Who is sikhism

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Navdeep Singh, a policy adviser to the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, says Sikhs believe in freedom of religion, community service and inclusiveness. At temples, or gurdwaras, where Sikhs hold services, everyone is welcome. Read More. Doing good deeds is important for you to be with God after death, Johar says. Sikhs believe that if you don't live a life full of good deeds you will be reborn and repeat the circle of life and death. There are 25 million Sikhs around the world, Singh says, about , of which live in the United States.

Most Sikhs are in India. Meet the Sikh spreading his message through rap Sikhs do not have a particular day of worship, he says, but due to the American work week, Sunday is a popular day for services. Johar says his gurdwara has formal services on Wednesdays and Fridays, in addition to Sundays.

At a typical gurdwara, the doors open up at 6 a. A formal service includes the singing of hymns and a team of leaders who have studied the faith reciting from the Guru Granth Sahib, Sikhism's holy scriptures.

That book, more than 1, pages long, includes writings from Sikhism's 10 gurus as well as writers from other religions. It is an example of Sikhism inclusiveness, Johar says. At the end of the service, congregants pray for the "well-being of the world" then head to the langar, the community kitchen that serves meals for anyone who wants one. Gurdwaras around the world variously incorporate clinics, schools, guest quarters and community centers, which Sikhs say is a sign of the religion's values of service and equality.

The first gurdwara in the United States was built years ago in California, Singh says. Photos: American turban. For Sikhs, the turban is not about culture, it's an article of faith that is mandatory for men.

Turbans were featured in "The Sikh Project," a exhibition that celebrated the Sikh American experience. British photographers Amit and Naroop partnered with the Sikh Coalition for the show. This photo is of New York actor and designer Waris Singh Ahluwalia, who was kicked off an Aero Mexico flight in February after refusing to remove his turban at security.

Hide Caption. Harpreet Kaur, a producer at Maryland Public Television, founded Sach Productions, a media organization that creates films focused on minority issues. She was the first Sikh reporter in Washington. Harmandeep Singh, a high school senior in New York, arrived from India in Ishprit Kaur's mother is a nurse and inspired her daughter to become one, too. In his belief, God was not separate from the world and watching from a distance, but fully present in every aspect of creation. He therefore asserted that all people are equally divine and deserve to be treated as such.

To promote this vision of divine oneness and social equality, Guru Nanak created institutions and religious practices. He established community centers and places of worship, wrote his own scriptural compositions and institutionalized a system of leadership gurus that would carry forward his vision. The Sikh view thus rejects all social distinctions that produce inequities, including gender, race, religion and caste, the predominant structure for social hierarchy in South Asia.

Serving the world is a natural expression of the Sikh prayer and worship. In the Sikh tradition, a truly religious person is one who cultivates the spiritual self while also serving the communities around them — or a saint-soldier.

The saint-soldier ideal applies to women and men alike. In this spirit, Sikh women and men maintain five articles of faith, popularly known as the five Ks. These are: kes long, uncut hair , kara steel bracelet , kanga wooden comb , kirpan small sword and kachera soldier-shorts. Although little historical evidence exists to explain why these particular articles were chosen, the 5 Ks continue provide the community with a collective identity, binding together individuals on the basis of a shared belief and practice.

As I understand, Sikhs cherish these articles of faith as gifts from their gurus. Turbans are an important part of the Sikh identity. Both women and men may wear turbans. Like the articles of faith, Sikhs regard their turbans as gifts given by their beloved gurus, and its meaning is deeply personal.

The Sikh gurus adopted the turban , in part, to remind Sikhs that all humans are sovereign, royal and ultimately equal. After British colonizers in India seized power of Punjab in , where a majority of the Sikh community was based, Sikhs began migrating to various regions controlled by the British Empire , including Southeast Asia, East Africa and the United Kingdom itself.

Based on what was available to them, Sikhs played various roles in these communities, including military service, agricultural work and railway construction. They began experiencing discrimination immediately upon their arrival.

For instance, the first race riot targeting Sikhs took place in Bellingham, Washington, in Angry mobs of white men rounded up Sikh laborers , beat them up and forced them to leave town. The discrimination continued over the years. It was a time when 52 American diplomats and citizens were taken captive in Iran and tension between the two countries was high.