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Dear ms514, By His grace, I am going to bring you forth the answer of your direct, valuable and a very nice question, through the Bani. Sree Guru Ram Das Maharaj, in His pure paviter Bani in Raag Maaroo, tells us: mai man tan khoj dhandholi-aa ki-o paa-ee-ai akath kahaanee. I have searched through and through, with my mind and body; but how can I attain, or find this (Nam)Unspoken Speech? Here, He is confirming us, that, He has heard a lot about the mahima of Nam, but alas, where to find it? Who knows about it? Who can show me the way to get and realize it? Some try to find it in books, others at temples or pilgrimages, others by "tap", by moortee pujas, others by fasting or torturing their bodies...etc...etc and etc Then in the next line, He Himself is giving us the answer, to this arised question. sant janaa mil paa-i-aa sun akath kathaa man bhaanee. Meeting with the humble Saints, I have found it; listening to the Unspoken Speech, my mind is pleased. With this line, that this Nam, is got as Gurparsad from the Saints, the Gurmukhs, as they come with the wealth of this very Nam, to distribute it freely, to those brave wadbhagees, who go to their shelter, without being bothered of their origin, or caste or creed, or the opinion of the world, as to what will the world say ...like he has become mad, has become a shame for our community, by going in the company of these "frauds" ......because that is how we people call those Gurmukhs.....not there are no frauds in the world, but just as we are narrow minded, and have limited the teachings of Gurmat within the 4 walls of our polluted minds, so we fail to recognize a Gurmukh, if any. But we can see, what Sree Guru Ram Das is telling us in the above 2 lines. Brothers, Gurmat is eternal. It is not meant for a particular period of time, or for a particular class, creed, caste or community ...it is a evergreen fountain for all the humanity. Whosoever drinks from it, shall have eternal life. And moreover, He says, by doing Nam Simran, the Anhad Bani is heard within ourselves, and the consequence of this is, that the mind is defeated. Hearing the Anhad Bani is equivalent to drinking the Amrit of Nam, the Nectar of Nam, within ourselves, made by Akal Purukh Himself. That Amrit, is the one our Guru Sahibans mention again and again in the Bani, the one which by having it, we become intoxicated with the true love for Wahiguru Akal Purukh. This Amrit the more we have it, the more we become pure and paviter. This Amrit, Wahiguru has kept in equal mesure within us, for each and everyone, without any discrimination of nationality or dharam, or limitations, all the 24 hours,unlike we humans do. The only requirement according to Guru Rm Das is to meet a Gurmukh, and get from Him, the Gurparsad, the bakshish, the bhed, the jugtee. All the Guru sahibans were Gurmukhs themselves. They came to be an example, for us humans, as per how to love Him and how to merge in Him So then what happens, once we listen to the Akath Katha, the Anhad Bani, the Shabad Dhun? As we become mature in the practice of Nam Simran, the mind is defeated. And once this is done, we shed all coverings and impurities from our souls, and then, we merge in Him, and become Him, such is the mahanta of His Nam. Attee Sundar Manmohan Pyaro.

The disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 is the kind of mystery that's not supposed to be possible any more. The Information Age is also the age of surveillance, of interconnectedness, of cloud computing, of GPS satellites, of intelligence agencies that can monitor terrorists from space or call in a drone strike from a control console on the other side of the world. Sangat Ji,let's pray for all the souls on board that aircraft as well as all the family members of the ones related. Nanak naam chardi kala,tere bhaane sarbat da bhalla! Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa Shri Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh

Genuinely brother, there are two types of person who can write above. 1. You have absolutely have no knowledge on what happened there in Amritsar and relies on biased news and fabricated history fed by mahan Bharat. OR 2. You know exactly what happened there but are doing nothing but a troll

On the contrary, the Indian army attacked without warning. Even before the actual attack by the army, they began pumping 10,000 bullets into the Harmander Sahib complex in order to provoke a response from the Sikhs. They did this in order to see the positions of the Sikh defenders. But Gen Shabeg Singh knew this and ordered the Sikh defenders to keep silent and not respond. But it is the Indian army which did not once think that it might hit some pilgrim (which it did). Even before the attack, they did not once warn the pilgrims so they could leave. They attacked without any provocation or warning. This is according to eye witness accounts of the pilgrims themselves who survived the attack. And why should Sant Jee surrender? He was in the house of his Guru. Who is she to tell a Sikh to leave the house of his Guru? It was the ego of Indira Gandhi that was inflated. She could not handle the fact that there was someone who was standing up to her 'highness'. She wanted to teach the Sikhs a lesson they would never forget.

