Mehtab Singh

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Maharaj...how/3460304.cms He was called the Lion of Punjab. And among the many precious treasures he owned was the priceless Kohinoor diamond. It comes as little surprise, then, that a 1 metre, 38 cm tall bust of Punjab's Maharaja Ranjit Singh is attracting worldwide interest before it goes under the hammer at an international auction. The milk white sculpture has been priced between £50,000 and £70,000 (Rs 45,00,000 and Rs 63,00,000 ) and will be be auctioned at the Bonhams Indian and Islamic sale on October 9 in London. This is not the first time items related to Indian royalty have gone under the hammer. "Last year we sold a bust of Ranjit Singh's son, Duleep Singh, for £1.7m. Then, there was the Shah Jahan dagger we sold in April this year and the inscribed spinel of Shah Jahan that we sold in October 2000," said Clare Penhallurick, Head of Indian and Islamic Art at Bonhams. And contrary to perception, Penhallurick points out, "There is a worldwide market for items related to Indian royalty that attracts many non-Asian buyers. Of course, many Indian pieces are bought by Indians, both resident and NRI." Price-wise, Indian art and artefacts are not in the A-league yet. "Prices have risen considerably in the past few years; however, it is still possible to buy works of art by major Indian artists for relatively less than the comparable Western counterpart. So it's still a good time to buy," she adds. Ranjit Singh was referred to as Sher-e-Punjab and is credited with the beautification of the Harmandir Sahib with marble and gold, from which the popular name of the Golden Temple is derived. "For sealing Punjab's borders against invaders from Afghanistan and central Asia, to having an army that had both Sikh and Muslim soldiers fighting side by side, Ranjit Singh was probably the most secular, honest and generous ruler Punjab has had. No wonder he was called the Lion of Punjab," says Dharam Singh, professor head of the School of Punjabi Studies at Amritsar's Guru Nanak Dev University. Indian artefacts have had pride of place at many international auctions.

Just a few hours ago I heard on Radio Sukhsagar UK on the news dispatch from Punjab that there was bhog and ardas done for Phoola at Takht Sri Damdama Sahib, followed by keertan and then he was declared "shaheed". I am not too sure if this has been published in any print media yet. Someone please confirm.

http://publication.samachar.com/pub_articl...al&moreurl= http://publication.samachar.com/hindustant...hp&homeurl= http://www.samachar.com/mostread.php The Bihar floods have opened new opportunities for some people to make hay when the sun shines. The Madhepura district administration has drafted private boatmen for relief operations. But the hands extended to the marooned people in the daytime — Dr Jekyll style — do a Mr Hyde after sundown. Many women have accused the boatmen of molestation. When this reporter drove from Purnia to nearby villages in Madhepura, several women alleged that boatmen did not only misbehave but were even involved in incidents of loot. Though no woman Hindustan Times spoke to was a victim, several claimed to have seen boatmen misbehaving with young women. “Some of these boatmen are not even sparing pregnant women,” said Rita Devi of Murliganj block. Bhawanand Rishidev of Barmatra village in Araria district said, “I saw a boatman raping a young woman in Bhangaha village. but when I tried to raise an alarm, my own boatman threatened to push me into the river.” Mohammad Badrool, who had come from Ludhiana to be with his family, said, “At Laxmipur village, the district administration has pressed motor boats into service, but the boatmen claim they have not been given money for fuel. Those who desperately want a ride are asked to cough up between Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 per trip per family.” There are also widespread allegations that the boatmen rob people who cannot pay. “We want the authorities to depute a policeman or a magistrate on each boat to protect the flood victims,” said Badrool.

