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Vaheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Vaheguru Ji Ki Fateh

A newsreporter from "The Record" of Waterloo/Kitchener area wrote a brilliant article on the Youth Kirtan Darbar which happened at Kitchener Gurughar on the 17th of November. Please take time out to read the following and send it out to friends and family.

http://news.therecord.com/article/274064 (Must Read !!!)

(The next Waterloo Youth Keertan Darbar (# 11) will be in February).

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Worshipping into the wee hours

Young people gather at Sikh temple to sing hymns and give thanks to God

MIRKO PETRICEVIC

RECORD STAFF

The sounds pulsing through the Sikh temple near Petersburg, just west of Kitchener, come in waves.

They begin slowly and softly, then build to a tempest-like crescendo of voices and little cymbals and drums before slowing to a soft echo, like waves rolling out to sea.

On Saturday nights, many young Canadians go to clubs and gyrate to booming music. Jaspaul Singh used to be among them.

But for the past several years, Singh has been helping to organize all-night hymn-singing sessions for young Waterloo Region Sikhs.

What does he tell those friends who still go clubbing?

"I just say I'm going to an all-night jam session as well," says Singh, who is president of the Sikh Students' Association at the University of Waterloo.

His "jam sessions" -- they are, in fact, a religious service called a keertan darbar -- are also being presented by Sikh university students in London, Hamilton and Toronto.

For the past four years, local Sikh students have held a keertan darbar in November and February.

The most recent, held last weekend at the Golden Triangle Sikh Association temple in Wilmot Township, ran from 7 p.m. Saturday to the wee hours of Sunday morning.

It celebrated a number significant events in Sikh history, including the birth of Guru Nanak, the 15th-century founder of Sikhism.

AT THE KEERTAN DARBAR

Sikhs of all ages attended the keertan darbar. But the crowd was skewed toward young people.

Friends chatted in the temple foyer and children ran between the prayer hall and the dining hall, where people sat in rows on the floor and casually shared meals.

Waves of sound, generated by people in the prayer hall, could be heard through the temple speaker system.

Early in the evening, about 100 people sat on the floor of the temple's dimly lit prayer hall, which can hold about 400 worshippers.

Like the Eastern rhythms that waxed and waned through the temple, worshippers entered the sanctuary in trickles and waves. They walked down a wide centre aisle to a canopy-covered stage -- the only well-lit part of the room -- holding the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib. They stood before the book, clasped their hands and said short prayers before dropping to their knees and bowing in respect.

Most of the women then moved to the left and sat cross-legged on the floor. The men congregated on the right of the prayer hall.

The Guru Granth Sahib was the source for many of the hymns being sung. Sikhs consider it their guru. So, as usual, it was treated with respect.

As the holy book rested on the elevated stage, an attendant gently waved a ceremonial whisk above it, the way followers in olden times wafted insects away from the human gurus.

At last Saturday's youth event, large projection screens flanked each side of the stage. And as singers took turns leading the congregation in call-and-response hymns, Scripture verses were projected in old Punjabi written in Gurmukhi script -- the language of the holy book.

Not many worshippers can read it, explained Singh, not even those who speak Punjabi.

So organizers try to make the youth keertan darbar more meaningful for young worshippers by providing English translations.

From time to time during the service, worshippers with digital cameras made their way to the front to snap pictures of the singers. Photos and MP3 audio files were uploaded on a website at www.ontariosikhyouth.ca by Monday morning.

FLOOR PRESENTATIONS

At regular Sunday morning services in Sikh temples, the hymns are usually sung by professional musicians. They usually sit on a lower stage to one side of the canopied stage, face the congregation. But during the all-night youth service, their stage was empty and the singing originated from the congregation on the floor.

Microphones and harmoniums, accordion-like instruments, were assembled in the front row of the congregation. Someone kept time on a small drum as volunteers sat at the microphones.

Two brothers sang a traditional poem that took only a few minutes to recite. Later, some young adults led the singing for 20 minutes.

Manpreet Kaur, 18, said she got hooked on the youth keertan darbars two years ago after hearing recordings online.

"It was like, 'Wow,' " said Kaur,

a University of Waterloo student.

"When youth do stuff, you get inspired."

The all-night songfests aren't just a time to hang out with friends, she said.

"It's one of your ways to connect with God. You're singing God's words."

And unlike regular worship services, where professional musicians take the stage, almost everyone at the youth keertan darbar sat facing the front.

"You're all one, sitting together facing God," Kaur said.

There were no applause when one group finished its turn at the microphones. The singers simply receded into the congregation and others moved forward to take their place.

The flow of youth keertan darbars draws Prabhjot Kaur like a tide.

"We're more involved," said Kaur, a 19-year-old University of Toronto student who attended last weekend's service at the Petersburg-area temple.

"We're participating."

Sonia Kaur, a 23-year-old Markham woman, said she doesn't find the regular Sunday services as appealing.

"It's not as heartfelt."

Kaur sat behind the stage and waited for a friend to finish her turn wafting the air over the Guru Granth Sahib.

"I could sit here for hours," said Kaur. "It's just the energy. It's a very peaceful evening. Very pure in a lot of ways."

mpetricevic@therecord.com

To see photos and hear MP3 audio files of last Saturday's youth keertan darbar near Petersburg, visit the website www.ontariosikhyouth.ca

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