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Summary of Question:	Ladies & Turbans.
Category:	General Sikhism
Date Posted:	Monday, 6/14/1999 11:41 PM MDT

Vaheguru Ji Ka Khalsa Vaheguru Ji Ki Fateh,

I'm currently living in Malaysia i am a moderate Sikh, and i have been noticing for sometime now that some Sikh women here in Malaysia have taken AMRIT and they cover their heads with turban that looks like the turban that men usually wear. Now i don't know why / what is that for and i also noticed that they behave very weirdly when they are in the crowd of other Sikhs in the gurdwara, they are always among themselves only .I suppose they regard themselves very highly and above of all the other Sikhs. Is it written anywhere is GURU GRANTH SAHIB JI that women HAVE to wear turban once they have taken AMRIT. All as far as i know is that one is only required to tie her hair neatly and cover her head. The normal practise among the women here when they take the amrit they will cover their head with a scarf and then a duppatta. So please enlighten me on this issue,i will really appreciate it correct me if i am wrong in anyway.
Thank you

GuruJi's Child
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Reply
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Wahe Guru ji ka Khalsa, Wahe Guru ji ki fateh.
Dear Guruji's Child,
I'll begin to answer your question with a question. How can we understand anything in the truth of what it is in itself, if we overlay our own negative opinions onto the phenomenon we're attempting to understand? The cognitive way of stating this is to say, <In order to understand the truth of anything, we have to have a Neutral Mind>. The social way of stating this same principle is to say <As a Sikh, in order to understand anyone, we first have to be Tolerant>.

The truth of this matter is, I have no idea how to answer your question about the people you're talking about, because you haven't described their behavior neutrally or objectively. Instead, you've projected prejudice, generalization, presumption of others' motives (ie., you said <I suppose they regard themselves very highly and above of all the other Sikhs>). How do you know that? What do you mean by <weird>? One could as well consider that perhaps you seem weird to them. Are you better than them? Honestly, if I personally were young, exploring something I considered beneficial, and surrounded by others judging me as you seem to be judging them, I'd be somewhat apprehensive of approaching you also.

De facto traditions within dharma are neither good or bad in themselves. They are only good if they further the progress of dharma. Sometimes, some traditions obstruct the progress of dharma. In many cultures, including traditional marriage and dowry practices in Punjabi culture, men and boys are given preferential treatment over women and girls. Is that a <Good> tradition? As women arise to become stronger and have a greater sense of their own sovereign, soulful integrity before God and Guru, they are becoming fed up with being demure and submissive in the face of traditions that oftentimes glorify the male ego at their own expense. In such cases, the world had best step out of the way, because our Gurus taught the social equality of women and the spiritual elevatedness of women, and there is no longer any basis for women to be passive in the face of <traditions> that hold them back or make them subject to the wills of men. They are subject only to the Will and Hukam of God and Guru, and they, as teac
hers, also have many things for all of us to learn. We've closed our eyes and blocked our ears for too long to what the virtue of woman has to teach us about how to overturn the corruptions of worldly politics that have plagued humankind for aeons. Men often easily overlook the flaws of other men, and many of these flaws (in the form of <traditions>) are killing us all.

To be Sikh is to become wise. Becoming wise means to wake up (daily in the ambrosial hours, and continually throughout the day). Waking up is sometimes painful. And there is no remedy for the pain of waking up except love for the Guru.

Please explain again, in neutral, wise language, what is the problem with women wearing a turban if they, bowing before Guruji, choose to do so? Who is anyone to regulate and control how others worship and present their dharma to the world? What wrong are they doing? What right are we doing if we stand in their way? Weigh them both, and please answer.

Sincerely,
Krishna Singh Khalsa