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Summary of Question:	Hukumnama+More
Category:	Gurdwara
Date Posted:	Friday, 11/01/2002 3:10 PM MDT

SSa

i feel so bad 4 asking u ppl loads of questions. i am now begining to wonder whether they will all be answered. Therefore i've decided to put all of them down in this space.(almost) lately i have had loads of problems and i thought the cyber hukumnamman was great. the thing is i really don't know wat the hukumnama means when i get it. i got a Pg to do with how great the Lord is, but it doesn't really solve my problem. the other problem i have is understanding translanted bani-i'm not really dumb, but it doesn't make sense. Is there a way i could understand it better without the thy's and O'nanak at the end? also what is the O'nanak meant to stand for as i don't really understand that line. plz don't think i'm stupid.

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Reply: Sat Siri Akal.

Please forgive us that it takes so long to get back to your questions. Hopefully - we can answer them all today. :) Translated Bani is a little difficult to understand sometimes. So - do the best you can. Read the English translation, and then see if you can find a way to say what the Guru is saying to you in English that makes sense to you. If you do that, just really look at the words and see if there's a way to say them to yourself that makes sense - that's one way to get at the meaning.

"O Nanak" is used all the time in the Siri Guru Granth Sahib. Think of it this way. Nanak is the consciousness of someone who is a servant of the Divine. When you are a servant of the Divine, you loose your individual identity and become like Nanak, as well. So when you read the word O Nanak, it's the Guru talking to your own soul.

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also i heard a shabad and it made me feel really sad. is this normal cos aren't shabads meant to make u feel happy?

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Reply: The power of Gurbani is amazing and you can feel a range of emotions from listening to them. If you feel sad when you hear a shabd, it's ok. Just feel sad. Understand that the Guru is healing you through the sound of Gurbani and sometimes, when we are being healed, we go through difficult feelings or emotions because they are being cleared out of us.

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the shabad was nanak dukeeya sab sansaar-the whole world has problems.
This line made me feel really sad. does this just mean my problems will just be replaced by other ones and i will never be happy?

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Reply: The Guru is very practical. Life is a series of challenges. Problems happen. But as Sikhs, we develop our excellence to the point that you can face any challenge and be victorious in it. That's why we say, 'Wahe Guru Ji Ka Khalsa, Wahe Guru Ji Ki Fateh.' My purity belongs to God and my victory belong to God. So yes - it is sad as you grow older to realize that life is not a bed of roses. There are good things and bad things, there are easy times and times of challenge, and some kind of challenge will always be with you. Your problems don't need to go away. You can become strong enough to go through them.

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my other question would be regarding the so called Guru Nanak's Janam patree. someone told me that this is kind of a horoscope thing but, more accurate and i've heard the Giani at our gurdwara read the life story of Guru Nanak Dev Jee out of it. i also know that the famous story of Maharabharat was written before it all happened. Does this mean that consulting the stars is true? is it then Ok 4 me to get my own Janam patree made?

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Reply: God has written your Destiny on your forehead. If you want to know who you are and what the purpose of your life is, go to the Guru. Astrology can be fun entertainment. But you don't need it. Everything you need is inside you. Find your answers there.


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i also have a queation regarding dancing. i used to go to the mander to learn Bharatnateenum dancing and then at this Gurmat Camp i got told it was wrong to go to the mander let alone dance. since then i haven't been but i really miss not going. is it wrong to learn this type of dance and wear a Sari on?

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Reply: Dancing is fine. It's part of the expression of joy in human life. There's nothing wrong with dancing. Just be very careful of your grace. Dance for the joy of dancing, but be careful that you're not behaving in a sexually inappropriate manner. Watch how you dress and how you act so that you don't attract someone into your life who isn't invested in your highest destiny and grace.

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someone also told me that Sikhs are not meant to bow down to statues. but if Sikhism says all religions r right why are we not allowed? it's not like i am going to become a Hindu. my parents don't have a problem with me going to the mandir but the rest of my family esp. my mama ji goes bonkers. at the mandir leading upto Diwali there is a massive show with lots of dancing at the end i fin this real fun but, many ppl esp the gurdwara Giani has critisised my behaviour. am i doing wrong?

