Jaswant Singh Neki was a leading Indian Sikh scholar, significant neo-metaphysical Punjabi language poet and former Director of PGI Chandigarh and Head of the Psychiatry Department at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi. As a poet he is known mostly for his poetry collections, Asle to Ohle Tak and autobiographical, Koi Naon Na Jane Mera. He was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award in Punjabi in 1979 for his work, Karuna Di Chuh Ton Magron. His long autobiographical poem Simriti De Kiran Ton Pehlan published in 1975, is considered among the masterpieces of Indian literature. His works as a scholar of Sikhism include, Ardaas: Darshan Roop Te Abhiyas, Sada Vigas, Achetan di Leela, Divine Intimations, Prophet of Devotion and Pilgrimage to Hemkunt.
Early life and education
He was born in the village of Murid, District of Jhelum. His father was S. Hari Gulab Singh and his mother was Smt. Sita Wanti. When he was still an infant, his parents moved to Quetta in in present-day Pakistan.
Education
It was in Quetta that he joined Khalsa High School whence he matriculated in 1941 securing the highest marks in Baluchistan and setting up a new record. He joined the Forman Christian College, Lahore, for his premedical studies. There he enjoyed two merit scholarships – one granted by the University and the other by the college. In his FSc exam, he stood second in the university. For his graduate course in medicine and surgery, he joined King Edward Medical College, Lahore, where he also received a merit scholarship granted by the Government of Baluchistan. In 1947 when the country was partitioned, he left Lahore and joined Government Medical College, Amritsar, where he completed his medical studies to graduate in 1949. He worked first as a House Physician, then as an Assistant Registrar, and then as a Demonstrator in Medical College, Amritsar, with a short stint, in between, as Demonstrator in Christian Medical College Ludhiana. While teaching there, he passed his M.A. exam as a teacher candidate from Aligarh Muslim University, securing First Division and first position in the University. He passed his DPM exam from All India Institute of Mental Health, Bangalore, and Mysore University, in 1958 with double distinction and setting up a new record. Thus he qualified as a psychiatrist.
He is a well-recognized metaphysical poet in Punjabi who has contributed ten volumes of original verse. His opus magnum is his autobiography in verse. He also wrote powerful, inspiring prose as evidenced by his books Achetan di Leela, Meri Sahitak Swaijeevani and Ardas. He has won several prestigious awards in literature. These include: Sahitya Akademi Award, Asan Memorial Award, Shiromani Sahitkar Award, Sarvotam Sahitkar Award in 2009 for Sada Vigaas., Bhai Vir Singh Award, KS Dhaliwal Award, Puran Singh Memorial Award. Guru Nanak Dev University conferred on him Ph.D. honorous causa for his contribution to literature. He has been a member of the jury for Sahitya Akademy Awards and member of the Advisory Committee for Jnan Peeth Award. He was one of the past Chairmen of Punjabi Academy, Chandigarh. He also served as Honorary General Secretary of Bhai Vir Singh Sahitya Sadan, New Delhi.
Religious activities
Belonging to a devout religious family, Dr Neki always evinced keen interest in religion. Like his family, he also observed unbigoted, liberal views. During his student life, he became President of the All India Sikh Students Federation and organised training camps for the Sikh youth in the Sikh lore. He produced two authentic books. One is Ardas – Darshan, Roop te Abhias which has been evaluated as an 'all-time classic'. The second one, Vishva Ardas, is a collection of over 300 prayers from different religious groups, tribes and communities of different times and places, translated into Punjabi verse. This has been called "a landmark piece of work". Commissioned by Guru Nanak Dev University, he wrote The Spiritual Heritage of the Punjab which traces the evolution of spiritual thought and practice from the pre-Aryan times up to Guru Gobind Singh. Lately, he has produced an exquisitely produced book Pilgrimage to Hemkunt that compares with high international standards. For several years, he was a member of the Dharam Prachar Committee of Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee, the elected body that administers Sikh shrines. He was honoured with the 'Order of the Khalsa' Award on the 300th Anniversary of the Khalsa, celebrated in Anandpur Sahib on 13 April 2000. He represented his community at various international forums including The Parliament World Religions 1993, Unesco Conference on Religion and World Peace 1998, Unesco Center Catalunya Conference on Universal Ethics 1998, World Thanksgiving Conference 1999 In 2001, he received the Giani Lal Singh memorial award for his work in the field of poetry.
Personal life
In 1955, he married Kanwerjit, the eldest daughter of his own Professor, Lt. Col. Dr. Gurbuxsh Singh. He had two children, both of whom live in the United States. Neki died on September 11, 2015 In New Delhi.
