Bhai Jaitas Epic Sri Gur Katha -Hofstra

It is one of the strange ironies of the Sikh tradition that its otherwise vibrant scholarship has hardly taken note of a magnificent text by Bhai Jaita (c.1657-1704), viz. Sri Gur Katha, even when it has been in the public domain in print for the past two decades.i This irony gets a sharper relief with the appearance of the latest comprehensive, brilliant and insightful essay on the sources pertaining to Guru Gobind Singh and his times by Gurinder Singh Mann.ii It is quite dismaying that Bhai Jaita‟s composition available in at least 6 books by then should have escaped the attention of Mann, a meticulous researcher and indefatigable fieldworker of Sikh studies. Sri Gur Katha is a powerful and evocative epic, a „story‟ of Guru Gobind Singh‟s life which has potential of settling a few important controversies generated by contentious interpretations of the Sikh tradition. Produced by a Khalsa Sikh unlike most of the early poets and writers, it lends a ring of proximity and authenticity to the central events of the tradition. It emerges as the first contemporary source to talk explicitly about the 5Ks (panj kakkars), a detailed description of „amrit bidhi‟ (khande di pahul), the initiation rite, and the „rahit’ (code of conduct) as enunciated by the Tenth Master. Being a record by the closest of witnesses, it does not mention any devi puja by the Guru while narrating the Khalsa event. Coming from a dalit Sikh (rechristened by Guru Gobind Singh as Jeevan Singh) in the lifetime of the Guru, it offers an unpolluted version of some of the central concerns to the Sikh tradition in general and the Khalsa tradition in particular as compared to the later brahmanical or brahmanised-Sikh interpolations of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Written in the prevalent old Punjabi (sadh bhasha) of the Sikh tradition, Sri Gur Katha is a testimony of Bhai Jaita as a master poet besides an accomplished warrior. Rather than exploring all nuances of the long poem the paper has a limited purpose: to analyze Sri Gur Katha to suggest correction of dates respecting Guru Gobind‟s birth and the creation of the Khalsa. While highlighting the details about amrit-bidhi and rahit the paper also argues that it turns out to be the first unambiguous source on the innovative measures introduced by Guru Gobind Singh including the five symbols of the Khalsa.

Bhai Jaitas Epic Sri Gur Katha -Hofstra

The Birth of the Khalsa - A Feminist Re-memory of Sikh Identity by Nikky-Gurinder Kaur Singh - A must read for all Sikh Scholars

http://www.vidhia.com/Historical%20and%20Political/Nikky-Gurinder_Kaur_Singh_-_Birth_of_the_Khalsa.pdf

The birth of the Khalsa (from the Arabic khalis, meaning “pure”) by Guru Gobind Singh is a pivotal event in the psyche and imagination of the Sikhs. During the Baisakhi festivities of 1699 the guru and his wife prepared amrit, and five men from different castes sipped it from the same bowl. Their drink purified them of all mental defilements. Ending centuries of hereditary oppressions of caste, class and profession, the five were born into the egalitarian family of the Khalsa. Over time “Khalsa” and “Sikh” have become synonymous terms, and even though only a minority of Sikhs are formally initiated into the Khalsa order, all Sikh men and women trace their personality, name, religious rites, and prayers—what they do, what they wear, how they identify themselves—to this liberating Baisakhi of 1699.

The Birth of the Khalsa - A Feminist Re-memory of Sikh Identity by Dr. Kamalroop Singh

New book of Kailash Puri and Eleanor Nesbitt: POOL OF LIFE: the autobiography of a Punjabi agony Aunt

Dear all,

The new book of Kailash Puri and Eleanor Nesbitt: POOL OF LIFE: the autobiography of a Punjabi agony aunt is now out (even though websites give an October publication date).

More info on the book can be found here:

http://www.sussex-academic.com/sa/titles/biography/PurlNesbitt.htm

Pre-Partition life; Guru Nanak's descendants; experiences as a Punjabi woman; Punjabi journalism; postbag of diaspora Asians' problems; community relations in UK; life in Africa; travel in Europe; return to roots in Pakistan - it's all there...    

Books can be ordered from the distributor: http://www.gazellebookservices.co.uk/GazelleBooks/REQEMAIL1.pgm?BIBEAN=9781845196028

The Punjabis in British Columbia - Location, Labour, First Nations, and Multiculturalism - By Kamala Elizabeth Nayar

The Punjabis in British Columbia
 
Location, Labour, First Nations, and Multiculturalism  
 
By Kamala Elizabeth Nayar 
 
  

In this richly detailed study, Kamala Nayar documents the social and cultural transformation of the Punjabi community in British Columbia. From their initial settlement in the rural Skeena region to the communities that later developed in larger urban centres, The Punjabis in British Columbia illustrates the complex and diverse experiences of an immigrant community that merits greater attention.

Exploring themes of gender, employment, rural and urban migrant life, and the relationships between the Punjabis and surrounding First Nations and other immigrant groups, Nayar creates a portrait of a community in transition. Shedding light on the ways in which economic circumstances affect immigrant communities, Nayar presents findings from interviews conducted with over one hundred participants. She details the relocation of Punjabi populations from the Skeena region to British Columbia's lower mainland during the decline of the forestry and fishery industries, how their second migration changed their professional and personal lives, and how their history continues to shape the identities and experiences of Punjabis in Canada today.

