Are Sikhs Really Hindus and does it really matter? Khalistan Movement

Published at Foundation for Pluralism
http://foundationforpluralism.blogspot.com/2015/03/are-sikhs-really-hindus-and-does-it.html

I am pleased to share an article below by the title "Are Sikhs Really Hindus and does it really matter?. " The article is really about parenting.

There is a lot of anger and pain expressed in this piece, that is not exclusive to Hindus and Sikhs, but to a larger Desi community of Christians, Muslims, Jains or others. This is the story of a young man born out of an interfaith couple. Shame on you, if you jump to bloody conclusions that is because parents are from two different faiths, no, it is not, the problem is same with any reckless couples.  

What I expect this article to do is for parents to take the responsibility to raise their children with lots of love and caring.  If you cannot listen to your child without interrupting, shouting down and getting angry, you are a real problem in his or her life.

I have listened to this young man for several hours. He was raised in Sikh and Hindu traditions, and he said, he couldn't carry a conversation with his father, raised with two (rather three) conflicting values in addition to the American values, he is angry at Sikhs and angry at Hindus. He called me off an article I wrote in Huffington post about how the unfinished social transactions keep messing people for years to come and what we need to do responsibly.

I was debating about giving so much time for him… then I remembered, before I could give time to a guy some 20 years ago, he hung himself in his house leaving behind kids who were classmates of my kids. So, I felt the responsibility to listen to him.  I believe it was a therapy for him, that someone listened to him, and someone gave him full value for his intelligence, and he is, as you read through this essay.

Everyone loses when there is no communications. I saw the movie American Sniper recently - the first scene in the movies is where the father shouts down at his kids. Should we raise kids who fear us, as if we are monsters? Sometimes the kids are your reflection and or go the opposite. We need to look in to the mirror and see if we are worth passing it on to the next generation.

The biggest shock to me was this young fellow knew his stuff and has virtually read everything I have written, the range of his reading threw me off completely. He was referencing to my Articles ranging from Atheism to Zoroastrianism and every one in between, to social issues of India, Pakistan and the United States.  

I know many parents who teach their children to hate the others, be it Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Jews, Sikhs or others… without realizing that they are slow poisoning their children.  When they grow up they may possibly marry the people you taught your kids to hate. Either you or they will live a miserable life for what you taught them.  

Conflicts erupt in a  society when there is injustice. Adharama is the root cause of all such movements be it Khalistan, Naxalite or other voices. There are many unfinished social transactions in India  between Hindus and Sikhs, Hindus and Muslims,  Hindus and Christians, Hindus and Jains, Muslims and Sikhs and other combinations. We cannot pretend or shout down that we don't have the problems that is non-sense, we do have the problems and some one among us need to restore dharma - and that comes when we all sit down and dialogue as equals. 

You will understand Khalistan movement if you can figure out why you want to quit your job,  or run away from the family or separate from other family members, or quit going to a Gurdwara or a temple or resign from an association. The usual answer is they were not fair to you or were unjust to you.

As far as movement is concerned, it is there because of the unfinished business of injustice done to the Sikhs, it will go away when all those Hindus who massacred Sikhs come forward and apologize, when the government gives an account for or locate the bodies of men, women and children who are missing... we have to close many transactions to have complete peace. We have to recognize and honor each faith for its uniqueness. Sikhism, Jainism, Buddhism are distinctly different religions. There are many other transaction with different people... some day, if I am alive, I may want to be a reconciler of India, where no Indian has to live in apprehension or fear of the other Indian, nor do the have to hate the other. 

Please take time to listen to your kids and become their friends. Most of us do and few don't and as a result they live a life without peace. If you hate Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, Christians or others, that is your choice, but a bad choice for your mental health.

I request you to study this before you start judging, you have a test to read through the end without foaming.

Link to this piece:

Mike Ghouse

www.MikeGhouse.net
 

                    Are Sikhs Really Hindus and does it really matter?
                                             By Anonymous

As a 1st generation Indian American my lack of understanding my own heritage has been due to many factors. First and foremost clearly I was born and raised in the United States. Secondly, I was raised in a household that differentiated between Indian and non-Indian as well was within Indian backgrounds. This meant that I was raised to really respect and admire all aspects of the South Asian culture. Thirdly and the most important I was raised both a Hindu and a Sikh.

All of these were wonderful in theory but proved to be a disaster in handling such issues as racism and discrimination by Caucasians, African Americans and others. This is so because when one is confused and uncertain of their own identity other parties and agendas may take advantage of that and further muddy the waters so  that they make it look as if it's purely one way or the other more decisive if you will. In so doing these agendas further alienated and frustrated me as an individual to my Indian heritage. My Grandfather was a great Sikh named Avatar Singh and today he would be in awe of how I felt and the world we live in. Dadaji I love you please forgive me.

One such movement was the Pro Khalistan movement. You see as a child I remember that one day we no longer visited the Sikh Temple. I want to discuss my anger as a 1st generation Indian American at Sikhs today as well as my love and the confusion and hate I have felt for many years towards my own. 

When Wisconsin happened as sick as it is to have thought and believed I felt glad even though it pains me to think that way and disgusts me yet I thought that perhaps maybe what good would come out of it is that the Sikh community would realize that the hate that was spread by the Pro Khalistan movement is so severe that not only innocent Sikhs are hurt wrongfully but the beauty of the teachings of Guru Nanak get lost.  They were lost on me.

Unfortunately, while it seems that peace is present the Sikh community did not really realize this. Otherwise, the anger at the Hindu community and other South Asian groups not being present would have been realized. As little has been shown in the press and amongst South Asian entities of love that should have been present in the wake of those shootings. Because many Hindus felt the way that I felt only they don't have the confusion because they never really were Sikhs.

