guptkuri

its not a competition. I only wrote that because I wanted to point out its never too early to start your kids on the path of sikhi. It just takes time and dedication.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xg5Qhg-0MAQ&feature=g-vrec It is never too early to start your kids into sikhi. These kids make me feel proud of them and their parents and ashamed of myself that I don't do enough for sikhi.

She is truly inspiring and unlike many of us she doesn't just talk big but actually did something

Just some thoughts that were in my head. The Thought, Not the Action Looking above and Beyond Monkey see, Monkey do. Waheguru Ji made us humans, gave us brains and taught us how to use them but we choose to be monkeys. Every day hundreds and thousands of people visit Gurudwara Beed Baba Budda Sahib to beg for a son because once upon a time Baba Ji blessed Mata Ganga Ji with a son. They saw that Mata Ji went with langar and got the blessing, now like monkeys we all do the same. We choose to ignore the message Guru Arjun Dev Ji was giving us by sending Mata Ganga Ji to Baba Budda Ji instead of blessing her Himself. Who was Mata Ganga Ji? Why did Guru Arjun Dev Ji tell Mata Ji to take langar for Baba Budda Ji? What blessing did Mata Ji really get from Baba Budda Ji? Mata Ganga Ji was the wife of Guru Arjun Dev Ji and was no normal lady. It is human nature to change to fit into our surrounding and to take on some of the traits of the people around us. Just like we are change by the sangat we keep, we can’t assume that Mata Ji did not change in Guru Arjun Dev Ji’s sangat. People can be changed in seconds if they get darshan of Guru Ji and Mata Ji lived with Guru Ji. Mata Ganga Ji was a great Sikh and very blessed to be in Sangat of Guru Ji. And the truth is Guru Ji often choose the most blessed people to teach us lost souls, how to be better Sikhs; how to please the Husband Lord, Waheguru Ji. That is the very reason Guru Ji didn’t bless Mata Ji with a son because Guru Ji wanted Sikhs to learn how to ask for blessings. Guru Ji showed us how to kill the ego within us through Mata Ganga Ji because He knew as long as we were filled with ego, we couldn’t truly be blessed. Guru Ji could have told Mata Ji the first time around to prepare the food by hand and take the food herself; Guru Ji is all knowing He would have known Mata Ji would make this mistake. But Guru Ji didn’t tell Mata because He wanted us to learn to look beyond the comforts we are blessed with and do seva directly from our heart. Guru Ji taught us we should do seva with our own hands but today we buy everything premade, hire people to read Gurbani and call it seva. When Mata Ji arrived at the first time with langar for Baba Budda Ji, Baba Budda Ji turned away from Mata Ji because she took shortcuts to do the seva. The next day after talking to Guru Arjun Dev Ji, Mata Ganga Ji made the langar with her own hands and walked to go see Baba Budda Ji. This time Baba Budda Ji was happy to see her and ate the langar with lots of love and gratefulness to Mata Ji for bringing him langar. This time Baba Ji was able to eat the langar because there was no ego in it. Mata Ji was cleared of her ego and Waheguru Ji could fill that spot within her with blessings. Waheguru Ji blessed Mata Ji through Baba Budda Ji because Waheguru Ji needed Baba Budda Ji to clear the ego within Mata Ji. The lesson we should have learned was to remove ego and do seva from our heart to be blessed but instead we learned go to Guru Beed Baba Budda Sahib and be automatically blessed with a son. A true Sikh does not have to go anywhere to get any blessings. All we Sikhs have to do is do seva of Waheguru Ji, kill the ego within us and He will bless us no matter where we are. In simple words, you want to be blessed? Look beyond your money, the shortcuts and do all seva from the ground up. Cook the langar yourself; don’t opt for catering because you have money. Hand sew the Ramala Sahib with love for Guru Granth Sahib Ji; don’t just go buy the most expensive one available. If you have Akand Path Sahib Ji, try to take part in reading Gurbani or the very least spend at least half the time listening. Don’t be a monkey, look beyond the actions.

