Transcript
Mark Cagnon (0:00)
Today, we're diving in deep into Sikhism. The most important Sikh gurdwara in the world is the Golden Temple. Its communal meal, the Langar, serves free meals to about 100,000 people every day. Guru Nanak was working as a storekeeper, and one morning, Nanak vanished. And when he returned and his first words were this, there is no Hindu, there is no Muslim. Guru Amar Das. He continued to reinforce the Sikh tradition of these communal meals by requiring that everyone, including the emperor of the time, Emperor Akbar, to sit and eat together before meeting him, sending a powerful message of equality. In 1699, Guru Gobind assembles Sikhs and dramatically calls for human sacrifice. What actually do Sikhs believe and how do they conduct their life? What are the core beliefs of the faith? So today we're going to go through all the history, where it comes from, where on earth it's derived, who the gurus are that actually created this way of life, and really what it's all about.
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Mark Cagnon (2:03)
Go to your happy price. Priceline. What's up, people? And welcome back to Religion Camp. My name is Mark Cagnon, and this is my tent, where we explore the most interesting, fascinating, controversial stories and theories from all religions from around the world, from all time. And today, we're diving in deep into Sikhism. Oftentimes, people in the west will call it Sikhism, which is a, you know, a reasonable misunderstanding. Throughout most of my life, I always thought it was Sikhism, but to my, my Sikh friends and my Punjabi friends, they will say Sikhism. I didn't know this. This is apparently the original name given by the Guru. It's not even Sikhism, it's Sikhi. And this was basically what was described as the. The way of life for Sikhs. Now, Sikh Sikhism or Sikhism, rather, was a label created by Europeans. It's kind of like a. Like a colonial term, you could say. But Sikhism or Sikhism isn't really found anywhere in Sikh history, culture, you know, any of that stuff. So these words don't even really mean the same thing. So Sikhi and Sikhism aren't necessarily the exact parallels. And I think this is just like an important kind of discerning point. Sikhi means to learn. It is basically the universal path, you could say. And the bastardized term Sikhism means the religion of the Sikhs, and it sort of reduces Sikhi to just a religion where many, you know, Sikhs would not see it as religion. They would see this more as a way, way of life. So this term has just persisted, you know, for, you know, many, many six in the United States, just kind of accepting more or less what the term is. And it makes it a little bit easier because now people know more or less what you're talking about. But what is it? Right. I think oftentimes people will see, you know, a guy with like a. Like a kata, like a, you know, a bracelet around their wrist. You've probably seen people wearing these, or even maybe like wearing a pug or like a turban, as we describe it. And oftentimes people are like, are you Hindu? Are you Buddhist? Are you Muslim? People don't really know what it is. I didn't, that's for sure, until right now. So today we're going to go through all the history, where it comes from, where on Earth it's derived, who the gurus are that actually created this way of life and really what it's all about. So where do we start? We're going over to Punjab. About 500 years ago. This is right where modern day India and Pakistan meet. You can see it here on the map. And the name Punjab literally means the land of five rivers. It's one of the most historically diverse crossroads on Earth. The region was once home to the ancient Indus Valley civilization, one of the earliest urban societies in human history ever. And over the centuries, everyone from the Persians to the Greeks, yeah, Christos, the Greeks to Central Asian nomads, Muggle emperors, and eventually even the British all rolled through the area. And all that mixing left a deep cultural imprint, as you can imagine. So religions like Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Jainism were already woven into daily life. And that blend of ideas helped shape what would eventually become Sikhism. So what is the gurdwara? I've been to a gurdwara for Aakash's wedding. Matter of fact, Sikhs basically go to this place. They gather in places known as gurdwaras. Also, I just want to apologize in general to all the Sikhs that are watching this. I don't know, have great pronunciation. I am just a guy from Florida trying my best. So if I mispronounce anything dropped in the comments, my apologies in advance. So the gurdwara literally means the doorway to the guru, or the guru, if you were to pronounce it correctly. I'm going to say guru. And this building becomes a gurdwara by housing a copy of the Guru Granth Sahib. This is the Sikh holy book. Now, in this place, men and women of all castes and social backgrounds come together for communal meals. PRAYER SINGING these meals are interesting. They're actually known as langar. Anyone can visit these gurdwaras and participate in services and the meals followed by, you know, basic etiquette, right? They have to cover