Essay Marathon 3

[japmans]

CORRECTION: ESSAY MARATHON 4

Vaheguruji ka khalsa

Vaheguruji ki fateh!!!!

Well... it's beena year almost since the first essay contest... we got some really really nice replies, and then we just stopped....

Like in the past, the window is 2 weeks. After 2 weeks, the thread would be closed.

I hope admin grants this request for this thread to be a temporary universal sticky.

This session's essay topic is as follows:

"If I was given unlimited resources, I would do these 3 things to progress Sikhi in the world"

I know it's somewhat simple, but I hope we get the same number of responses as we got before. Please don't turn this into a debate... we're all trying to learn from each other, and this is this sessions topic... if you would like to suggest a certain topic for the next time, msg me, and to keep some order, we can do it chronologically.

LET THE ESSAY WRITING BEGIN! :wub: :cool:

vaheguruji ka khalsa vaheguruji ki fateh

p.s.. WOO this was the 6000th topic in general

p.p.s: the previous essays from previous topics can be viewed here:

http://www.sikhsangat.com/index.php?showtopic=5318

http://www.sikhsangat.com/index.php?showtopic=4755

http://www.sikhsangat.com/index.php?showtopic=4615

[gupt_paapi]

"If I was given unlimited resources, I would do these 3 things to progress Sikhi in the world"

waheguru waheguru waheguru

all unlimited :wub: lol

(soz 4 being awkward - cant spell )

[Princess]

Vaheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Vaheguru Ji Ki Fateh

Please note that these are just random thoughts that came after reading the questions, so please forgive me if I offend anyone or make any mistakes

"If I was given unlimited resources, I would do these 3 things to progress Sikhi in the world"

After having a conversation with an amazing Gursikh, I realized that we already have unlimited resources and the power to do anything if we put our minds to it. Yes it will be hard and a struggle and maybe sometimes even a challenge to do certain things, but it is still possible.

To progress Sikhi in the world, I think we first need to progress Sikhi within ourselves. One must improve themselves before going out to preach Sikhi to others. Reading, understanding, and following what Guru Ji tells us is a must and the three main things one must do in order to further their own Sikhi.

Reading Bani is the first step, whether it be pressing the ‘random shabad’ button on sikhitothemax.com and reading meanings of a shabad (as I love to do when I’m procrastinating…hehe) or reading any other Bani. In order to understand what our Guru Ji is trying to tell us and in order for us to one day follow that message, we must first take the initiative to read that message.

The next step to progress Sikhi within ourselves is to understand the message we have read. This may involve asking questions and figuring our why what is being said is being said. Everything Guru Ji tells us (for example how to live a proper life) is for a reason, and in order for us to understand that reason, it is absolutely acceptable to ask questions. If we do not ask questions, and they remain within us, that may lead to doubting Guru Ji’s message in the future, which will not help us in progressing our Sikhi further. Clearing misunderstandings and having questions answered is a good way to enhance our faith in Guru Ji.

Following what Guru Ji tells us is basically applying what we have read and understood from Guru Ji’s Bani to our own lives. We need to apply those teachings to our everyday lives and this is different for each individual. It could be something as basic as starting to keep our hair, starting to wake up amritvela, or read more Bani in general. Each individual will have different starting points, as we all did not grow up in the same way. Some of us did have the same advantages as being born into a Sikh family, and had to learn about Sikhi at and older age perhaps from the basics. Not being born into a Sikh family and having Sikhi given to us from birth does not make us any less of a Sikh if we wish to follow Sikhi when we have read and understood it.

The individuals, whether born into a Sikh family or not, who read Guru Ji’s Bani, then understand it, and then apply that knowledge they have acquired are the ones who are progressing Sikhi within themselves. Progressing Sikhi within yourself is the first step, after that, progress it into the world.

Bhul Chuk Maaf

Vaheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Vaheguru Ji Ki Fateh

[Jaspaul Singh]

bump ! :wub:

[ms514]

Sat Sri Akal:

Princess... :wub: ...read my mind... ... :e:

Ah well, I'll post it anyways...dedicated to the Sikh who nudged me to do it and owes me a new toilet bowl...

