Sikh personalities abroad

pps309

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I thought of making a thread where I can share some of the living and late Sikh personalities settled abroad.



Col: Ajinderpal Singh Sekhon


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Colonel Arjinderpal Singh Sekhon aka 'A.J.'Sekhon is a Yuba City physician, U.S. Army doctor and 2004 Democratic candidate for the US House of Representatives in California's 2nd district.
Born January 20th 1949, Sekhon currently lives in Yuba City, California.
He attended Medical College Amritsar, India in 1971 where he earned a medical degree, the US Air Force War College, Air University, in 1979, and the University of Northern California where he earned a Justice Degree.
He is a Colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve's 36th Civil Affairs Brigade and has otherwise been self-employed as a medical doctor since 1979.
Sekhon has a framed photograph in his office from 1984, when he joined the Army. He's wearing camouflage and boots, holding a machine gun. And wearing his turban and beard. Sekhon, who served in combat hospitals during both Iraq conflicts finds it ironic that America, settled by people seeking religious freedom, is denying it to Sikh men who want both to serve their country and to remain true to their faith. He said asking them to shave amounts to forced conversion.
"Forcing a Sikh to shave - then he's a Hindu or a Muslim or a Christian," he said. "Congress is supposed to pass no law promoting one religion; here they are promoting three."


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Late DR. Bhagat Singh Thind



Bhagat Singh Thind (1892-1967) was born in Punjab and came to America in 1913. A year later, he was paying his way through the University of California at Berkeley by working in an Oregon lumber mill during summer vacations. When America entered World War I, he joined the U.S. Army. He was honorably discharged on 16th of December, 1918 and in 1920 applied for U.S. citizenship from the state of Oregon. Since several applicants from India had thus far been granted U.S. citizenship, he too was approved by the district court. However a naturalization examiner appealed this court's decision, and the rest is history.​

Feb 10, 1923: Justice Sutherland rules "Hindus" are "aliens ineligible to citizenship" in United States vs. Bhagat Singh Thind (261 US 204)​

What is less well-known is that Bhagat Singh Thind remained in the U.S., completed his Ph.D., and delivered lectures in metaphysics all across the nation. Basing his lessons on Sikh philosophy, he enriched his teaching with references to the scriptures of several religions and the work of Emerson, Whitman, and Thoreau. He campaigned actively for the independence of India from the British Empire, and helped Indian students in any way he could. In 1931, he married Vivian Davies and they had a son, David, to whom several of his 15 books are dedicated.​

"You must never be limited by external authority, whether it be vested in a church, man, or book. It is your right to question, challenge, and investigate."​

Ironically, Dr. Thind applied for and received U.S. citizenship through the state of New York within a few years of being turned down by the U.S. Supreme Court.​

Books by Bhagat S. Thind
HOUSE OF HAPPINESS
Based on lectures given in 1927, this book is a fine introduction to Dr. Thind's teachings. It is easily understood by and popular with young people, as well as more advanced students of Eastern religions. A few of the chapter titles are: How to Find Out What You Are Best Suited For; Evolution — Passing from Lower to Higher Births; Consciousness — An Inward Knowledge; Aum — The Sacred Hum of the Universe.
"Appeal to the tradition of a nation, and the whole mob psychology is arrayed behind you. Let me appeal to the democratic spirit of the Americans, and they think I am just wonderful. Appeal to the spiritual nature of India, and you get all Hindus on your side."​

RADIANT ROAD TO REALITY
Dr. Thind's disciples count this book as their teacher's greatest writing. It deals with enduring truths of spiritual import, verifiable facts of the highest human psychological possibilities. Dr. Thind reveals an exact science showing the seeker how to connect the individual soul with its Universal Creator. In the Preface, he writes: "It [this book] is for him who seeks to illumine his intelligence by the torch of his own Divinity, who hungers to attain the Consciousness, which transcends the barriers of time and space."​

