The Gurdwara Sahib Leamington and Warwick is a Sikh gurdwara located on Tachbrook Drive, Warwick, [1] [2] England. [3] It primarily serves the community around Leamington, Warwick and Kenilworth. [4] It opened in 2009, and is the third largest purpose built Sikh gurdwara in the UK. [5] It is therefore one of the most significant buildings associated with Sikhism in the United Kingdom.
It was built primarily to serve the 7,000 Sikhs living in the Leamington and Warwick area. [5] The £11 million cost of construction was met entirely by the Sikh community. [6] Construction began in March 2008 by the local building contractors AC Lloyd, [5] with building works taking 18 months. It was formally opened on 25 October 2009. [7] Its opening was celebrated by a precession through the streets of Leamington involving up to 7,000 worshippers. [8]
It is a four storey building occupying 44,000 square feet (4,100 m2). It contains three large prayer halls, a multi-purpose assembly room, a communal kitchen, and a number of offices and classrooms. [5]
In February 2015, the gurdwara was visited by the then British Prime Minister David Cameron, in a bid to win support from the Sikh community in the run-up to the 2015 United Kingdom general election. [9] Two months later it was also visited by Ed Miliband, the then leader of the opposition Labour Party. [10]
In 2013 the BBC reported that Sikh weddings were often disrupted by protesters opposed to mixed faith marriages in gurdwaras. [11] In 2014 the General Assembly of Sikh Council UK, a Sikh organisation that coexists with the Sikh Federation (UK), which is said to be the largest UK Sikh organisation, passed guidelines declaring that temples are encouraged to ensure that both parties to an Anand Karaj wedding are Sikhs. [12]
On 11 September 2016 a group of protesters initially reported to be "in possession of bladed items" disrupted a mixed-faith wedding between a Sikh bride and a Hindu groom at Leamington Spa gurdwara, threatening and intimidating the people inside. [13] [14] A trustee of the temple described the protesters as "fanatical extremists". Authorised Firearms Officers responded to the scene, arresting 55 men, and seizing "a significant number of bladed weapons", however all but one of which were kirpans, later determined to be ceremonial rather than functional. [15]
Despite it being forbidden as per the Akal Takht, Gurdwara trustee Jaswat Videe said that the intruders were "absolutely wrong" to think that Sikhism prohibits interfaith marriage. [14] [16] The Sikh Council strongly opposes such mixed marriages.
During the Sikh wedding ceremony, Anand Karaj, a couple are making a commitment to live their lives as Sikhs. Many Gurdwara’s worldwide therefore do not allow non Sikhs to partake in the Anand Karaj, but a prayer service like Ardas can be undertaken instead. Similarly, some Christian churches like those of Catholic and other denominations do not allow non practicing Christians to have marriage ceremonies and this is no different with followers of Sikhi. [17]
Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or simply Leamington, is a spa town and civil parish in Warwickshire, England. Originally a small village called Leamington Priors, it grew into a spa town in the 18th century following the popularisation of its water which was reputed to have medicinal qualities. In the 19th century, the town experienced one of the most rapid expansions in England. It is named after the River Leam, which flows through the town.
A gurdwara or gurudwara is a place of assembly and worship for Sikhs but its normal meaning is place of guru or "Home of guru". Sikhs also refer to gurdwaras as Gurdwara Sahib. People from all faiths and religions are welcomed in gurdwaras. Each gurdwara has a Darbar Sahib where the Guru Granth Sahib is placed on a takht in a prominent central position. Any congregant may recite, sing, and explain the verses from the Guru Granth Sahib, in the presence of the rest of the congregation.
Guru Amar Das, sometimes spelled as Guru Amardas, was the third of the Ten Gurus of Sikhism and became Sikh Guru on 26 March 1552 at age 73.
The following outline is provides an overview of Sikhism, or Sikhi.
The laava phere, also known as Lavan, are the four hymns of the Anand Karaj which form the main part of this ceremony. The four hymns are from the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy scriptures and appear on Ang 773 to 774 of the total of 1430. The Laavaan Shabad was written by the Fourth Guru, Guru Ram Daas Ji.
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee is an organization in India responsible for the management of Gurdwaras, Sikh places of worship in states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh and the union territory of Chandigarh. SGPC also administers Darbar Sahib in Amritsar.
