jasleen k

i'm going to assume you live in the UK or some other place where every sect/samparda/jatha are all segregated (it's almost like a caste system!), so the only people you know are people who are just like you. in india, the panthic rehet maryada is the most common and the vast majority of sikhs follow it. btw, it's not "set" by sgpc, it's published by them, they did not write it and they can not alter it. but i know, your sant/baba told you something and that's what you'll believe. it's ok, it's just all you've been exposed to. then why do all the raagis wear black? :gg:

what type of dastaar, male or female, dumalla or gol... it all depends on personal preference. i wear a 4 meter keski and two 5 meter pieces for my dastaar. i prefer cotton voil, which i think is the same as "mal mal". it's very thin and has a bit of stretch to it. you can see light through it if you hold a piece up. but again, it's all about personal preference!

pray to waheguru to make you ready and he will. do your nitnem, start your amrit vela rehet (that's the hardest part for me!), and do ardas every day asking for waheguru to grant you amrit. if it's time, everything will fall into place. something other sikhs told me, and i agree with, is that it's not up to you to "be ready". when waheguru grants you his amrit, you will become ready. so ya, go for it.

you do know that Guru Ram Das ji himself helped the original merchants set up shops around harimandir sahib? he wanted it to be a center of religious life, but he also wanted it to be a city. painting all shop keepers as robbers and cheats doesn't seem particularly in line with Guru ji's teaching that we should have jobs and do honest work. in fact, painting all shop keepers as bad while asking about farm land sounds like someone has a bit of caste/class bias. or did i misunderstand you again?

why do hindus and muslims make jokes towards Sikhs? it's how the world works. people slander others to because it makes them feel better about themselves. or it does temporarily, but later it comes down hard on you. when you slander someone, you take the weight of THEIR sins as well as your own. tell that to your sikh friends.

it's the amrit of Guru ji, not of any place or person or jatha or whatever. let me know from gurbani about panj kakkars or doing seva of Sri Guru Granth Sahib ji, or making karra prashad, or the mundane details of running the Gurdwara. i'm' new to sikhi so i haven't seen that yet. till then, i'll stick to the panthic rehet maryada, as directed by my panj. sorry, my response was not only for you.

sorry, you said "THE" jatha. in the US, that would mean AKJ. no one else even uses "jatha" for a group larger than 20 people. everyone else prefers to be called "taksal" or "samparda" or "dera" or whatever else. throw in the words "raensabai" and "samaagam", and it's pretty clear who you're talking about.

i think it's absurd to think that anyone, anywhere, would suggest that it's in any maryada for a patit (drugs and drink being a bujjar kurehet) to perform amrit seva. and i don't think a "bunch of thugs" are doing amrit seva at Akal Takht today.

:gg: so do you believe that some amrit sanchars are not valid? the people think they've had amrit of guru ji, while really they have not? how do we know if our amrit is "real"? :o when they stir the amrit with the khanda, reciting the bani of Guru ji (shabad guru), focusing on the amrit... do you think it isn't amrit, because you disagree with the views of those who are holding the bata? or... it is amrit, but the maryada they give you is wrong, so we're free to use your MAN to decide which maryada to follow? just curious. i guess i don't understand how the process works, if you don't trust those who distribute guru ji's amrit. just curious... does this count as jatha bashing? coz it kind of looks that way to me...

