This is something every "Sikh" needs to check out. The poison of Caste based society still stays with us!!!
Too much Blood was shed to bring equality and this is what we return.
http://www.sikhtoons.com/Baisakhi2003.html
Next time a Sikh asks you for your caste, tell them you belong to the caste our Gurus belong to, Humanity!
And if call yourself a Sikh and follow caste, stop doing one of them because Sikhi and Caste are enemies.
Either give up your caste and become a Sikh or give up Sikhi and become a Pundit.
MALE LAST NAME = SINGH
FEMALE LAST NAME = KAUR.
(just reminding if your parents never told you about this)
My sword is my companion my warrior and friend,
Not to be offensive but sworn to defend,
The infusion of steel runs through my veins,
Making me immune from sorrow and pain,
The flash of my Guru's sword awakens the sleeping soul,
Without the sword I can never be whole,
The sword of the Guru is the giver of life,
Before the soul was barren now it is ripe,
I am the saint and the soldier that walks in peace,
I am the humble dust of your feet,
But don't think my spirituality makes me weak,
The heavens will roar if my sword were to speak
10 dollars look so big when we take it to Gurdwara,
But so small when we take it to the store.
60 minutes is long when we are sitting in Gurdwara,
But short when shopping, playing golf, or watching television.
We believe what a person or newspaper says,
But question what GuruJi says.
We can't think of anything to say when we pray,
But don't have any difficulty when we gossip.
We need 2 or 3 weeks to fix a prayer or kirtan event into our schedule,
But have no prob adjusting for a social event in the last minute.
We get thrilled when a soccer game goes into extra time,
But complain when a Gurdwara service takes longer than usual.
We scramble to get a front row seat at a bhangra concert,
But look for a back row seat at the Gurdwara.
It is difficult to share GuruJi's words with others,
But simple to spread rumours
Interesting links pertaining to Sikhism
Fundamentals
* Sikh = Student
* Guru = Teacher
* Present Teacher = Guru Granth Sahib, Holy book of Sikhs
Facts
* The Sikh Holy book "Guru Granth Sahib" does not address religion but addresses humanity
* Freedom to follow whatever you want
* Humanity above all
* Freedom to call God with any name
* Description of God : INDESCRIBABLE
We haven’t lost. However we haven’t won either. In fact we are towards the loosing track. Ever since 84 we have lost a good portion of our brethren who wore their Turbans with pride. Only way to get back at those people who want to eradicate us is to show them that we are still strong and we are still proud.
What it seems is that Sikhs have succumbed to oppression and most of us want to blend in with everyone else. Here are few reasons why we are not like everyone else.
Remember what we inherit.
We inherit Guru Granth Sahib from our Gurus, that teaches ways of good human life rather than talking about a “religion”.
We inherit from Sikhs who gave up all they had to serve and protect the needy.
We inherit from Sikhs who based their lives on reasoning and not on blind faith and oppression.
We inherit from Sikhs who showed that you can be a Saint and a Soldier.
We inherit from Sikhs who served and welcomed anyone in spite of their believes, even feeding the enemy in need.
We inherit from Sikhs who gave up their lives, to protect people of other faith.
We inherit from Sikhs who fought with armies thousands of times bigger than theirs.
We inherit from Sikhs who gave up everything, but their faith.
We inherit from 40 Muktes who fought with a Moghul army of thousands, and all died, but did not give up their faith.
We inherit from Sikh mothers who rather had their new born babies be killed and wore necklaces made out of their infant’s bone, but not give up their faith.
We inherit from Sikhs like Banda Singh Bahadur who showed that if we are organized, no army can oppress us.
We inherit from Sikhs who gave up their homes in 1947, and died for no fault.
We inherit from Sikhs who faced discrimination as of until today, but not give up their faith.
We inherit from Sikhs who died in 1984, just because they were Sikhs.
We will forgive, but we will never forget.
Don’t wear your turban as if you are wearing some weight on your heads, but wear it with a pride that you inherit all that. (Applies similar to females in their own context).
Please stop killing your identity. It took too much blood and suffering to get this inheritance, please don’t loose it for your ease or fashion(it even sounds so stupid).
And I often hear that females don’t have to be so strict with this. Don’t forget, females are mothers and no one else will have more influence on our generations than their mothers.
You have to be better role models than anyone else. There is no excuse, equal rights imply equal responsibilities.
I am not asking you all to be perfect Khalsas, I am not one either, however atleast start working towards it.
The respect for Sikhs in India and in other countries will only follow respect for Sikhs by themselves. Don’t expect magic to happen overnight. Each and everyone of us have to put in effort towards this. No one’s effort is too small. Lets do it one by one, starting with ourselves. As long as just one of us is standing with pride and honor, there is hope.
Know your history, discuss your questions with others. Be clear in your minds. No blind faith in Sikhi, not even towards Sikhi.
Punjab is blessed land and will come back.
People who have fallen are welcome back with open arms. Pick up some courage that you inherit from the Gurus and our ancestors and wear back your pride. We are all here to help you.
Last but most important, Please reply to this article with your comments.
Raaj Karega Khalsa