June 3, 2009 -- Updated 1424 GMT (2224 HKT)
By Harmeet Shah Singh
CNN
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- Police tightened security Wednesday in India's Punjab for the funeral of a preacher whose killing in Vienna, Austria sparked violent protests in the Sikh majority state last week.The body of Rama Sand lies in state in Vienna before being transported to India. Top-ranking officers are camping in Jalandhar district, where Rama Nand will be cremated Thursday, said Parag Jain, Punjab's inspector-general of police."Security arrangements are elaborate," he told CNN.
Nand's body is due to arrive from Vienna early Thursday in Sachkhand Ballan, a monastery dedicated to Guru Ravidass, a 14th-century low-caste Hindu spiritual figure.
Guru Ravidass' writings are predominantly found in the primary Sikh scriptures called the Guru Granth Sahib, placed in the sect temples as in the Sikh houses of worship.
Sect head Niranjan Dass, who was injured in the Vienna assault, will also be arriving Thursday, Sachkhand Ballan secretary S.R. Heer said.
The sikh guru's death led to widespread violence across the Punjab region, which resulted in the army and federal security forces being called in to restore order.
Thousands took part in demonstrations across the Doaba region, where protesters attacked public transportation, knocking out train service in some areas. They also blocked a national highway to Jammu, CNN sister network CNN-IBN reported.
A number of businesses were ransacked as well. Police reported one death.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, himself a Sikh, appealed for calm, in a statement."There is no place for violence in a secular society like India's and certainly no excuse whatsoever for the violation of the sacred premises of a (Sikh temple) for narrow sectarian or other purposes," India's Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.
with thanks : source : http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/06/03/india.punjab.funeral/
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Thursday, June 4, 2009
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Punjab's Gandhigiri to stem attacks
3 Jun 2009, 0543 hrs IST, Amit Sharma , TNN
CHANDIGARH: Frustrated and angry at their friends and kin facing “curry bashing” in Australia, a group of students from Panjab University decided to do something about it.
No, they didn't round up foreigners and subject them to reverse racism. Instead, they caught hold of 20-odd ‘firangs’ and gave them a lesson in, well, Indian hospitality and “universal brotherhood”.
The befuddled foreign students were garlanded with flowers and made to take part in a peace march through the campus. They were then lectured on ‘Gandhigiri’ before being treated to a sumptuous lunch. The university students even made their foreign counterparts hold placards that read ‘Treat Guest As God’ and ‘Stop Racism’.
Punjab, which reportedly sends 50,000 students abroad each year, a large number of them to Australia, is seething in rage at the turn of events Down Under. Thankfully, the university students chose a different way to vent their feelings, giving their foreign counterparts a liberal dose of Ghandigiri.
Visibly confused but enjoying all the attention, Simin, president of the foreign students association here, said, "It's really a heartwarming thing done by the Indian students. I really liked the garlands. After today’s function, we feel safer and more secure in this city. We just hope the same treatment is reserved for Indians abroad."
Scott, a student from Canada, here to learn Punjabi, was equally pleased. “I am really happy at what happened (in PU) today. These guys have certainly set an example for others to follow.’’ Arif, another foreign student, said he was so impressed he immediately called up his family in Yemen to narrate the day’s incident.
And although the Indian students did well to hide their pain and anger at the events in Australia, the emotions just spilled over. “Even after getting bashed up in Australia, we don’t want to retaliate. It’s all about sending a message to the Australians that, unlike them, we treat foreigners as our guests and guests are like gods,” said Rajwinder Singh Aulakh, a university student.
with thanks : source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Punjabs-Gandhigiri-to-stem-attacks/articleshow/4611130.cms
sikhsindia
www.sohnijodi.com
a sikh portal
CHANDIGARH: Frustrated and angry at their friends and kin facing “curry bashing” in Australia, a group of students from Panjab University decided to do something about it.
No, they didn't round up foreigners and subject them to reverse racism. Instead, they caught hold of 20-odd ‘firangs’ and gave them a lesson in, well, Indian hospitality and “universal brotherhood”.
The befuddled foreign students were garlanded with flowers and made to take part in a peace march through the campus. They were then lectured on ‘Gandhigiri’ before being treated to a sumptuous lunch. The university students even made their foreign counterparts hold placards that read ‘Treat Guest As God’ and ‘Stop Racism’.
Punjab, which reportedly sends 50,000 students abroad each year, a large number of them to Australia, is seething in rage at the turn of events Down Under. Thankfully, the university students chose a different way to vent their feelings, giving their foreign counterparts a liberal dose of Ghandigiri.
Visibly confused but enjoying all the attention, Simin, president of the foreign students association here, said, "It's really a heartwarming thing done by the Indian students. I really liked the garlands. After today’s function, we feel safer and more secure in this city. We just hope the same treatment is reserved for Indians abroad."
Scott, a student from Canada, here to learn Punjabi, was equally pleased. “I am really happy at what happened (in PU) today. These guys have certainly set an example for others to follow.’’ Arif, another foreign student, said he was so impressed he immediately called up his family in Yemen to narrate the day’s incident.
And although the Indian students did well to hide their pain and anger at the events in Australia, the emotions just spilled over. “Even after getting bashed up in Australia, we don’t want to retaliate. It’s all about sending a message to the Australians that, unlike them, we treat foreigners as our guests and guests are like gods,” said Rajwinder Singh Aulakh, a university student.
with thanks : source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Punjabs-Gandhigiri-to-stem-attacks/articleshow/4611130.cms
sikhsindia
www.sohnijodi.com
a sikh portal
Gurdwara vandalized, student stabbed in Oz
3 Jun 2009, 0000 hrs IST, TIMES NEWS NETWORK & AGENCIES
MELBOURNE: Racial assaults continue unchecked in Australia. On Monday, a Sikh gurdwara was vandalized in Shepparton, a small town 90km north of Melbourne.
