A Publication of the Sikh Dharma Office of the Secretary of Religion, June 2005
A Quote from the Siri Singh Sahib
From Your Secretary of Religion
Recent History and the Panjabi Sikh - SS Dr Harjot Kaur Khalsa
Sons and Daughters of Guru Gobind Singh - SS Guru Surya Kaur and SS Sat Jagat Singh Khalsa
Integration and Identity - SS Guru Kaur Khalsa
A Conversation - SS Kartar Singh Khalsa
Kundalini Yoga Teacher Training for All - MSS Guru Raj Kaur Khalsa
Minister in the Spotlight: SS Siri Pritam Kaur Khalsa
"God looks in people's hearts; he is the author of all languages."
(The Teachings of Yogi Bhajan, The Power of the Spoken Word, 1977, Arcline Publications, Pomona/Berkeley, CA., p. 71.)
SS Dr. Sat Kaur Khalsa
I
purposely waited until after the April Khalsa Council meetings to write this
column. I had a feeling that this meeting would prove very significant and
wanted to be able to share some of that with you. Since all members of the
Khalsa Council are supposed to be Ministers, the body represents a cross section
of our Ministry. This was the first set of meetings since the Siri Singh
Sahib left his body. For me, it was like sitting through three days of Tantric
-- experiencing the whole range of emotions from tears to bliss and everything
in between. I felt that the Siri Singh Sahib was very much present during these
meetings.
As we started through the agenda, I had this profound feeling that we were
making history. Each process we went through, each item we addressed, and each
ceremony we performed was part of a long legacy we were helping to perpetuate.
It was not dependent on any single individual, but rather on the whole
collective operating out of consciousness for the greater good of the Dharma and
humanity.
According to the directives of the Siri Singh Sahib, we ordained the very first
Siri Sikdar Sahiba. It was a powerful ceremony. As our beloved Bhai Sahiba
Bibiji Inderjit Kaur took the hukam, it was obvious, as always, that Guru was in
charge:
Sorath Fifth Mehl, Third House, Du-padas:
One Universal Creator God. By the Grace of the true Guru:
Bathing in the nectar tank of Ram Das, the residues of all sins are erased. One
becomes immaculately pure, taking this cleansing bath. The Perfect Guru has
bestowed this gift. God has blessed all with peace and pleasure. Everything is
safe and sound, as we contemplate the Word of the Guru's Shabad. Pause. In the
Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, filth is washed off. The Supreme Lord
God has become our friend and helper. Nanak meditates on the Naam, the Name of
the Lord. He has found God, the Primal Being. (Page 625-66)
On the last day of the meetings, the ashes ceremony was held at Ram Das Puri.
It was a crisp morning with the wind blowing at the site. As we gathered and
chanted, again the range of emotions was felt. The Siri Singh Sahib had
directed that half of his ashes be scattered in the river Sutlej in India, and
the other half be scattered at Ram Das Puri. From the pictures I had seen of
the Indian ceremony, the ashes had been gray as they were poured into the river.
As the ashes were poured from the helicopter circling over Ram Das Puri, they
appeared to be an adobe red. I am sure it was the difference in lighting, but I
said to myself, now Sir, how did you do that? It was spectacular and very
moving. I don't think there was a dry eye in sight.
Yes, these meetings were about making history, and indeed, history was made.
May God always guide us and help us to carry the banner on.
May God ever bless
you and keep you in His light and love.
Humbly, SS Dr. Sat-Kaur Khalsa, Secretary of Religion
Question: I live in a small studio apartment, and I am thinking about setting up a Gurdwara so that I can read from the Guru every day. How can I do this gracefully in my limited space?
Answer: There is a longing of every Sikh of the Guru to create a relationship with the Shabd Guru. Life revolves around this intimate relationship. This reveals itself in an attraction to the Siri Guru Granth Sahib, a desire to hear it's Gurbani daily, to feel the indescribable experience as you open the pages of the Siri Guru Granth and the Ajna chakra is engaged as if embraced by the arms of the Guru. So, sometimes the Sikh desires to have the SGGS right in his or her home. If we have a small home, it can present challenges in creating the Court of the Guru in an appropriate way. We suddenly see why communities are built around a Gurdwara, where community members get together to create a Gurudwara where Siri Guru Granth Sahib can sit in it’s majesty, be taken care of, and be accessible to all. Here are a few guidelines for creating the sacred experience of the Court of the Guru:
THE COURT OF THE GURU
It is NOT appropriate to have the SGGS on an altar in a corner of your bedroom or living room, as a convenience. It takes a commitment of caring for the SGGS, in order to manifest the sacred Court of the Guru. So, if you are going to have a full Gurmukhi Bir, then a separate space needs to be created—either a separate room, or screened off area which is kept clean and clear, where the SGGS sits. Prakash and Sukhasan are done daily, and Gurdwara protocol is maintained—head covered, no shoes, no alcohol.
