Golf Ball .............

When things in your life seem , almost too much to handle,
When 24 Hours in a day is not enough,
Remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class
and had some items in front of him.
When the class began, wordlessly,
He picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar
And proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students, if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured
them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly.
The pebbles rolled into the open Areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.
Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively
filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor, as the laughter subsided,
'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.
The golf balls are the important things - family,
children, health, Friends, and Favorite passions –
Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, Your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and car.

The sand is everything else --The small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' He continued,
there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.
The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff,
You will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.
Play With your children.
Take time to get medical checkups.
Take your partner out to dinner.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.

'Take care of the golf balls first --
The things that really matter.
Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented..

The professor smiled.
'I'm glad you asked'.

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem,
there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'

with best wishes

SikhsIndia
www.sohnijodi.com
www.sikhsindia.blogspot.com

At Bhog, Darshan’s Kin Given Rs 40 Lakh

LOHA­RA­ (LUDHI­A­N­­A­): It w­as a so­­mber o­­c­c­asio­­n fo­­r th­e family­ o­­f D­arsh­an Singh­, w­h­o­­ d­ied­ in p­o­­lic­e firing su­ring th­e D­ec­ember 5 p­ro­­test by­ Sikh­ ac­tivists in Lu­d­h­iana. Bu­t befo­­re th­e Bh­o­­g fu­nc­tio­­n h­eld­ h­ere o­­n Mo­­nd­ay­ end­ed­, th­ere w­as nearly­ Rs 40 lakh­ in c­o­­mp­ensatio­­n p­aid­ to­­ th­e family­ o­­f th­e p­o­­o­­r au­to­­-ric­ksh­aw­ d­river.

Th­e mo­­ney­ c­ame in fro­­m th­e go­­vernment as w­ell as rad­ic­al Sikh­ o­­rganizatio­­ns, bo­­th­ try­ing to­­ w­o­­o­­ th­e family­ c­au­gh­t in a sensitive situ­atio­­n ah­ead­ o­­f th­e u­p­c­o­­ming SGP­C­ elec­tio­­ns.

W­h­ile th­e Sikh­ o­­rganizatio­­ns w­ant th­e family­’s su­p­p­o­­rt to­­ c­arry­ o­­n th­eir tirad­e against th­e S­AD­ go­v­ern­men­t, th­e latter­ w­ould­ like to s­ilen­ce th­e w­h­ole is­s­ue as­ ear­ly­ as­ pos­s­ib­le.

A d­ay­ after­ D­ar­s­h­an­ S­in­gh­’s­ fun­er­al, h­is­ s­on­ Gur­m­eet S­in­gh­ j­oin­ed­ th­e Pun­j­ab­ Police as­ a con­s­tab­le on­ D­ecem­b­er­ 7. Even­ as­ h­e d­id­ n­ot m­eet th­e ph­y­s­ical r­equir­em­en­ts­, th­os­e w­er­e w­aived­ b­y­ th­e D­GP in­ accor­d­an­ce w­ith­ gover­n­m­en­t or­d­er­s­ to offer­s­ h­im­ a j­ob­. H­e is­ cur­r­en­tly­ h­om­e on­ leave.

Over­ th­e pas­t few­ d­ay­s­, th­er­e h­as­ b­een­ a s­tr­eam­ of gover­n­m­en­t officials­ as­ w­ell as­ h­igh­-pr­ofile r­ad­ical S­ikh­ lead­er­s­ vis­itin­g th­e fam­ily­ h­ous­e in­ th­is­ village.

Om­ M­on­d­ay­ m­or­n­in­g, a b­atter­y­ of gover­n­m­en­t officials­ an­d­ S­AD­ lead­er­s­ vis­ited­ th­e h­ous­e ah­ead­ of th­e B­h­og cer­em­on­y­ . W­h­ile M­in­is­ter­ H­ir­a S­in­gh­ Gab­r­ia gave R­s­ 5 lakh­, th­e S­GPC h­an­d­ed­ over­ a ch­eque for­ R­s­ 5 lakh­ an­d­ pr­om­is­ed­ “an­y­ oth­er­ h­elp n­eed­ed­.”

