by SS Inderpal Singh Bola, Berkshire, United Kingdom 2024 (Fourth Quarter) Being asked to write about the seva I do is the most uncomfortable thing I could imagine. On one level, it can inspire readers to do more. But it can also go horribly wrong if the ego takes over, and it descends into a gratuitous self-serving, self-promotion. Most in the community will already be aware of what seva can offer, and many will have done more than I can ever imagine. So I’d like to bring the focus to where I try to apply my own focus, so that
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Archives for service
Seva of Body and Seva of Mind
Ek Ong Kar Sat Gur Prasaad
by SS Jujhar Singh, Birmingham, UK 2024 (Third Quarter) Serving without Judgement The times are tough: our families, communities, societies appear more polarized than ever. When one is out there trying to be the Guru’s conduit, it is very difficult to stay neutral and come from a place of non-judgement. Where there is judgement there is Ego and by definition where there is the self there is no self-less service (Seva). Recently when I’ve been trying to serve and bring communities together, I’ve been really tested with some (seemingly) extreme views. There are those who have walked away from the
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Building Relationships at the Annual Los Angeles Baisakhi Kirtan Darbar
by MSS Kirtan Singh Khalsa, Espanola, New Mexico 2024 (Third Quarter) Sat Nam. In God I dwell, and in His Name I write these words. In 1985 the Siri Singh Sahib Ji appointed me to serve as the Secretary of the Gurdwara at Guru Ram Das Ashram, Los Angeles. I had just become a Minister earlier that year and was also appointed by him as one of several Bhai Sahibs in Training under Bhai Sahiba Bibi Inderjit Kaur. The responsibilities of the Secretary of the Gurdwara were broad and deep. They included: administering and overseeing the daily functions of the
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Food 4 Kids NM: The Guru’s Way
by SS Guru Simran Kaur Khalsa, Espanola, New Mexico 2024 (Second Quarter) New Mexico is #2 in child hunger in the nation. Food4KidsNM began as a volunteer program to serve the elementary school children of Northern New Mexico who do not get enough (or any) food to eat at home on the weekends. In 2009 it became a part of our Children’s program here at Hacienda de Guru Ram Das in Espanola. The Guru is definitely running the show, so to speak. During COVID many changes happened with our program. People from the various offices used to gather once a
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Good Friday Pilgrims Walk
by SS Jivan Joti Kaur Khalsa, PhD, Santa Cruz, New Mexico 2024 (Second Quarter) Sikhs have a long tradition of serving food. One of the earliest accounts of this practice dates from 1481, when the first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak, was 12 years old. He took money that his father gave him to invest in business and instead bought food to serve the saints and the poor. Ever since, Sikhs have been serving food in countless situations and to any population that is in need. Whether there is a natural disaster, refugees displaced from war, or food shortages from a
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Minister in the Spotlight: SS Dr. Shanti Shanti Kaur Khalsa
by SS Dr. Shanti Shanti Kaur Khalsa, Espanola, New Mexico 2024 (First Quarter) Where There is Courage, There is Happiness Soon after I became a Kundalini Yoga teacher in December 1971, I had the sensation that there was an unseen sangat—a not yet identified community—that I am to serve. When I became a Sikh Dharma Minister a year and a half later, the same sensation filled me. I called upon the Guru to bring me to this unseen sangat, so that we would be known to each another. Over the decades, the Guru has brought me into several communities: in
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How You Can Make a Difference in the World from Your Hometown: Women’s Global Forum
by SS Sat Tara Kaur Khalsa, Boulder CO 2022 (Third Quarter) Many years ago, I “accidentally” put together a consortium of international aid organizations. It started with a lunch date for two women whom I wanted to introduce to each other, and it eventually grew to over 100 members. We met monthly for about five years—to share an Indian buffet and to hear informative and inspiring presentations, do fundraisers, support each other, and connect as women both personally and professionally. It was really fun, deeply moving, and very easy to do. I’d like to tell you about it in case
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I Am With You
by SS Hari Charn Kaur Khalsa, Espanola NM Winter 2020 I am with you. I hear you. I am here for you. These very simple words—I am with you. I hear you. I am here for you—are words from the heart for these times. As Ministers it is a critical time to open our hearts and, for many of us, to open our phones and our zoom rooms. Showing up for each other has never been more important and today, for the safety of all, we do this from our own homes. Reaching out is a touchstone of seva and
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Laboratory of Human Possibilities
by SS Sat Jagat Singh Khalsa, Brooklyn NY Summer 2020 It is the challenge and blessing of the Ram Das Puri Kitchen to consciously prepare simple, delicious and nutritious food for more than 2,000 people for eight days. This is made possible because over 100 people make up the dozen kitchen teams. They come to Solstice to leave behind their normal routines and experience the challenge and blessing of working together to serve the saints in the laboratory of human possibilities we call 3HO Summer Solstice. And who are the saints? All of us who make our way up that
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Seeing God in All
by SS Guru Simran Kaur Khalsa, Espanola NM Spring 2020 “Standing Under Those We Serve” perfectly captures the true spirit of all our Gurus as well as Siri Singh Sahib’s teaching, “If we can’t see God in all, then we can’t see God at all.” The literal meaning of Dharma is “a righteous way of life.” To me, the beauty of our Dharmic lifestyle is that it is really practical on a day-to-day basis, not just a philosophical concept. Our Gurus have shown us by their actions, how to practice the Dharma of a Gursikh. This causes me to ask
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