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Author: Admin

Only Sikh to be awarded the Canada’s Volunteer Award for Emerging Leader- Sukhmeet Singh

Only Sikh to be awarded the Canada’s Volunteer Award for Emerging Leader- Sukhmeet Singh For a seven year old immigrant who moved to Canada in 2002, receiving an award by the Prime Minister of Canada and Ministers was something he never have dreamed about. Sukhmeet had the honor of being named as the Emerging Leader […]

Only Sikh to be awarded the Canada’s Volunteer Award for Emerging Leader- Sukhmeet Singh

For a seven year old immigrant who moved to Canada in 2002, receiving an award by the Prime Minister of Canada and Ministers was something he never have dreamed about.

Sukhmeet had the honor of being named as the Emerging Leader for British Columbia and the North by the Government of Canada.

It came with a certificate from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Since the age of 7, Sukhmeet has been committed to championing marginalized peoples in Canada and all over the world, and empowering his peers to do the same.

In grade school, Sukhmeet would engage with other students through public speaking or by organizing events to show solidarity with marginalized groups, to bridge divides and promote love and understanding.

Based on his own experiences with bullying, and recognizing that other students faced similar discrimination during grade school, Sukhmeet became passionate about raising awareness and showcasing solidarity through public events. Becoming a community activist has helped him channel his own hardships into positive change.

Sukhmeet is passionate about good health and well-being as a right for all, and has devoted his time to reducing disparities between people’s access to health services in Canada and around the world.

He co-founded the non-profit Break The Divide with his brother in 2016 to connect youth in Northern communities to youth across Canada to explore topics such as climate change and its impacts on mental health and have them work together to think of solutions.

His Break The Divide program has been implemented in schools across Canada, as well as in India, Singapore, and South Africa. Sukhmeet’s commitment to good health is also a reflected in his work around the world. He has launched initiatives in India and Uganda.

Sukhmeet is a role model for the youth in his community, offering his mentorship and inspiring them to get involved in the community and finding their passions. By helping to create a non-profit model where students can open up a chapter of Break The Divide in their own schools, students are given an opportunity to grow as leaders and address the social challenges that they are passionate about.

Akal Academy honoured for promoting cultural heritage by National School Award

“Heritage” is a property, something that is inherited, passed down from previous generations. Cultural heritage speaks about different cultures, values and traditions. Cultural heritage implies a shared bond, our belonging to a community. It represents our history and our identity; our bond to the past, to our present, and the future. #AkalAcademy, Baru Sahib promotes […]

“Heritage” is a property, something that is inherited, passed down from previous generations.

Cultural heritage speaks about different cultures, values and traditions. Cultural heritage implies a shared bond, our belonging to a community. It represents our history and our identity; our bond to the past, to our present, and the future.

#AkalAcademy, Baru Sahib promotes cultural heritage to ensure all students become respectful of the multitudes of cultures and people that they’ll interact in their educational settings.

In an era of globalization, this helps the students to remember their cultural diversity, and this understanding develops mutual respect and renewed dialogue amongst different cultures.

A Complete Guide to help students with professional guidance after Xth & XIIth

Born to a doctor couple, the father is a surgeon and mother being an obstetrician, this man chose to quit his cushy job in a top FMCG Company in 2003 to help students find their right career path.

Mohit Mangal is a Career Counsellor, Social Entrepreneur, qualified Structural Engineer and holds another Master’s in Business Management. He has been counseling for the last 15 Years. He is a motivational speaker and has helped more than 2 lakh students identify their right path forward. He is an academician, mentor, and guide to more than 25,000 young students, who have prepared for national level competitive exams under his guidance and have reached their goal.

As a philanthropist, he continues to give free career awareness workshops to schools and guides more than 50,000 students every year. He does individual Career Counselling for School/College students and working professionals, who need help in identifying and fine-tuning their Career and Career Goals.

[button color=”color” size=”medium” url=”https://barusahib.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Parents-Handbook-of-Careers-after-School-compressed.pdf” icon=”download” iconcolor=”white” ] Download – Parent’s Handbook of Professional Career after Xth and XIIth [/button]

549th Prakash Purab of Guru Nanak Dev Ji celebrated at Akal Academy,Kajri

Invoking the memoir of eternal majesty of ‘Guru Nanak DevJiMaharaj’ the first Guru of Sikhs who lived in the corporeal world to show humanity the path of virtuous life and gave him simple and vibrant principles of life ‘KiratKaro, NaamJapo and VandShhakko’. Akal Academy Kajri celebrated the 549th Aagman Prakash Purab of DhanDhan Shri Guru […]

Invoking the memoir of eternal majesty of ‘Guru Nanak DevJiMaharaj’ the first Guru of Sikhs who lived in the corporeal world to show humanity the path of virtuous life and gave him simple and vibrant principles of life ‘KiratKaro, NaamJapo and VandShhakko’.

