The Sikhs by Patwant SinghReview by: Lucian W. PyeForeign Affairs, Vol. 79, No. 4 (Jul. - Aug., 2000), p. 163Published by: Council on Foreign RelationsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20049867 .

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The Sikhs, by patwant singh.

New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2000,

276 pp. $27.50. Disturbed by rising anti-Sikh sentiment

after Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguard in 1984, Singh set out to enlighten readers about Sikhs by

telling their history. The resulting book

argues that Sikhism's opposition to caste

divisions and defense of gender equality

explain why both Hindus and Muslims have such intense hostility toward the

brotherhood. At its outset in the fifteenth

century, Sikhism was more compassionate and humane than other religions of the

day. Nevertheless, the perpetual need to

defend its adherents against foes on all

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against the British. His final plea is for the rest of India to appreciate the Sikhs

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FOREIGN AFFAIRS July/August 2000 [163]

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