LONDON – Birmingham City University Students’ Union and its Sikh Society will be hosting ‘Langar on Campus’ in the Atrium at Millennium Point on Thursday between 11am and 4pm.
This is the second time a large-scale langar has been held at Birmingham City University. Last year, over 800 people from across the city came to enjoy a hot meal and gain a greater insight into the Sikh faith.
‘Langar on Campus’ is an event organised by Sikh students in universities all across the world, where students, staff and community members from all backgrounds come together and partake of the meal. Everyone sits on a carpet together at the same level – signifying equality – and only vegetarian food is served in order to cater for everyone, no matter what their diet is.
The langar started in the 15th Century by Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, was designed to uphold the principle of equality between all people regardless of religion, caste, colour, creed, age, gender or social status; a revolutionary concept in the caste-ordered society of India at that time.
Vice president of Birmingham City University Sikh Society, Jaspreet Singh, hails from Jalandhar, and has been studying in the City for three years. He said: “To Sikhs, langar can mean sharing of ideologies, sharing of good practices and sharing of food. The message of our event is clear; no matter how many differences we have got as holy souls, we all can come together as an equal unit and help humanity. This will inspire the community to not only learn, but also experience each other’s cultures and values.
“Birmingham City University Sikh Society has organised this event to help to share the message of Guru Nanak with our academic and local community. We hope it will convey a positive message by highlighting that we all are equal. Everyone is welcome to our event and we particularly hope to see lots of families who want to enjoy something new and uplifting this half term.”