The August 5 shootings at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, in which six people lost their lives, has put the media spotlight on a religion that has approximately 250,000 adherents in the United States.
Many speculate that the gunman, white supremacist Wade Michael Page, mistook Sikhs for Muslims, the more frequent target of bias attacks in post-9/11 America. There is no evidence of this, but Sikhs throughout the western world report that they have frequently been mistaken for Muslims, and have faced harassment as a result.
Here are five elements of the religion:
History: Sikhism was founded around 1499, when a Hindu named Nanak Dev in present-day Pakistan claimed to have been taken to God's court and shown that neither Hinduism nor Islam was the correct path to holiness. Following what he believed was a mandate to make his information widely known, he traveled extensively and became the religion's first guru.
Over the centuries, the religion enjoyed alternately peaceful and fractious relations with the Muslim Mughal Empire that ruled the region for centuries. A Sikh empire existed in the Punjab region throughout the first half of the nineteenth century, until its power was obliterated by the British East India Company.
For roughly two centuries, Sikhism was governed by single gurus, much like Catholicism with its pope. Since early in the 18th century, however, the Sikh authority has been centered in the Guru Granth Sahib, the collection of religious texts personified as the faith's eternal guru.
Beliefs: Sikhs believe in the Five Virtues, which are Truth, Compassion, Contentment, Humility, and Love. These are seen as protection against the Five Evils, which are Lust, Rage, Greed, Attachment, and Ego. The Virtues bring one closer to God, and the Evils further.
There are three pillars of Sikhism:
1) Naam Japna: Sikhs must practice Simran and Naam Japna - acts of remembrance of God through chanting and meditation
2) Kirat Karni: Sikhs must labor and earn their livings, and must live honestly, avoiding laziness and showing consideration for their families and communities
3) Vand Chakna: Sikhs must share their wealth; this often takes the form of 10-percent contributions to the community or to charity
Sikhs believe in the equality of all humans, regardless of class, ethnicity, or gender.
Sikhism stresses the value of human life, as life is the precious opportunity to seek God's mercy.
Diet: Sikhs also stress the importance of other life; and many, if not most, Sikhs feel that the correct interpretation of their religion prevents them from eating animals. Some Sikhs believe eating meat is allowable if it is jhatka, or meat from an animal killed with a single blow to the head to minimize suffering.
Most practicing Sikhs also interpret their religion to prohibit overeating, tobacco, and alcohol, as these things are manifestations of attachment to worldly things that distract from contact with God.
Hair: Many Sikhs believe that to cut their hair or beards would be to disrespect the will of God, which is why they allow their hair to grow and wear it in turbans. Men who do this will usually wear a wooden comb, to be kept in the hair and put to use twice a day. This is to show that they are respecting God's will with grace and propriety.
Clothing: Many Sikhs also wear kachera, special undergarments not unlike drawstring boxer shorts worn by both males and females to promote modesty. Like long hair and the wooden comb, they are one of five articles of faith supposed to be worn by baptized Sikhs. The others are a metal bracelet and a kirpan, a small ceremonial dagger signifying Sikhs' willingness to cut through lies and to defend those who cannot defend themselves from persecution. In recent years, the legality of kirpans has been the subject of court cases throughout the western world and India.
Otherwise, while many Sikhs choose to wear traditional clothing from the region in which the faith originates, this is not a strict requirement.
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