Browsing Tag: History

“Around Dawn, Bishen Singh uttered a shrieking sound and collapsed. Officers ran toward him and saw that the man who had been standing for the past 15 years now lay still, on his chest. On one side, across the barbed wire, was India and on the other side, was Pakistan. In between the two, on a piece of land, which was neither Pakistan nor India, lay Toba Tek Singh.”

On a fine summer morning, a middle aged official from the Research and Analytical Wing of the Government of India knocked at my door. He had come to visit me as a ‘friend’ on the eve of my departure to the United States and Canada...

The room reverberated with talk of Tongpeng La, Raja Hill, Burki, OP Hill, Poonchh, Siramani and Tiger Hill 1999 - battles long ago emblazoned on the Sikh Regiment's glorious history.

The first well-known record of Sikhs visiting the Pacific Northwest was in 1897 when Hong Kong-based Sikh soldiers from the British Empire traveled through Canada on the way home from Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in London.

Since tradition is strong in favor of Katik (November), the celebrations will continue in the same month, couple of weeks after Diwali, but we must be clear about our history.

Going back more than five centuries, Sikhism is a religion founded on peace, but forged by self-defence, resilience and defiance.

UK-born and brought up Parmjit Singh’s inspiration to explore his roots came when he was in his mother’s womb, he says, since his mother would read Sikh history voraciously then.

So let us celebrate together as we celebrate the formation of the Khalsa and also the birth of one of the Founding Fathers of America, who at the same time personified some of the great ideals of Sikhi.....

It was 1913 when a group on Punjabi Sikh Indians in Astoria, working in Alderbrook and along the Columbia River, had an idea.

Sikh History is replete with sacrifices of its soldiers for the Panth. The saga of laying down life for the greater cause started from the Gurus and touched glory when the Tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, formed the Khalsa.

I fully believe the story as was shared by Abu Tarani, Emperor Aurangzeb’s spy who gave an eye witness account in his book “Dasmesh Chmatkar”. I feel deeply in my soul that the Guru was a master of many forms,...

A last, but not the least word. Vaisakhi should be considered a day of reflections for all of us, the believers of Sikh faith.

The significance of Vaisakhi did not start with 1699 nor did it end on that day. The revolution of Vaisakhi continues apace and is, in fact, undiminished today. We need to move our heads, hearts and beings into the 21st century to see it.

Reexamining the answer provided by Bhai Daya Singh we can see that if the rock had been in the hand of Guru Ji, there was no chance of its sinking.

Indian society needs to learn that banning books and movies is not the way to build a democratic nation. Bad ideas are best handled not by the heavy hand of law but in the free marketplace of ideas.

Sikh's historic Treasure to be unveiled on Baisakhi Day-2013. A Wisdom Collection - presents with pride and honor the First ever rare and complete book on history of the 'Sikhs in World War I.'

Did Sikhs ever wear helmets in their history? Simple question, complex answer.

All over the world, millions of people practice yoga to find spiritual insight or better health. But very few know of yoga’s goals and means of transforming body and consciousness and its profound philosophical underpinnings.

Recently, someone gifted me with a unique present – a 2013 calendar on the Sikhs of Africa.

Researchers at Panjab Cultural Association (PCA) in the UK have recently discovered around 100 Gurmukhi Manuscripts at the Oriental Institute in St Petersburg.

Religion is a fascinating subject, and when it comes to the history of Sikh religion – known for its valour and many sacrifices – you can be sure of being regaled with many interesting stories.

Neither the Congress's Quit India resolution nor the Muslim League's Pakistan resolution forms part of the lore of Kashmir's freedom movement. The two events which stir a Kashmiri are Martyr's Day of July 13 and Quit Kashmir, the roots of both lie in the Treaty of Amritsar.

Sometimes when we research and look through information from the past, it does not necessarily match with current Sikh practices. My aim is not to offend anyone, or challenge any group but just present this information.

For an institution that has been defunct for almost 150 years, the East India Company still evokes powerful reactions across the world.

His bold decision showed in no uncertain terms his disdain for all the things royal.

One day as a child, while passing through a garden, Guru Har Rai, the seventh Sikh Guru, damaged some flowers with his loose-flowing robe. The sight of scattered, crushed petals — separated from their stems — affected his tender heart and he resolved never to harm anything in the world.

A huge statue glorifying a British Empire general infamous as 'The Hammer of the Sikhs' for his barbarity in commanding occupation forces in colonial India is set for a return to Dublin if Fine Gael Junior Minister Brian Hayes gets his way.

As aged fingers reached down through the dirt to create space for young saplings, this group of Sikh elders revived a centuries old tradition of planting culturally important plants at historic Sikh sites.

But as he had used his heart, the strongest of all weapons, to fight for his country's freedom, it is very likely that death made the journey into the light easy for him.

Three important concepts in Sikhism lay great importance to women. Firstly a woman is equated with Nature or Kudrat. Nature or Praakriti is also a feminine gender “Balihaari kudrat vaseya” and secondly Dharti (Earth) is referred as a mother “Mata dharat mahatt”.