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A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism, a religious faith originating in Indian subcontinent (historic Punjab).

The word Sikh is derived from the Sanskrit word shishya which means disciple or student. In the Punjabi language the word Sikh also means to learn. So a Sikh is a disciple of the Ten Gurus and a follower of the teaching the many Hindu and Muslim saints whose teaching are incorporated in the Sikhism's holy book, the Sri Guru Granth Sahib (SGGS).

The Khalsa

The baptised Sikh is called a Khalsa or the "Pure One". When a Sikh becomes a Khalsa, he/she is supposed to have pledged his/her life to the Guru, and is expected not to desist sacrificing anything and everything in a struggle for a just cause.

General Disposition

Historically, Sikhs have been known to be great warriors. The tenth Sikh guru Gobind Singh is considered a great military leader and strategist of his time. He inspired and eventually lead a relatively small number of Sikh forces to remarkable triumphs over expansive state armies of the Mughal king Aurangzeb. It is perhaps owing to such inspired passion or the singular religious devotion of the Khalsa that one may encounter many instances of remarkable gallantry displayed by Sikh fighters throughout history. The Battle of Saragarhi (1897) is remembered as one of many battles where the Sikhs have fought with unflinching strength. In the Battle of Saragarhi, the Sikh Havildar Ishar Singh with 21 other soldiers fought with great bravery against 10,000 Afridi tribesmen. This battle has been taught in history lessons in French schools for many years as a model and an example of extreme human bravery, sacrifice and of comradeship. In the two World Wars, over 80,000 Sikhs died for the allied forces in battles. Many Sikhs have received the Victoria Cross and the Param Vir Chakras for their gallantry and courage.

As a consequence of the above, even today gallantry and machoism are much appreciate values in Sikh cultures. It is not uncommon to see tall, well-built Sikh youths driving open (roofless) Jeeps, SUV's or bigger, macho motorbikes such as Royal Enfield's Bullet. Despite their small percentange in Indian population, Sikhs have regularly figured in national Indian sports squads (especially field hockey and athletics, the traditional dances and sports of Punjab almost always manifest flowing energy or physical strength.

Precisely for this prevalence of machismo, Sikh culture is clearly male dominated and women play, as in myriad other cultures, only a secondry role in society.

Sikhs and Punjabis

Since Sikhism originated in the region of Punjab, most Sikhs trace their roots to that region (though in recent times, with the spread both of Sikhism and Sikhs, one might encounter Sikhs belonging to other geographical locations across the world). So more often than not, a Sikh might also be identified as a Punjabi, although one should not be confused with the other. Consequently, and also because the Guru Granth Sahib is written in Gurmukhi, the script of the Punjabi language, most Sikhs are able to speak, read or write the language, or are at least familiar with it.

Sikh Names

A Sikh man almost always bears the second name of Singh, which means 'lion', and a Sikh woman can be identified with a second name of Kaur (Though the name Kaur is an exclusively Sikh name, Singh is quite often encountered in Hindu names as well). Additionally, except only a very few cases, the same first names as used for men are used for women. In other words, though one may not be able to tell the gender of Sikh person from his/her first name, the second name of Singh or Kaur makes the distinction completely clear. Moreover, the said first names usually end with common suffixes such as: inder, jeet, preet, pal, meet, deep, mail, bir, want etc. Even the prefixes of the first names aren't too much varied. The commonest of prefixes are: Gur, Har, Man, Bal,Dal, Kul, Jas etc. The various combinations of these prefixes and suffix make up Sikh first names.

Keeping above in mind, a few examples of Sikh names might be:

Male names

Gurbinder Singh
Baljeet Singh
Gurpreet Singh
Manpreet Singh
Harpal Singh

Female names

Gurpreet Kaur
Daljeet Kaur
Hardeep Kaur
Baljeet Kaur
Jaswant Kaur

Despite the above unwritten conventions that are usually followed while naming Sikh children, till a generation earlier, shorter, one syllable names such as: Banta Singh, Bhag Singh, Jant Singh, Jeet Kaur, Har Kaur etc. could be easily encountered especially in rural areas of Punjab. Other than that, modern Sikh families living in bigger, cosmopolitan cities, have adopted names from other communities as well. For instance, in New Delhi you might find a Sikh girl named simply Amita. In this case, the second name Kaur has been done away with and more significantly, the name Amita is unlike any conventional Sikh first name and is, in fact, a name more commonly associated with a Hindu girl.

So, though it might be easy to indentify a Sikh by his/her name, people with "non-Sikh" names can be Sikhs too.

