Mool mantar

Four days of hell - 1984 Anti- Sikh Riots

2008-06-05T13:22:00.000-07:00

THE police looked the other way as politicians led marauding mobs into the city. You could be talking of Delhi of 1984, or Ahmedabad of 2002.

For its very long history, India has an extremely short memory. Uncomfortable events from the past are tucked away into obscure corners. Especially those that involve violent bursts of passions stoked by religion, caste, politics or plain hatred.

May be it is the greed to move forward to the future that prevents backward looks. But the forward march is more often than not interrupted by another round of bloody sacrifice of innocence. And yet again the nation fails to offer succor to its victims, deliver justice, punish the guilty.

Assurance of immunity to the criminal is almost ingrained in the society. Witnesses to bloody pogroms in India grow up without any guilt. Each mob violence is forgotten in the next one.

In just three days, over 4,000 Sikhs were killed in the wake of the assassination of Indira Gandhi, India's most controversial, powerful and longest-serving prime minister. The poorest neighbourhoods in Delhi saw the worst riots.

It was an organised massacre of the minority community by politicians and their supporters. Rioters had a free run as the Delhi Police looked away. They ruled the streets as an overwhelmed civil society figured ways out.

Within days of the riots, the usual Indian response was triggered: Commissions and committees, assurances and some stupid political statements, charges and counter charges, and denials by the very leaders who incited the mob to violence.

Hundreds of FIRs were registered by the police. Hundreds more were refused, because the victims wanted to name Congress leaders like Sajjan Kumar, HKL Bhagat and Jagdish Tytler.

Investigations into hundreds of murders were closed by police, they didn't even make it to courts. Hundreds of murders are yet to be even registered by police.

In 20 years, nine commissions and committees have inquired into the riots. The first one headed by Justice Ranganath Mishra, who went on to become India's chief justice and later the National Human Rights Commission chief. But the commission was a sham. Statements submitted by widows and victims were made available to the accused like Sajjan Kumar, whose supporters were allowed to file their responses months after the deadline. Years later, the CBI found these statements in Sajjan Kumar's house.

The latest commission, one led by Justice GT Nanavati, is still to complete its inquiry. The government last week gave yet another extension to him.

By 1990, six years after riots, just one killer had been convicted. Three special courts set up in 1990 were almost shams. One court acquitted over 100 accused within weeks. The exception was the court chaired by judges like SN Dhingra.

Widows and survivors walked the Kafkaesque corridors of Delhi courts for years in search of justice. They were threatened, some gave in. A handful of the Sikh leaders were accused of taking money from the accused.

Through the travails of these victims, Delhi progressed. Apartment complexes, BPO boom and malls - it has been an unprecedented two decades for Delhi as right wing ideology burst into the scene. Hopes of the BJP-led government delivering justice were misplaced.

The past two decades has been an unending trauma for the riot victims eeking out a living in the shanties and crumbling colonies, earmarked for them. For the orphans of 1984, the lost childhood has been replaced by a miserable youth.

In a city that is a comfortable home to political refugees from over 40 countries, the victims of 1984 are forgotten and hidden - like sins.

Delhi has been the graveyard of many an empire: Be it the Slave Dynasty, Lodhis, Mughals or the British. But can modern Delhi overcome its history? Will India survive the curse of history? For a country that refuses to learn from history how bright could the future be?

The answers to these questions lie buried in the lessons of the past. In search of a solution to the endless cycle of violence, Timesofindia.com captures various aspects of the 1984 riots, its victims and responses, hoping that the leaders, authorities, ordinary men and women realise that no cause is worth a life.

There is one more link i would like to share with every one.

Source Timesofindia.com

Sikh Girl Talks About Predatory Muslim Males

2008-04-21T14:54:00.000-07:00

Watch this to belive it.

Jatts Vs Tarkhans

2008-04-21T14:42:00.000-07:00

This is by far the most funniest thing ever made by kids ,,, but it does have a message.

IN GOD'S NAME

2008-04-21T14:40:00.000-07:00

IN GOD'S NAME, a CBS primetime special produced in association with the acclaimed French filmmakers Jules and Gedeon Naudet ("9/11"), will explore the complex questions of our time through the intimate thoughts and beliefs of 12 of the world's most influential spiritual leaders. It was broadcasted on Sunday, Dec. 23 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT).

Fighting for Faith and Nation: Dialogues With Sikh Militants

2008-03-29T16:46:00.000-07:00

By Cynthia Keppley Mahmood

Why did thousands of Sikhs die in 1984 ? why did Bhindranwale choose the path he thought was right? How did Indira Gandhi pay back for her mistakes? who are "sant nirankaris" ?.

These and many other questions used to haunt my mind since i realised what happened in Punjab. I heard quite few stories which made me think twice about the actual events that took place. But i never got to know or see the true picture of all those who laid there lives just to practice there way of life (Sikhi).

This book by Cynthia Keppley Mahmood nor does it go through each and every single event that shaped Punjab and India as a whole but also make you feel the part of the story, the darkest period has been narrated through the words of Sikh "militants".

