Friday, November 25, 2011

Punjab CM dedicates Virasat-e-Khalsa monument to public

Anandpur Sahib: The Chief Minister of Punjab, Prakash Singh Badal here on Friday dedicated 'Virasat-e-Khalsa’ monument to the public regarded as masterpiece of rich Sikh culture and religious history. A religious ceremony was also performed on the auspicious occasion. Showcasing the rich heritage of Khalsa, its history and culture of Punjab, the complex costing over Rs 350 crore had been mired with various controversies since the foundation stone of the first phase of the complex was laid by Congress to its completion by SAD-BJP regime.


The national president of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Nitin Gadkari and Ravi Shankar, founder of Art of Living and other dignitaries were also present on the occasion. The Virasat-e-Khalsa gives profound insight regarding the unfolding of the events in the previous three centuries in Punjab leading to the birth to Khalsa. Showcasing the history and culture of Punjab, a monumental museum depicts the evolution of Khalsa Panth, right from Guru Nanak era to Guru Gobind Singh’s Khalsa Raj, the unparalleled sacrifices of Sikhs for unity and integrity of the country. 

As the five head priests of five Takhts and Badal dedicated it to the humanity, religious heads of all religions, representatives of all casts and people from various countries described it a new symbol of humanity depicting universal brotherhood and love.  

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal honoured the people associated with the project with robe of honour and Sukhbir in his address described Virasat-E-Khalsa as 8th wonder of the world that is set to put Sri Anandpur Sahib on global tourist map. Dedicating Virasat-E-Khalsa to the humanity, Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh described it as a important day in the history. The Chief Minister said that we should view Virasat-E-Khalsa rising above all religions, all parties, all castes as this monument is dedicated to the humanity denoting the message of ‘Sarbatt Da Bhala’ given to us by the first Guru of Sikhs.





with thanks : Punjab Newsline : link above for detailed News story.

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A Sikh of substance

 Khushwant Singh


(Left to right) Aboriginal musician Uncle George, Jamel Kaur, Dya Singh and Afghan Muslim tabla player Rameen Nawa at a recital
I was aware of the existence of Sikh settlements in Woolgoolga in North Australia. They were farmers growing avocados and bananas and were prosperous enough to have aircraft of their own to spray pesticides. They were split into two factions and had two gurdwaras. I spent one evening with them and was charmed to note that after the evening prayers, their ladies served chilled beer to their men folk.


(Left to right) Aboriginal musician Uncle George, Jamel Kaur, Dya Singh and Afghan Muslim tabla player Rameen Nawa at a recital



In the last few decades, Sikh presence has spread to other parts of Australia, most notably to Melbourne. The city’s best-known sardar is Dya Singh, a 60-year-old ragi born in Malaysia, where his father was a granthi-cum-ragi of a gurdwara. Dya Singh started singing with his father when he was only three, and continued doing so for the next 15 years.




With thanks : Tribune : Link above in the headline for the detailed news story. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2011/20111119/saturday/above.htm

The Article : Sardars of Australia : via link from : 
Thanks to Sd. Gurmukh Singh ji from UK.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Union minister Sharad Pawar slapped

New Delhi: A man has slapped agriculture minister Sharad Pawar in the face, apparently to draw attention to rising food prices.

Sharad Pawar was talking to reporters at a political function Thursday when the man attacked him. TV news reports said the man was shouting slogans about rising food prices.

Television footage showed the man brandishing a knife as he was dragged away by security officialsand Pawar's aides. CNN-IBN TV reported that he was detained by police.

Pawar was not seriously hurt.

Such incidents have become increasingly common in India, where ministers and other officials have had shoes thrown at them and their offices ransacked by angry citizens.

The incidents have usually been over political decisions, corruption and real or perceived injustices.

with thanks : yahoo news : link above for detailed news.

Neeh Pathar of new Langar Hall & Yatri niwas at Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib







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Neeh pathar at Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib



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United Sikhs won Chase the community giving contest on Facebook

New York: United Sikhs has won the $250,000/- ‘Chase Community Giving’ contest on Facebook with a margin of 4969 votes from its closest contestant. The NGO received a total of 22,685 votes. The top eligible charity receives $250,000 and the remaining 99 top charities earn $25,000 through $100,000 awards.

“The Chase Community Giving contest a labor of love for all our volunteers. It was an exciting two weeks of networking on the ground as our volunteers hit the road, real people talking to real people, using social media technology for a good cause! We sincerely appreciate the time and effort everyone put in by everyone. We maintained our commitment to the Program rules and thank Chase Bank for the opportunity. We look forward to using the funds for augmenting our Humanitarian Aid and Community Services projects, ” said Jatinder Singh, Director United Sikhs.

“We thank all the Gurudwaras, volunteers, and thousands of facebook users who supported the organization. We congratulate the top 100 winners of the contest. We also thank ‘Chase Community Giving’ for providing us an avenue to engage communities worldwide in supporting our projects in the service of humanity” said Kuldip Singh, President, United Sikhs, USA.

“We thank the Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee (DSGMC), Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Commitee (SGPC) and the Gurudwara committees of North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa who unequivocally supported our cause and provided help with reaching out to the masses” said Pawanjit Singh, Director United Sikhs, USA.

Participating itself has been a learning experience about the passion we bring to help the needy and the wonderful work that other charities do and the various causes they work for.