I have seen in some small homes where a closet was gracefully created into a tiny place for the Guru. Size is not the issue, it is the way the area is maintained: clean, clear (nothing else in the closet, like clothing or shoes), with a manji (cot on which the bir sits), pillows, sheets, canopy, chaur sahib, etc. There is a consciousness of entering into the Court of the Guru. (See Victory & Virtue, the Minister's Manual for details of this protocol.)
STUDYING THE SIRI GURU GRANTH SAHIB
For availability to the English translation of SGGS for study, you can keep such volumes respectfully as you would keep a nitnem or Amrit Kirtan, wrapped in cloth, held in a clean, clear honored, respectful place. You can take a separate volume respectfully to another location and read it. Also available are small "travel" Guru Granth Sahib birs. These are in Gurmukhi, but are separated into 2 volumes, quite small, and would be treated in the same manner as a nitnem or Amrit Kirtan.
Siri Sardarni Dr. Bibiji Inderjit Kaur Khalsa is the Bhai Sahiba, or Chief Religious Minister of Sikh Dharma. Please feel free to submit your dharmic questions to: ministers_newsletter@yahoo.com. Mukhia Sardarni Sahiba Guru Raj Kaur Khalsa answers on behalf of Bibiji and the Office of the Bhai Sahiba.
Please join us for a very special Summer Solstice Minister's Meeting, Sunday,
June 19th, 5:30p.m. to 7:00pm, in the Sikh Dharma Tent at the solstice site.
MSS Sat Santokh Singh and SS Punch Nishan Kaur will be taking us through an
Appreciative Inquiry process about, "Sikh Dharma Ministers as leaders in
community development and interface with the Secretariat." As leaders in your
communities, you will have an opportunity to experience this powerful tool of AI
and help with the transitions that are occurring in your own back yard.
Would
you like to share
your thoughts with other ministers? You can answer the
reflection questions at the bottom of this newsletter and
send them to the editor at
ministers_newsletter@yahoo.com. Your answers will be posted on a new
page called Reflection Question
Responses, where your peers can read and respond to them.
by SS Dr. Harjot Kaur Khalsa
Recent history has shaped the views of the average Punjabi Sikh, especially those who have emigrated abroad since 1984. This was a very turbulent time for the Punjab, and there was not a single Sikh family who did not suffer in some dramatic way. Although it seems long ago and far away to us, for those who have recently relocated to the west, the events of 1984 are still a fresh wound. If you want to more fully understand your Punjabi brothers and sisters, it is crucial to understand some of the recent historical events which have shaped the thoughts and opinions of Punjabi Sikhs.
Prior to 1984 and Operation Bluestar, the brutal Indian military attack on the Golden Temple, there were several injustices instituted by the Indian Central Government, which influenced the opinions of Sikhs about the validity and need for a separate Sikh State. The issues that faced the Sikhs in India were essential to their identity and their survival. For example, the Army Officer’s Corp, which was composed of almost 90% Sikhs, was purged of Sikhs in order to represent the religious population of India. This meant that Sikhs were thrown out of the military just because of their religious affiliation, and the Sikh representation was limited to only 11%. In another injustice, the borders of the State of Punjab were changed and redistributed to ensure that the state would not be purely Sikh in its representation, thus preventing Sikhs from voting with one unified and powerful voice. All demarcation was done on a language basis, but Punjabi speaking areas were deliberately kept out for political scoring. In addition, Punjab, the bread basket of India, and Sikhs, the hard working farmers, were denied or taxed heavily for the water needed for their crops. They were only allowed to sell their wheat to the Central Indian Government for a minimal profit which was then resold at highly inflated prices to the rest of India, with the government keeping all the profit. Finally, the marriage act of India was instituted such that each marriage ceremony, even if it was an Anand Karaj with the Lavan, was classified as a Hindu marriage ceremony, thus eliminating the validity of the Sikh ceremony. This act still remains in place today. Although many dedicated and loyal Sikhs worked tirelessly to resolve these issues, it seemed that no progress could be made.