Prescribed daily Practises of a Sikh

The following is the daily routine to be followed by a practising Sikh. These are of course not mandatory to be a Sikh but rather an ideal:

To rise early in the morning.
To have a shower or bath or as a minimum to wash face, hands & feet.
To meditate on God and recite the Banis of the Guru - Japji Sahib, Jaap Sahib and 3 other banis. If possible to attend Gurdwara (Sikh Temple); to listen to Kirtan whenever possible.
To perform Aardas, have breakfast and attend to the family needs.
To attend work, training, or study, etc and perform Kirit Karni.
Finish your daily work, school or college and return home to see to your family duties.
In the evening recite or listen to the Rehras Sahib.
After Aardas, to have the evening meal and engage in recreational, charitable, social tasks.
Before bed to recite or listen to the Kirtan Sohila.

Duties of a Sikh

This section deals with the general duty of a Sikh to Society and God rather that his/her daily Practises which are dealt with in the previous section.

1. Accept the Ten Gurus and SGGS as their Spiritual Teachers. Regularly study, meditate on and read the SGGS. Naam Japo; have faith in Guru & God.
2. Live a householder's life – honest, simple and family oriented Kirat Karni; Know you responsibilities and honour these.
3. Contribute to the well being of Society by offering selfless service without receiving payment and give ten percent of their net income to a charity, poor person, worthy cause, etc. Wand kay Shako
4. Treat every person as an equal irrespective of caste, creed, gender, profession, social status, age, race, ability, etc
5. Speak politely; forgive easily and be humble at all times – page 1384 – “Humility is the word, forgiveness is the virtue, and sweet speech is the magic mantra. Wear these three robes, O sister, and you will captivate your Husband”
6. Avoid the five thieves – PAGAL – Pride, Anger, Greed, Attachment to Worldly things Maya and Lust.
7. If you are a Baptised Sikh, Wear the 5Ks.
8. Do not be Cruel; nor have a negative outlook on life; Always have a Positive Attitude Chardi Kala
9. Do not practise rituals or superstitions; no fasting; no penances; Always be logical and scientific in your approach to any problem.
10. Practise vegetarianism – The Sikhs have to offer their food first to their Gurus before taking it themselves and NO sikh would allow meat products in their temples and so it follows that it is preferred for a Sikh to be a vegetarian. There is dispute about vegetarianism but only vegetarian food is served in Sikh temples.

The Sikh and His Guru

The relationship between the Sikh (‘disciple’) and the Guru (‘Master’) is very powerful and dominate and is central to understanding the reason for the strong dedication and devoted service that is performed by the followers of this religion. The Sikh believes that the tenth Guru is their spiritual father and that all other Sikhs are his/her spiritual brothers or sisters. The commitment by the disciple to the Guru is total and so is the dedication of the Gurus to the Panth or followers. The Gurus have spoken very highly of their disciples.

Guru’s Dedication to the Sikhs

Guru Gobind Singh says the following about his Sikhs or Khalsa (“the pure ones”):

The Khalsa is my true image. I dwell in the Khalsa. Khalsa is my chief purpose. I am forever with the Khalsa. Khalsa is my closest friend. Khalsa is my mother, father & my comfort. Khalsa is my caste & creed. My creation is through the Khalsa. Khalsa is my haven and storehouse. Because of the Khalsa I am honoured. Khalsa is my body & spirit. Khalsa is my life & soul. Khalsa is my total, true Guru. Khalsa is my courageous friend. Khalsa is my wisdom & knowledge. I will always contemplate for the Khalsa. Full tribute of the Khalsa is beyond me. It is impossible to truly praise the Khalsa with one tongue. I certify that in the above, nothing is false. God and Guru Nanak are my witnesses to this truth.

Further, several of the Sikh Gurus carried out extreme sacrifices - all for the furtherance of the cause and this was done without any regard for personal self-perservation, benefit or gain. Guru Arjan Dev, the fifth guru was martyred by the then Mughal ruler, Emperor Jahangir for not amending the Adi Granth, the Sikh Holy book to reflect his views.

The ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur became the 'leader' of the Kashmiri Hindus to protect and save these tribesmen from the tyranny of the rulers of the nation - He made the ultimate sacrifice and was martyred by Emperor Aurangzeb for not converting to Islam.

Guru Gobind Singh is remembered by the Sikhs as a prophet who has made the most sacrifice for the Panth or ‘Community’. Not only did he have to endure the sacrifice of his father Guru Tegh Bahadur, but also his mother and all his four sons or Four Sahibzadas Ajit Singh, Jujhar Singh, Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh

On losing his sons, Guruji consoled their mother thus: “Mother of the Panth, What if our four sons are gone? They still live in God’s Kingdom, and forever shall live the Khalsa, Millions of our brave and dear sons." Guruji further said that their sons were 4 'gifts of virtues' from God – "Their death has passed these four great virtues into the Khalsa Panth – ‘Ajit’ means Invincible; ‘Jujhar’ means warrior; ‘Zorawar’ means Brave; and ‘Fateh’ is victory. So these qualities will live in our Khalsa.”