 |
 | |
| Owner | 3HO |
|---|---|
| Founder(s) | Gurumustuk Singh Khalsa (website) |
| URL | sikhnet |
| Launched | 15 February 1996 (website) |
| Current status | Active |
SikhNet is a Sikh-centric website operated by the 3HO organization. [1] [2] SikhNet is a tax exempt 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation in the U.S.A. [3] It caters to what it has termed as the "cyber sangat" ("cyber congregation"). [3]
The origins of SikhNet can be traced back to a bulletin board system (BBS) created by Guruka Singh, launched in 1983. [3] Harbhajan Kaur and Mahan Singh in Millis, Massachusetts were the coordinators of the early SikhNet BBS. [3] The server operated through GEnie with a 300 baud connection. [3]
In February 1986, the SikhNet BBS server was upgraded and went online with a 10 Mhz IBM XT clone computer with a 1200 baud (later 9600 baud) modem. [3] The SikhNet BBS was an early version of the open-source BBS software (RBBS v.15) that was hacked for customization purposes. [3] There were around 100 users, with 20 of them being regulars. [3] The SikhNet BBS's log-on screen contained artwork of a Khanda symbol made using ASCII art. [3] A Clipper program was created by Ravi Har Singh Khalsa for accessing SikhNet, it was known as SikhNet-Zapper. [3] The BBS contained a prototype-discussion forum and announcements from 3HO & Sikh Dharma International were posted for the users to view. [3] There were also transcript recordings of Yogi Bhajan's lectures and talks stored on the BBS and daily quotations of the Guru Granth Sahib were displayed. [3] The host-computer of the server shifted from Columbus, Ohio to Yosemite, California to Espanola, New Mexico, mirroring the moves of Guruka Singh and his family. [3]
The SikhNet BBS became defunct in October 1994 after Guruka Singh could no longer serve as the Sysop (System Operator), thus the SikhNet BBS was taken offline. [3]
The SikhNet website was founded by Gurumustuk Singh Khalsa on 15 April 1996, coinciding with the Vaisakhi celebrations for that year. [3] The website was founded for the purpose of education both Sikhs and non-Sikhs on the tenets of the Sikh religion in a user-friendly, peaceful, accessible, and faith-friendly manner. [2] The website adopted the same name as the predecessor BBS system. [3] Gurumustuk created the original HTML SikhNet website pages whilst in his early 20's for the purpose of providing a cyber space where Sikh youth from around the world could interact, hold dialogue, and support one another. [3] The website sees itself as an avenue outside of the traditional familial and gurdwara spaces where Sikh communities could engage with each-other. [3] The website currently has 16 employees, whom are based in the United States, Canada, India, the United Kingdom, and Peru. [3] The website relies on donations, from its userbase, sponsors, and grantors, to operate. [3]
The website serves as a clearing house for news articles and information on Sikh topics. [1] The website hosts many features where Sikh liturgical texts can be examined by users. [1] Furthermore, turban-tying tutorials can be found on the site. [1] The website contains histories and hagiographies dating to the period of the Sikh gurus, recordings of kirtan (sacred hymns) and katha (interpretation), and positive stories of Sikhs from the U.K., Canada, and the U.S. [2]
In 2011, the website launched an online game called Karma: the Ogre's Curse, whereby the player must maintain their Sikh religion when tempted by vices through meditation, good actions, and maintaining a Khalsa appearance. [1]
In April 2022, the founder Gurumustuk stepped down as CEO of SikhNet. This came as a result of serious allegations against 3HO leader Yogi Bhajan and Gurmustuk's drastic change from being a baptised Sikh to a clean-shaven man. [4] Former bodyguard of Yogi Bhajan and 3HO critic, Gursant Singh, claimed Gurumustuk was paid a six-figure annual salary from SikhNet donations. [5]
The website claims to have 900,000 visits per month, making it one of the largest Sikh websites globally. [3]
SikhNet is operated by 3HO (Sikh Dharma of the Western Hemisphere), an organization mostly composed of American-Sikhs of European-descent whom were influenced by Yogi Bhajan. [1] These White Sikhs emphasize strongly upon the Khalsa's outward form by promoting the 5 Ks, wearing traditional Punjabi clothing that is white in-colour, and the wearing of a turban, for both men and women. [1] Whilst the website was founded by White Sikhs, many users of SikhNet are of a traditional, mainstream Punjabi Sikh-background, in-addition to the 3HO Sikhs. [1] SikhNet promotes an image of Punjabi Sikhs who may or may not cut their hair or tie a turban or White Sikhs who keep their hair uncut and wear a turban. [2]
