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Origins / Beliefs

The Sikh religion, referred to as Sikhism today, was founded by Guru Nanak Dev Ji in the 15th century in Punjab, India and is one of the seven major world faiths. He was the first of the 10 gurus who developed the religion. The teachings of six out of ten gurus and some other Hindu and Muslim saints and sages (who had risen above the boundaries of Hinduism and Islam) are embodied in shri Guru Granth Saheb Ji, the Sikh holy book. This is respected by the Sikhs as the present day Guru.

Sikh places of worship are called Gurdwaras, the doorway to God’s house, and are open to all irrespective of their faith, race or geographical distributions. Langar, the free kitchen for all, is an integral part of religious services at Gurdwaras and is run solely through voluntary contributions from the community.

The followers of the Sikh religion are called Sikhs. The word Sikh means a learner or a disciple. Sikhs believe in one omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient universal God and the meditation on the name Vaheguru is the mantra to realise Him. They adopt a modest dress code but don’t practice Purdah (Women covering their body to conceal their figure. Both men and women attend and contribute to the religious services at Gurdwaras.

The Sikh religion advocates that human life is supreme within creation and its sole purpose is to acheive unity with God before it ends i.e. becoming Jeevan Mukat (emancipated while alive). It is a practical religion and is against any meaningless rituals, pilgrimages, superstitions and idol worship. Three fundamental principles of Sikhism are:

  • Kirat Karna: Earn honest living
  • Wand Chhakna: Sharing your good fortune (time, wealth and knowledge) with the needy from all Backgrounds
  • Naam Japna: Meditation on One and only One God’s Name

Guru Gobind Singh Ji the tenth Guru transformed the Sikh religion into the order of Khalsa, the religion of brotherhood, by publicly uniting people from different castes. Since then, most Sikhs don’t use their surnames, but instead use Singh (Males - meaning Lion or a brave person) or Kaur (Females - meaning princess).

Initiation into the order of Khalsa is through a special ceremony called Amrit Sanchaar. After the initiation ceremony it is compulsory for a Sikh to be vegetarian and to wear five symbols, commonly known as 5 K’s:

  • Kes: Unshorn hair
  • Kangha: Comb
  • Kara: Iron or steel bangle
  • Kachhehra: special shorts
  • Kirpaan: sword.

Some Key Festivals

VAISAKHI, the Sikh New Year celebrated in April, the day on which the Khalsa was founded in 1699.

GURU NANAK Dev JI’s birthday in November.

GURU GOBIND SINGH JI’s birthday in Dec/Jan.

Martyrdom of GURU ARJAN DEV JI in June.

Martyrdom of Guru Teg Bahadur Ji In November/December.

BANDI CHHOR DIVAS which coincides with Diwali– in October/November.

(All dates change each year - refer to a multi-faith calendar for precise dates)

Death and Bereavement

Before death the family will sit and read from the scriptures or recite prayers. They are responsible for the last ceremonies and rites. After death, the body is washed and dressed at the undertakers in preparation for cremation. The ashes are collected and scattered at a special place in the Punjab.

History of Sikhism in Preston

Sikhs have been contributing to the economy not only of Preston but other parts of Lancashire and the UK since the early 20th Century. Whilst the Sikhs from rural areas of India worked in textile mills, foundries, paper mills, Leyland tyres and docks in and around Preston, the professionals from urban India and the succeeding generations of immigrants from rural India now hold prestigious positions in Social Care, Health, Media and IT Services.

Preston continues to attract many Sikh professionals and students from overseas.
Preston now has the largest Sikh community in the Northwest (approximately 3000), not including the floating population of Sikh students, professionals, and visitors to the town.

Since arriving in Preston, Sikhs have integrated well with the City, whilst at the same time continuing to practice their faith in the traditional way. Starting with meeting in each others homes and then by hiring venues for religious services, they have now adapted old buildings to create their own Gurdwaras. There are now three Gurdwaras in Preston, adding to the rich cultural diversity of the city. Whilst providing religious activities for Sikhs, the Gurdwaras keep their doors open to all communities, work in partnership with them on inter-faith and multi-faith issues, and provide outreach services to many schools, colleges, universities, hospitals and hospices.