SOCIAL-Kirtan or Nagar-SOCIAL??

vwihgurU jI kw Kwlsw
vwihgurU jI kI Piqh

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Hardeep Singh,Japnaam Singh and I met up on Mt. Lehman Rd. and then made our way to the gurdwara sahib. It was about 11:30 then and the procession had just made its way across the front gates. We started to walk with the sangat and then Hardeep Singh met up with Govind Singh and they disappeared off to somewhere. Me and Japnaam Singh stayed behind the main float for about half an hour. A wikkid kirtanee jatha was doing kirtan. The Singh that was doing kirtan sounded just like Bhai Manmohan Singh Jee of San Jose. And the kirtan was very good despite the constant dhunni that the singh did in kirtan.

It seems that I was to blame too for making the "nagar kirtan" into a social kirtan. That was the only time in the whole nagar kirtan that I listened to kirtan with deep concentration. But I think that was enough, I had my dose of kirtan didn't need any more :D

Anyway after that we met a singh with whom we discussed gurmat and current issues. Then we moved on and kept going. Until we came to the gurdwara sahib. At the end of it Japnaam Singh was "a little tired." He had to go to work, so he left and I listened to Kirtan inside the gurdwara sahib for the next 3 hours. That was very good kirtan also, by the same jatha too. Then I looked out the window to see where the procession was at, it was right near the gurdwara sahib. So I went out to see the nagar kirtan at its smapti.

Now this nagar kirtan, as compared to the many I have been to over the past years, topped off everything in terms of manmutt. A large number of men, women and children did not have their heads covered. That is just sikhi 101, actually that's sikhi, and punjabi culture. Punjabi culture teaches you to cover your head. By the looks of it, this "sangat" didn't have any signs of sikhi, or punjabi culture, they seem to have morphed into something totally different. Really sad.

I thought that the Surrey Nagar kirtan was bad, but this was worse...

For the most part about 90%, this nagar kirtan was indeed a "nagar social" and I was a part of it too. Nagar kirtans have just become social gatherings now. People are eating pakorrai and talking about waheguru knows what. And I saw a lot of that from the beginning to the very end. But what would you expect when you put together 30000 punjabis in one place?

I don't want to forget mentioning the positive aspects of this nagar kirtan. There were many people that had genuine shardha and dedication. I was very happy to see that. It inspired Japnaam Singh to try walking barefoot one year for the nagar kirtan.

There was a group of Singhs and Babbian that walked the whole distance without shoes and they had Nishan Sahibs that they carried all the way. Now I know what holding a Nishaan Sahib is like. It is very hard and painful but they still held them all the way.

The nagar kirtan route was very very long this time. And a lot of people would have been tired when they got to the middle, but I did not see anyone feeling tired. This is one of the best things about sangat and the company of gursikhs.

I saw groups of sangat just going on groups of 30-40 people and doing waheguru jaap, that was good to see too

But compared to the surrey nagar kirtan the sangat behind the main float was significantly less. I found that a little hard to comprehend.

All and all I think that the nagar kirtan was a good thing, but the social thing made it a little annoying...
vwihgurU jI kw Kwlsw
vwihgurU jI kI Piqh