MyNameIsChris

Although I'm not a fan of the BNP myself I think what you're saying is a bunch of BS. Why are you so quick to defend Pakistani Muslims, even going as far as saying you'd live next door to one. Say what you want about the BNP (although it doesn't really matter, they're a laughing stock anyways) but last time I checked, they weren't going around raping underage girls. I personally don't care if these paedos are running around raping white girls, black girls, Chinese, Japanese, Sikh, Hindu or whatever girls, they should be treated with the same amount of contempt and hatred by all of us. The Sikh community needs to stop acting just when there are stories of Sikh girls getting raped and do something even if the girls are white, black or whatever else. I feel the same anger reading a story about a Sikh girl abused by a Muslim paedo as I do reading a story about a white girl getting abused by a Muslim paedo. The EDL has a negative public image but their concerns are valid and the leader and his inner circle seem like honest people. The BFP is the only political party I'd vote for if I actually lived in the UK because they're the only ones willing to tell the truth even if the liberal left are going to vilify them. Both The EDL and The BFP have my support.

Have you been to their website? Read their mission staement? If you haven't, here it is: http://englishdefenceleague.org/about-us/mission-statement/ As for the Nazi saltutes, when they started out, they had a lot of racists in their group. The racists were kicked out by the leader and his friends, they went and started their own group (North-West Infidels?) and were the ones you see doing all those Nazi Salutes. The EDL have made it clear they are not against people of color. They have black, Sikh and even Muslims members. They say they are against political Islam (maybe you can argue they arew against all Islam), but certainly not anyone because of the color of their skin. Watch from 1:30 to 2:10. Still racist?

As far as I know Sikhs aren't doing anything in Europe that poses a threat to their culture/civilization. Islam has Shariah Law, and nothing remotely close exists in Sikhi. If they (Muslims) are not going to integrate, then can you really blame the Europeans? This should have been done 10-20 years ago. Better late then never though, let's just hope it has a significant impact.

Good for them, they could take it a step further and freeze Muslim immigration altogether as well. If the Muslims really are causing that much trouble then it ain't worth the trouble. Plenty of other places to get immigrants and have a better chance of integrating them as well. All of Europe needs to follow this measure if they want to save their civilization. Hopefully Canada and America will take note as well.

Well it seems that for the most part The EDL have quite a bit of sympathy among the people on here. That's good. The next bit is, is there anyone on here who openly supports The EDL (goes to the demos and talks about them positively with their peers etc...)? If you don't but you still like The EDL, what do you feel is preventing you from doing that?

I live in Canada so I only just found out about this group a few months ago. I'd like to know what our brothers and sisters in the UK (or anywhere else really) who know a thing or two about this organization think about it. I have heard that they have active Sikh members who are regulars at demos. They are also anti-racist and want only to stop Islam (and more specifically, Shariah Law) from gaining political power in the British Government. Mission statement here: http://englishdefenceleague.org/about-us/mission-statement/ Common questions and answers here:http://englishdefenceleague.org/about-us/common-questions/ So far I agree with that they are doing/saying. They are able to distinguish between Sikhs and Muslims (for the most part) and in recent months have made it clear that Muslim pedophilia gangs aren't just targeting white girls but Sikh/Hindu girls as well and that we need to support each other. Thoughts?

Thanks for the replies everyone! Sorry it's taken me so long to reply, I've been busy with school and I wanted to give myself time to think about everything that was said on here. Firstly, don't blame my parents for my lack-of-sikhi upbringing. They were raised in a similar manner. Although religion obviously had more importance in the older generation plus they grew up in India which is naturally more religious, neither came from a Gursikh family and were "cultural Sikhs" at best. And please don't tell me that I know nothing. My parents taught me about Indian culture, and I speak Punjabi fluently (more fluently than most people around here). They were not "lazy", they taught me what was taught to them. I have one living grandmother who tells me that she didn't come from a Gursikh family either, so this trend does go a few generations back at the very least. To everyone who posted videos, thank you very much. I have already watched some and am looking forward to watching the rest when I have more time. I think that Sikhi is a a very beautiful path and I agree with most of what I've come across thus far and I wish that people wouldn't get Punjabi culture mixed up with it like one veerji said. That's not to say that Punjabi culture isn't a good thing, it's just that I find the typical Punjabi mindset to be pretty close-minded, especially with regards to other races and skin colors etc... By "Golden Rule" I mean: "Treat others the way you would want them to treat you". In other words, don't do or say anything to/about anyone that you wouldn't want to have said/done to you. What goes around comes around, if you treat others kindly and with respect you will get plenty in return. I very much agree that speaking the truth and living a truthful life are the most important things one can do in life. But you don't think it's possible to do these things without religion? Some of the most amazing people I have ever known in my life have not been religious, I can't imagine that they are bad people who are going to get punished just because they didn't pray or do any of that stuff. Probably the first three things I look at when assessing a religion's value are how that religion teaches its followers to behave with followers of other faiths, what that religion teaches about equality of ALL human beings regardless of race religion or gender and what that religion teaches happens to good, decent people who do not believe in organized religion or who do not believe in God. Sikhism takes the cake with respect to the first two, it's just the last one that I have trouble grasping and believing. Sure Sikhi doesn't teach that you'll burn forever if you don't believe in God, but punishing good people by making them go through a cycle of millions and millions of lives, suffering and dying all because they weren't religious isn't really something to gloat about either.

