jkvlondon

I would encourage all Sikhs to eat more raw vegetables, particularly green leafy vegetables such as Kale and Spinach. I am not talking about Saag, but actually eating it in it's raw form if possible.

If you find this difficult, I would suggest investing in a decent blender/juicer such as Vitamix or Blendtec. If you find these too expensive, purchase nutri bullet and make yourself a green smoothie.

It does not take too long to make and you feel great afterwards.

if you slice kale finely it makes a good salad

Problem is most vegetarian Sikhs are not really vegetarians but are grainatarians.

I agree plus the last fifty years the type of wheat that we are consuming is more starchy and less protein rich than those our ancestors ate in India and throughout the East , that's why I would try to stick to ancient grains like Kamut, Einkorn for chapatti flour and reduce the proportion of grain based carbs to vegetable based carbs to almost 30:70 remember dhal are legumes .When farmers here want to fatten livestock they use GMO corn and wheat based feed , if the livestock were left to their own devices they would prefer the green plant diet which would keep them leaner and healthier.

The ancient gladiators and armies of Rome and Greece would live on Barley grain , in fact there were mutinies when Barley was not available to eat only meat ...these guys knew that their health, power and strength was best maintained by the vegan diet rather than meat (which made them lethargic and have less stamina , endurance during hand to hand combat) ... it is a fact borne out by generations of army men all round the globe and should be taken into account by ourselves if we wish to be in fighting condition.

I'm impressed by your knowledge jkvlondon. Are you a doctor /nutritionalist ?

Can I ask, and I ask as a layman, the way we Punjabis actually cook the vegetables in our sabjian, are we actually killing the nutrients by overcooking it ?

definitely...(that is why you should have raw veggies as part of your diet every day) if not overloading on the fats during Tardka ...best fats meaning health wise for our diets are Ghee and coconut oil .I make my ghee from scratch from grassfed organic butter the only brand I reckon is worth it is yeo valley as I know their care for herds includes no unnecessary use of antibiotics (they use homeopathic treatment as first call) or steroid control of milk production so none of that poison passes through the milk into the cream and therefore into us and our kids.

Use minimal fats , cut tarkda finely lots of fresh ginger , green chillis, garlic , cut sabji into small pieces so cooks faster , remember tinned tomatoes are precooked during canning ,veggies are blanched before freezing so really just need to thaw and heat through/reduce the juices. Use the natural water in the sabji to steam it to completion.

worst combination of food to eat is high starch/sugar and fat as the fat prevents the blood sugar from normalising , and when blood sugar is high inflammation is there in the tissues and damage is occurring

I just got back from the gurdwara, it was like a circus - children running around and shouting in the darbar hall, people busy greeting and hugging each other with their back to Guruji, doing metha tek and going straight down to langar. phones going off, why are people so disrespectful - they have all week to chat and spend time with relatives, why bother coming to gurdwara if they can't put their own needs aside to respect our Guru. there's a lot of ignorance and I'm shocked how people behave in the gurdwara, unless you're very enlightened person - these petty behaviours can affect others and puts me off going especially when there's big celebrations - the gorah that were there showed more respect then our own people. Does anyone know if people behave in India like this or is it just the UK?

Penji,

everywhere I've been gurudwarey abroad people sat in family groups that is in India, Assam, Nepal,Singapore,Sikkim nobody behaves like the cheekchugiarda here in UK . Nobody sits chatting like they are in their own living room , no-one dresses inappropriately (worst one was at Karamsar gurudwara Ilford during the day, a lady wandered in wearing white linen pedalpushers where you could her lack of coverage underneath when she matha tekked, needless to say the bazurg bibian took her aside and castigated her)

Problem here is people seem to think they give money into golak so gurudwara belongs to them , they would never behave that way in front of the Queen or dress that way, yet they do so in front of the King of Kings. It is sickening .

as ive states muscle recovery amongst vegetarian professional athletes is a lot better then meat eating athletes

getting your protein needs met through vegetables is far healthier and makes athletes stronger and better then getting protein from meat

problem is a lot of vegetarians don't get their protein needs met and are out of shape they are either super skinny or obese