sure, there were some disagreements. sure, we all know master tara singh ji was a great meat eater and bhai randhir singh ji was in jail, and that's why some people think SRM advocates non-veg. there are probably a hundred little stories like that. but in the end... the BASICS are all the same. here's how i look at it. SRM is the BASIC maryada we must follow. anything above and beyond that is wonderful. for example, SRM only requires 3 banis in the morning. everyone knows we should do 5. so do 5! that doesn't mean SRM is wrong, that means you're doing extra. if i'm not wrong, this is the stand that AKJ advocates. they don't have a seperate jatha rehat maryada, they follow SRM + keski rehet + dietary rehet + panj bania rehet, etc, etc. i hope this is making sense. and my problem is that people who follow sect maryadas automatically assume that we who follow SRM are also incomplete, that they don't accept us, their fellow Khalsa, fully. do you see where i'm going with this? no, they will not. just like today, everyone will agree to the maryada they were ordered to follow by the panj piyare at the time of amrit sanchar! and since i'm a woman who was blessed with khande de pahul, i'm obviously not going to be following nihung rehet. wrong. everyone is going to follow what they were told to follow by panj piyare. and what the heck is missionary maryada? :gg: once again i need to point out that it's not choice, it's given to us by Guru ji in the form of panj piayre. i hope i said that enough times.

it's true, from the lips of Guru Gobind Singh ji to the pen of Bhai Nand Lal ji, though i think he says "turk", which sometimes gets translated as "muslim" and other times simply as "enemy" or "barbarian". Chaupai He is a Khalsa who refrains from scurrilous talk He is a Khalsa who in fighting never turns his back (44) He is a Khalsa who gives gifts to charity He is a Khalsa who slays Muslims (44a) He is a Khalsa who triumphs over the five evils He is a Khalsa who despises the Bahman rituals (45) He is a Khalsa who abandons pride He is a Khalsa who avoids anothers woman (46) He is a Khalsa who does not look covetously on anothers wife or property He is a Khalsa who repeats the divine Name (47) He is a Khalsa who loves the hymns of the Guru He is a Khalsa who fights face to face (48) Dohara He is a true Khalsa who recognises that the creation is the Creator’s and for this reason does not cause it harm. If anyone should cause harm to this creation, Nand Lal, the Creator is filled with wrath (49) Chaupai He is a Khalsa who supports the needy He is a Khalsa who destroys the oppressor (50) He is a Khalsa who repeats the divine Name He is a Khalsa who fights his enemy (51) He is a Khalsa who absorbed in the divine Name He is a Khalsa who breaks free from that which binds him (52) He is a Khalsa who knows how to ride a spirited steed He is a Khalsa who is always fighting battles (53) He is a Khalsa who carries weapons He is a Khalsa who smites the Turks (54) He is a Khalsa who upholds Dharam He is a Khalsa who bears a canopy over his head (54a) note: i am not advocating the killing of anyone based on religion, i'm just sharing information.

i hope you like kheer. it's the only indian sweet i make, but i make it REALLY well. :D langar is no problem, bring the jatha over any time. and eggless baking has become a hobby of mine, so chocolate cake, no problem. but are you sure you want chocolate? i mean, chocolate contains caffeine and theophyline, two mind altering substances! :o

that said, it is not mean that the Amrit of Guru ji is somehow invalid or "not as good" if it was received according to Akal Takht maryada. Amrit is Amrit. it also doesn't mean that the maryada we follow is invalid or lesser or should be laughed at. which is exactly what's happening on this forum.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: sorry, but there's no smiley for "i just laughed so hard i sprayed my drink all over my laptop" (from a sarbloh cup, of course!)

yes, i am a terrible horrible person and i say mean things that i shouldn't. :2: i'm sorry.

they would have worn round dumalla/gol dastaar. the modern nok style came from Maharaja Ranjit Singh's time... it's a fusion of northern afghani/north indian styles. the extreme "patiala" style was made popular from paintings of the Maharaja Patiala Bhupinder Singh. the british artist who did the painting thought the turban looked better with a more extreme "v" shape over the face, and a flatter top, so he painted the portraits that way. turban history is cool.

what does "ghattiya" mean? i don't think you're egotistical. i think the act of dissing one's own mother when she wants to celebrate the anniversary of the day she gave birth to you is an egotistical thing to do. it doesn't mean you're a bad person, and i am sorry if that's how it sounded. so out of curiosity, did you do it or not?