A nuanced look at the complexities of social and cultural adaptation, The Punjabis in British Columbia adds an essential perspective to what it means to be Canadian. 
 
Click here to learn more or order a copy of the book 

Sikh and Punjabi Studies, (Re-)Building Punjab: Political Economy, Society and Values.

Dear Friends and Colleagues:

We are very pleased to invite you to UCSC's next conference in Sikh and Punjabi Studies, (Re-)Building Punjab: Political Economy, Society and Values.

The URL for the conference, with abstracts, registration information, and other details, is athttp://ihr.ucsc.edu/rebuilding-punjab

Hoping to see you in Santa Cruz

Sincerely,
Professor Nirvikar Singh and Dr. Inderjit N. Kaur, Conference Organizers

Program Summary

Friday, March 29

Session 1: Sikh Values and Punjab Society in Historical Perspective
Presenter: Prof. Pashaura Singh, Religious Studies, UC Riverside
Discussant: Dr. Harpreet Singh, South Asian Studies, Harvard University

Session 2: A Case Study of Sikh Diaspora Philanthropy in Punjab
Presenter: Prof. Verne A. Dusenbery, Anthropology, Hamline University
Discussant: Prof. Supreet Kaur, Economics, Columbia University

Session 3: Punjab Politics and Society

Presenter: Prof. Pritam Singh, Accounting, Finance and Economics, Oxford Brookes University
Discussant: Prof. Jugdep S. Chima, Political Science, Hiram College

Session 4: The Punjab Economy: Problems and Prospects

Presenter: Prof. Lakhwinder Singh, Economics, Punjabi University
Discussant: Prof. Nirvikar Singh, Economics, UC Santa Cruz

Dinner & Lecture: Reflections on the Columbia/UC Santa Barbara Punjab Summer Program
Prof. Gurinder Mann, Religious Studies, UC Santa Barbara

Saturday, March 30

Session 5: Groundwater in Punjab: Environmental Challenges
Presenter: Prof. Rajinder Singh Sidhu, Punjab Agricultural University
Discussant: Prof. Upmanu Lall, Engineering, Columbia University

Session 6: Punjab's Ethical Soundscapes: From Asa ki Var to Dhadi Var and Hip HopPresenter: Dr. Inderjit Kaur, Music, UC Santa Cruz
Discussion and demonstration: Mr. Mandeep S. Sethi, Hip-hop artist

Session 7: Lunch Panel: Punjab’s Future – What’s to be Done?
Dr. Narinder Kapany, Sikh Foundation
Dr. Ajit Singh, Artiman Ventures and Stanford University
Mr. Michael Singh, Filmmaker

The History of the Nitnem BĀņiĀ - Akali Dr Kamalroop Singh Nihang

The History of the Nitnem BĀņiĀ - Akali Dr Kamalroop Singh Nihang

“Dialogues with/in Sikh Studies: Texts, Practices and Performances” (May 10-12, 2013)

THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, RIVERSIDE

3rd Dr. Jasbir Singh Saini Endowed Chair in Sikh Studies Conference

On

“Dialogues with/in Sikh Studies: Texts, Practices and Performances”

(May 10-12, 2013)

http://www.religiousstudies.ucr.edu/SPS/events/Abstracts-3rdSikhStudiesConference-May2013.pdf

http://www.religiousstudies.ucr.edu/SPS/events/

The main purpose of this conference is to explore interdisciplinary approaches, resulting from academic inquiries into Sikh texts, as well as the practices that surround them and their performance. The dialogues to be explored are made possible by the environment of the university, which serves as a place where scholars from many fields and disciplines come together to pursue critical inquiries and comparisons. In many ways the Sikh community has been very supportive of academic inquires – though, at times, they have voiced outright criticism. Our hope for this conference is to provide a forum that focuses on how academic discussions and those arising in the community at large can complement one another, rather than being at odds

8. “The Textual History of the Dasam Granth Sahib”

Dr. Kamalroop Singh, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK

W.H. McLeod (1979/2007) states that ‘Research on the Dasam Granth has been very 

limited, with the result that most of the major questions which it raises cannot be 

answered at present.’ The previous research has been limited to the examination of its 

poetry, with the exception of one detailed study of Dasam Granth manuscripts (Jaggi 

1966). Very little research has been undertaken on the development of the Dasam 

Granth (DG) in the lifetime of the Tenth Guru, and therefore this paper addresses this 

gap. This paper begins with an examination of the editing and dating of primary 

sources, so that an accurate chronology can be constructed of the textual history. This 

has been explored in reference to late seventeenth and eighteenth century hagiographies

which are examined alongside several extant seventeenth century DG manuscripts; and 

with supplementation from later secondary sources. A major development in the textual history 

of the DG was its standardisation and subsequent printing in 1897, however 

some original manuscripts contain extra ‘apocrypha’ which are absent from the printed 

edition. The compositions in the standard version of the DG will be discussed, along 

with new translations and discussion of the ‘apocrypha.’ By re-examining the earliest 

sources, it is clear that the Scripture of Guru Gobind Singh was compiled in his Court. 

The juxtaposition against later sources brings the modern Singh Sabha theory that the 

compilation of the DG was compiled by Bhai Mani Singh into question.