FANTASTIC TRANSFORMATIONS!
Bhenji Baljinder Kaur's Journey in to Sikhi!
My parents weren't really into Sikhi when I was young; they had cut hair and my dad drank etc. But because they were from India they had a routine of listening to Asa Di Vaar every morning on a record player and when they did JapJi Sahib and Rehras Sahib, me, my brother and sister used to be in the same room playing around. We used to walk to Derby Gurdwara every Sunday just for the kheer (rice pudding) and then we would walk home after doing matha tek quickly. After a trip to India (I was in my teenage years), I recieved a Gutka which had the romanized (Punjabi-English) writing. I used to read just a few verses everyday and slowly little bits started making sense out of no effort of my own.
After I got married, my husband would stay asleep, whilst I went to the Gurdwara with my in-laws. Then when I was expecting my first child, I faced many difficulties and almost lost him at 4 months so I cut down on Japji sahib due to stress. I was told by Gursikhs in Bradford to carry on doing JapJi Sahib and read the one line "ishaa poorak sarab sukhadhaathaa har" (The Lord is the Fulfiller of desires, the Giver of total peace). They said don't stop and during the day do Mool Mantar whenever I can; because if a Mother recites Gurbani whilst having a child, it will have a spiritual and positive effect on the baby and will change their life.
After having my baby boy; my life and my families life transformed through only the grace of Guru Ji.
My in-laws took Amrit, and my husband started going to the Gurdwara a bit more and doing Sangat/Amritvela with amazing gursikhs in Bradford. We would take our children to Keertan and Sikhi class on a Wednesday, where they enjoyed the chips and beans too. My husband started keeping rehit (discipline) and said, "lets take Amrit next month." I used to ignore him, as I didn't want to take this step. I especially didn't want to tie a dastar, as I was into my appearance and societies opinions. Also I thought that living the life of an Amritdhari would be hard and get in the way of what I considered my "normal life". But then speaking to Gursikhs (females especially), they upheld my spirits and made me imagine what life would be like if my husband was an alcoholic and abusive and how blessed am I to have Sikhi in my life. I was still in doubt about it, until my son got upset and said "Mum what is your problem, go take Amrit." So hearing this on the night of the Amrit Sanchaar, I rubbed my make-up off, took out my ear piercings and tied a dastar for the first time. When I got to the amrit sanchar an elder Gursikh hugged me and asked me what was wrong (he knew I was nervous) and he said, Guru Sahib will hold my hand. All I have to do is take the first step.
The Change!
So in December 2007 me and my Husband were blessed into Guru Sahibs beautiful family. And from that day on I've never looked back. The spiritual experience of Amrit is amazing. It's beyond this world. The power is underestimated. I didn't find living as an Amritdhari hard at all, because it was extremely rewarding. My whole life became more peaceful and I felt satisfied. I had never experienced such bliss. I deeply regretted not taking Amrit earlier. Before, I felt lost and clueless but after following Gurus path, I realised the purpose of life and what I should be doing and where true happiness is found. All anxieties and worries were pushed away, because I knew my Guru had my hand. My minds desires were fulfilled. Even in terms of the world, I always wanted a successful business but was scared to start up. Gursikhs would tell me not to be scared as Guru Sahib is very near at hand. All we have to do is Ardaas. My children followed our path and I'm ever thankful to Guru Sahib for taking me out of the dark, useless, pointless lifestyle I lived and bringing me into Sikhi.
Message!
If there's any message I would like my journey to show, firstly I would say that, Sangat of Gursikhs is very important. I realised how important doing Sangat of Gursikhs is and the enjoyment you get of just being around them is much more than any other Sangat. They are so supportive and will guide you and go out of their way for you, especially in difficult times. Don't be scared to approach Gursikhs, they are there to help. They can have an impact without even speaking. So any Keertan programs locally, just go and sit beside the saints and if possible invite Gursikhs to your home and serve them. A lot of blessings are received by sitting in the company of Saints.
Also I would say, take a small step, any step. Something that will bring you and your children closer to Sikhi. Be it mool mantar or just 2 minutes of Waheguru Simran in the morning, or having Keertan on in the background, on the way to work in the car.
Without a doubt, any little steps we make in our early stages, will have an effect and we will be rewarded in the future. Guru sahib says we can change our Karam; We can change our destiny and future. Just listening to Bani will have an impact on our future, even if we don't understand it. Our whole future will be changed and it will bring us and our children closer to the true path of Sikhi.
