Ek Onkar Calligraphy

Calligraphy by artist Nirbhai Singh rai . Ik Onkar (Gurmukhi: ੴ, ਇੱਕ ਓਅੰਕਾਰ; Punjabi pronunciation: [ɪkː oːəŋkaːɾᵊ]) is the symbol that represents the one supreme reality[2] and is a central tenet of Sikh religious philosophy.[1] Ik Onkar has a prominent position at the head of the Mul Mantar and the opening words of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib.[3] Ik(ਇੱਕ) means one and only one, who cannot be compared or contrasted with any other,[4][5] the "unmanifest, God in power, the holy word, the primal manifestation of Godhead by which and in which all live, move and have their being and by which all find a way back to Absolute God, the Supreme Reality."[6]
It is a symbol of the unity of God in Sikhism, meaning God is One or One God,[7][8] It is found in the Gurmukhi script[9] and is found in all religious scriptures and places such as gurdwaras. Derived from Punjabi, and is consequently also part of the Sikh morning prayer, Japji Sahib. It is a combination of two characters, the numeral ੧, Ikk (one) and the first letter of the word Onkar (Constant taken to mean God) - which also happens to be the first letter of the Gurmukhī script - an ūṛā, ੳ, coupled with a specially adapted vowel symbol hōṛā, yielding ਓ.