I was thinking about how in my life I have been told by some people that are not Sikhs that amrit is not important. Anyways my thought process led me to write something, I am not sure if its entirely correct but I don't think I said anything wrong in it either. I would love it if the sangat could read it and tell me what they think. Why Amrit? Is it really necessary? When a youngster in the Sikh community wants to take Amrit, many people step forward to stop them, to talk them out of it. They are told they are to young and the guidelines of Sikhi too hard. Moms are more willing to cut their children’s hair then to support their decision to grow out their hair and be a good Gurusikh. One could say that the families know their children the best and know what they are capable of and might be right in not allowing them to take Amrit. But what gives an outsider authority to teach our children that they shouldn’t take Amrit? In my personal experience I have had opposition from my family for their very real fears and from strangers that just wanted to push their beliefs on me. This article is for those people that believe one should be good person and Amrit is not necessary because it’s just an outer image. There are three stages of life in the Sikhi life style; non-Amritdhari, Amritdhari and God. All Sikhs start life out as non-Amritdhari because in Sikhism taking Amrit is a personal decision that must be made by each individual. It is not a ritual baptism where it is done for little kids that don’t even know what is going on and don’t get to choose it. It is and it will always be an individual chose made when the time is right. As a non-Amritdhari, a person is not held up to the expectations of a person that follows the tenants of Sikhi. That means they can do good or bad, they will not be judged as Sikhs. At this point generally people that are good at heart well try to do good and when asked they are so good, why don’t they take Amrit and become true to their religion? They will answer it’s not necessary to do anything more then be good to meet god. But is being good, good enough? Does being good kill the five evils; your ego, attachment, lust, anger, greed? Unless those evils in you are conquered you are good but not good enough. It is Amrit that gives you the tools to conquer those evils. Taking Amrit gives your life the discipline, the tools it takes to kill those 5 evils. Gurbani teaches you what those 5 evils are and how to overcome them. It teaches you how to rise above this world and the pains associated with it. Amrit gives you the mental and physical support need to be the best you can be. Mental with the Gurbani side of Amrit. And Physical through teaching you to wake up at proper times, eating in limitation, and giving your whole life a discipline. If Amrit brings such positive change in a person, then why aren’t all Amritdhari people the best people in the world? Amrit is a tool that Guru Gobind Singh Ji gave us to help us reach Waheguru but we made it into a social status. The Amritdhari people that aren’t positively affected by Amrit are often the people that took Amrit so they could show off. They aren’t even trying to meet Waheguru Ji. A tool is useless, if you just carry it with you but don’t use it. When you use this wonderful tool Amrit that Guru Gobind Singh Ji gave us for its original and true purpose then we kill the evil within us and become one with God. After all we are all like that single drop of water whose entire purpose is to remerge with the ocean. Once our soul remerges with God, what is the difference between us and God? Nothing! Without Amrit we are like that raindrop that continues to struggle to meet the ocean but time in and time out is evaporated by the sun and then once again must wait for the rain before it can come on this earth again and try all over again. God is constantly allowing some raindrops that are already emerged into the ocean to evaporated and come back again so they can lead the single lost raindrops to the ocean too. God hasn’t forsaken anyone and is constantly reaching out to us. It is us that hide behind excuses and don’t take the first step. For Sikhs Amrit is the only thing that is going to help us reach our ocean, it is up to us do we want to be misled into believing Amrit is not important. No, being a good person is not good enough. Amrit is important

Its our morals that help us be good but for me at least more than be good, a dastar reminds me to make sure everything I do is within sikhi. For example when I am wearing a dastar I go out of my way to help people, even when I am in hurry. When I wasn't wearing dastar it was more like if I thought they really needed my help. With a dastar it was like if I could help I am gonna offer. I wanted to make sure I never did anything selfish where I made Sikhs look bad. Does that make sense? I was more self conscience about everything I did because I knew I was representing my Guru ji.

