Thank God, you are now in a country where you have individual rights that you have not had before. You are free to practice your faith, express opinion, and pursue happiness in your own way. You are free to do whatever you like as long as it is within the limits of the law of the land and it does not shock the reason and intellect of reasonable and civilized people.
Evaluate yourself; what brought you here and what good things you can do your family and yourself.
- a) Are you escaping the Indian persecution? Could you prove that you were singled out by the Indian authorities because you believed in an independent homeland, Because of your actions you became a victim of charge of sedition, or you were singled out simply because you are a Sikh, Were the Indian authorities intimidating and harassing you or threatening to kill you? If you can prove the above and that your life will be in danger if you return to India, then think of political asylum here.
- b) You came here legally but came for economic reasons. Then apply yourself and cam to satisfy your needs, for enterprising and hardworking people like Sikhs there is plenty of work here. In America there is dignity in work, so any kind of work is fine but Strive to be the best at it. We recommend that your goal should be to Own your own business. Join partnerships, syndicates and form corporations. Pool your resources and create work for yourself and others.
You came here on your own accord. Therefore do not expect others to-do things for you. You must take charge of your life, welfare and conduct. There is good reason to work together, share and serve. Commit yourself to America since this is your new home. At the same time consider yourself as an ambassador of your community, because your community will be judged by your conduct.
Do’s and Don’ts:
Do’s:
- Learn the American way, Americans are successful, so they must have been doing things right. Emulate successful ways.
- Respect and conform to the law of the land. Participate in the National holiday celebrations. 3. No one is complete unless one is academically and culturally accomplished. Try to make yourself whole, educate yourself to enjoy the blessings of life in this era of high technology. Develop hobbies, create ventures and find tasteful things to enjoy.
- Value time, your own as well as others”. It is an insult when one does not keep one appointments, every minute should be considered important and not wasted.
- Participate Join American political parties, perform civic welfare projects, Be proud of your cultural heritage. Join and attend Sikh community, gatherings and Gurdwaras congregations.
- Integrate not assimilate. Keep your identity and physical form intact. People will respect you for the steadfastness of your character.
- Americans are curious to know about new things. Your friends and acquaintances may ask you questions about your physical form and religion. Try to learn about your religion and be patient to answer their questions.
- Pay special attention to the upbringing of your next generation. Instill in them habit of work, quality, ethics and pride of our religious and cultural heritage, Let them be professionally whatever they would like to be but try to make sure that they are the best in that field.
- Pray with your children, the families that pray together stay together.
Don’ts:
- Do not try to force your culture on others. Be polite and stick to your principles and virtues, 2, do not overcrowd your homes. Americans are used to living in single family units. Multiple families in overcrowded homes cause worry and apprehension among neighbors.
- Keep your gatherings small. If you must have a large number of people visiting you, courtesy demands that your guests respect the property and rights of your neighbors. Inform your neighbors of expected crowd, Say good bye to your guests at your door and not in the street, Be a good neighbor.
4,Speak English in public, at work and when you feel someone is uncomfortable. It is good produce to speak English when around non-Punjabis, Americans tend to be paranoid and suspect others are talking about them.
5.Do not frown. Smiles bring back smiles.
6.Do not wear clothes smelting of spices. Cleanliness is next to Godliness.
Remember the following story from Guru Nanak’s life to guide you regarding your conduct in life in a foreign land: Guru Nanak, during one of his travels, reached the city of Multan, which, at that time happened to be a stronghold of Muslim ascetics, While still outside of the city, the guru was greeted by an emissary of the leader of the ascetics with a cup of milk filled to brim. The symbolic underlying message of this full cup was that Multan was already full of fakirs and there was no place for another one like him. The Guru placed a petal of jasmine flower over the surface of milk and returned it to the sender. The message conveyed was that he had no intention of displacing any one of them; On the other hand he would stay with them integrated like the petal of jasmine with the milk without losing his identity and give them (spiritual) fragrance. Such should be the conduct of every Sikh today, especially those settled outside India.
Courtesy: Sikh Welfare Foundation
Article extracted from this publication >> July 30, 1993
