TejS

Is it really the culture that Guru Sahib accepted though? Was he not the one that saw the rampant misogyny, that still exists to this day, and rejected it? Was it not the culture's ignorant ways that led him to yearn for realization and from that realization establish Sikhi? Are those actions considered changing "some bad parts"? Jacobin really? Is it only because I'm trying to propose the removal of our old ways? The culture is a boastful, misogynistic, Brahmanic, casteist, way of life. Yes, there is some good to it, such as its familial system, but as a whole, I don't see it being all constructive. Perhaps you'll enlighten me? Punjabi culture in its boastful, bravado ways allows for many things intoxicating than a "bit of drink". One thing it doesn't allow is education, which our people desperately need. Clearly the authentic Punjabi culture you are supposedly talking about is not in practice, and therefore is a thing of the past. Things are only going to get worse from here. Instead of trying to cling onto a culture that we have no need of, what is wrong in accepting the culture encompassed in Sikhi, for there is a whole culture in it?

Definitely go for USA. Not much in Canada to be honest.

I'm not saying we should give up the Punjabi language, what I'm saying is that we need to give up Punjabi cultural dominance, and buckle down on the Sikh identity more. We don't need Punjabiyat to dominate our way of thinking and behavior, because frankly, its not a very good way of thinking. The SGPC not converting Ambedkar's Dalits was the greatest mistake in modern Sikh history. The elitist attitude of the SGPC led to Ambedkar concluding that Sikhi was only egalitarian on paper, and not in practice. Sikhi lost out on a lot of potential followers with that decision, and I'll argue that elitist attitude stems from Punjabi culture. We should not be obsessed with Punjabiyat, and instead be "obsessed" with Sikhi and its way of life. The only way I see this happening is if Sikhi spreads out to other ethnicities, however our own, such as in the case of Ambedkar, become an obstruction to that spread.

Having watched the BBC report on alcohol being an issue in the UK Punjabi community, I came to a realization that Sikhs value Punjabiyat (Punjabi-ness) over their Hindu and Muslim counterparts and are for that reason suffering. Muslim Punjabi were willing to separate their state, their language and culture for their religion and did so. The Hindu Punjabis as well have distanced themselves from Punjabiyat, evidenced through their speaking of Hindi. Now Punjabiyat has its goods and bads, however as a whole, the culture is extremely destructive. And I think it was for a reason that Guru Nanak was born in a Punjabi community and not any other Indian community, as the culture needed saving, and Sikhi was just that. To be very honest, Punjabiyat and Sikhi are polar opposites. And unfortunately most "Sikhs" follow Punjabiyat over Sikhi. This is our fault. The ethnic identity of Punjab is actually quite recent, having only emerged fully in the 10th century. It was essentially a mixture of Jats, Khatris, Rajputs, Tarkhans, Brahmins, Sindhis, and Dalits that formed a new identity on the basis of language, and now ethnic. Before this, Punjab was home to Vedic teachings and essentially was a small cog in the mega-Vedic machine which encompassed Sapta Sindhu (NW India + Pakistan + Eastern Afghanistan). It's only a few hundred years older than our Sikh identity, and unlike the Sikh identity it was never truly defined up until recently. In fact, taking a look at the history of the Punjab region (when it was called Punjab and before that), there's not much to be proud of in fact. Yes, it was home to the oldest university of the world, Takshashila, a institution for Vedic teachings, however other than that, it was mostly defeat after defeat by invaders and cowardice until Sikhi. The first time after thousands of years of foreign rule, indigenous rule in Punjab was established only by Sikhs. What I'm trying to convey here is that as Sikhs, we need to learn from our fellow Muslim and Hindu counterparts and ease up on the Punjabi identity, and stress more importance on Sikhi. I'm not saying stop speaking Punjabi and whatnot, however get rid of the customs, which are mostly destructive, such as alcohol consumption.

Well I can address your first point. The kara predates Sikhi, Hindus have worn Karas for aesthetic and combat reasons. I believe the Rajputs wore karas and used them as knuckle dusters, and many other Indian ethnicities have their own variation of it. But its best to remember that the reason we wear a kara is different from other groups and that it reminds us of our religious duty, and when need be, can be used in defence.

Homework is indeed vital for the whole panth.

i hear if you spot one, you have a lucky chance of winning the lottery the next day, according to sanatani research of course

Great perspective! I didn't think of it that way to be honest. I overlooked that Waheguru expects us to act genuinely, rather than out of self-interest. Makes sense to me now. Thanks.

But can't creation exist without a material world? Isn't being in Sach Khand living, existing?

