guv

there is a gurdwara called timpu (tent) sahib... it has it's name for a specific reason... there was a band of 50 sikhs camped out... when one of their look outs saw an army of a few thousand moghuls heading their way. the singhs were hugely outnumbered, so they used their wits & took off their kacchere & put them out so that from a distance they looked like tents. when the moghuls could see them they thought there must be at least 500 sikhs in front of them, got scared & turned away!! which kinda brings up another topic... they took off their kacchere so that they could live to fight another day! goes against the notion everyone promotes today that the kakars are an ang of your body... so the whole tent thing wasnt a complete joke! :wink: & jassa... u say... "the kacjherrah was given to us, along with all the other reasons, to serve as a reminder before we done any act that we might regret.... basically its what guru ji gave us so that if your ever about to commit aldultery or something, it reminds you what guru ji gave you, and for most ppl they will be reminded and ashamed..." what do u base that on? or are u just assuming u know the guru's motives? u never know... kacchera might be to use as a tent!! (before everyone starts getting into a huff... that's a joke :wink: )

this is a post i put up on the boss forum... ---------- last month i sang the aarti shabad at the london sikhi week kirtan darbar... there was a program on tv showing the aarti ceremony being performed at hazoor sahib. i thought i'd do some research into it so that i could talk about how it shouldn’t be done because it’s a hindu ceremony & how it’s all wrong :evil: , but much to my surprise, i found the complete opposite… first, the shabad is in raag dhunasaree… a care free raag, which relaxes & relieves stress (so rishi tells me, maybe u can add a bit more rish), anyway, the shabad is online http://www.sikhitothemax.com/PageASP.asp?ShabadID=51 aarti is a ceremony to show respect. it used to be performed in front of kings & is still performed in southern india when someone has a guest come to their house. at the time of guru gobind singh ji, the moghul emperor aurengzeb banned performing of raags & doing aarti. as the sikhs stood up for freedom & against oppression, guru gobind singh ji said we shall sing just raag, not even the shabads, just pure raags and introduced the aarti ceremony into the panth (the udasis had been doing aarti since guru nanak dev jis time, guru gobind singh ji introduced it into the rest of the panth) just as guru ji had taken holi (the festival of colour) and added the warrior bir ras aspect to make hola mohalla, he took the aarti ceremony with guru nanak’s shabad and added aarta (bir ras aspect) to give the aarti-aarta ceremony, and showed how it symbolised the entire universe doing aarti to akaal purkh (read the translation from the link above). this tradition has been kept alive at hazoor sahib and a few other gurdware and dere. bhagat peepa ji says: jo brehumu(n)ddae soee pi(n)ddae jo khojai so paavai || The One who pervades the Universe also dwells in the body; whoever seeks Him, finds Him there. (see http://www.sikhitothemax.com/PageASP.asp?ShabadID=2641 for full shabad) so the same akaal purkh is present in both the cosmos and within each and every body. the aarti ceremony is a reflection of that, performed to guru ji, while also symbolising the cosmic aarti to vaheguru. so, to recap, the aarti ceremony is a sign of respect & not of idol worship (any more than doing mutha tekh is idol worship! :wink: ) and was done to kings. it is done by sikhs to the king of kings… shahe shahan shah… the emperor of emperors… the jyot of the ten gurus… guru maharaj. in fact, sant gurbachan singh ji bindrawale – former head of sampardayee bindrawala (now known as damdami taksal) and a very prominent & respected scholar of the panth – says in the gurmat rehat maryada that the aarti-aarta ceremony is essential! giani kirpal singh – former jathedar of akaal takht – says the same. sant gurbachan singh ji places particular importance in the jyot… it had to be filled with ghee, because he said the jyot attracts shaheed singhs and devte to the side of guru ji. he forbade the use of kerosene oil. which is something backed up by bhai randhir singh. in his autobiography he speaks of a time when he was in jail & had an out of body experience to go & listen to an akhand paath. his atma could not get near to the paath though because there was a kerosene lamp burning. the aarti-aarta ceremony is sadly not performed in many gurdware today because people fear it as a hindu ceremony, when in fact it has always been secular & common in a number of religions. it is used as both a religious & non-religious ceremony as a sign of respect (just like doing mutha tekh or touching someones feet… both common indian practices of showing respect – try doing it in front of western people & they look at u as if you’re crazy!! ) hope that sheds some light on the practice.

kara can be used as a weapon, if u got a big or bladed one... if there was no practical use of the kara then wouldnt wearing it be ritualistic, like the janoo thread worn by brahmins that was refused by guru nanak dev ji. steel bangle... i dont understand your signature if u dont see kara as a weapon. btw, is the pic of u?

i agree with the practical thing... so what is the purpose of the kacchera? incidently, i was reading through some rehatnamas & most of them had no references to kacchera as a kakar... cant quote them now, books at home, but i will do next time i go home. when will the new sections be up?

it was written by a singh from hounslow... pm me if u want his email address to ask any questions on it.

if the kacchera is supposed to be to control kaam, does that mean u can take it off if you're going to have sex? (without going into the whole discussion of when & who u can/cant do it with)

there are 9 physical gates in the human body, there's also 9 treasures (comes in the ardaas - tegh bahadar simiriye kar nou nid...) and there's 9 emotions of man. they all listed in prof sahib singh's nitnem steekh... either in jap ji sahib, jaap sahib or tva prasad svayye... they're the ones i've been through... i'd look it up myself, but i'm too lazy 8)

i think u got your numbers a lil mixed up kaal!! lakh = 100,000 karorr = 10,000,000 therfore, chhiaanve karorr = 960,000,000

singhs had to fight on the battlefield, ripping their enemies apart & chopping off their heads. they had to see dismembered bodies, watch their comrades be hacked apart, walk on blood-soaked ground... & u get scared off by some blood in a bowl???

i dont understand why there is a debate on this topic... being sikh & being punjabi are not mutually exclusive. the only difference is that u choose to be a sikh, whereas your heritage & ancestry determines whether u are punjabi. everyone seems to agree that they are proud to be sikh, but by denying that u are punjabi, u deny your heritage & all that your ancestors have done. if u feel that punjabi culture is being tarnished today by peoples actions then why not promote the history of punjab (your history!) & old punjabi traditions rather than turning your back while it all gets forgotten?? in the same way, people from different backgrounds should be aware of their history & heritage & the sacrifices their ancestors made. from the past is where we can learn from the mistakes of others & draw inspiration... especially when we think that the same blood that ran through those who endured so much hardship & made so many sacrifices runs in our veins too.