The website has been described as Khalsa-centric, a phenomenon described as "Khalsa-ism" by Sikhologist Doris Jakobsh. [1] Doris Jakobsh states that the Sikh Internet is disproportionately influenced by White Sikhs of 3HO. [6] For example, many of the freely available images of Sikhs online is of White Sikh women who converted to the 3HO sect of Sikhism. [6] These portrayals may be misleading as 3HO White Sikh women usually wear turbans but the vast majority of Punjabi Sikh women, whom constitute the vast majority of Sikh women, rarely wear turbans. [6] Furthermore, 3HO websites often depict Sikhs as those who wear turbans, even though many Sikh youth in the Punjab cut their hair and do not don a turban. [6] Jakobsh states that even though 3HO White Sikh make-up a tiny percentage of the overall Sikh population, they dominate the Sikh Internet realm, stating that this minority acting as representatives for the wider faith has large ramifications. [6]
After the September 11 attacks, the SikhNet homepage featured a collage with the wording “SIKHS” showcasing Sikh men, women, and children with American flags, and “Proud to be AMERICANS” written beneath. [2]
Conner Singh VanderBeek contrasts websites like SikhNet with Khalistani-affiliated websites that once existed in the early decades of the World Wide Web. [2] SikhNet promotes a peaceful, non-threatening, authority-abiding, and respect for politics, in its relationship with the concept of a nation-state, with websites like SikhNet serving as a "positive optic" for Sikhs in the West. [2]
Sikhism, also known as Sikhi, is an Indian religion and 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 religions and among the largest in the world with about 25–30 million adherents.
The term Khalsa refers to both a community that follows Sikhism as its religion, as well as a special group of initiated Sikhs. The Khalsa tradition was initiated in 1699 by the Tenth Guru of Sikhism, Guru Gobind Singh. Its formation was a key event in the history of Sikhism. The founding of Khalsa is celebrated by Sikhs during the festival of Vaisakhi.
In Sikhism, the Five Ks are five items that Guru Gobind Singh, in 1699, commanded Khalsa Sikhs to wear at all times. They are: kesh, kangha, kara, kachhera, and kirpan.
Guru Har Krishan also known as Bal Guru, or Hari Krishan Sahib, was the eighth of the ten Sikh Gurus. At the age of five, he succeeded his father, Guru Har Rai, and became the youngest Guru in Sikhism. He contracted smallpox in 1664 and died before reaching his eighth birthday. It is said that he died because he contracted smallpox while successfully curing his followers.
Adherents of Sikhism follow a number of prohibitions. As with any followers of any faith or group, adherence varies by each individual.
The Dasam Granth is a collection of various poetic compositions attributed to Guru Gobind Singh. The text enjoyed an equal status with the Adi Granth, or Guru Granth Sahib, in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and were installed side by side on the same platform. The Dasam Granth lost favor during the colonial period when reformist Singh Sabha Movement scholars couldn't contextualize the reworkings of Puranic stories or the vast collection of 'Tales of Deceit' Sri Charitropakhyan.
3HO , also known as Sikh Dharma of the Western Hemisphere or Sikh Dharma International, is a controversial American organization founded in 1969 by Harbhajan Singh Khalsa, also called "Yogi Bhajan". Its adherents are popularly referred to as the Sikh Dharma Brotherhood. While referred to as the 3HO movement, "3HO" is strictly speaking the name only of the movement's educational branch. Scholars have defined 3HO as a new religious movement.
Yogi Bhajan, also known as Siri Singh Sahib to his followers, was an American entrepreneur, cult leader, yoga guru, and putative spiritual teacher. He introduced his version of Kundalini yoga to the United States. He was the spiritual director of the 3HO foundation, with over 300 centers in 35 countries. He was accused of sexual abuse by several dozen of his female followers; an investigation called the Olive Branch Report found the allegations most likely true.
Kaur, sometimes spelled as Kour, is a surname or a part of a personal name primarily used by the Sikh and some Hindu women of the Punjab region. It is also sometimes translated as 'lioness', not because this meaning is etymologically derived from the name, but as a parallel to the Sikh male name Singh, which means 'lion'.
The Nihang or Akali, also known as Dal Khalsa, is an armed Sikh warrior order originating in the Indian subcontinent. Nihangs are believed to have originated either from Fateh Singh and the attire he wore or from the "Akal Sena" started by Guru Hargobind. Early Sikh military history was dominated by the Nihang, known for their victories where they were heavily outnumbered. Traditionally known for their bravery and ruthlessness in the battlefield, the Nihang once formed the irregular guerrilla squads of the armed forces of the Sikh Empire, the Sikh Khalsa Army.
