RSS is the most dagerous virus which
has been dorment for a long time and has been raising its ugly head
attacking first sikhs then christians moslems and soon every one who does
not wish to come udner their umbrella of deep poison for humanity. The
government of India should be persuaded to freeze all their funding sources.
This time they are bent upon using the biggest sleeping majority of adivasi
people who have been living in dire poverty for so long because of the same
hate.
Reply
from Quentin Eyers, member of the Dya Singh World Music Group and the
Group's Recording Engineer::
Hello Shyrone!
I enjoy reading the
occasional writings that you disseminate from time to time. Bless you for
your support. I am looking forward to the next Dya Singh tour, which is
starting shortly, but alas, I will only be with the group in the early
stages, and will miss the east coast altogether.
There is one point that
I would like to make about your most recent piece, 'The Pied Piper', and
that is that although it may seem to various of the Sikh community that Dya
Singh asks for a lot of money, I can tell you very definitely that the whole
Dya Singh enterprise works on the 'smell of an oily rag', and teeters from
moment to moment on the verge of financial collapse. Anyone who thinks
otherwise has no real grasp of the economics of attempting to bring his
brand of Kirtan to the world.
It is precisely the fact that he is seen
as "profiteering" from Kirtan that gives many opponents fuel, and yet they
sit part-timing in their regional bastions with little first hand experience
of how the rest of the world is interacting on these and other crucial
issues.
It is all very well to give sewa in your spare time, but most of
these critics are at the forefront of their chosen secular pursuits from
which they wring every possible legal dollar. The very reason Dya Singh is
so effective as a musical communicator is because of his full time
commitment, which thus far has required a large degree of personal
sacrifice to be able to afford to tread the path that he has chosen, which
is to keep Kirtan alive and relevant. Show me a part-timer who is an
inspirational leader in his/her field. That only comes from full time
commitment.
The other issue is that you only appreciate that which
you have to pay for. In my business, it is always the discount kings and
freebies that have no respect.
These comments are my personal
perspective from my long involvement, and are designed to give you that
perspective in your next article on the subject. The comments are, perhaps,
not to be quoted, as the critics in question would not rate my opinion as
being very relevant, and perhaps proof of Dya Singh's complicity in a
non-Sikh "plot", but it struck me that your article concentrated on the
exorbitant fees charged without any reflection that that's what it really
costs to be able to frugally present the music.
The CD itself that
you refer to "Dya Singh-Along" was recorded at my studio at cost. That means
that only the rent, electricity, equipment hire, insurance etc was paid for,
not the labour or musical contributions from myself and my staff, and yet I
am aware that Dya Singh gave us all the money he had for this enterprise. So
in a way, sewa is being performed by Dya Singh and all in the entourage in a
much wider fashion than could be imagined. As good as the work is that I
think we do, raising much more money would allow the presentation of the
music on the world stage in such a professional and and dynamic fashion that
non-Sikhs would become much more aware and therefore tolerant and supportive
of the culture.
Education is everything, but limiting it to committed
Sikhs would be to pass up this unique opportunity to create an environment
where the community at large will be more accepting of Sikh ways and
culture, and therefore less pressure on the Sikh kids to "westernize".
May your literary contributions continue to bring enlightenment and
entertainment to the community, and perhaps in future editions, paint a
picture of what a bargain it is to have such a world renowned group travel
from so far for so little money! Waheguru ji ka khalsa... Waheguru ji ka
fateh.
Interesting article. But in trying to prove
"Sikh" as completely different, you don´t remember your own history. Guru
Gobind Singhji turned to a militarily strong Sikh in order to protect the
Hindus. Most families did (and many still do) give their first son to
Sikhism, which is why so many families are mixed - Hindus and Sikhs
together.
You could only find ONE example in Bollywood. What about
Vijeta? And Maachis? And Border?
How many Hollywood films represent
non-Christians, or non-whites, or non-Americans positively? At least
Bollywood tries...and far more than elitist snobs like you give it credit
for.
Editor-
It is true that many boys from Hindu families embraced
Sikhism. You may be aware that Hindu families disowned their own sons and
regarded them as dead.