Akal Academy Kajri celebrated the 549th Aagman Prakash Purab of DhanDhan Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji with devotional fevor and great zeal. Two Akhand Path of Shri Guru Granth Sahib were kept in Darbar Sahib by the Akal Staff and the students.

The programme started with the ‘Hukamnama’ taken by Bhai Jagveer Singh. The religious programme was performed by the different students of Nursery to XII. The programme was a series of Gurbani Kirtan, Kavishri, Poems, Sakhis and short speeches. The programme was anchored by the student of class 11th ‘Rajpreet Kaur and Jasdeep Kaur’ under the supervision of S. Avtar Singh Sandhu, Mrs.Savita, Mr.Balvinder Singh and Mrs.Jasbir Kaur.

After the Bhog of Akahand Path Sahib the decorated Palki of Guru Granth Sahib Ji’s was brought to the pandal with full honor, respect and devotion by reciting the shabad “Jithe Jaye Bahe Mera Satguru So Thaan Suhawa Ram Rajje”. Senior boys performed their important role of ‘PanjPyaras’.

Bhai Nachattar Singh (Katha Wachak) from Gurmat Gyan Missionery College Ludhiana enlightened the sangat with his divine words.Everyone presented in the pandal was warmly welcomed and congratulated on this occasion by our Honourable Principal ‘Mrs. Simran Kaur Thind’ by her short speech. The principal expressed her views with the life of Guru Nanak Dev Ji and also highlighted the success in annual report of academy.

Art & Craft exhibition in which the things were made by the students with the help of teachers were appreciated by everyone. A model structure of Akal Academy, Kajri which was hand crafted by a student gathered the main attention .Free eye check-upcamp by One Beat Hospital Bhira was too appreciated.

​How Muslim devotees continue to visit Kartarpur Sahib, keeping the legacy of Nanak alive in true sense

The Ravi river meandered through the lush green field in front of us. The sky was overcast, the early monsoon clouds threatened to burst open yet again. Just a while ago, from a temporary camp set up outside the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara, I had watched news of flooding in various parts of Pakistan. Finally, after […]

The Ravi river meandered through the lush green field in front of us. The sky was overcast, the early monsoon clouds threatened to burst open yet again. Just a while ago, from a temporary camp set up outside the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara, I had watched news of flooding in various parts of Pakistan. Finally, after years of yearning, I had found the time to visit the final resting place of Guru Nanak in Kartarpur.

“There are a lot of snakes in this area,” said Indrajit. A few days prior to my visit, a snake “the size of two humans” was reportedly spotted in the fields. “These snakes want to pay tribute to the shrine of Nanak,” Indrajit added. “Hence, we pick them up and place them next to the shrine. They go back after performing their darshan.”

A grave and a smadh

Abandoned at the time of Partition, the gurdwara came under the control of smugglers who travelled between the two countries frequently. The international border is only a few kilometers from here. In the 1980s and 1990s, as heroin flowed through the streets of Pakistan due to the policies of the Islamist dictator Zia-ul-Haq, many drug addicts found refuge in this gurdwara far away from the gaze of civilization.

However, despite its dilapidated condition, a few Muslim devotees of Guru Nanak continued to visit the shrine and leave offerings at his grave. Legend has it that after Guru Nanak’s death, a conflict arose between his Hindu and Muslim devotees. While the Muslims wanted to bury him, the Hindus wanted to cremate him and build a smadh for him, for he had been born in a Hindu family. Amidst this tussle, Nanak miraculously appeared as an old man before his devotees, who failed to recognise him. He suggested they postpone the decision till morning. But in the morning, his body had disappeared and a pile of flowers had replaced it. Half of the flowers were buried following Muslim rituals and the other half was cremated and then a smadh built over it.

His shrine now contains both the grave and the smadh. Out in the courtyard, the grave rests under an open sky while the smadh is inside a building that serves as the main congregation hall.

For almost 50 years, as the shrine was abandoned by Nanak’s Sikh and Hindu followers and served as a den for smugglers and drug addicts, a handful of Nanak’s Muslim devotees continued to visit it, bowing to his grave, keeping the sanctity of the shrine alive. It continues to hold the same importance for them even today as it has been transformed yet again into a full-fledged gurdwara, visited by hundreds of Sikhs every year.