The result of this campaign against the Sikhs was that many disenfranchised people took to arms. The Indian government responded with Operation Bluestar, a brutal attack on the Akal Thakat Sahib and Harimander Sahib. For many Sikhs, this was the last straw. Never in modern history has the nucleus of a religion been attacked, and a complete press blackout been enforced such that even in 1984, the world remained oblivious to the carnage and terror that was carried on by the Indian government to demoralize and crush the Sikh spirit.
The stories of Sikhs who witnessed this terror - the rape, the torture, the murder, the blood and floating bodies of Sikhs in the Harimander Sarovar - these injustices were so atrocious that they still haunt our memories even today. The 1984 attack affected Sikhs throughout India. For example, Sikhs as far south as Patna Sahib - the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh Ji and one of the Five Thakats - were terrorized by the Hindu majority and had to leave their successful businesses and depart back to the Punjab with their families. Even today, Sikhs are still imprisoned without charge in Central Government jails dating back prior to 1984.
These injustices disheartened Sikhs in Punjab and those abroad. Normally peaceful Sikhs began taking up arms because they felt they were defending their faith, their religion, their rights and their very existence. These injustices changed the mentality of the average Sikh - these were not radicals nor fundamentalists but just average hardworking householders. However, the Indian government branded all Sikhs who spoke out, even those whose only “crime” was to take Amrit, as fundamentalists.
Most of the Punjabi Sikhs that we interact with today have either family who witnessed the horrendous atrocities or they themselves were victims; thus it is no wonder they have very opinionated views of the state of Sikh affairs. It is crucial for Western Sikhs to understand this history and understand the root cause for these views; for we know that when the existence of a people, their religion, and their sovereignty is being undermined, they will rise in self-defense. A basic awareness of this historical context will go a long way towards improved communication and cooperation between our two communities.
by SS Gurusurya Kaur Khalsa and SS Sat Jagat Singh Khalsa,
Brooklyn, NY
At Women's Camp about twenty years ago, the Siri Singh Sahib ji remarked that
the Indian and American cultures are so different that we would never understand
one another. We said, "But sir, you are Indian." His reply: "Exactly!" He
encouraged us to reach out to our Indian brothers and sisters, saying that we
needed to go more than half way, and especially, that we needed to study
Punjabi.
A group of us in New York arranged a Conversational Punjabi course through
Berlitz. We learned how to greet each other, exchange names and where we came
from. About the fourth week, we began a lesson in welcoming a guest into our
home and took turns playing the host and the guest. Our instructor explained
that the guest must first decline the offer of tea. "But what if we want tea?"
we asked. "No matter," our instructor told us, “you must be polite,” and
explained how the host should continue offering, and how the guest should
continue declining--until the third round. “Then, with good manners, the guest
should accept."
We had a rollicking good time playacting the offering and declining of tea and
snacks, but I had the uncomfortable feeling that, in ten years, our Punjabi
ashram visitors had sometimes gone hungry and thirsty because we didn’t know to
continue pressing them after they had declined our offerings. And what
conclusions had they come to about our hospitality? Did they discuss us among
their friends—saying that if you want to try our Yogi Tea you better grab it the
first time around? Fortunately, many of our Indian friends overlooked our
shortcomings. We enjoy cherished friendships that have bridged the cultures and
enriched our lives and theirs. This bridge is vital in providing a foundation
for our Sikh children.
As Western Sikhs,
we are known for our example of succeeding in life and in business while
maintaining our Dharmic dress and lifestyle. This example is crucial for
children straddling the cultures. In the early days in New York, our ashram
became good friends with a devoted Punjabi family with three young children. The
parents were active in other area gurdwaras, hosted programs in their home, and
often brought the children to celebrate with us. We watched the kids grow into
self-confident young people with pride in their religion and devotion to their
Sikh lifestyle. They inspired us as we inspired them, and we all enjoyed mutual
satisfaction in the blessings of our Guru. They became the founders of a
wonderful Sikh Youth Camp in New York State, where many of the young women are
now choosing to wear turbans. I feel a huge respect for the mother of that
family, always steadfast in her Dharma yet expansive in her thinking, and for
their father who encouraged them to be at home in America but not to give up
their values.
