Sikh Religion - Accommodation without Assimilation - Essay Example

Religion and Theology Introduction Many American communities have in the recent past experienced an influx of immigrants from different locations all over the world. One particular group that stands out in the many American societies is the Punjabi Sikh. This group mainly emigrated from the north-west of India. In this region, towards the end fifteenth century, the Punjabis developed a religion known as the Sikh religion. Because the immigrants from this region move directly in to the United States, they retain a significant amount of their culture and religion as they move into the United States. Even though some previously have lived in other countries before moving to the US, there are some aspects of culture tradition and religion that the groups share (Gibson, 2). The events of the past decade that depicted Sikh as a violent outfit changed the view of Sikhism worldwide. In any ordinary society where the Punjabis would emigrate to, the neighbors would not easily accommodate their religious belief. The resistance followed the fact that the Sikh religion militantly demanded religious autonomy and the followers also wanted a semiautonomous state of Punjab. The result of this militant push was the invasion of the golden temple; the religious headquarter of Sikhism, assassinations of prominent Sikh religious leaders and the massacre of several followers (Hawley and Mann, 1). This sets the background of this study which seeks to provide an insight into the life a teen student of Punjabi origin in America. Discussion Sikhism is a monotheistic religion whose followers are referred to as Sikhs. The religion has its background and origin in the northwestern province of India that is known as the Punjabi region. Punjabis both extend into Pakistan and India and share a common culture and religion on both sides and are separated by the geographical locations. Some of the Punjabis in Pakistan have become Muslims but the culture, and traditional trends are no different. The actual origin of the religion dates back to the late fifteenth century. In this religion, in order for one to become a faithful Sikh, it is mandatory to believe that there is one immortal being and existence of the ten gurus. There is the baptism in the religion that makes one change names. For the male members of the religion, the religion bequeaths the name Singh which means the lion and the name Kaur or princes as the last names. After the initiation ceremonies, the Sikhs are required to perform a number of obligations that are in line with the Sikh religion. Upon this initiation, the naming rights are a necessity. There are also a number of symbolic instruments that the members of this religion are required to wear. These include the wearing of the turban and the kirpan. The kirpan is a sword that is tucked into a gatra strap. This sword is often given in varied lengths and ad sizes. The wearing of cotton undergarments is also a part of the tradition, and the male members were often required to put on a metallic bracelet. The symbolism of the cotton undergarments was not in the religious aspect but the ease to mobility in times of the militant movement (Singh 61). In the United Kingdom, the Sikhs are permitted to carry up to a given length of the sword. At a specific length, the sword becomes a weapon and is illegal. In other jurisdictions, the level or the length of the sword is not a necessity. In the Punjab district where the religion has its origins, the carrying of the sword is not prohibited. However in other countries like Canada, crying of the sword is a very dangerous public offence, and anyone would be prosecuted for the offence. Other important items that are regarded by the Sikhs as religious and should be won by the baptized Sikhs include the wooden comb and the metallic bracelet. With the transfer of population that has realized a significant level of presence of the Punjabis prescience in the globe, it is important that the religion be discussed at world stage. In (Hawley and Mann, 5) the discussion that is advanced concerns the level of involvement of studies in the American institutions of higher learning in the religion. That is; the institutions do not recognize the need to take it up as a religious or theological aspect of the study. However, the study argues that it is essential for this research to be taken up as a part of either religious or theological studies in the U.S.A and most of the European countries. In the Indian military and other places of representation, the Sikhs are fairly represented. In the Indian military, the Sikh has a separate unit that is commanded by officials and officers wearing the turban. Any other officer is also permitted to wear a turban in the unit. In North America and many other territory militaries, the wearing of the turban is not permitted at any level. And the soldiers have to remain strictly disciplined to their attires. The attires of the soldiers often conflict with the mandatory requirement of the religion for the males to put on a turban at all times (Barrier and Juergensmeyer, 17-21). To visualize the effects of the religious and cultural differences between the Punjabis and the local communities in America, there has been a particular study that highlighted the increase in numbers of the Indians in valley side California (Gibson 2). The challenges that the students at the school face are numerous. The level of change requires the children to adopt a new language from their initial language. This is often swift and does not give the teenagers any chance to adapt to the language environment that all the others students are accustomed to. As such, the students often lag behind in their studies and are not at the level of their fellow students. Other problems that the students are forced to bear arise from the process of adaptation of the current behavior itself. The expectations that lay on the shoulder of a teenager that has been baptized in the Sikh religion will have to vary substantially. The variation exists because the religion requires the student to behave in a particular way, and the schools codes of conduct might vary. The items of religion that a student is permitted to carry to school may vary in many cases. The variation might arise because the level of discipline and requirements may change from community to another. Despite all this change requirements, it has been noted that the performance of the Asian-born children in Californian schools has been on the upper side (Gibson 6). Other incidences have largely been designed to keep out the Asian community from the west like the Komagata Maru steamship incident that was denied admission in Canada. The ship had a majority of its passengers from the Sikh community, but the actions taken by the Canadian government was largely to do with the Asian population in the country. Conclusion Different communities in America have an opinion about the nature of the religion that is known as Sikhism. Despite the fact that the course of retention of the religious practice by the Punjabis could be noble, the international picture that the religion had created makes it difficult for the different American societies to accept the religion without question. This is due to the numerous violent battles that were characteristic of the religion in the past decade. The challenges that are faced by the youthful population who hail from this religious background could be directly related to the religion but in some occasions are purely linguistic. The language difference often takes a big amount of time for the students to adapt and takes a toll on their performance in class. On the religious side, the teenagers do find it difficult to cope with the new behavior that is expected of them while keeping their original identity as Sikhs. In school, the Americanization effect has to kick in but in their homes, the students have to retain their cultural and religious identities as Sikhs. The maintenance of the identity is often difficult and challenging to adapt to. Other areas where religious discord arises are in the dress code that is permitted by the various American or European institutions that the teenagers attend and their acceptability. The wearing of the Kirpan is a religious duty of the teens, however, in many cases it is considered illegal and only permitted up to some level in the United Kingdom. Works cited Barrier, N G, and Mark Juergensmeyer. Sikh Studies: Comparative Perspectives on a Changing Tradition ; Working Papers from the Berkeley Conference on Sikh Studies. Berkeley: Graduate Theological Union, 1979. Print. Gibson, Margaret A. Accommodation Without Assimilation: Sikh Immigrants in an American High School. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1988. Print. Hawley, John S, and Gurinder S. Mann. Studying the Sikhs: Issues for North America. Albany, N.Y: State University of New York Press, 1993. Print. Singh, Nikky-Guninder K. Sikhism: An Introduction. London: I. B. Tauris, 2011. Print. Read More