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Yup, I Took The Day Off For Vaisakhi

BHAVDEEP SINGH

 

 

 

 

 

 

Each year, as we come to the close of April and even spill over into May, Sikhs all over the world continue to celebrate Vaisakhi. While the actual holiday was back on April 14th, the festivities will continue for a couple of more weeks into early May with Gurpurabs, parades, 'jaloose-s', nagar kirtans and so on, continuing for a while yet.
 
While there is nothing wrong with that, growing up in the States, I often wondered why the same didn't happen with Christmas or any of the Jewish holidays. Why not celebrate Christmas on the Sunday after December 25th? But, no, as has been the practice for decades, nay centuries, we are always off on Christmas, as it should be. 

But what about our Gurpurabs?
 
With this in mind, an idea came to us in the early 90's, that it was time to consider doing something different on our most significant Gurpurab - Vaisakhi. Why should we wait till a Sunday or an appropriate or convenient weekend?  We know that Vaisakhi will be on the 14th of April every year, so, let's celebrate it then.
 
It all started on Monday, April 13,1992 -- the day used to marked on April 13, then mysteriously, it was shifted to April 14! -- when we took a somewhat bold step and invited the local sangat in New York for a Vaisakhi kirtan at our home on Vaiskahi Day (during the day). So, if you were going to attend, you would essentially have to take the day off or take a very long lunch "hour."  
 
I remember going to my boss's office at work and asking for the day off for a "religious holiday" and being quite nervous about it. "What would he say and how would he react? Was I messing with my career?" Oh man, I was nervous!

But, lo and behold, he said, "Sure - enjoy the day!"

How about that!
 
We were off and running!  We were going to celebrate Vaisakhi on Vaisakhi Day!  To commemorate the occasion, we invited some 400 plus people,  just about everyone we knew. This was going to be big, really BIG, and we were going to make history!
 
Only, it wasn't and we didn't.
 
With a generous head count, including family, those who stopped by for a few minutes, the two neighbors who stumbled in out of curiosity, the mailman … at best, there were 60-70 people in the sangat (mostly ladies and children). A handful of men also showed up, but, it was generally considered a "bust." So much for making history - NOT.
 
The following year, we pushed a bit harder and created a strong communication around the day, that we must take the day off on Vaisakhi Day - we were a bit more successful and we had about 100 people join the sangat that day.

Well, we kept at it and as momentum started to build up over the years, we got to the point where we routinely had 500-600 people come every year, on Vaisakhi Day. The actual day.

Not quite making history, but it certainly felt good.
 
And so, as we have been doing for some time, we celebrated Vaisakhi this year as well on Vaisakhi Day, Tuesday, April 14, at the Gurdwara in Glen Rock, New Jersey. It was a cloudy day and as often happens on Vaisakhi, we hoped and prayed that it would not rain - at least, not between the hours of 9 and 2.
 
This year, we had the good fortune of having some wonderful "kirtaniyas" including Dya Singh from Australia as well as Gursev Singh and Sukhsehaj Kaur  from Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. They were joined by Bhai Manjit Singh from Glasgow, Bhai Jaspal Singh from New Jersey and Bhai Anant Vir Singh from California.
 
The program began with kirtan by some members of the local sangat. Followed by Sukhsehaj Kaur, and then her husband, Gursev Singh. This wonderful family has attended every Vaisakhi program with us since 1997 and we just cannot imagine Vaisakhi without them. They are an inspiration for us as all and we consider it a blessing that they are a part of our family. 

Interesting side note about Gursev Singh. When you talk to him (about anything at all), Gursev Singh has the ability to relate just about any topic to some gurbani passage or saakhi - and every once in a while, when its a bit of a stretch, we give him a really hard time about it and we all get a good chuckle out of it (including him).  All said and done, we love them for what they are and love their passion for the faith and Sikhi way of life.

In any event, Gursev Singh came up after Sukhsehaj Kaur and did beautiful kirtan with an inspiring message on the significance of Vaisakhi and taking Amrit.
 
At this point, Dya Singh came to the stage to do kirtan. It has been a very long time between his visits to the New York / New Jersey area and we were thrilled that he was able to join us this year. We had talked to him many times in the past about coming for Vaisakhi, but for one reason or another, it had not happened till now. As we started telling people in the community about Dya Singh attending Vaisakhi, a bit of a "buzz" started to build around his participation and we received 30-40 calls / messages / e-mails on the topic. The questions went something like this:
 
Q: Is Dya Singh really coming to Baisakhi? A: Yes
 
Q: Are you sure? A: Yes
 
Q. What time will he be performing? A: 12 noon
 
Q: 12 noon - are you sure? A: Ummmm ...
 
As a community, we do a lot of things well - really well. Time management just isn’t one of them (yet!). Give us another few years and I'm thinking, we might get there (maybe).
 
In any event, as promised, Dya Singh came up to do kirtan at 12 noon (as per schedule) and by this time, the divan hall was packed. He was accompanied on the tabla by Bhai Raghbir Singh, one of the top tabla players in the gurmat sangeet world. As with Dya Singh's prior visits, in advance of coming this year, he asked about a good tabla player to accompany him.  