Several summers ago we received a call from a Punjabi family in Queens who had
heard about our school in India. They arranged to visit us, bringing their
twelve-year-old son to meet our son, who had attended Miri Piri Academy for
three years. By the end of the evening, they had all agreed what a wonderful
opportunity this would be and the young man was courageously planning to leave
for school with Hari Simran Singh in a couple of weeks. At the airport we met
his older brother, a high school boy who had cut his hair. We could feel how
difficult this was for the family, and understood that the actions of the older
brother had influenced the parents’ decision in considering something different
for the younger son.
A year later, the older boy joined his brother at Miri Piri Academy. He had a
hard time adjusting to the new environment and suffered digestive ills. His
mother began a forty-day sadhana of reciting twenty-five Anand Sahibs each day
as her prayer for his success. His parents had been relieved to have him at
school in India, and were concerned about what would happen if he didn’t
continue there. When he was to be sent home six weeks early, they asked for our
help. They were afraid to have him return to his old neighborhood and fall into
old patterns.
Sat Jagat Singh and I agreed to become his guardians, if he was willing. I
consulted Shanti Shanti Kaur and Siri Nam Singh, both excellent resources in
relating positively to teens. We were able to create guidelines for all of us,
as well as to find a counselor in our neighborhood in preparation for receiving
him. Getting off the plane, he said, "New York is great. I’m so glad to be
back!" We took him out to lunch, offered our proposal, and came home with a
sixteen-year old boy who had been born an American, but raised in a
Punjabi-speaking Sikh household. He was curious about how we live.
We worked first on his health and diet. He got a kick out of seeing the healers,
Guru Dev Singh and Dr. Dyal Singh. He thought they were amazing and really
enjoyed the attention. He started a meditation routine and began to see the
counselor regularly. I fed him well (he had only been a vegetarian a few
months), and assigned him household responsibilities. Sat Jagat Singh made him
laugh and talked to him about being a man. He began relaxing.
After calling a few of his New York friends, and seeing them a couple of times,
he concluded they were all phonies. He began to miss his schoolmates at Miri
Piri. His father arranged for cheap international calling cards, and he spent
hours on the phone talking to his roommate and friends in India (mostly on their
clandestine cell phones, late at night). He kept saying that he didn't realize
how much he would miss everyone. When someone here asked him about Miri Piri, I
heard him say "the school changed me--in a good way." He started talking about
going back for another year.
He was so excited when the kids arrived home from Miri Piri in May, and couldn’t
wait to see his friends at Summer Solstice. Experiencing the diverse and vibrant
community in New Mexico was a life-changing experience for him, and was
wonderful for us to share. He met people from all over the world--dropping in at
the Ranch, partying at the Guru Bachans, shooting baskets at Sombrillo,
participating in the teen program at Solstice. He celebrated with his friends at
the MPA graduation night and, drawing from his New York roots, did some break
dancing at a wedding. He met with the staff of MPA and agreed to be a perfect
student if they would take him back.
Back at his house in Queens, getting ready for the new school year, his mother
brought out a photo album of the New York Sikh Day Parade, 1987. In it were
pictures of her holding him as a baby, together with us--Western Sikhs all
dressed in white, smiling. She said, ‘I always knew that my sons’ future was
with you, the Yogi Bhajan Sikhs.’
by SS Guru Kaur Khalsa, London
London is a melting pot of ethnic cultures, one of the world’s great cosmopolitan capitals. Our local authority voting forms are written in at least 12 languages. I recently completed a form on which there was a choice of over 15 ethnic origins to choose from. Tolerance and acceptance of the way people live in this country are now almost taken for granted, as people have come to understand that a multi-ethnic landscape is here to stay.
It doesn’t mean that racism doesn’t exist. It does, but it is not that overt. In general people get on with their own lives. The education system has helped. I was recently stopped by a group of badly behaved young school children who picked on my way-out clothes. When I replied “I am a Sikh”, the most macho of them said “so you wear your 5Ks then. Show us your knife”.