Racist graffiti and swastikas were scribbled on its walls, eggs thrown at it and the fencing around the gurdwara smashed by a car. On Tuesday, another Indian student was stabbed in the chest by a box-cutter knife on his way to college in east Melbourne.
Meanwhile, Australia set up an inquiry committee to look into the attacks even as Union minister for overseas Indian affairs Vayalar Ravi said his ministry would prepare and maintain a register of all Indians studying abroad and streamline campus placements to foreign universities.
Nardeep Singh, a 20-year-old from Ludhiana, was assaulted in a car park. The five attackers initially asked for cigarettes. When the student replied he was a non-smoker, they asked for money. On refusal, one of them stabbed him in the chest. Nardeep is a student of nursing at the Chisholm Technical Institute.
Singh, who had arrived in Australia only a month ago, fled to the police station where his statement was recorded. He is under observation in a Melbourne hospital.
with thanks : source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Gurdwara-vandalized-student-stabbed-in-Oz/articleshow/4608367.cms
sikhsindia
www.sohnijodi.com
a sikh portal
MELBOURNE: Racial assaults continue unchecked in Australia. On Monday, a Sikh gurdwara was vandalized in Shepparton, a small town 90km north of Melbourne.
Racist graffiti and swastikas were scribbled on its walls, eggs thrown at it and the fencing around the gurdwara smashed by a car. On Tuesday, another Indian student was stabbed in the chest by a box-cutter knife on his way to college in east Melbourne.
Meanwhile, Australia set up an inquiry committee to look into the attacks even as Union minister for overseas Indian affairs Vayalar Ravi said his ministry would prepare and maintain a register of all Indians studying abroad and streamline campus placements to foreign universities.
Nardeep Singh, a 20-year-old from Ludhiana, was assaulted in a car park. The five attackers initially asked for cigarettes. When the student replied he was a non-smoker, they asked for money. On refusal, one of them stabbed him in the chest. Nardeep is a student of nursing at the Chisholm Technical Institute.
Singh, who had arrived in Australia only a month ago, fled to the police station where his statement was recorded. He is under observation in a Melbourne hospital.
with thanks : source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Gurdwara-vandalized-student-stabbed-in-Oz/articleshow/4608367.cms
sikhsindia
www.sohnijodi.com
a sikh portal
Sikh Culture in Maryland School Curriculum
Sikh Culture in Maryland School Curriculum
North America
Posted Jun 01, 2009 - 11:34 PM
A teaching package on Sikh culture, which was part of the social studies curriculum this year in eight elementary schools in Howard County, Maryland, will be incorporated into all of the county’s approximately 39 elementary schools in the next school year, a county education-official said.
Kaur Foundation’s Cultural Safari video and resource package, which was released in June 2008, was incorporated into the social studies curriculum by fall and is being used in the county’s eight pilot-schools.
Teaching packages normally end up sitting on the shelf because teachers just don’t have time to squeeze in additional lessons. It is only when new material is approved and incorporated into the curriculum that students see it in the classroom.
“I’m very happy to (say) teachers are using this resource,” said Florence Hu, principle of Centennial Lane Elementary, one of the pilot schools where Cultural Safari is being tested. “It shows the importance of diversity and of being respectful of other cultures.”
Howard County has a large minority population. About 30 percent of its students come from Asian countries, Hu said. “I really think the success of making sure that our school is a safe place is to be proactive of different cultures and to learn (about them) before they come (here).”
Last year, when the county’s curriculum office was revising certain units in social studies, and was looking for resources on diversity, Cultural Safari was there to fill the need. But that was no coincidence, it was a well thought-out plan, said Mirin Kaur Phool, the foundation’s president.
Kaur Foundation spent 18 months doing research before developing the package. It involved surveys of teachers and faculty on what they would like to know, and of Sikh students on what they would be known about them.
“Every line was not random, it was carefully structured to answer these questions,” Mirin Kaur said. The target audience was the schools. Information on Sikhi was presented in a manner that said everything and answered all their questions. “It’s a very fine walk to show everything and not get thrown out.”
Foundation representative began talking to county and state administrators as the package was being developed. When it was released, several administrators got their first look at the video at the foundation’s gala in June, an annual event with Sikh glitterati such as Fauja Singh and the Kaur twins as special guests.
“(They saw) that this was a savvy community, doing nice things, incredible things, at a level they are used to,” Mirin Kaur said. But the video spoke for itself.
“It was apparent when I saw the video it was very applicable to curriculum development,” said John Krownapple, cultural proficiency coordinator for the county’s public schools. Having it in the curriculum “made it instantly credible.”
Krownapple was the first to introduce the package at a meeting of a variety of education officials. Mirin Kaur made the presentation, beginning with the death of Balbir Singh Sodhi, the first person killed in a 9/11-related hate crime, and ending with a discussion on the gap in cultural awareness. The curriculum coordinator, principals, and social studies superintendents were very interested, she said.
Foundation representatives for the county, Harsharan Kaur and Arvinder Kaur, are continuing the legwork with Mirin Kaur, going school to school to show the package to teachers, librarians and faculty.
The package will be incorporated into all of the county’s elementary schools in the fall, Krownapple said. But the county will also use it in other ways.
“The intended audience is students, but every adult I have shown it to has learned from it,” he added. The package will be used for professional development to help staff extend cultural awareness, included as a resource in school libraries and eventually included in a central cultural-databank.
Meanwhile, Kaur Foundation is looking beyond Howard County to the rest of the state. Foundation representatives presented Cultural Safari to the social studies coordinator at the Maryland Department of Education, Marcie Taylor-Thoma, last summer.
