editorial articles reviews news & views - Institute of Sikh Studies

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ABSTRACTS OF SIKH STUDIES : APRIL-JUNE 2005 / 537 NS
than marble buildings. There should be an international body of
religious persons with local branches who should be available to the
Akal Takht Jathedar for consultation about the problems of foreignbased
Sikh population that need to be handled at national or
international levels to avoid unnecessary scrambling over gurdwara
positions and matters of Rahit Maryada etc.
More attention should be paid to religious instruction in Sikh
educational institutions, specially the technical institutions, so that
those students who choose to go abroad can talk convincingly about
their religion to foreigners. A powerful TV channel should be set up
preferably at Amritsar to telecast Sikh Gurus’ message and sakhis about
their lives. Frequent shabad vichar and discourses about Sikhism in
English should be regularly arranged and telecast for the benefit of
foreigners.
RELIGIOUS LEADERS
Popular religious leaders and saints who are proficient in English
and conversant with gurbani, should be financially helped and
encouraged to visit countries abroad in consultation with the Sikhs
there. Such saintly people may, apart from kirtan, lay more stress on
shabd vichar. The Dharam Parchar committee of the SGPC should
formulate a panel of such leaders and they should be routinely sent
abroad to different parts for a specified period, and there should be a
monitoring cell in the committee to assess their performance in the
countries visited. Funds should be created abroad by the religious
bodies there and by the SGPC here for this purpose.
FOREIGN SIKH POPULATION
The role of NRIs in introducing Sikhism in foreign lands is very
crucial. So far they have failed to do much in this direction. They are
in a better position to interact with foreigners about Sikh religion in
their language. Incidents of hate campaign against Sikhs after 9/11
WTC blast were the result of this lack of introduction of Sikh
community as different from Muslims. Otherwise, Sikhs would not
have been mistaken for Muslims of Iraq, etc. They should publish
small tracts about Sikhism and regularly distribute them in thousands
amongst foreign citizens. Good, informative and pictorial books about
Sikhism for the use of children should be published. Shabad vichar in