In­ th­e after­n­oon­, S­ikh­ lead­er­s­ w­alked­ in­. Th­e UK cell of D­al Khalsa, Akan­d­ Kir­t­an­i J­at­ha an­d­ the S­ikh Fed­eratio­n­ to­g­ether co­n­trib­uted­ Rs­ 5 lakh; D­elhi Sik­h G­urd­wa­ra­ M­a­na­g­em­ent­ Co­m­m­it­t­ee presid­ent­ Pa­ra­m­jit­ Sing­h Sa­rna­ g­a­ve R­s­ 2.5 l­a­kh; Dam­­dam­­i­ T­ak­sal Rs­ 50,000; Ra­n­ji­t S­i­n­gh Da­rdri­a­n­a­ Rs­ 1 l­a­kh; a­n­d a­ F­ra­n­ce-ba­s­ed S­i­kh bo­dy ga­ve Rs­1 l­a­kh. There were a­l­s­o­ ma­n­y o­ther o­rga­n­i­z­a­ti­o­n­s­ tha­t ga­ve va­ryi­n­g a­mo­un­ts­ o­f­ mo­n­ey to­ Da­rs­ha­n­ S­i­n­gh’s­ f­a­mi­l­y.

A­ka­n­d Ki­rtn­i­ Ja­tha­ l­ea­der R.P­ S­i­n­gh decl­a­red Da­rs­ha­n­ S­i­n­gh wa­s­ a­ ma­rtyr o­f­ the S­i­kh co­mmun­i­ty. “I­, o­n­ beha­l­f­ o­f­ UK-ba­s­ed S­i­khs­, a­n­n­o­un­ce tha­t i­f­ the f­a­mi­l­y do­es­ n­o­t a­ccep­t the go­vern­men­t jo­b, a­n­d rema­i­n­s­ wi­th us­, we wi­l­l­ s­ettl­e the who­l­e f­a­mi­l­y i­n­ a­n­y f­o­rei­gn­ co­un­try o­r a­n­ywhere i­n­ I­n­di­a­ they wa­n­t. We wi­l­l­ wei­gh the f­a­mi­l­y a­ga­i­n­s­t curren­cy, but they s­ho­ul­d f­o­l­l­o­w the p­a­th Da­rs­ha­n­ S­i­n­gh to­o­k,” he s­a­i­d.

A­mo­n­g the s­p­ea­ker a­t the Bho­g ceremo­n­y were Da­mda­mi­ Ta­ks­a­l­ hea­d Ha­rn­a­m S­i­n­gh Kha­l­s­a­, f­o­rmer A­ka­l­ Ta­kht Ja­theda­rs­ Ra­n­ji­t S­i­n­gh a­n­d Ja­s­bi­r S­i­n­gh Ro­de, DS­GMC p­res­i­den­t P­a­ra­mji­t S­i­n­gh S­a­rn­a­, S­A­D (A­mri­ts­a­r) p­res­i­den­t S­i­mra­n­ji­t S­i­n­gh Ma­n­n­, Da­l­ Kha­l­s­a­ l­ea­der S­a­tn­a­m S­i­n­gh P­a­un­ta­ S­a­hi­b, S­a­n­t S­a­ma­j hea­d S­a­rba­jo­t S­i­n­gh Bedi­, a­n­d Kha­l­s­a­ A­cti­o­n­ Co­mmi­ttee co­n­ven­o­r Mo­hka­m S­i­n­gh. A­l­l­ o­f­ them co­n­demn­ed Chi­ef­ Mi­n­i­s­ter P­a­rka­s­h S­i­n­gh Ba­da­l­ a­n­d S­A­D p­res­i­den­t S­ukhbi­r S­i­n­gh Ba­da­l­ a­s­ “a­n­ti­-P­a­thi­c”.

S­O­URCE-HT

taken from : punjabnews.org

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Allahabad HC upholds life term to cop for killing 5 Sikhs in 1984

Allahabad: The Allahabad High Court on Tuesday upheld the life sentence awarded to a constable for killing five Sikhs at a police station in the aftermath of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's assassination.

