What keeps me doing Panthic Work

These days it’s really easy for me to tell other to go away, and that “I’m busy, sorry – no time”

But the reality is that as a Sikh it’s my duty to do panthic work. Right now the only thing that keeps me involved with Sikh Organizations is this paragraph from the Reht Maryada:

The concept of service is not confined to fanning the congregation, service to and in the Guru ka Langar etc. A Sikh’s entire life is a life of benevolent exertion. The most fruitful service is the service that secures the optimum good by minimal endeavour. That can be achieved through organised collective action. A Sikh has, for this reason, to fulfil his/her Panthic obligations (obligations as a member of the corporate entity, the Panth), even as he/she performs his/her individual duties.

(emphasis mine). This basically tells me that any seva I do should be the most efficient possible, and it seems obvious that to be efficient (and lazy) I should be doing it with others so that my efforts have the most effect. Honestly, even though I’m mostly burned out, this paragraph keeps me involved with Sehaj, The Sikh Coalition, and others.

What keeps you going?

Sikh Odyssey - Sikh Religion and Punjab Trivia Game

Check out this AWESOME game by Kulbir Kaur. It’s a trivia game all about Sikhi and related history.

It looks very professional and fun to play. Some Sample questions:

Q: Which Guru lived the longest?

A: Guru Amaar Das Ji , 95

Q: Name the five rivers of Punjab.

A: Jhelum, Chinab, Ravi, Sutlej, Beas

Q: When did Maharaja Ranjit Singh rule

Punjab?

A: 1799 – 1839

Q: Who was the first Sikh Guru to be a martyr?

A: Guru Arjan Dev Ji, May 1606

Q: Who was the first Sikh woman martyr?

A: Mata Gujri Ji.

Q: When was Bhagat Singh born?

A:  27 September 1907

Q: When was the first Gurudwara Sahib opened

in Canada?

A:  1908

Q: What does “Singh” mean?

A:  Lion

Q: How many shabads are in Guru Gran Sahib Ji?

A: 5872

Q: How many times does the Mool Manter appear in Guru granth Sahib Ji?

A: 33 times

Can’t wait till I get my hands on one of these. You guys and gals should check out the game and get one yourself!

Sehaj Houston Sikh Retreat – December 26th – 29th 2009

Sehaj Sikh Retreat 2009 – Houston, TX
December 26, 11:00 pm – December 29, 9:30 pm

Sikh enthusiasts are coming together to create an inspirational environment from all across the country. Fostering individuals towards innovative solutions for Panthic Oriented Causes, SEHAJ delightedly invites you to Sehaj Sikh Retreat 2009. Participants will engage in an intense Sikhiya, Kirtan, Vichaar, and Sangat. Join us this December 26th to December 29th at Gordan Ranch near Houston TX.

Bring this year to a close, and start the next one with a bang by joining us December 26th through December 29th for the Sehaj Sikh Retreat in Houston, Texas. Aimed at Young adults and professionals ages 20 -39, Sehaj aims to bring together individuals from across the world, and across the entire spectrum of life experiences to connect, share, and find each persons path to the Guru. The retreat features interactive workshops, intensive diwans, and guest speakers focused on exploring the individual’s role in the Khalsa Panth. With well planned workshops, plenty of time to bond, and a great environment of Sangat, be ready to have an intense learning experience along with a great time!

WHO: Ages 20-39

WHAT: Khalsai Rakhi – The Charge of the Khalsa

WHERE: Gordon Ranch, Houston Texas

WHEN: December 26th – December 29th

Visit http://sehaj.org to register and for more information!

Khabran – Sikh Internet News and Information Dashboard

Today I’m glad to finally announce the beta launch of one of my small side projects: Khabran

Basically it’s a one-stop easy to use single page where you can go and peruse all the latest Sikh Internet buzz. Right now it’s full of Sikh News and some blogs, but if you have any RSS feed you think would be useful to add, either comment here or shoot me an email and I’ll add it if I agree :)

Check it out, please give me some feedback, don’t get too upset if it breaks every now and again as I add features and fix bugs.

A small note about the advertisements: Basically the story is this – I’m broke. If putting up one small set of adverts can help pay my internet bills, I’m inclined to try it. If you know any other way I can get some meager funds (mostly to pay for food, this and future projects, etc.) please contact me directly: mail@sikhnerd.com

Introduction: Gurbani Groups Project

So at Saanjh 2009 we were split up into several large groups and given a problem, and several steps to a real-world solution. Below I’ve embedded the presentation my group gave with our proposed solution. In the coming weeks I hope to move quickly forward on this project, and hopefully meet all the long-term goals outlined in the presentation.