Punjabi Sikhs have been living in numbers in the UK for at least 75 years, forming one of the best-integrated ethnic groups here. Not only do they successfully retain their own sense of identity and community, but they have also become part of the indigenous British culture. Undoubtedly the teachings of the Sikh way of life have helped. They are willing to adapt to their surroundings, their hard work is renowned, and they help each other. They participate in the British economy and politics, and in everyday life in London. Many Sikhs are excellent businessmen, artisans or civil servants; never too proud to do whatever work is required, they get on with life without exclusivity.
In my daily travels around London rarely a day goes by when I do not see at least 5 Sikhs, my personal Panj Piare. It’s the turban that does it. You can tell the 2nd and 3rd generation Sikhs here because they tie their turbans slightly differently from the way they do back in the Punjab. On the Tube, the notoriously non-communicative, intimately sweaty, underground on which we travel, usually a Sikh will acknowledge me as a fellow Sikh. It is not a big deal, maybe just Sat Siri Akal. In a shop an assistant will notice my kara and tell me she too is a Sikh. A man at a party will come up and say that, although he is a Sikh by tradition and goes to the Gurdwara only on Sundays, he lives by the values by which he was raised and can’t imagine not doing so.
Like all good investigations into culture, ask a taxi driver. Here is what one told me a few years ago. “Oh, Sikhs, yeah they’re great. Really hospitable, involve you like you’re one of their own family. You know, if ever I get a job out to Heathrow on a weekend, I always come back via Hounslow. There’s this temple there, do a great line in music and the grub afterwards is fabulous. I could stay there for hours. Don’t understand a word of it, mind you, but that’s not the point is it? It’s hard to sit on the floor in there, but to see all those people come in and bow before some book, it’s really special. It moves me, it does. Usually one of them comes up to me and offers me a new tape for my cab. And you know, you never have problems with Sikhs in the taxi: very clean, behave well, even the kids, now you can’t say better than that, can you, luv?”
by SS Kartar Singh Khalsa, VA
I recently had a conversation with Sher JB Singh, a 35 year old Sikh who emigrated to the US from Delhi in 1993, about how the Sikh Dharma and the Punjabi communities can better relate to one another. Sher Singh currently lives in Leesburg, Virginia and attends Raj Khalsa Gurdwara, which is sponsored by the Herndon Sikh Dharma community.
Sher Singh first met Western Hemisphere Sikhs, a German family, on a climb to Hemkunt in the late 80’s. After moving to the Millis, Massachusetts area, he helped at the Gurdwara there, and has had contact with other sangats as well. He speaks with a great respect for the “calm and patience, and very thoughtful interpretation of things” that he found there. However, it was the events of 9/11 that brought him close to the American Sikh community.
Sher Singh was the kirpan wearing Sikh arrested on the Amtrak train on 9/12/01. The train was stopped and he was led off while hundreds watched. Later that evening his arrest was the feature of the national evening news. The local Sikh Dharma community rallied around him to provide support.
Sher Singh is a bridge builder. My question for him was “How can we bring our communities closer together?” He responded, “We may start at slightly different places and with slightly different feelings, but if we focus on common objectives, we will have a meeting place. The way the Punjabi Sikh community approaches the propagation of Sikhi is to attach itself to its roots, believing and reading about the Gurus’ experiences. But the American Sikh community, in addition, has strong ethics that you get through Kundalini Yoga. It gives you the ability to change the way you think, and helps you to build better lives.”
“I think if you take Kundalini Yoga out of the Sikh Dharma community it won’t be strong any more. And if you remove the feeling of closeness to the Gurus’ experiences from the Punjabi community, we won’t be strong anymore. So to build a strong community, we need to see how to share these two things between the communities.”
I asked Sher Singh about how this sharing could happen. “For the last three or four years,” he said, “we’ve tried this in our youth camps. If we try it with women and youth, they will bring it into their families. Meditating on Gurbani through yoga is not something any Sikh should feel averse to.”
“It’s been approached in the camps in a way to keep it very simple. The intellect toward the technology is going to take time to grow, but the effects of those few moments when you are practicing and you are repeating the Gurbani, and your internal self is reflecting, those will stay with you forever. That’s what will keep the desire in the Punjabi community.”
