East & West Do Meet ... in Amritsar
by DHARMENDRA RATAUL
Amritsar, Punjab
The reported marriage of Alexandra Aitken, daughter of former British cabinet minister Jonathan Aitken, to Sardar Inderjot Singh is only the latest instance here of a woman from the West seeking spiritual bliss in Sikhism.
There are at least three recent instances of high-profile Western women converting to Sikhism after marrying amritdhari Sikhs and choosing to settle down in this city.
K. Peterson, hailing from Fairbanks, Alaska (U.S.A.), married Amritsar-based businessman Hardip Singh last year. She not only converted to Sikhism but also listens to the gurbani daily and maintains a Khalsa way of life.
"She is perhaps more devoted to the religion than me. She regularly recites shabads and visits the gurdwara," said Hardip, who met Peterson during a religious discourse as her mother also had a strong leaning towards the religion.
Peterson, now renamed Amrit Kaur, lives with Hardip's family in the city.
"She left for Fairbanks on January 18 to complete her Major in Languages in the University of Alaska. She is immersed in Sikhi and also wears a turban. She is so devoted to the Sikh tenets that she was not even ready to pursue her studies back home. It is on my insistence that she has gone back to Fairbanks, where I will be joining her shortly," said Hardip.
He further said that they married in an Anand Karaj wedding ceremony here last year and the entire Peterson family was present. "She adjusted so well. She speaks Punjabi now and eats and prepares Punjabi food too. She wept profusely when I saw her off two weeks back at the airport. We talk to each other daily and she recites hymns from Guru Granth Sahib every day in her hostel," said Hardip Singh, whose family is also happy to have such a devoted Sikh at home.
Amritsar also hosts a Miri-Piri Academy, geared mostly to Sikhs from the diaspora, and many of the students here are children or grandchildren of converts to Sikhism and live in the Khalsa discipline.
"There are many women marrying amritdhari Sikh men, including Nihangs, these days. They are devoted to a life of Sikhi. Some couples go back to the U.S. and other countries, while some settle here. Those on our campus lead their life as per the teachings of the Sikh Gurus and Guru Granth Sahib," said Kiran Singh, Director of Miri-Piri Academy which was founded Singh Sahib Harbhajan Singh ji Yogi, known worldwide for having inspired many Westerners to Sikhism to convert to Sikhism.
The longest wedded mixed couple in the city is former cricketer Swaranjit Singh and his German wife, Irmengard. They first met at Cambridge University where they were students, and later fell in love and married. [Manmohan Singh - now Prime Minister of India - was a student at that time and as a friend of the couple, attended their wedding.]
"I was a cricketer and Irmen got a job in the Cultural Affairs Department of the Government of Germany," explains Swaranjit. "We have lived in a number of places, but finally decided to settle here," adds Irmen with pride writ large on her face.
She said although she is not a very religious person, she attends the gurdwara regularly with Swaran and she appreciates the devoted her husband has for Sikhi. Their son Ranjit lives in Germany but often comes here to stay with his parents.
[Courtesy: Indian Express. Edited for sikhchic.com]
February 10, 2011
http://www.sikhchic.com/people/east_west_do_meet_in_amritsar
by DHARMENDRA RATAUL
Amritsar, Punjab
The reported marriage of Alexandra Aitken, daughter of former British cabinet minister Jonathan Aitken, to Sardar Inderjot Singh is only the latest instance here of a woman from the West seeking spiritual bliss in Sikhism.
There are at least three recent instances of high-profile Western women converting to Sikhism after marrying amritdhari Sikhs and choosing to settle down in this city.
K. Peterson, hailing from Fairbanks, Alaska (U.S.A.), married Amritsar-based businessman Hardip Singh last year. She not only converted to Sikhism but also listens to the gurbani daily and maintains a Khalsa way of life.
"She is perhaps more devoted to the religion than me. She regularly recites shabads and visits the gurdwara," said Hardip, who met Peterson during a religious discourse as her mother also had a strong leaning towards the religion.
Peterson, now renamed Amrit Kaur, lives with Hardip's family in the city.
"She left for Fairbanks on January 18 to complete her Major in Languages in the University of Alaska. She is immersed in Sikhi and also wears a turban. She is so devoted to the Sikh tenets that she was not even ready to pursue her studies back home. It is on my insistence that she has gone back to Fairbanks, where I will be joining her shortly," said Hardip.
He further said that they married in an Anand Karaj wedding ceremony here last year and the entire Peterson family was present. "She adjusted so well. She speaks Punjabi now and eats and prepares Punjabi food too. She wept profusely when I saw her off two weeks back at the airport. We talk to each other daily and she recites hymns from Guru Granth Sahib every day in her hostel," said Hardip Singh, whose family is also happy to have such a devoted Sikh at home.
Amritsar also hosts a Miri-Piri Academy, geared mostly to Sikhs from the diaspora, and many of the students here are children or grandchildren of converts to Sikhism and live in the Khalsa discipline.
"There are many women marrying amritdhari Sikh men, including Nihangs, these days. They are devoted to a life of Sikhi. Some couples go back to the U.S. and other countries, while some settle here. Those on our campus lead their life as per the teachings of the Sikh Gurus and Guru Granth Sahib," said Kiran Singh, Director of Miri-Piri Academy which was founded Singh Sahib Harbhajan Singh ji Yogi, known worldwide for having inspired many Westerners to Sikhism to convert to Sikhism.
The longest wedded mixed couple in the city is former cricketer Swaranjit Singh and his German wife, Irmengard. They first met at Cambridge University where they were students, and later fell in love and married. [Manmohan Singh - now Prime Minister of India - was a student at that time and as a friend of the couple, attended their wedding.]
"I was a cricketer and Irmen got a job in the Cultural Affairs Department of the Government of Germany," explains Swaranjit. "We have lived in a number of places, but finally decided to settle here," adds Irmen with pride writ large on her face.
She said although she is not a very religious person, she attends the gurdwara regularly with Swaran and she appreciates the devoted her husband has for Sikhi. Their son Ranjit lives in Germany but often comes here to stay with his parents.
[Courtesy: Indian Express. Edited for sikhchic.com]
February 10, 2011
http://www.sikhchic.com/people/east_west_do_meet_in_amritsar