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Reply: The Gurus taught that the light of God is within you. If you want to bow to something, bow to the light of God within you. That's the true altar. That's where your real answers lie. As Sikhs, we bow to the Guru because the Guru is our guide to the experience of God within ourselves. Why bow to a piece of stone? Someone's hands made it. But it's the One who made the stone to begin with, who made the hands that carved it - that's the only One we bow to as Sikhs.

Sounds like your Gurdwara Giani has a problem with dancing. Let it be his problem, not yours. Respect him, but if you want to understand what it means to be a Sikh - go to the Guru directly yourself and understand what the Guru wants to teach you.

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i wear a keshki on, as i want 2 take amrit, and many ppl tell me the things i do are wrong for an amritari sikh. for instance it seems to me that u can not have a social life. pop music, punjabi music and practicaly all musics are banned except gurbani. films are banned, and so is going out to the restaurant or clubbing.

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Reply: There are certain vows you take to become Amritdhari - but giving up dancing, giving up going to the movies and giving up eating out at restaurants are not among those vows. If you want to understand the Sikh Rehit Maryada as issued by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (S.G.P.C.), please take a look at this link on SikhNet:

http://www.sikhnet.com/sikhnet/sikhism.nsf/d9c75ce4db27be328725639a0063aecc/55aa8c062b66bce5872565b7007b339f!OpenDocument

As for clubbing - again - intoxicants are not really condusive to a state of spiritual elevation or grace. Neither is being casual with your sexuality. So yes - those two things you need to avoid to take Amrit. But movies, eating out, the rest - you still get to have a social life, no problem.

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being 16 i would have no life if i didn't do these things. i don't take drugs but i do want to enjoy myself. i already find life tough. i have some days when i am teased by other sikh boys as looking not like a girl as i wear a keski, have no make up on or do any of the other stuff-shaving. i therefore wnated to know if it is Ok to not cover your head?

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Reply: Sikhs boys who tease you because you have values and virtue are not worth your time. Ignore them and keep wearing your keski.

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i know were not menat to cut our hair but is shaving other bodily hair Ok? as i don't like hairy arms esp. 4 a girl. also wat about bleacing facial hair? i read somewhere on your site it was Ok but then i read that it wasn't Ok to dye your hair. why isn't that Ok if the other things are?

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Reply: Keeping kesh means keeping the hair God gave you on your body - including under your arms. God put it there for a reason - trust that the Creator knows what the heck He's doing and leave it be. If you're worried about what other people will say - I understand the peer pressure. But you know - God made woman to look a certain way and you are beautiful just the way you are.

As for bleaching facial hair - this is a tough one. The convention of beauty is so set that I know how hard it is for women who have facial hair to deal with it. I would say be respectful of yourself and do what feels right for you to do.

My own approach is to consider my body a beautiful ecological system put together by the Creator and I have a duty to myself to maintain that ecology in its lushness and fullness. (So no shaving) But frankly - a little weeding here and there to keep the overall effect neat and beautiful is sometimes what's needed.

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also wat r the views on coloured contact lenses r they allowed or not?
also recently i went India and someone told me that wearing jeans etc r not allowed in the sikh religion and lately i feel bad. r they right or wrong?

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Reply: The color of your eyes are perfect. It's not about whether colorder contact lenses are allowed are not - but whether you can love yourself just the way you are. Look yourself in the eyes and see the beauty of the eys God gave you.

You can be a Sikh and wear jeans.

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also i heard this disturbing story on the radio that actually only saints, those that think and breathe God, get to go to God eg. those like Guru Nanak Dev Jee. the other good ppl are just reborn again into a better life. i know i will never be like Guru Nanak, does this mean i will just be reborned again to lead another life? cos that just makes me feel depressed.


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Reply: Guru Nanak taught us not to get caught up with these types of worries. No one knows when or how or why a soul gets liberated. The story you heard on the radio is just that - a story. It doesn't mean that it's true. Leave your liberation in the hands of God and enjoy the gift of life that God gave you. This is the spirit of a Sikh.

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i have loads of other questions but this willl be all for now.

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Hope this was helpful.

All love,

GPK