (ਰਾਮ ਚੰਦਰ), the king of [[Ayodhya (Ramayana)|Ayodhya]], and ''Ram'', the all-prevailing God.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ED0syBKqafMC&pg=PA34 | title=The Sikh and Sikhism | publisher=Atlantic Publishers & Distributors | last=Singh | first=Surinder | year=1993 | pages=34 | isbn=9788126930968}}</ref>

== Sources ==
===Guru Granth Sahib===
[[File:Khem_Singh_Bedi_Haveli_fresco_12.jpg|thumb|Fresco of [[Rama|Ram Chandar]] from the [[haveli]] of [[Khem Singh Bedi]], ca.1850–1890]]
The word Rama ({{IPA|ˈraːmɐ}}) appears in the [[Guru Granth Sahib]] more than {{Sort|zh|2,500 times}}.{{Sfn|Judge|Kaur|2010|p=219}} [[Guru Nanak]] rejected the concept of [[Avatar|divine incarnation]] as present in [[Hinduism]]<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FYxRDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA105 | title=Hinduism, Islam and Sikhism: A Comparative Study | publisher=Educreation Publishing | last=Wani | first=Abid Mushtaq | year=2018 | pages=105 | isbn=9781545718186}}</ref> but used words such as Ram, Mohan, Hari & Shiv as ways of referring to the divine together with Islamic words like Allah & Khuda.<ref>{{cite book|last=Nesbitt|first=Eleanor M.|title=Sikhism: a very short introduction|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ai-rpcY-rrgC&pg=PT44|year = 2005|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-280601-7|pages=44–45}}</ref> [[Bhagat Kabir]] makes it clear that there is a difference between [[Rama|Ram Chander]] (King of Ayodhya) and Ram (the all prevailing God).<ref name="Surinder">{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ED0syBKqafMC&pg=PA34 | title=The Sikh and Sikhism | publisher=Atlantic Publishers & Distributors | last=Singh | first=Surinder | year=1993 | pages=34 | isbn=9788126930968}}</ref>

{{Quote|Kabeer, it does make a difference, how you chant the Lord's name, 'Raam'. This is something to consider. Everyone uses the same word for the son of Dasrath and the wondrous Lord. Kabeer, use the word 'Raam', only to speak of the all-pervading Lord. You must make that distinction.|[[Guru Granth Sahib]] 1374 <ref name="Surinder" />}}

===Dasam Granth===
[[Rama]] is mentioned as one among the 24 incarnations of [[Vishnu]] in the [[Chaubis Avtar]], a composition in ''[[Dasam Granth]]'' traditionally and historically attributed to [[Guru Gobind Singh]].<ref group="note">Beesvan Ram Avtar Kathan or Ram Avtar is a composition in the second sacred Granth of Sikhs i.e. Dasam Granth, which was written by Guru Gobind Singh, at Anandpur Sahib. Guru Gobind Singh was not a worshiper of Sri Rama, as after describing the whole Avtar he cleared this fact that ਰਾਮ ਰਹੀਮ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਕੁਰਾਨ ਅਨੇਕ ਕਹੈਂ ਮਤ ਏਕ ਨ ਮਾਨਯੋ॥. Ram Avtar is based on Ramayana, but a Sikh studies the spiritual aspects of this whole composition.</ref>{{Sfn|Singh (Guru)|2005|p=chapter: xiii}}<ref name=jdeol31>J Deol (2000), Sikh Religion, Culture and Ethnicity (Editors: AS Mandair, C Shackle, G Singh), Routledge, {{ISBN|978-0700713899}}, pages 31-33</ref> Although the compositions of the Dasam Granth are traditionally accepted to be written by [[Guru Gobind Singh]], there have been questions of the authenticity of the entirety of Dasam Granth from time of compilation.<ref>{{cite book|last=McLeod|first=W. H.|title=Historical dictionary of Sikhism|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ma3G-hjh6SwC&pg=PA52|year=2005|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=978-0-8108-5088-0|page=52}}</ref>

== Importance ==
[[File:Giani Sant Singh's Ramcharitmanas commentary.jpg|thumb|Illustrated page from a Ramcharitmanas commentary by Giani Sant Singh (former head [[granthi]] of [[Golden Temple|Harmandir Sahib]])]]
Rama is often depicted in Sikh myths as a source of inner peace, inspiration and bravery.{{Sfn|Mehta|1996}}{{Sfn|Syan|2014|pp=28-31}}