I just want to finish off by saying, if a women changes, many generations are transformed. This is the power of a woman and the blessings of Guru Sahib, Amrit and Sangat are immense.
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Bhenji has been blessed with great Seva, Guru Sahib has blessed them with the opportunity of running local camps, being a part of the Kaurs Corner team, serving others in need and many more selfless services of Guru Sahib's Panth. May Guru Sahib ji bless them always ji!
Guru Arjun Dev Ji Says, "Sing forever the Praises of the Lord, O Nanak, and you shall be saved, under the Shelter of the Feet of the True Guru."
Vaheguroo!
Game of love π- THIRST FOR AMRIT
THIRST FOR AMRIT
A couple of years ago, Bhenji Teji Kaur posted a comment on an old blog post - "I Want to Take Amrit, But MY PARENTS!". The comment was so inspiring that I've decided to post as a separate post so that Sangat can easily read it. Here it goes...
Author: Teji Kaur
GurFateh all! I was googling something else and I came across this ("I Want to Take Amrit, But MY PARENTS!" blog post) and it bought a smile to my face many years later. I wrote that post when I was about 14 years old. I have now been Amritdhari for five years, since 2009. I am in Law School [now] and wear a dastaar (turban), and I am happier every second of every day.
Guru Ji has not left me through lifes trials, my family has come around, and I fall more and more and more and more and more in love with my Guru every second. This love will never break or die and I thank God for Amrit every day.
I just wanted to let you know, that it took me five tries to be blessed with Amrit. I went around the world. It was Guru Sahib's test. I went to Sri Hazoor Sahib and they refused to give me Amrit, because I was a girl. The fourth attempt was spiritually something. I wrote a poem called 'Tomorrow,' where I spoke about my excitement about being blessed with Amrit. I cleaned my room and washed all my clothes and put new sheets on my bed. I did this out of my innocence at that age. I thought it was my marrige to Guru Sahib. I did not know what happens on a marriage night between a husband and wife at that time but I knew, that at my cousin's wedding they had the most beautiful sheets.
I changed my sheets and washed my clothes and put petals on my bed, because I thought it would be my wedding with Guru Sahib. I cleaned my room very nicely and spent all night till Amrit-vela. I then showered to go to Gurudwara Sahib. Upon reaching the Gurudwara I realized that the Amrit Sanchaar had taken place the day before and I had missed it!
I was broken and angry and I cried so long. I finally calmed down and told myself that all happens as per Guru Ji's Will and Guru Ji has a reason for everything. I then stood by my bed to do Ardaas. In between the bed and dresser, there was a space. The light was off the whole time. I stood to do Ardaas and I told myself that everything God does has good in it, that we can not see. I then did matha tek (bowed) at the end of Ardaas and ended up hitting my back on the edge of my bed. It did not hurt but I was already angry with God and I yelled, "God! If everything You do has a good reason, then why did you let me get hurt while I was doing Ardaas?"
I was so angry about the Amrit still. I got up, did not matha tek and in anger asked in my heart, "God, how is there good in me getting hurt, when I was doing matha tek?" I then turned on the light and what I saw shocked me and built up my faith. There was broken glass on the floor at the spot where I would have done matha tek. Had I not hurt my back, my eye would have gone into the glass and I would have gotten hurt very seriously. My head would have hit the broken glass with force. After seeing how Guru Ji was so amazing and blessed me, like Gurbani says: "Tum karo bhalla hum bhallo na jaane--- God does good but we do not see it as Good, God is always merciful." My faith strengthened and I was blessed with Amrit the next year...
Now it has been five amazing years :) I just wanted to let everyone know that the above story has a happy ending or shall I say a happy beginning :)
Guru Ramdas Ji Says, "The True Essence is Ambrosial Nectar; through the Ambrosial Words of the Perfect Guru, this Amrit is obtained."
Vaheguroo!
Game of love π- RESTRICTING OR LIBERATING
RESTRICTING OR LIBERATING
'Is being a practising Sikh female restricting or liberating?' When I first really became interested in Sikhi, I didn't realise that I'd find it so liberating on so many levels. Not just on spiritual levels, but also on worldly ones. We live in a society where it's so difficult for a woman to be genuinely comfortable in her own skin. So many businesses are based solely on exploiting a female's insecurities. We're told exactly what we're supposed to look like, what counts as beautiful, which of our characteristics are acceptable and which ones aren't. Feeling "feminine" isn't actually based on loving being a woman but is based on being slim, hairless and made up. Everything about you can and should be changed or "enhanced". If you choose not to "enhance" yourself, you're deemed to be not taking care of yourself, you're not making an effort, and you aren't presentable. The rules are different just because you're female...