MOST SIKH VEGETARIANS HAVE A HIGH CARB LOW PROTEIN DIET one of the reasons for diabetic problem in the community

a lot of vegetarian Sikhs are super skinny

SIKHS NEED TO BE EDUCATED HOW TO EAT PROPERLY AND GET THEIR PROTEIN NEEDS MET IF THEY WANT TO BE VEGETARIAN

Most sikhs think that the food pyramid for them contains the categories mithai, chatpatta te namkeen, on top of veggies, fruit, grains ,dairy, and Fats (nuts and seeds)

the bibian with rampant androgen hormones evident from their facial hirsuitism ...is a prime sign of permanently high/rampant blood sugar levels . I know my body did start the same due to gestational diabetes only controlled by switch to raw vegan diet no salt, no grains, no dairy, minimal fats (avocado or hempseed) .

Everybody needs to STOP SOYA ...it is not healthy, it is highly allergenic, mucus forming (so bad for asthma sufferers), hormone interfering...mostly GMO no benefits only downsides.

need to control the quantity and quality of intake because exercise can do only so much ...

honestly going raw vegan is the quickest way to regain health and it is totally bibeki...

the protein thing ...you body grows at the fastest rate during first year of life and primary source of food is breastmilk , human milk is max 6% protein we won't need more than that ever ...

a very informative article on vegan strength and diet

http://www.vegan-fighter.com/nutrition.html

Waheguru ji Ka Khalsa,

Waheguru ji ki Fateh.

Please keep calm , first thing you need to do is trust Waheguru whatever happened is past now but now and future we can ask through Heart-felt Ardas for strength- Bal , patience- sabar, Peace - Shanti as sadda kol kujh nahin bus jitna Waheguru sanoo bakshia/ ditta . Sada bus kujh nahin sirf ussi Waheguru nu apne piar te sir(mann) deh sakde haa. Kirtan suno , gavo din raat Asa di Vaar suno, ARti arta suno gavo ...kirtan sanoo sookoon dendha hai te sadda dil nu pavittar te shant kar denda hai . Sangat vich paat karo pame mian bibi haun, ik ik paurdi ik jane pardo phir duja jaane. jime sagar uthe laher hunde hai vesae jindagi kadikadi uppar kadi kadi neeche Waheguru di charan fardo te oh tera kaaj sawariga

being vegan or vegetarian is not an instant death sentence for your strength or athletic performance as some may wish to believe (meat advocates) there have been many many studies and physiological science improvements and the body's intelligence and abilities to recycle and create protein tissue has been understood better, so no you don't have to combine amino acids at every meal the body can assemble from different meals over as much as a week . Too much protein to requirement? the surplus is processed and chucked out of the system this processing damages the kidneys and to some extent the liver if it occurs on a regular basis. So no you don't have to chug protein shakes to gain muscle look up vegan bodybuilding , or even vegan MMA and you will see many examples of strong healthy bodies built without meat, eggs or dairy.e.g Brendan Brazier,Mac Danzig,Jake Shields

Eating plant proteins in the form of raw green vegetables will give you the raw amino acids which can simply be built into the protein form needed less energy lost to the processing, whereas meat/eggs etc need to be diassembled and reassembled which is a less efficient conversion process. The other problems of dairy in the UK or west is that it is normally pasteurised and homogenised which destroys the healthfulness of the milk , raw milk is better in terms of digestability and immune system reactionwise (less inflammation in tissues).

we just need to trust Waheguru and eat more of his bounty without cooking to lose the chronic inflammation which creates autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes and rely less on grains and processed foods , which if you follow bibek would automatically happen

Well Sangat has managed so far? why suddenly the need to integrate the genders in the Darbar Sahib? once you exit, there are ample opportunities to mingle with your families as happens currently. Apart from the odd child running about I've yet to see an influx of so called unruly children running amok.