=== Ram Mandir ===
As per [[Rajinder Singh (spiritual master)|Rajinder Singh]], a Sikh expert who was consulted by the five-member bench Court in the Ram Mandir case and was described in the judgement as “a person having an interest in the study of religious, cultural and historical books of a Sikh cult”, the founder of [[Sikhism]], [[Guru Nanak]], took a pilgrimage to the [[Ram Janmabhoomi]] in {{Circa|1520}}. The judgement also states that Rajinder Singh attached various ''[[Janamsakhis|janam sakhis]]'' to support his statements. Others have discredited the statements of Rajinder Singh on the basis of the ''janam sakhis'' attached dating from 18th century and later, which is stated to be a time period when Brahminical revivalism became evident in such works.<ref>{{Cite web|title=How a Third Dimension was Introduced to the Ayodhya Judgment|url=https://thewire.in/religion/sikh-response-ayodhya-judgment|access-date=2021-03-04|website=The Wire}}</ref> The SGPC passed a resolution condemning this verdict. Sikh scholars have the view that [[Guru Nanak]] went to religious sites like [[Mecca]] and [[Ayodhya]] to preach and spread his message rather than for pilgrimage.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-11-28 |title=Reference to Guru Nanak's visit: SGPC House passes resolution condemning Ayodhya verdict |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/reference-to-guru-nanak-s-visit-sgpc-house-passes-resolution-condemning-ayodhya-verdict/story-vDYgEp8JRS8YfgBe5ckW7K.html |access-date=2022-03-25 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref>


== See also ==
{{Portal|Hinduism}}
* [[Hinduism and Sikhism]]
* [[Rama in Jainism]]
* [[Chaubis Avtar]]

== Notes ==
<references group="note" />

== Sources ==

=== Citations ===
<references />

=== References ===
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite book|last=Singh (Guru)|first=Gobind|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wpTXAAAAMAAJ&q=Nihang+sikhs+and+shri+ram|title=The Dasam Granth|date=2005|publisher=Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers|isbn=978-81-215-1044-8|language=en|author-link=Guru Gobind Singh}}
* {{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YRAeAAAAMAAJ&q=Rama%20in%20Sikhism|title=ਜਪਜੀ|publisher=Himalayan Institute of Yoga|year=2013|isbn=9-780-893-89107-7|location=[[University of Michigan]], [[United States]]|pages=8–87|translator-last=Swami|translator-first=Rama|trans-title=Japji|ref={{SfnRef|Swami}}|orig-year=1987}}
* {{Cite book|last=Mehta|first=Ved|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IUNGAgAAQBAJ|title=Rajiv Gandhi and Rama's Kingdom|publisher=[[Yale University Press]]|year=1996|isbn=9-780-300-06858-0|location=[[New Haven, Connecticut]], [[United States]]|pages=28–124|author-link=Ved Mehta}}
* {{Cite book|last=Jakobsh|first=Doris R.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NBJPAQAAIAAJ|title=Sikhism and Women|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|year=2010|isbn=9-780-198-06002-4|location=[[Oxford]], [[United States]]|pages=40–47}}
* {{Cite journal|last=Syan|first=Hardip Singh|date=2014-09-18|title=The merchant gurus: Sikhism and the development of the medieval Khatri merchant family|url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0019464614536016|journal=The Indian Economic & Social History Review|volume=51|issue=3|pages=303–330|language=en|doi=10.1177/0019464614536016|s2cid=143907555}}
* {{Cite journal|last1=Judge|first1=Paramjit S.|last2=Kaur|first2=Manjit|date=2010|title=The Politics of Sikh Identity: Understanding Religious Exclusion|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23620888|journal=Sociological Bulletin|volume=59|issue=3|pages=345–366|doi=10.1177/0038022920100303|issn=0038-0229|jstor=23620888|s2cid=152062554|via=JSTOR}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==

* [https://www.thesikhencyclopedia.com/mythological-references/rama Rama: Sikh encyclopedia]
* [https://www.sikhiwiki.org/index.php/Ram Raja Rama in Sikhism]
{{Hindudharma}}{{Sikhism}}
[[Category:Rama]]
[[Category:Hinduism and other religions]]
[[Category:Dasam Granth]]

Rama in Sikhism - Revision history

Ajay Kumar: Created a new article