WJKK WJKF Just watched the movie today and it was amazing. So much history was added that a lot of people were unaware about. Only thing I didn't like was the fact the theatre barely had any people (Brampton Silvercity). So please take the time out to support the people who put in so much effort instead of just downloading it. WJKK WJKF

Deal or No Deal crowns 7th £250,000 jackpot winner By Tom Eames Wednesday, Feb 12 2014, 17:00 GMT Deal or No Deal crowned its seventh quarter-millionaire today (February 12). Roop Singh became only the second male contestant to take home £250,000 on the Channel 4 game show. The 54-year-old carried on all the way to the end of the game, despite having just £5, £100, £500, £1,000 and the £250,000 jackpot as his last five boxes. An added twist of a 23rd box almost saw the Sikh lay priest take home £500,000. Singh said of his win: "The night before my game my daughter quite innocently said, 'Dad, I want confetti'. When I was offered £46k all I could think of was, 'Dad, I want confetti' and I said, 'No Deal'. "I still cannot fully remember what happened next but I do remember the confetti and everyone hugging and congratulating me." In the first five rounds, the Banker's highest offer was £10,000, and Singh later turned down £46,000. The final two boxes were the jackpot and £500, with host Noel Edmonds revealing that Roop had won the grand prize. He was then offered the chance to select an additional box that could have enabled him to double his winnings, claim an additional £10,000, get his money back, halve his winnings or win nothing. However, his family persuaded him to leave the boxes alone. Edmonds later revealed that he would have doubled his winnings had he bought his chosen box. Since his victory, Singh has bought several presents for his friends and family and a bike for himself. He also plans to donate money to his supported charities. Video clip available at - http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/news/a550699/deal-or-no-deal-crowns-7th-gbp250000-jackpot-winner.html

The fact is that they brought it upon themselves. They could have not supported the communalist muslim league, and clearly rejected pakistan. they could have said something about the Rawalpindi pogrom, but they didnt. The majority of muslims in panjab supported the Pakistan movement. What happened in East Panjab after partition, was the chickens had come home to roost (to quote a muslim guy). For some years in Panjab, and over India, muslims were using violence as and when it suited them to further their political goals. Kill the kafirs, and allah loves you, but when the kafirs bite back, whinge about it for decades. In western panjab, the sikhs only being about 5 or 10 % of the population against some 80 or 90 % of the muslims, took severe casualties, but in East Panjab, where Sikhs were only something like 15-20% of the population, as against 30 to 49% of the muslim population, the Sikhs still gave them what for. In East Panjab, they still outnumbered the Sikhs in more or less every district by 2 to 1, or 3 to 1, yet they got they beat. Only where they could fight Sikhs 8 to 1 or 9 to 1, they managed to do something. So, don't whinge about them, they had everything in their favour, but the scars of Rawalpindi, had proved too strong for them. Why are you buying into the Pakistani propaganda that more muslims were killed. It's all lies, they dont even acknowledge that Rawalpindi saka happened, yet you lap up their propaganda. I'm not sure sure that the Sikh community has recovered from partition of panjab. Those Sikhs in the know about this are still bitter from my experience. But what we have to accept is that partition had happened, and how we can work towards restoring our heritage in West Panjab, and extending hands of mutual co-operation and acknowledgement across the border. That means that the Pakistani curriculum tells schoolchildren the truth about what they did to create Pakistan, and lose their victim mentality over partition violence.

Please run a search on YouTube videos of Dr. Udhoke explaining clearly the Sikh philosophy behind warfare, and also every reason why Sant Jee did what he did, and did it all exactly based on the Sikh warfare philosophy of our Shaheed Singhs.

