Sikhism, also known as Sikhi or Sikh Dharma, is an Indian religion, and is a philosophy, that originated in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, around the end of the 15th century CE. It is one of the most recently founded major religious groups and stands at fifth-largest worldwide, with about 25–30 million adherents.
Numerous religious traditions have taken a stance on abortion but few are absolute. These stances span a broad spectrum, based on numerous teachings, deities, or religious print, and some of those views are highlighted below.
British society is one of the most secularized in the world and in many surveys determining religious beliefs of the population agnosticism, nontheism, atheism, secular humanism, and non-affiliation are views shared by a majority of Britons. Historically, it was dominated for over 1,400 years by various forms of Christianity, which replaced preceding Romano-British religions, including Celtic and Anglo-Saxon paganism. Religious affiliations of United Kingdom citizens are recorded by regular surveys, the four major ones being the national decennial census, the Labour Force Survey, the British Social Attitudes survey and the European Social Survey.
Islam is the second-largest religion in the United Kingdom, with results from the 2011 Census giving the population as 4.4% of the total UK population, while results from the 2021 Census recorded a population of 6.5% in England and Wales. London has the greatest population of Muslims in the country. The vast majority of Muslims in the United Kingdom adhere to Sunni Islam, while smaller numbers are associated with Shia Islam.
Thought for the Day is a daily scripted slot on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 offering "reflections from a faith perspective on issues and people in the news", broadcast at around 7:45 each Monday to Saturday morning. Lasting 2 minutes and 45 seconds, it is a successor to the five-minute religious sequence Ten to Eight (1965–1970) and, before that, Lift Up Your Hearts, which was first broadcast five mornings a week on the BBC Home Service from December 1939, initially at 7:30, though soon moved to 7:47. The feature is mainly delivered by those involved in religious practice; often, these are Christian thinkers, but there have been numerous occasions where representatives of other faiths, including Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism, have presented Thought for the Day.
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.
Sevā, in Hinduism and Sikhism, is the concept of selfless service that is performed without any expectation of reward for performing it. Such services can be performed to benefit other human beings or society. Sevā means "service". A more recent interpretation of the word is "dedication to others". In Hinduism, it is also known as karma yoga, as described in the Bhagavata Gita.
British Sikhs number over 520,000 people and account for 0.88% of England and Wales's population as of 2021, forming the United Kingdom's fourth-largest religious group. According to the 2021 United Kingdom census, Sikhs in England & Wales numbered 524,140, with 520,092 in England and 4,048 in Wales. The largest Sikh populations in the U.K. are in the West Midlands and Greater London.
Indarjit Singh, Baron Singh of Wimbledon, sometimes transliterated Inderjit Singh, is a British journalist and broadcaster, a prominent British Indian active in Sikh and interfaith activities, and a member of the House of Lords.
English Sikhs number over 520,000 people and account for 0.92% 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.
Followers of Sikhism do not have a preference for meat or vegetarian consumption. There are two views on initiated or "Amritdhari Sikhs" and meat consumption. "Amritdhari" Sikhs can eat meat. "Amritdharis" that belong to some Sikh sects are vehemently against the consumption of meat and eggs.
Husna Parvin Ahmad, OBE is a British humanitarian and writer. She is the CEO of Global One 2015, a women-led INGO. She is Secretary-General of the World Muslim Leadership Forum. She was the chief executive officer of the Faith Regen Foundation.
City Sikhs is a nonprofit organisation, and a registered charity which describes itself as "A voice for progressive Sikhs". It promotes networking, education and volunteering amongst Sikh professionals and provides a platform for engagement with the British Sikh community.
The arrest of Jagtar Singh Johal is a detainment that occurred in November 2017 in Punjab, India, after UK spy agencies tipped off their Indian counterparts about a key man, "Johal", who was currently in India.
Jasvir Singh is a British family law barrister, media commentator and social activist. He is a co-founder of South Asian Heritage Month. Singh regularly appears in the British media to speak about the British Sikh experience and also interfaith related matters. He is described as being "one of the most prominent Sikh voices in British public life".
The British Sikh Report, also known as the BSR, is an annual report launched in Parliament every year about Sikhs in the United Kingdom. The report looks at the views of Sikhs living in the UK and provides this information e.g. the government, non-governmental organisations, companies and other groups. It is one of the largest projects to regularly study the needs and wants of Sikhs anywhere in the world.
Amandeep Singh Madra OBE is a historian, author and media commentator.
Opinderjit Takhar MBE is a researcher and director of the centre for Sikh and Punjabi studies at the University of Wolverhampton.
Jagraj Singh Hundal, known as Bhai Jagraj Singh, was a British Army officer and Sikh preacher.
