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Of all elements, the most significant is the element of knowledge. (SGGS 152)

ਵਿਦਿਆ ਵੀਚਾਰੀ ਤਾਂ ਪਰਉਪਕਾਰੀ ॥ vidhiaa veechaaree taa(n) paraupakaaree || "Vidiaa veechaaree tan parupkaaree”. That education is good, which is used for the welfare of people. (Guru Nanak Dev Ji, 356)

Contemplate and reflect upon knowledge, and you will become a benefactor to others. (SGGS, 356)

"There is no good in science that won't help people, and there's no good in scholars isolated from people" (Al-Khawarizmi)

I've observed over time that the Sangat, generally-speaking, shows very little interest in books on Sikhi. On the other hand, many Sikhs (academics and ordinary folk) have written and published thousands of books on many aspects of Sikhi, and in Punjabi and in English.
Other websites with lists of books on Sikhi
Link (Sacha Sauda Gurmat Parchar Society, Canada)
Link Sikh pdf library
Link Books about the Panjab or Punjab
Link Manglacharan "dedicated to shedding light on the treasure trove of knowledge passed down by our ancestors, which has not yet been translated into English."
Link Courses by Sikhi University on Punjabi literature

click to watch video

Karamveer Singh appeals to Sikhs to have a library in their home to stimulate a passion for reading books to change their lives (click on the image to see and listen). Karamveer Singh says:
"There is a weakness in our community, we are not used to reading. We can have a bar [alcoholic drinks] in our homes, but we don't have libraries in our homes. If we had libraries and books, we would have a passion for reading.
But we don't have a passion for reading. Today we have a passion to buy big cars and build a bank balance. But I would like to request the community through this channel [Satluj TV], that where you have big houses, where you have expensive houses, build a room in one of those big houses, in the form of a library, where there are thoughts of precious scholars. And by reading those thoughts, we can make a change in our lives." Transcribed from Punjabi to English by TurboScribe.ai. Click on this link to view the full video interview by Satluj TV of Karamveer Singh.

Read books on Sikhi and Sikhism

Browse through the list below, of more than 550 items of literature on Sikhi. Click on "previous" or "forward" (in the bottom left and right corners of a page) to move between pages. Filter your selection using the Categories listed in the box below. Each book entry provides details of the book, such as its title, author, and the gurdwara library where it's located. Check the list regularly for new books added to it.
The list was started on 31 Jan 2025. Currently, only items held at the library at Sri Guru Singh Sabha Southall (category: SGSSS) are listed, and only those written primarily in English. In time, I hope to add books held at other local gurdwara libraries. I hope other sewadars will compile similar lists so that, ultimately, anyone in any region of any country, will be able to see online what books on Sikhi are available to read at their local gurdwara libraries. To increase the likelihood and ease of the Sangat seeing what books are available locally, local gurdwaras need to cooperate and form a "hub and spoke" network in which the central gurdwara (the "hub") publishes an online list of books held at local gurdwaras (each a "spoke").
To send a message, please click here .
Abbreviations: AG = Adi Granth; GGS = Guru Granth Sahib; DG = Dasam Granth; NS = not stated

Categories (press Ctrl + or - to zoom in or out if fonts are too small)

29/7/2026

Punjabi Suba

Title: Punjabi Suba
Author surname(s): ns
Author forename(s): ns
Publisher: UC Kapur & Sons, Delhi
Pages: 528
ISBN: none
Publn 1970 (original publication date: 1970)
Location: shelf 22.1 SGSSS library
Language: English
Preface: y
Overview: The author has not been stated (odd and just signs as 'author'). The book sets out to refute claims by a muslim that Sikhs organised the massacres during the 1947 partition and they were politically motivated. It also seeks to refute the claim by Khushwant Singh that Sikhs were conspiring to establish a Sikh state.

15/7/2026

Sikhs, Arms and Terrorism

Title: Sikhs, Arms and Terrorism
Author surname(s): Singh
Author forename(s): Devinderjit
Publisher: Cambridge Univ Sikh Soc
Pages: 54
ISBN: none
Publn 1986 estd. (original publication date: 1986 estd.)
Location: shelf 20.5 SGSSS library
Language: English
Preface: y
Overview: It discusses the "religious, political, social and economic factors which led to …recent events [1984]." There are notes with some bibliographic refs.

13/7/2026

The Turning Point India's future direction?

Title: The Turning Point India's future direction?
Author surname(s): Singh and Joshi and Singh
Author forename(s): Ralph, Barbara, and Surjit
Publisher: Committee on Human Rights
Pages: 54
ISBN: none
Publn 1985 (original publication date: 1985)
Location: shelf 20.4 SGSSS library
Language: English
Preface: y
Overview: An account of the massacre of Sikhs following Ghandi's assassination in 1984 and the plight of the Sikhs. There is a bibliography.