What makes you think Bhindranewale had any say on who entered or left the Harmandir Sahib complex ? He wasn't controlling who entered and who left, he wasn't forcefulky holding anyone in the complex.This was a delibrately timed attack by the Indian government at a time when they knew the complex would be full of pilgrims so that they could inflict maximum casulties to teach Sikhs a lesson and gain popularity at the votes at the next election for Indira Gandhi by falsely labelling a minority as terrorists. It was the Indian army that didn't allow pilgrims to leave the complex and murdered hundreds of innocent men,women and children.

What is the understanding behind carrying 3 ft kirpan? i like having shaastar on you all time but i see people who turns into famous personality started carrying 3 ft kirpan. Is this showing that "I am leader" ?

If your going to carry shastar make sure you have the knowledge and training on how to use them. It's a big responsibility shastars must be given the respect they deserve. Its beadbi to carry shastars for show.

Imagine if J.S.Bhindranwale had allowed the innocent pilgrims to leave before the battle commenced or better still curtailed his ego and surrendered to the army. All the bloodshed and carnage could have been avoided.

West London sikh ji Loss of human life is always sad be it of muslim or a sikh. Muslims were the first to start with around Rawalpindi area and frontier province. Read the dates of March 1947.They had eliminated most of sikhs and Hindus before partition in that area. Riots in East Punjab was in response to these massacres. However it is madness and should never be condoned.

It wasn't advertised as much either. The only place I saw advertisements was on Sikh Channel, so a lot of people don't even know about it.

Interesting when Saada Haq was released in the UK cinemas were packed out full houses couldn't get tickets. I don't think kaum de heere is showing at as many locations as Saddam haq did. Also Saddam haq had a lot of publicity from Jazzy B baagi track and being banned in Punjab etc.. this made a lot of people who otherwise wouldn't have bothered want to go and watch it. I agree though kaum de heere looks like a great film everyone should make an effort to go and watch it in cinemas to support the producers.

Johny101 is spot on. It was a terrible tragedy but sikhs suffered most.They owned much of land especially in Canal colonies of montogomery,Lyallpur, sargodha and sahiwal. They became landless.

VJKK VJKF the calendar and article is available on our site jeeo http://www.gurmatparchar.com/#/why-do-the-dates-keep-changing/4573345878 http://www.gurmatparchar.com/#/calendar/4573228116

I would like to suggest one thing. Can we gather up all the missionary preachers and ship them off to this imam house. They are his long lost brothers and this family reunion must take place.

WaheguruJi , that singh is not me however if you like , you can ask him question on youtube channel not only he has good knowledge but he is very very good in archery too

It's a long ongoing battle. My advice is to keep going, keep going and give it all you can.......and keep at it !! I know that there are times when one can sit there and continue japping, but the mind keeps bringing in thought after thought and distractions..one after another.....such that, when you finish/stop or it's time to stop......you feel guilty and disgusted that you had all these thoughts all the while trying to do simran ! Don't give up.. keep going and keep trying.. Guru Nanak ji's says in sidh gosht that ''one may have to chew iron with teeth of wax to get to waheguru, but with the use of Shabad, this is all possible for the devoted gurmukh'' He knows if you are making the effort even though there has been many times when I have felt that my thought's were unnecessary and complete sacrilege to the name of waheguru. But believe me, he knows and for every one step you take, he takes ten or more towards you.

ਲੀਗਲ ਸਿੰਘ (ਇਲੀਗਲ ਖਾਨ), of the one million people that died in 1947, half were Muslims and about 1/4 were Hindus and 1/4 were Sikhs. From this it may seem like the Punjabi Muslims suffered the most. But in reality it is the Sikhs who suffered the most for the following reasons: -Although 1/4 of the one million victims were Sikhs but this number meant 5% of the Sikh population died where as 3.33% Punjabi Muslims died. So Sikhs suffered more in terms of population loss. -before partition Sikhs were 13% of the entire Punjabi population but 1/3 of the land was owned by the Sikhs. The best lands were in the canal colonies that were given off to Pakistan. Sikhs lost land which cannot be totaled by the land lost by the Muslims of east Punjab who in comparison were small land owners. When the populations were exchanged the Sikhs from west Punjab had to settle for smaller land holdings in east Punjab where as the east Punjab Muslims were given even more land than they had in east Punjab from the huge amounts of land vacated by the Sikhs of west Punjab. -West Punjab was the birth place of Sikhi. Most of the great Gurdwaras associated with Guru Nanak Dev Jee are located there. This loss is probably the biggest one felt by the Sikhs. It is almost like Muslims being forced to leave Hejaz in Soudi Arabia or Jews being forced to leave Israel. And as for which side women suffered the most, I would dispute your claim that the other side's women suffered more. I don't have the figures with me right now, but I remember reading not too long ago of the amount of women that were recovered from east and west Punjab. The Hindu/Sikh women were more.