http://publication.samachar.com/pub_articl...ww.samachar.com Melbourne, September 3: A private school in the Australian city of Brisbane, which refused admission to a Sikh boy because he wore turban, has tendered a public apology and is reviewing its strict uniform norms as part of an out-of-court settlement with his family. The student’s family, which cannot be named for legal reasons, lodged a claim earlier this year with the Anti- Discrimination Commission of Queensland against Brisbane’s Ormiston College and its headmaster Brett Webster after they were told that their 12-year-old son could only attend school if he cut his hair and did not wear turban. “Ormiston College has apologised for any hurt that may have resulted from the decision, and have undertaken to review their enrolment practices and uniform policy to ensure that it does not act in breach of the Anti-Descrimination Act 1991 (Queensland),†it said in a statement. An out-of-court settlement was reached in recent weeks after the school agreed to issue a public apology and pay the family undisclosed compensation, ‘The Australian’ reported. Ormiston College on Tuesday confirmed the settlement, which thwarts a public trial. The family’s lawyer Scott McDougall said “the main thing they wanted was broader understanding within the community to the importance of being able to choose an education whilst maintaining your religious beliefs and identity.†He said his clients were happy with the confidential settlement. “We’re hopeful that other schools will take note and it won’t be repeated upon the Sikh community,†he said, adding the boy was attending another private school where he was allowed to wear his turban. Webster said the school was pleased the case was now resolved. The Anti-Discrimination Tribunal case was the first of its kind involving a Sikh student in Australia.

Hanji there are.

Oh my God!!!!!! This guy is amazing!!!!!!!! He can even recite Gurbani!!!!!!!!

http://publication.samachar.com/pub_articl...es.samachar.com New Delhi: The Indian - Films Studio18 released Singh is Kinng took home the box office gold internationally, emerging as the biggest Bollywood film of 2008 and the numero uno in the career of its protagonist and superstar Akshay Kumar. In addition to the key overseas markets, US/Canada, UK and UAE, Singh is Kinng saw a wide day-and-date release by Studio18 in Trinidad and Tobago, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Mauritius, Fiji, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Africa, East Africa, West Africa, Australia and New Zealand, among other countries. Distributed on 275 prints in international markets, Singh is Kinng mopped up more than INR 12 cr (approx. US$ 3 million) just in its opening weekend. In North America, on 112 prints — including 28 prints in Canada where it's the widest release for a Bollywood film ever — Singh is Kinng popped open to a thunderous response ringing up an estimated $1.2 million. In UK and Ireland, on 70 prints, the movie grossed £62,533 on its previews and notched a solid £430,748 over the weekend. Taking its total to a gigantic £493,281 and placing it at number seven in the UK Top 10 chart. In terms of per theatre average for the weekend, Singh is Kinng devoured the prevailing Hollywood blockbusters in the UK, much the same as the US, where it was ranked at number15. In the Middle East, on 33 prints, the gross was in excess of 2.02 million AED. The movie also features a much-hyped collaboration on the title track with legendary rapper, Snoop Doggy Dogg.

http://publication.samachar.com/pub_articl...ww.samachar.com Melbourne, "August 12: A 23-year-old Indian taxi driver was verbally abused and attacked by a passenger in Melbourne, latest in a series of targeting cabbies from South Asian countries. Lakhvir Singh who picked up a passenger late night on weekend was attacked by the commuter when he got out of the cab to close the door left open by the man. Singh was repeatedly kicked and punched by the passenger waiting outside for him who had also hit him in the hands with the credit card imprinter from the cab after Singh asked for the fare, reports said adding he has deep cuts on his fingers. Superintendent Chris Ferguson, Victoria police’s liaison officer for the taxi industry, denied any racial motivation in the incident. However, Singh claimed his attacker had racially taunted him, calling him “his little slave†while on the phone to a friend. Taxi drivers were sometimes viewed as soft targets but police had a good record in catching the attackers, Ferguson quoted by ‘The Age’ that such attacks were detrimental to the taxi industry as a lot of good drivers are leaving because of the dangers. In the first week of the month two Indian drivers were attacked and robbed at knifepoint while more than 10 Melbourne cabbies have been robbed mostly at night since driver Jalvinder Singh suffered near fatal injuries three months ago that was resulted in a city blockade by taxi drivers here.

http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user...p;search=Search

the topic was supposed to be Daily Hukamnama Translation by Akali Nihang Sukha Singh Ji UK waale...plzz change it...thanks

Check out http://hukam.sikhnet.com/ everyday when you read the daily Hukamnama. I highly recommend it to everyone. Thank you