Men aren't expected to "enhance" themselves anywhere near as much as we are. Even the "natural" look isn't actually natural. Honestly, how much of what we do is truly down to personal choice, rather than to societal pressure?
One thing that has always drawn me towards Sikhi is the element of being indifferent to societal pressures and just accepting yourself the way that you are. It's not the reluctant kind of self acceptance where you pretend that you're happy with yourself but it's the state of being genuinely comfortable with yourself. It's the absence of feeling the need to change yourself in order to fit in with the norm. It's about being effortlessly indifferent to everyone else's ideas about you. You're no longer attached to the typical standards of beauty, so you no longer feel inadequate in your own skin. A lifestyle which gently discourages focusing on superficial things like outward appearance, wealth, social status etc. Instead, encourages self acceptance, self love and personal growth has helped me so much. It's refreshing to be amongst women and girls whose main concern is their jeevan (lifestyle), rather than their image and appearance. We all have our moments... Self acceptance is easier said than done... For me personally, Sikhi has genuinely made it a lot easier. If you're standing on the outside, Sikhi might seem restrictive. You don't understand why this bunch of women don't "enhance" themselves. But when you're living that lifestyle, you see that what others perceive as "restrictions," essentially remove your obligation to bend to societal pressures. You're free to accept yourself. It's liberating.
Written by Amrit 'Jamz' Kaur
There are no words that will give justice to the power, stature, importance and sacrifice of women in the Sikh faith. Our mothers, sisters and daughters look absolutely beautiful with our Gurus crown upon their heads. True beauty always shines forth, through one's body and spirit via the love of Naam and baani.
Guru Nanak Dev Ji Says, "So why call her bad? From her, kings are born. From woman, woman is born; without woman, there would be no one at all."
Vaheguroo!
Game of love β€οΈ- WHY I CHOSE SIKHI?
WHY I CHOSE SIKHI?
Japjeet Kaur Khalsa, from Leicester speaks of her journey into Sikhi in the Huffington Post Newspaper:
"I was brought up in Weelde, near Antwerp in Belgium, my Western name is Nele Bemong. I was quite religious as a child, with quite religious Catholic grandparents, my parents much less so. I was baptised, and went to Catholic school and university. I was always a spiritual child, I prayed a lot and talked to God before I went to bed.
After the age of eight or nine, I began questioning God, when some people very close to me died and I couldnβt understand why God would allow that. Other Catholic concepts, like for example, original sin also did not make sense to me and it was hard for me to agree with what institutionalised religion had turned the intrinsically very beautiful teachings of the Bible into.
By the time I went through high school, I had really stopped practicing anything. I am very much a Westerner who practices Sikhi, but I don't adopt Punjabi culture. It is very uncommon in Europe to be a white Sikh. There are more white Sikhs in America but they tend to live in communities of other white Sikhs, not so much in the Punjabi community.
I am one of very few white people in this country, who have converted and live amongst the Punjabi community. But I do get a lot of respect, and often Punjabi people will start looking anew at what Sikhi offers, if they see that I have adopted it and have given up my previous life in the process. They will often even say 'you're a proper Sikh' β a mirror is being held up and often that inspires them to re-evaluate Sikhi. It can be quite inspiring for young people, who sometimes think there is nothing in Sikhi for them as the spiritual side has often gotten mixed with deep-seated cultural practices. I help them see the immense value of the Guruβs teachings and how much contentment and happiness there is to be gained by adopting the spiritual teachings into oneβs life."
We have great karma and are blessed to be born in sikh families, yet we choose to ignore the Gurus teachings. To be punjabi is not being a sikh, sikhi is way beyond this. Sikhi is a beautiful way of life, combined with the True Gurus physical discipline and liberating spiritual wisdom. This has to be lived and not just talked about.
We should all take steps towards the True Guru and accomplish the purpose of this life, which is to liberate this impure mind through the love of Vaheguroo's name, by becoming one with him.
Guru Ramdas Ji Says, "Come, and join together, O my companions; let's sing the Glorious Praises of Vaheguroo, and follow the comforting advice of the True Guru"
Vaheguroo!