please can anyone tell me that when we are trying to become one with vaheguru ji through naam simran meditation, does the mind fight back as to make us turn away, because sometimes i feel like there is war going on inside my head between my atma which is vaheguru or trying to reach him and my mind which is manmukh ?

WJKK WJKF I would like to ask the imam if he remembers his infant years from o months upto 3. Or how much he remembers from his life from the age of 4 upto 6, also if he remembers how it felt the first time he crawled, walked and spoke? Our progression in this life is not remembered fully yet for some reason the imam assumes we should remember our previous millions of lives lol! WJKK WJKF

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Both?

People who are advocating using castist last names - here are some facts None of the gursikhs even prior to Amrit sanchaar by Guru Gobind singh jee used last name - e.g. we only hear of Bhai gurdas jee, Bhai Jaito, Baba Budha, Bhai Bidheechand etc. None of the Gursikhs ever used last name after 1699 vaisakhi - Bhai taru singh, sukha singh, mehtaab singh, garja singh, bohta singh .... None of the Sikh scholars used last name - we only hear of bhai kahn singh nabha, sardar kapoor singh, veer singh etc None of the singh sooramy in recent insurgency against evil indian government used last names - Maochal, jathedar Babbar , Jathedar Keonke , gurjant singh budhsinghwala ....et al As to the point Cisco Singh raised - people can't go straight from Grade I to Grad school , dropping your castist last name is one of the first few things (along with shastar abhyas, taking out dasbandh, studying SGGS) etc that people can do while on the way to amrit. Finally sikhi is the science of the soul , caste and ancesterol history belongs to your body which will die along with your body , so why take pride in something so temporal and superficial (did you put in effort to be borne into a certian caste ?). Castist people in reality are rednecks and they should realize this hard fact.