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2008/20080807/punjab1.htm#7 Otalana shows the way Respect for girl child Sarbjit Dhaliwal Tribune News Service Samrala, August 6 Otalana village, at a short distance from here, has a different and inspiring story about girl child. The girl child is held in high esteem in the village. Before starting a new work, blessings of the girl child or unmarried girl, are sought by all families in the village. “ Whenever we wear new clothes , we first touch feet of the girl with clothesâ€, says Darbara Singh, a village elder. “ It is a custom in our villageâ€, he adds. At the main entrance of the village, huge “ darwajaâ€( an arch- shaped gate) has been bult in the memory of a girl, who, it is said, had preferred ending life for her and village’s honour four centuries ago. “ Khera -dhee-dhiani( village of girl) has been inscribed in Punjabi on the front arch of the structure. “ Dhee-dhiani in Punjabi is used to give respect to a girlâ€, says Behari Lal Saddi, a retired teacher and writer of the village. “Long back our elders constructed 12 such structures in the village. Six of them are intact and others are in a poor shape. We have decided to reconstruct all those againâ€, says Shamsher Singh, a retired police official of the village. “ The main entrance structure had also collapsed but its roof was recently replacedâ€, adds the police official.“ When the main entrance structure was partially rebuilt sometime back, first brick was laid by seven village girls and Prito, who is an old woman now called “ bhua†by the entire villageâ€, says Dr Harbans Singh, sarpanch of the village. All these structures are dedicated to girls. Centuries ago, it is said, Nawab of Sirhind had taken a village girl away with the intention to marry her. However, she refused. Before ending her life, she called her brothers and told them to give a message to all people in the village to hold girls in high esteem. Since them, it has become a tradition to seek blessings of a girl before starting a work. Each year, in the last week of August a festival is held in the village in the memory of that girl. On that day community kitchen of sweets is held. No marriage party of the village boy leaves for bride’s place without paying obeisance at the memorial raised for the girl at the main entrance of the village. On female foeticide in the village, Dr Harbans Singh said he had not heard about any case so far in this regard. “ Our village appears to be above board in this regardâ€, he adds. Every village can become Otalana provided an initiative is taken by wise men of the state in this regard.

This article was posted on many Sikh forums and mailing lists a few years ago, and is making the rounds once again. Its worth a re-read. http://www.sikhnet.com/Sikhnet/news.nsf/Ne...CB!OpenDocument http://www.realsikhism.com/testimonies/atheism.html http://www.sikhsangat.org/news/publish/ame...eists3452.shtml Dear Ali, please help us. We were very impressed with your website and agreed that religion in general is no longer needed, we can all be humanistic and live in peace and harmony. We are in the process of making a website which will hopefully help to destroy the religious doctrines which divide humanity. We were doing great with knocking out Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Baha'i, even Buddhism but we have gotten very stuck with Sikhism. This religion is (to put it nicely) "a big pain in the a$$" (Please pardon the language) We have only found one site which tries (very poorly) to argue that even this religion is not needed, but the argument is irrational and very unscientific unlike the very rational arguments you use. When we read the following from your website, we found what you said to be amazingly interesting: "Doubt Everything Find Your Own Light." "Last Words Dear friend, if you look for meaning in life, don’t look for it in religions; don’t go from one cult to another or from one guru to the next. You can expend all your life or look for eternity and will find nothing but disappointment and disillusionment. Look instead in service to humanity. You will find “meaning†in your love for other human beings. You can experience God when you help someone who needs your help. The only truth that counts is the love that we have for each other. This is absolute and real. The rest is mirage, fancies of human imagination and fallacies of our own making." By Ali Sina Why is this interesting? Because we found this religion of Sikhism to be in agreement with you! This is why we have a problem. We tried to look at their holy text (Adi Granth) but didn't find the usual absurdities we found in the other religious books. In fact its refreshingly inspiring and very good!? Maybe you can have some better luck. We tried to visit a couple of websites and got more of a shock. Did you know that they believed in Democracy, freedom of speech, choice, expression, freedom of religion, pluralism, human rights, equality between men and women, equality of all people regardless of race, religion, caste, creed, status etc. 300 years before the existance of the USA! Theirs is the only religion which says in their religious scriptures that women are equal in every respect to men. They even had women soldiers leading armies in to battle against "you know who" (The usual suspects - Muslims!) Their history is a proud one, they fought in both World Wars. Even Hitler praised them for their bravery and Aryan heritage! Dear Ali, this religion is hard for us to try and criticise but you are an expert and may find some faults overlooked by us. In their holy book, there is a round earth, water is made from chemical elements, there is even mention of the evoution process, big bang and life on other planets! This is pretty crazy and amazing stuff, who would have thought that these New York taxi drivers (There are lots of Sikh taxi drivers in NY) would have such an amzing faith? We read up some information of what Bertrand Russell had to say about Sikhism, this is the man who destroyed Christianity (same applies to Islam and Judaism) and exposed its absurdities, but even this great man got stuck when it came to Sikhism! In fact he gave up and said "that if some lucky men survive the onslaught of the third world war of atomic and hydrogen bombs, then the Sikh religion will be the only means of guiding them. Russell was asked that he was talking about the third world war, but isn't this religion capable of guiding mankind before the third world war? In reply, Russell said, "Yes, it has the capability, but the Sikhs have not brought out in the broad daylight, the splendid doctrines of this religion which has come into existence for the benefit of the entire mankind. This is their greatest sin and the Sikhs cannot be freed of it." Please bear in mind that Bertrand Russell was a great philosopher and free thinker. We have been trying for weeks now to find a way to fairly and rationally criticize and find fault with this religion but have failed. We even found out that there are many people converting to this religion in the USA and Europe as well as Russia (Mostly well educated and affluent white people). We tried to find some of their literature and see what kind of claims they make, but unfortunatley they have no missionary material as they do not have missionsaries! People become Sikh by learning usually by chance or by coming in to contact with them. They are currently the 5th biggest religion in the world and growing quite fast in the west and Russia. Please help us as we are stuck, to give you an example of they are all about we found the following websites: http://www.sikhnet.com (This is a pretty good site and helpful) http://www.hope.at/sikhism (This site is very easy to follow, check it out, they have a Womans section and a Martyrs section, it looks like that you are not the only one trying to expose the falseness of Islam, Sikhs scholars did it hundreds of years ago and got killed for it!) http://www.sikhs.org (This is the site that was on CNN when Sikhs in the USA were mistaken for Arabs and Middle Easterners and were attacked by mindless morons) Please help us out, we cant make our website about religion being the cause of war and disharmony when we have this one and only religion which makes a hell of a lot of sense! lol (I thought Atheism had all the answers but were kind of stuck now.) We look forward to hearing from you, we respect your great views and want to promote them to everyone, thank you for your time, take care.

