HELP THE PEOPLE OF HAITI

By this time, we have all heard about the horrible results of the earthquake in Haiti.  Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.   To add to the usual tragedy of a large earthquake, in this case most of the country's top doctors have been trapped and are possibly dead in a collapsed hospital.  On top of that, there are many fires burning.  A prison collapsed and many prisoners died;  others escaped to terrorise the already traumatized citizens.  Soon, untended wounds will become infected, disease will start spreading because of lack of basic hygiene and clean water - and the doctors and medicine have been destroyed.  Only help from outside - from us - can save these people. 

This is just one picture.  To see more, please go to The Daily Mail.

The Sikh spirit of sewa in each of us wants to do something.  Few of us can actually go there, but most of us can contribute a few dollars or rupees or pounds or euros.  It is important to contribute wisely.  Already there are many scams on the Internet.  Please do not give to any organisation or group not known to you.

I have not yet found any Sikh organisations, so I will post two known to all of us as reputable international agencies.

First is the International Committee of the Red Cross.  Go here to donate to them.

Another possibility is UNICEF.  To donate to UNICEF, go here.

Both of these are worldwide;  you can donate from anywhere.

For a list of reputable organisations in the USA, please go to Sikh Philosophy Network

We Sikhs belief in helping all people in distress.  Let us show that we do more than lip-service to this.

CHARDI KALA: A BATTLE PLAN

All my life - I'm 57 - I have heard that the Sikh Panth is in danger.  This seems to be a Sikh fixation, just as each generation in the larger human community bewails the morals, music and mores of the younger generation.  I wonder if each generation is really worse than the preceding.  I do not know.  

MY GENERATION REDUX

Let me return to us Sikhs. Is this a realistic assessment?   Is the Sikh Panth really in danger?  Yes and yes, again!  Always!  Each generation needs to be vigilant at sending forward the true teachings of our beloved Guru jis to the next generation.  Should that not occur, whole Panth would collapse and disappear into history.   It won't though.  There will always be a certain critical mass of Khalsas who will determinedly carry on.  

GROUNDBREAKING

This generation, my generation, has a seemingly unique problem in Sikh history.  Probably because of the violence of 1984 against us followed by the Years of Terror in Punjab when so many of our young people, especially our young, Amritdhari men and boys, were incarcerated, murdered or simply disappeared, we seem to have lost our chardi kala.  This is just "seems."  It is not lost;  it is merely sleeping.  I believe it is time we wake it up and teach our children and grandchildren the "Joy of Sikh."  Enough of our gloomy faces!  I remember the Sikhs as a joyful, laughing nation in the pre1984 days.  As those of you who know me know, I have as much cause as anyone to drag around, hanging my head, never smiling and certainly never laughing.  My dear sisters and brothers, I am not suggesting that we forget this Third Ghalughara, I am suggesting that the best way to honour our shaheeds from this era is to live our lives to the fullest, joyfully, as I believe we Sikhs are meant to.

 KHALSA

This is my battle plan:  Let each of us, each day before we begin our daily tasks, resolve to be encouraging to each person, and especially each Sikh, we meet.  A smile on the face actually makes you feel better.  This attitude of cheerfulness is contagious.  Imagine if only 10% of Sikhs did this, at first, how it could spread through the Panth as we remember or discover how great it feels to live in chardi kala!  OK, I know this might sound silly or unrealistic, but I know at least one person other than myself has committed to this.  Let us try it.  What have we got to lose - except our continuing hang-dog depression?

SAD DOG

 
All illustrations are from Flickr Creative Commons, a couple have been doctored by me.  To see the original, click on the title.

A HAPPY PHONE CALL.

Something very special and very cool happened last night.

Does everybody remember Brother Laibar Singh?  If not, there are far too posts about him and his situation (36, at least) for me to link them here.

In short, he came to Canada illegally, was denied refugee status, then contracted a spinal infection that left him paralysed.  Canada, however, was determined to deport him..At one point, he was taken to the Vancouver Airport, where the plane was waiting to fly the very physically weak Singh to India.   The sangat and few other friends turned up en masse and succeeded in foiling that attempt.  He then sought sanctuary in different gurudwaras until he finally allowed himself to be sent back to India.  He said he missed his children and that was why he was returning.  I know him well enough that I don't believe that for a nanosecond.  My belief is that he felt that he had become a burden, something unacceptable to any Sardar ji (or Sardarni ji).  Whatever his reason, he returned to India in November 2008, his faith and dignity intact. These two pictures were taken at that time.

I finally got his telephone number and a dear friend in India called him and talked to him!  His elder daughter has just gotten married, his son has grown kes and is studying Gurmat, and his younger daughter has moved in to take care of him.  Dear Gurmukhts from Canada are continuing in their support of him.  His health has improved and he remains in chardi kala!

