Sikhism part of 'great Hindi samaj' : RSS

[Harbhajan]

http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/may/02rss.htm

Sikhism part of 'great Hindu samaj': RSS

PTI | May 02, 2007 | 15:38 IST

The Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh�has described the Sikh faith as a separate religion belonging to 'one great Hindu samaj'.

In a view that may not go well with Bharatiya Janata Party's ally Akali Dal, the Sangh says it sees a 'problem' if minorities assume a 'political' character.

Spelling out its stand on minorities on its website under a mission header, it says it believes the Hindu Code Bill is applicable to Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists and that it should be applicable to all, including the Christians and the Muslims.

"The RSS believes in the plural structure of society. Therefore, it recognizes that there is bound to be a majority-minority syndrome, and hence each group, whether in the majority or minority, will have a distinct identity and distinct character," it says.

But minorities, according to the Sangh, should restrain themselves from overstepping their 'basic character'.

"...the majority-minority distinctions must be restricted to the bases on which the minority character is sought to be claimed...the problem arises when a particular minority transgresses the basis of its minority character and assumes a political one," it says.

In its stand on Sikhism, the Sangh has called it a separate religion but its followers part of Hindu samaj.

"We regard the Sikh religion as a separate religion, but we regard the Sikh people as belonging to our samaj. When we say that they are a part of the one great Hindu Samaj, we do not deny the existence of their separate religion and separate beliefs. The Hindu samaj is a commonwealth of many religions," it says.

The samaj, it adds, includes idol worshippers as well as those who oppose idol worship and those who accept the authority of the Vedas as well as those who do not.

They are all included in the wider Hindu conceptualisation, the Sangh says.

"Many Sikhs attend RSS Shakhas, but nobody is asked to remove his beard or his turban. The RSS will never try to obliterate the identity of the Sikhs. That will be against the very grain of the RSS," it says.

[Niranjana]

What does the Sangh mean by "Hindu" - Hindustani (i.e. Indian?)...or something else?

[chatanga]

the sangh talk rubbish at the best of times. who cares what they say? from the above statement they can say the whole world is part of the hindu samaj.

chatanga

[Xylitol]

The sangh attempts to make the word Indian = Hindu. So basically, all groups are part of the Hindu identity one way or another. If they choose to not be Hindu, than they are meant to be 'outsiders' with way less rights, way less respect, and treated with less dignity. they are expected to be subservient to some (great) degree.

Their basic viewpoint is stated by one of thier former supreme leaders Gowalkar. Officially, Hindutva activists/sangh have distanced themselves from Gowalkar's statements. But, when we look at their actions, their organising of pogroms (not riots, but totally one sided organised massacres), how they systematically isolate minorities, how they systematically gain followers, we see that they clearly follow Hindutva and the policy of Hinduisation of all Indians.

[Niranjana]

Xylitol, I believe you have hit the nail on the head!

[Guest Javanmard]

marg bar Rss marg bar Hindutva!!!

[Harbhajan]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/Pr...f4-184fc761ae60

Hemendra Singh Bartwal

New Delhi, May 03, 2007

SGPC reacts on RSS statement on sikh religion

The RSS’ attempt to put at rest earlier controversies by redefining its stand on the Sikh faith, saying that it is a separate religion but part of the larger Hindu samaj, has only complicated matters further with the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) adopting a hard stance and objecting to this view.

“We regard the Sikh religion as a separate religion, but we regard the Sikh people as belonging to our samaj.When we say that they are a part of the one great Hindu samaj, we do not deny the existence of their separate religion and separate beliefs.The Hindu samaj is a commonwealth of many religions,†it was stated on the RSS official website while clarifying their stand on minorities.

It stated that the RSS held the belief that the Hindu Code Bill is applicable to Sikhs , Jains and Buddhista alike and it should be applicable to others like Christians and Muslims too.

Reacting sharply to the RSS statement, SGPC President Avtar Singh Makkar asserted that the Sikhs have their own separate identity and are not a part of the Hindu samaj.

Speaking to HT, he questioned the RSS authority for raising such controversies time and again. “How can the RSS claim that Sikhs are part of the Hindu samaj.We believe only in Guru Granth Sahib and are ordered by the highest Sikh temporal seat,†he said while advising the Sangh not to expand their domain unnecessarily.

On the issue of applicability of the Hindu Code Bill to all minorities as well,the veteran Sikh leader pointed out that they had been opposed to the idea for long.

“The Sikhs should not be covered under the Hindu Marriage Act.The government should implement the Anand Marriage Act while accepting Sikhs as a separate community,†he said.

In what may not be to the liking ot the Akalis, allies of the BJP, the Sangh has also expressed the view that it sees a “problem†of minorities assume a political character.

“The majority-minority distinctions must be restricted to the bases on which the minority character is sought to be claimed ... The problem arises when a particular minority transgresses the basis of its minority character and assumes a political one,â€it said.

A heated controversy had broken out on the RSS view of the Sikh identity some years ago when the Sangh leaders had described Sikhism as a part of the Hindu religion saying that they did not consider it as a separate entity.On strong protests from Sikh religious leaders, the RSS had then sought to tone down their stand.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/Pr...f4-184fc761ae60

© Copyright 2007 Hindustan Times

[khalsa123]

waheguru ji kha khalsa

waheguru ji ki fateh.

Has any one watched this film?

I was given a film in the southall area a little while ago. It was the most powerfullest sikh film that i have ever seen.The film was called sawa lakh se ek ladaun . I did not watch this film once nor twice but 4 times the film is constructed in such a way that by watching the film it leaves you shocked at what is really going on in the sikh world.you cant but just help to watch it again and again. The film is availible in punjabi and english.The level of effort which has been poured into this film is amazing.there is also a 1 hour and half speach in the programme which is something quite diffrent to what i have evere heard before it is stromg to the point and true. drugs, superstition, punjab , false saints, rss ,rhada swami, ashootosh have been highlighted in this film. The film is about 5 hours long the (english) 1 dvd. Punjabi version has 2 dvds which has xtra added scenes at the end. the english version does not come with xtra addes scenes so you have to watch the punjabi version to see the xtra footage. I strongly advise people to watch the punjabi version as well as it has some scenes which definatly need to be viewed. It is about time some 1 got up and done something positive. The organisation also does not ask for any money donation this is the 1st time i have ever seen this at a scale of this size. You can see that this film has been made from the heart. You can obtain a copy by visiting www.ukgurdwarasurveyteam.com

waheguru ji kha khalsa

waheguru ji ki fateh.