http://www.merinews.com/catFull.jsp?articleID=130679 The importance of Kaur Jayati Chakraborty, 01 March 2008, Saturday Have you ever thought why Guru Ji, Guru Gobind Singh, gave the Kaur surname to Sikh women? Why did he not accept the status quo and keep the tradition of the woman's surname being determined by her family's name? WHAT WAS Guru Ji trying to achieve by calling the Sikh woman ‘a princess’ (literal meaning of Kaur)? To try to understand the possible reasons behind Guru Ji’s decision, we need to look at the situation at the time in different cultures. In Indian society, the brides first and last name was often changed after her marriage. This still happens today. However, this tradition of name changing does not occur just in India. It is a phenomenon, which occurs across the whole world today. Why are women’s surnames changed? The reason is family linkage. Surnames allow others to identify you and your family. In some cases the surname can tell others much more about you, such as your caste. For women the linkage to family is different in comparison to men. Their identity changes with marriage. They are no longer associated with their parents, but with their husband’s family. Unsurprisingly, the man’s name never changes. Some cultures go as far as considering the woman to be the property of others. This was so for the Hindu Law giver, Manu, who claimed that no woman should ever be independent. Christianity considered woman to be a product of man as Eve had come from ‘the rib’ of Adam. Psychologically, women have accepted these unjust rules. They are resigned to male dominance and allowed themselves to become second-class citizens. Guru ji changed all this with the revelation of the Khalsa. He gave women the opportunity to live life free of the chains of a dogmatic society. It was God’s Hukam (will). Once initiated into the Khalsa, Sikh women obtain the surname Kaur. The surname Singh (Lion) is given to men, but Kaur (princess) is reserved solely for women. This difference in names is not about inequality. Rather, Guru ji recognises the difference between men and women. As individuals we are all different from each other, but this difference does not imply inequality. Women and men are different but remain equals. Guru ji considered women and men to be unique. He respected the sexes and, therefore, made the distinction in surnames. When you take ‘amrit’ you are told to consider Guru Gobind Singh as your father and Mata Sahib Kaur as your mother. By joining the Khalsa you abandon all previous chains of linkage. You become the direct descendants of Guru Gobind Singh and Mata Sahib Kaur. You become their sons and daughters. The Khalsa becomes your family. Thus, from the day you are born to the day you die your name remains the same. You do not have to change it due to marriage. Unfortunately, the tradition of using the ‘Kaur’ surname has all but disappeared amongst Sikh women. It is either dropped, in favour of caste surnames, or misused as a middle name. Guru Ji never designed it as such. Have we not belittled his concepts? Have we lost so much self-esteem that we must copy the bigoted traditions of others? Sikh women are today demanding equal rights. Rightly so. However, they fail to realise that they themselves create inequality by not considering themselves princesses. They no longer consider themselves as daughters of the Khalsa. Why should Sikh women feel that they must change their names after marriage? By keeping your unique and beautiful Sikh identity you are maintaining the freedom given to you by Guru ji. Ultimately, only those who keep the ‘Kaur’ surname can truly understand its importance. Others will make excuses about the difficulty of having such a common surname It makes paper work and identification difficult! Why make such excuses? We do not hear Patels or Smiths complaining. Mere excuses. The importance of ‘Kaur’ is truly inexpressible. It is something very unique in the history of the world. Of late more and more Sikhs are dropping Singh and Kaur from their names. They probably are not aware of the Blessings of Guru Gobind Singh Ji who gifted these decorations to them. Removing or abbreviating the decorations with S and K is to ape the western culture. In India surnames were initially introduced by the Brahmins to distinguish people of four varna as per their belief. Subsequently the British introduced the system for all those enrolled in government services. Today, abbreviating the middle name or totally eliminating it has become a fashion. People who are settled abroad have degraded their self-respect to such levels that they feel elated to be called Garry for Gurpreet, Harry for Harpreet, Harmeet, Harbhajan, etc. Common reason given for such an attitude is that the Westerners cannot understand, pronounce or remember the difficult Indian names. My suggestion to all such Sikhs is to introduce themselves merely as Singh and Kaur, which are very simple and short names. Even in India Sikhs are generally called by a single name of Sardar Ji. Why can’t a similar procedure be adopted universally?

