People in the U.K. are becoming increasingly aware of living in a multi-religious and multi-cultural society. There is a growing interest in Inter Faith dialogue. Sikhism is now recognized as a major world religion. Sikhism is taught in schools as a part of Religious Education. Moreover, the host community wants to know more about Sikhs as they are an important visible minority. There are many Sikh Associations and Sikh centers apart from more than 170; Gurdwaras. All these institutions are utilizing their resources in educating the public on Sikhism and also renewing and deepening the knowledge of the Sikh youth about their own heritage. This new awareness of their own identity and culture is quite noticeable among the generation of Sikhs born in this country.

  1. One of the important organizations in U.K. is the Sikh Missionary Society, South all, which has published more than 20 books and booklets on Sikh themes during the last fifteen years, for the benefit of the Sikhs and host community. It has recently supported the British Sikh Education Council in the publication of literature in English language suited to the needs of the student community. This year, the Council published learning the Sikh Way for the primary school students. This book contains lots of multi-colored pictures along with suitable write-up on topics like The Sikh, The Ten Gurus, Guru Granth Sahib, Sikhs in U.K., Sikh ceremonies, Sikh festivals, etc. It has received many appreciative reviews from teachers of Religious education.

Another important activity of the Sikh Missionary Society is the enrollment and academic support of 20 students for the M.A. (Religious Studies) through Correspondence Courses with the Punjabi University, Patiala. The candidates are active Professionals in U.K. who have taken up this course to improve their knowledge of Sikh Studies. They will be taking the M.A. First Year Examination at the London Center in August 1991. The Society has also reorganized and strengthened its Library to provide the needed literature for these candidates.

The Sikh Missionary Society as usual held its Annual Camp for students in Birmingham in the last week of July ‘90. About 125 children participated in the Camp. Some scholars from India who happened to be in U.K. then, also addressed the students.

  1. The Sikh Education Council, Hitchin (UK) has been quite active during the current year. Its Secretary, Dr. Baljit Singh Bagga is taking keen interest in organizing many functions apart from lectures and week-end campus. The Council hosted the Maharaja Singh Memorial Lectures on Sikh Studies in the end of July in Queen’s Hall, Hitchin, in which Dr. Madanjit Kaur of Amritsar, Dr.Darshan Singh of Chandigarh and Atamjit Singh of Chandigarh participated along with the local scholars. The most important function of the year was the Guru Nanak Intemational Sikh Conference held on 17-18 November 1990 at Essex Hall, London, W.C.2, and Judge Mota Singh chaired one of sessions of the Conference. On the first day, the following Papers were read and discussed:
  2. The Status and Role of Sikh Women by Dr. Kanwaljit Kaur
  3. Political ideas of Guru Nanak by Gurtej Singh, read by Dr. K.S .Mann

iii. The Origin and Development of Sikh Studies by Dr. G. S. Mansukhani, The afternoon session was devoted to the consideration of a proposal for starting a Centre for the promotion of Sikh Studies in the U.K. A Resolution was adopted to endorse its establishment at an early date. On the second day (18th Nov.) the following Papers were read and discussed:

 I; Sikhism: an original, distinct and complete religion by Dr. Harnam Singh Shan

Ii. Guru Granth Sahib and Modem Science by Dr. Surrinder Singh Kohli

Iii, Guru Nanak:Prophet of Unique Ideology by Sardar Daljeet Singh

  1. Devi worship, an unauthentic addition by Dr. Madanjit Kaur
  2. Creation of the Khalsa, a non-Sikh Indian literary perspective by Dr. H. Bannerji
  3. Reason and Revelation in Guru Granth Sahib by Dr. Gumam Kaur (Patiala)

vii. The Sikh World View: Its eternal Relevance by S.Daljeet Singh

Viii. Misinterpretation of Sikhism is Western Encyclopedias by Dr. Kharag Singh Mann. It may be noted that the above scholars proceeded to Canada and USA to read Papers on Sikh Studies during weekend Conferences in November & December 1990 in Toronto, Vancouver, Berkeley, Chicago, Washington DC, and New York.