United Sikhs thanked and congratulated all Charities that participated and has wished everyone success in their endeavors – the world is a wonderful place because of the selfless work by Volunteers for the charities they work with.

sikh siyasat

Footsteps of Guru Tegh Bahadur

AMRITSAR:

Birth place of Guru Tegh Bahadur:
The ninth Guru of the Sikhs, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was born in Amritsar on April 1, 1621. He was the youngest of five sons of Guru Hargobind Singh. He had four brothers Baba Gurditta, Baba Suraj Mal, Baba Ani Rai, Baba Atal Rai and one sister Bibi Veero. Situated in a narrow street near Guru Bazar, the birthplace of the Guru is known as Gurdwara Guru Ke Mahal, as it was also the home of Guru Ramdas, Guru Arjan Dev and Guru Hargobind. The gurdwara has a well from the times of the Gurus.

Gurdwara Kotha Sahib:
Gurdwara Kotha Sahib is situated in Vallaha near Amritsar. The legend has it that after attaining "Gurgaddi", Guru Tegh Bahadur reached Amritsar to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple. After taking dip in the holy sarovar, Guru sat under a Beri tree and later went to Vallaha. He visited Mata Haro's home and stayed there for 17 days. Her house later became the gurdwara.

Gurdwara Baba Bakala:
Situated around 37 kilometres from Amritsar, Gurdwara Baba Bakala holds a significant importance in Sikh history. Before his death, Guru Harkrishan had mumbled "Baba Bakal" giving indication that his successor would be found here. In those days, many imposters tried to grab the "Gurgaddi" by posing as the real Guru. It was Makhan Shah Lubana, a banjara trader from Jhelum, who discovered the real Guru.

Gurdwara Moti Bagh Sahib:
Gurdwara Moti Bagh Sahib situated near the new Moti Bagh palace in Patiala is a place where almost entire Patiala will converge on Thursday, as the ninth Guru of Sikhs Guru Teg Bahadur had stayed for some days here before attaining martyrdom for Kashmiri Pandits. "Guru Sahib stayed here for more than a week while he was going to Delhi from Anandpur Sahib," said manager of gurdwara Karnail Singh. Though majority of the gurdwara building has been reconstructed, there still exists a small building at the back of the gurdwara where the Guru reportedly stayed for some days. "Authorities have reconstructed the main building but they did not demolished this small place as it is considered auspicious," said Balwant Singh, a regular devotee to the gurdwara for the past 30 years.

Yamunanagar villages:
During his various pilgrimages, Guru Tegh Bahadur visited two villages of Yamunanagar - Jhiwerehri and Shudail. The Guru meditated under the sun, and when people requested him to sit under a tree, he assured them that a tree will grow by itself at the place of his meditation. The legend has it that a peepal tree grew at the same place, and still exists. A pond near the gurdwara came into existence during the Guru's visit. A gurdwara was built in Shudail village.

Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib:
The gurdwara built in Delhi is situated at a place where Guru Tegh Bahadur was cremated after his execution in November 1675 on the orders of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. The Guru was beheaded for refusing to accept Islam as his religion.

Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib:
After the Guru was beheaded at Chandni Chowk in old Delhi, his head was taken to the Anandpur Sahib by Bhai Jivan Singh, and cremated by his son Gobind Rai. Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib is constructed at the same place, and thousand of devotees come here every year.


with thanks : Times of India : link above for detailed news report.

Guru Teg Bahadur was the first martyr for human rights

JALANDHAR: As the martyrdom day of ninth Sikh master, Guru Teg Bahadur, is being observed on Wednesday, only a few may know that he was the first martyr for human rights, who attained martyrdom for defending the rights of followers of a different faith to practice their faith.

It was around a century before the popular quotation, "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it", attributed to French writer, deist and philosopher Voltaire, that the ninth master demonstrated it literally.

Ironically, this statement became more popular in the world than its real demonstration, which preceded it a century ago in the Indian subcontinent.

"Guru Teg Bahadur was undisputedly the first martyr for human rights. His martyrdom was unparalleled in world history as never before somebody had laid down life to defend the right of followers of another faith to practice their faith," said former IAS and Sikh scholar, Gurtej Singh.

with thanks : Times of India : link above for detailed news.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Sikh pilgrims call for easing of visa restrictions

Every year thousands of Sikhs visit Nankana Sahib, a small town near the Pakistani city of Lahore, birthplace of Guru Nanak Dev, founder of the Sikh religion.

with thanks : BBC News : PLEASE VIEW THE VIDEO FROM THE LINK IN HEADLINE ABOVE.

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Tuesday, November 22, 2011

New luxury train to cover Sikh shrines

Beijing, Nov 22 (PTI) Indian Railways will launch a special train next month to cover various Sikh shrines in the country to cash in on the success of luxury trains on the religious routes catering to overseas tourists. The 'Takht Express' would be launched on December 23 from Chandigarh. It would cover six sacred destinations for Sikhs, including Amritsar in nine days, Rakesh Tandon, Managing Director of the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) said here. Tandon was speaking at a get together organised for Chinese travel agents, media and officials of Buddhist shrines here yesterday to popularise 'Mahaparinirvan Express' being run on the Buddhist circuit in India and Nepal. He said the train covering Sikh shrines was being launched following the high demand for such trains in religious routes. The IRCTC along with the Indian Embassy and India Tourism department, Beijing, organised the event to highlight the popularity of the Mahaparinirvan Express among the Buddhist all over the world as it covered most important places sacred to Buddhism. Starting from Safdarjung railway station in New Delhi the Mahaparinirvan Express covers Budhgaya, Nalanda, Rajgir, Varanasi, Sarnath, Lumbini, Sravasti, Kushinagar and Agra. The event was organised to mainly popularise the train in China which has a large number of Buddhist population. PTI KJV

with thanks : IBNLive : link above.