12/7/2026

The invasion of the golden temple

Title: The invasion of the golden temple
Author surname(s): Singh Kapoor
Author forename(s): Sukhbir
Publisher: ns
Pages: 80
ISBN: none
Publn 1984 (original publication date: 1984)
Location: shelf 20.3 SGSSS library
Language: English
Preface: n
Overview: The book "deals with the preparations and reasons for the invasion of the Golden Temple…and its aftermath." Includes quotes of Bhindranwale.

10/7/2026

The context of Sikh ethnicity

Title: The context of Sikh ethnicity
Author surname(s): Gupta
Author forename(s): Dipankar
Publisher: OUP
Pages: 241
ISBN: '0195643917
Publn 2002 (original publication date: 1996)
Location: shelf 20.3 SGSSS library
Language: English
Preface: y
Overview: The book looks at the conflict between Sikhs and the Indian nation argues that "regional sympathies can co-exist with nationalist loyalty." Another incomprehensible book because of its use of pompous and technical words that cloud the key points. Why these "writers" persist in using such language instead of simple words is very irritating. After reading the book for a long time, I still do not understand what it is trying to say overall and in summary, so totally useless. There is a bibliography and glossary.

10/7/2026

Sikh ethnonationalism and the political economy of Punjab

Title: Sikh ethnonationalism and the political economy of Punjab
Author surname(s): Purewal
Author forename(s): Shinder
Publisher: OUP
Pages: 215
ISBN: '0195651804
Publn 2000 (original publication date: 2000)
Location: shelf 20.3 SGSSS library
Language: English
Preface: y
Overview: The book is based on the author's PhD. It looks at the political and social reasons for the formation of Sikh 'militants' in the 1980s and 1990s. It also discusses the evolution of capitalist farmers in the Punjab and their influence, and the influence of SGPC and related religious and political parties. A very confusing account partly because of its jargon and lack of clarity and connectedness of events. There is a glossary and a bibliography.

8/7/2026

Communal media (was Bhindranwale getting hindus killed?)

Title: Communal media (was Bhindranwale getting hindus killed?)
Author surname(s): Singh
Author forename(s): Baldev
Publisher: Baldev Singh
Pages: 223
ISBN: 9789387996410
Publn 2019 (original publication date: 2018)
Location: shelf 19.7 SGSSS library
Language: English
Preface: y
Overview: The book deals "with the Indian media and how they did not project Sikh issues correctly based on the historical facts about political rights of the Sikhs. Bhindranwale was wrongly blamed by the government and the media that he was Congress's creation, going to create Khalistan and hindu genocide."

3/7/2026

Was Bhindranwale a Congress creation?

Title: Was Bhindranwale a Congress creation?
Author surname(s): Singh
Author forename(s): Baldev
Publisher: Baldev Singh
Pages: 360
ISBN: 9789351968511
Publn 2015 (original publication date: 2015)
Location: shelf 18.5 SGSSS library
Language: English
Preface: n
Overview: "This book is result of his [the author's] 40 years ground level impartial study, without mincing words or concealing facts, for or against any leader." The book is not easily defined - it covers many aspects of the period from 1980s onwards and especially the militancy, politics, SGPC, and events affecting Sikhs, Bhindranwale, the immoral behaviour of Ranjit Singh, the lapses of Sikh youths in Punjab today, the authenticity of DG; academic dishonesty; the failure of Sikhs during the Partitition negotiations; and much more besides. There is a bibliography.

1/7/2026

Operation black thunder an eyewitness account of terrorism in Punjab

Title: Operation black thunder an eyewitness account of terrorism in Punjab
Author surname(s): Singh
Author forename(s): Sarabjit
Publisher: Sage Publications, New Delhi
Pages: 358
ISBN: '076199596x; 8178291584
Publn 2002 (original publication date: 2002)
Location: shelf 18.4 SGSSS library
Language: English
Preface: n
Overview: Even with a Forward and a Preface, I still do not know what this book is about. I think it is about the rise of militants in Punjab post 1984 and how they were quashed and the political and police actions during these decades up to 2000. The back cover says "[this book] analyses the factors responsible for the rise and growth of terrorism in Punjab, including the role of Pakistan in promoting terrorism in Punjab...[and the author] criticises the role of politicians and the Congress government of Delhi" The book covers the period of the 1980s to the early 1990s. There is a glossary but not a bibliography.

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