To be honest, in the past, regardless of whether we had one or not, I would always tell him that he need not worry and we had it covered - and sometimes we did and sometimes, not so much. Well, this time, it was a blessing that not only did we have it covered, but, we had it covered with a true tabla ustaad like Bhai Raghbir Singh, who has accompanied legendary hazuri raagis like the living legend, Bhai Balbir Singh. 

Watching and listening to the two of them interacting and performing together was an amazing experience. As a kirtan novice, my sense is that many jathas do kirtan and while they may be quite good, it is generally one raagi leading the way. However,  listening to Dya Singh and Raghbir Singh that day was different - two exponents, interwove raags, different taals interspersed with tremendous musicianship, yet infused with a deep sense of spirituality.
 
Also, on this Vaisakhi Day kirtan, accompanying Dya Singh on taus, was Jojhar Singh, a young man from our local community. I have known Dya Singh for more than 15 years and his relationship with young people is quite interesting. While he may or may not agree with my assessment, his interest in a young person is driven by the enthusiasm that individual shows in kirtan, dialogue and or music.

Well, Jojhar is serious about all of the above and Dya Singh took a strong interest in him. To be clear, "interest" should not be confused with polite conversation and or superficial compliments. This implies challenging and pushing (often very hard), asking the individual to stand up and be counted. 

And that is exactly what happened - Dya Singh challenged  and pushed Jojhar to "let go and have fun!`` Well, Jojhar jumped in and jumped in hard with the taus with a great deal of passion, leaving Dya Singh quite impressed!
 
Dya Singh's time started with a slow simran based on a Jaap Saab rendition originated by another dear friend, Vikram Singh Khalsa - 'dukhaalang pranassee / dyaalang saroopey'. While the entire 60 minutes was beautiful, it felt like the sangat went to a completely different level of energy when he sang 'jhagardng nagad-dhng' from The Dasam Granth.

I know little (very, very little) about raags, but there was something very powerful about this rendition.  Bhai Jaspal Singh, who was sitting next to me, leaned over and shared that Bhai Randhir Singh used to also sing this shabad in a similar robust manner.  Dya Singh told me later that it was in Raag Basant and ek-taal -- naturally, I nodded in an all knowing manner (huh?).
 
As Dya Singh concluded, he finished with the very appropriate 'jo tao prem khelan ka chao' followed by five 'jaikaras'. The entire hour was spell-binding and we received tremendous feedback afterwards from the sangat. While I have heard Dya Singh live 50-60 times in the past, this was different and he appeared to reach a higher dimension.

If you talk to him about kirtan, he will tell you that it is "food for the soul," and true to his belief, on this day, he helped the sangat catch glimpses of the Divine in a timeless and spaceless zone. Amazing!
 
Quick footnote on Dya Singh - when the program finished, it was quite a sight to see him mingling with the sangat. If you didn't know any better, it looked like a rock star after a glorious performance. Everyone wanted to meet him and get their picture taken with him.  Funny and quite touching as well.
 
The best story around this revolves around some very dear friends who had come to the kirtan from the Boston area, driving some 200+ miles to get to New Jersey. Well, as luck would have it, they got there after Dya Singh had finished performing kirtan. It was quite disappointing as they had been amongst those who had specifically asked what time Dya Singh would be doing kirtan and he was a key factor in their decision to attend the program.

Well, while they had missed his kirtan, they did get an opportunity to chat with him after the bhog and from their perspective, that conversation made the time and effort associated with the trip worth it all!
 
I guess it's also worth mentioning that many people asked if Dya Singh would be coming next year? My initial response was "not sure" or "we will see" or “we will certainly ask him." Well, that didn't go over too well. So, as any good New Yorker would do, I adjusted and changed my approach. "Yes, of course ji, he will be here next year and the year after that as well. For sure!"  

The truth is that we have asked Dya Singh about Vaisakhi 2016 and while he has not yet confirmed, I believe he will do his best to join us. I am aware that he does not like long flights these days but also know that like many others, he does follow the pull of the sangat. 

Incidentally, Vaisakhi is also his birthday and this year, he celebrated it with us.  Happy 65th, Bhai Sahib!
 
Following Dya Singh, Bhai Manjit Singh from Glasgow sang for about an hour and as usual, he did a wonderful job of getting the sangat to sing along and enjoy the "laha."

We have known Bhai Manjit Singh for about 10 years now and he is a very kind and gentle human being. He comes to the NY/NJ area often and does beautiful kirtan with a beautiful voice that holds tremendous power. Always smiling and cheerful, you just get a wonderful feeling when you are around him.

Back in 2011, we asked Bhai Manjit Singh to join us for Vaisakhi and when he said yes, we asked for a commitment that he join us every year on Vaisakhi - with a graceful smile on his face, he agreed and has honored that commitment cheerfully since then.
 