“It is a safe DVD for students to learn from,” Taylor-Thoma said. “The follow-up lessons use the DVD to talk about not only Sikhs, but also other cultures.“
She introduced the video at an education event in November with educators from many of the state’s 24 counties, and a social studies superintendants’ event in April. At least eight county education officials have asked Mirin Kaur to present it to their decision makers.
Outside Maryland, Sikh parents are showing the video at their kids’ schools, at multicultural cultural events and asking libraries to make it available to the public. From Rochester, N.Y., to Uba City, Calif., the foundation has sent out 2,000 videos at $15 each, with 1,000 more on the way, Mirin Kaur said.
Jatinder Singh Hundal of Roseville, Calif., used the video at his Khalsa school at the West Sacramento Gurdwara. All the parents wanted a copy, he said.
“I have three boys, 12 and 8-year-old twins,” he added. “They enjoy it and like mostly that there are no embarrassing moments when they see it with their friends.”
with thanks : source : http://www.sikhnn.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=675&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0
North America
Posted Jun 01, 2009 - 11:34 PM
A teaching package on Sikh culture, which was part of the social studies curriculum this year in eight elementary schools in Howard County, Maryland, will be incorporated into all of the county’s approximately 39 elementary schools in the next school year, a county education-official said.
Kaur Foundation’s Cultural Safari video and resource package, which was released in June 2008, was incorporated into the social studies curriculum by fall and is being used in the county’s eight pilot-schools.
Teaching packages normally end up sitting on the shelf because teachers just don’t have time to squeeze in additional lessons. It is only when new material is approved and incorporated into the curriculum that students see it in the classroom.
“I’m very happy to (say) teachers are using this resource,” said Florence Hu, principle of Centennial Lane Elementary, one of the pilot schools where Cultural Safari is being tested. “It shows the importance of diversity and of being respectful of other cultures.”
Howard County has a large minority population. About 30 percent of its students come from Asian countries, Hu said. “I really think the success of making sure that our school is a safe place is to be proactive of different cultures and to learn (about them) before they come (here).”
Last year, when the county’s curriculum office was revising certain units in social studies, and was looking for resources on diversity, Cultural Safari was there to fill the need. But that was no coincidence, it was a well thought-out plan, said Mirin Kaur Phool, the foundation’s president.
Kaur Foundation spent 18 months doing research before developing the package. It involved surveys of teachers and faculty on what they would like to know, and of Sikh students on what they would be known about them.
“Every line was not random, it was carefully structured to answer these questions,” Mirin Kaur said. The target audience was the schools. Information on Sikhi was presented in a manner that said everything and answered all their questions. “It’s a very fine walk to show everything and not get thrown out.”
Foundation representative began talking to county and state administrators as the package was being developed. When it was released, several administrators got their first look at the video at the foundation’s gala in June, an annual event with Sikh glitterati such as Fauja Singh and the Kaur twins as special guests.
“(They saw) that this was a savvy community, doing nice things, incredible things, at a level they are used to,” Mirin Kaur said. But the video spoke for itself.
“It was apparent when I saw the video it was very applicable to curriculum development,” said John Krownapple, cultural proficiency coordinator for the county’s public schools. Having it in the curriculum “made it instantly credible.”
Krownapple was the first to introduce the package at a meeting of a variety of education officials. Mirin Kaur made the presentation, beginning with the death of Balbir Singh Sodhi, the first person killed in a 9/11-related hate crime, and ending with a discussion on the gap in cultural awareness. The curriculum coordinator, principals, and social studies superintendents were very interested, she said.
Foundation representatives for the county, Harsharan Kaur and Arvinder Kaur, are continuing the legwork with Mirin Kaur, going school to school to show the package to teachers, librarians and faculty.
The package will be incorporated into all of the county’s elementary schools in the fall, Krownapple said. But the county will also use it in other ways.
“The intended audience is students, but every adult I have shown it to has learned from it,” he added. The package will be used for professional development to help staff extend cultural awareness, included as a resource in school libraries and eventually included in a central cultural-databank.
Meanwhile, Kaur Foundation is looking beyond Howard County to the rest of the state. Foundation representatives presented Cultural Safari to the social studies coordinator at the Maryland Department of Education, Marcie Taylor-Thoma, last summer.
“It is a safe DVD for students to learn from,” Taylor-Thoma said. “The follow-up lessons use the DVD to talk about not only Sikhs, but also other cultures.“
She introduced the video at an education event in November with educators from many of the state’s 24 counties, and a social studies superintendants’ event in April. At least eight county education officials have asked Mirin Kaur to present it to their decision makers.
Outside Maryland, Sikh parents are showing the video at their kids’ schools, at multicultural cultural events and asking libraries to make it available to the public. From Rochester, N.Y., to Uba City, Calif., the foundation has sent out 2,000 videos at $15 each, with 1,000 more on the way, Mirin Kaur said.
Jatinder Singh Hundal of Roseville, Calif., used the video at his Khalsa school at the West Sacramento Gurdwara. All the parents wanted a copy, he said.
“I have three boys, 12 and 8-year-old twins,” he added. “They enjoy it and like mostly that there are no embarrassing moments when they see it with their friends.”
with thanks : source : http://www.sikhnn.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=675&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0
California passes bill on Sikh symbol kirpan
California passes bill on Sikh symbol kirpan
3 Jun 2009, 1019 hrs IST, IANS
LOS ANGELES: The California assembly has passed a bill that makes it mandatory for the state to train law enforcement agencies about the Sikh symbol kirpan.
The bill AB-504, which was passed unanimously by the assembly Monday, will now go to the state senate for its nod before Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signs it to make it a law.
Enjoying bipartisan support, the bill was passed 59-0 by the assembly in the California capital of Sacramento.
When it finally becomes a law, it will be the first such legislation in any US state to train law officers about the Sikh religion and kirpan.
Apart from being victims of hate crimes after 9/11, many Sikhs have been stopped at airports and other places for wearing kirpan.