No it's recent check out biggest threat topic. That's what made me create this topic in the first place

This topic was not started to create gender wars but because I got tired of seeing topics created blaming girls. So I created this topic which was suppose to remind people the benefits of a Sikh girl wearing dastar and reminding them to start at home. Not yelling at random facts but start with your family first and helping them become better Sikhs.

In my opinion and I am probably wrong but dastar wearing youth is more likely to think about sikhi twice before they do something wrong, then those that don't wear a dastar. Because every time they look in the mirror they will be reminded they are a Sikh. I am not saying to try to force it on anyone but I don't think their is nothing wrong with encouraging youth to wear dastars regardless of male or female, starting with our own families.

Why are rules different for girls and boys? In sikhi we are all created equal aren't we? Shouldn't we hold girls up to the same standards as boys? Because we dastar is optional for girls, today we are in such a state that amritdhari women have begun thinking that covering their head is also optional. Whats next? We all agree that girls are our izzat, then we need to raise them stronger and braver and more educated. That is why I am a firm believer that everyone should quit complaining on the internet and start working with their families and local Gurudwaras to raise better Sikhs. I am not saying pressure anyone but to make Sikhi more inviting by having more dicussions and sikhi related events, where people want to get involved and then inspire them to be better sikhs.

Veer ji, I made this topic because I got tired of new topics creeping up every other month blaming girls for the state of our panth. And because I truly believe that wearing a dastar makes a different. As a sikh girl that wore a dastar, I noticed all those difference around me that I listed in my original post. I was more attached to Sikhi and thought 20 times before I did anything because I didn't want it to reflect badly on Sikhi. My parents took amrit. Life as a whole is a lot better and more closer to sikhi atleast for me. Also I have yet to meet a Sikh dastar wearing girl that just wears it for fashion statement or just to be noticed. That is more of a case with boys. For girls since it is not a norm for us to wear dastars, it holds a lot more value for us. Baki, I am sorry if this topic hurt anyone's feelings. It is too easy but go search this site, go search facebook. Girls are blamed left and right.

I am sick and tired of boys blaming girls all the time for the sick state of our religion. The constant whining that about why girls don't date/marry sikhs has to end. First of all get off your high horses and realize that both girls and boys are at fault, then think about what you can do to fix this problem starting at your own homes. Here is my suggestion to all sikhs. If you have any amritdhari women in your families encourage them to wear dastars. That alone will solve many problems: 1. Girls that wear dastars are less likely to be teased and pressured to date. In case they were our Sikh brothers are more likely to stick up for them because they know its a good sikh girl. 2. a girl wearing dastar will understand what a boy wearing a dastar goes through and will have nothing against dastar wearing boys and will appreciate them more. 3. Dastar wearing girl always marries dastar wearing boy 4. Dastar wearing girl will think 100 times before doing something bad because she knows everyone will know she is a sikh and she is more likely to be called out on it. 5. Dastar wearing girl well be more into sikhi and well raise her kids to be more into sikhi. So many problems solved with just a simple encouragement to wear a dastar instead of belittling them. One recommendation is that you first talk to your own sister and mothers and daughters before you go around and telling random sikhi bibiyan to wear dastars. Change begins at home. Another thing we all need to work on is, if we have young boys in our families that keep their khesh, is to teach them how to care for their khesh early on. That means teaching them to do jorha on their own when they start school and teach them to tie dastar by the time they hit middle school. They will be more confident about their khesh and less like to cut them. The more comfortable they are with their sikh appearance, they more like they are to work hard to be good sikhs. Last but not least, get involved in Sikh activities. If we all and our families get involved in sikhi related events, their will be more demand for them and they will get better every year. That in turn will attract more youth and we will be able to get more done. Nothing gets done by complaining behind the computer screen. So quit your whining and do something.

Any and all books by Bhai Veer Singh Ji are great.

the free rice thing is addicting. :D