Young Sikhs

[chatanga]

brothers and sisters, i would like to share a personal experience with you and encourage you to follow in my footsteps.

last year when the pakistan taliban/pakistan army conflict forced the sikhs to come to panja sahib for refuge, i approached my local gurdwara committee to ask about our gurdwara helping financially the aid orgs that were going there, namely united sikhs, who did a prog on sikh channel about the crisis. They said they would do something but 2 days ago i found out that they had done nothing.

the committee said that we have xxx thousands in the bank, and i asked them why they couldnt send any help, and why we are sitting on thousands of pounds while our sikhs brothers were hungry and cold. they laughed it off, saying that "you think that we should send them this money?"

i have decided and, i encourage others to do the same, that until the committee changes its policy, to not put money in golak, but to keep it and send it to aid orgs, or even use it for parchaar or something. if it goes into golak, it will never get used, cos committee will not spend it on essentials, or in fact anything. if any of you come to wednesfield gurdwara, then i humbly ask you to keep your money for helping sikhs in need, rather than letting the money get mouldy sitting in a bank vault.

The golak is the mouth of the poor, but unfortunalety people who run wednesfield gurdwara do not think so. whichever gurdwara you go to , make sure that the daswandh or anything you give will be used for the panth, but if it is going to be used unwisely then you must make a conscious decision, on what you want your daswandh to do. For elder people and prob some young people, they will be like " i cant do/its wrong to do matha without money", i would like to say that is just vehm. Guru understands this and has given us a great lesson on this matter. Guru Ji knows your intentions with your donation. Have faith in him.

At the time of 6th Guru, a Sikh came bringing aachar for Guru. On the way he passed some poor sikhs who asked him if they could have some, and he refused saying it was for the guru. when he got to Guru, thew aachar had gone mouldy, and the sikh asked Guru how this aachar went mouldy, it was freshly picked. Guru Ji told him that you brought this for me but where it was really needed, you didnt think about giving it there, and so it was ruined. If you want my blessing then go serve the sikhs.

Now think about how we are giving Guru Ji our money, but the real people in need, it is not reaching them. So is Guru ji happy with our putting money in golak where committes put a big fat lock on it? Is our money not going mouldy as the aachar did, because we have not given it where it is needed?

Brothers and sisters, if you are in a situation same as this then think carefully about what you are doing. Gurdwaras are not going to close down or anything, but you will still make a difference in somebody's life. Encourage your friends and family to take similiar steps if the local gurdwara comittees are not putting sangat money to good or necessary use. It might only be a few pennies, or a few pounds, but it will make a difference to some Sikh.

[Amrit79]

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[Drogba]

everything you have stated is right, alot of gudwara committees have been put in place through politics rather then meritocracy. These corrupt commitees do what ever keeps them in place. I myself am unaware of the finances of my local guru ghar, im sure that legally they have to publish financial reports as they are a registered charity but this is not the case. I will do as you have suggested, as not making such reports avaible stinks of foul play.

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