http://publication.samachar.com/pub_articl...ww.samachar.com Kirpan barred, so Sikh group to skip meeting with Pope A Sikh organisation in the US will skip a scheduled meeting with Pope Benedict XVI in Washington, DC, next month because its representatives have been been asked not to carry kirpans to the event. The World Sikh Council - America Region (WSC-AR) decided against attending the April 17 inter-religious meeting with the visiting pope because the US Secret Service refused to allow the kirpan, the ceremonial dagger that is one of the five articles of faith for Sikhs. "We have to respect the sanctity of the kirpan, especially at such inter-religious gatherings. We cannot undermine the rights and freedoms of religion in the name of security," said Anahat Kaur, secretary general of the WSC-AR, in a press release Friday. She pointed out that Sikhs wearing their kirpans had met Pope John Paul II in the Vatican. Disappointed with the US agency responsible for security of visiting leaders, WSC-AR has called upon it to respect the religious rights and freedoms of the Sikh community. In 2004, the then chairperson of WSC-AR, Kuldeep Singh, was also forced to decline an invitation to the White House on the kirpan issue. The National Council of Churches in the US had supported the position taken by WSC-AR. The WSC-AR continues to be concerned that at events held by Sikh organisations at the White House and Capitol Hill, Sikhs are still refused the right to wear their kirpans. WSC-AR had expressed solidarity with the Sikh Federation (UK) when its representatives refused to enter the European Union parliament in Brussels in May 2006 when asked to first remove their kirpans. The WSC-AR is a representative and elected body of about 45 gurdwaras and other Sikh institutions in the US and takes up Sikh issues at the national and international levels.