I would recommend this to each and every Sikh and non Sikh to understand the circumstances in which certain steps were taken, and how it shaped and scarred Punjab. Every single moment captured and portrayed without any bias.

Click here to read the Ebook.

Indira assassin ‘great martyr’: Vedanti

2008-01-29T15:08:00.000-08:00

AMRITSAR:: Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Joginder Singh Vedanti on Sunday hailed Satwant Singh, the assassin of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, as a “great martyr of the Panth” for taking revenge for Operation Bluestar. Vedanti who presided over the Akhand Path ceremony, marking the death anniversary of Satwant, said Sikhs should not forget “martyrs” like Satwant who stood for the honour and the respect of the community and “punished” those who tried to agitigate the Sikhs. The highest temporal seat of the Sikhs had declared Satwant, who was hanged for the assassination, a martyr many years ago.

The Sikh course

2008-01-20T14:35:00.000-08:00

The Sikh faith is an unknown to many people and yet it is full of gems which can dramatically improve your life and the lives of those around you. And the best was to own these Gems for ever is to be part of this course.

Find out more here www.sikhcourse.com

Drop and the Ocean

2008-01-20T14:22:00.000-08:00

This video was my effort to put my humble views about Sikhi, and my own experiences.
I added this video on to Sikhnet website for the Online film festival.

Naam and celestial sounds

2008-01-07T14:17:00.000-08:00

Naam is the sweet and ear-pleasing sound. It is the voice of God and is present in all creation but it cannot be heard.

In Guru granth Sahib Ji's page 879, it says;

Gurbani is the sound of the Naas, the Vedas, everything.
My mind is attuned to the lord of the universe.

A brahamgiani is the one who has found the secret of how to be truthful in God's court.

One who, in his soul, loves the Will of God,
is said to Jivan Mukta (Liberated while yet alive.)
As is joy, so is sorrow to him,
He is in eternal bliss, and is not separated from God.

Did Jesus really exist?

2008-01-02T14:31:00.001-08:00

He was born to a Virgin, and was given presents by the kings from far far away, who were guided by a shining star in the distant sky. He was a carpenter then a messiah who was later crucified, who later resurrected after being crucified.

Have you heard this story before? I'm sure you have already guessed, its right as well he is called Jesus.

Then there is an interesting story about The bible, some say its the most controversial work as this manuscript was not written by Jesus himself. The historical events of Jesus came from four gospels of Bible. Note that these Gospels did not come into the Bible as original and authoritative from the authors themselves, but rather from the influence of early church fathers, especially the most influential of them all: Irenaeus of Lyon who lived in the middle of the second century.

The list is endless literally endless, however there is a video i saw few weeks ago and think the best documentary on life of Jesus. Its called zeitgeist The movie 200.

Its divided into 3 chapters: The first is called, The greatest story ever told. I would strongly recommend every one the rest of the two parts as well.

Zeitgeist - The Movie, 2oo7
.

Who is a true Guru?

2008-01-01T09:55:00.001-08:00

There is a surfeit of gurus these days in our world. So many people claim to be guru having a divine mission of preaching spiritually in all parts of the world.

Whereas about 60 percent of the world population is subsisting below the poverty line and the foremost demand is food, clothing and other essentials of life, the other 40 percent have affluence of wealth but not affluence of peace of mind. This rich upper class wants a guru who must not question there corrupt vocational life and yet give them some easy way of salvation.

This demand is met by the modern 'guru's who readily offer there specialised formulae for meditation. Some attach such esotericism and secrecy to their special methods that they offer to divulge only to those who become their disciples (Like the guru of Radha soami). The formula is then whispered in the ears of a disciple with a strict injunction not to divulge it to others. This procedure makes the personality of the living guru very important and creates a wide circle of his disciples.

Both the guru and the disciple are enabled in this way to achieve their selfish interests, the former getting easy wealth and the latter easy salvation.

Let us now visualize the picture of a Guru who sacrificed his life for the cause of righteousness early in the 17th century. A modern guru of today sits on a soft velvety sofa; flower petals are showered over him by his disciples and takes his bath
in swimming pools.

Sri Guru Arjan Sahib ji , on the other hand, can be seen sitting on an iron sheet, below which fire is burning. Hot sand was being poured on His head, He is made to sit in boiling water, and He still sings:

Sweet is Thy will O'God;
Nanak begs for the treasure of the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
(Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, Page 394)

And for that purpose, He is gladly suffering all this torture. The Mughal emperor, jehangir, himself says in his autobiography, Tuzki-i-Jehangiri, that he ordered torture and death of Guru as he wanted to stop the guru's preachings which were attracting both Hindus and Muslims.

The practical example of Sri Arjan Sahib Ji lead us to understand as to who should be treated as a true Guru. Only He, who realizes the will of God and does not assert his own selfish will, can be called a Guru. Sir Guru Nanak Sahib Ji had said:

O Nanak, one who understands His command (Gods),
does not speak in ego.
(Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, Page 1)

Even after so many sacrifices and spiritual journeys by our Guru's, some will still follow the materialistic guru who will tell you what you wish to listen from them (will console you). And not just they foool the people but the so called 'guru', gets paid for fooling others.

