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Summary of Question:	Ardas Procedures
Category:	Gurdwara
Date Posted:	Tuesday, 2/27/2001 6:58 AM MST

I was delighted to see a question on this matter in the forum,

because I was wondering the same thing at home when doing daily prayers - ****Should I stand or stay seated?****
The reason being that in Gurudwaras the saad sangat is taught to respect
the Guru Granth Sahib and not to turn their back to it, always to keep
their head covered in its presence and to sit on the floor so that the
"maharaj di bheer" is on a higher platform than of the seated sangat,
to show a mark of respect that the Guru Granth Sahib is physically
and mentally of a higher wellbeing than of the "manmukh / saadh sangat".


Yet when we perform ardas in the Gurudwara we always stand up, why do we do
this?

Surely by standing up and towering over everything we are being
more disrespectful. When I visit the Gurudwara I do as others do, that is
say for example at the end of kirtan or bhog the sangat stands while the granthi does the ardas then everyone bows and stands up again and bows and then sits down.

But when I first do "matha thekh" on entering I feel so guilt ridden as if I am commiting a huge sin if I stand and do my ardas, yet if I do matha thek then kneel down and do my ardas then matha thek again, my guilt is lessened and I feel more subservient that I have aknowledged that I am in the presence of the divine holy Guru Granth Sahib.

(Please accept my apologies if I have offended anyone.)

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Reply
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Greetings to you in the Name of God and Guru.

We stand before our Guru, face to face. We give our guru our standing ovation. We also stand tall as the Guruship was given to the Sadh Sangat by Guru Gobind Singh. We accept this gift of consciousness and service. Guru Gobind Singh said, wherever there are 5 or more Amritdhari Sikhs....the Guru is there. Standing is giving respect and recieving respect.

Do you know that the Golden Temple is built below ground level? Guru built it this way show that the Guru is the most humble...there is no high or low! We are all creations of the infinite and perfect Creator. Therefore we are perfect as well as loved and cherished by God. Guru is our channel to our highest level of living and highest level of human awareness.

Feeling guilty is not our way. Feeling blessed and in a state of God's Grace and direction is our way.