The importance of Kaur Jayati Chakraborty Have you ever thought why Guru Ji, Guru Gobind Singh, gave the Kaur surname to Sikh women? Why did he not accept the status quo and keep the tradition of the woman's surname being determined by her family's name? WHAT WAS Guru Ji trying to achieve by calling the Sikh woman a princess (literal meaning of Kaur)? To try to understand the possible reasons behind Guru Jis decision, we need to look at the situation at the time in different cultures. In Indian society, the brides first and last name was often changed after her marriage. This still happens today. However, this tradition of name changing does not occur just in India. It is a phenomenon, which occurs across the whole world today. Why are womens surnames changed? The reason is family linkage. Surnames allow others to identify you and your family. In some cases the surname can tell others much more about you, such as your caste. For women the linkage to family is different in comparison to men. Their identity changes with marriage. They are no longer associated with their parents, but with their husbands family. Unsurprisingly, the mans name never changes. Some cultures go as far as considering the woman to be the property of others. This was so for the Hindu Law giver, Manu, who claimed that no woman should ever be independent. Christianity considered woman to be a product of man as Eve had come from the rib of Adam. Psychologically, women have accepted these unjust rules. They are resigned to male dominance and allowed themselves to become second-class citizens. Guru ji changed all this with the revelation of the Khalsa. He gave women the opportunity to live life free of the chains of a dogmatic society. It was Gods Hukam (will). Once initiated into the Khalsa, Sikh women obtain the surname Kaur. The surname Singh (Lion) is given to men, but Kaur (princess) is reserved solely for women. This difference in names is not about inequality. Rather, Guru ji recognises the difference between men and women. As individuals we are all different from each other, but this difference does not imply inequality. Women and men are different but remain equals. Guru ji considered women and men to be unique. He respected the sexes and, therefore, made the distinction in surnames. When you take amrit you are told to consider Guru Gobind Singh as your father and Mata Sahib Kaur as your mother. By joining the Khalsa you abandon all previous chains of linkage. You become the direct descendants of Guru Gobind Singh and Mata Sahib Kaur. You become their sons and daughters. The Khalsa becomes your family. Thus, from the day you are born to the day you die your name remains the same. You do not have to change it due to marriage. Unfortunately, the tradition of using the Kaur surname has all but disappeared amongst Sikh women. It is either dropped, in favour of caste surnames, or misused as a middle name. Guru Ji never designed it as such. Have we not belittled his concepts? Have we lost so much self-esteem that we must copy the bigoted traditions of others? Sikh women are today demanding equal rights. Rightly so. However, they fail to realise that they themselves create inequality by not considering themselves princesses. They no longer consider themselves as daughters of the Khalsa. Why should Sikh women feel that they must change their names after marriage? By keeping your unique and beautiful Sikh identity you are maintaining the freedom given to you by Guru ji. Ultimately, only those who keep the Kaur surname can truly understand its importance. Others will make excuses about the difficulty of having such a common surname It makes paper work and identification difficult! Why make such excuses? We do not hear Patels or Smiths complaining. Mere excuses. The importance of Kaur is truly inexpressible. It is something very unique in the history of the world. Of late more and more Sikhs are dropping Singh and Kaur from their names. They probably are not aware of the Blessings of Guru Gobind Singh Ji who gifted these decorations to them. Removing or abbreviating the decorations with S and K is to ape the western culture. In India surnames were initially introduced by the Brahmins to distinguish people of four varna as per their belief. Subsequently the British introduced the system for all those enrolled in government services. Today, abbreviating the middle name or totally eliminating it has become a fashion. People who are settled abroad have degraded their self-respect to such levels that they feel elated to be called Garry for Gurpreet, Harry for Harpreet, Harmeet, Harbhajan, etc. Common reason given for such an attitude is that the Westerners cannot understand, pronounce or remember the difficult Indian names. My suggestion to all such Sikhs is to introduce themselves merely as Singh and Kaur, which are very simple and short names. Even in India Sikhs are generally called by a single name of Sardar Ji. Why cant a similar procedure be adopted universally? http://www.merinews.com/article/the-importance-of-kaur/130679.shtml By the way, this Bibi who wrote this is a Bengali Hindu. Prathham Rehith Yehi Jan Khanddae Kee Pahul Shhakae || The first and foremost Rehit for a Sikh (male or female) is to take Amrit (Khanddae Kee Pahul). - Bhai Gurdas Jee

I think what he did was the opposite of what that fool on the dating show last year did. He upped the profile of Sikhs among the general public and he came across as a humble and spiritual man. I am sure the money won't change him and for the millions watching the show for the last few weeks that he was on he has given Sikhs a positive image. Congratulations to him on winning the top prize on that show.

One needs to look no further than the example of the Jews. For 2000 years they were persecuted, facing genocide after genocide. Now they have a place(Israel) which they can proudly call home. Similarly Sikhs have faced genocide after genocide. The only time we did not face persecution was when Sikhs had their own independent nation state. After that was over, Sikhs became Ghulams under the British but worse was still to come after 1947 when Sikhs came under the political domination of the Hindus who were our former co slaves but began to rule unfairly which finally led to the 84 genocide. Sikhs have learnt a lesson that they will never forget and that is: in future Sikhs will never make the mistake of forsaking sovereignty under the political domination of non-Sikhs, especially under Hindus and Muslims. Both have shown their true colours when they get into a position of power. If Sikhs ever get an opportunity for independence, they need to seize that opportunity.

Guru Sahib has already and clearly told us our destination. It would be outright stupid to ignore His holy words and pretend otherwise. What is Khalistan? Jab Lag Khalsa Rahe Niyara, Tab Lag Tej Deho Mai Saara Jab Eh Gaye Bipran Ki Reet, Mai Na Karahu Inn Ki Parteet Why Khalistan? Raaj Bina Neh Dharam Chale Hain, Dharam Bina Sab Daley Maley Hain! How will we achieve Khalistan? Koi Kisi Ko Raaj Na Deh Hai, Jo Leh Hai Nijj Bal Se Leh Hai What will be the future? Raj Karega Khalsa, Aaqi Rahe Na Koye Khuaar Hue Sab Milenge, Bache Sharan Jo Hoye Wake up to these words today, or wake up tomorrow when its too late. Choice is yours!

