Hi I'm Interested In Sikhism

[lightlamp4]

Hi. my name is cameron. im 17. and i am interested in getting closer to Sikhism and closer to God and having more of it in my life. as i really like the sikh way of life. I dont have any religion or faith right now but i want to. Any advice?

 

[Harry Haller]

Re: hi im intrested in Sikhism

Welcome!!

the easiest way? follow the discussions, read topics in the archives, this will give you a broad idea of all the arguments rather than limiting yourself to one opinion. Ask questions, all the ones on your mind, people like you are a godsend as you ask questions that get us all thinking, so ask away!

 

[lightlamp4]

Re: hi im intrested in Sikhism

Welcome!!

the easiest way? follow the discussions, read topics in the archives, this will give you a broad idea of all the arguments rather than limiting yourself to one opinion. Ask questions, all the ones on your mind, people like you are a godsend as you ask questions that get us all thinking, so ask away!

Thanks. Well something i want to know is. What does Sikhism say about non sikhs? Is it like other religions that say you need god. and you should believe. Or is it more relaxed in that way?

 

[Rory]

What does Sikhism say about non sikhs? Is it like other religions that say you need god. and you should believe. Or is it more relaxed in that way?

From what I know, Sikhi is relatively disinterested in the lives of non-Sikhs (a refreshing difference compared to many other religions). I'll put it this way; there's no punishment for not being a Sikh. The most important thing is to live a good and meaningful life, you do not need to be a Sikh to do this and for some people, other religions might best inspire them to live well. The Gurus taught a way of life the majority of which would seem like common sense, if you listen truly to your conscience I think you would hear the same messages the Gurus preached. People of other religions are entitled to their beliefs and should not be coerced or forced out of their religion for any reason, in fact Guru Tegh Bahadur-ji was one of the only martyrs in history to die for people of another religion! He died defending the freedom of the Hindus to practice their faith when they were being persecuted by the Moghul rulers.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/satpa...tegh-bahadur-sikh-thanksgiving_b_1109270.html
Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

Anywho, welcome to SPN lightlamp ji
There are a small number of people here who are non-Punjabi or were not born Sikhs and have taken an interest in Sikhi, including me. I'm about your age so I hope you stick around, we can all learn from eachother. The community here is one of the best places to get learning about Sikhism, everyone here as far as I have met is really well-intentioned and thoughtful. The people here are more than happy to answer any little question you might have
Hope you stick around!

 

[Kanwaljit.Singh]

It would be great if you can visit the Gurudwara in your community (hopefully there would be one nearby!). And start going there. We can guide you how to be part of it

So they can be your primary learning source and we can be backup

 

[lightlamp4]

It would be great if you can visit the Gurudwara in your community (hopefully there would be one nearby!). And start going there. We can guide you how to be part of it

So they can be your primary learning source and we can be backup

Yeah sure. what can i do there?

 

[Harry Haller]

Re: hi im intrested in Sikhism

Thanks. Well something i want to know is. What does Sikhism say about non sikhs? Is it like other religions that say you need god. and you should believe. Or is it more relaxed in that way?

A lot of non Sikhs lead more Sikh lives than some Sikhs.

As for the others live and let live, we are here to serve. not to judge.

Are they right and are we wrong? If faith, even atheistic, makes them good people then they are in the right, we believe in tuning the inner to the Creator, to connect and to then emulate the qualities of Creator, to have no enemies, to be a support to anyone, to know the truth and live by it, to defend the weak, help the poor, most religions have aspects of these that can be respected and admired.

One does not need God, I personally see it more as the truth, plain and simple, it is a very basic view, but a God implies a bearded type on a cloud.

When you make a decision and you know its wrong, you cannot plead you did not know, because on a basic level you know what is right. A connection with this truth, this force of Creation, this ultimate eternal Ik On Kar, opens your eyes to bigger truths, it takes away the fog of life, it shows you how it really is.

To do this we read and understand the teachings of the ten humans that were blessed with enough wisdom and understanding to impart it to us, it is recorded in the volumes of the SGGS.

 

[lightlamp4]

Re: hi im intrested in Sikhism

A lot of non Sikhs lead more Sikh lives than some Sikhs.

As for the others live and let live, we are here to serve. not to judge.

Are they right and are we wrong? If faith, even atheistic, makes them good people then they are in the right, we believe in tuning the inner to the Creator, to connect and to then emulate the qualities of Creator, to have no enemies, to be a support to anyone, to know the truth and live by it, to defend the weak, help the poor, most religions have aspects of these that can be respected and admired.

One does not need God, I personally see it more as the truth, plain and simple, it is a very basic view, but a God implies a bearded type on a cloud.

When you make a decision and you know its wrong, you cannot plead you did not know, because on a basic level you know what is right. A connection with this truth, this force of Creation, this ultimate eternal Ik On Kar, opens your eyes to bigger truths, it takes away the fog of life, it shows you how it really is.

To do this we read and understand the teachings of the ten humans that were blessed with enough wisdom and understanding to impart it to us, it is recorded in the volumes of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji.

Ok so what about someone like me? what benefits would i get for being a sikh? or at least adopting some of it in my life

 

[Luckysingh]

Re: hi im intrested in Sikhism

Ok so what about someone like me? what benefits would i get for being a sikh? or at least adopting some of it in my life

You would hopefully get a better understanding of Truth and living by the truth.
It should hopefully change your way of thinking- But don't get me wrong, this is none of the brainwashing that goes on in cults and certain religous groups but more of a changing the way you think in terms of finding yourself.
This 'finding yourself' by living the sikh way will help you to start understanding God creator and the whole creation.

You will also find much use and help by following discussions as Harryji has kindly pointed out above.
No one will demand that you do this or you should do that as you may find on other forums.

All the best and don't shy away from asking ANYTHING !!:kaurkhalsaflagblue:

 

[lightlamp4]

Re: hi im intrested in Sikhism

You would hopefully get a better understanding of Truth and living by the truth.
It should hopefully change your way of thinking- But don't get me wrong, this is none of the brainwashing that goes on in cults and certain religous groups but more of a changing the way you think in terms of finding yourself.
This 'finding yourself' by living the sikh way will help you to start understanding God creator and the whole creation.

You will also find much use and help by following discussions as Harryji has kindly pointed out above.
No one will demand that you do this or you should do that as you may find on other forums.

All the best and don't shy away from asking ANYTHING !!:kaurkhalsaflagblue:

OK that sounds pretty good. Where should I start?

 

[Rory]

OK that sounds pretty good. Where should I start?

You can read the Shri Guru Granth Saheb (also spelled Sri Guru Granth Sahib or Siri Guru Granth Sahib, no big difference) online in English at a few different locations.
Here are some good ones to begin with
http://www.gurbanifiles.org/translations/English%20Translation%20of%20Siri%20Guru%20Granth%20Sahib.pdf

http://srigranth.org/

http://www.searchgurbani.com/guru_granth_sahib/ang_by_ang

It's important to remember that Gurbani (the verses contained within the Sri Guru Granth Sahib) was written rhythmically to be recited to music. When Gurbani is recited to music it is called Kirtan (or Kirtan Gurbani). It is nearly always sung in Punjabi but even if you can't follow the words it's still beneficial to listen to.
http://www.sikhnet.com/gurbani is a good website to listen to Gurbani but my advice is a little discretion when visiting other parts of that site.

The most important thing I would say is not to rush. Take time to discover what Sikhism really is before you commit to anything.
If you feel you'd like to, you can visit a gurdwara. You live in the UK so it shouldn't be too hard to find one close to you, unlike here in Ireland where there are only two small gurdwaras.
This map http://www.sikhnet.com/news/gurdwara-locator-map can help you find a gurdwara, or if you know any Sikhs you could ask them to take you along for a visit sometime, maybe on a day when the gurdwara is not very busy so you can have time to look around.

There are many educational videos on YouTube.
This one will give you a good rough perspective on most of the things you should know about the history of Sikhism, though it focuses mainly on the political history of Sikhs in India 88 Min - BBC Documentary (1997) abt Sikhs - Who are the Sikhs? Singh, Kaur, Khalsa, 1984, Punjab - YouTube

:singhsippingcoffee:

 

[linzer]

Lamplight4 ji,
Welcome. I recomend reading up on the history of Sikhi as well. When seen in it's historical context , the teachings of Guru ji are even more amazing.
This site http://www.globalsikhstudies.net/ has a lot of good articles.
Again welcome.

 

[aristotle]

Try this link....Its easy on mind, with some illustrations:
http://www.sikhnet.com/stories
:sippingcoffeemunda:

 

[Ikk Khalsa]

LightLamp,

I have just one advice for you; if you have any questions please ask someone on this site because there are some sites and even Gurdwaras which say or do stuff that is not in line with Sikhism.