I'm a guy born into a Sikh family raised in the west. Our life at home was always secular and aside from a few things like what we can eat and stuff religion never played any significant role in dictating who we were allowed to befriend or what to wear or even what to believe. I consider myself very lucky in that my parents have always been extremely open-minded people and would rather have us go down our own paths and follow something that makes us happy rather than stick to their beliefs just because we feel obligated. My mum and dad have integrated very well into Canadian society and being born here this country has my allegiance and I'm certainly very proud to be a part of it. I decided a few years ago that I felt uncomfortable aligning myself with any absolutes religion because at the end of the day none of us knows for sure where we came from, why we're here or where we're going. Some of us have very strong beliefs/opinions, but nothing is actually clear-cut. So I started calling myself an Agnostic. But a while back I started taking a big interest in philosophy and religion and made a point of seeking out as much information as I possibly could, but with school and extracurriculars everything has been pretty limited thus far. I started out thinking that I could be a Christian or a Jew. I was fascinated with the deep Abrahamic history that came along with those two faiths, and although I found good teachings in both I was put off of both due to their absolutes nature. I looked into Islam a bit but it never got too far. Aside from the "us vs them" mentality that goes along with the religion, I felt myself constantly disagreeing with a new teaching no matter how many new corners I turned. I would have looked into Hinduism (I'm already quite familiar with it as my House has plenty of Hindu deities on pictures and other art forms), but I don't know how I feel about the idea of multiple God's, and I'm much more comfortable believing in one supreme ruler of the universe (if any exists at all). I really really like Buddhism and it's something I'm still looking into and is a possibility but this being a Sikh forum I won't talk about it here. And then finally there was Sikhism. The only path I've come across so far that appeals to me as much (if not even more) than Buddhism. I tried talking to my parents about it but their knowledge is limited. In one way it's a blessing to be living at the heart of the largest Sikh community in North America but in another way it's not. I find that too many people around here are "cultural Sikh" rather than the true types. Whereas Sikhi teaches acceptance of all regardless of their skin color, people around here look down on the blacks as sub-human. Whereas Sikhi teaches universal-brotherhood, people around here would rather disown their daughters (and occasionally sons) than let them marry a white person, not because of religious differences but because of what "other people will think". Whereas Sikhi teaches to respect others and have good manners, people around here don't know the meaning of the words. This is even apparent among our religious leaders who should be setting the example. Call me crazy, but when I see a white/asian/black person come to the Gurdwara (yeah I still go regularly with my family), I feel honored that they would take the time to research this religion and take an interest (because this isn't an evangelical/missionary religion) and come alone (which they usually do) to a new place that seems foreign, and because of this I feel it is my duty to at the very least walk over and say hi and offer to bring them something if they're eating, try to answer any questions theymay have or if I can't, direct them towards someone with more knowledge than me. But I find that far too often they are ignored. They leave just as they came in, without talking to a single person. Most people (even the people who do sewa) won't even look at them and just assume that they're some poor person who has come off the streets for a free meal, even though I find that that's very rarely the case. And lastly, whereas Sikhi teaches us to uphold social justice, many people here have never heard of the expression. Family members letting someone in the family be abused rather than helping them get help from the authorities because they're embarrassed of what other Sikhs/Punjabi community members might think of their dirty laundry, people lying, cheating, stealing and manipulating others to get their way etc... and being someone who has grown up in a very multicultural community, I find this to be the case more among the Punjabi/Sikhs than other groups like whites or asians, but you could argue that anyone who acts like this isn't a Sikh at all, just in name, which I would agree with. The reason I'm telling you this is that although I realize that not all of us act like this, I just to happened to live around and meet many people in the Gurdwara who do, and it just always sort of painted a negative image of the religion in my head. After doing only a bit of research quickly found that although these people wear turbans or are baptized, they're the very opposite of what a Sikh should be like. Whenever I have a question or someone else does on the proper behavior that a Sikh would employ in any given situation, I now look instead at the example set out by our Gurus and look at their manners and conduct and morality for guidance. I really very much like what I see which is why I'm back on here. There are still certain things like the nature of God and the importance of Baptism that I am unsure of but as far as an example of how a normal person should live their every day life and treat the people around them goes, I think I'd be hard pressed to find a better guide than Sikhi. With all that being said, before I jump in any deeper there are a few questions that I would like answered. If anyone can help me out, please do so it really is very much appreciated 1) What is the criteria one must meet in order to merge back with God after death? 2) If you do not meet these criteria but are still generally a good and decent, what happens to you? 3) What happens to you if you were a bad person? If it's reincarnation into lower-life forms, how long does this go on for before you're given another chance? 4) Can Atheists/Agnostics ever attain full-salvation? 5) If I try my best to follow the moral/ethical teachings of the Gurus and try to be a good person the way Sikhi teaches I should, but I do not become baptized or keep my hair at all, would I still be at liberty to call myself a Sikh, and if yes, could someone like me ever attain full salvation as outlined in Sikhi? 6) Does the Golden Rule exist in Sikhi? Is there every any mention of it anywhere or at least its implication? 7) According to Sikhi, is it more important to be someone who follows a religion, believes in God and engages in regular prayer or be someone who does their best to make the world a better place and put a smile on someone's face everyday by being the type of pure and kind-hearted person who you could trust with your life? I'm sure I'll have more later but those are all I can think of right now. If you've read all the way up until now I thank you very much for taking the time to help out a stranger who needs your advice. Take care, and God bless.