Now I must invest in a calling card and at least exchange a fateh with him!

This is a very happy New Year 2010 CE for me.  He has become my younger brother and I love him dearly.  He is a sweet, kind man.  May he be blessed with all good things, now and always!

HONOUR THE LUDHIANA SHAHEEDS

I have been very lax in writing about this. It is excruciatingly painful to me, as it is to us all. When will those idiots running what passes for a government in India going to clean up their act? When is what passes for a police force in Punjab going to protect and defend the citizens instead of murdering and torturing them? And when are Those Fools in Amritsar going to stand up as our leaders and give us something to be proud of in them? WHEN, WHEN, WHEN?

We have no idea how many have been injured and how many have achieved shaheedi in this latest round of violence. I just received this e-mail from Kaurs United. If you live anywhere near British Columbia, Canada, please attend. It's the least you can do to show your appreciation of and solidarity with our sisters and brothers in Occupied Khalistan.

Click on poster to enlarge

FROM KAURS UNITED:

Vaheguru jee ka Khalsa Vaheguru jee kee Fateh!!

"Freedom from slavery is achieved only when a person starts to feel and understand that he would prefer death to life as a slave; when he does not consider living (as a slave) worthwhile." - Sant Jarnail Singh jee Khalsa Bhinderanwale, Mukhi Damdami Taksal Jatha Bhindran

Khalsa Jee,
The time has come again where Sikhs have taken the ultimate step of giving their lives in protest of Sri Guru Granth Sahib ji's disrespect and slander. You've assuredly seen videos of the recent Ludhiana Kaandh and the brutal beating, shooting, and abusing of Singhs who were protesting against Ashutosh Noormahal, the government hired self-acclaimed "Baba", who insults Gursikhs, and claims that the jot of Guru Nanak Dev Ji is in HIM, and not in Guru Granth Sahib Ji. If we conversed with Sant Jarnail Singh ji today, would Sant Ji not send another Jatha of 13+ Singhs to protect the honour of the Sikh Nation and fight the disrespect of our Gurus?

Numerous Singhs have been killed by police bullets in the past few days when we were sitting in our warm homes.... What's worse is that many bodies have been taken by the police, and we are not even able to count how many have actually gotten Shaheed. Shaheed families have been offered money from the government, to remain quiet about their loved one's Shaheedi. Khalsa Jee, are we feeling Panthic Dardh, or just worried about our own hungers and desires? Why are we not thinking about our brothers who were brave enough to fight in the front line against those who disrespected our Guru?

THIS SUNDAY AT SUKH SAGAR GURDWARA SAHIB .... Sikh Youth and Families from all over B.C. will gather to pray for our Shaheeds and the beautiful Singhs who are still in the hospital, barely recovering from the attacks (http://dhansikhi.com/Multimedia/VideoMain.aspx).
12:00 pm - 6:00 pm : Chaupai Sahib Jaap
6:00 pm - 6:30 pm : Rehraas Sahib
6:30 pm - 8:30 pm : Youth Kirtan Darbar and Katha

Sangat Jee, let's not disappoint our Shaheeds and mistakenly believe or imply that our time is more valuable than their sacrifice. Whether it means calling in for compassionate leave that day or finishing your work early, please, for the sake of our SHAHEEDS, attend this event for as long as you possibly can, as times of unity may not last forever... Alas, some Gursikhs around the world are left to feel this Panthic Dardh all alone, and cry for the safety of their brothers, and for the freedom of their Nation, while we can share our pain together. Let's share our love this Sunday and prove to every Anti- Panthic Dusht that we will never be silenced. Are the Panth's SHAHEEDS worth your time?

--
~ ਰੱਖੋ ਮੱਤ ਉੱਚੀ

Regain Our Chardi Kala!

We have been remembering our wounds and pain now for a long time. Twenty-five years is a long time in the life of an individual. It is right and proper and necessary that we remember. We will never forget. Those of us who lived through it, whose loved ones were brutally murdered carry a special pain. We will never get over it. We will - we have - however learned to live with it.

Life goes on.

I remember the song written after the terrorist attacks (?) of September 11,2001, "Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning"? A touching title, but the world didn't stop turning. It goes on and on, around and around.

Our search for justice continues. We will continue our demands, loudly and persistently, until those guilty of genocide against us face the rope or until we ourselves are dead. This does not need to be said. We cannot and will not forget.

Life goes on.

We want Khalistan. We need Khalistan. The way our neighbours, the very people we have been defending and protecting for hundreds of years, turned on us in 1984 underlines this fact. We have the right of every people to self-determination. We are not unreasonable. We demand only that India live up to the promises made to us when we agreed to support them at the time of Independence.

So...