Many of them were also denied entry or arrested for carrying kirpan in public places in violation of concealed weapons laws.
Various Sikh organisations, led by the Sikh Coalition, lobbied with state legislature and senate members to pass the bill introduced by assembly man Warren Furutani of Long Beach.
Under the law, California would incorporate training about the kirpan in the curriculum for law enforcement officer training.
"It is the legislature's goal to promote education and awareness of the carrying of the kirpan by Sikhs in California," says the preamble of the bill.
Law enforcement officers will be trained "how to recognise and interact with persons carrying a kirpan", the preamble adds.
"Our hope is that being educated about the kirpan and its religious significance will decrease the number of wasteful arrests," the Sikh Coalition said.
The bill was introduced in the assembly in February.
with thanks : source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/World/California-passes-bill-on-Sikh-symbol-kirpan/articleshow/4611563.cms
sikhsindia
www.sohnijodi.com
a sikh portal
3 Jun 2009, 1019 hrs IST, IANS
LOS ANGELES: The California assembly has passed a bill that makes it mandatory for the state to train law enforcement agencies about the Sikh symbol kirpan.
The bill AB-504, which was passed unanimously by the assembly Monday, will now go to the state senate for its nod before Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signs it to make it a law.
Enjoying bipartisan support, the bill was passed 59-0 by the assembly in the California capital of Sacramento.
When it finally becomes a law, it will be the first such legislation in any US state to train law officers about the Sikh religion and kirpan.
Apart from being victims of hate crimes after 9/11, many Sikhs have been stopped at airports and other places for wearing kirpan.
Many of them were also denied entry or arrested for carrying kirpan in public places in violation of concealed weapons laws.
Various Sikh organisations, led by the Sikh Coalition, lobbied with state legislature and senate members to pass the bill introduced by assembly man Warren Furutani of Long Beach.
Under the law, California would incorporate training about the kirpan in the curriculum for law enforcement officer training.
"It is the legislature's goal to promote education and awareness of the carrying of the kirpan by Sikhs in California," says the preamble of the bill.
Law enforcement officers will be trained "how to recognise and interact with persons carrying a kirpan", the preamble adds.
"Our hope is that being educated about the kirpan and its religious significance will decrease the number of wasteful arrests," the Sikh Coalition said.
The bill was introduced in the assembly in February.
with thanks : source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/World/California-passes-bill-on-Sikh-symbol-kirpan/articleshow/4611563.cms
sikhsindia
www.sohnijodi.com
a sikh portal
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Is Sikhism succumbing to fundamentalism?
June 2, 2009
The fatal shooting at a Sikh temple in Austria shows up an ugly schism in a religion built on monotheism and equality Sathnam Sanghera
Sathnam Sanghera
There were riots across northern India last week after a shooting at a Sikh temple in Austria resulted in the death of a sect leader and, given that Punjabi culture is something I bang on about on occasion, it wasn’t surprising, I suppose, that a couple of news producers rang, asking me to put the disturbances into context.
I declined because: (a) as a community we are only just learning to talk about ourselves, and too often any kind of commentary is taken as criticism; (b) commenting about religion is a dangerous business when people are being killed and one has absolutely no theological authority; (c) I feel about broadcasting the way many feel about general anaesthetic (you should do it only when you absolutely need to); but mainly because (d) it’s quite hard to explain what Sikhism actually stands for.
You see, one of the founding principles of the monotheistic religion, established in the late 15th century by Guru Nanak, was opposition to Hinduism’s oppressive caste system. Yet the world’s fifth largest organised religion has a caste system of its own, with differences between Jat Sikhs (a group that I belong to and which makes up about two thirds of Sikh society) and non-Jat castes, such as the Ramgarhias, remaining a source of political, social and religious tension.
Even in Britain you’ll find different Sikh temples belonging to different groups on the same road, and — according to some media reports last week, many of them disputed by the groups involved — the violence in Austria was sparked after orthodox Sikhs from one caste objected to preachers from another caste being disrespectful towards the Sikh Holy Book.
Also, officially, Sikhs don’t worship human beings, since Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh guru, named Guru Granth Sahib, the Holy Book, as his successor. But certain Sikh sects do believe in living human gurus, some mainstream Sikh families revere spiritual figures and ancestors, and — according to some media reports, again disputed by the groups involved — the violence in Austria was sparked when members of a certain sect gave the Guru Granth Sahib pride of place next to photographs and idols of their own human “gurus”.
Then there’s the issue of booze. Officially, Sikhs don’t drink, and some families don’t even allow alcohol to be kept in their houses.
But as the academics Gurharpal Singh and Darshan Singh Tatla point out in Sikhs in Britain: The Making of a Community: “Consumption of alcohol has always been high among Sikhs, with the per capita rate among Sikhs of Punjab among the highest in the world” and “a particularly distinctive feature of British Sikh society today” being “the high rate of alcoholism among males . . . Consumption rates are higher than in any other ethnic minority and in the white community.”
There are other contradictions. Sikhs are meant to adopt the name “Singh”, meaning “lion”, as a way of encouraging equality (one’s caste can often be identified by a surname), but many of us use it only as a middle name. The Gurus declared men and women to be equal, but Punjabi culture is highly patriarchal. Sikhism is the only major world religion that acknowledges that other religions are a valid way of reaching God, but some believers risk being disowned for marrying outside of their religion.
Also, Sikhs, partly as a result of having no clergy (the idea is that everyone can be directly in touch with God without priests) and partly as a result of factionalism, have never been very good at building institutions to represent them, and yet have had great success campaigning on issues such as the right to wear the turban, so much so that Sikhs can legally ride a motorbike with a turban instead of a helmet. When, the other week, the police announced that they were developing a bulletproof turban, apart from a few tiresome jokes about the “turbanator”, there were almost no objections from any quarters. Imagine the fuss there would have been if the religious headwear in question had been a burka.