SCIENCE OF UNION WITH GOD
"The truest help one can render a man bent with the burdens of life, is to call out his best energies and efforts, so that he himself by himself may raise his sagging spirit, and not only cope with conditions, but come out triumphant in the highest spiritual sense of the word." This quotation from the Preface is an expression of what Dr. Thind hoped to accomplish with this book. Chapters include: Union with God; the Unknown Is in the Known; Ego vs. Individuality; Unification and Reunion; Sikh Religion Made Plain; The Song of the Soul Victorious.​

THE PEARL OF GREATEST PRICE
"No scientific law can ever compare with the discovery of the Living Word of Power, which unifies man's whole being and makes him one in nature and character with his indwelling God." This is the theme developed by Dr. Thind in this book — an inspiring volume for all who seek to go ever onward, forward and Godward. Chapters include: Modus Operandi; Walking in the Inner Path to God; How Sat Guru Helps; Nature, Nurture and Nam; Overcoming the World.​

"The human mind is where everyone has to live and find his only opportunity for peace, happiness and wholeness. Only the unified mind can see things whole."
— Bhagat S. Thind​

"There are many religions, but only one Morality, one Truth, and one God. The only Heaven is one of conscious life and fellowship with God."
— Bhagat S. Thind​

JESUS, THE CHRIST: In the Light of Spiritual Science
These three volumes were written for all who have freed themselves of orthodox religious thinking and for those who are ready to do so. The books serve as a springboard to greater spiritual heights, wherein we appreciate more than ever the message of the Sat Gurus, the Saviours, the Avatars, the Christs, of whom Jesus Christ was one. Dr. Thind analyzes the teachings of this Savior of the western world and compares them with the teachings of all the great religions.​
 

bones2098

Member
"he married Vivian Davies"...

i've been looking around these forums & pll had issues with punjabi's not talking punjabi, so what of this?

lol....

but credit where its due, none the less. Dude smacked it, who'd of guessed a fau-ji (i can't spell in that english-indian stuff nor read it) could write 15 books!
 

pps309

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"he married Vivian Davies"...

i've been looking around these forums & pll had issues with punjabi's not talking punjabi, so what of this?

lol....

but credit where its due, none the less. Dude smacked it, who'd of guessed a fau-ji (i can't spell in that english-indian stuff nor read it) could write 15 books!
this fauji was a PHD and scholar from university of berkely.

UC berkely is always compared with stanford in Bay area.
 

pps309

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Sant Singh Chatwal

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Sant Singh Chatwal is a Sikh Indian-American businessman. According to The Indian Express, "he is a former Indian Air Force pilot who migrated to the United States in the 1980s and started the Bombay Palace chain of restaurants."
Also President and CEO of Hampshire Hotels & Resorts, LLC, his company owns hotels in the United States, the United Kingdom and Thailand, with over 2,500 rooms in Manhattan. Bombay Palace has locations around the World; including Montreal, Toronto, New York, Washington, D.C., Beverly Hills, Houston, Budapest and Kuala Lumpur.
Chatwal is a Trustee of the William J. Clinton Foundation, a Charitable foundation organized by U.S. President Bill Clinton focusing on global issues of health security, economic empowerment (HIV/AIDS Initiative; Clinton Global Initiative, Urban Enterprise Initiative, Healthier Generation, etc.)
He was the only Indian from the United States who was honored by the Govt. of Punjab (India) in April 1999 with the “Order of Khalsa” for his outstanding service to the community.
His son, Vikram, shaved off his beard and cut his hair (an act deeply offensive to Sikhs because of the religious importance of their hair) for glamor of the entertainment world (thought he later re-grew it).
Chatwal has devoted resources to political causes, working very closely with the U.S. Democratic Party, in particular with Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, Senator John Kerry, Senator Charles Schumer, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi and Congressman Joseph Crowley.
In February 2006, Chatwal hosted an extravagant wedding in India for his son Vikram Chatwal. The wedding including a week of festivities spread out over a week and three Indian cities and a veritable fleet of chartered planes. Guests included Bill Clinton, Lakshmi Mittal, Deepak Chopra and the Prime Minister of India.
He was on the "Hillary Clinton for President Exploratory Committee". After Barack Obama's nomination for President, he has committed to raise $10 million from the Indian American community for Obama's election.​
 

bones2098

Member
how about some munee?

not all sikhs are singhs.... lol...


