Help on Questions on Sikhism

[mschawla]

I was requested by an American (who is doing research on Sikhism and Sikhs) if I would be willing to answer some of his questions. I said sure. So I received a list of questions, which I attach for every body to think and give your responses so that we could provide rational answers so as to portray the best possible, BUT CORRECT, image of Sikhs. So please provide as many responses as you can. thanks.

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LIST OF QUESTIONS.

1. Can you explain to me what you do in a typical Sikh service? ( and how often a week you attend)

2. How do the Sikhs fit into the modern world today?

3. How do Sikhs see themselves in this culture at this time?

4. What values are important to Sikhs

5. What is your world view?

6. What do Sikhs believe a good person should be?

7. Where do they stand on evil, science, capital punishment, homosexuality, abortion?

8. How do Sikhs judge what is true & good; false and bad?

[Simran9]

4. What values are important to Sikhs

Truth, love, humility, contentment, forgiveness, righteousness, wisdom, valor, worshipping lord with love & devotion, earning a truthful living, & caring & sharing with the needy :umm:

thats all i could think of

[Akaali]

Here's my try on a couple questions:

1. Can you explain to me what you do in a typical Sikh service? ( and how often a week you attend)

1. SIKH SHRINE (GURDWARA)

A Sikh shrine is called a Gurdwara, meaning the doorway to the house of God.

- The first Gurdwara was built by Guru Nanak Dev at Kartarpur.

- The Sikh Gurdwaras must have a religious flag, called Nishan Sahib in the front of the Gurdwara.

- Guru Granth is placed on the far side centre of the hall (center of the congregation).

- There should be no photographs of the Gurus or others in the hall where Guru Granth Sahib is installed.

- Gurdwaras normally have two(or more) halls/rooms. The main hall where Guru Granth Sahib is placed and the second hall where the community kitchen is served.

- All entrants must take off their shoes, wash their hands and cover their heads before entering the main hall.

- All Sikh services end with the distribution of parshad (sweet pudding) and langar (dinner/lunch).

A 'Sikh Service' is different than of a 'Service' at a church or a mosque. At a typical day at the Gurdwara, praying begins 3:00 AM, some are ealier, where they recite 'Gurbani' (holy scriptures), then hymns from the holy Guru Granth Sahib ji are sung using musical instruments, and more gurbani is sung, following is an 'ARDAAS' which is a standing prayer, in front of Guru Granth Sahib, after the ardaas one can go to the langar(free kitchen) and eat as much as they want. All throughout the day, kirtan(singing/praying) is done, so anyone can come in during the day and get the blessings from Guru Granth Sahib, and eat to their

heart's content.

2. How do the Sikhs fit into the modern world today?

(i) The Sikh religion has already been recognized to be a faith for the modern age.

The Sikh Gurus preached these principles of religious tolerance and brotherhood of

humanity five hundred years ago when they said:

The whole humanity is one brotherhood and God is the only Father for us all. (Page 611 Guru Granth Sahib)

Guru Nanak preached that there is one God, one humanity and one faith. His founding of

the institution of Sangat (praying together as equals) and Pangat (eating together as equals without any discrimination or favor to anyone, whatever one’s faith, caste, color, etc.) to educate people regarding the brotherhood of man, makes the Sikh faith the religion for the modern age.

Five hundred years earlier the followers of different religions were quarreling (some are doing so even today) to prove their religion to be better than that of the others. Guru Nanak preached that not hollow rituals but sincere actions benefit a person here and after his death. He declared that it is futile to argue which religion or which name of god is better than the other. All names, whether God, Ram, or Allah, are equally good. What matters is one’s love for Him and His children. In the same way, a child can address his father as dad, father, or daddy, but it is the love and respect for the father which matters and not the name the child uses to address him.

Guru Nanak also raised the status of women, by saying:

so kio ma(n)dhaa aakheeai jith ja(n)mehi raajaan ||

So why call her bad? From her, kings are born.

bha(n)ddahu hee bha(n)dd oopajai bha(n)ddai baajh n koe ||

From woman, woman is born; without woman, there would be no one at all.

Where women were regarded as lower than men, in predominantly most of the world, and Guru Nanak raised a voice for the women, and gave them equal, rather greater status to that of me

n, by saying "So why call her bad? From her, kings are born.", all the Gurus preached equality between men and women, and the 10th Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, sealed that philosophy by creating the Khalsa, and giving men/women equal status in the Khalsa brotherhood of Saint/Soldiers. Today, men and women are looked upon as equals in society, given equal rights, etc., whereas in Sikhism, this existed hundreds of years ago.