The Akhand Kirtani Jatha, alternatively romanized as the Akhand Keertanee Jathaa and abbreviated as AKJ, is a jatha and sect of Sikhism dedicated to the Sikh lifestyle. The Jatha follows a strict discipline in keeping the Rehat of Guru Gobind Singh. They also enjoy an active style of Keertan recited by Sikhs in a collective manner in front of Guru Granth Sahib. This style of Keertan is relatively simple, and the entire congregation devotionally participates in singing along.
Sikh music, also known as Gurbani Sangeet , and as Gurmat Sangeet, or even as Shabad Kirtan, is the classical music style that is practised within Sikhism. It exists in institutional, popular, and folk traditions, forms, and varieties. Three types of Sikh musicians are rababis, ragis, and dhadhis. Sikh music exists in various melodic modes, musical forms, styles, musicians, and performance contexts.
Rehat refers to the rules and traditions which govern the unique Sikh lifestyle and determines correct Sikh orthodoxy and orthopraxy. The Sikh Rehit Maryada is a code of conduct and conventions for Sikhism. The final version of the Rehat Maryada was controversially approved by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, Amritsar in 1945. The Rehat Maryada was created to provide guidance to Sikhs on practical and functional aspects of daily life, including the operations of Sikh Gurdwaras, and religious practices to foster cohesion throughout the community. Rehitnāma is a Punjabi term that refers to a genre of Sikh religious literature which expounds upon specifying an approved way of life for a Sikh.
Sikh practices are guidelines laid out by the Gurus for the practice of the "Sikh way of life". The Gurus emphasise that a Sikh should lead a disciplined life engaged in Naam Simran, meditation on God's name, Kirat Karo, living an honest life of a house-holder, and Vand Chaako, sharing what one has with the community. This translates into hard work, honest living, love of fellow humans and through them service of the God, the primal power. This way of life is said to have been stripped of complications, myths, jargon, rituals and exploitation of man by man in the name of religion. No benefits are gained by where and to which family the person is born to – All have to undertake the rigours of Simran (meditation) and Sevā to progress spiritually. The Guru Granth Sahib asks the Sikh to "Practice truth, contentment and kindness.
The Sikhs are adherents to Sikhism, the fifth largest organized religion in the world, with around 25 million adherents. Sikh History is around 500 years and in that time the Sikhs have developed unique expressions of art and culture which are influenced by their faith and synthesize traditions from many other cultures depending on the locality of the adherents of the religion. Sikhism is the only religion that originated in the Punjab region with all other religions coming from outside Punjab. All the Sikh gurus, many saints, and many of the martyrs in Sikh history were from Punjab and from the Punjabi people. Punjabi culture and Sikhism are mistakenly considered inseparably intertwined. "Sikh" properly refers to adherents of Sikhism as a religion, strictly not an ethnic group. However, because Sikhism has seldom sought converts, most Sikhs share strong ethno-religious ties, therefore it is a common stereotype that all Sikhs share the same ethnicity. Many countries, such as the U.K., therefore misconcievingly recognize Sikh as a designated ethnicity on their censuses. The American non-profit organization United Sikhs has fought to have Sikhs included on the U.S. census as well, arguing that Sikhs "self-identify as an 'ethnic minority'" and believe "that they are more than just a religion".
Snatam Kaur Khalsa, is an American singer, songwriter and author. Kaur performs new age Indian devotional music, kirtan, and tours the world as a peace activist. The surname "Kaur", meaning "princess", is shared by all female Sikhs.
A Ragi is a Sikh musician who plays hymns (shabads) in different ragas as prescribed in the Sri Guru Granth Sahib.
Babaji Singh Khalsa was a Mexican Sikh who is credited for translating Guru Granth Sahib, the holy text of the Sikhs into Spanish.
Sikh sects, denominations, traditions, movements, sub-traditions, also known as sampardai in the Punjabi language, are sub-traditions within Sikhism that believe in different approaches to practicing the religion. All sampradas believe in the One Creator God typically rejecting both idol worship and caste systems. Different interpretations have emerged over time, some of which have a living teacher as the leader. The major historic traditions in Sikhism, says Professor Harjot Oberoi, have included Udasi, Nirmala, Nanakpanthi, Khalsa, Sahajdhari, Namdhari Kuka, Nirankari and Sarvaria.
SikhiWiki is a Sikh-centric online encyclopedia operated by the 3HO organization under its SikhNet umbrella.