“In the camps there have been sessions several times a day where a person had us do a repetition of mantras from Gurbani. In the youth camps we could have an American Sikh, or anyone who can use yoga and meditation, teach us in the early morning so we can calm our muscles and tune ourselves, just as a musician would. We can be more prepared for Nitnem or our next step.”
“Smaller children are best focused with half hour sessions in between small stories. With them we would not go into technology, just give them soothing feelings to carry through the day.”
At Raj Khalsa Gurdwara we are increasingly asking for Punjabi participation in taking hukams, reading hukams in Punjabi, cleanup, and Ardas. This is a context for increasingly experiencing the joy of finding each other as friends. “Individuals will change slowly,” said Sher Singh, “but there will always be a few people that everyone will follow.”
“Our common community will become strong by its internal practice, by building a strong financial base, by our youth programs, and by the way we reach out politically. Wherever people are doing things to make the community strong, these locations of activity should have strong participation from the Sikh Dharma and Punjabi communities.”
“There is one thing that the Raj Khalsa community can still do. The discipline that is a part of you, can you please share it? Could someone from your community speak openly so the sangat can hear of the good in your lives?”
A few days after this interview I participated in a panel on health, peace, and happiness with three doctors at Guru Nanak Foundation Gurdwara in Silver Spring, Maryland. I was given the topic of Kundalini Yoga and health. There were 70 people in attendance, and I taught four short Kundalini Yoga exercises, and then used a meditation with Gurbani and a focus on the Golden Temple. Virtually everyone did the yoga and meditation, and afterwards so many people asked for more that the Gurdwara asked that I teach again. Before the end of the discussion, thirty- eight people had signed up for a one day course on Gurbani and Kundalini Yoga. It was an affirmation for the subtly opening door that Sher Singh is pointing to.
by MSS Guru Raj Kaur Khalsa, Vancouver, B.C.
Over the last 35 years in British Columbia, a vibrant relationship between the Indian Sikh community and Sikh Dharma has been active. I have been witness over these years to the reality that the values and foundation of the Aquarian consciousness taking root and blossoming are influenced and supported by the brilliant, growing fusion of Eastern and Western values. Here in Vancouver, one of the recent developments has been both unexpected and powerful. We have a dynamic Aquarian Teacher Training program in Vancouver, and each year now several Indian Sikhs go through the program and become Kundalini Yoga teachers. They then go back to the Gurdwaras to teach. Last year we even had one of those Gurdwara students enter Teacher Training. This trend seems to coincide with what is happening in India, too, as the fulfillment of the Siri Singh Sahib ji’s vision; Westerners going back to India to teach, bringing the great teachings which began in India, then took root in the West, back to serve the consciousness of an exciting India that is quickly entering the Aquarian Age. (Good timing, too, for offering some balance and grounding as the new technology revolution explodes all over in India. Don’t forget to meditate, folks, after a hard-day’s work at the call center!)
The Aquarian Teacher Training program has become a profound journey of self-initiation into the consciousness of chardhi kala, into the consciousness of Khalsa, at this time in history. This is not a “Sikh or not-Sikh” discussion around Kundalini Yoga and the teachings. Call it what you like, these teachings produce the chardhi kala state, and the consciousness of an Aquarian Teacher. All I know is that they exist and they work! They are the foundation of the Aquarian consciousness, and will heal and lead the world.
Though all students face the same process in the Aquarian Teacher Training program, it is so refreshing to see the Indian Sikh students. They don’t have the same blocks to the Teacher and the Teachings that the Western psyche tends to exhibit. When gathering my thoughts for this article, it occurred to me that it would be valuable to hear it straight from the Punjabi young people themselves. Let the Kundalini Yoga teachers speak! I am delighted to introduce a few of them to you:
Sarbjeet Kaur and her husband Randeep Singh took the course together. They immediately found out she was pregnant, and she went into labor the day of the final exam! (She did finish her exam, and delivered a beautiful girl, Guru Sandesh Kaur. What a day!) Here are her comments:
“For me, taking the course throughout my 9 months of pregnancy was an extra special time. I would do it all over again!!! I felt at peace and bliss, and a connection with my soul and body, and therefore with my child inside, became stronger. I felt great as a new mother exposing my child to different kriyas and meditations, not only during class but then with all the homework! I had the feeling that this child was going to be a teacher in its own right, who would actually guide me. I also developed a much better understanding of Yogiji's teachings.