Interfaith marriage, sometimes called interreligious marriage or "mixed marriage", is marriage between spouses professing different religions. Although interfaith marriages are often established as civil marriages, in some instances they may be established as a religious marriage. This depends on religious doctrine of each of the two parties' religions; some prohibit interfaith marriage, and among others there are varying degrees of permissibility.
Gurdwara Sri Tarn Taran Sahib is a gurdwara established by the fifth guru, Guru Arjan Dev, in the city of Tarn Taran Sahib, Punjab, India. The site has the distinction of having the largest sarovar of all the gurdwaras. It is famous for the monthly gathering of pilgrims on the day of Amavas. It is near Harmandir Sahib, Amritsar.
Sikhism has no specific teachings about homosexuality and the Sikh holy scripture, the Guru Granth Sahib, does not explicitly mention heterosexuality, homosexuality or bisexuality. The universal goal of a Sikh is to have no hate or animosity to any person, regardless of factors like race, caste, color, creed or gender.
Anandpur Sahib, also referred simply as Anandpur, is a city in Rupnagar district (Ropar), on the edge of Shivalik Hills, in the Indian state of Punjab. Located near the Sutlej River, the city is one of the most sacred religious places in Sikhism, being the place where the last two Sikh Gurus, Guru Tegh Bahadur and Guru Gobind Singh, lived. It is also the place where Guru Gobind Singh founded the Khalsa Panth in 1699. The city is home to Takhat Sri Kesgarh Sahib, the third of the five Takhts in Sikhism.
Anand Karaj is the Sikh marriage ceremony, meaning "Act towards happiness" or "Act towards happy life", that was introduced by Guru Amar Das. The four laavaan were composed by his successor, Guru Ram Das. Although the recitation of Guru Amar Das' stanzas in Sikh ceremonies is a historical and enduring tradition, the practice of circumabulating around the Guru Granth Sahib to conduct a marriage ceremony is a relatively recent innovation that supplanted the tradition of circumabulating around the sacred fire (havan) in the early twentieth century. The Anand ceremony was originally legalised in India through the passage of the Anand Marriage Act of 1909, but is now governed by the Sikh Reht Maryada that was issued by the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC).
The Ontario Gurdwaras Committee is an independent, non-profit organization representing over 20 gurdwaras—Sikh places of worship—located in Ontario and Quebec. It organizes such events as the annual Khalsa Day parade in Mississauga.
Sikh architecture is a style of architecture that was developed under the Sikh Confederacy and Sikh Empire during the 18th and 19th centuries in the Punjab region. Due to its progressive style, it is constantly evolving into many newly developing branches with new contemporary styles. Although Sikh architecture was initially developed within Sikhism its style has been used in many non-religious buildings due to its beauty. 300 years ago, Sikh architecture was distinguished for its many curves and straight lines; Keshgarh Sahib and the Harmandir Sahib are prime examples.
British Sikhs number over 520,000 people and account for 0.85% of the British population as of 2021, forming the United Kingdom's fourth-largest religious group. According to the 2021 United Kingdom census, British Sikhs numbered 524,529, with 520,092 in England, 4,048 in Wales, and 389 in Northern Ireland. The largest Sikh populations in the United Kingdom are in the West Midlands and Greater London.
French Sikhs are a growing but minority group in France. It is estimated there are about 30,000 Sikhs, most of whom are based in Paris, Bobigny and Île-de-France.
Gurdwara Paonta Sahib is a noted gurdwara in Paonta Sahib, district of Sirmaur, Himachal Pradesh.
The Shri Swami Narayan Mandir, Karachi is a Hindu temple that is the only Swami Narayan temple in Pakistan. The temple is notable for its size and frontage, over 32,306 square yards (27,012 m2) on the M. A. Jinnah Road in Karachi city. The temple celebrated its anniversary of 216 years in April 2004. There is a sacred cowshed within the premises of this temple. The temple is located at the centre of a Hindu neighbourhood in Karachi. The building that housed a dharmshala for visiting devotees has now been converted to the office of the City District Government.
English Sikhs number over 520,000 people and account for 0.9% of England's population in 2021, forming the country's fourth-largest religious group. In 2006 there were 352 gurdwaras in England. The largest Sikh populations in the U.K. are in the West Midlands and Greater London.
The 52 Hukams are a set of instruction in Sikhism set by Guru Gobind Singh in Nanded, Maharashtra, India in 1708. These edicts sum up the ideal way of life of the Khalsa and serve as a code of conduct for the Khalsa Panth. Members of the Khalsa aim to follow all the 52 edicts.
