PALATINE – Sikh Religious Society Palatine Illinois hosted an Interfaith Peace Conference last weekend titled “Service: A Pathway to Peace”. Selfless Service (“Seva”) is an integral part of Sikh tenets that the Sikhs learn to practice from their early childhood.
About 250 neighbors, friends and spiritual leaders of other faiths gathered at the Gurdwara for the event which was free and open to public.
The conference featured eleven speakers from Baha’i, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Islamic, Jain, Jewish, Pagan, Sikh and Zoroastrian faiths representing a kaleidoscope of religious and spiritual perspectives.
The open house, fellowship and refreshments began at 2 pm in the Langar Hall. Several exhibition tables with displays of rare books and historical photos including Bhagat Puran Singh were also set up in the main lobby for the visitors to browse around.
The Interfaith Conference started around 3 pm in the Congregation Hall with Sikh prayers lead by Bhai Gurjant Singh for the wellbeing of the whole humanity. The traditional “Hukam” (order for the day) from Siri Guru Granth Sahib was recited in Punjabi and translated in English by Ms. Jasvir Kaur. Gurbani shabad “Ek Pita Ekas Ke Ham Baarak” (we are children of the same Father) was recited by the S.R.S. Gurmat School Children.
Prof. Mohanbir Singh Sawhney, McCormick professor of Kellogg School of Business Northwestern University took over as the master of ceremonies for the conference.
The conference began with a welcome address by Dr. Jasbir Kaur Saluja, President of the Sikh Religious Society. She welcomed the participants and talked about the importance and uniqueness of having a gathering of such diverse and distinguished religious and spiritual leaders. This was followed by remarks by Sardar Gulbarg Singh Basi, Chairman of the World Sikh Council, Americas Region.
Arun Gandhi kicked off the conference by sharing perspectives from his grandfather Mahatma Gandhi. He reminded us that wasting resources was a form of violence against nature and discriminating against fellow humans was a form of passive violence against humanity. We must practice non-violence in our thoughts as well as our actions.
Dr. Balwant Singh Hansra concluded the conference by sharing a moving story of the “langar” (community meal) provided by Sikh volunteers at the 2004 Parliament of World Religions conference in Barcelona, where thousands of people were provided free meals daily for a week by volunteers who worked 12 to 14 hours a day. That is the embodiment of service in the Sikh tradition.
