#Ranjit-Singh We started this effort initially to bring together some like-minded people who are similarly passionate about a more advanced view of Sikhi than what many of us may have been used to — especially in regards to Statecraft or _Raajniti_. The project was born out of an attempt to outline a vision for a potential Sikh State in detail. We constantly hear how we need one, but no one would give coherent or satisfactory enough answers on how one would actually work. So, I thought, rather than just complaining about this, why not have go at it myself and offer my personal views on how to answer these questions and contribute to the discussion. Therefore, applying my personal interpretations of Sikhi and understanding of *Itihaas* to my research into Economics, my research developed into the world’s first Sikhi-based political-economic philosophy, "[Azadism](https://bungaazaadi.com/Raajniti+Vidya/Azadism/Azadism)". I dubbed it this to avoid a lot of the polluted and inaccurate rhetoric around terms like capitalism, socialism, communism etc. This way I could define Azadism exactly how I wanted, take what I liked from other frameworks, adapt it for a primary Khalsa target audience and detail some of my own positions and recommendations too. GurBani and Itihaas (at least my personal understanding of them - as this is what anyone can do) was used as my "measuring stick" essentially when assessing many pre-existing ideas. Then, on top of this, I would seek out Sangat to stress test my ideas with. By engaging in debate and discourse it allowed me to see what sticks and what needed to be adapted or discarded. Over time, this iterates to a more robust and applicable framework. I want to highlight, much of what Azadism covers isn't new, we as a Panth are just so unbelievably behind that it is just new to many of us. My intention was to bring useful ideas into the Panthic consciousness, which have been highly effective in promoting prosperity around the world. My aspiration is that we too could learn from both the successes and failures of others as well as ourselves. [The Azadist Manifesto](https://bungaazaadi.com/Raajniti+Vidya/Azadism/Azadist+Manifesto/Azadist+Manifesto) is where all my ideas culminated and formed the basis upon many additional *Vichaar* (contemplations) that followed of which I shared through social media. From that, many people who resonated with Azadism, or at least appreciated such an effort, even though they may not agree on everything, would reach out and do Vichaar. Especially those who had previously became fed up with the modern Panth and its counter-productivity. To bring these people together so we could discuss, debate and strategise more effectively we set up a Sikh Think Tank called *Bunga Azaadi*. This institution aims to become a preeminent source of wisdom for all things related to Sikhi, Statecraft & Economics. I also wanted to use this platform to start expanding the scope of what the Azadism project covered, since Azadism itself was primarily focused on the economics. However, with the advent of the Bunga we could delve into more topics that may not be so directly related to statecraft, but we feel are necessary to prepare the mindsets of Sikhs to do *Raajniti* in the modern age (whether that be through self-determination with something new or the reformation of something old). Hence why we now exploring subjects like AI, Sikh metaphysics, Itihaasology, History, Law, and perhaps most importantly, reviving the Khalsa Matt — **there is no point in striving for a Khalsa Raaj, if there is no Khalsa!** Sikhi itself can be summarised into the following one-liner: ``` 📖 Sikhi The Guru guided pursuit of spiritual and political liberty (Azaadi) (Bunga Azaadi Working Defintion) ``` Azaadi can be viewed from two perspectives: Miri-Piri: ![[azaadi.png]] Azaadi from a Piri (spiritual) perspective is *Mukti*, literally translating to liberation. This is a state when the illusion of duality is lifted and the all encompassing oneness is perceived as it is for what it is. Unadulterated by ego-centric labels and judgements. Such an experience liberates a “self” from the notion of having even having a self, and thus with it a freedom from pleasure and pain. From a Miri (temporal) perspective, Azaadi is expressed through the concept of a Khalsa Raaj. ``` 📖 Khalsa Raaj An environment safeguarded by the Khalsa in which those who are seeking Mukti (spiritual liberty), can do so in peace, free from tyranny and oppression (political liberty). (Bunga Azaadi Working Defintion) ``` It is from this we interpret the duty or mission of the Gurus, of which the *Sovereign Order of the Khalsa* has also the status of. The Guru has come to contest both spiritual and political tyranny. Whether that be through breaking the boundaries of Brahmins who jealously gatekeep Mukti, or challenging the authority of worldly rulers by defending the liberties of the common man and raising them to the level of kings and warriors. ``` 📖 Khalsa Dharam / Duty / Mission / Purpose It is the duty, or Dharam, of every member of the Khalsa (Khalsapanthi) to engage in Dharam Yudh in some