Another Hypothetical Scenario

[Premi5]

If we did not develop the electronic age as it is now with TV, cinema, computers/internet etc, what would be the state of Sikhi in India right now?

I mean without all the rubbish Bollywood/Hollywood movies, cassettes/CD/Mp3/youtube music and TV influences on the masses?

Would our heroes be only the Guru's and Puratan Singhs/Singhnian/Shaheeds rather than movie/music/sports stars?

Also, would there be an inverse effect on those Sikhs who emigrated, i.e. without mass media would Sikhi be relatively weak in the West?

[MisterrSingh]

I see where you're going with this, bro, but it seems you might be inadvertently suggesting Sikhi would thrive only if mankind was in a dark age of ignorance, as if our faith isn't strong enough to withstand the maya and various influences of the modern age.

Our concern should be to equip Sikhs with the know-how and tools to recognise and resist these somewhat destructive influences, instead of lamenting a bygone / hypothetical age of piety and religiously austerity. 

It's the classic "lotus in a swamp" scenario. Rise above it.

[Guest]

without modern forms of entertainment, sikhs would hopefully see an increase in numbers, if you know what I mean LOL haha

[Guest]

46 minutes ago, MisterrSingh said:

I see where you're going with this, bro, but it seems you might be inadvertently suggesting Sikhi would thrive only if mankind was in a dark age of ignorance, as if our faith isn't strong enough to withstand the maya and various influences of the modern age.

 

Hate to burst it , but don't you think its true , not just for sikhism , but for every organized religion out there. 

Sikhism in relatively peaceful times have been seen as burden by members of our community unfortunately when it comes to external manifestations such as kes, dastar and 5 Ks .

The modern forms of luxury have all but shrivelled down the religiousness among humans . As it is observed among all faiths , including sikhs, Religiosity is often inversely proportional to prosperity .

The more prosperous you're , the less religious you will likely be and vice-versa. This phenomenon explains why poorer sections of sikhs tend to be more religious (external manifestation of amrit and 5 Ks) rather than middle class, urban dweller sikhs who seem to be living comfortable lives. 

And in modern tech world, technical prosperity is a key element of prosperity per se, and thus those with more access to the wider www and "apps" and platforms in general tend to become lesser religious over time rather than those who live , either by preference or compulsion , a simplistic monastic-like life dedicated to religion and spirituality . I am not saying the deviations are not there to these rule , but as a rule I think it applies to most humans . Even at a personal level , we often cry out to guru in times of stress and forget gurdwara often when the waters are still 

[MisterrSingh]

3 hours ago, AjeetSinghPunjabi said:

Hate to burst it , but don't you think its true , not just for sikhism , but for every organized religion out there. 

Sikhism in relatively peaceful times have been seen as burden by members of our community unfortunately when it comes to external manifestations such as kes, dastar and 5 Ks .

The modern forms of luxury have all but shrivelled down the religiousness among humans . As it is observed among all faiths , including sikhs, Religiosity is often inversely proportional to prosperity .

The more prosperous you're , the less religious you will likely be and vice-versa. This phenomenon explains why poorer sections of sikhs tend to be more religious (external manifestation of amrit and 5 Ks) rather than middle class, urban dweller sikhs who seem to be living comfortable lives. 

And in modern tech world, technical prosperity is a key element of prosperity per se, and thus those with more access to the wider www and "apps" and platforms in general tend to become lesser religious over time rather than those who live , either by preference or compulsion , a simplistic monastic-like life dedicated to religion and spirituality . I am not saying the deviations are not there to these rule , but as a rule I think it applies to most humans . Even at a personal level , we often cry out to guru in times of stress and forget gurdwara often when the waters are still 

All valid arguments. I just think it's quite disappointing how we've allowed our religious ways to be subsumed by other various critical philosophies that discuss the futility of following a spiritual life, and we very rarely have a meaningful response in reply. Perhaps I'm not being objective, but even if the austere adherence to rehat is too much for some of our people, the general ideas on existence, the nature of God, the afterlife, etc., all have much to impart to the unspoken needs of a soul. If we struggle to push that message out into the world, that's surely a blight on our efforts and not a reflection on the strength and merit of the message itself? 

[Guest]

18 hours ago, MisterrSingh said:

If we struggle to push that message out into the world, that's surely a blight on our efforts and not a reflection on the strength and merit of the message itself? 

sikhi is one religion you can never be simply born into. you have to earn it . Guru Nanak's family is a reflection of this. Both his sons failed to become true disciples of their father guru . Bhai Lehna did all the homework and accepted all commands of Guru Nanak dev ji without a question. He was the successor , not the sons of Guru Nanak dev ji . The message is deep here. You can't simply be sikhs because you were born in sikh families. gotta do our own homeworks . After all , "sikh" literally means disciple 

[MisterrSingh]

1 hour ago, AjeetSinghPunjabi said:

sikhi is one religion you can never be simply born into. you have to earn it . Guru Nanak's family is a reflection of this. Both his sons failed to become true disciples of their father guru . Bhai Lehna did all the homework and accepted all commands of Guru Nanak dev ji without a question. He was the successor , not the sons of Guru Nanak dev ji . The message is deep here. You can't simply be sikhs because you were born in sikh families. gotta do our own homeworks . After all , "sikh" literally means disciple 

Absolutely. It's far from straightforward, or as basic as following a set of rules. That's not me inflating Sikhi or falsely attributing complexity to something that doesn't merit it, but from experience I genuinely feel the practical application of its teachings can take a lifetime.

[puzzled]

I often wonder what would be the state of Sikhs if partition never happened? Punjab would overwhelmingly be Islamic while to our East and South it would be overwhelmingly Hindu. Sikhs in Muslim countries like Pakistan normally keep their hair and are religious 

[Premi5]

3 minutes ago, puzzled said:

 Sikhs in Muslim countries like Pakistan normally keep their hair and are religious 

The U.K. is an exception then !

[puzzled]

18 minutes ago, Premi5 said:

The U.K. is an exception then !

what do you mean! ?