Central Gurdwara Resource Centre Newsletter
Many great philosophers have spent lifetimes
pondering over the Purpose of Life, but is it a question you have
thought about? Do we need to think about ?
When asked "What is the aim of your life?"
What would you answer? Many people say they would like to be Healthy,
Wealthy and Happy. But does Health plus Wealth equal Happiness?
Evidently not.
Let us look at what Gurmat has told us about
the purpose of Life and what our aim in life should be.
We believe that the Soul has been given by
God. So who or what is God? Gurbani tells us that God cannot be
described. Imagine the following situation. If you give a mute
person (someone who cannot speak) some sweets - the person will
be happy and satisfied. We can see that he is happy, but he is
unable to tell us what he feels. In the same way if we meet a
Gurmukh (a highly spiritually aware person) we can see that the
person is happy and carefree, but if we ask why, he cannot answer.
It is a feeling of inner peace that they have. This state of mind,
I call it God Realisation or Self Realisation,, a state of being
totally content with one's life, being without worries. This is
the state that we must aim for. Gurbani tells us about Moksha
- merging with God - this can be described like a drop of water
merging with an Ocean. God is the Ocean. So the soul came from
God and ultimately wants to merge back with God.
So now that we have decided that the aim of
our lives is to attain God Realisation and ultimately for our
soul to merge back with God - how do we go about this?
I shall try to answer this next month with
my limited knowledge, but I hope this short introduction will
get you thinking and if you have the answer please do drop me
a line!
I hope I haven't started of on too serious a point, but I normally just write the first thing that comes to me. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the rest of the newsletter in which you will find a review of some Computer CD Roms that have recently come out along with our regular features on Gurbani, a wonderful poem about Vaisakhi and the historical dates for this month.
Bhupinder Singh
Historical Dates for the month of May
May 4 Janam Din Baba Ajit Singh Ji
May 7 Avtar Purab Guru Angad Dev Ji
May 21 Avtar Purab Guru Amardas Ji
Since one is not destined to remain in this world anyway, why should he ruin himself in pride? p473
How can we worship God? Is there any harm in making an idol to symbolise God and then offering things to that God which is what the Hindus do in the their Aaarti? In this shabad, Guru Nanak reveals that WaheGuru is Living, not a piece of stone and that nature offers itself to God. Thy Worship happens automatically - our choice is to join in or not, but there is no try. Any attempt to create our own form of worship is a sad joke replacing the Living Power with the dead stone, the Gurdwara of the universe with a small building.(1st pauri)
Our minds can think in only one direction. We can only understand
Reality by simplifying it. Thus, either God has eyes or not? So
we make an idol with eyes. But WaheGuru is beyond our power. We
should not reduce WaheGuru to the limits of our minds - this is
not worship but insult. Thus, the Guru gives us paradoxes - God
has eyes but no eye, forms but no form, feet but no feet, noses
but no nose. The Guru is bewitched in these plays of God. These
paradoxes cannot be answered. We might think they mean that God
is all-seeing but without our type of eyes, etc. and that they
can be understood like this. Perhaps they mean that God is Present
just here, seeing, smelling and yet Absent, beyond us. Both maybe
right, but the end of them all shows our inability to master the
Master. We are lost in thinking about God, but can never fully
understand God.(2nd pauri)
The Light of God is in all, but appears as shadows in the mazes
of our ego-minds. The Guru shows us the Way Out. Following the
Way pleases God and pleasing God is the true worship.(3rd pauri)
We knock on the Exit Door (Dasum Duar) and WaheGuru will open it for us. Light will fill the tunnels and mazes. Then the mazes are seen for the beautiful thing that they are. The Way of worship is not mechanical bowing to stones invented by our minds but drinking nectar-sweet Words Given to us. We thirst for them as a little bird for water, and drinking/singing we can join the natural, spontaneous cosmic worship. (4th pauri)
Kanwar Ranvir Singh
The fact is our desires continue to be desires, and
the more we get, the more we need, the more we want, the more
we ask for. Then it becomes a web of desires and we get trapped.
After all, we can handle a certain amount, but after that we cannot handle it and we lose our priorities, and that makes us suffer.
