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PEACE THROUGH DIALOGUE-SIKHISM
Ever see a flower vase containing flowers of different colors. Each flower is contributing its beauty, and its fragrance to the entire bunch of flowers but still maintains its own identity. The rose still remains to be the rose, the lily flower remains to be a lily, and the carnation remains to be the carnation. God created the universe in the same fashion as he created the nature. He created each human being different from each other. No one voice or one person matches with the other. You could recognize the voice of a friend even from far off distances. He created different colors of the human beings as well, some black, some white, some brown, and some yellow. God created this diversity in the universe to create the beauty so we don't get bored of looking at only one kind of thing. He made this universe so beautiful that no one wants to die whether it's a creature that flies, swims, crawls, or walks. Humanity at large did not appreciate this beauty in diversity. A person of one color started feeling superior to one of another color. A person of one religion started feeling superior to a person of another religion.
Dr. Harsimran Singh
New York drsaab@optonline.net
The principles of Sikhism are based upon equality and justice to all without any discrimination to age, gender, status, origin or in any other respect. The world needs to wake up to the realization of understanding each other's faiths and religions so the humanity at large loves each other rather than hate because of religious boundaries.
Dr. Harsimran Singh has authored several books on Sikhism including
the Divine Power, the A to Z's of Healing
Through Prayer, the Spiritual Power; and the Power of Prayer.
He has been on several interfaith panels,
and conducted many symposia on the miraculous power of prayer through
the Divine Power, Inc.
Let me just give a few briefs of the Sikh religion. The word Sikh originates from the Pali texts in which the word Sikho is used as the searcher of truth. It was in the 15th Century that the Indian subcontinent had two pre-dominant faiths which were Islam and Hinduism. During those days certain practices such as female infanticide, sati, forcible burning of widows on their husband's pyres, polygamy, practices of ritualism, superstitions, and the caste system whereby unsociability was common. It was at that time there was a need for a voice that could say that all humanity is created by God and they are all equal, all days are auspicious, no time or place can be sacred in itself. That voice was the voice of Guru Nanak with a command to him. "Oh Nanak here is the liquid of immortality, go drink it in my name. I am with you and I bless you, go rejoice in my name and preach to others the lesson of nondiscrimination and equality. Let this be your calling."
For the society which was so much infested with the human degradation, it was not possible to accomplish to convey the message of God within Guru Nanak's own lifetime. So the divine light that Guru Nanak had gotten as a direct revelation from God passed on to nine more living Gurus and finally to the holy book Shri Guru Granth Sahib. Each Guru laid emphasis on one or the other aspect of life during this period of 250 years.
The first Guru, Nanak, rebelled against futile practices, empty rituals, superstitions and idol worshipping etc. He gave the humanity a lesson of one God who is infinite and all powerful.
14th Biennial JAINA Convention 2007
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PEACE THROUGH DIALOGUE
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