way, shape or form (not just physically) to advance the cause of establishing and expanding Khalsa Raaj. (Bunga Azaadi Defintion) ``` Therefore, Bunga Azaadi, is also a platform in which we gather talent to engage in projects that actually help facilitate the re-emergence of the Khalsa today. Not just as a bunch of cosplayers who dress up to do more Paat, but an actual competent organisation (or organisations) of people who can effectively engage in Dharam Yudh, legally, ethically and effectively. Modern Dharam Yudh does not have to be restricted to old methods, especially when the battlefield has changed drastically. Now, soft power is as if not more important than hard power. Additionally, we do not have to break the law. Not only is it not that strategic and will make life much harder, it isn’t even necessary when we have ample opportunities to leverage in the modern world. We have also developed a roadmap internally for how we envision we could achieve Khalsa Raaj as the end goal of a multi-phased, and long-term plan (that is also multi-generational), with work already going on behind the scenes to progress it. We aren't yet ready to reveal that publicly because we need to be sure that enough people at least agree on the end-goal. Just like with Google Maps, you can't work out a route until you specify a detailed enough destination. If I wanted to go to Shepherds Bush Gurudwara in London, I can't just put "London" in the app and expect to get where I want to go. Looking at how vague the demand for a Sikh State in our Panth is commonly today, it is like putting in England as the destination. Some do not even know where their starting point is either — no wonder people are so lost and are even going backwards! Our end-goal isn't necessarily a nation state either. Such a project may be a step towards Khalsa Raaj (depending on how it runs), but by no means is it the final destination. Instead, to reiterate, our working definition of Khalsa Raaj is an environment safeguarded by the Khalsa in which those seeking to pursue Mukti can do so free from tyranny. It is the Khalsa's Dharam or duty, therefore, to engage in Dharam Yudh to establish such environments. This can start locally, and eventually extend globally, perhaps even galactically in future — such should be the extent of our Guru-gifted ambition! But our focus is currently so narrow and small minded. But even more importantly, before any of that, Khalsa Raaj must first exist within oneself. If you don't have _Azaadi_ over yourself, internally, then how will project Azaadi effectively externally? This is why one of the underlying motivations of the Bunga right now is re-inspire an Azaadi mindset once again. From such a mindset we can better achieve spiritual Azaadi, financial Azaadi, economic Azaadi, and political Azaadi. Right now we are collecting Vichaars in our growing "Vichaar Repositories" so that when the time comes, when we are in better positions to conduct our own experiments in large-scale Statecraft, we are not going into it so blindly. When the founding fathers of the US formed their nation, they didn't just start with writing the constitution out of nowhere. So much prep work went in to inform the mindsets of those men, from the works of John Locke, the French classical liberals, ancient Greek philosophers, right up till things like the Bill of Rights, Federalist Papers, and then the declaration of independence. Only after all of that was the constitution constructed and even then it wasn't perfect! **You don't start a business without a business plan, so why are we attempting to start states without one?** It's not just shareholders wealth at stake here, but the lives of potentially millions, if not, billions of people. Hence why, with the luxury of hindsight and access to more information than ever before in history, we need to be dedicating energy to establishing the correct foresight. Bunga Azaadi and this whole project is very much inspired by the Darbars of Guru Gobind Singh who would bring in and collect the world's top wisdom in all manners of subjects from political science, Aryuveda, Raag Vidya and more. Those Darbars developed a Sikh intelligentsia that went on to imbue the values and intellect that established Misls and the first Sikh kingdoms. We today, it seems, have lost a lot of those kinds of institutions that collect wisdom, and instead we blindly but our heads against forces and States currently far more powerful than us and expect some desirable outcome. If you are not going to do the prep work, extract and apply principles of our past or value the gifts our Guru at all then why do you expect any sort of success? So to conclude, the mission of Bunga Azaadi can be summed up like this: **"If you want Raaj tomorrow, start thinking like Raajai today".** --- Want to support our mission and help us fulfil our Dharam? Consider contributing a portion of your Dasvandh by becoming a paid subscriber to our Substack. All funds go towards putting our theories into practice. [[Support]] A Sikh’s Dharam is to support their Guru. The Guru Khalsa’s Dharam is to then produce results that legitimise them.