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"If I was given unlimited resources, I would do these 3 things to progress Sikhi in the world"

Imagine...the world at my fingertips. Nothing is out of reach...I have everything. Bill Gates wishes he was me and I would be the one firing Donald Trump for poor business skills. But Sikhi is everywhere and everyone is scattered. What to do? Can money really buy everything? Could I do with unlimited resources that which many have failed to do?

"Man Jeetae Jug Jeet – Win the mind and you win the world"

Call me selfish, but the first thing to straighten out is myself. I mean come on, look at yourself. Your mind is a donkey, it leads you everywhere and drags you in the dirt, yanking you away from what you should be doing, which is remembering the Almighty with every breath. Your pig of a body asks and asks for things. Give me food, give me sweets, let me enjoy the tastes of the world. Yet in all of this, who listens to that poor voice inside which is saying, "Hey, you are only here for like four days. Mind doing something for me? Come on, remember that which made you and the purpose for being here. You listen to everyone else, but not me. Am I not also a part of you? How many times I gotta remind you to remember the Big Dude?" An unlimited resource to take advantage of is Gurbani. Gurbani is the whip to drive this donkey-mind back to the Master and away from the cheap 5 salesmen of desire, the leash with which to tie the body down and make it stop begging for things that are killing it slowly. For once, I would feed that voice...that sweet and persistent voice that has been asking ever so nicely to remember the Almighty. After all, who am I to help Sikhi out if I am not a Sikh?

"Sadh Sangat Baikunth Ahe – Sadh Sangat Is Heaven"

So you got yourself on the right track...somewhat. The donkey and the pig are somewhat quieter and that voice is getting louder and louder by the day. But whenever you use your 5 worldly senses, what do you get as input. "My Rehat is better than yours", "your Kakkars are not my Kakkars", "your Sant/leading Gursikh is nothing compared to mine". What is going on? That voice is getting quieter again...gotta go where that voice has company. I know...Sangat. Yes, that is where the people with the inner voices meet and talk to each other using Gurbani. Maybe it will be a Rehansabhai, maybe Katha, maybe, Paath. But hey, I am not the only one who needs Sangat. All these other people with the You-You-Me-Me going on gotta come too. Hmmm...maybe a gigantic Global Samagam. Weeks...NO...months long!!! Bring all the Jathas together and do some major sewa, simran and of course, group therapy. Seriously, everyone IS a Sikh of the Guru right? That makes everyone brother and sister. They all need to sit down together and get off their chests once and for all what their problems are with each other and move on. Every Jatha has so much to complement another and yet, all many are doing is antagonizing each other and wasting resources. The end objective of this would be to get the Sangat to elect the Panj Pyare from the highest of spiritual beings of each Jatha and pledge to stand by their decisions. It is high time that the Sikhs began to see that they have a lot in common with each other...much more so than the differences. Another unlimited resource to take advantage of is Sadh Sangat. It is the lack of being together and communicating with each other that has caused divisions among the Panth. Together, Sikhs create heaven on earth. Apart, they are worse then the demons that Chandi Bibi had to beat down herself.

“Ratan Amolak Paiyaa Gur Ka Shabad Bichar – I obtained the priceless jewel of the Guru Shabad from discussion and meditation”

So Sikhs have sorted each other out. But the world needs to know about Sikhi too. Why? Aren't there many other religions out there who are helping people out there? Yes, but there are also those who are looking for Sikhi, know it has to exist, but have not been introduced to it. Amazing how so many people who become Sikhs say that they were already Sikhs, but just did not know the name of it. Is it not a Sikh's duty to tell others that yes, there is this path. It is different from the others and here is what it says. But before you tell others, do you not have to tell yourself? Hmmm...scratches darhi (beard)...kill two Mughals with one Barcha we can. Let's call it the Sikh Research Institute. The sole purpose of this institute is to research Gurbani and the concepts in it. Before all these telescopes and computers, Guru Sahib spoke of the many planets, of the creatures unseen and things that science has yet to discover. Dig deep, explore the depth of Gurbani as much as possible. It begs to be studied, it begs contemplation, it teases the mind with information, it smacks you with insights years after you have been reading the same verse, it defies its complexity with rhythmic poetry in language made for donkeys like me. Truly a Word of the Simple Man, a touchstone that can turn the ordinary dirt of mankind into the golden kings and queens that are the Sikhs. It must be shared, it asks that you wrap your brain around it. Such power, such grace, such passion, such emotion, and the Sikhs, the very guardians of the Shabad Guru, have been unable to share its secrets. Guru Nanak Sahib went on foot across the entire known world to deliver the message and we have been unable to deliver it to our own houses?!?!? Gurbani is the great key to unlock the mystery of humanity and explains the purpose of existence, one of humanity's greatest questions. It must be shared and represented in the world. The Sikh Research Institute would do just that. Get the message out. Tell the world what is in Gurbani, explore its meaning, delve into the celestial abyss that is the Guru's Word and emerge with the Ambrosia of the Word to share with the world. Who cares if the one listening is a Sikh or not? Does one hide medicine from a sick patient because they do not have the same faith as you? No, this great treasure must be shared and the world should know that which the Gurus sacrificed everything for.