A division bench comprising Justice Rakesh Tiwari and Justice A K Roopanwal dismissed the appeal of Tilak Ram, who had challenged the punishment awarded to him by sessions court in Meerut on July 30, 2007. He had claimed that he was of unsound mind at the time of the incident.

Ram had opened fire on a group of Sikhs who had gathered at Badaut police station (now in Baghpat district) in the early hours of Nov 5, 1984 and had even threatened fellow police personnel when they tried to stop him from doing so.

In his appeal, Ram had pleaded that he was of unsound mind at the time of the incident and was incapable of knowing the nature of his act and hence incapable of distinguishing between right and wrong.

The court, however, dismissed his plea saying it was "not a schizophrenic act" but "an instance of Sikh killing, the like of which had happened and was happening at that time because of assassination of Indira Gandhi".

PTI

with thanks from : http://www.zeenews.com/news587706.html

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Try to save the Sikhi

Those who paid gold coins, in Mughal rules, for a sikh head, could not finish the Sikhs. But today, our kids are paying, from our own pockets for trimming the beards, for cutting hairs, for buying caps, for eating tambaku and for consuming liquor. They can not speak Punjabi. They can not recite Gurbani. Ask any trimmer and he will give a dozen explanations to prove, that, he is more than a sikh.

It's a wake up call for all of us.We can atleast try our best to save the Sikhi. We are looking for persons who can join us in this endeavour. Please add your comments, suggestions, ideas, views in the comments box below.

best regards

SikhsIndia
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Gurmat Samagam : Sri Guru Nanak Sewak Jatha

You can also upload details of Gurmat Samagam in your Gurdwara on our Sikh Blog as well sikh web portal with over one lakh hits per month. Please mail us the details, pics, posters, cards etc. for uploading without any obligation.

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Sd. Arvinder singh Lovely

Arvinder Singh Lovely is the Minister for Education, Tourism, Languages, Gurudwara election & Gurudwara Administration in the current cabinet of the elected Indian National Congress (INC) Government being headed by Mrs. Sheila Dikshit, Chief Minister, Delhi.

Arvinder Singh Lovely was born on 11 December 1968 to Sd. Balvinder Singh. He pursued his graduation from SGTB Khalsa College, University of Delhi in Political Science. He was elected to the Students' Union of the college. He was also elected as the General Secretary of the National Student Union of India during 1992-1996. He was elected to the Delhi Legislative Assembly for the first time in 1998. He was made a Minister in the cabinet in 2003.

He has again been won in Delhi Legislative Assembly elections 2008 consecutively third time. He is now the education and transport minister in the cabinet.

Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arvinder_Singh_Lovely

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CBI for prosecuting Tytler, Sajjan Kumar for 1984 riots

Responding to a calling attention motion in the Rajya Sabha, on the progress of relief and steps taken to punish the guilty involved in the anti-Sikh riots, Chidanbaram said: "The CBI has completed investigation or re-investigation of seven cases against Tytler, Kumar and late Dharam Das Shastri."

"While in four cases, the CBI has sought permission under criminal procedure code (Cr PC) Section 196 from the Competent Authority to prosecute the accused persons, in one case the closure has been filed and accepted by the court," he added. (ANI)

with thanks : source :http://sify.com/news/CBI-for-prosecuting-Tytler-Sajjan-Kumar-for-1984-riots-news-jmopkdfgbab.html

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Sikh with turban taken back in US Army

Campaign by Sikhs in America has resulted in the US Army accepting another Sikh recruit for active duty with his religious identity intact. It will be for the first time in 23 years that Sikhs will serve in the US Army with their turbans and unshorn hair.
Captain Tejdeep Singh Rattan, a dentist, and Captain Kamaljit Singh Kalsi, a doctor, were asked by the army to remove their turbans and cut hair before they could be allowed to join active duty earlier this year. The two Sikhs had just completed an army programme that paid for their medical education in return for military service.

Both they refused to remove their turbans and shave their hair, leading to protests and petitions by the community.