quick question for UK sangat... what is the age of majority in the UK? here in the US, it's 18, meaning a 19 year old would not have to "run away", but could instead move out, get a job, get an apartment, etc. it's quite common for people to move out at 18 over here, so i guess i'm a bit confused at why everyone is saying 19 is too young, she'll not find a job, etc. NOTE: i'm not encouraging or discouraging anything, just want to understand the law where she is.

you are correct. but it is signed by Akal Takht. SGPC is a gurdwara management committee who have no authority outside of punjab. they didn't write the SRM, nor do they change or update it. so calling it SGPC maryada is misleading and incorrect. everyone knows about the corruption inside SGPC, by calling the SRM the SGPC maryada, people are insinuating that SRM is also corrupt, which is insulting to the panth.

i was reviewing the forum guidelines http://www.sikhsangat.com/index.php?showtopic=9119, and i made a realization. i notice that we are asked not to make insulting remarks about any jatha or samparda. however, there is nothing said about people of these jathas/sampardae making insulting remarks about the rest of the panth. i have noticed a trend in here, that people of the various jathas sampardae do not respect the panthic rehat maryada endorsed by Akal Takht. instead, they belittle it, constantly calling it "SGPC maryada" (which it is not) and suggesting that it's contents are less valid than their own maryada. while i respect their right to their own beliefs, i do not think they represent those of the panth as a whole, and i do not think it is acceptable or necessary to insult Akal Takht or the panth in every thread. despite what it may look like on this particular online forum, the vast majority of Sikhs do not belong to sects or groups, we're just Sikhs. writing off our views as wrong, belittleing the panthic rehat maryada... who is this helping? how is this making us better Sikhs? what ever happened to ekta?

i don't know what "SGPC" maryada is, but the panthic rehat maryada doesn't say anything about certain colours being better or worse than others. and i'm certain that gurbani doesn't either. i'm not spreading anything anti-panthic, i am sharing what i have learned as a Sikh who is not affiliated with any jatha or samparda. as a panth, we are (supposed to be) united under Akal Takht as our temporal authority. at least that's what Guru Hargobind Sahib seemed to have in mind when he created it. saying that things outside of Akal Takht's maryada are standards for the whole panth is misleading. and discounting Akal Takht's maryada as somehow less valid or less important than that of your particular sect is just wrong. but please feel free to post links to "all of the samparda/jatha" maryadas and their relevant sections, so that we may all learn more about each other. btw, the only reason i'm not wearing a red dastaar today is because i don't have one (yet).

me too! <3 they totally inspire me! (thanks for the sweet words. )

hmm... when i read from my gutka on airplane or train rides, i slip my my feet out of my shoes. on the other hand, the floor of the bus is probably really dirty. and if i'm reciting bani in my memory when i'm out somewhere, or listening to it when i drive, then i don't worry about taking my shoes off... that's a tough question. i guess i'd say listen to your heart, what is it telling you? i guess i feel like Guru ji is in the heart, he won't tell you wrong. it's our brains we have to watch out for. even better, do ardas and take a hukam. i guess that should always be our first place to check. though i don't always remember that!

i agree on looks, but it doesn't guarantee that they'll be better behaved or even that they'll be better sikhs.

In Canada they sure like dumalla/bana. That's like one of the biggest things for them :rolleyes: maybe it's a way for like minded sikhs to find each other? for example, if one belongs to a particular jatha, where members tend to dress in a particular way, seeking out a dumalla might be a way to find other members of said jatha? for example, it seems like in the UK, people are very strongly affiliated with specific jathas, sampardae, etc... either that or they're totally clean shaven not interested in sikhi. oh, and i guess some wear turban for "cultural" rather than religious reasons (whatever that means). they don't seem to have very many sikhs who are just regular sikhs. i don't know about canada. most of the canadian singhnia i know wear dastaar, but i never asked them if they're jatha or not.