Earlier the leaders believed (some even believe now) that their religion is the only true religion and unless a person accepts that religion, he will not be saved. Now, they have come to realize that their old beliefs do not fit with the modern thinking and will not be accepted in the future. Human equality and non-insistence on a particular way of worshiping God were preached by Guru Nanak to release the masses from the clutches of pseudo-religious people. These Sikh principles have now been accepted by religious leaders and scholars as a faith for the modern age and a hope for peace.

(ii) Here are some of the comments of modern scholars regarding the Sikh philosophy.

The opinions of Professor Toynbee, Pearl S. Buck, a Nobel Laureate, and H.L. Bradshaw have already been given. (see introduction)

According to another scholar, John C. Archer, “The religion of the Adi Granth is a universal and practical

religion.......Due to ancient prejudices of the Sikhs it could

not spread in the world. The world needs today its message of peace and love.”

Dorothy Field in her book, The religion of the Sikhs, writes:

Pure Sikhism is far above dependence on Hindu rituals and is capable of a distinct position as a world religion so long as the Sikhs maintain their distinctiveness. The religion is also one which should appeal to the occidental mind. It is essentially a practical religion. If judged from the pragmatic stand point which is a favorite point of view in some quarters, it would rank almost first in the world.

The basic principles of the S

ikh philosophy and contributions of the Sikhs to society have raised the status of their faith to that of a unique universal world religion. Unparalleled sacrifices were made by them to fight against state terrorism for protecting human rights and religious freedom of common people. Having mentioned the opinions of some world scholars and mystics, the reader is left to decide himself/herself regarding the ranking of Sikhism among the world faiths. He/she also has to decide what his/her part is in educating society about these basic principles of the faith and the history of the Sikhs.

[smartsingh24]

6. What do Sikhs believe a good person should be?

The way I interpret it, a good person according to sikhism (boy that's complicated and a mouthful ) is a person who does not eat meat, does not commence in adultry, does not do drugs (which includes smoking and drinking, because they are addictive), does not have any ego what-so-ever, is not jealous of anything, does god's work ( called seva), lives an honest life (has an honest job), and gives money to the poor.

If anybody wants to add to the list, feel free to.

[Simran9]

- There should be no photographs of the Gurus or others in the hall where Guru Granth Sahib is installed.

Really? I've been to a lot of gurdwaras where pictures of Gurus are in the hall :umm:

examples:

-Guru Nanak Sat Sangat of California gurdwara has picture of Guru Nanak Dev ji and Guru Gobind Singh ji inside.

-the temple in Yuba City where the annual nagarkeertan takes place has pictures of all 10 Gurus inside.

-Gurudwara Manikaran (in Manikaran, Himachal Pardesh) not only has pictures of all 10 Gurus but also of Hindu Gods/Goddesses, Jesus Christ, and other ppl of other faiths, and sants and babas.

-Loads of gurdwaras in India have pics of Gurus in the hall.

sooooo....really there aren't supposed to be any pics in gurdwara hall where SGGS ji is installed??? :D

[ms514]

Sat Sri Akal:

The questions:

1. Can you explain to me what you do in a typical Sikh service? ( and how often a week you attend)

2. How do the Sikhs fit into the modern world today?

3. How do Sikhs see themselves in this culture at this time?

4. What values are important to Sikhs

5. What is your world view?

6. What do Sikhs believe a good person should be?

7. Where do they stand on evil, science, capital punishment, homosexuality, abortion?

8. How do Sikhs judge what is true & good; false and bad?

Answers from the best of my ability (correct if wrong Sangat Ji):

1)The typical service involves going to the Sikh place of worship, called the Gurudwara (or the Guru's Door). The first thing to be done is to make sure that one's head is covered and shoes are removed. After that, one must wash hands. Then, the person enters the actual worshipping hall. There, the person presents the Guru Granth Sahib (the holy text of the Sikhs whose hymns are the the Supreme Spiritual Authority in Sikhism and is considered a Living Guru or Teacher) with some offering, whether it be money, flowers or even a word of thanks. After bowing to the Guru Granth Sahib, the person sits down with the rest of the congregation (called the Sangat) and listens to Kirtan (hymns from the Guru Gratnth Sahib or other Sikh religious texts). After the Kirtan, a knowledgable person does a lecture on a topic related to Sikhism and may interpret the hymns just sung before. The service is concluded by reading hymns called Anand Sahib and a prayer is offered (called Ardaas). After this, the hukamnama (a passage from the Guru Granth Sahib which is the advice of the G

uru to the congregation for that day) is read and Karah Parshad (which is flour, sugar and butter roasted together with water. This is the blessing of the Guru for coming to the service and partaking of spiritual guidance) is distributed. While the service is over, there is an additional part of the religious gathering, which is the Langar (where the congregation sits down and has food prepared by Sikh volunteers in the Gurudwara). After this, the service can truly be said to be over.