Watching his videos gave me a deeper understanding of the extraordinary teacher that he was and how important it was to value each day that he was with us. I think with his passing, this Aquarian Teacher course is more important than ever. I feel ever so fortunate to have met him and now to be a teacher, and to be carrying on his teachings. The future looks great!”
Randeep Singh is a lawyer, with strong political aspirations. He speaks to the phenomenon of young Sikhs doing Kundalini Yoga. (Raj Yog Nivas is our yoga center, by the way.):
“The trend is due to the influence that teachers like yourself and Dharm Kaur have had on the young Indians and sealed by the zest and purity that Siri Singh Sahib Ji left in us. The trend is also due to the chaos and turmoil within the Vancouver Gurdwaras that have left Canadian born Indian Sikhs with no other place for vision, except Raj Yog Niwas. It is THE place to go for a young Indian Sikh who wants to connect with his atma. Furthermore, the popularity of kundalini yoga is increasing because the grip of the fanatics has decreased, and people have become more open to trying different facets of Sikh Dharma without branding things as right and wrong. Finally, it’s something that works. You don't need to tell someone “it will pay off in your after life.” Rather experience the fruits of your own actions, now!”
Jaspal Singh is a practical kind of guy, a real estate agent, and a father of 3. He describes why he took Teacher Training for his personal growth:
“My main objective was to learn an additional health/fitness practice that enhances and involves the Sikh values we grew up with at home and at Gurdwara, such as waking up in the morning, meditating, helping others, serving, and sharing. Then combine that with a focus on health, higher consciousness, peace of mind, reducing stress and distractions. Additionally, while we heard lots from our elders over the years, learning through a non-Panjabi perspective makes the teachings more understandable, universal and more impactful. It's my belief that there are lots of others with the same frame of mind who would like to become participants in the course.”
Suckbinder Kaur is an extraordinary and devoted Sikh woman, who has been part of the Khalsa Ladies Camp staff for many years. She took Teacher Training this year. I am moved by her insightful comments:
“Wow. I hadn't really thought about taking Teacher Training as an "Indian Sikh." For me it was a sense of obligation to myself, to the community and, above all, to the legacy of Siri Singh Sahib. Actually, much of my longing to complete teacher training was to honour Siri Singh Sahib, and it wasn't until partway through the course that I started thinking about it beyond what it meant to me personally, and I started to realize how important it is to share the Teachings with the Punjabi Sikh community.
We (the Sikh community) often take for granted the gifts we already have in our lives, having been blessed to be born in a Sikh family. However, we rarely live in Sikh consciousness, but rather "Sikh culture.” I had always been aware of this, but didn't feel the responsibility to do anything about it. Nor did I feel that I had the "tools" to do anything about it. Now we have kundalini yoga taught in Gurdwaras, and this feels so incredible to me. Ten years ago I couldn't have even imagined that happening in Vancouver. It shows the spark that has been ignited, and now it is our collective responsibility to spread the Teachings and play a part in raising the consciousness of the community, so that we can start living in our higher consciousness. Plus, there's the feeling that I owe it to the community and those who have taught me in my lifetime (i.e. people like you!) to "pay it forward."
The impact that you have had on our lives is unbelievable; words cannot do it justice. Before teacher training, I had just assumed that everyone (at least "Sikhs") knew/understood/lived that God was inside them/a part of them/one with them and that we are all one. It's in Gurbani and we read it all the time, and I assumed everyone believed it! But recently, two people who were like "teachers" to me when I was growing up approached me during the last few months and were telling me that 'God and we are one' and that 'we are all one'—there is no separation, but they were saying it like it was something they just realized and were trying to teach me now, as if it wasn't possible for me to already know this. (Yet this is something I know with every fibre of my being!) It made me look back at all of those years at Punjabi school and "history" classes and "gurbani" classes. I realized that no one had actually TOLD us this. And then I thought, “Well how did I know this then?” Besides what my soul may have already known, I learned this from YOU. Long ago, when I was an itty bitty kiddie, and was at Akali Singh Gurdwara on Sundays, you touched my soul and reminded my soul that it was one with God. And that knowledge/light/realization has held me secure for all of my life.