Now online at http://www.sridasamgranth.com/#/sridasamgr...iona/4527492983 and http://www.sridasamgranth.com/#/sridasamgr...iona/4527492983

http://publication.samachar.com/pub_articl...ww.samachar.com Those not on our rolls are not Sikhs: SGPC NEW DELHI: At a time when there is a hefty premium on the numbers a community or caste can boast, the Sikh Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee, along with the Punjab government, seem anxious to prune the ranks of Sikhs. Determined to retain the 'minority' tag which gives SGPC virtually a free hand in running the huge network of Sikh educational institutions, the committee has said that only its members can be counted as Sikhs. The audacious claim, which seeks to conflate the community with members of the controversial religious body and puts a whole number of sects - from colourful Nihangs and Nirankaris to Dera Sacha Sauda, Udasis and Radha Soamis - out of the fold, was put forward in the Supreme Court on Friday by SGPC and the Punjab government. SGPC and the state government, controlled by its political cohorts - the Akalis - had approached the SC to challenge an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court which ruled that the community could not claim "minority status" in Punjab. The HC judgment had come on petitions filed by students who had applied for admissions to medical and dental colleges run by SGPC but failed to secure them because of the 50% reservation given to Sikhs after the state conferred minority status on the Sikh community. The SC Bench comprising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and Justices C K Thakker and R V Raveendran, which issued notice on the petitions but refused to stay the HC judgment, seemed to scoff at the arguments. On behalf of the petitioners, counsel Harish Salve and Jayshree Anand argued that SGPC had since its formation in 1925 recognised only those as Sikhs who believed only in "Guru Granth Sahib", the "Ten Gurus" and "no other religion". Though true, the criterion has never been used as a litmus test for determining who is a Sikh. Though the community has frowned upon leaders of Nirankaris and Baba Ram Rahim of Dera Sacha Sauda, who call themselves Gurus, Nihangs have rarely been seen as outsiders. The community leaders did not seek to look askance at Sikhs worshipping Hindu gods even after the toll the turbulent 80s took on the bond between the two communities. The HC in its December 17, 2007, judgment had said: "There is no material to substantiate that 'Sikhs' are a non-dominant group in Punjab apprehending deprivation of their rights at the hands of 'dominant group' who may come to power in the state in a democratic election." Counsel for SGPC tried to substantiate their plea by arguing that the number of Sikh electors in Punjab registered with the religious body was 53.98 lakh, which is less than 50% of the total 1.65 crore registered voters in the state. It did not seem to wash with the Bench which remarked that if the SGPC's method of determining the minority status was to be accepted, then the entire Hindu community, with myriad sects and sub-sects, would also be entitled to claim 'minority status'. SGPC and the state, in their appeals before the SC, took shelter under a declaration from the National Commission for Minority Act under which the Central government had issued a notification on October 23, 1993, declaring Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Zoroastrians as minority communities. The Bench, however, demurred, pointing out that the Act pertained to the areas where the community, in relation to the total population, was in minority, implying that the law could not be invoked in Punjab where, according to the 2001 Census, Sikhs were the majority. The stand of the Bench mirrored the one taken by a constitution Bench in the T M A Pai case. This was also the reasoning that HC used to strike down a 2001 notification of the Punjab government, allowing SGPC to reserve 50% seats for Sikhs in its educational institutions. The HC had said government should have taken the population of the state into consideration rather than of the country. (dhananjay.mahapatra@timesgroup.com)

I was bored at work, and went to You Tube and typed "Ram Raheem". This was the result I came across... If I am not wrong, this is the Singh who tried to sodh dusht sirse wala pakhandi saadh?

Veeray thats "Patti likhi", and it is in Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji

http://www.tapoban.org/forum/read.php?1,2292 Posted by: Atma Singh (IP Logged) Date: February 08, 2008 12:17AM [www.manvirsingh.blogspot.com] NASA & Gurbani I came across this audio on DiscoverSikhi.com of vichaar by Bhai Bhagwan Singh Johal, a panthik Sikh scholar and Kathaavachik. If you can understand Panjabi then please listen to the audio below: Download Kalpana Chawla was a space shuttle mission specialist. She was the first Panjabi to travel into space. Unfortunately, she was killed on 1st February 2003 with 7 crew members in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster. Whilst in India, Bhai Bhagwan Singh was in Uttranchal (Haryana) where he met Kalpana Chawla's father, Banarsi Lal Chawla. As you would do, Bhai Bhagwan Singh offered his condolences and shared the grief of the loss of a fellow Punjabi sister. Kalpana's father was a Hindu, however the family have devotion (shardaa) for the House of Guru Nanak. Bhai Sahib asked Kalpana's father to share something about Kalpana's life with him. He replied that she did Nitnem (daily prayers) every morning (as well as being a vegetarian). The family were fortunate enough to have darshan (glimpse) of the late Baba Nand Singh jee in Uttaranchal. Baba jee had an affect on the family and since then they have practised Nitnem and had love for Gurbani. "Tell more," said Bhai Bhagwan Singh. The father replied, "Kalpana also recited Japji Sahib whilst she worked, and she recited Japji Sahib in space as well." Guru Nanak Sahib Ji explains in Japji Sahib: ਪਾਤਾਲਾ ਪਾਤਾਲ ਲਖ ਆਗਾਸਾ ਆਗਾਸ ॥ Pāṯālā pāṯāl lakẖ āgāsā āgās. There are nether worlds beyond the nether worlds and lacs of skies over skies. ਓੜਕ ਓੜਕ ਭਾਲਿ ਥਕੇ ਵੇਦ ਕਹਨਿ ਇਕ ਵਾਤ ॥ Oṛak oṛak bẖāl thakė vėḏ kahan ik vāṯ. The scriptures say one thing: searching for God's limits and bounds, (without success) people have grown weary. (Ang 5) Not only did she read this, but she experienced this. Guru Nanak Sahib Ji was also present in space (whilst she read Japji Sahib). Her father said that he had an opportunity to visit the NASA centre at San Jose, America (in September 2004). During his visit he was shown a volume of an English translation of Guru Granth Sahib jee kept at the NASA library. Her father was told that when scientists get tired of searching and searching the universe, when they seek inspiration and need to uplift their souls they turn to read the translations of Guru Nanak's poetry and divine-songs which magnificently describe the awe and wonder of the Universe. There is no other poetry, no other divine-song, no other Scripture, such as the Bani of Guru Nanak Sahib Ji -- Guru Granth Sahib jee.

Got this in an email Jathedar Iqbal Singh of Patna Sahib had combined the maryada of Taksaal, AKJ and Nanaksar into one. All three organisations were really pleased as they have never accepted Panthic Maryada uptil now. Also like his father , Sukhbir is controlled by his wife and his in laws who in turn are disciples of Nanaksar Baba Ghala Singh. Hence Vedanti was quietened against Jathedar Iqbal Singh by Junior Majthia. Now read the newsitem below whereby Maryada meeting was held at Nanaksar DERA in Delhi. Ultimately in few years time even Maryada component of AKJ and Taksaal will be thrown out as well, as Nanaksar DERA knows that they have the majority as all Sants follow Nanaksar Maryada. AKJ and Taksaal do not have the numbers.

In fact, in certain reputed medical schools, students do follow the uniform code where they are supposed to dress up as doctors during laboratory classes. I don't see Maharaj allowing anyone tocut a single kesh. There is a sakhi of a Sikh whom Dasmesh Pita was one day appreciating a lot. That night this Sikh cut off one white hair of his. The next day Dasmesh Pita sat with His back turned towards this Sikh. He asked Gurujee howcome yesterday you were not stopping appreciating me, and today You've turned Your back on me. Gurujee said "Today you are not what you were yesterday". It is not only hard, but impossible to imagine Gurujee allowing anyone to cut even a single kesh.

I am sorry veeray but that just sounds ridiculous! Gurujee allowing trimming the beard?

http://publication.samachar.com/pub_articl...ww.samachar.com Saudi woman strip-searched for having coffee with a man RIYADH: Saudi Arabia's religious police detained and strip-searched a woman for sitting in a Starbucks coffee shop with a male work colleague, who is not a member of her family. The 40-year-old financial consultant, named only as Yara, said she was arrested on Monday by members of the powerful Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice. She was holding a business meeting with the man in a branch of Starbucks in Riyadh, in a section reserved for families as is the rule in Saudi Arabia where unrelated members of the opposite sex are segregated in public, she was quoted as saying by the Arab News. Yara said she was taken to a Riyadh prison, strip-searched and forced to sign a confession to having been caught alone with a unrelated man — an illegal act in the kingdom, which enforces a strict Islamic moral code. "I had no other choice," but to sign, said the married mother of three. "I was scared for my life... I was afraid that they would abuse me or do something to me."