As we recall in 1984, Indira Gandhi was assassinated by two Sikh armed body guards over the decision to invade the Golden Temple in Amritsar in an operation known as Blue Star. All of us regardless of our political views felt that that was an awe shocking experience. Regardless of what religion in India anyone holds everyone can agree that the Rule of Law should be present.

As an American the separation of Church and State is the core of the US Constitution and the American way of life. However, the back and forth of this movement was such that Jar nail Singh Brindawhale may have threatened succession. Whatever one's views violation of law and not going through the correct process of succession we will never know given the history what really happened. I call upon the Modi Government to release all tapes dated Jun 3 - Jun 8 of 1984 of any conversations that took place amongst the Indian government leadership AND OR including Jar nail Singh Brindawhale.

If it is shown that in fact he did not threaten succession or was not charged with Federal offenses then unfortunately they had no right to do that. But let me remind Sikhs of 1950's. In the 1950's through peaceful protests Sikhs sought to have Punjab state carved out thus giving Sikhs a majority and that was done. The same group Akali Dal in 1973 asked for the following:

Wikipedia, "The Akali Dal led a series of peaceful mass demonstrations to present its grievances to the central government. The demands of the Akali Dal were based on the Anandpur Sahib Resolution, which was adopted by the party in October 1973 to raise specific political, economic and social issues. The major motivation behind the resolution was the safeguarding of the Sikh identity by securing a state structure that was decentralized, with non-interference from the central government. The Resolution outlines seven objectives:[42]

1. The transfer of the federally administered city of Chandigarh to Punjab.
2. The transfer of Punjabi-speaking and contiguous areas of Haryana to Punjab.
3. Decentralization of states under the existing constitution, limiting the central government's role.
4. The call for land reforms and industrialization of Punjab, along with safeguarding the rights of the weaker sections of the population.
5. The enactment of an all-India gurdwara (Sikh house of worship) act.
6. Protection for minorities residing outside Punjab, but within India.
7. Revision of government's recruitment quota restricting the number of Sikhs in armed forces.")  Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khalistan_movement

In the same Wikipedia file the history of this Pro Khalistan movement is stated and that now as of 2001 most Sikhs now finally don't support a separate home state. Yet a group known as Bal bar Khalsa as late as 2008 sent operatives to train in the same camps as Al Qaeda but as luck would have it they were poorly trained and poorly financed. The source for this information is the same as the one stated above. In reading the Khalistan movement wiki site even Dr. Man Mohan Singh expressed concern that while he was in fact the most intellectual Indian Prime Minister of the 21st century with his brilliance in Economic matters that even he felt this was very damning and could set India backwards. Because this group once again was poorly financed and lacks any support from anyone we dodged a bullet but for how long?

Since Sikhs were given what they wanted by peaceful means in the 50's and 60's and 70's and the very Alkali Dai itself which was able to break off a Punjabi state so that Sikhs would be a majority and get protections for Sikhs as minorities in other parts of India were all achieved what was the purpose of all the hate and killing that took place for nothing between 1984-1991.  What was it all for? You see the reason Indian government gave in wasn't just peaceful protests because by the way Alkali Dai did not want succession overall was oddly enough for the same reason the Pro Khalistan Sikhs are annoyed and that is they  are thought of as Hindus. Isn't that an Oxymoron or Paradoxical that one would lead the charge for change against something in principle but when they get what they want not understand that they got it because of what they oppose?  It is striking to me and as you will see all these events in India did more harm to me in the United States than to others who were in previous generations because as I stated earlier they had their convictions and then to others who resided in India then and now because in my mind I was confused as to who I really am.

When one walks into a Sikh Temple there is no fight prayer is given, and it's a beautiful feeling.  Do the Sikhs teach the youth hate against the Government of India and to have a chip on their shoulders even though those kids live in America where the closest Indian in their school may very well be a Hindu it not only irks at me its repugnant and hypocritical as I will demonstrate momentarily.

Growing up this movement would not appreciate those who would tell them that the Pro Khalistan movement was incorrect in nature and was wrong and these same individuals would mistreat us for standing up to them. First of all as we saw with Pakistan and Jinnah when one starts a state solely on religion and its own perceived linguistic scenarios, religious extremism grows unintentionally. While Jinnah days before partition was quoted as saying GO TO YOUR TEMPLES GO TO YOUR MOSQUES I DON'T GIVE A DAMN I HAVE A COUNTRY TO RUN. The first law minister of Pakistan was in fact a Hindu and he was appointed originally by the British Jinnah did not fire him but he resigned in 1950 due to religious persecution which prevented him from doing his job.  Thus, one would think that all of us would have learned from History and we did only with bloodshed till the early 90's. Look at Pakistan today and the fact that they haven't learned from it.

However, many Sikhs who were leading the Pro Khalistan movement mistreated my father and our family. We would be chastised and disrespected. I remember a poster that talked about an exchange between Hindus and Sikhs where Sikhs killed Hindus. This made me sick. How the hell could my parents teach me that Sikhs were Hindus and were the same and yet when I read that article I was outraged? After complaint it was taken down. But it should never have to come to that.

These folks were warned about the dangers of these individuals. I believe they didn't take us seriously because we were the SIKHS who were the ANTI KHALISTAN that stood up to them. Sure enough the Sikh Temple lost quite a bit of money as well as another dear friend of my father's. All of these things coupled with the fact that these very same Sikhs would respect and treat Hindus who have nothing to do with them better and even allow their children to associate with such people better than they would someone like my father and I who were partially their own seemed very vicious and inconsistent to me. To them it didn't matter as long as you didn't tell them they were wrong. That hypocrisy really created a lot of hate inside me to them.