2 and 4)Sikhs fit perfectly well into the modern world. The religion was founded on principles that only today are being implemented. There are three principles that Sikhism is based on. Naam Japna (meditation on the Almighty), Vand Kae Chakna (share what you have with others), Kirt Kamani (earning your daily wages honestly). The ideal Sikh is embodied in the concept of the Saint-Soldier. The Saint aspect embodies the principle of considering the self with utmost humility and being at the service of mankind. The soldier aspect is there to protect those who are weak and defenseless against oppression and subjugation, as well as being able to defend oneself. Never is the soldier aspect to dominate the Sikh's mind. The Saint aspect is the motivation and drive behind every action that a Sikh takes as a soldier. With this outlook, a Sikh should be well set to take on the world and its challenges.

3)Within this culture (I assume the western culture) and as with any culture, a Sikh is advised to maintain a lotus-on-water profile. Like the lotus floats on water but is not submerges in it, a Sikh should live in the world and contribute to it, but not be bogged down by its rites and rituals. The Sikh has his/her own code of conduct which is to remain supreme over any cultural influence which may be against those principles.

5)The world view of the Sikhs can best be summed up by the Sikh concept of Sarbat-Da-Bhala - or the benefit of all. As mentioned above, the Sikh is at the service of the world.

Whereever the need is, a Sikh ideally would not shirk it and considers that service a duty. To even put the self at risk to help another is seen as the duty of a Sikh.

6 and 8)Please see Bhai smartsingh24's response on the topic (answer to question 8).

[smartsingh24]

6 and 8)The concepts of good, evil, true, false etc. are, at the highest level of Sikhism, irrelevant. The Sikh, at that level, begins to see all as the doings of the Almighty (Sikhism teaches that all is done by the Almighty). So whether a person is good or bad is not a decision that a human can really make. To a Sikh, both birth and death, pain and pleasure, happiness and sadness, are all doings of the Almighty. To recognize this and be able to accept it and live life with this recognition is the ambition of a Sikh (note that nobody is saying that this is easy. Only by the grace of the Almighty is this stage obtained).

Though you stated the facts correctly, they are mis-directed veerji. The question ask what sikhs judge to be good and bad. While happiness and sadnes, birth and death, etc., are doings of the almighty, good and bad are in a diffrent realm. Good and bad are thoughts, actions, and emotions. In Guru Granth Sahib, there are many rules by which we abide by, which is how we judge what good and bad is. While judging itself is bad, it is in a diffrent context here then which it is normally used. Passing judgement on a person is bad. However, to understand what is good and bad, we must judge people's actions and not take into account a person's creed, race, or anything else. We judge what is good and what is bad by following Guru Granth Sahib, and citing it every time there is a judgment needed.

[Khalsa4ever]

vwihgurU jI kw Kwlsw!

vwihgurU jI kI &iqh!!

LIST OF QUESTIONS.

1. Can you explain to me what you do in a typical Sikh service? ( and how often a week you attend)

1. A sikh service constitutes doing keertan from the Guru Granth Sahib (singing god's praises), reading the hukamnama of Guru sahib (recieving our Guru's order of the day), and doing ardas (asking Guru jee for forgiveness for our mistakes and the blessing of achiving his glory). Although most Sikhs attend Gurdwara only once a week, these services should be conducted (if not in a gurdwara, at home at least) daily.

2. How do the Sikhs fit into the modern world today?

2. Quite nicely, thank you. Sikhism are one of the few great religions that are required to balance a life of service and prayer with the life of a householder. Thus, we live in a modern world an adapt accordingly.

QUOTE

[ms514]

Sat Sri Akal:

Smartsingh24 Sahib Ji, I give you a humble benti then. Please make your comment to my answer into an answer for the question asked by the American fellow. That way, I can delete my answer and refer to your answer for the person to reference.

My readings of Gurbani (what little they be) basically tell me that remembering the Almighty is good and remembering other things is bad. This is where the heaviest emphasis is laid upon. Honestly, I would like to read those verses of Gurbani that refer to differentiating good and bad because I have not seen them (probably my lack of knowledge). I would very much like to see your answer so I could learn something from it too.

Thanks:

:nihungsmile:

[smartsingh24]

8. How do Sikhs judge what is true & good; false and bad?

A sikh can judge what is true and good, by looking to Guru Granth Sahib. All answeres as to what are bad, lie within Guru Granth Sahib. For instance, Egotism is a sin is said to be one of the Guru Granth Sahib. One can also find what is good in Guru Granth Sahib i.e., one can become closer to waheguru in doing naam cimran and leading an honest life.