Coronavirus Diaries 4: Sikhi on Lockdown

Gurpurab 2020. Alas! 

Like all other holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, and events that have occurred since March of this year, it has been quite a challenge to celebrate and enjoy them fully. And for a faith that is very much focused on community, it has been exceptionally challenging for us Sikhs. 

When the whole world went into a strict lockdown back in March, I think one of the hardest pieces of it all was not being able to go to the Gurudwara. I felt isolated from my community and even worse, I felt isolated from my Guru! 

I know. I know. You don't have to go to Gurudwara to do your paath or to connect to the Guru or Waheguru. You can do everything at home. But it's not the same!!!! I'm an extrovert. I like people. And even if I don't know anyone at a Gurudwara, just sitting amongst a sangat feels nice. Their energy and vibrations rub off onto me and vise versa. So as you can see, going into lockdown gave me major anxiety. 

But then something kind of amazing happened. Before March, I had never even heard of zoom, but now zoom and other online video platforms became my best friend! Things that I never had access to before, I now had access to and it was great! It started when the Gurudwara in my home town of Houston, Texas held divans online. The divan hall was empty. The granthis and the tabla player were 2 meters apart but they did kirtan, ardas, and everything on a live stream and for me to watch it in Scotland thousands of miles away brought me so much happiness. The Gurudwara in my new home of Glasgow did live streams too! But there was something really special about being able to virtually attend the live stream from my home town. 

Then my entire family from India along with myself and my sister from the states got together on Zoom and did Sukhmani Sahib Paath! To be honest, it's something that we all easily could have done before, but for some reason, the pandemic pushed us to do it now. And again, it was just the sweetest thing ever. Even though we were and are still so far apart from each other it truly made me feel connected to them all.

Next came something truly amazing. An online Kaur Life Virtual Retreat. OMG. I hadn't attended a Sikh camp or retreat in a very long time. Especially not after getting married and moving away. Many of them take place on the East coast or the West coast of the US and having lived in Texas for so long, often it wasn't possible to travel to these retreats especially after getting so busy later in life. But this retreat happened virtually due to the pandemic and OMG. It was truly a blessing to be able to attend it. 

I met and re-connected with amazing and beautiful Kaurs that I had not seen in such a long time and we talked about all things Sikhi, spiritual, and real life cultural issues that we all deal with. To the organizers of Kaur Life: Can it happen virtually every year even after the pandemic is over?! It centered me. It enlightened me. It inspired me. 

Next came something that was freaking amazing. Online Punjabi/Gurmukhi School!!!! So, as many of you may already know. I'm not Punjabi. Hence my mother tongue isn't Punjabi and I wasn't taught it growing up nor did anyone speak it to me. But I do realize it's importance and significance. Especially the reading and writing part. Back in Houston, I attended Punjabi school at the Gurudwara on Sundays and I learned how to read and write in Gurmukhi but I am quite slow. Then of course life got busier and my learning came to a pause. But now: Unpause! A ton of Gurudwaras all over the world are offering online Punjabi classes. And yes, I could attend the Glasgow based classes. Or even the Houston based classes. But, I now get to attend the classes that my sister and brother in law are hosting in Virginia. How cool is that?! Speaking of which I need to do my homework. . . . . . 

I've saved the best for last. I joined an online book club! And it has been amazing. It is a sacred space with absolutely beautiful and enlightened souls from all around the world. We have chosen to read books written by Sikh authors. We started out with Valerie Kaur's "Revolutionary Love" and we are now on Jagmeet Singh's "Love and Courage." We read a chapter a week and meet online once a week and I can't even begin to explain how enlightening and enriching it has been.   

 

Depending on where you live in the world, you may or may not be in lockdown. Your Gurudwara may be open but it may be closed. We have had to celebrate Vaisakhi in lockdown and some of us have also spent Bandi Chor Divas in lockdown as well. It's been a little hard. And now with Guru Nanak's Gurpurab approaching, many of us will have to spend it in lockdown as well. So how do we celebrate? 

More importantly, how do we remember Guru Nanak especially during these times? 

Apart from doing paath to have that direct connection with the Guru, we can remember his values and try our best to live out those values. In my online Punjabi class, a question was posed to all of us. That question was: We know who our Gurus and Gurus 2 - 9 each had a Guru of their own that came before them, but who was Guru Nanak's Guru? 

Truth. Shabad. Waheguru. 

That's it. So simple. So sweet. 

But to get those things we need to put in the effort to be truthful and we need Gurparsad. And to be honest, we can be a good person and follow the Guru's message whether we are lock downed or not. 

But, a few extra things that we can do while under lockdown is:

1. We can finally finish reading all of those Sikh history books on our bookshelves! 

2. We can watch documentaries, movies, and youtube videos about our Gurus and all things Sikhi! There are actually so many Sikhnet! 

3. We can learn how to play a Sikh instrument from the Raj Academy! They do stuff online now! I know rightttttttt.

4. We can do what we do best and cook lungar and deliver food to others who are less fortunate. 

We got this! 

To be honest, because of all of these things. Lockdown hasn't been that bad. My life pretty much revolves around screens, but through the screens comes knowledge, connection, and lots of love. :)  <3

Bhull Chuk Maaf

Christine Kaur 

Page 17, Line 19
ਪਿਰੁ ਰੀਸਾਲੂ ਤਾ ਮਿਲੈ ਜਾ ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਸੁਣੀ ॥੨॥
Pir rīsālū ṯā milai jā gur kā sabaḏ suṇī. ||2||
We meet with our Beloved, the Source of Joy, when we listen to the Word of the Guru's Shabad." ||2||
Guru Nanak Dev   -  view Shabad/Paurhi/Salok