After a signature and lobbying campaign launched by Sikh organizations, including the Sikh Coalition, on Vaisakhi day, the US Army first announced in October to accept Captain Kalsi back with his turban.

Now it has also decided to accept Captain Rattan.

The army had banned “conspicuous” religious articles of faith for its members in 1981. However, some Sikhs who had joined before that date were allowed to practice their religious identity.

But the authorities have made only one-time exception for the two Sikh officers, without announcing any change in its overall recruitment policy. It is, however, willing to review its general policy of excluding Sikhs from future service.

“The individual accommodations for Captain Tejdeep Singh and Captain Kamaljeet Singh have significant implications for Sikh employees,” said Sikh Coalition in a statement Friday.

“Ending discrimination in the US Army sends a message to all other employers, both private and public, that discrimination against Sikhs who maintain their articles of faith is not acceptable,” it said.

Thousands of Sikhs had sent petitions to the army to take the two recruits back with their religious identity.

by IANS

Read more: http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/sikh-with-turban-taken-back-in-us-army_100288046.html

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No "heritage city" status for Amritsar: Govt

NEW DELHI: A forceful demand for declaring Amritsar a 'heritage city' was rejected in the Lok Sabha, with the government saying there was no legal provision to do so either in India or under the UNESCO rules.

The government on Friday rejected heritage city status to Amritsar on grounds that its population was less than one million, the cut off for classifying a city as “mission”.

Amritsar houses 10.03 lakh people (2001 census), 3000 more than the technical requirement for shifting it from Category B to C, the category which lists 28 cities on the basis of their religious, historical and tourist importance. These cities get greater financial contribution on the patter of 80:20 to develop their infrastructure.

But the government today steered clear of BJP member Navjot Sidhu’s persistent and emotional appeals to not bury the significant issue under the debris of technicalities, and instead spare a thought for the legacy of Amritsar.

Calling the attention of the government to the urgent need to grant “heritage city status” to Amritsar, and classify it as Category C under Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), Sidhu recounted the pride of place which Harmandar Sahib enjoyed in the world, with top international leaders making time to offer prayers there, including Queen Elizabeth and the Canadian PM.

“The SGPC says two lakh people daily offer prayers at the Golden Temple,” Sidhu said, in the House, most members uniting behind him, including the Congress MPs from Punjab.

“The Prime Minister has twice promised heritage status to Amritsar,” said the Amritsar MP, beseeching the PM to honour his word.

“Can we negate the history of Amritsar, the fact that it houses the temporal seat of Sikh religion, it is a birthplace of Luv and Kush; it is a historical treasure?” Sidhu asked. He rued the fact that while Lahore is a world heritage site, Amritsar is struggling for heritage tag in India.

The opposition, led by Deputy Leader of the BJP Sushma Swaraj, backed Sidhu’s demands. She requested leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee, whose birthday it was, to gift to the nation the heritage status for Amritsar. Pranab was silent but did not appear opposed to the appeals.

Minister of State for Urban Development Sugata Ray, however, made matters queer when he said there was no provision for declaration of a city as a heritage city under the ministry.

“Punjab has a balance of Rs 145 crore under the JNNURM. Amritsar can use these funds to take up projects for development of heritage areas,” he said to agitated BJP members, who said they were asking for recognition, not alms.

The House saw a brief disruption on the matter, especially so when Sidhu referred to an urban reform which empowers national steering group under the JNNURM to delete and add cities to Category C, on the basis of suggestions from states.

with thanks : source : http://www.punjabnewsline.com/content/view/21735/38/

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DASAM GRANTH

Totally confused at the Dasam Granth controversy between Prof. Darshan singh ji Khalsa & Akal Takht Sahib, I thought of understanding the Dasam Granth. As a net savy person, it was easy for me to surf the net. Therefore while surfing various sources on net, I reached sikhiwiki and found as below :

Dasam granth consists of Jaap (meditation), Akal ustat (praises of God) , Bachitar natak( autobiography of the Guru) , Chandi charitar I & II (the character of goddess Chandi) , Chandi di var (a ballad to describe goddess Durga), Gian Prabodh (the awakening of knowledge) , Chobis Avtar (24 incarnations of Vishnu) , Brahm avtar (incarnation of Brahma), Rudar avtar (incarnation of Shiv) , Shabad hazare (ten shabads), Swayyae (33 stanzas) , Khalsa mahima (the praises of the Khalsa) , Shastar nam mala ( a list of weapons) , Charitropakhyan / Triya Charitar (the character of women) , Zafarnama (epistle of victory, a letter written to Emperor Aurangzeb), & Hikayats (stories).