Let's move a step further. What is this Khalistan we will build for ourselves? I see a land of rivers and streams, rolling hills of wheat, beautiful prosperous farms, crowned by clean, elegant cities. I see Amritsar a city worthy of our glorious Harimandir Sahib, with pristine blue skies and pure, clean air.

I see an end to the ecological disaster that has overtaken and threatens to destroy Punjab. I see ourselves reversing the desertification of the land of our Gurus, of our land. I see our groundwater restored, I see the water of our rivers restored to us.


I see a land of joy and happiness. I see a people strong and prosperous and healthy in body, mind and spirit. I see us treating each other with love and respect, all vestiges of castism thrown into oblivion where they belong. I see all of us living as sisters and brothers, both sexes treated - and valued - equally as our Gurus have taught us. I see a land where all people are welcomed in the old Punjabi tradition. I could go on.

Am I dreaming? Of course I am! We need our dreams. We need to remember who we are and what we are. We need to remember where we have been - the proud moments and the painful - and we need to move forward. Is this practical? Probably not. But everyone who knows me has heard me say things like "Practicality is overrated." All great dreams are impractical.. Great people move beyond that and accomplish what seems to be impossible. This will not be easy, but worthwhile projects are rarely easy.

Can we do this? Of course we can IF we become the people are Gurus taught us to be, if we become real Sikhs, real Khalsa. Think about it. Dream with me and let us move forward to claim what is rightfully ours, spiritually and materially.

Before I start sounding less like a Khalsa and more like a motivational speaker, let me leave you with a song that we can sing together as we move forward in chardi kala!



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oa7frloKmVQ&feature=PlayList&p=59B837E3E86872AD&index=1

One Dead Singh

Who is he? Who is this Singh? I have spent countless hours staring at this photograph asking myself questions. Whose son is he? Whose husband, whose dad, whose brother, whose uncle, cousin, friend? Is someone waiting anxiously at home for him, waiting for a footfall that will never come?

Where is he from? Does he live in Delhi or is he just visiting? Where was he born? What is his pind? When was he born? How old is he?

What is his occupation? Is he an engineer, a doctor, a professor? Or is he a taxi driver or a trucker?

What are his politics? Is he an Akali or a member of Congress? Is he a Khalistani or a Bharata Mata lover? Or is he political at all? Is he just trying to live his life and not really concerned about the niceties of the larger world.

Why is he keshdhari? Is it just habit, following family custom? Or is it deeply meaningful to him? Does he pray each day, do naam jap, love Vaheguru? Or are those just incidentals that have fallen by the wayside of his life? Where is his turban? How does he feel as it is ripped from his head and his kesh is exposed?

How does he feel as he realises the mob is coming for him, chasing him down the street or dragging him from his home or his car or from the bus? What goes on in his brain as the petrol is poured on him and set alight? What is he thinking as his body burns? Or is he beyond thought? Is he aware of the laughing jeering mob around him, enjoying watching his final agonising moments of life on this earth?

What is his last awareness as he dies alone, surrounded by merciless thugs?

Questions without answers. Whoever he is, he deserves to be remembered. I doubt he had even a death certificate, so I have made him one.

(Click to enlarge)

There is something so very final about the certificate. And, of course, I realise that all I have written is wrong and must be rewritten to reflect the truth of 25 years later...

Who was he? Who was this Singh? I have spent countless hours staring at this photograph asking myself questions. Whose son was he? Whose husband, whose dad, whose brother, whose uncle, cousin, friend? Was someone waiting anxiously at home for him, waiting for a footfall that never came?

Where was he from? Did he live in Delhi or was he just visiting? Where was he born? What was his pind? When was he born? How old was he?

What was his occupation? Was he an engineer, a doctor, a professor? Or was he a taxi driver or a trucker?

What were his politics? Was he an Akali or a member of Congress? Was he a Khalistani or a Bharata Mata lover? Or was he political at all? Was he just trying to live his life and not really concerned about the niceties of the larger world.

Why was he keshdhari? Was it just habit, following family custom? Or was it deeply meaningful to him? Did he pray each day, do naam jap, love Vaheguru? Or were those just incidentals that had fallen by the wayside of his life? Where was his turban? How did he feel as it was ripped from his head and his kesh was exposed?

How did he feel as he realised the mob was coming for him, chasing him down the street or dragging him from his home or his car or from the bus? What went on in his brain as the petrol was poured on him and set alight? What was he thinking as his body burned? Or was he beyond thought? Was he aware of the laughing jeering mob around him, enjoying watching his final agonising moments of life on this earth?

What was his last awareness as he died alone, surrounded by merciless thugs?

He was our brother and he was one single human being, one Sikh among the thousands murdered during the madness of those days in 1984.

He is our brother and he deserves justice.

One final, unanswered question: When?