By spending more and more time alone and in silence, it is possible to bring about awareness of ourselves, starting with 'What am I?' and arriving at 'Who am I?'
ਹੈ ਇਹ ਨੂਰ ਦਾ ਜਾਦੂ, ਹੈ ਇਹ ਨੂਰੀ ਸਾਧੂ। ਹੈ ਇਹ ਜੋਤ ਦਾ ਪ੍ਰਕਾਸ਼, ਹੈ ਇਹ ਨਾਮ ਦਾ ਆਗਾਜ਼।
There is no functioning lending library in Bangla Sahib, Rakabganj or any other gurduara anywhere in this wide world that I know of. Dear readers, before you take umbrage at my angst keep in mind that the operative idea here is “functioning lending library.”
All of these lessons I have come to embrace and recognise in my 26 years of existence as an evolving Kaur. Like little notes to Self, I hope they serve you too.
The origin of Hindu-Sikh divide goes back to the day when Guru Nanak as a young boy of 10 years refused to wear the janeu, the ceremonial thread being worn by all Hindus.
Fortunately, our conversation with God is not meant to be one-way. The scripture gives us general guidance, but not precise rules. Hence, Sikhs have a lot of personal discretion – and hence also great personal responsibility – for learning the core messages of Gurbani. In understanding and then applying the message of Gurbani in our daily lives, it is also expected that questions would arise in our minds.
Recently I came across 6 Sanskrit meanings of the word ‘teacher’ which put that lofty word ‘Guru’ in a new light for me because ‘our’ Guru is quite unique. I also remembered a discussion with my Sikhi
mentor, the late S. Joginder Singh Ji, a founding member of the SNSM, Sikh Naujawan Sabha Malaysia, of the prefix ‘gur’ in a few pivotal Sikhcentric words leading towards our ‘Guru’.
Many Sikh artists are influenced deeply by their faith. Baljinder Kaur’s naif representations, Harjinder Singh Sunner’s symbolic works, and Keerat Kaur’s surreal masterpieces all relay key aspects of Sikh life in different ways. The importance of family, nature, and Sikh literature all find their ways into pieces whose beauty capture the heart and mind in an instance.
We are saddened by the violence in Afghanistan, and grateful for those who have recently been rescued. In addition, we call on our communities to be vigilant and exercise caution due to the potential for backlash against Sikhs.
I am grateful to Daljit Bajwa (91) and his wife Guddy Bajwa for providing salient features of the biography of his illustrious father, Bal Singh Bajwa, who was my Role Model in school days. I owe my thanks to Prem Singh Kahlon and his wife Darshan Bhatti Kahlon for the supply of material for collating the biography of Prem Kahlon, my Role Model in College days.