“The current structure of the gurdwara was raised in 2001,” said Indrajit. “That is also when we prepared our first langar here after Partition.” Langar is a tradition that began with Guru Nanak and is an essential feature of a functional gurdwaras.

Indrajit added, “Now many rich Muslim families of neighbouring villages provide us with monetary support to cook langar. This is their offering to the shrine, which is regarded as a sacred space. The wood for cooking the langar is provided to us by [Pakistan] Rangers, who patrol the border region.”

Where god resides
“Do the Muslim devotees also eat langar at the shrine?” I asked.

Initially Muslim devotees were hesitant to eat Langar cooked by Sikhs. But over the years, as the myths dispersed, they started eating langar here. Today, more Muslims eat food here compared to Sikhs.

This is what Nanak wanted, humans irrespective of their religion, caste or creed, sitting together, sharing food. Any place where that became possible would become the home of god, the pathway to divinity – guru dwara.

In Pakistan, where there are now only a handful of functional Sikh gurdwaras, this becomes possible only at Kartarpur Sahib. However, here at the final resting place of Guru Nanak, his Muslim devotees continue to visit him, keeping alive the legacy of Nanak in its true essence.

-Haroon Khalid

Kartarpur Corridor is more than a symbol of new peace- Interesting Views of a Muslim Scholar

The legend of Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s samadhi and grave is one of the most popularly known stories about him in Pakistan. At Kartarpur Sahib, outside the main shrine which contains Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s samadhi, is his grave. He might be one of the only people in history to have both a samadhi and […]

The legend of Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s samadhi and grave is one of the most popularly known stories about him in Pakistan.

At Kartarpur Sahib, outside the main shrine which contains Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s samadhi, is his grave. He might be one of the only people in history to have both a samadhi and a grave. Legend has it that when Guru Nanak Dev Ji passed away, an argument ensued among his Muslim and Hindu followers if he should be buried or cremated.

He was born into a Hindu family but his philosophy had a strong tinge of Islamic monotheism…

In fact, even when the Gurdwara was abandoned at the time of Partition, it was these Muslim devotees of Nanak that continued coming here.

It seemed as if Nanak’s legacy of drawing followers from across the religious divide was still alive.

Harish Dhillon in his book on Guru Nanak Dev Ji writes that when Nanak decided to undertake his spiritual journey, he deliberately took up garb that diluted his religious identity — a loose choga similar to Muslim dervishes, but of reddish ochre, preferred by Hindu ascetics, with a white cloth belt around his waist, similar to fakirs and a cap on his head like the Sufi qalandars.

In his poetry, he refers to God with multiple names, including Allah. When asked by his Hindu and Muslim devotees what religion they should follow to become his Sikhs, he replied that if one is a Muslim then one should strive to be a good Muslim, and if one is a Hindu then one should try to be a good Hindu…

…What is even more remarkable is that the site chosen is Kartarpur, where physical traces of this syncretism in the form of a grave and a samadhi are still present. The sanctity of the shrine was upheld by Nanak’s Muslim devotees when it was abandoned and in ruins, while today it has emerged as the ultimate symbol of peace…

…I am delighted that thousands of Nanak’s devotees who have been catching sight of the shrine from afar will finally be able to visit it.

On the other hand, my thoughts go to the local Muslim devotees of Nanak who have upheld the sanctity of the shrine when there was no other.

This shrine belongs to them as much, as it does, to any other religious community.

Spending almost 25 years on the road, Guru Nanak became one of the most widely travelled people of his era. If not known for his spiritual and poetical philosophy, Nanak would have been known for the extraordinary length and breadth of his journey.

From Talwandi (Nankana Sahib) he is believed to have gone as far east as Bengal, to Sri Lanka in the south, to Tibet in the north and then Arabia in the east, before finally settling down at Kartarpur Sahib where he spent 17 years as a farmer.

These journeys took him to some of the most sacred Hindu, Buddhist and Muslim pilgrimages. Wherever he went, he provoked the followers of these religions by challenging the dogmas and rituals at these sites.

He is believed to have engaged in critical discourse with Hindu Pandits and Muslim Sufis, educating them on their own respective religions. When asked what his message was, he used to retort: ‘There is no Hindu, no Muslim.’

This was not meant to be a negation of these religions — rather, an argument that when these religions are practiced in their essence, they all become one, similar to his concept of divinity, which is all-encapsulating and the entire cosmos a part of it.