You may be shocked to hear that happiness is not
a priority. The life is not a priority, richness is not a priority.
To be beautiful, sexy and charming is not a priority.
The priority is that you should find the truth and
live it. As far as all humans are concerned, they all want to
find the truth, but they do not want to live it. This is called
duality.
Nobody can live in this body forever, "Raaj
naa koe jeeva-aa". Anyone, whom you feel, according to your
understanding was a godhead; couldn't live in his/her body forever.
We were given this body to use our senses in a correct way.
You can have the experience of God through the mental
body, through the subtle body, through the pranic body or you
can get it through the radiant body and you will always be in
a bliss. You will have no problem whatsoever. Your insanity
is that you want to win and you want truth to lose.
Adapted from lectures of Yogi Bhajan, 1983
Read of the Lord's Glories and reflect upon the Lord's Glories. Listen continually to the Sermon of the Naam, the Name of the Lord, Har, Har. Joining the Sat Sangat, the True Congregation, and singing the Glorious Praises of the Lord, you shall cross over the treacherous and terrifying world-ocean. p.95
Ever since the first issue of the newsletter we have been promoting
and distributing various CD Roms. It started with the Scriptures
and Heritage CD ROM from AMS in California, USA, which was
the first Multimedia CD ROM about the Sikh Religion. It combined
a complete English translation of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib along
with several other features such as photographs of historical
Gurdwaras around the World and a quotations from the Guru Granth
Sahib section. Soon afterwards a different product designed for
children and also for use in schools was introduced by Trilby
Multimedia from Birmingham, England. This was the Cultural
Roots Multimedia Knowledge Base Vol. 1(CRMKB) and covered
the Sikh Diaspora as well as the African Diaspora. This is a beautifully
produced package ideal for younger children to learn basic facts
about the Guru's and their history and included a fun Punjabi
language section as well as quizzes to test the child's knowledge.
In the meantime the Gurbani CD became available, produced
in California. This features the complete text of the Sri Guru
Granth Sahib in Gurmukhi and English Translation written by Sant
Singh Khalsa as well as other essays on Sikhism and photos of
Gurdwaras. Distributed by the Sikh Center of Orange County for
a suggested donation of $10-00. To date they have distributed
over 10,000 Gurbani CD's.
Recently a batch of new CD Roms have been released a short review of each follows:
Ithaas - Sikh History Stories. This is produced by the same team who produced the CRMKB CD and is a true multimedia experience. There are 5 major sections of the CD ROM:
Overall this is a beautifully produced product and is well worth
the reasonable price tag of only £15-00.
Sikh Dharma History and Culture - This is a CD ROM produced
in Singapore and present a brief history of the lives of the Gurus
and also of Sri Guru Granth Sahib. Each section also has a quiz
to test the knowledge of the reader. The text is complimented
with many photographs and a different shabad (all by famous Ragi's)
is played as the reader looks through the various sections. Again
a well produced multimedia package.
All about Sikhism - This CD ROM is an updated version
of the original Scriptures and Heritage of the Sikhs CD ROM and
presents the complete text of the much respected Manmohan Singh
Translation of Sri Guru Granth Sahib. Line by line the original
Gurmukhi, romanised text, explanation in simple Punjabi and English
translation is presented. The text of the well renowned book of
questions and answers about Sikhism "Introduction to Sikhism"
by Gobind Singh Mansukhani: Other features include: Lives of the
Sikh Gurus; Sikh Reht Maryada (SGPC); Datewise Events in Sikh
History; Gurdwara photographs; Quotations from Guru Granth Sahib;
Religions of the World; Screen Savers and Games. The package is
let down a little by the help file style interface, but this is
more than made up by the extensive content.
Bhupinder Singh
For information ordering any of the above please click here
"Oh Man, you have this lovely body. This is the time for you to meet the Lord Any other work that you do will not bring benefits to your soul"
Sri Guru Granth Sahib p12
SGGS (Sodar - Rehraas)
The following poem is one of the winning entries
in a poetry competition held at Watford Gurdwara during Vaisakhi.