My point was not about unruly kids so much, but creating an aura of familial togetherness/oneness in larger sangat at darbar which can become second nature/replicated when outside in world/home in smaller sangat. When it feels like a natural state of being it is automatic point of return of dhian: just like doing sadhana, effort at first but then kirpa happens. The point is we haven't been doing so well up until now ...the kids are seperate from parents/grandparents on an emotional/intellectual level as well as spiritual one that's why people are worried about what is happening in the kalyugi duniya to Sikhi. When we faced opppressors we had togetherness of focus and aim that is why we were strong as a panth, now the days of sukh have had their toll and we have scattered to the four winds . We need to regroup....

If they could sit with their husbands imagine wat. It would be great, they should sit together and pray together, wats so wrong in that.

Wat etc etc, ha ha u don't want families sitting together u don't want husband wife sittin together. Maybe this is why nobody absorbs anything, if they sit with their husbands wouldn't that stop th talking. I can't understand y people opposes to families sitting together, that should a gud thing right if a family prays together.

I think also Penji that the guys are scared they would get a chittar for eyeing up the single girls that's the main scary point for them they wouldn't be able to get away with it ... LOL

It's a FACT that women cannot keep from talking. How many times do the Gianis have to tell them to ''CHUP DA DAAN BAKSHO BIBIAN' They shrug their shoulders and walk off to the kitchens to compare suits and who's daughter-in-laws doing what, Imagine if they were allowed to sit with their husbands etc etc!

Veer ji

go in any pind any city centre you'll find loads of babey sitting together talking nonstop , oh I'm sorry they are not gossiping, nah just speaking about highly important metaphysical matters while eyeing up the womenfolk going back and forth doing their duties.

You cannot generalise like that it shows your lack of understanding and definitely immaturity.

A Gurdwaras isn't a social meeting class. You go to the Gurdwara to mediate, absorb Gurbani into the thirsty soul [for most] you can't do this with family surrounding you, they'd be talking about home affairs and so on. Only a true devotee can fathom this. You want to sit with your family, well switch on the numerous Sikh Channels and sit.

I think you'll find that grisht jiwan is the highest form of bhakti training....Guru ji said so any fool can run for the hills and claim to have conquered his/her indrian ... A single person with three kids under two years cannot physically cope alone if more than one child cries... And what is the problem with where someone sits if they have full dhian in Guru and bani? SUrely the problem is with the man who trundled over to create ruckus in darbar disturbing others more than ourselves, who were sitting right at the back of the hall not in any persons eyeline , sitting in shantmai avaasta taking in amritbani. We were bringing our kids to Guru ji's charan to learn and what our son learnt is you can sit quietly and have random bossey/nosey persons grab up on you just cause they feel they know everything? It's amazing that so far I have heard all the guys be negative about the women but guys you 'push' the family aside to serve your own selfish want , surely you have a duty to share and ensure Guru ji's message lives in the hearts of all your family? Maybe I am naive to believe that your protective role extends that far but honestly it would be wonderful if every Singh and SInghni did that for each other and the new generation

Look guys it's simple we don't follow Guru ji advice we mistreat our womenfolk pressurise them from day one, while pampering and spoiling our new generation of menfolk. A woman is your partner, your fellow khalsa (hopefully), your sangat, why would you browbeat her for daaj, for kids (of the male persuasion), for hand-foot service (she is your equal not your dassi) you are not Pati parmeshwar so stop the Punjabi Hindu BS . Guru ji Tells us not to speak harshly to our partners or children, not to curse them out, not to beat them. How many of us actually follow our Guru ji ????

The girls will love their Gursikh partners wholeheartedly if they could see their Guru ji working through them i.e. they would be considered equal not subordinate, their spiritual development would be nurtured, their self-esteem honoured, their value to the family and kaum as females celebrated, their thoughts and advice truly listened to....they would never need to look for pastures greener why leave home if everything is there without asking.