As the program came to a close, one of our own bacche, Kavitoj Singh, did kirtan followed by Bhai Anant Vir Singh from California. It is worth mentioning that Kavitoj Singh, a young man in his early 20's, has a special "lagan" and does beautiful kirtan. While he was born here, his mindset is all around kirtan and he has developed quite a following amongst the young people here.

Growing up, Kavitoj Singh always had an interest in kirtan, however, somewhere along the way, when he was in his mid-teens, he went through a huge transformation from a young Sikh who enjoyed kirtan to one with a special blessing of doing beautiful kirtan.
 
When we were growing up in the States in the 70's and 80's, my sister, brother and I often heard about Christmas and Hanukkah celebrations and the festivities that took place around it in our friends' homes. It seemed like such a great idea to have a time of year where families got together with some level of religious motivation, ate a lot of great food and gave each other gifts, all while celebrating their faith and religious beliefs.  

Why didn't we have something like that, we wondered.

I remember once or twice asking my mother about a Christmas gift and while I don't remember the exact response, there might have been some reference to terms like "NO!" But, I can't really be sure.
 
So, as Vaisakhi celebrations have built up over the years, apart from having beautiful kirtan and a spiritually uplifting experience,  we have also tried to make the day a festive one for all.  With that in mind, we give out mithaee and kirtan CD's to all and generally come up with one Vaisakhi souvenir.  

This year, we gave out  mugs so we can all remember this very special day. In addition, we have lots of "Happy Vaisakhi" balloons and frisbees for the kids and generally speaking, it's a great day to feel proud and have fun.

At the end of the day, there are a lot of wonderful holidays on our calendars - but, Vaisakhi, well, that's special - it's our day and it is AWESOME!
 
So, the planning for next year starts now - same date (that never changes!) -  and hopefully, we will all say, "We took the day off for Vaisakhi" next year.  See you all on Vaisakhi 2016!

P.S. - While Vaisakhi is a great event and we all have a great time, none of this can happen without the support of our family.  Many thanks to Manbeen Kaur for working so hard to make it all happen.  And a shout out to the dear bacche, Satwant Singh and Kirenjot Kaur -- their enthusiasm adds a very special level of energy to the day.


May 2, 2015
 

Conversation about this article

1: Sangat Singh (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), May 02, 2015, 7:06 PM.

Bhavdeep Singh ji, what a lovely heartfelt write-up about Dya Singh ji's spectacular 'hazri' at the Vaisakhi celebration. Dya ji is in Malaysia now. We have met a couple of times and am meeting him again this afternoon at our weekly satsang. It is always such a pleasure to have him around.

2: Savneet (New York, USA), May 03, 2015, 10:12 AM.

Fabulous read! I have attended the program for many years and can attest to the energy and love found there. Can't wait for next year!

3: Pardeep Singh Nagra (Toronto), May 03, 2015, 5:38 PM.

I agree completely with Bhavdeep that we should take the day off. Most companies and organizations now allow faith days. Worst case scenario, use a vacation day. I have had the pleasure of attending this annual event, thus my sangat and family keep growing. A truly beautiful way to honour and celebrate Vaisakhi and have a mini Sarbat Khalsa!

4: Dr Birinder Singh Ahluwalia (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), May 03, 2015, 8:32 PM.

I like the pink glasses that Dya Singh ji is wearing in the photograph above - Happy Vaisakhi to all.

5: Gurmukh Singh (London, United Kingdom), May 03, 2015, 8:47 PM.

Diaspora Sikhs are gaining confidence about asserting own community identity, and the right to observe important days in their religious tradition. More so since last year commemorating the role of the Sikhs in WW1. As Bhavdeep Singh found out, I doubt if there ever was any problem about taking time off to observe our own religious days. One question I was asked on joining the United Kingdom Civil Service in December 1962 was if there were any religious days for which I needed time off. Regret to say that I lacked the confidence to say "Yes, the birthday of Guru Nanak and the revelation of the Khalsa." (Start of Guru history and start of Khalsa history respectively. None of the Sikh religious dates were fixed at the time.) Relieved and delighted to read Bhavdeep Singh's heartfelt account of the Vaisakhi kirtan programme. Dya Singh was in Vancouver in the week before Vaisakhi. He did a special pre-wedding kirtan programme for our grand niece at her request - something new for me and a spiritual experience for the sangat. His journey from Australia was long and tiring with a 6-hour wait in Los Angeles. He had not quite recovered when we saw him off to New York. Dya keeps pushing the boundaries of musical blends, and he keeps testing the tolerance of the Sikh religious establishment!

6: Rupinder Kaur (Guelph, Ontario, Canada), May 04, 2015, 10:37 AM.

I love the idea of taking a day off work (ha ha!), but in all seriousness, why can't we elevate Vaisakhi to that of Christmas? It's time to embrace our faith and make it mainstream. See you at next year's program, Bhavdeep Singh!

7: Ranjit Singh Sidhu  (Taiping, Malaysia), May 09, 2015, 12:30 PM.

We are enjoying Dya Singh ji's company at the resort in Kalady, Kerala. Today we had evening kirtan.

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