Sikh Experience

On Wednesday April 30, 2008 I attended a discussion about the Sikh experience in the United States. Sikhism was found in 1499 by Guru Nanak in Northern India. It is a very unique religion and it is based on a teacher- student relationship. The teacher, or Guru, is the mentor for the student and helps them to find their way in life and figure out their life’s goals. There are about twenty-five million Sikhs living in the world and there’s a large portion located in Northern California. The reason the Sikhs live in such large populations in Northern California is because the region is very similar to what they were used to in India so it made them feel closer to home. Sikhs believe that there is “Mul Mantra”, meaning one Supreme Being, or one God who created everything. This God never comes down to earth through reincarnation as some other religions believe about their God, because they believe all people on earth are of equal caste. They do, however, believe in Karma and that what goes around comes around.

It was really interesting to listen to Dr. Dan Viblinger, who gave the lecture. He’s a religious studies professor at Chico state and has spent an especially large amount of time studying in Middle Eastern religions. I thought it was really interesting how he was able to explain the route of the Sikhs and how they migrated in large numbers to the United States and especially Northern California, because the regions were similar. There was also a student who spoke named Rahjmir. He talked about his experience here after 911 occurred and how none of the Sikh population had anything to do with what happened that day and many Sikhs were hassled because they had darker skin tones. It’s amazing the stereotypes people have and how ignorant they are to really find out what it’s all about. I learned a lot about Sikhs and what they represent. They are very peaceful people and try to get along with everyone and live to serve one God.