I respect an individual who stands by what they believe. If they were true to their cause then no Hindu should have befriended them.   Then I watch these same people allow their children to engage in marriage with those of the Caucasian and Hispanic persuasions even after they continue today to stand for such nonsense. Their hypocrisy is the micro and the political events are the macro picture as to why I personally have had contempt for the Sikh religion for almost 30 years. And in all of this nonsense what got lost was the beauty of Sikhism to me. In the Sacred Nitnem there is a quote that I find very much signifies that Sikhs are like Hindus. In English "The Status and Power of Shiva, God of Death, of Brahama, god of creation and of Indra, god of rain, are obtained by hearing the Name of God. Even a sinner begins uttering praises of God, after listening the NAME of God." Wow if that isn't Hindu I don't know what else is.

Those in the Pro Khalistan movement I defend one thing on your behalf. I do believe in the Jeffersonian right to defend to the top of my lungs that for which I spend a lifetime opposing. I ask not that you apologize even though you have hurt me dearly. I ask that you take your philosophies out of the temple. I ask that you find another forum for which as long as there is peace where we can have this argument. You see the very idea that in Punjab there no Hindu temples actually made what you wanted harder not easier. When Hindus prayed in the Sikh Temple all those years the assumption was that they were no longer Hindu on your  part. When Sikh men or Hindu men married the other woman and those marriages were accepted as the same again the assumption was by folks like you that the pure Sikh would emerge. No such thing. You see my father and I are products of such a combination. We did not adhere clearly to your agenda nor should we. We will not apologize for it.

No longer will I allow the Pro Khalistan movement to tell me that I can't pray in the Sikh Temple on Friday and still be in the Hindu Temple on Sunday or refer to me as a half breed or disrespect me on my face for differing values yet befriend the full-fledged Hindu that actually talks behind their back and doesn't agree with them at all. No longer will I allow that mistreatment or that hate to consume me.

My child has a learning issue and the other day the one thing I scorned him for was not paying attention yet the one time I wish he hadn't paid attention he did. He overheard me talking to his Grandmother about the past and about how when I was his age that Sikhs killed Hindus. I had to stop him and remind my son that love still is there. That the Sikhs my brother literally that he knew still had his best and that they loved him and that it was just the  actions of crazy people. I didn't elaborate on the back and forth. I taught him that his friends are his friends and to continue to love them. I will not allow you to create the hate PRO KHALISTAN movement that you have created in me and that you continue to create in young Sikh youth today because of the silence of the peaceful to crowd into my son. I will not allow you to do that. I will not allow you to continue to make me glad Wisconsin happened. I will not allow you to sicken me any further. I will love my Sikh friends more and more and more. YOU CANT TAKE THAT AWAY FROM ME ANY FURTHER.YOU CAN'T QUESTION MY PUNJABI LOVE OR MY HERITAGE ANYMORE OR MAKE ME APOLOGIZE FOR WHO I AM. 

There are many great arguments pro and con about Sikhs being Hindus or not. Clearly both share the notion of Karma and Reincarnation and clearly as we have seen both also share the idea of the supersoul as notated that GOD is like mass it was never created or destroyed and certain Hindu demigods were in fact Sikh demigods as described. While Sikhs don't identify god as Ram or Krishna the concept of Vishnu (Krishna) as demigod is an incredible similarity. However, Sikhs do believe caste system of any sort is wrong like Muslims. Like Muslims they believe in a prophet system only they use the term Guru and try to claim it's not a prophet system but it is. Yet their prophets have nothing to do with Islam or Abrahamic traditions.

So yes those who make the case that Sikhism may be a different religion then Hinduism are correct on some points but are in correct in pounding the Government of India and they forget the similarities I have mentioned coupled with the fact that for hundreds of years Sikhs and Hindus have intermarried mostly Punjabis that when Hindus go to a Sikh and Hindu temple they feel at home in either one. Sikhs however don't feel at home at the Hindu temple but some do go to Mata every now and again. So yes a change in the Constitution of India can be had to say that Sikhs are a separate religion from Hindus despite maintaining key Hindu principles. Because they are also non Abrahamic as well they can be classified separately but may apply for any benefits given to Hindus and intermarriage may still be allowed should that Sikh wish to do so. 

I call upon the Modi government to start the process of redefining the concept of Sikh and Hindu in the Indian constitution. In other words, we are correcting everything in presentation so as not to confuse without changing tradition. These changes along with what occurred in the 50's and 60's as well as setting Hindi as a national language and Punjabi as a state language are all that's necessary not succession and that is why succession will never happen.

Pro Khalistan folks if  yall wish to argue this again do so with all of this in mind and in a proper forum where all can be involved. I welcome such debate BUT DON'T QUESTION ME AS A HALF BREED ANYMORE. If you can't love me or allow me to love you as a fellow Sikh don't hurt me or mine or individuals like me. You only disgrace the love of Guru Nanak further when you do. Mike Ghouse who will publish this may god be with him what a wonderful human being and a great mentor a Muslim that is the best I know reminded me in writing this article with love that Rajesh there is no liability to who you are. While Mr. Ghouse and I may agree about whether Sikhs are Hindus are not we do agree that it's not a liability. That Rajesh can be both its not just fiction. After writing this article I ask all Sikhs to forgive me for my hate. That ends today. While I can't walk into a Sikh Temple till the Pro Khalistan movement exits it and finds another home. I can finally let my anger at the Sikhs that did me  wrong go now. I can finally find love and peace. I wanted to just choose Amrit Vaani and go to the Hindu Temple and give my Sitnem away. I will do no such thing. I will continue to read my Sitnem while I go to the Hindu temple

I want to close with a thought of a beautiful movie entitled Silsila. This movie is special especially for its end. If you recall it was based on reality as Amitabh Buchanan actually did have an affair with Rekha in real life. If you remember Amitabh in real life is like me. His father was a poet of the most literary Hindi known with the strongest Hindu traditions and his mother was a very intelligent Sardarni with lots of love to her. Yet at the end of the movie when Amitabh was found to have committed adultery there was a voice that tried to steer him the correct way. Amitabh who was like me but better one day was in the Sikh Temple and the next day Holi more than any Hindu could finally listened to this voice. For it was the Sikh on the mountain of Mount Everest that reminded him of his moral compass.