By the hands of Guru Nanak Dev Ji
Were the fruitful seeds sown for Sikhi
Through the years our Khalsa has grown
Millions of followers from one man alone
The tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh Ji,
Wanted the Sikhs to be brave and free
Into a brotherhood the Sikhs became
fearless saint soldiers living in God's name
Who can comprehend the faith in the Panj Payare
on that day?
Who sacrificed their lives in such a way
Could you and I do the same again?
To withhold our faith for such pain
The Guru gave us our unique identity
Allowing Sikhs to live with love and equality
Our holy uniform - the Panj Kakkars
To remind ourselves of who we are
Never again need we fear our opposors
For we are an army of saint soldiers
Forever onwards we shall strive
To keep our Khalsa up and alive
Vaisakhi to the Sikhs is not the day alone
But the whole event to be known
Pride and joy to be a Sikh
Brave and strong, not a coward; weak
Vaisakhi is a time to remember who we are
To keep Waheguru close to us, not far
Continue the faith of those who gave their
Lives
In order to allow Sikhi, our Khalsa to strive
Vaisakhi is a time of great celebration
Throughout our great casteless Sikh Nation
It is a time of joy and peace
And so the strength of the Khalsa shall never
cease
Rapinder Kaur (Watford)
May 1 1635 Guru Hargobind arrived at Kiratpur.
May 1 1837 Sardar Hari Singh Nalwa fatally wounded in Jamraud batle.
May 3 1705 Siege of Anadpur was initiated.
May 3 1718 Janam of Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia.
May 4 1479 PRAKASH UTSAV Guru Amardas Ji
May 4 1686 Janam Utsav of Sahibjada Baba Ajit Singh Ji.
May 5 1723 Janam Din, Jassa Singh Ramgharia.
May 7 1665 Guru Tegh Bahadhur Ji visits Kiratpur.
May 8 1705 Battle of Mukatsar and Martyrdom of Chaali Muktey
May 12 1710 Battle of Chaaper Chheri in which Nawab Wazir Khan was killed.
May 13 1665 Guru Tegh Bahadhur reached Bilaspur.
May 13 1673 Gobind Rai married Jitan at Chak Nanaki.
May 14 1710 Banda Singh Bahadhur conquered Sirhind.
May 15 1765 Conquest of Lahore by the Khalsa Forces.
May 16 1748 Misl Bhangian was organised.
May 16 1848 Maharani Jind Kaur imprisoned in Fort Benaras.
May 17 1762 Jassa Singh Ahluwalia defeats Jain Khan.
May 18 1711 Battle of Batala between Baba Banda Singh Bahadhur and followers of Saekhul Hind.
May 20 1704 Anandpur Sahib attacked by combined forces of Hindu Rajas.
May 23 1606 Jahangir received false reports on Guru Arjan's blessing Khusrau.
May 23 1914 Guru Nanak Jahaz (Koma gata Maru) reached Vancouver port, Canada.
May 24 1710 Baba Banda Singh Bahadur enters Sirhind city.
May 25 1606 GUR GADHI Guru Har Gobind Ji
May 25 1675 Kashmiri Panditsi, led by Kirpa Ram, arrive in Anandpur Sahib to meet Guru Tegh Bahadhur
May 26 1886 Maharaja Dalip Singh reentered Sikh faith.
May 27 1710 Baba Banda Singh Bahadhur announces the establishment of Sikh rule in Sirhind
May 28 1948 SGPC came under the control of Congress Sikhs
May 30 1606
Guru Arjan Dev Ji is tortured in Lahore
Dates courtesy of Baldev Singh detailed listings
posted on Khalsa net daily. Comments to email: baldev_singh@email.mot.com
This is YOUR newsletter please do send us
your comments, articles & poems.
If you are organising an event please let us know
- to publicise it in the newsletter.
Editor: Bhupinder Singh
Tel: 0171 460-2020
Email: Khalsa@bigfoot.com
Central Gurdwara Resource Centre
62 Queensdale Road
London W11 4SG
Assistant editors:
Ranvir Singh
Gurpreet Singh
The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect
those of the Editors or Management of the Gurdwara