What Guru Nanak was criticising were dogmatic religious beliefs, superstitions and propped up distinct identities between communities that, instead of bringing people together, became a source of friction. Unity of the cosmos and everything that was a part of it was his philosophical underpinning.

***
It is therefore apt that it is Guru Nanak and his final resting place that has today emerged as a symbol of some sort of normalisation on the Pakistan-India border, one of the most dangerous borders in the world.

A visa-free corridor, where there is no Pakistani or Indian, but a devotee of Nanak, would be the ultimate tribute to the first Sikh Guru by both countries.

What is even more remarkable is that the site chosen is Kartarpur, where physical traces of this syncretism in the form of a grave and a samadhi are still present. The sanctity of the shrine was upheld by Nanak’s Muslim devotees when it was abandoned and in ruins, while today it has emerged as the ultimate symbol of peace.

However, while the corridor might become functional, it is possible that local Muslim devotees of Nanak might be barred from entering. This is what happened at other Sikh gurdwaras in Pakistan that have been renovated and its administration taken over by the Pakistani government.

– Haroon Khalid

Source-www.dawn.com

Highest Ranking Sikh police officer in Asia retires and win hearts with his thoughts about work

The highest ranking Sikh police officer in Asia, ex-India, retires. The retirement of Malaysian police commissioner Amar Singh Ishar Singh also brings to a close a three-generation run spanning over 90 years in the police force. Though having served a good 35 years in the Malaysian police force, Amar Singh, who retires as the Federal […]

The highest ranking Sikh police officer in Asia, ex-India, retires. The retirement of Malaysian police commissioner Amar Singh Ishar Singh also brings to a close a three-generation run spanning over 90 years in the police force.

Though having served a good 35 years in the Malaysian police force, Amar Singh, who retires as the Federal Commercial Crime Investigations Department (CCID) director, says he never worked even for a day.

“I did not work a single day in the police force. You work when you’re paid to do something. I did what I like to do and I got paid for it. (In essence) I never really worked even for a single day.

“This is the Punjabi spirit. We don’t work. We serve. Whatever we do, we do it with passion, drive and love. You don’t call that work. You can pay, that’s by the way,” he told more a gathered crowd of more than 300 Sikh policemen and community members at a farewell at the Gurdwara Sahib Pulapol in Kuala Lumpur.

You can view parts of the event today captured live at Asia Samachar Facebook page.

“We are blessed that our parents came up the hard way. My family history in the police force spans beyond 90 years. My grandfather was a policeman. His number was PC2023. He served at Federated Malay States Police (FMSP) in the 1920s.

“My mum was born in Raub (in Pahang). She was brought up at Bukit Aman headquarters. My father then joined the police force.

“And later so did I. Not that I wanted to be a policeman. I told my dad: even if this is the last job in the world, I didn’t want to be a policeman. Things have changed. You ask me now, I love being in the police force. My 35 years in the force was beautiful, we did good work together.”

Amar Singh’s maternal grandfather, Bachan Singh, was a constable who joined the force in the early 1900s. He was reported to have served in Kuala Kubu Baru, Kuala Lipis and Raub, and retired in Klang in the 1940s.

His father, Ishar Singh, joined the Federated Malay States Police in 1939, a year after coming to Malaya from Punjab and was a pioneer member of the police jungle squad established during the Emergency, according to a news report. He retired as a corporal in 1971 and died in 1999 at the age of 80.

Humanity above Religion! Sikh girl offers Kidney to her ailing Muslim friend

In a heart-warming episode, a Sikh girl from Jammu, Manjot Singh Kohli, 23, has offered her kidney to her Muslim friend Samreen who is suffering from a kidney ailment and require a transplant to survive. Manjot has offered her kidney to Samreen despite her family having reservations about it and whether it’s God’s wish, she […]

In a heart-warming episode, a Sikh girl from Jammu, Manjot Singh Kohli, 23, has offered her kidney to her Muslim friend Samreen who is suffering from a kidney ailment and require a transplant to survive.

Manjot has offered her kidney to Samreen despite her family having reservations about it and whether it’s God’s wish, she is a perfect match for Samreen. However, despite completing formalities, there are obstacles, the authorisation committee has still not cleared the case “since the father of the donor has made a representation cautioning against removing kidney of his daughter for the transplant”.

“We can’t blame them (family). They are emotionally attached to their kid. I cannot say they are wrong. From their point of view what they are doing is right. But I think rising above the emotions, we should do what God has sent us for. All the relations will stay here and saving life is most important. Plus I am a major and I can take decisions of my own,” Manjot told DNA.