If  you’ve got some input, or would like to help in this effort, or just have a quick suggestion – PLEASE reply in the comments so we can get in contact with you. There are allready meetings in Houston and Atlanta that exist, and THIS Friday there will be a meeting in San Fransisco area. Later this month there is one planned for Los. Angeles. If you are interested in any of these, just get in contact with me and I will put you in touch with the appropriate people.

Amazing looking planned Gurdwara

Check out this video of the upcoming Gurdwara in Dubai:

Hopefully I get to go check it out one day!

iSikhi – Gurbani Search App for iPhone

After using Gurbani Anywhere on my phone for the last few weeks, my little brother has been getting pretty jealous of all the cool things I could do with it sitting in Diwans, Kirtans, or anytime on-the-go. So Yesterday I grabbed his iPhone and installed the iSikhi iPhone app, which promises to

• Work on iPhone, iPhone 3G, and iTouch devices
• Search Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji and view shabad(s) line by line with english translations
• Search with either First Letters or First Letters Anywhere
• Simple to install like any other iPhone application through App Store. No need to JailBreak your iPhone or any other modifications are required.

Let’s have a look at version 3 of this software. One thing to note is that my brother has the iPhone 2G, but is running version 3.0 of the iPhone OS. I suggest you view these pictures in order:

So the application is extremely clean and well-made. The gurmukhi keyboard and input work wonderfully. One thing I did notice is that performance on this older iPhone was definetly slower than expected, but not enough to bother me too much, or deter me from further use. The application makes good use of the iPhones screen real estate, and viewing the shabad in landscape mode with a slightly increased font makes it perfect for balancing on top of the vaja while practising kirtan.

There are some features from Gurbani Anywhere (which has an upcoming iPhone release also) are the transliterations, favorites, increased viewing options, and searching Bhai Gurdas Vara and Dasam Granth. Hopefully the iSikhi dev team can add some of these and more in upcoming releases.

Head on over to the iSikhi website, install it, donate, and post on the forums for help, comments, and support

Waheguru Knows We Are Retarded

I think it’s awesome cool that guru knows we’re retarded, every shabad tells us a little more, but repeats the last part a bit cause probably we still didn’t get it. Everytime in a different way cause we all relate differently to different situations (e.g Merchant/mom/dad/begger/rich person) Tells us the same/similar thing again and again until our dumbasses get it.
(maybe)

Every Saturday morning I get together with some like-minding Singhs and Kaurs to go over some bani. Currently we are going through Anand Sahib, trying to get some understanding of what this essential part of our nitnem is trying to teach us. It really strikes me sometimes how maybe in one pauri I don’t really get what’s going on (yes, I’m a dumbass) but by the time we’ve read the darpans explanation of the next pauri I totally “get” what’s going on in the last two pauri’s, all because every pauri is related to the other!

I’m sure many of you have come to similar revelations when going over bani, I just think it’s absolutely amazing that I have that revelation again, and again, and again everytime we read some more shabads, tukhs, or even sakhis!

Perspective on Sikh Tradition – Khushwant Singh

If you’ve read Macleod and Macaullife, you should check out this book by Khushwant Singh. Now I have to admit, I haven’t read it myself yet, but it looks pretty interesting so I thought I should share it with the world! If you’ve read it, or if you do download and read it, please leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Sign This Petition, Demand Justice, Spread the Word!

I implore everyone to visit this website, get involved, and sign the petition. Spread the word and let’s work together to bring justice to our fallen brothers and sisters.

WaheGuru Ji Ka Khalsa, WaheGuru Ji Ki Fateh!

2009 marks 25 years since the November 1984 pogroms against Sikhs in Delhi and across India.  Despite over a dozen commissions and countless kangaroo courts, the leaders who organized and led the massacres of Sikhs in the streets of Delhi continue to prosper.
Join us in saying Enough!  Visit http://www.nov1984.org/ and take action by signing our petition to Justice Navanetham, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

November 1984 Accountability Petition Demands
§        An independent international inquiry into Rajiv Gandhi’s and the Congress party’s role in planning, organizing and executing the November 1984 anti-Sikh pogroms in New Delhi, India and

§        The immediate removal of the name of former Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, from all public monuments, airports, roads, stadia, parks, sports awards, and professorships.

Please sign the petition and help us get to 100,000 signatures by November 2009.