thumb|Ik Onkār, literally, "one [[God", hence interpreted as "There is only one God or one Creator.") (ੴ) is a phrase in Sikhism that denotes the one supreme reality. It is a central tenet of Sikh religious philosophy.
are the first words of the Mul Mantar and also the opening words of the Sikh holy scripture Guru Granth Sahib. the "unmanifest, Lord in power, the holy word, the primal manifestation of the 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."
has a distinct spelling in the Gurmukhi script and the phrase is found in many Sikh religious scriptures and inscribed in places of worship such as gurdwaras. Some Sikh flags are decorated with the Ik Onkar glyph.
In Mul Mantar
thumb|right|250px|[[Mul Mantar written by Guru Har Rai, showing the Ik Onkar at top.]]
is also the opening phrase of the Mul Mantar, present as opening phrase in the Guru Granth Sahib, and the first composition of Guru Nanak and the final salok is by Guru Angad. Further, the Mul Mantar is also at the beginning of the Japji Sahib, followed by 38 hymns and a final Salok by Guru Angad at the end of this composition.
Description
thumb|300-year-old [[Guru Granth Sahib manuscript found in a village of Maharashtra. The Ik Onkar (ੴ) written calligraphically is notable]]
is the statement of oneness in Sikhism, that is 'there is one God'.
According to Wendy Doniger, the phrase is a compound of ("one" in Punjabi) and , canonically understood in Sikhism to refer to the "absolute monotheistic unity of God". Etymologically, the word denotes the sacred sound "Om" or the absolute in a number of Indian religions. Pashaura Singh writes that "the meaning of Oankar in the Sikh tradition is quite different in certain respects from the various interpretations of this word in the Indian philosophical traditions", Guru Nanak wrote a poem entitled Oankar in which, states Doniger, he "attributed the origin and sense of speech to the Divinity, who is thus the Om-maker."
thumb|Artwork from a folio of a [[Janamsakhis|Janamsakhi manuscript explaining the meaning of Ik Onkar using a traditional theory, involving symbolism from Indic deities]]
Pashaura Singh goes on to state,