11 March 2002
Celebrating Diversity was the theme of the 2002 Commonwealth Day celebration held today at Westminster Abbey in London.
The event began with the sounds of Dhol drummers and the Bollywood Brass Band resounding around the Abbey. The Sikh community was represented by Indarjit Singh OBE who took part in the procession before the HM the Queen, Prince Philip and Prince Charles.
The Commonwealth Day message was read out then a series of children asked questions of the religious leaders present. After each answer an affirmation was made by all present. Full details of the event are available at the web site: www.commonwealthday.com
Contribution by Indarjit Singh OBE:
We celebrate the longing for peace in diverse places
A Child's Question
'Can people with different beliefs really live in peace?'
Answer given by Mr Indarjit Singh OBE
Network of Sikh Organisations, UK
The Sikh Gurus constantly taught the importance of people of different beliefs living together in peace,
In the spirit of these teachings, Guru Arjan invited a Muslim saint, Mia Mir, to lay the foundation stone of the Golden Temple and, to show the essentially common thrust of our different faiths, he included verses of Hindu and Muslim saints in our holy book, The Guru Granth Sahib.
Guru Nanak taught that God is not in the least bit interested in our different religious labels, but in how we conduct ourselves. He taught that different religions had much in common, and that we should show respect to those of different beliefs.
Guru Gobind Singh, the last of the living Gurus, took up the same theme when he wrote:
He is in the Hindu worship,
as He is in the Muslim prayer
The one Lord made them all
The message of the Gurus was that we can all live in peace, if we learn to respect genuine differences of belief, and rejoice in all we hold in common.