And if there is anything that epitomises the fluidity of Sikhism, it is the turban. Long hair, beards and colourful headwear are synonymous with the religion — I kept my own hair unshorn until the age of 14 — but if you ask any Sikh why they keep their hair uncut, they will give you a different answer.
Some say that it’s a way of showing respect for the God-given form; some that it is a way of expressing love for God (like a married person would wear a wedding ring); some link it to intelligence, health and spirituality; some say that Guru Gobind Singh made the keeping of unshorn hair mandatory to give Sikhs a binding identity. There are others who will argue that long hair isn’t actually necessary to be a Sikh.
In fact, a great many Sikhs, if not the majority, don’t have long hair and don’t sport turbans. And those with turbans are not necessarily hugely religious: I know one turbaned man who runs that most un-Sikh of things, an English pub; another who started wearing a turban simply because he had developed a bald patch; another who is actually an atheist.
As it happens, I don’t think that these ambiguities are necessarily a problem. Such issues crop up with all organised religions, and for me, and I am a believer, the massive variation in observance is appealing, as you’re basically left to define your own religiosity. Not least, it’s an expression of another of Sikhism’s fundamental teachings, that empty ritual is meaningless, and it ensures that believers concentrate on the things that really matter, namely “Nam simran” (meditation on and awareness of God) and “Sewa” (community service).
But the concerning thing about last week’s events is that we seem to have another contradiction developing. This most modern and liberal of world religions, which allows its believers to develop their own relationship with God, is developing a fundamentalist streak, with certain people determined to tell others what to believe and how to believe it, under pain of death if necessary.
source : http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/sathnam_sanghera/article6407907.ece
www.sohnijodi.com
a sikh web portal
The fatal shooting at a Sikh temple in Austria shows up an ugly schism in a religion built on monotheism and equality Sathnam Sanghera
Sathnam Sanghera
There were riots across northern India last week after a shooting at a Sikh temple in Austria resulted in the death of a sect leader and, given that Punjabi culture is something I bang on about on occasion, it wasn’t surprising, I suppose, that a couple of news producers rang, asking me to put the disturbances into context.
I declined because: (a) as a community we are only just learning to talk about ourselves, and too often any kind of commentary is taken as criticism; (b) commenting about religion is a dangerous business when people are being killed and one has absolutely no theological authority; (c) I feel about broadcasting the way many feel about general anaesthetic (you should do it only when you absolutely need to); but mainly because (d) it’s quite hard to explain what Sikhism actually stands for.
You see, one of the founding principles of the monotheistic religion, established in the late 15th century by Guru Nanak, was opposition to Hinduism’s oppressive caste system. Yet the world’s fifth largest organised religion has a caste system of its own, with differences between Jat Sikhs (a group that I belong to and which makes up about two thirds of Sikh society) and non-Jat castes, such as the Ramgarhias, remaining a source of political, social and religious tension.
Even in Britain you’ll find different Sikh temples belonging to different groups on the same road, and — according to some media reports last week, many of them disputed by the groups involved — the violence in Austria was sparked after orthodox Sikhs from one caste objected to preachers from another caste being disrespectful towards the Sikh Holy Book.
Also, officially, Sikhs don’t worship human beings, since Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh guru, named Guru Granth Sahib, the Holy Book, as his successor. But certain Sikh sects do believe in living human gurus, some mainstream Sikh families revere spiritual figures and ancestors, and — according to some media reports, again disputed by the groups involved — the violence in Austria was sparked when members of a certain sect gave the Guru Granth Sahib pride of place next to photographs and idols of their own human “gurus”.
Then there’s the issue of booze. Officially, Sikhs don’t drink, and some families don’t even allow alcohol to be kept in their houses.
But as the academics Gurharpal Singh and Darshan Singh Tatla point out in Sikhs in Britain: The Making of a Community: “Consumption of alcohol has always been high among Sikhs, with the per capita rate among Sikhs of Punjab among the highest in the world” and “a particularly distinctive feature of British Sikh society today” being “the high rate of alcoholism among males . . . Consumption rates are higher than in any other ethnic minority and in the white community.”
There are other contradictions. Sikhs are meant to adopt the name “Singh”, meaning “lion”, as a way of encouraging equality (one’s caste can often be identified by a surname), but many of us use it only as a middle name. The Gurus declared men and women to be equal, but Punjabi culture is highly patriarchal. Sikhism is the only major world religion that acknowledges that other religions are a valid way of reaching God, but some believers risk being disowned for marrying outside of their religion.
Also, Sikhs, partly as a result of having no clergy (the idea is that everyone can be directly in touch with God without priests) and partly as a result of factionalism, have never been very good at building institutions to represent them, and yet have had great success campaigning on issues such as the right to wear the turban, so much so that Sikhs can legally ride a motorbike with a turban instead of a helmet. When, the other week, the police announced that they were developing a bulletproof turban, apart from a few tiresome jokes about the “turbanator”, there were almost no objections from any quarters. Imagine the fuss there would have been if the religious headwear in question had been a burka.
And if there is anything that epitomises the fluidity of Sikhism, it is the turban. Long hair, beards and colourful headwear are synonymous with the religion — I kept my own hair unshorn until the age of 14 — but if you ask any Sikh why they keep their hair uncut, they will give you a different answer.
Some say that it’s a way of showing respect for the God-given form; some that it is a way of expressing love for God (like a married person would wear a wedding ring); some link it to intelligence, health and spirituality; some say that Guru Gobind Singh made the keeping of unshorn hair mandatory to give Sikhs a binding identity. There are others who will argue that long hair isn’t actually necessary to be a Sikh.