See with the karmic debt theory, I thought that we all, humanity collectively, made a mistake and thus were subjected to this cycle of lifetimes, however as @Kira wonderfully reminded me, that would only be possible if we were separate from God, which according to Gurbani, we aren't. So I thought the Sanatani concept of distracted souls living in the material world was interesting, however that raises the issue of being a separate entity to God once again. I just think that there has to be a reason for which we've been subjected to this cycle. And I personally think that if we were aware of that reason or our past mistakes, we would act more fruitfully towards repentance through our lifetimes.

I think this makes the most sense to me. Wonderful answer.

Thank you everyone for your answers. I can understand that our goal is to contemplate on escaping this cyclical bondage, however I can't help but know why in the first place? I did some research, as well as taking into consideration everyone's wonderful answers, and what I found out is that there are conflicting views on reincarnation. The earliest Dharmic text, the Rgveda (written in the Greater Punjab) has no mention of reincarnation, and instead mentions afterlife as passing on to the elements after being "consumed by Agni". The concept of incarnation comes later during the Gangetic Vedic culture (Uttar Pradesh) where the Mahabharata mentions it in explicit detail. Based on a few Sanatani journals and answers I read, its mentioned that when the soul is attached to God, it still has freedom, and therefore is an extension of the Creator. However, at times, due to this freedom, some souls contemplate an independence from the Creator, which can only be possible in a material world. And therefore, they get trapped in this moment of contemplation for multiple reincarnations, until they can yank themselves back by meditation (naam jaap or tapas). Now this premise has a few flaws, as to the concept of independence of souls while being a part of God. If they are independent, how exactly are the souls then a part of God? Perhaps, the union with God allows for independence, who knows? Take it for what you will.

Why is it that we have been placed in this cycle first of all? Was there a fall from grace similar to the Abrahamic religions? I'm curious to know if this is addressed within Sikhi?

What I understood from this, and I ask for an apology in advance, is that don't just blatantly rule out something because of the status quo. Don't just be a mindless sheep that follows popular opinion, however formulate opinions on your own. If most Sikhs or people in general are saying the Koran is fake, the Vedas are fake because they are not texts from their religion, don't just accept that. Find out for yourself. Read, understand, contemplate on them, and then form a conclusive opinion on them. Because otherwise by calling these texts fake without having read them in the first place, makes you as fake as your accusation.

You've made some fair points here. Let me answer on how we can stop this though We don't need to go out and start saving the community. All we have to do is save our own home. Each and every one of us. And that, itself, will save the whole community. Don't drink yourself, be an example for your children and other children that look up to you. Don't encourage the behavior, and that means not playing Bhangra tracks that promote alcohols/drugs. Explain the dangers to children at a young age. Scare the s*** out of them, if need be. Just don't let them touch the bottle. Now I know most of us probably don't have children, including myself, but this is something we should be prepared for when we do. The last generation, even the current generation probably can't be saved as they've already started the habit, but its possible to save the next generation. No one needs to be a local superhero to end the alcohol crisis our community faces, just set things right at home, and we should be all good.

The main issue is what are our Sikh youth doing at clubs, drinking especially? I mean I don't expect them to be saints and all, but there are other far more meaningful activities that one can partake in. And as far as the guy in the video goes, what is he doing alone at a pub? Where are his buddies?

Run this through GEDmatch and the Eurasia K9 ASI calculator to get more detailed breakdowns of your genetic components, as well as a better understanding of your genetic heritage.

Cool and thanks.

To the OP: Apologies for bringing up an old thread, but my curiosity got the better of me, what were your Y-DNA (paternal) and mtDNA (maternal) haplogroups? Those usually vary among individuals of the same ethnicity.

Its absurd that you guys had to go through this. Does the UK not have separate Christian/Catholic schools? This is literally imposing religion onto impressionable young children. Its wrong on so many levels!

Isn't that illegal, or did you and your parents consent to that? And if so why?

Is celebrating Christmas among Punjabis/Sikhs/South Asians common in the UK? Because I feel it’s a UK thing as it is really rare to celebrate Christmas for South Asians (except the Christian SA) in the Americas. Here we don’t know two hoots about Jesus, other than the fact that he was nailed to a cross. No tree, no gift giving, no special dinners, none of that is done here among our community. Sure kids wait in anticipation for Santa Claus, but they never have a clue about the religious significance of the day. Do British schools enforce Christian teachings in the classroom and is it compulsory?

Ranjit Singh made them his own. He trusted them as their kin. Many Dogras are still Sikhs, so they are our own. Punjabi =/=Sikh

Why have we been caught up in the cycle of reincarnation? I mean i understand we’re waiting for mukti, but why is it that we first got into the cycle of reincarnation?

How is this new? Isn’t it always our own that cause us the most pain?