Tuesday, February 07, 2006

The Usage of Sikh Religious Symbols to Lure and Eventually Convert Sikh Girls

An issue that is becoming increasingly apparent in the U.K. and even some Canadian cities is that there are Muslim youth wearing the a Sikh article of faith known as the Kara to lure Sikh girls into relationships and eventually marriages with the intention of converting their religions. This week, this rising issue was discussed and possible solutions/conclusions were made. This discussion was very powerful and raised several very notable points worth pondering.
****If you are reading this blog and have opinions of your own to contribute, feel free to respond.
Opinions:
  • Sikh girls shouldn't be going out with Muslim guys in the first place. It is as if they are choosing to mess with fire and so deciding to get burnt.
  • If there is a Muslim individual who is wearing a Kara (with the wrong intentions), a Sikh individual should be able to approach them and ask to take it off.
  • asfasf

Questions Raised:

  • How is it possible to identify a Muslim guy wearing a Kara? If you did know that the individual wearing the Kara was Muslim, what action should you take upon finding out?
  • How can we prevent this problem from igniting in Canada?
  • Are we still at war with the Muslims?
  • Does it even matter that individuals, namely young women, are converting?
  • If these young women claim to be in love with the individuals, what are they going to choose-religion or the person with whom they are in love with?

Possible Answers:

  • Don't allow yourself to become so assimilated into the Western culture
  • Increase your knowledge about Sikhism. Don't allow someone belonging to another faith tell you false information, if any information at all about your religion.
  • If the Muslim individuals are trying to convert us, then yes, we certainly have a problem with those individuals and must take some sort of action towards stopping them.

On Being a Good Sikh

Questions Raised:

  • Why is it that girls are not as involved in Sikhi as guys? We are seeing an increasing number of males becoming passionate about their faiths, what is turning girls away?
  • Do we have the obligation as fellow Sikhs to assist those who are straying away from Sikhi?

Important Points:

  • We need to realize that there is a difference between being Sikh versus being Punjabi
  • Parents don't seem to be setting a very good example to begin with.
  • No one is born a Sikh, it is all about learning the principles. Just being born is not going to carry an individual far if they were to be in a situation where they can easily be swayed in one direction.
  • Without knowledge, it is easy to waver anyone
  • As Sikhs, we need to show that we are there for individuals who are straying away and have resources availible demonstrating that we have not turned our backs.
  • As oppose to asking other Muslim individuals regarding conversions of other religious groups, it would be best to go to the direct source and refer to the Qu'ran itself.
  • If you hold Sikhi dear to your heart, there is no question, let alone issue of converting/being converted.

Other Notable Questions Raised and Points to Think About:

  • "Rehit Piaaree Mujh Ko, Sikh Piaaraa Naahee" --> Translation: It is not a Sikh who is dear to me, it is their rehit (the way they lead their life) that holds dear to my heart.-Guru Gobind Singh Ji
  • You cannot claim to be a Sikh on the inside and act another way on the outside. What are your telling you and those around you?
  • We seem to be mixing up a Singh and a Sikh. Are they the same thing?
-Sikh and Khalsa are the same thing. Although the first and tenth Gurus set out different principles, the same jot (spirit) was within all of them, so whatever the first Guru has said and whatever the tenth Guru added on to that should be collectively followed
  • We are continuing to put the blame on the adults/parents in Sikhism however, we as youth are not doing a very good job ourselves. There are still numerous unnecessary conflicts and divisions among us.

Closing Remarks (Gurpreet Singh's Final Thoughts): "The key [to all of this] is becoming a better Sikh"

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sikh nahin pyara meri reht pyari

u wrote that wrong, it should be

"Rehit Piaaree Mujh Ko, Sikh Piaaraa Naahee"

which means the rehit of a sikh is what i love, not the sikh themselves

other lines that show the same point are

Rehni Rehit soee Sikh mera, oh
sahib, mai us kaa chera

The one who stays in rehit is my sikh, hes my sahib (master) im his chela


rehit binaa nai sikh khaavai

One without rehit cannot call themselves a sikh

rehit binaa dar jhotta khavai
Without rehit u'll get beatings in the court/darbar of god

rehit binaa sukh kubhoon na laihai
without rehit you'll never ever find happiness

Anonymous said...

What are the rehits of a sikh?

pritham rehit eh jo, khande kee pahul cchake

the FIRST rehit of a sikh is to take amrit

"paanch singh amrit jo deevai, taa(n) ko sir dhar chhak phun laevai, phun mil pan rehit jo bhanke, taa(n) ko man man mehi driR kar raakhai"

pretty much, follow the rehit given to you by the 5 singhs that give you amrit..


"Gursikh rehit suno rae meet, parbathae outh kar hith cheeth, vahiguroo pun mantar su jaap, kar ishnaan paRai jap jaap, keertan katha sunai har jaas, in mai name jo karaahi, so sikh amaraa phunee majahi"

Himmat Singh Khalsa said...

I didn't know about these issues involving people of other faiths luring Sikh girls with karas. But, I don't agree that Sikh and Khalsa are the same. Sikh simply means one who learns. Khalsa means pure one. In Guru Nanak's time, he was trying to untie people from their rituals of religion and their judgements against other religions. He said "There is no Hindu, there is no Muslim". Guru Nanak was just trying to get us to see the big picture - WE ARE ALL HUMAN, forget about all this complicated religion stuff. He wasn't starting a religion. Then Guru Gobind Singh formalized the lifestyle of the Sant Sipahi (soldier saint) and gave the Amrit and made the Khalsa to bring everyone together so that they could stand up to the invading armies and defend the Khyber Pass (mountain pass going from Afganistan to Punjab [now Pakistan]) which would hence defend all of India. Now, by God's will we are a religion, but we have to remember the basics - WE ARE ALL HUMAN! Also there is not only one way to liberation, orn one right way. Any Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Jain whatever can be liberated from their beliefs and lifestyle. I, probably along with most of you readers have probably just found a love for the Sikh and Khalsa ways of life.

-Comment to be Continued-
(My ride to go to lunch is waiting)

WesternSSA said...

Big Tinger- Thank you for making that correction, it has been changed on the posting. It is greatly appreciated that we have knowledgable individuals like yourself to ensure that all of the bani that is posted, is posted correctly. Bhul Chuk maaf karni for we are all Waheguru's children and will try our best to prevent such mistakes from happening again.

Anonymous said...

Waheguru ji ka khalsa ..Waheguru jee ki fateh

pritham rehit eh jo, khande kee pahul cchake.. so hee singh pardhan


Is that right ?

Anonymous said...

when you are born into a sikh family, then you can join the khalsa by taking amrit, if you were not born in a sikh family, you become a sikh and join the khalsa, see my blog - the khalsa way