I challenge all Sikhs even those who I hate or who hate me if there are any to be that Sikh the one with the moral compass. That's what I need and needed and didn't get through the most important years of my life. Lately in the last few years as my anger has evolved I too have found that Sikh on the Mountain. Maybe my dad had his but I never had mine till 10 years ago and I have a hard time enjoying it but no more. I have that Sikh on the mountain that you in the Pro Khalistan movement prevented me from having and I will not let that Sikh go. I hope that he and every Sikh who reads this can forgive me for my hate. As of today and forever it's gone.

Jo Bola Soni Hal Susrikal & Jai Shree Ram
Jai Hind
 

Fascination with religion - Mike Ghouse

FoundationforPluralism.blogspot.com

Religions fascinate me, although I was an Agnostic-Atheist for nearly 30 years of my life, I was respectful of religions and attended religious rituals of almost all religions.

In the last sixties and early seventies, I was a big fan of Dr. Abraham Kovoor, the father of modern Atheism, and also followed the writings of Mahatma Gandhi, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Swami Vivekananda, Allama Iqbal, Jiddu Krishnamurthy, Rumi, Dale Carnegie, and a German Scholar who wrote the book Man and Religion.

Some day, I will elaborate on this, but for now, here is the summary.

I am grateful to my father for opening the windows of knowledge to me. He was always kind and respectful to me. Except once, he never hit me or belittled me. I hope my kids can say the same about me.

On the day of Ramadan Eid celebrations,  the Muslims in my town (Yelahanka) gather near the mosque, and walk a mile to the outdoor Mosque by the cemetery to pray and pay respects to the buried ones; a beautiful Muslim tradition that I have come to respect even when I was an atheist.

On that particular Eid, I refused to go to prayers as I did not believe in God or the prayers. My father looked me over, I had dared him. He gave me a short lecture and explained – "One day, I will be dead and gone, and you will be living in this town and have to live with others. No one will trust or do business with you, including my Hindu friends if you do not follow a system. Religion is a part of the society and it is up to you what you do with your life… God doesn't need your prayers, but you have to live with others"…. of course, I went to the Mosque, had he pushed me, I would not have gone and would probably have hated religion. I wish all parents treat their kids in that fashion, particularly the rebellious ones.

Thanks to my parents, they had friends from many religious traditions and have carried on conversations with them in the most civil manner I can imagine. My mother had weekly conversations with the only Zoroastrian lady in town, whom we called ‘Parsiamma” Behramji and chatted with our neighbor Sugalchand, a Jain family.  

My 5th or 6th grade social studies book has never left me, it created a positive life time impression about religions. There was a page dedicated to each one of the great religious teachers including Krishna, Rama, Buddha, Mahavir, Jesus, Moses, Prophet Muhammad, Zoroaster and Nanak, and the there was a two page summary of each one of the faiths. Top it up with my parents consistent reminders from Quran - that each faith is beautiful to its believer and that we must acknowledge it. Faith is like a mother to the believer.  

Most of my friends that I knew and grew up with have a similar respectful attitude towards religions, including every member of my family. I will have to find that dream book, and see if it is still there, and if not why not?

I am concerned about the future of India, I wish Prime Minister Modi was taught in a similar school as I did. I went to a public Urdu Medium school,  and he went to RSS Madrasa where exclusivity is taught, and no mention of other faiths and traditions, had he gone to a school like mine, his language would have been inclusive and he would have wished festival greetings to Muslims, Christians and others.  
Of course, the leaders in Pakistan, Malaysia and other Muslim nations do not greet their Hindu, Christian and other minorities either. Do we want to be like them?  Or do we want to set a new standard of inclusion for them to emulate us? Are we leaders?

As a young man I attended the Mahabodhi (Buddhist) Society every Wednesday in Bangalore and went to Friday prayers in a nearby Mosque (I went to different Mosques) and joined the Bhajan Mandir across my home on Saturday evenings to chant the Hindu Kirtans. I enjoyed my lengthy conversations with Sikhs who came from the Air force base to our Flour Mill on Sundays, and like wise, I learned a lot about the Adivasis (native Indian tribals) and Banjaray who made it to our mill on Sundays.  

I listened to hours of conversation between my father Abdul Rahman, maternal grandfather Shaikh Hussain and a Shia scholar Hussain Sahib. My English Teacher Rama Chandra was a big Sai Baba devotee and my friend Fakhru Bhai was a Muslim Sufi, the three of us would spend Saturdays discussing religion. I grew up with our Christian neighbors Robert and Swaran Latha since I was three or four years old. The last time I met them was upon my mothers’ death in 2001.

We did not have any Jews and Baha’is’ in our town; if not more than likely we would have attended their festivities as we did with others. However, I made it up with Jews, here is that part of my story; Holocaust and the Muslim guy. and also with Bahai's as I am closest to being a Bahai and perfectly align with Unitarian Universalist. My father was a Mayor of the town and his friends were mainly Hindus, and Bellur Muniyappa was the closest of them.   They discussed politics every day, yes every day in the evenings. 