their head, remove their shoes, wash their hands upon entering, and they may not bring any drugs, even tobacco. Inside the gurdwara, it was actually really beautiful. I was told, even at the wedding that I went to, that anyone can go to this place and receive a meal, no matter who you are, where you are on earth. So that's something to note if you're ever just, you know, lost somewhere, maybe you're in Houston or something. You're like, man, I'm starving. I don't have solid footing beneath me. These folks, the very kind people at the gurdwara, the Sikhs will take care of you. So the most important Sikh gurdwara in the world is the Harmandir Sahib, better known as the Golden Temple. You can see a picture of it here. It's beautiful. It was completed in 1604 under Guru Arjun in Armistar India, and it still houses the original copy of the Guru Granth Sahib. Remember, this is the holy text, and this temple specifically has fascinating architecture. I think it's actually interesting and important to start sometimes with the actual communal place of a people, to really understand who the people are and what they value. And the temple's architecture in this case is no different. So you have the four doors opening in all directions to welcome people from every background, from all walks of life. And while multiple entrances exist, only one path leads to the inner sanctum, representing how all spiritual paths ultimately lead to the one God. Today, the golden temple draws around 6 million visitors every year, making it one of the most visited religious sites in the world. Its communal meal, the langar, serves free meals to about 100,000 people every day, regardless of your background, whatever your belief is, and it is the largest free communal kitchen meal meeting place on earth. And it's all run on volunteer support. I mean, like, that's awesome. Like, how cool is that that anyone can go to this place and receive a meal? 100,000 people a day. That's crazy. And so Today, there are 25 million Sikhs around the world. Most of them live in India, as you can imagine, and in Punjab. But here's something interesting. While Sikhs make up only about 2% of India's total population, they account for 60% of the people in Punjab, where the religion begins. So I think that's important to note. Not all Punjabis are sick and not all Sikh people are punjabi, but again, 60% of the people in Punjab are Sikh. And so, yeah, they. Punjab exists sort of as the heart of Sikhism. And there's a video here showing some of the communal meals. I mean, how cool is this that all people can go in and receive a meal? Even some white dude looking like me, right? And you can see he has his head covered and I'm assuming went through all the necessary steps, took off his shoes, no tobacco, nothing like that. I mean, that's so cool. I would love to go see that. It's also important to note that Sikhs are everywhere. Big communities have taken root in places like the United Kingdom, U.S. australia, Malaysia, East Africa, in particular, Canada. So actually, if you go to Canada, specifically Toronto, you'll find many Sikhs there. In fact, Canada has the second highest Sikh population outside of India, and they make up nearly 1.5% of the entire country. So in order to really understand the tenants of Sikhism and what it really means, you have to understand the guru. So the word Sikh in and of itself literally means learner or student, which is fitting since the whole faith is rooted in the idea of learning from the teachings of the gurus. So many Sikhs refer to the tradition as Sikhi or gursikhi or gurmat, which all tie back to the path of the guru. It's central to basically everything, the entire philosophy and the entire way of life. The word guru means teacher or a spiritual guide. I think oftentimes people see it today and they're like, you know, if you're a business guru, it's like, oh, you're the, you know, of genius of business or something like that. And that is Basically, you know, kind of an appropriated term or a bastardized term from the faith, literally just meaning a spiritual guide. And so this is just someone that shows the way. And remember, Sikh means student. So it's literally a student teacher dynamic at the core of the faith. So you have the guru that is the teacher that guides the way, and you have the Sikh, which is the student, you know, the. The. The one that's on the path to reaching some type of enlightenment. And it wasn't done overnight. This has been shaped by many different gurus, specifically 10 that have kind of forged the path of, you know, what it means to be. To be sick. Each guru has effectively passed the torch on to the next, adding more wisdom and structure and direction to the growing community. I think this is what, like, almost like a lot of people think the Pope is like. I think a lot of people see the Pope and they're like, oh, that's the guy that, like, decides what Catholicism is. It's not really the same thing, because the Popes are sort of given more or less, you know, the Bible, and there's much more dogma and ritual, I think, that goes into the faith that the Popes are typically upholding, where it seems like the gurus are kind of working collaboratively across