The only way to find the True Soul is to Japp(chant)the name of the Lord.

The best religion of all.

2007-12-29T15:14:00.000-08:00

The word religion is a western term. Dharam simply means duty.

In Sukhmani Sahib, Sri Guru Arjan Sahib Ji says:

Of all religions the best one is
to utter sincerely the name of God.

I.e the foremost of all religions is the religion of remembering the lord and having pure thought and action.

Religion is: to realize that we are nothing but His Naam.
Religion is: to realize that we are nothing but He.

But, to most of us, religion has become more of social symbol, an egotistical issue, wherewith we have a name to identify ourselves.

It is right to hang a picture on the wall, call it our religion and leave it at that?

In Guru Granth Sahib ji it says (page 12)

You have got the precious human birth.
This is your only chance of meeting the Almighty Lord.
Doing anything else will be of no avail.
Join the congregation of saints and
sing only the glory of the Name.

The secret of life

2007-12-28T14:56:00.000-08:00

The following two questions unfold the secret of life.

A. How shall man become true before God?
B. How shall the veil of falsehood or untruth be removed?

It is most difficult to know what is true and what is untrue. Truth is that which exists and untruth is that which is non-existent. It is difficult to know because truth and untruth appear to co-exist everywhere at all the times. It is as if sugar and sand are so well mixed and scattered everywhere that it becomes difficult to distinguish between the two. Thank God the eye can distinguish between a flower and a thorn. However there are times when we get confused and begin to see the rose bush as one and do not the difference between the rose and thorn.

An intense love for God helps us to remove the doubting power of the mind, which covers the human minds as its intellect.

Many questions arise in the mind:

1. What should i do or not?
2. What is correct and what is not?
3. What is darkness and what is light?
4. What is duty and what is non-duty?
5. What is dharm and what is atheism?
6. What is action and what is inaction?
7. What is life and what is death?

In Guru Granth Sahib Ji page 1399 it says;

Without the Guru, there is utter darkness;
without the guru, understanding doe not come.

In sikh dharam, having a guru is necessary, without a Guru, one cannot obtain knowledge ie, one cant be a disciple (sikh). A sikh is the one who receives knowledge and a Guru is the one who imparts this knowledge. When the two meet, there is a desire for the seed of Sikh dharma to flower; a desire to acquire for the external form of teacher (Guru) or to have the vision of the Guru.

What is sikh Dharam (religion)?

2007-12-27T12:14:00.001-08:00

The mool mantar tells us that Waheguru or God is One. Being One, he is all prevading. Being all prevasive, he is the embodiment of truth. The truth is the Creator. He is perfect. The seed of Sikh dharma is Mool mantar and the word Gurparsad is the last word in Mool mantar. Waheguru literally means wondeful-spritual-light, i.e God.

In order to live life in this world, both in the external form (worldly life)and the internal I.e (inner life or soul), it is necessary to be without enmity, without fear, beyond death, self existent, to receive the Guru's grace and to continue to remain its deserving recipient.

The true aim of Sikh dharam is to be transformed from sikh (a learner or seeker) to the form of a Singh-khalsa. The true sikh is the one who seeks to receive knowledge. Whereas a Singh is the one who has gained knowledge and the power to execute it.
A khalsa is one who is all-knowing or a Brahmgiani (one who is perfect). In short the endeavour of the Sikh dharam is to transform a seeker into an all powerful, all-knowing human being.

All the religions of the world agree upon the two fundamental aspects:

1: The goal
2: The method of attaining that goal.

The Goal is to be one with God or God realization or to see the actual form of God in this life itself and to free ourselves from the vicious cycle of repeated births and deaths.

The Method which according to Guru Ji's philosophy, will enable us to reach that truth, or in other words, rendering the veil of falsehood to go beyond the silence of the mind and gi beyond ones's own wisdom ie to surrender to the Divine order. The inverted form of Divine order is ego.

The Mool mantar

2007-12-26T15:45:00.000-08:00

<>
One Universal Creator God

siq nwmu
Whose name is true

krqw purKu
The creator

inrBau
No fear

inrvYru
No hatred

Akwl mUriq
Immortal

AjUnI
Unborn

sYBM
Self-existent

gur pRswid ]
By the grace of Guru (God)

] jpu ]
|| jap ||

Awid scu jugwid scu ]
True In the Primal Beginning . True Throughout The Ages

hY BI scu nwnk hosI BI scu ]1]
True Here And Now. O Nanak, Forever And Ever True ||1||

Mool mantar

2007-12-26T06:55:00.000-08:00

ੴ ਸਤਿ ਨਾਮੁ ਕਰਤਾ ਪੁਰਖੁ ਨਿਰਭਉ ਨਿਰਵੈਰੁ ਅਕਾਲ ਮੂਰਤਿ ਅਜੂਨੀ ਸੈਭੰ ਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
] jpu ]

Awid scu jugwid scu ]

hY BI scu nwnk hosI BI scu ]1]