While I was in Saudi Arabia, I had the greatest exposure to people from 40 different cultures and nationalities. I was the Chief Cashier with Fluor corporation, and every one of the group leaders came to me with bills for reimbursement in Shedgum, Saudi Arabia. I learned about each one of them, and additionally, I developed my abilities to understand English in just about every accent.

Coming back to Dallas, I published a paper called Asian News (1993-2001) and the information about all religions and festivals became a major item. In 1996, I started the first commercial radio for the Asian community called Asian news Radio, and again religion was a major part of it.

Between 2004 and 2005, I did 520 hours of Radio show, an hour a day, 5 days a week and it was called “Wisdom of religion, all the beautiful religions of the world” and did 100 hours each of Christianity, Islam and Hinduism and 50 hours on all other religions including Atheism. We completed Torah, Bible, Quran, Bhagvad Gita and other books on the show. 

In 2005 and 2006 two sets of three hour workshops were done for 13 traditions from Atheist to Zoroastrians and everyone in between.

In 2009 I camped out for a whole 9 days at the Parliament of World’s religions in Melbourne and attended every possible religious event I can. I moderated a few Panels and presented a few papers.  I danced with the Pagans, animists, and spent time with the Native Australians and their Museum.

Here in Dallas, I have been to most places of worship, and took my children to them as well.

Thanks to Huffington Post and other news papers I continue to write the essence of festivals, all the major festivals of the world and God willing I will continue the work. The work is also logged at www.FoundationforPluralism.blogspot.com and www.TheGhousediary.com

The Foundation for Pluralism came into being, when my application to be a member of Thanksgiving Square was rejected in mid Nineties, because I did not fit into a pigeon hole, at that time, I was a Humanist (another name for Atheist) and was told to belong to some religion. I said to myself, we need an organization that includes all humanity, thus the Foundation for Pluralism was officially born, even though it was in practice since 1993.

Ironically, I my application was rejected in an Atheist group in 2006, when I wanted to become a member and include them in our Unity Day program.

Presently, I am a member in most of the religious groups. Do you know God is a life member of every religious group I belong to? LOL!

I regret not completing my PhD in religion, but pleased with the amount of work I have done on religions, all the beautiful religions.

I must say, pluralism runs in my veins. Please feel free to read my yet to be updated profile as pluralism speaker at: http://www.mikeghouse.net/InterfaithSpeaker_MikeGhouse.asp

Thank you

Mike Ghouse
(214) 325-1916 text/talk
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Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism at work place, politics, religion, society, gender, race, culture, ethnicity, food and foreign policy. He is a staunch defender of human rights and his book standing up for others will be out soon, and a movie "Americans together" is in the making.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links atwww.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com and 10 other blogs. He is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. 

No re-conversion of Buddhist to Hinduism

India is going through trouble times. The right wingers among Hindus are coercing Christians and Muslims to become Hindus.

The ignorant among Hindus, call Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism as off shoot of Hinduism. I am talking about educated ignorants.  I held a radio show on 12.31.2004 to wrap up on wisdom of religion program for the year - and invariably our Jain, Sikh and Buddhist guest protested over the claim of Hindu guest that they were off shoots of Hinduism.  I conducted workshops on all religions, the story is same. There is resentment for denying the otherness of other religion.

Here is a good statement from the following article. 

"Meanwhile, Buddhist leader Bhadant Anand has questioned the VHP claim that Buddhism was just another sect of Buddhism. Maintaining that Buddhism was the anti thesis of Hinduism, the Buddhist leader and Chief of the All India Monks Association said that Buddhism outrightly rejects Manuvad, the centre point of Hindu philosophy. Unlike Hindus, the Buddhists do not believe either in God or in fate. The birth cycle, an integral part of the Hindu philosophy too was alien to Buddhism. Buddhism was a Godless concept, maintained Anand."

Mike Ghouse

Courtesy Times of India

ORE VHP|Havan|Ghar Wapsi|Gaya|Conversion

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GAYA: Vishva Hindu Parishad, on Monday ruled out any Havan or Ghar Wapasi programme for about 500 Hindus who converted to Buddhism in the Manpur block area of the district a couple of days back. Earlier, the Hindu body organised a Ghar Wapasi cum Havan programme in Atia village of Bodh Gaya block for the reconversion of about 200 Mahadalits who embraced Christianity on Chirstmas day this year. 

Asked about a programme on the lines of the Atia Havan cum Ghar Wapasi, VHP state patron Udai Kumar Verma said that the the 'Deeksha' (Initiation) of the Manpur villagers can not be compared with the earlier Conversion of Atia villagers to Christianity, as, unlike Christianity, Buddhism was not a separate religion and the villagers simply showed their reverence for Buddha by getting a Buddhist Guru. 'I too worship Buddha and we regard Buddha as a Vishnu incarnate' and as such the question of Ghar Wapasi or Suddhikaran does not arise as those who showed reverence to Buddha did neither desert the large Hindu family nor did anything that defiled our religious belief' said Verma. 

Echoing the stand of the VHP state patron, the district VHP chief Mani Lal Barik said that the question of an Atia like programme in the Manpur village simply did not arise as nobody has deserted the faith. The Hindu umbrella was too wide to accommodate different streams and Buddhism was just another stream of Hinduism and as such the VHP does not consider any Atia like programme. 

The VHP chief alleged that the media has been less than fair to the Hindu organisation as the organisation's Atia programme was not given proper importance and some vernacular newspapers even went to the extent of saying that no convert to Christianity participated in the VHP Havan cum Ghar Wapasi programme and only Hindus participated in the programme. Barik maintained that the VHP will continue to keep the Hindu flag flying high in Atia village and will organise more interactive programmes to counter Christian missionaries active in the area. 