Our boys need to grow up and realise :

1. a Gursikh NEVER asks for date

2. a Gursikh NEVER engages in premarital affairs

3. a Gursikh Honours his in-laws as his own Mother and Father and NEVER asks for daaj, for this Guru Gobind SIngh ji has stated firmly that one who does is NOT his Sikh

4. A Gursikh SHould be tyaar bar Tyaar that means he/she can fend for him/herself including cooking cleaning washing etc not expect his/her partner to be their personal servant

5. A Gursikh is dutybound to be sangat for his/her partner throughout life's mission to reach Akal Purakh and be a proper support so both of you remain strong in your Sikhi

6. As a couple you bound to the Sewa of bringing up your kids as Gursikhs and show them the world in the context of Gurbani, to bring them to Guru's charan

too many guys I have known in the past have this bad attitude of justifying their bad behaviour as inevitable consequence of being a man ...My question are you a reasoning intellectual or just the same as a stray animal? I thought Guru ji made you in his image ..why do you debase yourself and insult your Guru ji?

I always used to hear a strange buzzing in the darbar hall... Then finally I realized that the sound is from the back of the womans side who are gossiping or whatever so loud...

I used to see the kids making a ruckus and the harassed mothers trying to calm them and quieten them while being shot daggers by the men in the Gurdwara amazing what you can see up close . do you honestly think that if those ladies were sitting next to their husbands they would be doing gupshup? would the kids be still insisting that they want to go find Dad now ? the Family that prays together stays together ...I think it is true how about you?

Not just apne Sikh girls are doing bad stuff...Muslim girls have an issue too you'd actually be surprised how many wear hijab and *act religious* but go clubbing at night and who know what goes on. Its the western societal values that are corrupting the youth. Its shameless and disgusting and we are allowing the hole to get deeper and deeper.

I know veer I was walking ahead of some girls in the Tube and I could hear them talking about a boy they knew , one of them exclaimed that she was desperate to 'jump his bones', I admit I was so taken aback I glanced over my shoulder and it was two young HIjabis (as my kids refer to the girls who wear hijabs).My husband also has seen the kartoots of such girls in Canary Wharf and Broadgate areas of town during their lunch breaks , we are both of like mind 'why dress like a decent girl then act out in public like that'... anyway My boys treat all girls respectfully even those that fall far from respectable in behaviour, my only mission now is to reduce such girls' influence on my growing daughter by instilling sikh ethics and virtues in her heart.

Looks like the traditional north / south divide of the UK is alive and well.

In the south where, according to the census, the single largest number of Sikhs in England live, there is no 'Muslim domination' of any areas we Sikhs live in (other than East London) and thus in our Sikh areas Muslim youth generally live under manners of the Sikh youths.

Therefore, I think when our Sikhs friends from the Midlands and the north are describing the 'UK situation' to our brothers and sisters in Canada and America, they should remind themselves that their situation is a very localised situation to their area is is not one that the majority of London and Southern Sikhs recognise as anything resembling reality.

I think veer ji you are being naive all NOn-sikhs hit on our girls as they are seen as easy prey :

1. because the girls don't understand their roots thinking PUNJABIAT as the same as being Sikh

2. the girls think any attention from a guy means that guy is 'in love' with them because their parents let them fill their heads full of bollywood cliches

3. The girls hang around with Non-sikhs and think that fitting in means they should drink alcohol, cut hair , wear skimpy clothing, flirt and dance with guys...and go dating

4. our girls are not equipped with the means to put down or get rid of unwanted attention either verbally or physically

5. they also are super naive as they believe dressing/behaving a certain way will make them more acceptable to their friends , truth is their 'friends' ridicule their lack of spine.