Hailing from Udhampur in Jammu, Manjot met Samreen four years ago and since then they had been friends. “Since I am a social activist and she used to participate in my activities and we became good friends. Five months back, I read a Facebook status of our common friend about Samreen. I was confused about whether she is the same Samreen. Next day I took the flight to meet her,” Manjot who also is the youngest women entrepreneur of the state and chairperson of an NGO ‘International Anti-Corruption and Human Rights Council’.

-Indiatimes

Success does not lie in ‘Results’, but in ‘Efforts’. –A truly inspiring story of our alumni Parupkar Singh, DSP in Kashmir Police

The people who are willing to work hard in life are the ones who make great success stories. And Akal Academy, Baru Sahib polishes such diamonds with spiritual and academic knowledge. As a result, the students who were earlier doomed in the darkness of poverty and illiteracy is now shining with a successful future. That […]

The people who are willing to work hard in life are the ones who make great success stories. And Akal Academy, Baru Sahib polishes such diamonds with spiritual and academic knowledge. As a result, the students who were earlier doomed in the darkness of poverty and illiteracy is now shining with a successful future. That is only possible by the education provided by Baru Sahib even in the rural areas.

We are really proud of our alumni as he is making our nation proud. S. Parupkar Singh had an ordinary childhood until he was admitted in Baru Sahib in 2000 and passed his 10th in 2004. This precious time transformed him and his future. Not only physical or academic growth but also spiritual and moral learning’s transformed his life. Further, he did his 12th class from DAV, Chandigarh. As by studying in Baru Sahib he was aligned towards his goal in life. So, further he completed his engineering from Jammu University in 2010.

All that hard work paved way for his dream of becoming a DSP and serving his nation. We are profoundly delighted that our student has today touched the stars by becoming DSP of Kashmir Police. And he pays his heartfelt gratitude to Baru Sahib for being the first step of this success.

He further highlighted that Baru Sahib is the best school and its his honor to be a student of this holy school.

“ It provided me with holy development and taught me how to be independent and mentally stable when you are away from your family. The spiritual teachings taught me how to survive all the odes in life. The most important quality I grabbed from there is Discipline. And this discipline still helps me. Baru Sahib made me self-sufficient as there was no one to push me for studies. I was away from family and society. But I learned how to be self-dependent and also spirituality is the major key to achieve that mental stability. I got precious Gurbani values from there which are taught nowhere else. Baru Sahib teaches morality which will hold you together in the tough times of life. The lessons I got from there, I still follow them as they help me in being a good human being. I am more than overwhelmed that my parents Choose Baru Sahib for me when I was on the most crucial phase of life. It made my life worth. -Parupkar Singh, DSP officer, Kashmir Police

‘Baru Sahib teaches how to put your heart, soul, mind, and values, even into your smallest acts. That will bring you success.’

Gursanjam Kaur , New Delhi 28 Nov ’2018

Gram Panchayat Lana Bhalta honoured by Panchyat Raj Minister and a prize money of 1 lakh

Cleanliness drive in village Lana Bhalta, under the valuable guidance of Baru Sahib Lana Bhalta is a village panchayat located in the Sirmaur district of Himachal-Pradesh state, India. This remote village of Lana Bhalta stood out and proved to be a clean place physically as well as spiritually by the grace of Baru Sahib. And […]

Cleanliness drive in village Lana Bhalta, under the valuable guidance of Baru Sahib
Lana Bhalta is a village panchayat located in the Sirmaur district of Himachal-Pradesh state, India. This remote village of Lana Bhalta stood out and proved to be a clean place physically as well as spiritually by the grace of Baru Sahib.

And we feel profound honour in announcing that this panchayat Lana Bhalta under the guidance of Baru Sahib has won an Award for cleanliness with a reward of 1 lakh rupees. By breaking all the stereotype that small villages cannot be clean.

Baru sahib pays great emphasis on cleanliness and purity, both physically and spiritually at Lana Bhalta. By encouraging clean and hygienic surrounding, health issues can also be helped. It is organized and maintained by sarpanch of Lana Bhalta S. Jagjit Singh of Baru Sahib. it is a great contribution as the new ideas and useful skills are provided by the students of Baru Sahib to help the villagers in making their lifestyle better

It restores the ecology with some effective ways :

* They make compost from the waste vegetables and fruit peels

* They have created a Gobar gas plant which recycles rotten vegetables

* They use non biodegradable polythene bags to make bricks

And many more ways which assure reduce, recycle and reduce.

We are proud on the noble teachings of Baru Sahib and the obedience that these villagers have shown. We look forward to many such achievements.