Well, wouldn't you know it...Sikhs are ALREADY blessed with unlimited resources. Do they not have Gurbani and Sadh Sangat? Did not the Guru promise the Sikh to be with them forever? So what is missing...

Oh yeah...ACTUALLY BECOMING AND ACTING LIKE SIKHS (comment on myself)!!!???!?!?!?!

“Kadh Nanak Avae Vaari – Nanak, when will my turn come?”

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Bhul Chuk Maaf.

[Jaspaul Singh]

vaahegurooo ..

i think i read two very identical essays .. no copying

jus kidding .. great read !!

[ms514]

Sat Sri Akal:

***COUGH***COUGH***C'MON SANGAT JI, POST MORE ESSAYS***COUGH***COUGH

[S1ngh]

I think we first need to progress Sikhi within ourselves.

Man Jeetae Jug Jeet – Win the mind and you win the world

Thats what i exactly think is the most important PART that we all YOUTH need to think on it.

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"If I was given unlimited resources, I would do these 3 things to progress Sikhi in the world"

1) Tell the whole world who Sikhs are in the form of Movies/documentaries and books. Preserve the old Sikh Forts, historical places, scripts and priceless shaastars.

2) Clean Sikh Politics. Buy old politicians and get rid of em. Bring leaders who are neutral and only CARE for the welfare of human regardless of their status/race/religion. CLEAN Punjab and most important connect all Sikh gurdwaras with better road system. If its impossible then bring the DICTATORSHIP and get the job done and clean em up.

3) Start Social Work back in punjab in great force. Make the guruaan di dharti "Drug/Alcoholic Free Zone." Educate all Farmers and set up system where all next generation of farmers to do excellance in studies and upto date with the modern world but still connected with their heritage of farming. Bring more youth role models in all forms of advertisement so that the naive kids can follow them instead of following abc gay actor from bollywood. Set up Camps, information booth and most important a LEHER to preserve the PUNJABI language back in punjab.

Thats all... Not exactly the essay but small input from my side :wub:

[Akaali]

ms514 veerji killed it!! :nihungsmile: Thats goin up on the blog.

[japmans]

Well. Today is the last day for submissions for this essay marathon. I was kinda disappointed at the extreme lack of interest for this. It didn't even get many views at all. But, that's okay. Just like before, there was a two week limit, so I'm going to submit this, and at midnight April 4th, 2006, i'm going to ask admins to close this and move it to the section where all the other essay marathons are at, and we'll try it one more time with another topic!

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Resources come in many forms. In our western socieities, a prevalent statement which describes our daily lifestyle is that "Time Equals Money": Time and Money, both of which are viewed as the most important resources for us north americans: time, to be able to accomplish all our daily tasks, and money, to have the means to accomplish the tasks, and have some luxury as well. As has been mentioned before, the biggest resources that we're wasting away are our Guruji's teachings, and the miracle of Life that has been gifted to us, a gift that we're throwing more and more of away, day by day, minute by minute.