In fact, a great many Sikhs, if not the majority, don’t have long hair and don’t sport turbans. And those with turbans are not necessarily hugely religious: I know one turbaned man who runs that most un-Sikh of things, an English pub; another who started wearing a turban simply because he had developed a bald patch; another who is actually an atheist.
As it happens, I don’t think that these ambiguities are necessarily a problem. Such issues crop up with all organised religions, and for me, and I am a believer, the massive variation in observance is appealing, as you’re basically left to define your own religiosity. Not least, it’s an expression of another of Sikhism’s fundamental teachings, that empty ritual is meaningless, and it ensures that believers concentrate on the things that really matter, namely “Nam simran” (meditation on and awareness of God) and “Sewa” (community service).
But the concerning thing about last week’s events is that we seem to have another contradiction developing. This most modern and liberal of world religions, which allows its believers to develop their own relationship with God, is developing a fundamentalist streak, with certain people determined to tell others what to believe and how to believe it, under pain of death if necessary.
source : http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/sathnam_sanghera/article6407907.ece
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Choir led Sikh to Catholic Church; mission work cinched his vocation
Choir led Sikh to Catholic Church; mission work cinched his vocation
By Beth Griffin
Catholic News Service
MARYKNOLL, N.Y. (CNS) -- Imagine that the youngest child in a religiously observant family comes home from high school and announces to his prominent father that he is converting to a minority religion he heard about from his principal. Predictably, the reaction is shock, disbelief and resistance.
But Stephen Taluja, who was raised a Sikh in Punjab state, India, converted to Catholicism anyway. Now 27, he had his father's blessing when he was ordained as a Maryknoll priest May 30.
His ordination Mass was celebrated by Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan of New York at the Queen of Apostles Chapel at Maryknoll Mission Center.
Punjab, in northwest India, is overwhelmingly Sikh and Hindu. Seventy-five 75 percent of the world's 26 million Sikhs live there. Catholics make up less than 1 percent of the population.
Father Taluja was introduced to Catholicism at a private high school whose Anglo-Indian principal is Catholic.
"The place has a Catholic aura and the principal is a devout Catholic whose faith and practice are very connected," he said in an interview with Catholic News Service.
As a student, he volunteered with the school to work at a leprosarium run by the Missionaries of Charity. He called it "pretty significant" to confront societal taboos associated with people who have Hansen's disease.
Father Taluja credited music with being the specific doorway to his interest in Catholicism. As a member of the school choir, he was invited to sing at midnight Mass at a local church. He had never been into a Catholic church and it was unusual for him to be out at that hour of the night.
"When I first walked in, I vividly remember being struck by the crucifix on the wall. People were kneeling and praying to the crucifix. I couldn't understand why they were praying to a so-called God who was a frail and dying man," he said.
Father Taluja said he was curious, but had no intention of converting to Catholicism. He also was dealing with larger questions about the meaning of life after the untimely death of his mother when he was 15.
When he decided to convert, the news was not well-received by his father. He described "divisive opposition" in his family, contrasted with the support of people at the parish.
"I felt like Peter, denying Jesus three times. I come from an influential, rich family in a small town. Sometimes people would tell me they heard I was attending Catholic Mass and I would deny it," he said.
But he persisted, drawn by a desire to know God, and was received into the church while he was still in high school.
When he came to suburban New York to study computer science, Father Taluja worked the night shift at a gas station convenience store and attended the early morning Mass at St. Elizabeth Seton Church in Shrub Oak. He also sang in the choir.
Father Taluja felt called to the missionary priesthood and was introduced to Maryknoll by both his pastor and the Maryknoll music director whom he met at his second job.
Father Taluja, who is fluent in Hindi, English and Punjabi, learned Spanish during a five-month stint in Cochabamba, Bolivia and then spent two years in the Peruvian Andes, with Maryknoll's overseas training program. He served the indigenous Aymara people, ministering and working with youths and preparing parishioners for fiestas and eucharistic celebrations.
"My experience in Peru cinched things for me. I knew I was called to be a missionary and a priest and I want to do it for the rest of my life," he said.
Father Taluja described working in a parish of 90,000 people served by one priest and a group of Argentine Dominican sisters. "Every day is like a sacramental carnival," he said. "Somebody dies, people get married, there are baptisms."
He said preaching in Spanish was an "animating of my faith." Father Taluja honed his Spanish on the soccer field, where, he said, "formalities fade and you get to know people on a more personal level." It probably helped that his soccer skills were good enough to land him a spot on India's junior national team.
Father Taluja earned his bachelor's degree in religious studies from St. Xavier University in Chicago and a master's in divinity from Catholic Theological Union there. He will continue to pursue a master's in sacred Scripture at the union after his ordination.
His three older sisters came from New York, England and India to attend his ordination; and a niece and nephew were the gift bearers at the offertory. His father was expected to attend if his visa were granted, but in the end it was not.
"He's very proud. He has mixed feelings, but he wants to come and give me his blessing and support me," Father Taluja told CNS in an interview before his ordination.
Father Taluja said his Sikh background will serve his priesthood.
"My Catholic seeds were sown in a non-Catholic home. Sikhism has explicit respect for different paths to God, which I think I bring with me. Who knows how Christ might be working through people of other cultures and religions? We don't," he said.
source : http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0902500.htm
By Beth Griffin
Catholic News Service
MARYKNOLL, N.Y. (CNS) -- Imagine that the youngest child in a religiously observant family comes home from high school and announces to his prominent father that he is converting to a minority religion he heard about from his principal. Predictably, the reaction is shock, disbelief and resistance.
But Stephen Taluja, who was raised a Sikh in Punjab state, India, converted to Catholicism anyway. Now 27, he had his father's blessing when he was ordained as a Maryknoll priest May 30.
His ordination Mass was celebrated by Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan of New York at the Queen of Apostles Chapel at Maryknoll Mission Center.
