Gurbani

[das amritpal singh]

gurfateh

im 17 years old and new to sikhi and would be glad if the sangat could answer a couple of questions for me

1) all sikhs shuld naam japna. they shuld also read gurbani, however i just wanted to know if there are any benifits of reading gurbani even if we dont understand what we are saying? i personally feel ashamed that im so poor at punjabi : and i would advise everyone to teach panjabi to pple at a young age as it is quite difficult to learn fully afterwards.

2) i heard that sikhs shuld wake up at amrit vela. but is there a special time or is it before dawn? if it is before dawn then can u wake up 10 mins to dawn or do u have to wake up over an hour before dawn?

could everyone please share their views and could someone tell how to use the search engine on this site :

gurfateh

[Jathedar]

start reading bani is a good start even if you do not understand it, but one should move on and do arth of the shabads and learn to do arth and udnerstand the meaning of the shabad.

after this stage one should begin to contemplate on the shabad and begin to understand the essence of the shabad.

Reading shabads is the beggining stage of sikhi and one should slowly progress onto the other stages to begin to feel the real anand from it.

As for amritvela most people willl say between 3 - 6 people who wake up earlier is because of their own hapiness and thirst to do more abhiyaas or bani. Idealy one should do atleast 2 hours seated naam bhagti followed by they nitnem followed by other banis which one wants to recite.

If you are new to this i suggest dont begin to wake up 3am straight away as it will not work u will tire yourself out. pace your self e.g start waking at 6 for a week or 2 then slowly start waking up at 5.30 n gradually earlier and earlier

[Khalsa4ever]

Waheguroo jee ka Khalsa!

Waheguroo jee kee Fateh!

For (1), reading gurbani does certainly help. BUT, its nowhere near as good as understanding the Gurbani, which is the whole point.

I would recommend when you do some bani, like Japji Sahib, also read together an English translation so that you can try to understand the meaning of it.

Good luck!

Waheguroo jee ka Khalsa!

Waheguroo jee kee Fateh!

[randip singh]

Understanding Gurbani is essentiial.....otherwise we Sikhs become like those brainwashed kids in Madrasas where the Koran is not understood but recited parrot fashion.

Read it in English .....but always try and learn the Gurmukhi word.....get a Gurmikhi to English dictionary.

[palamrinder]

Reading Bani is like cleansing your soul....Everyone should make an effort to read Bani even if they cannont understand it initially... it dissipates the darkness in our mind and make it easier to grasp the meaning and true essence of bani. It is inly when you understand the meaning of each word you began to enjoy the everlasting bliss. But not everyone can be there right away.... read bani and listen to katha to understand it and learn proper santhya..... I personally learnt a lot from listening to katha of japji sahib from bhai pinderpal singhji.... Also make sure when you do your nitnem, play the paath being recited shudh by someone...... Last but not least, do ardas!

[das amritpal singh]

gurfateh

thank u everyone u have helped alot

so i shuld first learn to pronounce the words correctly and then i shuld slowly look at translations while i read it.

so u guys say that i shuld do everything step by step

i agree with what u have said but

i could die 2moro and when dharamraj askes me if i understood the praises i have given to god what will i say?

i live in southall, and even though southall has one of the largest sikh popluations than other english cities the gurdwaras are rubbish.

ive read sakhis of how a gurdwara is a centre for education. however the commitee just wants money and they dont seem to worry about the lack of eduction the youths have today.

i personally think that they shuld offer santhea classes. some people already offer it but they charge for it and that just takes out the whole aspect of seva. i beg anyone who has the authority to start these classes and promote them to the sangat.

if someone could come up with ideas of how to get these clsses stared please share it

gurfateh

[Bir_Ras]

Why not ask the local gianni to teach you santhia, failing that your best bet, free of any predjudice is to take a long vacation at the akal takht or dam dami taksal, i know many gursikhs personally that have went there and brushed up on their santhia that they know bani off by heart and when you meet them they are always a pleasure to talk to and there are no signs of bitterness to anyone, always asks for kirpa.

I would say its your own choice, provided you have it set in your mind that you wish to learn how to read our bani then i think even guru ji doing kirpa on your efforts will give enough time that ypou accokmplish this. However to do this, there is no wrong way. If you are reading it, then i suggest switch on the ipod, mp3, radio, onl;ine radio, skyradio anything to help with pronunication and that way, you build up speed too.

[Guest Glasgow Singh]

sakhi from 7th paatsha, Dhan Dhan Sri Guru Har Rai Ji Maharaj

Recitation of Gurbani

One day the Sikhs asked the Guru whether those who read the Gurus' hymns without understanding them derived any spiritual advantage from it. The Guru gave no reply at the time, and next morning went hunting. En route, the Guru came across a broken pot which had held butter. The rays of the sun were melting the butter on the broken pot fragments. The Guru took one of these fragments in his hand and said, "Look my Sikhs, broken pot shards - when they are heated, the butter that adhered to them readily melts. As the grease adheres to the potshards, so to do the Gurus' hymns to the hearts of his Sikhs. At the hour of death the Gurus' instruction shall assuredly bear fruit. Whether understood or not, it has within it the seed of salvation. Perfume still clings to a broken vase." The meaning of the parable is that whoseoever daily reads the Gurus shabads shall assuredly obtain peace. And even though he may not fully understand them, God will undoubtedly assist him.

Guru Ram Das has said: "The Word is the Guru, and the Guru in the Word, and in the Word is the essence of ambrosia."

Note, i just wanted to add that the guruji DID emphasise (im pretty sure, not heard sakhi in a while but as far as i can recollect) that understanding was indeed important, and that this sakhi isnt an 'easy way out' of learning meanings, it means that although we may not know meanings, Baani is so powerful that it still helps us, and that we ought to double our efforts to find out meanings!!! :console: