Monthly Archive for January, 2007

Bliss, happiness and comfort!

Sahej Sukh Dhyaan is a wonderful and powerful meditation. Bliss, happiness and comfort! What could be better? We practiced it together at Sikh Student Camp last summer and a group of Singhs and Kaurs came together each morning to do it before morning Japji Sahib. If you practice it, it will give you a very calm mind and the ability to listen deeply and understand the root of any situation. Try starting with 5 minutes and work up to 11 minutes. You can do it for as long as you like, but I suggest 11 minutes for 40 days. Try it and see what happens! Report back in the comments here. Wahe Guru!

…..G

Download: Video / Audio

40 Day Sadhana Commitment (Care to join me?)

Someone forwarded me a link to the video (shown at the bottom of this post) and after watching it I started thinking about video….emotions…Sikhi…..and media. I have produced many short videos so understand the value of a good message, music and emotion. However, for some reason I started thinking, “What is the value of just evoking emotions in a video?”. I think it is important to understand the history and sacrifice that the sikhs before us made and to value being a Sikh. However, I am a person of action so like to try to encourage more than emotion. Ultimately if you don’t act and do something to develop that spiritual connection and practice the teachings of the Gurus, then it is just entertainment. We say “Proud to be Sikh”, but what does that mean? I don’t think it should just be a feeling of proudness that you are “in the Sikh club”. Wearing a turban or being in a Sikh family doesn’t make one a Sikh (in my opinion). Someone is a Sikh by their actions, not their family or outward appearance. These examples from our past should be there to inspire us all to strive to become betters Seekers (Sikhs). We all need to take action and work on ourselves.

Continue reading ‘40 Day Sadhana Commitment (Care to join me?)’

Anand Sahib Translation: Paurees 26-30

by Ek Ong Kaar Kaur Khalsa * ekongkaar.blogspot.com

After creating
The polarities
Of male and female

And through
the interaction
Of those energies,
Oh Love,

Your bring the Creation
Into a useful existence
Guided
By Your own command.

You bring the Creation
Into a useful existence
Guided
By Your own command

And You, Yourself,
Behold it.

Someone who flows
With the Sound of Wisdom

Comes to experience this
So deeply
They understand it
In the depth of their being.

To break out
Of the prison
That confines you

And become
Spiritually free

Continue reading ‘Anand Sahib Translation: Paurees 26-30′

Anand Sahib Translation: Paurees 21-25

by Ek Ong Kaar Kaur Khalsa. ekongkaar.blogspot.com

If someone seeking
Spiritual understanding
Abides with
The Sound of Wisdom

That person will become dedicated
And surrendered
To the guidance of the Teacher.

That person
Seeking spiritual understanding
Will become dedicated
And surrendered
To the guidance of the Teacher

Remaining focused
Within herself
on the Sound of Wisdom.

She meditates
On the feet of the Teacher
In her own heart.

And her very essence
Protects that relationship.

This experience
Causes her
To leave her ego behind,
Giving herself completely.

Without
The Sound of Wisdom
There is nothing else
Worth knowing.

Continue reading ‘Anand Sahib Translation: Paurees 21-25′

Tuning In & Feeling the Guru Within You

In this video Guruka Singh shares his thoughts about feeling the Guru within you. Presenting yourself before the Guru, and experiencing that state of surrender in which you are getting out of the way, letting go, and letting the Guru’s light fill you, and the Guru’s presence fill you. He uses the mantras: "Ong Namo Guru Dev Namo" and "Aad Guray nameh, Jugaad Guray nameh, Sat Guray nameh, Siri Guru Devay nameh."

Download: Video / Audio

Charanjeet Growing Up

Charanjeet Kaur has grown a lot. She is 7 months old today and changing so much. She has gone from the “baby blob” which can’t do much…to a Girl that is quite active and energetic. She is getting close to crawling…but is in so much of a hurry to stand. She is moving all over the place and really getting used to controlling her body. Her first tooth came in a week ago and she is eating food with us. When we eat at the table…if she doesn’t have food…she tries to go for our food. I can already tell that Charanjeet is going to be a strong woman. She knows what she wants and goes for it. It can be hard raising strong kids. Narayan and Charanjeet are both alike in this way. It takes a lot of discipline and patience. Charanjeet isn’t sleeping very well…which means Arjan isn’t either, so I am starting to take the “first shift” at night with Charanjeet so that Arjan can get a bit of sleep. I remember with Narayan the first year and a half we hardly got any sleep. It can be hard….and I am sure I am not alone in this type of thing when raising babies. In an older blog post that I wrote about my advice and experience of being married I talked about different stages being like Karate belts. I have to say that…now that I have a second child…I would have to add a level above the “black belt”. It’s a whole different level when you have more than one child. There are always so many things to take care of and never seems to be enough time. But I guess that is how life is….so we try to do the things that are most important and pressing.

One of the things that I have wanted to do was setup a forum or section where Sikh parents could dialog and discuss issues related to parenting. I’m sure people discuss this a bit…but I think a lot more could be done to help eachother and share experiences. It is not an easy task raising a Sikh child these days so whatever ways we can support eachother would be great.

Here are a few recent pictures of the kids…..

The World is Sound

by Sat Darshan Singh Khalsa - http://blog.withoutdefinition.com

OK, going to talk about something that may be a little controversial, but what are blogs for, eh? I’ve had or witnessed a couple of independent conversations that dealt with opposite sides of the same issue. Both of them made me feel kind of sad and angry as well. I have one very close friend who is relatively new to Sikhism, and her family has mixed feelings about it. They are all very open minded and universal, but they perceive Sikhism as being somewhat limited and ritualistic. My friend has said, and I agree with her, that Sikhism seems kind of insular from an outside perspective. And they also don’t understand why she would want to devote so much energy into Sikh music. It is hard for her because she’s stuck between 2 worlds that don’t really relate to each other.

I spent some of my weekend with Snatam and Guru Ganesha because they wanted me to record the intense Raag training that they had scheduled. It came up during one of the sessions that at a number of different Gurdwaras that they visited while on tour, the Granthis or heads of the Gurdwara wouldn’t let them play if they were going to include their non-sikh tabla player.

What has happened to Sikhism that these kind of things happen? Don’t get me wrong, I love being a Sikh, and nothing makes me feel more empowered than wearing my 5 Kakars and full bana, or when I do Panj Baniaa. But to me, Sikhism was founded on a few very basic principles. A sense of Seva, or selfless service, and very strong concept of all inclusion. The Siri Guru Granth Sahib is full of hymns written by a number of Hindu and Muslim saints, some that lived before Guru Nanak’s time. Members of all faiths were always welcome in Gurduara and the Lungar kitchen, and Guru Nanak’s own chela and Rhebab player was a devout Hindu. Sikhism has never preached that it wasn’t necessarily better than other religions or that other faiths aren’t valid. The reason Guru Nanak Ji offered a new path was much of Hinduism and Islam at the time was so corrupt and the people weren’t living their faith, not because the faith and philosophy itself wasn’t also a valid path to God.

Continue reading ‘The World is Sound’

Japji Sahib Courses: Crestone, Colorado and Phoenix, Arizona

by Ek Ong Kaar Kaur Khalsa - ekongkaar.blogspot.com

We interrupt the posting of the Anand Sahib Translation with a word from our sponsors. :)

To all of you who have emailed and written asking me to teach the Japji Sahib course in your area: By Guru’s grace, here are two upcoming opportunities to spend a weekend meditating on Guru Nanak’s Japji Sahib.

Take a break from your daily life, and open your heart to deeply understand the beautiful, powerful and elevating wisdom of Guru Nanak.

With a full-time job, I will be able to teach maybe three or four times this year. So please come join me if it’s possible for you, in Colorado or Arizona, in the first half of 2007.

Here are the dates and the details. By God’s grace, may we come be together, with each other, in the vibration of the Shabad Guru.

Continue reading ‘Japji Sahib Courses: Crestone, Colorado and Phoenix, Arizona’

Children See…. Children Do…

The below video is a clear display of how children learn from those around them. As parents we don’t always realize the things that our children are learning from us (both good and bad things) and from those around us.

“The video ‘Children See Children Do‘ was to let all adults know that they have an influence on children within their community and that they can make a difference to children’s well being.

The video creative team was trying to address the concept that responsibility for children’s well being goes beyond parents and child care professionals and rests with all of us. The video was to target the general public - all adults.”

An Invitation to Visit the True Tales Blog

True Tales, an informal memoir writing group (not necessarily a group of “writers”), was born in the Spring of 2002 out of several realizations: Much of the existing published history of 3HO and the birth and growth of Sikh Dharma in the West has been PR-oriented: focused on major events, leaders within our communities, significant activities, accomplishments, and, of course, the Siri Singh Sahib, Yogiji. For the most part, this history is missing countless little pieces: the peeks into lives, personal transformations and lessons learned that provide a fuller picture of who we really are, where we have come from, and the road we have traveled thus far. While True Tales began as a group for 3HO “old-timers” in L.A., it has evolved over the years to be much more, and to include really anyone who has a story to tell. While not everyone may be a great writer, everyone has a great story! Ours are really about the journey of life itself, the hand of Guru ever present in our lives, the transformation that can occur from a small event, a life-changing moment, a lesson learned, or simply the opening of one heart to another.

These small stories make the big story. Some of our stories are flat out hysterical, and others have been difficult to tell. Releasing them to the written word is cathartic and healing and allows us to inject into the story the wisdom and lessons learned from whatever the incident was. Sharing our stories with each other has proven to be just as potent. This process creates a sacred, intimate space in which our connections to each other are more fully realized and appreciated. So, even though sometimes the subject matter may be from a painful experience, the stories themselves are uplifting, provoke enlightening dialog and give insight into the nature of the spirit.

We hope you enjoy our stories, and we also welcome your contributions! We add new writings and readings just about weekly, plus there are book recommendations, writing tips, and more. www.ourtruetales.com

Siri Ved Kaur Khalsa
Hari Bhajan Kaur Khalsa