Sikhs are people who follow the religion Sikhism or Sikhi.
A gurdwara is a place where Sikhs come together to pray.
Gurdwara is a Punjabi word that means ‘the doorway to God’.
People of all faiths are welcome inside a gurdwara.
Meet Palkin as she takes you on a tour of her local gurdwara
Explore some of the features that can be found in a gurdwara.
Palkin: Hi, I’m Palkin, and I’m a Sikh.
This is our gurdwara – the place where Sikhs come to worship! Gurdwara is a Punjabi word that means ‘the door that leads to the Guru’.
All gurdwaras fly the Sikh flag called the Nishan Sahib.
The most important room inside is the diwan hall. This is a big room where our religious services take place.
It’s also where we read our holy scriptures, the Guru Granth Sahib. It is treated with great respect.
We place it on a special platform called a Manji Sahib, which always has a canopy, or covering. Ours is white and shiny!
During services, we sit in front of the Manji Sahib and sing hymns. We call this kirtan.
After kirtan, everyone shares a special offering called Karah Parshad. It is a food that tastes sweet and buttery. I like it!
After the service, we share a vegetarian meal together called langar. It is prepared in a very big kitchen. Every gurdwara has one, and I like helping to prepare the langar.
This is also how we can help everyone in the community, because anyone is welcome to join in langar. We eat it in the langar hall.
Come on, let’s get something to eat!
What is in a gurdwara?
The gurdwara is a place where Sikhs come together, pray and share their religion with others.
It is the place that shares the teachings of the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh Writings or texts that are seen as very important to a particular religion..
The gurdwara is a place for charity. Sikhs help to prepare and share langar, a free vegetarian meal.
Here are some things which can be found at a gurdwara:
Image caption, Diwan hall
This is the main hall in the gurdwara, where people come to pray.
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The gurdwara service
During holy services at the gurdwara, Sikhs show respect and thanks to the Guru Granth Sahib.
Here are some things people do at the gurdwara.
When entering the gurdwara, people take off their shoes, wash their hands and cover their heads.
In the diwan hall, everyone sits on the floor to show respect to the Guru Granth Sahib.
The gyani is a person who leads prayer services and A religious song. from the Guru Granth Sahib.
After the service, A sweet pudding. It is the Sikh blessed food, which is shared during religious services. is shared with everyone. It reminds Sikhs that everybody is equal.
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