Although Sikh scripture offers valuable insights on gender, Sikh scholarship has not paid enough attention to this topic. The Sikh religion originated and developed within a "doubly" patriarchal milieu. Between the birth of the founder (Gurū Nānak in 1469) and the death of the tenth gurū (Gurū Gobind Singh in 1708), the Hindu society of North India succumbed to Muslim rulers from outside—Turks, Afghans, and Mughals. In the old Hindu caste society women were completely subjugated to their husbands, and under the new Muslim regime women had to stay in purdah. As a result all women, both Hindu and Muslim, ended up suffering from both forms of subjugation. Witnessing the multiple oppression of Indian women, the Sikh gurūs empathized with them and emphasized gender equality in sublime verse. They tried to open up a window of opportunity for women. But the ideals of...