Resources of our modern days are those such as time and money, and though they are material in their most common usages, they are useful on other, more important levels. Since the most important point has already been touched upon, that the most important resources to exhaust are our Guru's messages, I will aim to promote three ways that we can turn these material resources of the western world into fundamental stepping stones to help progress Sikhi in this world. The three things that I would do, given unlimited time, unlimited monetary supply, and unlimited power would be to promote and revitalize existing school curriculums to include world religions courses, a course that would include discussion on Sikhi and its people. The second thing that I would do, albeit very similar to the first, is establish beginner, intermediate and advanced courses about Sikhism at the university level. Finally, the third thing i would do with unlimited resources is give it back to our people in the way of refurbishing gurughars that are run down and requiring repairs.

High School students are among the most impressionable people in our societies. I believe that children go through stages of life where for the first 5 to 6 years, we believe that nothing else in life contains any knowledge other than our parents. Whatever they tell us, we treat as Gold, and apply it to our lives as much as possible. These teachings become the fundamentals of life. The next stage is the socialization stage, where from the years of 7-13/14, a child develops friends, engages in more outward social interaction with people of numerous, varying backgrounds, and puts more influence on the word of the friend. For the purpose of clarification, I would like to point out that at this point, the parents are still the primary teacher to the child, but that friends and outside authority figures (such as teachers) are beginning to have an impact on their lives.

The key is from the ages of 14-20. The child enters high school, and decides that he/she is no longer a child anymore -- at least on the outside. A child in this age group, in my belief, is a child who's very very impressionable, maybe even to the extent of the child in its first years, but God forbid that the child SHOWS this in an emotional matter. Where a child in its early years will show appreciation to the things he/she has learnt from his parents, a person in the 14-20 age group accepts it more internally, giving less indication externally that it has had any affect. It is common for students to feel that their first real inspiration in a school atmosphere comes from the friends and teachers that they have met in High School.

Currently, in Ontario, catholic schools are the only schools that provide religions courses. To my knowledge, no public school system even provides the choice of a world religions class, because of the controversial nature of the topic -- or in other words, because people have made religion a controversial topic in the first place. A prelude to the actual implementation of Sikhism in world religions courses would first be to convince parents and legislators of the good that can come out of a world religion course in the public school system. Such a course would never be forced upon students, and can be taken by those students who so will. Never should any religion ever be forced upon any individual, unless the individual indicates a willingness for a religion to be forced upon him/her.

A high school student will retain a great deal of information from this period of their life. They will meet teachers and other people who will change the course of their lives, some positively, some negatively, all of which will ultimately shape the decisions that individuals make about their future. It will be next to impossible to get a high school student to admit that they've been influenced by a teacher. It would be chastising to their social reputation to admit that a teacher, of all people, had a positive effect on their life! But despite the lack of externally displayed emotions, the point is that such a profound influence does happen, and is very likely to happen to high school students.

The relevance of this information to Sikhism is that we always complain that the western society does not know anything about us. This topic (i am slightly going off topic here) was inspired by Sartaj Singh Dhami's site, www.restoringthepride.com. The movies he has made have had effects on the people that he has interviewed. He has educated, to the public's knowledge, at least 5 people on sikhism, and has taken in opinions about what we can do to help better our image, reputation, and make our existence known. What better contribution could we make to our religion, if we can teach impressionable kids about our faith? Teach them the beauty of Guru Nanak's Messages of Love, and instill this mindset about Sikhs in their heads from the moment they begin to mould their futures. It would dispel thoughts of fear and resentment about Sikhs.

This course should be offered in at least 2 of the 4 years of high school. This may not seem like much, but a great deal of basic information could be transferred to students in 2 years of coursework. Another fact is that most students have not made decisions about their futures until grade 11 or 12. As a result, if a student wishes to pursue world religions in university, but has not taken grade 10 world religions, then this person would effectively be barred from doing so, as he or she would not have met the preerquisite requirements. For all of these reasons, the first thing I would aim to do with limitless resources is to install World Religions courses comprising of a unit of Sikhism, and making this course accessible to students at least in grades 11 and 12.

The second thing i would do, building on the coursework from high schools, is to install a sikhism course in major universities across the continent. Highly Sikh populated areas such as Los Angeles would be a main target, given the many UC campuses dispersed throughout the state of California. Schools like UC Berkely, UCLA, UC Davis and UCSD should all have Sikhism courses for the sole reason that there are so many Sikhs in these areas. Adding to the high school courses, these courses and exposure to Sikhs would dispel much of the seemingly limitless stigmas that exist in reference to Sikhs.