generations to contribute. And what's interesting is that many of these gurus weren't just these religious, you know, enlightened folks. Some of them were poets, warriors, philosophers, social advocates, and reformers who push for equality, and they have a long history. So let's just go through the ten gurus of Sikhism and learn kind of what they're all about. So it starts with Guru Nanak, and this guy was born around 1469. You can see a photo of him here, or a painting, rather. So again, this is around, you know, 1400s time, right? And Guru Nanak was the founder of Sikhism and its most honored teacher. He was born in 1469 in a tiny little village known as Talwandi. It's now a part of Pakistan. And even as a baby, people knew that there was something I guess, different or unique about him. And again, this goes back to sort of like Sikh, you know, ethos or the mythology. You could say that there's a legend that he even had, like, an adult, like, laugh as an infant. Like he was already on some type of, you know, a more mature, enlightened path. So from the start, Nanak was not the same as other people, while many other kids of the region, you know, might be, you know, doing kid stuff, playing Games or, you know, maybe even the upper level were, you know, studious and thoughtful and chasing, you know, you know, religious rituals and trying to be, you know, you know, sort of, you know, like having status within their own faith. Nanak was different. He was interested in sitting under trees and sort of asking big questions like, why are we here? Why are we fighting over religion? If God is real, why do we treat other people so badly? Why does evil exist? All of these kinds of questions. And so even as a kid, Guru Nanak wasn't impressed by these empty rules. He even was questioning the caste system which at the time was very much cemented into the society that they were living in. And he didn't buy into these religious divisions or he didn't think that the truth needed to be locked inside some type of strict ritual structure or a title or a hierarchy. He was much more, I guess you could describe it in modern terms, spiritual, but not so much into the structured, strict dogma and the labels that go along with that. And then something wild happened in his life. Guru Nanak was working as a storekeeper in the granary of Dalot Khan Lodi. And this was the local governor of Sultanpar Lodi. This is now in present day Punjab. And there was a moment that changed everything. One morning while taking a bath in a nearby river, Nanak vanished. And for three days he was gone. People feared that maybe he had drowned, maybe something worse had happened to him. But he returned. And when he returned, he was calm and filled with purpose and just seemed like he was radiating this wisdom. And his first words were this. There is no Hindu, there is no Muslim. In other words, there are no labels. There is only one God. And under that God we are all equal. Which as you can imagine, in that time and in that place, that was a very controversial thing to say. Alrighty, don't skip forward guys, because I am on the road. World's fastest ad read coming at you. I'm going to be at Hoboken, Indianapolis, Buffalo, Raleigh, Poughkeepsie, Portland, Oregon, Fort Worth, Texas, Austin, Texas, Stanford, Philly, Levittown, Chandler, Arizona, San Diego. I'm also going to be adding Toronto, Montreal, as well as Washington D.C. and a bunch of other dates. You can get all that@the markagnon.com dates are in the description, also in probably the comments of this episode. Go see me on the road. Come hang out. I'll be hanging out with everyone after the show. Come shake my hand, call me an idiot, whatever you want to do, I will be there. Additionally, I will Be doing my one hour of standup comedy. I'm very proud of this hour. I'm really excited to share with you guys and it would mean the world if everyone could come on out. And what do you wear to a show on the road? That's a great question. You can go to Camp Goods Co. That's right. We got merch. We got Camp Merch. We got hats, hoodies, T shirts. A lot of stuff is out of stock. Things have been selling like hotcakes. But we're going to be restocking everything in all the sizes. So you can go there right now, get all the merch, get all the coolest clothing in the podcast game. We're going to be updating that site regularly. And if you come out to a show, I'd love to see you sporting some of the threads that we got up online. I'll see you guys there. Get back to the show. What's up, guys? We're gonna take a quick break because I have great news. Religion Camp has merch. That's right. We have amazing T shirts like this one you see here. And this one we got hats. All sorts of very interesting designs, not only for Christianity, the one I was raised in, but for all religions. Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Judaism, Mormonism. I actually don't know if we have a Mormonism shirt, but maybe we can work on that if we got any, you know, Latter Day Saints trying to cop. Anyway, you can catch it all here at this link. We'll also have it in the description as well as the comments. Get that right now. Lonzo ball for Buzzballs. Ready to go. Cocktails take 12.