Interestingly, in the Manpur conversions, foreign organisations are said to have played an important role and a Srilankan Buddhist missionary has been instrumental in wooing about 500 members of an intermediary caste to the Buddhist faith. 

Meanwhile, Buddhist leader Bhadant Anand has questioned the VHP claim that Buddhism was just another sect of Buddhism. Maintaining that Buddhism was the anti thesis of Hinduism, the Buddhist leader and Chief of the All India Monks Association said that Buddhism outrightly rejects Manuvad, the centre point of Hindu philosophy. Unlike Hindus, the Buddhists do not believe either in God or in fate. The birth cycle, an integral part of the Hindu philosophy too was alien to Buddhism. Buddhism was a Godless concept, maintained Anand.

Gee Dad, God can be worshipped in so many ways! Lessons in Pluralism

GEE DAD, GOD CAN BE WORSHIPED IN SO MANY WAYS. LESSONS IN PLURALISM

I am pleased to share the wisdom of a seven year old girl, my daughter. Who wants to raise their child as a bigot? Some of us recklessly do.

When we hear hate spout out of the mouths of men and women in politics or religion against Jews, Muslims, Christians, Atheists, Hindus, Blacks, Mormons, Gays and Lesbians, Hispanics or Immigrants, we just shake our heads with disbelief, that is of course, if we are not bigots ourselves.

I must give credit to face book, a great equalizer for humanity. Even though the hate mongers and bigots don't survive on the face book, they still continue to rant with a few or no friends liking their hate material. They still don't get the message - hate is not natural. .

When she was visiting the Baptist Church, as a father, I just advised her, if the Pastor by any chance denigrates other faiths, he is not being truthful and you don't need to listen to him. She was around 9 then, and argued with me, a part of our routine to argue as equals, "Dad, if he does not say bad things about other religions, why would people to go his Church when they can go somewhere else? I know it, don't worry Dad, I won't hate anyone".

I took my kids to every place of worship, so they were raised with familiarity of fellow humans with no bigotry towards others. At each place of worship, I would summarize to her what they were saying…over the years, I learned that, all she wanted to hear, a six year old, was a simplified version of the talk. I had gotten it down well - a standard reply - "Sweetie, they are telling that we must thank God, that God gives us life, ability to breath and live…" Mind you, I was an atheist then, but not anti-religious.

One day, we were in DFW Hindu Temple joining the group singing Bhajans (Chanting) in the sanctuary. In the middle of a Bhajan, she leans over me, and asks the standard question, "Dad, what are they singing"… out came my standard reply. To that, oblivious to the crowd, she gets up, and throws her hands up in the air, and cheerfully announces "Gee Dad, God can be worshiped in so many ways" to the amazement of the devotees!

That, my friends is pluralism. "Respecting the otherness of others." Thank God she ain't a bigot today. She is a rationalist and would question any one's ill-will or hate towards the other. If nothing else in my life, I have feel good about raising my kids with no bigotry. Like me, she would defend any faith, we won't let any one put down a faith, any faith - individuals yes, but not their faith.

I am writing a fuller article with Religion News with a few more anecdotes with my daughter. Meanwhile, enjoy this.
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Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work place. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. He believes in Standing up for others and a book with the same title is coming up. Mike has a strong presence on national and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News; fortnightly at Huffington post; and several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes all his work through many links.

Hyderabad Bomb Blasts: What's Next?

As a Muslim, I am tempted to blame bad guys among Muslims, but what good will it do to India? Deepen hatred for the Muslims? If I blame Hindus, what good will it do to India? Will it bring harmony or tear up our nation further apart?

Whether Malala was a Hindu, Christian or a Muslim, or if Amanat was Dalit, Brahman or Sikh, our outrage would have been the same, would it not? I request that the thrill seekers who want to make this a Hindu and Muslim issue to consider the following suggestions carefully.

Continued - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/hyderabad-bomb-blasts-whats-next_b_2784491.html

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Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work place. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com 

Great piece on 9/11
Mike Ghouse

Islamophobia, Sikhophobia and Media Profiling

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/simran-jeet-singh/islamophobia-sikhophobia-and-media-profiling_b_1654692.html

On Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks shook the American nation to its core. Nineteen individuals associated with al Qaeda coordinated to hijack four passenger jets and use them as weapons of mass destruction. The terrorist attacks of 9/11 claimed approximately 3,000 lives, including all 256 passengers on the four planes, 125 people at the Pentagon and more than 2,600 people at the World Trade Center.

The global community watched the destruction and devastation with horror. Law enforcement agencies focused attention on detecting and preventing further terrorism on American soil, while news media scrambled to collect, synthesize and present an enormous amount of information in a remarkably short period of time. Photos and videos of the destruction flooded the news media, and these representations characterized the terrorists responsible for the attacks as fitting a Muslim, Arab or Middle Eastern profile. As a result, Islamophobia began to sweep across the nation.

Reports and studies demonstrate that an increasing mistrust of Muslims fueled a violent post-9/11 backlash throughout the U.S. Within a week of the terrorist attacks, Arabs, Muslims and South Asians registered more than 1,000 incidents of criminal discrimination, including murder, assault, vandalism and verbal harassment. According to crime statistics compiled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), anti-Muslim hate crimes in the U.S. increased by 1,600 percent between 2000 and 2001. Furthermore, a study funded by the U.S. Department of Justice found that approximately 75 percent of hate crimes are not reported in official FBI statistics.

It is also important to note that Islamophobic violence is not a thing of the past, and unfortunately, we don't have to look far to find a tragic example. A couple of months ago, five children in San Diego lost their mother in a hate-crime. Shaima Alawadi, an Iraqi-American, was brutally beaten to death in her own home. Her daughter found her corpse in the living room, along with a note that read: "go back to your country, you're a terrorist."

