Browsing Tag: Identity

The freshman students in Alison Sickler’s English class may not have asked Simran Kaur many questions about her presentation on the Sikh community. But, what they wrote immediately after her talk showed that they had learned something that morning.

As we collectively process what has happened, ideals of forgiveness and compassion are on everyone's lips, including those that have lost loved ones in the massacre.

Some Rockville children and teens are taking their message of understanding directly to others of their own age, hoping that education can bridge gaps between people of different religions.

...both of us acknowledged our unparalleled connection that goes deeper than just the way we look, but in essence goes to the root of who we are as a people, community and nation.

At a conference I recently heard a father say: "Every day, my son asks, 'Daddy, why do we have to be Muslim?'"

So I just found out that April 13 was International Turban Day. Is that cool or what, honoring the turban? I remember a lecture years ago by Siri Singh Sahib Yogi Bhajan, he said over half the world’s people cover their heads.

Today, Sikhs may not be a geographical nation but they have national characteristics and aspirations. In the Mandla case, the House of Lords afforded protection to Sikhs under the Race Relations law as an ethnic group; the same sort of protection afforded to other ethnic groups and nationalities.

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

A funny and touching lesson in what it takes to create real harmony.

I felt like my dastaar educated people in a way! A dastaar is a token/crown given by the Gurus and being able to actually wear the crown just gives such a better feeling to a person. I also got many Punjabis at my school to wear dastaars too. It was just amazing!

...and then I saw it as an opportunity to talk to him about Sikhi. I started to discuss the appearance of a Sikh because I realised that was the most intriguing thing for him initially.

I have also forgotten that I am part of the grand soul and I am required to perform according to the wishes of the Supreme Soul. I am a part of the grand design.

Whether it has been walking down College Walk to Butler or waiting in the pasta line in Ferris, heads fitted with cautious and questioning eyes instantly turn to look at what sits atop my head —....

Monday, my 6-year old granddaughter asked me why I was so sad. “Because a man took guns into a gurdwara and killed six people,” I answered. Her response was simple: “Doesn’t he know it’s not good to kill people?”

I have come to believe that nothing should come before God and as my life progresses and the love inside my heart and soul grow more than I have ever dreamed or known , I come to a greater understanding of true love and Gods secret place.

In the honor and memory of those people who lost their lives at the Oak Creek Wisconsin Gurdwara (Sikh temple) shooting in the summer of 2012. Snatam Kaur, along with the Sikh community of the New Jersey Bridgewater Gurdwara, gives us an inside view of the beautiful Sikh way of life.

A human rights case that was to go before the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO), involving the right of a Sikh limousine driver to maintain a beard, has settled.

“Sikhs have a responsibility to talk about their faith practice with outsiders, he says, “but it’s freaking me out.” The audience of 25 chuckled at his confession and then listened intently as he walked them through the historical roots of Sikhism...

My Guru is the Guru Granth Sahib, not the Námdhari satguru, not the yogi who called himself the leader of the Sikhs in the western hemisphere, not the Soho Road (Birmingham) spiritual leader of the Sikhs in the UK, nor any other self-appointed holy man, pardhan or jathedar - I am a Sikh

As a Sikh, I am mandated by my faith to wear a turban and keep a beard. As an American, born and raised in a nation where freedom of religion is a given, I generally do not think too hard about how these symbols make me look "different." But sometimes the difference has to be addressed.

The aim of our work is to attack popular stereotypes attached to the Singh and Kaur identities and highlight qualities they each possess that are often overlooked.

It is the active, experiential relationship of the Sikh with the Bani that helps that Sikh attain Guru and thus realize the One, the True Self. So, how does this relationship materialize?

In the world of the 21st century our value does not rest in what we acquire, find, or know. It rests in who we have become through our experience. Value lies in our capacity and ability to consciously use information. Ultimately, we are valuable for our wisdom and our ability to deliver results.

American society tends to delude itself into believing that ignorance is the exclusive source of hate-violence. Part of the reason for this is that this idea is more comforting than the reality. It’s comforting for us to think that people would be compassionate towards one another if they were more educated.

Public scrutiny of famous men and women is nothing new. We crave proof that the stars experience the same worldly imperfections we mortals do.

As many Sikhs shed the most important article of their faith, the size and length of the Sikh turban still worn by those who continue to maintain their long hair shrinks in size.

Anything is possible in America. We can sketch it, plot it, animate it and market it. Our commercial fantasies include Snooki, hobbits, Kardashians and wizards. It’s time we spice up our comical fantasies with colors of our imaginary fears and create a new American mythology.

Love so much that it resonates with every single hair, every single breath, in every single moment, with every single action.

"We're not the other, we're your neighbors."

By transcending societal views of beauty, I believe that I can focus more on my actions. My attitude and thoughts and actions have more value in them than my body because I recognize that this body is just going to become ash in the end, so why fuss about it?