Street Awareness - READ Victim Selection And What To Do About It!! by Randy LaHaie The more prepared you are to deal with a violent situation, the less likely you will have to. Preparation Equals Prevention People are drawn to self-defense training for a variety reasons. Sometimes, it’s because they’ve been bullied, harassed or victimized in the past. Sometimes they haven’t been but are concerned about the possibility. They live in a state of angst from a lack of security and confidence in their ability to control the real and perceived dangers in the world. We are all “wired” with the need for safety in security in life. It’s as fundamental as our need for food and shelter. In this post, I’ll be discussing the dynamics of what human predators look for when selecting their intended victims and what you can do to reduce the probability of being selected yourself. In Search Of Safety Many people turn to self-defense and the martial arts to address their safety and security concerns. It is well know that proper self-defense training builds skill, fitness and self-confidence. People who train soon become more comfortable with the idea of standing up to harassment, whether from a school yard or workplace bully, a drunk at the bar or a panhandler demanding money. They become more aware of themselves, their surrounds and their options to deal with volatile situations. They become more indignant that someone would consider them an easy target. They begin to prepare themselves for the “next time” they are harassed or confronted. Armed with their new-found knowledge and skills, they’ll know what to do and be ready, willing and able to do it. The irony is however, in the vast majority of situations the incidents that formerly plagued them either stop or never happen. Why is this? Victim Selection Criteria Human predators select their victims based on non-verbal and behavioral signals that they give off. They will observe their targets from a distance and often approach and then “test or interview” them to further assess their level of confidence or submissiveness. In a matter of seconds, the predator acquires a sense of who is and isn’t a suitable target. For every victim that is attacked, many “fail” the test and are passed over. What are the criteria that predators use to select their victims? What Does A Predator Look For? Like a wild animal, the human predator wants an easy conquest. He does not want his job to be any more difficult or hazardous than it has to be. He will seek out those he perceives as weak, submissive and unlikely to fight back. He doesn’t want resistance and he certainly doesn’t want to be injured himself. Signs of strength or defiance, whether blatant or implied, are often sufficient to cause him to abandon the selection process and look for a more “suitable” victim. Bullies don’t pick on people who won’t put up with their <banned word filter activated>. Muggers and rapist won’t attack someone who will pound them into the pavement! Criminals don’t intentionally select people who will confront and challenge their behavior. Rapists, muggers, abusers and bullies look for someone they can dominate and control. The Grayson/Stein Study (1981) In 1981 researchers ,Betty Grayson and Morris I. Stein, conducted a study to determine the selection criteria applied by predators when selecting their victims. They made a black-and-white video tape of 60 pedestrians on a busy New York City sidewalk going on about their day. They later showed that tape to inmates who were incarcerated for violent offenses (rape, murder, robbery, etc.) They instructed them to rate the pedestrians on the basis of who they thought would make easy or desirable victims? The results were interesting. Within seconds, the participants made their selections. What baffled researchers was the consistency of the people who were and were not selected. The criteria were not readily apparent. Some small, slightly built women were passed over. Some large men were selected. The selection was not dependant on race, age, size or gender. Many of the convicts didn’t even know why they selected as they did. Some people just looked like easy targets. It appears that much of the predator/prey selection process is unconscious from the perspective of both predator and the potential victim. Body Language Analysis Still at a loss of specific selection criteria, the researchers did a more thorough analysis of the movement and body language of the people on the videotape. Here is an overview of their results: 1. Stride: People selected as victims had an exaggerated stride: either abnormally short or long. They dragged, shuffled or lifted their feet unnaturally as they walked. Non-victims, on the other hand, tended to have a smooth, natural gate. 2. Rate: Victims tend to walk at a different rate than non-victims. Usually, they walk slower than the flow of other pedestrians. Their movement lacks a sense of deliberateness or purpose. However, an unnaturally rapid pace can project nervousness or fear. 3. Fluidity: Researchers noted awkwardness in a victim’s body movement. Jerkiness, raising and lowering one’s center of gravity or wavering from side to side as they moved became apparent in the victims analyzed. This was contrasted with smoother, more coordinated movement of the non-victims. 