In August of 2010, Time Magazine ran an article about the controversy surrounding the construction of an Islamic center near Ground-Zero, and the cover of that particular issue asked the question: "Is America Islamophobic?"

The national attention on President Obama's religious background, the scandal related to NYPD surveillance of local Muslims, Quran burning displays in Florida -- these are all recent examples of how Islamophobia operates within our society.

Strikingly, Muslims have not been the only targets of Islamophobic violence. A number of different American communities have been impacted by Islamophobia, and practitioners of the Sikh religion make up one of the most adversely affected minority groups. The distinctive physical appearance of typical Sikh males in particular -- brown skin, turban, beard -- correlates with the stereotypical images of terrorists projected in western media. Scholars have recently described this perceived relationship as a racialization of religious identity. This process has led to a conflation of Sikhs and Muslims, and therefore, has produced a corollary to Islamophobia -- Sikhophobia.

In fact, the first casualty of a hate crime in post-9/11 America was a Sikh-American named Balbir Singh Sodhi. According to official reports, his murderer said he killed Sodhi because "he was dark-skinned, bearded, and wore a turban."

In other words, Sodhi fit the profile of "the Islamic other."

With law enforcement and news media fanning the flames, the increasing sense of Islamophobia has led Sikh-Americans to be publicly profiled as suspicious and threatening. For instance, the day after the 9/11 attacks, a turbaned Sikh male named Sher Singh was traveling from Boston to New York on an Amtrak train when it stopped in Providence, R.I. The FBI had sent federal agents, local police and bomb-sniffing dogs to arrest him. Officers rushed to the platform, pointed rifles at Singh and shouted "Get your f--- hands up." The officers removed him from the train at gunpoint and handcuffed him. According to a report by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, bystanders gathered around Sher Singh during the time of his arrest and began shouting obscenities and hate-speech, such as: "Kill him!" "Burn in Hell!" and "You killed my brother!" Strikingly, Sher Singh reported that one of the arresting officers joined in the vitriol by asking, "How's Osama bin Laden?"

Neha Singh Gohil and Dawinder S. Sidhu have pointed out that the arrest of this Sikh-American male, as well as its widespread publicization, wrought major damage to the image of Sikhs in the immediate aftermath of 9/11.

"News stations replayed the video of his arrest in connection with its coverage of the attacks, thus associating Singh and other turbaned Sikhs with the planners of the attacks. ... Thus any connection between terrorists and a turbaned male with a long flowing beard was further embedded in the hearts and minds of emotional Americans. On the contrary, no media coverage followed news of Sher Singh's release, just three hours later. There was no reason -- beyond the turban and long beard -- for the public or law enforcement personnel to be concerned about his presence on a train. In other words, he did nothing to arouse suspicion, aside from looking the way he did in a public space."

Despite his innocence and relatively quick release, news stations continued to replay the arrest and detention of Sher Singh for the next three days, and this continuous loop helped shape and perpetuate basic stereotypes of "the Islamic other." Moreover, the mutually reinforcing actions of racial profiling by the federal government and news media offered the general public with a sort of sanctioning of Islamophobia and Sikhophobia.

The consequences of these attitudes have been severe and costly. Since 9/11, tens of thousands of Americans have been alienated and victimized. The overly simplistic profile of "the Islamic other" has done more harm than good, and it has negatively affected Muslims and non-Muslims alike. From job discrimination and school bullying to racial profiling and police surveillance, the various manifestations of Islamophobia continue to divide the nation and increase tensions.
It's time to leave behind our Islamophobic, Sikhophobic and other-phobic tendencies and look at one another as fellow human beings.

We can't afford to produce more examples like Sher Singh, Shaima Alawadi and Balbir Singh Sodhi.

Follow Simran Jeet Singh on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@SimranColumbia

We Are All Muslims: A Sikh Response to Islamophobia in the NYPD and Beyond

A great example for standing up for each other.
Mike Ghouse

We Are All Muslims: A Sikh Response to Islamophobia in the NYPD and Beyond

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sonny-singh/sikh-response-to-nypd-surveillance-and-islamophobia_b_1336722.html

As a brown-skinned Sikh with a turban on my head and a long beard on my chin, I deal with my fair share of racist and xenophobic harassment regularly, including in my home of New York City, the most diverse city on the planet. It usually takes the form of someone yelling or perhaps mumbling at me: Osama bin Laden/terrorist/al Qaeda/he's going to blow up the [insert location]/go back to your country/etc. Less often, someone might threaten me, get in my face, or in one case, pull off my turban on the subway.

My experience is not terribly unique for a turban-wearing Sikh in the United States. Especially since 9/11, we Sikhs have become all too familiar with racial epithets, bullying and violence. Just last month, a gurdwara in Michigan was vandalized with hostile anti-Muslim graffiti. Last year, in what we can assume was a hate attack, two elderly Sikh men were shot and killed while taking an evening walk in a quiet neighborhood in Elk Grove, Calif.

Many talk about the prevalence of anti-Sikh attacks as a case of "mistaken identity." Sikhs mistaken for Muslims. Indeed, we are by and large attacked because of anti-Muslim bigotry. The Michigan gurdwara was targeted for that reason, and most of us who experience racist harassment as Sikhs in the U.S. experience it through the vilification of Muslims and/or Arabs.

Ironically, many Sikhs themselves vilify Muslims or at least distance themselves from the Muslim community at every possible opportunity. I remember in the days, weeks and months after 9/11, the first thing out of the mouths of many Sikhs when talking to the press, to politicians or even to their neighbors was, "We are not Muslims." While this is of course a fact, the implication of the statement if it stops there is: You're attacking the wrong community. Don't come after us, go after the Muslims! Sikhs believe in equality and freedom and love our country and our government. But Muslims? We don't like them either.