University is often referred to as an Institution of Higher Learning. Some individuals turn this into the Insitutation of Learning how to get High, where others take great responsiblity in their presence at university, and attempt to take the most of their experience as possible. Given that these universities and colleges are places of higher learning, a more indepth course should be offered at the university level. In such a course, topics could include the effect of spirituality on Sikhism to something more worldly, like the political, social and technological climates in the times of Guru Nanak Dev Ji to Guru Gobind Singh Ji. In terms of exposing Sikhi to the masses, this course would be especially useful to those that found Sikhism inspiring in High School, but the religions courses in high school would NOT be prerequisites to the university course, in an effort to keep it open to as many people as possible. Since this is a period of time where people are making efforts to expand their minds, think outside the box, and firmly solidify their futures, this would be an opportune time for people to gain knowledge about Sikhism. Therefore, in addition to installing high school World Religions courses to students, I would further implement a university-level course about Sikhism in major universities around the continent.

Finally, in an effort to progress Sikhism, there needs to be a certain amount of focus on our community. Some of our gurughars are deteriorating, and others even have cases of asbestos, as they are so old and unsafe. I have personal experience with a gurdwara in Surrey, of all places, where despite all the efforts of the local sangat, the gurdwara is just not in good shape. The odours of the bathroom travel through the air and through the vents and expel into the darbar hall, creating an overall unpleasant atmosphere in Guruji’s hazoori, as well as even being somewhat disrespectful to our Satguru. This is no isolated case. Many such cases exist where gurdwaras are not treated well, or are treated only with minimal amounts of care and maintenance.

These situations need to be fixed, and not with lavish lobbies, massive darbar halls, or skyscarping domes. Our gurudwaray that are recognized as our most sacred, such as Darbar Sahib, Amritsar or Bangla Sahib at Delhi have darbar halls that are small, that force sangataan to sit together, and appreciate every inch they get to sit in Guru Sahib’s hazoori. And agreed, there is a larger volume of sangat in North America, so an appropriately sized Gurughar should exist, but at the very least, these gurdwaras should be functional, operational, consist of working kitchens, have bathrooms large enough with appropriate air circulation. Some gurdwaray, we can’t say this even exists currently. So as important as it is to educate the external societies and communities about us, it’s equally important to take care of our own places of worship, where we say that our Guru LIVES. The House of our Guru should be a Divine place, where the atmosphere shouldn’t be compromised by the smell of excrement travelling through the air ducts from the bathrooms. This, in my opinion, is a big step to improving not only our image, but our overall well-being, and might even be a method of parchaar down the road. Furthermore, many people in certain areas are not able to afford transportation. With a large enough amount of money, I would have a public transport bus for Sundays, free of charge, for people to use to have transportation to the gurdwara. So along with making improvements to our image to the western world by arranging high school- and university –level education of Sikhism, I would ensure that all our Gurughars are functional so that our current Sikhs can benefit most from the Gurdwara experience.

It can not even be argued that we need to improve ourselves before we can start fixing the rest of the world. But we will all also admit that it’s hard to reach a level of perfection, so some measure of proactivity is required. At the forefront of all our actions, though, should be the eternal submission to Guruji’s Hukam. And, of course, such a level of submission can only come when we have, as mentioned before, mastered and taken advantage of the resources that we do have an abundance of. No one can really do anything if there’s not at least some level of submission to God. He does it all, and what He wants to happen, happens, and what He doesn’t want to have happen…that does not happen. That’s why no matter what our efforts, if they do not come to fruition, we can’t assume they are failures, they are in fact successes, because it happened just as God wished it to happen. That is why this topic is somewhat unrealistic. Many of us do not have unlimited material resources. We definitely do not have unlimited power, for unlimited power belongs only to one being: The Supreme Being.

But we CAN dream…can’t we?

Vaheguruji ka khalsa Vaheguruji ki fateh!

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I've made countless mistakes, in life, and in this writeup. My sincere and numerous apologies if i've said anything that is offensive to any individual, and more importantly, to my Guru. Bhul Chuk Di Khimma Bakhshni,

a new topic will be posted tomorrow