Charitropakhyan :

Charitropakhyan also called Triya Charitar,is a long composition of women's tales in verse, which forms over one third of the Dasam Granth, having 404 distinct chapters. A school of opinion, however, exists which asserts that Chritropakhyan and some other compositions included in the Dasam Granth are not by the Guru sahib, but by some of the poets of the Guru sahib’s Court. What is clear is that most of 404 tales give a moral message rather than being intended as a piece of actual history.

The chapters are of wondrous variety, being sensual, romantic, humourous, philosophical, valiant and entertaining. Many stories also deal with the darker side of human nature, such as incest, magic of myth, the mystical nature of legend, homosexuality, adultery, etc. These stories were collected from Punjabi folklore, Indian folklore and classical traditional texts.

They also arise from foreign sources, personal experiences of the Tenth Guru and others miscellaneous sources. Many scandalous stories floating about the society of the time, imaginary stories, urban legends etc., also found their way into Treh Chrittar. In some cases, multiple tales are mishmashed together to produce a wonderful new concoction of stories.

According to Bhai Mani Singh, who in the Bhagat Mala has said, “The Charitar acts as a warning so that the devout do not get trapped in women's intrigues and machinations.’’

In the Dasam Granth a title is given at the end of each tale. Thirty two of a total of 404 Tales are thus labelled "Tales of Intrigue." The remaining 372 Tales are labelled as "The Wiles of Women." However, while most of these are about lustful, deceitful women, there are some 74 tales of the bravery and intelligence of women. In this mixture of tales of various sorts, there are ten "moral stories" of the folly of gambling, drinking, and opium eating.

Claims that the Poets at the Guru's Court wrote sections of the Charitropakhyan :

In the early 1970s, Santokh Singh (a Sikh scholar) from Chandigarh wrote a letter to the Shromani Gurudwara Parbandak Committee (S.G.P.C.) quering the authenticity of the Dasam Granth as being of Guru Gobind Singh ji's hand.

On 3rd August 1973, he received a reply from the S.G.P.C. stating: ‘Chritter Pkhyan which are entered in the Dasam Granth, they are not the work of Guru Gobind Singh ji. They are ancient mythological stories of Hinduism.’(‘Dasam Granth Bareh Chonveh Lekh’ by Principle Harbhajan Singh, P.122-123)

The above reply was sanctioned by the then S.G.P.C. Jathedar (commander) of the Akal Takht, Sadhu Singh Bhaura, Chet Singh (Head Granthi of Golden Temple), Kirpal Singh Granthi and Sohan Singh (Granthi of Golden Temple).

Source : sikhiwiki

with best regards
B S Vohra



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Amarinder flays Punjab government

Hoshiarpur (Pb), Dec 11 (PTI) Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today said the SAD-BJP government was trying to polarise Sikh masses in the state to further its own interest.

"Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in aware that he will not come in power in the state again," Amarinder told reporters here.

He alleged that the recent incidents in Ludhiana regarding confrontation between Panthik organisations and followers of Divya Jyoti Jagran Sansthan Sect head Ashutosh Maharaj was a clear cut indication of Badal's "bad" intentions.

Amarinder said the state government was trying to further crush people of state who were already facing skyrocketing prices of essential commodities by imposing new taxes.

Replying to a question regarding installation of nuclear power plant in the state, he said it should be installed in the deserts of Rajasthan with the association of state government there.

with thanks source : PTI NEWS : http://www.ptinews.com/news/419740_Amarinder-flays-Punjab-government

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