Weedol

It's not a crime, but reading translations of Persian classical literature doesn't help. There are many different translations and none of them are satisfactory as most of the time they're written for the mass market and they fail to render the accurate meaning(s) or even any sense of them. It's even worse than reading English translations of gurbani, because many definitions of Persian words are subtle and often the English language isn't sufficient. It's quite offensive (and misleading) the way in which the Persian sacred poetry is always sexualised when translated to English. In addition, these works are advanced topics of study covered at university level, unsuitable for self-study and always require a teacher (whether secular or sectarian) to develop the context and meaning. It really isn't trivial stuff, so it's better to learn Persian and study the context of this Middle Eastern literature first, and then approach these books.

If I read 'Adi Granth in English' does that make me a granthi?

The classic literature mentioned by Ishraqi should be read in the original Persian. All of the English translations are unsatisfactory because of the limitations of the English language and the difficulty in accurately rendering the metaphysical concepts described in Persian mystical poetry.

I don't think conspiracy theories are helpful in analysing this situation. It's clear that the attitudes about caste are deeply entrenched and are cultural. They are not something that came about in the last 50 years but have centuries of history behind them. The gurdwaras with multiple entrances for different caste groups, and the gurdwaras more or less reserved for certain caste groups were not built by central government. I think there is a fair case now for disposing with the positive discrimination and special funding for scheduled castes, but as long as it continues, you can't blame the mazhbis or whoever for building or developing their 'own' gurdwaras using the government handouts. The government doesn't need to divide the people in Punjab to remain in control. They are already in control and they don't need any tricks. All this talk of some conspiracy against 'the Sikhs' is just ridiculous.

LOL typical Sikhawareness nonsense

There is no reason to suspect this, at this time. The authorities in Austria will investigate the crime and will have no vested interest in hiding any facts they uncover. I suggest we reserve judgment until there have been some criminal convictions of the individuals directly responsible. It's possible the KZF has decided it made a bad move in the aftermath of the violence in Punjab and has now decided to backtrack to disown responsibility, or that the parties responsible for sending the email with KZF header claiming responsibility were some kids playing a hoax.

They may be hominids but to be 'insaan' they would have to be 'bani Adam', and there is no evidence that they were.

I don't care for this pop culture or the ideological propaganda spread by it. I especially don't care about the time when people wake up or whether they eat meat. If they are following biblical laws that probably reflects that they are Christians or Jews. Rasta is about RACE and REPATRIATION. Nothing wrong with that, if you are black and those are your political views.

Rastafari is not a religion. It's a black repatriation movement rooted in the Jamaican black liberation movement. The House of Lords has deliberated on the question of whether it's a religion, and they held that it was not. They said it was a philosophical belief 'similar' to a religious belief. Rasta is political and cultural. Maybe you should go and educate yourselves and ask the Shashamane settlers which religion they are. All of them are orthodox Coptic Christians, to a man. If your brand of 'Sikhism' needs Rasta to be a 'religion' as a sort of validation by way of comparison, that's your problem not mine.

I accept that people can have beliefs and be persecuted because of them, but have trouble finding those hallmarks of a religion in 'Rastafari'. It resembles pop culture more than religion - as far as I can see some fans assert that it is a 'religion' in the doubtful belief that such classification will lead to social improvement.

Isn't it interesting how pop culture in various countries is eventually transformed into a 'religion' borrowing heavily from antecedents while maligning the very sources it plagiarises and representing itself as the original gospel truth and not some new pop invention?

Oh Rastafari hai hai hai hai hai hai

And you have the right to vote??

Thanks for the info. Does anyone have a copy of this book they want to lend/sell, or know where I can get hold of it? If so, PM me here.

From what I gather, there is Niddar Singh saying he has this secret 'puratan' art that nobody else knows, and he starts teaching it. The Independent says this guy is/was a factory packer from Birmingham, until he suddenly opens a martial arts school. Then people like Chris Crudelli who have done recognisable martial arts come and try his skills, and they say yes Niddar is a good fighter (or, no he isn't). This guy may be a good fighter, but that doesn't tell us where his style comes from. My question is: is there any way to check that he is teaching an authentic traditional martial art and not something he made up? Has anyone gone to Niddar Singh's teacher's school and asked about him? Is there a document from the old days stating the lineage of his art? Is/was there any old fighting manual containing these techniques? Any kind of paper trail for this art, or do we just have to take his word?