4. Wholeness: Victims lacked “wholeness” in their body movement. They swung their arms as if they were detached and independent from the rest of their body. Non-victims moved their body from their “center” as a coordinated whole implying strength, balance and confidence. 5. Posture and Gaze: A slumped posture is indicative of weakness or submissiveness. A downward gaze implies preoccupation and being unaware of one’s surroundings. Also, someone reluctant to establish eye contact can be perceived as submissive. These traits imply an ideal target for a predator. The Impact of Body Language If you read between the lines of this research, the whole “Preparation Equals Prevention Theory” makes more sense. The non-victim traits described above are indicators of attitude, athleticism and awareness. They imply a person’s vigilance, confidence or submissiveness and the potential that they can and will fight back. Self-defense training develops the qualities of movement that discourage victim selection and projects a “don’t mess with me” demeanor. This explains why a person who had formerly been bullied or victimized takes up the study of self-defense and the incidents that originally plagued him or her stop. Contrary to what many self-defense instructors advise, I doubt that the solution to reducing one’s victim potential is as simple as taking “body language lessons.” You can’t simply “pretend or fake” confidence and expect to ward off predatory selection. I doubt that a deliberate attempt to modify the way you walk, move and carry yourself (even if you could do so) would bring about the desired results. Imagine an awkward, out-of-shape person trying to consciously correct flawed body movements associated to being awkward and out-of-shape. You can’t fake coordination. You can’t fake balance. You can’t fake strength or endurance. That being said, each of these qualities can be developed through the self-defense TRAINING and can dramatically reduce your risk of assault. How To Apply This Information? Much of the predator/prey selection process is subconscious. I believe that it is an evolutionary quality of the subconscious mind that we inherited from our ancestors. In the days of cavemen and dinosaurs, it would have been necessary for survival to select prey that would not turn around and bite your head off! Those who lacked this quality would have soon been eliminated from the gene pool. It is unlikely that you can consciously and consistently control the non-verbal signals that you project. However, this is not to say that you cannot impact those signals in a powerful and positive way. Here is how to do it. Develop Your Awareness Skills The predator is looking for a victim who is unaware, preoccupied and easy to ambush. By becoming more aware of your surroundings, you not only increase the odds of detecting a potential predator, but you project an image of vigilance. This, in itself, can terminate the selection process. Get Into Shape Your level of fitness impacts your ability to defend yourself. If you are attacked, your ability to run away or fight off an attacker is dramatically impacted by your physical condition. Secondly, a strong, coordinated body will automatically project the quality of movement of a non-victim. Finally, fitness impacts your personality in a positive way. The increased self-esteem, confidence and emotional toughness that results from being in good shape are non-victim qualities that predators want to avoid. Take a Self-defense Course Obviously, I’m a strong advocate of self-defense and martial arts training (either at a club or through self-study) to reduce your risk of assault. For reasons I’ve mentioned, self-defense training reduces the likelihood of having to defend yourself. Learn all you can about confrontational situations and develop skills to deal with them. In addition to strength and conditioning activities, incorporate regular practice of combative skills such as kickboxing drills or punching and kicking a heavy bag. Knowledge is Power: Knowledge reduces fear and builds confidence. Confidence is a non-victim quality. Read books, blogs and articles about self-defense. Do what you can to clarify your “mental maps” of how confrontations happen, how to avoid them, and how to respond if they do happen. The most dangerous attitude to your personal safety is the, “It will never happen to me Syndrome.” The fact that you are reading this post already puts you well ahead in the “non-victim game.” Conclusion Your potential of becoming a victim is influenced, in large part, by the unconscious signals you project to a potential assailant. Predators, whether deliberately or intuitively, form an opinion about how easy you will be to dominate and control. They are looking for a weak, submissive and unaware target that won’t or can’t fight back. You can control the non-verbal signals you project by investing time in the study and practice of self-defense. Your projected body language will take care of itself. You can’t fake it. You must earn it. This is not as difficult as you might think. If you really want to prevent or dramatically reduce the probability of becoming a victim, prepare yourself. Preparation equals prevention!