Punjab, in northwest India, is overwhelmingly Sikh and Hindu. Seventy-five 75 percent of the world's 26 million Sikhs live there. Catholics make up less than 1 percent of the population.
Father Taluja was introduced to Catholicism at a private high school whose Anglo-Indian principal is Catholic.
"The place has a Catholic aura and the principal is a devout Catholic whose faith and practice are very connected," he said in an interview with Catholic News Service.
As a student, he volunteered with the school to work at a leprosarium run by the Missionaries of Charity. He called it "pretty significant" to confront societal taboos associated with people who have Hansen's disease.
Father Taluja credited music with being the specific doorway to his interest in Catholicism. As a member of the school choir, he was invited to sing at midnight Mass at a local church. He had never been into a Catholic church and it was unusual for him to be out at that hour of the night.
"When I first walked in, I vividly remember being struck by the crucifix on the wall. People were kneeling and praying to the crucifix. I couldn't understand why they were praying to a so-called God who was a frail and dying man," he said.
Father Taluja said he was curious, but had no intention of converting to Catholicism. He also was dealing with larger questions about the meaning of life after the untimely death of his mother when he was 15.
When he decided to convert, the news was not well-received by his father. He described "divisive opposition" in his family, contrasted with the support of people at the parish.
"I felt like Peter, denying Jesus three times. I come from an influential, rich family in a small town. Sometimes people would tell me they heard I was attending Catholic Mass and I would deny it," he said.
But he persisted, drawn by a desire to know God, and was received into the church while he was still in high school.
When he came to suburban New York to study computer science, Father Taluja worked the night shift at a gas station convenience store and attended the early morning Mass at St. Elizabeth Seton Church in Shrub Oak. He also sang in the choir.
Father Taluja felt called to the missionary priesthood and was introduced to Maryknoll by both his pastor and the Maryknoll music director whom he met at his second job.
Father Taluja, who is fluent in Hindi, English and Punjabi, learned Spanish during a five-month stint in Cochabamba, Bolivia and then spent two years in the Peruvian Andes, with Maryknoll's overseas training program. He served the indigenous Aymara people, ministering and working with youths and preparing parishioners for fiestas and eucharistic celebrations.
"My experience in Peru cinched things for me. I knew I was called to be a missionary and a priest and I want to do it for the rest of my life," he said.
Father Taluja described working in a parish of 90,000 people served by one priest and a group of Argentine Dominican sisters. "Every day is like a sacramental carnival," he said. "Somebody dies, people get married, there are baptisms."
He said preaching in Spanish was an "animating of my faith." Father Taluja honed his Spanish on the soccer field, where, he said, "formalities fade and you get to know people on a more personal level." It probably helped that his soccer skills were good enough to land him a spot on India's junior national team.
Father Taluja earned his bachelor's degree in religious studies from St. Xavier University in Chicago and a master's in divinity from Catholic Theological Union there. He will continue to pursue a master's in sacred Scripture at the union after his ordination.
His three older sisters came from New York, England and India to attend his ordination; and a niece and nephew were the gift bearers at the offertory. His father was expected to attend if his visa were granted, but in the end it was not.
"He's very proud. He has mixed feelings, but he wants to come and give me his blessing and support me," Father Taluja told CNS in an interview before his ordination.
Father Taluja said his Sikh background will serve his priesthood.
"My Catholic seeds were sown in a non-Catholic home. Sikhism has explicit respect for different paths to God, which I think I bring with me. Who knows how Christ might be working through people of other cultures and religions? We don't," he said.
source : http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0902500.htm
Service is the theme of Sikh philosophy
2 Jun 2009, 1200 hrs IST, KULBIR KAUR
The concept of community service or seva is central to the spirit of the Sikh faith. God is all-pervasive and what better way to realise Him than through service?
He is not separate from His Creation; so serving Him by serving what He has created is the ultimate duty of every Sikh. The Sikh often prays as did Guru Arjan Dev: `As Your servant, I beg for seva of your people, which is available through good fortune alone.'
Seva or service occupies a central place in Sikhism where no worship is conceivable without seva. The spirit of service not only creates in one's heart love and affection for others but also helps the person overcome his ego, the main obstacle in the path of spiritual realisation. Service is suggested as a practical way of life for a Sikh and he is expected, among other things, to meditate on the Name of God and perform service for the welfare of humanity.
Service could be of any kind serving the poor and needy; giving charity, providing food or shelter, helping a person in distress, saving someone in danger or reading the scriptures for his solace or providing services for the common good. These acts are considered far superior to the countless sacrificial fires and performance of ceremonies or mere meditation and worldly knowledge, says Bhai Gurdas.
Seva can be rendered in any form through labour, feelings or material means. The first is considered as the highest of all and is prescribed for every Sikh. Dignity of labour is realised foremost in Guru ka Langar, the community kitchen, and in serving the sangat, the holy assembly. Langar is the unique way of combining worship with seva. One can contribute in cutting of vegetables, cooking of food, distribution of water and langar, washing of utensils, cleaning of the premises, taking care of footwear as well as in collection of rations.
Langar, therefore, becomes a place of training in voluntary service and helps develop the notions of equality, hospitality and love for human beings. It makes you humble by helping you curb your ego. Humility is a special virtue recommended to the Sikhs. It can be acquired through seva. The Sikh prayer, Ardas, ends with a supplication for the welfare of all, 'Sarbat da Bhala'. The attitude of compassion should be combined with a practical way of serving God through His Creation.
Seva through material means should be a silent and non-personal contribution. It is meant for the welfare of the community and the whole humanity and should be done in a way as to help dissolve one's ego. Even in serving others, one serves not the person concerned, but God Himself through him. Even as one feeds the hungry, it has been the customary Sikh practice to pray: 'The grain, O God, is your own gift. Only the seva is mine which please be gracious enough to accept.'