The roots of anti-Muslim sentiment in the Sikh community run deep in South Asia, from the days of the tyranny of Mughal emperors such as Aurangzeb in the 17th century to the bloodshed in 1947 when our homeland of Punjab was sliced into two separate nation-states. Despite these historical realities, Sikhism has always been clear that neither Muslims as a people nor Islam as a religion were ever the enemy. Tyranny was the enemy. Oppression was the enemy. Sectarianism was the enemy. In fact, the Guru Granth Sahib, our scriptures that are the center of Sikh philosophy and devotion, contains the writings of Muslim (Sufi) saints alongside those of our own Sikh Gurus. Nevertheless, historical memory breeds misguided hostility and mistrust of Muslims, especially in the contemporary global context of ever-increasing, mainstream Islamophobia.

What is it going to take for Sikhs and Muslims to join together in solidarity against the common enemies of racist harassment and violence, racial and religious profiling, and Islamophobic bigotry? Perhaps the recently exposed NYPD spying program (along with the "education" officers have received about Islam) will serve as a wake up call to my community (and other communities for that matter) about how bad things have really gotten. While we Sikhs confront bigotry on a daily basis from our neighbors, classmates, co-workers, employers and strangers on the street, our Muslim American counterparts are systematically targeted by our own government. (I should note that, of course, Sikhs too are profiled by law enforcement in less repressive, though still troubling, ways, especially at airport security).

Sikhism was born hundreds of years ago in part to stand up for the most oppressed and fight for the freedom and liberation of all people. If this isn't reason enough for us to make the cause of rooting out Islamophobia from the NYPD and other law enforcement and government agencies our own, we only have to return to the bleak reality we Sikhs in the U.S. still face right now in 2012. A time when gurdwaras are still vandalized with anti-Muslim statements, Sikh kids are still being bullied and tormented at school every day, and I am called Osama bin Laden while walking down a Manhattan street for the 258th time (no I'm not counting).

"We are not Muslims" hasn't been so effective for our community, has it? Even if we do so in a positive way that does not condone attacks on Muslims, simply educating the public about the fact that we are a distinct community and that we in fact "are not Muslim" will not get to the root of the problem. As long as we live in a country (and world) where an entire community (in this case, Muslims) is targeted, spied on and vilified, we will not be safe, we will not be free.

As Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote in his letter from a Birmingham jail in 1963, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny."

I hope the NYPD's blatant assault on the civil rights of our Muslim sisters and brothers propels us Sikhs as well as all people of conscience to action. Perhaps "We are not Muslims" will become "We are all Muslims," as we come together to eradicate Islamophobic bigotry in all its forms.

Religions will not have a monopoly

Brother Gideon,

peace, shalom, salaam, satsriakaal, namaste, alaabho, hamzor hama ashobed and all other ways of acknowledging the stranger and building relationships and developing the kingdom of heaven, where no one has to live in fear of the other.

All religious greetings express the same wisdom; may you be blessed, soaked and drenched in peace, so you and I can talk and act peace. Amen!

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Brother, I honor your beliefs, and hope you honor my beliefs. It is dead wrong for you or I to believe that the other one is wrong.. that is sheer arrogance and goes against the key principle of religion, every religion; humility.

Every word I am writing below, will be in Bible and is in Quraan and sure will find in all holy books. Eeach one of my statements below has origins in Quraan and my fellow Muslims can quote the verses. This is mainstream Islam.

Religion is not mathematics or physics to be clearly wrong or right, it is rather a belief, that has no rhyme or reason, and as such neither you, nor I can be wrong. Both are right in our own beliefs. The evil surfaces when we are tempted to push our beliefs onto the other, and erroneously and arrogantly believe that the other one is wrong.

___

Life is a celebration.

Birth is a celebration, growing up is, graduation is, getting a job is, marriage is.... praying in church, mosque, synagogue, temples and altars is celebration of creator's glory.

Father’s day, Mothers day, Anniversaries, Rakhi are all expressions of gratitude

One should be grateful every moment and to everyone who has done whatever little to enhance other's and one's own life.

Life will remain incomplete without expressing gratitude... it is a powerful emotional release that gives you peace of mind, the other components are justice, repentance, forgiveness...

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God does not want his creation to be exactly allike; he would have created if that was the case, he can do anything, after all he is the creator.

God created each one of us to be different intentionally, each one with his/her own thumb print, eye print, DNA... no two humans are alike...no two snowflakes are like... isn't that God's will?

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You may not like this, and most religious folks who are not "free" will not like this, but do think about it. Islam is about freedom and not bondage, it released slaves, women, egos and others from bondage...including my god v your god... and on an on.

God will not allow:

The entire world to be christian, hindus, muslims, sikhs, jews, buddhists are others.

Jesus, Muhammad, Krishna, Moses or Buddha will never be allowed to have monopoly.

It just will not happen.

A few Christians, Hindus, Muslims live in the dream world that everyone would become...

It will not happen

Because it goes against God's will

Even forcible conversions go against God's will, because that is removing one more element of diversity that God has created.

And finally Brother Gideon, if your business is conversion, or proving others wrong, you got the wrong audience and the wrong guy for it. I celebrate every which way one worships the creator.

Dialogue is a must, and will continue it, and I pray that God give us all the humility to respect each other and their opinions.

Mike Ghouse is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional speaker, thinker and a writer onpluralism, politics, civic affairs, Islam, India, Israel, peace and justice. Mike is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News and regularly at Huffington post, and several other periodicals across the world. The blog www.TheGhousediary.com is updated daily.