Sikh Women's Seva

Women's Seva at the Golden Temple

Guru Nanak was a pioneer 500 years ago when he gave women equal status with men and inspired dignity towards women in his teachings. In February of 1996, a Hukamnama was issued from the Akal Takhat upholding this principle of equality and giving women equal access and rights in performing the morning ishnan seva at the Golden Temple. However, to date, this Hukamnama has never been enforced. We invite you to read the 1996 Hukamnama and sign an on-line petition requesting the Akal Takhat to enforce this Hukamnama. Guru Nanak’s teachings were hundreds of years ahead of his time and Sikhs can be proud that they were the first group in the history of the world to institute the concept of equality between the genders. By upholding the 1996 Hukamnama, the Sikh Panth can see this concept of equality put into action.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

To date, the Sikh community has not received any information on the Dharam Parchar Committee's report to the SGPC on the issue of women participating equally in the seva at the Harimandir Sahib. However, while we wait patiently for the report and the SGPC's response, there is still a lot of work that can be done in our own communities.

To raise the status of Sikh women, the first step begins at home.

Are there women Granthis in your Gurdwaras? Do women participate equally in the Gurdwara Management Committees? Are women performing kirtan and participating equally in all sevas in the Gurdwara and for the community? Bringing Sikh women onto the floors of the Harimandir Sahib to wash the marble necessitates a shift in consciousness within the community as a whole.

Let's stand up and secure the rights of Sikh women to have an equal place in the community, in leadership bodies and in decision-making processes. SikhNet is here to serve you so that, together, we can make Sikh women's equality a reality.

Let us know how we can help, and send us a description of the status of women in your own Gurdwara so we can know what's actually happening for women in our community. Email: [email protected].

And don't forget, if you haven't already, to sign SikhNet's on-line petition.

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