Service should be done without any expectation of reward. Desire for any reward in return turns it into a bargain and it ceases to be a service. 'He who serves without reward, he alone attains God'. True seva, as proclaimed by the Gurus, must be performed in humility, with purity of intention and without any desire for reward. Service is its own reward that leads to liberation. `We get eternal bliss through the service of God and merge in the peace of poise,' says the Guru Granth Sahib.
with thanks : source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Speaking-Tree/Service-is-the-theme-of-Sikh-philosophy-/articleshow/4605003.cms
sikhsindia
www.sohnijodi.com
A sikh web portal
Monday, June 1, 2009
Shocked at the sad demise of Bhai Sahib bhai Zoravar singh ji
With profound grief and sorrow we regret to inform you that Famous Ragee sahiban Bhai Sahib Bhai Zorawar Singh Ji has passed away in a boat accident. This accident took place while immersing the ashes of gursikh Baba Sadhu Singh ji from Nanaksar.
The boat took a turn and probably due to load on that side it just sinked in a minute. Dozens of boats were sent for the rescue. But As per reports,out of 13 people, 10 were taken out and three were missing. Among the missing one’s were famous ragi, bhai zorawar singh ji (ludhiana) and bhai gurcharan singh ji who is son of another renowed ragi bhai harbans singh ji jagadhari and one more baba ji’s sewak harjinder singh.Baba Mangal Singh who was taken out from water and sent to hospital for treatment could not survive and passed away.
Bhai sahib bhai Zoravar Singh ji's body was found at Sigrur, stuck with a large stone. Bhai Zorawar Singh Ji was creamted on friday morning at 9.00 a.m. It's a big loss to the Sikh Community.
The video of the Boat mishap can be viewed at : http://sikhsindia.blogspot.com/2009/05/ragi-bhai-zorawar-singh-2-others.html
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Thumbs down for SGPC edict by city's Sikh youths
1 Jun 2009, 0410 hrs IST, TNN
NEW DELHI: Religion is apparently personal. Or so say youngsters in the city despite the Punjab and Haryana High Court upholding a Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee edict. The SGPC, which refused to give admission to an aspiring student on the grounds that she plucked her eyebrows and therefore, didn't follow the rules laid down in the Guru Granth Sahib, may have got the backing of the court but when it comes to Delhi's young generation, there's plenty to debate.
Most of whom TOI spoke to felt that religious beliefs were personal, and shouldn't be confused with personal grooming. Said Nisha Kaur (name changed), a 26-year old journalist working with a television channel: "My religious beliefs are clear I live my life the way the Granth Sahib tells me to. But that has nothing to do with whether I cut my hair or get my eyebrows plucked. Harping on these issues trivialises the teachings.'' And Nisha's not the only one who is carving a clear line between the teachings or moral values that the Sikh religious book advocates and the way of life followed by this generation.
Said Harpreet Kaur, who has just finished her computer degree, "Following the teachings is a way of life. But with time, some things need to change. My family has never insisted that I follow all the rules as long as I behaved like a good human being.'' It's a point that both Chetan and Hema, who had come for a Sunday visit at the Bangla Sahib gurudwara, also maintained. "The teachings talk about doing your duty and being a good person. Beyond that, I don't think that the Gurus would be upset if I cut my hair or plucked my eyebrow once in a while,'' said Chetan.
For many though, the teachings of the Granth Sahib have relevance in every sphere. Said Amandeep Kaur, a second year DU student, "It depends on your beliefs. I have not cut my hair or plucked my eyebrows since I took the Amrit, as I believe that rules should be followed. "Though my friends follow the latest trends, I have never felt the need to be like them. I have faith in my belief.''
with thanks : source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Delhi/Thumbs-down-for-SGPC-edict-by-citys-Sikh-youths/articleshow/4601023.cms
sikhsindia
www.sohnijodi.com
A Sikh web portal
NEW DELHI: Religion is apparently personal. Or so say youngsters in the city despite the Punjab and Haryana High Court upholding a Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee edict. The SGPC, which refused to give admission to an aspiring student on the grounds that she plucked her eyebrows and therefore, didn't follow the rules laid down in the Guru Granth Sahib, may have got the backing of the court but when it comes to Delhi's young generation, there's plenty to debate.
Most of whom TOI spoke to felt that religious beliefs were personal, and shouldn't be confused with personal grooming. Said Nisha Kaur (name changed), a 26-year old journalist working with a television channel: "My religious beliefs are clear I live my life the way the Granth Sahib tells me to. But that has nothing to do with whether I cut my hair or get my eyebrows plucked. Harping on these issues trivialises the teachings.'' And Nisha's not the only one who is carving a clear line between the teachings or moral values that the Sikh religious book advocates and the way of life followed by this generation.
Said Harpreet Kaur, who has just finished her computer degree, "Following the teachings is a way of life. But with time, some things need to change. My family has never insisted that I follow all the rules as long as I behaved like a good human being.'' It's a point that both Chetan and Hema, who had come for a Sunday visit at the Bangla Sahib gurudwara, also maintained. "The teachings talk about doing your duty and being a good person. Beyond that, I don't think that the Gurus would be upset if I cut my hair or plucked my eyebrow once in a while,'' said Chetan.
For many though, the teachings of the Granth Sahib have relevance in every sphere. Said Amandeep Kaur, a second year DU student, "It depends on your beliefs. I have not cut my hair or plucked my eyebrows since I took the Amrit, as I believe that rules should be followed. "Though my friends follow the latest trends, I have never felt the need to be like them. I have faith in my belief.''
with thanks : source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Delhi/Thumbs-down-for-SGPC-edict-by-citys-Sikh-youths/articleshow/4601023.cms
sikhsindia
www.sohnijodi.com
A Sikh web portal
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