So if not the muslim contingent it can also be the Hindu guys who want to reconvert our girls back to the old faith, or christians wanting to put the girls straight about how to get to the kingdom of heaven.

its not bad if there is separation , its actually good. maybe you are raised in western environment and you are looking at our traditions with western views, but thats how none of it works.

there are people who can control their thoughts and eyes and kam , then there are people who get easily distracted . its good to have separation

next thing someone will say

"if western has joined bath why do we have separate "

imho its just stupid to look at older traditions with western views .

sitting with family max like 90% time isnt good you gossip about here and there . things keep poping up in mind.

separation makes it difficult and enforces to concentrate

Veer ji

surely if one's is with one's jiwan saathi that is our constant Sangat so we would/ should be in a state of sehaj being alongside them concentrating on Bani , personally if I am sitting in darbar I don't gossip at all, in fact I encourage the kids to do naam jap while listening. If one is with one's family you don't gossip with your friends because your husband is your reminder not to and vice versa . If anything is totally necessary to communicate one can get up and go outside. The other plus point is kids feel the niga of both guardians on them so will be more aware of their own behaviour.

Besides as my husband pointed out how can the bibian enjoy/learn from Guru ji if their attention is totally taken up with policing the kids, it should be a joint responsibility why should the Guys get total freedom to shut out the family responsibility... In fact I think it should be the case that the guys should take over looking after the kids so their wives can totally absorb the message of bani so she can pass this down the fami

ly line to the kids .

I would love if gurudwarey would create a seating area for younger sikhs of both sexes just in front of kirtaniyas so they can sit and hear and see kirtan without struggling , this will increase prem with kirtan...and hopefully create a switched on generation for the future of Gurmat sangeet

What is the reasoning for woman to sit on one side and men on the other... I have never seen anyone stopped from crossing sides... Im just wondering what the reasoning is?...

Waheguru ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru ji ki Fateh

The reason I was told was because of focussing the mind to message of bani rather than opposite sex (kind of like the muslim women having to stay behind the men in the mosque ) but that is bogus as you look in any darbar hall the guys are all chilled listening to bani without the kids hassling them and the Women's side the women are constantly tending to the kids demands . where is the equality ?

In India people sit in family groups at Gurudwarey there and no one bats an eyelid , whereas my own experience when my boys were very little (2 years and twins premature -1month age) when we sat as a couple at the back of the hall with our three kids in the UK, a man physically manhandled my husband during kirtan darbar to try and move him to the "men's side". I think if you sit together the kids will be more settled and not running back and forth pulling sangat's dhian which is a good thing plus you are less likely to think of others if you are with your family.

Veer ji Bhaine ji ,

Waheguru has created the perfect food and nourishment for us but we ignore it at our peril and get loads of different diseases , you do not even have to take herbal drugs to create your health . You simply eat food that nourishes without taxing your body see the video 'there is a cure for diabetes' by Dr Gabriel Cousins and also a book out . Seriously apne have done themselves harm by following modern eating practices .

Adding another superb sikhi youtube channel.

The Sikh Wisdom

http://www.youtube.com/thesikhwisdom

The only thing I would warn sangat about is there are a lot of Sarabjit Singh Dhunda videos uploaded ...

He needs a slap across his face.

or on top of his bald head ....besharam

have you been there? If so, would you assume they considering Sikhs as Muslims?

I haven't been yet it's on my list , I know they do have sikhs and gursikhs living there . There is a gurdwara sahib in Tokyo and even there are some japanese native Sikhs so yes I think they can tell the difference . My mentor has represented the HOmeopathic medical Association over there and gave many conference and seminars while there , he is very knowledgable about sikhi (gursikh) also Homeopathy and has been called back by them so many times . Japanese love different things , my Mum's best friend's daughter recently went there and had no problems with hassles everyone was very friendly and she is a dastar wearing gursikh.

Some of the replies in this thread are outrageous. Lol wow.

But being human does not exclude following Guru ji 's hukam ...

You can preserve such manuscripts but some of the Jathebandis are hell bent against that.

I think that authentic birs should be preserved 1. from Dharamic perspective 2. SIkh culture aspect 3. Artistic aspect 4. historical aspect.... if we burned all purantan birs then tomorrow dokhis will gain ground in distorting bani .... A related question my Grandfather gave Senchian to my Dad when I was a kid I was wondering is there any place/way of rebinding the senchian into a whole as I feel these souls would want Us to carry on the sewa through generations