  1. The Hemkunt Children’s Education Society is also interested in the training of Sikh boys and girls. Apart from teaching courses in Sikh religion, Panjabi languages and Kirtan, it participates in a yearly International Elocution Competition hosted by the Hemkunt Foundation of New York. The Society has about 75 students on its rolls. In August 1990, it held a special two-day function to select the best speakers from U.K. for participation in the finals which were later held in New York. There are three age-groups, and speeches are delivered on the content, relevance and significance of certain prescribed texts on Sikh Studies. This year the books prescribed were: Introduction to Sikhism by Dr.G.S. Mansukhani, Navi Paneerree published by Shai Vir Singh SahityaSadan, Delhi, and Stories from Sikh History, Vol.[V, Hemkunt, Delhi. The best speakers were selected in London by a panel of judges. Two students Ravnit Kaur Vohra and Rashmeet Kaur Chada participated in the Final competition in New York and won a Trophy. This is a very exciting example of training future Sikh youth speakers.
  2. The Sikh Studies Group headed by Dr.Owen Cole and Eleanor Nesbitt was not as active this year as in the previous years. As usual, it brought out the Annual issue of the Sikh Bulletin No.7 (1990) which contains articles on Sikh Youth Camps; Sikhs in Crawley; On money and monetarism; Language, Spelling and Authority; Amrit: the mystical formula of life ever-green.
  3. A Seminar on “Early Twentieth century Panjab” was held by the National Institute for Punjab Studies of Delhi in the Institute of Education, London University, in the end of September 1990. Mr.Kuldip Nayyar, Dr.G.S.Dhillon and others chaired the various sessions. About a dozen papers were read by the participants and hopefully the papers will be published in the KHERA magazine, Delhi, in due course for the benefit of the public.
  4. Another group called Panjab Research Group is partly active in Sikh studies. At the January ‘90 meeting in Coventry Polytechnic, Peter Friedlander read an illuminating paper on the Bani of Bhagat Ravidas, and Dr. C.S.Chan spoke on Sikh iconography. The June and October meetings were devoted to the examination of the various dimensions of the Punjab crises and possible political solutions. Harpal Singh’s Paper proposed consociationalism as a model, while Pritam Singh’s Paper offered constitutional modifications and decentralization of economic power. T.V. Sathyamurti’s Paper, read in absentia, dwelt on the future of Punjab crises in the 1990’s. PRG has published a comprehensive and informative Newsletter in Jan.1991 containing reviews of latest books, new courses and conferences on Punjab language and Sikh Studies. It also mentions the topics currently being researched in the U.K. Copies of the Newsletter can be obtained from Shinder Singh Thandi, Dept. of Economics, Coventry Polytechnic, and Coventry, U.K.
  5. The Sikh Council for Inter-faith Relations UK, London, held a meeting in May, when S.Indarjit Singh, Editor of the “Sikh Messenger” gave an illuminating talk on “The Sikh approach to Inter-faith understanding”. Such dialogue is necessary in order to counter the tendentious and mischievous propaganda in the media, on the identity and character of Sikhs. Thereafter Dr.G.S. Mansukhani offered critical comments on Hew McLeod’s latest book: Who is a Sikh? The Problem of Sikh Identity. McLeod’s definition of “Sikh” given at the end of the book is arbitrary and misleading, and contrary to the definitions mentioned in the Punjab Gurdwaras Act, 1925 and Delhi Gurdwaras Act, 1971.
  6. The Kendri Sri Guru Singh Sabha U.K. founded by the late S.Hukam (Singh speaker of the Lok Sabha) met in London in June 1990, where Dr.Kharag Singh Mann, Secretary of” the Institute of Sikh Studies, Chandigarh, gave a brilliant lecture on “A World-view of Sikhism”. He: emphasized the Sikh commitment to human welfare and progress in addition to the spirit of sacrifice for upholding basic human rights and moral values.

A recent development which has created a lot of interest among intellectuals in UK, in the proposal for establishing a European Institute of Sikh Studies, in place of the earlier project for setting up an Institute of Sikh Studies in London. The aim of the new project is to cover the whole of Europe and to over-see the branches to be set up in different Capitals of countries in Europe, which are intended to translate Gurbani and Nitnem in different regional languages and educate the most communities on the universal values of the message of the Gumus in promoting inter-faith dialogue, preservation of natural environment and world peace, It may be noted that one of the first _ objectives of the new institute will be the publication of translation of Sri  Guru Granth Sahib in modern British English idiom which is easily understand able by western nation.

Sikh Studies in U.K. is poised to make considerable progress in the months to come.

Article extracted from this publication >> July 5, 1991