I heard from a few people in the Teacher Training course in the last couple of months how lonely they were before the course started, and how they do not feel alone anymore because they know that God is always with them, as a part of them. That did it for me. I felt the importance and impact of allowing the experience of this, of reminding even just one person of this Oneness, of this Reality would have not just on them, but on the universal consciousness, and the transition to the Aquarian Age. That is what I need to deliver, and Kundalini Yoga is the vehicle to deliver it. I cannot just assume that people know these things that impact their consciousness and the level at which they are currently vibrating in their lives. I need to be transparent with the teachings and with who I am, and share what I know, and let that flow through me to the students with whom I shall have contact. I will share this with the integrity of a teacher.”
Indian Sikhs, Gora Sikhs, American Sikhs, Punjabi Sikhs, 3HO people….. whatever the packaging or name, we are all sons and daughters in the House of Nanak, Siblings of Destiny living in this world, incarnated at this time in history, to bring the Khalsa spirit and the Siri Singh Sahib’s legacy, Guru Ram Das’ great Love, and teachings to all corners of the world, and to every heart.
SS Siri Pritam Kaur Khalsa, Yuba City
When did you become a Minister? I became a minister in 1989, at Summer Solstice. We had moved to Yuba City and I saw it as the next step in my desire to be of service to the sangat here.
What does your identity as a Minister mean to you? Being a minister in our Dharma to me is an honor. It is an opportunity to walk further along this path laid out to us by the Siri Singh Sahib.
How do you serve as a Minister? My service
has been and continues to be here in Yuba City, with the Indian community. It
has been 20 years since Pritam Singh and I first arrived here from the Berkeley
ashram. Pritam had graduated from chiropractic college and wanted to set up a
practice. Our children were on their way to school in India. Over the years my
understanding has progressed from being unrealistic at first about the Indian
community, their values and their needs, to a very real understanding of their
culture, their ways, and their deep traditions. I am amongst them day in and day
out - at work, at the temple, in Yoga classes, and through the clinics - Pritam
Singh's Khalsa Chiropractic and my Physical Therapy clinic. Our relationship has
evolved over the years through thick and thin, through helping them out and
through being helped out so much in return.
On the more public side, I am a member of both temples, a founding member and
currently president of the Punjabi American Heritage Society, and a frequent
speaker at public events. Our Society has been talking about, amongst many other
valuable projects, establishing a place for old folks, and I hope we can
accomplish that. We have also put on eleven annual cultural festivals, which are
one of the largest annual Sikh events in the country. Through my Physical
Therapy clinic, where I spend part of my days, we see Sikh patients, some of
them elderly Punjabis who don't speak English very well. It is always good to be
able to help them. Invitations to weddings, graduations and birthdays come in
all the time. On the personal side, when Pritam Singh died three years ago, and
the children and myself felt bereft, it was the Punjabi community that came to
our side, surrounded us, kept us going and showed us what family can do for you.
What would you like to share about the newsletter topic? I have learned to understand the Siri Singh Sahib and his background so well by being amongst the Indian families and by learning how things work in large, extended families - so very, very different from the west. The strategic way to create a commonwealth, the entrepreneurship, and the spirit behind it. I know that Sikhs really love their Guru, even if their head is shaved. They will respect the form, what it represents and will respect you and love you deeply if you live in that honored way.
What does the future hold for you? I have recently started teaching Yoga classes at the temple. It feels so right, going to the place all things start from. The Ashram here, my home, is cozy and quiet. As with so many of us, the journey is becoming ever more inward. It is the inner work that makes things happen. I do feel so very thankful for this experience here: as much as I have given and taught, so much more I have been given in return. The Siri Singh Sahib, before he died, asked me to take the women from Yuba City to Goindwal, "to do the steps" and to receive the inspiration such a yatra brings. That still needs to be done. Sat Nam.
1. What is the importance of developing and maintaining a strong and positive relationship with the Panjabi Sikh community?
2. What has helped your local Sangat in its relationship to local Panjabi Sikhs?
3. What are some of the challenges you or your local community have faced in developing a positive relationship with Panjabi Sikhs, and what was done or could be done to make improvements?
Would you like to share your thoughts with other ministers? You can answer the reflection questions at the bottom of this newsletter and send them to the editor at ministers_newsletter@yahoo.com. Your answers will be posted on a new page called Reflection Question Responses, where your peers can read and respond to them.