It is wrong to say that Sikhs were "made" to
defend Hindus. Sikhs defended the weak irrespective of their background. In fact
not only Muslims but also Hindus betrayed Sikhs for monetary gains. The
situation was something like this:
"Forster writes:
"Such was the keen
spirit that animated the persecution, such was the success of the exertions,
that the name of a Sicque no longer existed in the Mughal dominion. Those who
still adhered to the tenets of Nanock, either fled into the mountains at the
head of the Punjab, or cut off their hair, and exteriorly renounced the
profession of their religion.
"The faithful followers of the Gurus
experienced the worst possible times in their history. Hunted like hare and
pursued like wild beasts, they wandered from place to place seeking shelter to
save themselves from the fury of the government, from the revenge of the hostile
Muslim population and from the greed of the toady Hindus. If anybody enquired of
a Hindu woman how many sons she had, she would reply that she had three sons,
but one of them had become a Sikh. Thereby she meant that the converted one
should be considered among dead.
"Majha, the homeland of the Sikhs, was
completely ruined. A wonderful and terrible trial indeed, from which the weak
came out strong, from which the strong came out sublime. There were many great
deeds, done in the small struggles of life. There was a determined though unseen
bravery, which defended itself foot to foot in the darkness, noble and
mysterious triumphs which no eye could see."
Gupta is so much impressed
by the achievements of the movement that he asks the question:
"Readers!
have we not witnessed a miracle? The struggle waged by the Khalsa was so
glorious that any people in any culture would be proud of it."
Sikhism
promotes the fundamental right to religious freedom since the faith accepts
religious pluralism. When Guru Tegh Bahadur sacrificed his life it was not for
the janeu (Hindu religious thread) but for the right of Brahmins to practice
their religion without the fear of persecution. The Mughal authorities were
persecuting non-Muslims in their attempt to forcibly convert them to Islam.
The very reason for wearing a jeneu is rejected by Sikhism. About janeu,
Dr. Sham Narayan Shukla writes:
Hindusim believes that yajnasutra (the
sacred thread) is a mark of the twice born (Brahmin). A Brahmana is first born
of his mother's womb. This is his physical birth. After his spiritual birth,
that is, the upanayana sanskara or the thread ceremony he becomes Brahmana. In
Sanskrit yajnopavita is defined as yajnartham upavitam, which means 'that worn
to perform yajna'. The yajnasutra has three threads, each one of which, in turn,
is made up of eight cotton yarns. The three threads are tied together at one
place with seven granthis (knots), called the Brahma Granthi. The knots are tied
and purified by repeating Gayatri mantra.Upanayana means that which takes one
closer (to Brahman). The yajnasutra received during the Upanayana sanskara helps
a Brahmana achieve Brahman. The yajnopavita hangs from the left shoulder,
crosses the chest from left to right and hangs down up to right side of the
waist. It enhances purity and gives long life and divine bliss to a Brahmana.
Sikhsim will disagree with the following:-
1. Brahmin as a
superior being: Sikhism does not agree with casteism and its divine sanction as
in Hinduism. For Sikhs all people are born equal. There is no special status
like the Brahmins.
2. It [janeu] enhances purity and
gives long life and divine bliss to a Brahmana - Sikhs believe that pure life and divine bliss comes through our actions
and not symbols.
3. The yajnasutra received during the Upanayana
sanskara helps a Brahmana achieve Brahman - There is no such thing in Sikhism.
Man's actions and God's Grace decide our unity with the Creator. In Sikhism the emphasis
is on good living without any form of discrimination towards fellow beings.
Casteism is not a part of Sikhism. Wearing Sikh symbols will not help us
"achieve" this unity. For Sikhs the 5Ks are articles of faith.
It is a very good article. I wish
there were more detailed articles on the contributions of indian army to the
world wars. Since, most western documentaries seem to ignore the
contributions.
Hi, Just been reading your
article, i am interested in learning more about the 45th Sikh regiment with
whom my grandad was based. Could you direct me to any sites that may be
useful. I have medals of the tibet war and the great war His name was Sepoy
Ram Singh No. 841 or 641, 45th R. Sikhs. I would be grateful for any advise,
thank you.
Very informing and interesting ...