OOooooooOOOOooooo......

i liked how you gunned Vikram for shaving lol.


just being the devils advocate & having a laugh!
 

pps309

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Didar Singh Bains


Didar Singh Bains is known the as the peach king of California and is one of the richest Sikh farmers in North America. He arrived in America with just $8 in his pocket saw the potenital of land for farming in California and has now become one of the wealthiest men in Northern California, worth somewhere in the region of $50 million. Didar started out driving tractors and irrigating orchards for 75 cents an hour, he did the work of four men, and soon bought his first peach orchard. He bought another, then another, and by 1978, had become the largest peach grower in California. His first name roughly means "visionary" in Punjabi, today he owns more than 40 pockets of land in 13 counties, including 667 acres next to Sacramento International Airport and much of rapidly developing western Yuba City. He has always been a leading figure in the Sikh community for the last 20 years. Before 1983 he was the head of the North America Akali Dal. After the Blue Star Operation in Amritsar he became the president of the World Sikh organization. In 1985, he became the founder chairman of the World Kabbadi federation. He is also acknowledged as the founder of the Annual Sikh Parade in Yuba City where nearly 100,000 Sikhs come together is the largest gathering of Sikhs in America. He is also a member of the World Sikh Council.​
 

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Nikky-Guninder Kaur

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Nikky-Gunninder Kaur is a Professor of Religion at Colby College in Maine, USA and she has written several books on Sikhism, focusing on the equality of Sikh women. Nikky received her BA in Philosophy and Religion from Wellesley College, her MA from the University of Pennsylvania and her PhD from Temple University.​

She is the Crawford Family Professor at Colby College in Maine, USA. Her interests focus on poetics and feminist issues. She has published extensively in the field of Sikhism.​

Some of her famous books are:
The Feminine Principle in the Sikh Vision of the Transcendent (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993),
The Name of My Beloved: Verses of the Sikh Gurus (HarperCollins and Penguin),
Metaphysics and Physics of the Guru Granth Sahib (Sterling).

Her book on Sikhism was translated into Japanese. She has lectured widely in North America, England, France, India, and Singapore, and her views have been aired on television and radio in America, Canada, and India.​
 

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Jasbir Singh Tatla



Lieutenant Jasbir Singh Tatla, 35, is the first turbaned Sikh to become a regular officer in the Canadian Air Force as Air Field Engineer. He was born in the Dhothar village in Ludhiana district of Punjab, India. Tatla earned his Bachelor of Engineering from G.N.E. Engineering College, Ludhiana, and Master of Technology from Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. Jasbir emigrated to Canada in June, 1999. He completed a one-year Architectural Drafting certification from Kwantlen University College in Surrey and worked in different fields, including as an Engineering Technician in PMC Sierra in Burnaby. His great-grandfather, Inder Singh, took part in the First World War, his grandfather, Mall Singh, took part in the Burma War, and his father, Gurdarshan Singh, retired as an Honorary Flying Officer. An uncle of his, Sukhdev Singh, was also a brigadier in the Indian Army. With thais distinguished millitary background, Jasbir passed the Canadian Forces entrance examination in 2003 and waited four years for a security background check from India. He was detailed to undergo training at Venture Naval Officers Training Center Esquimalt, Victoria, in April. His graduation ceremony was held on July 12 2008. After a struggle of five years, Tatla not only achieved his goal, but has also brought honour to his community. Tatla gives all the credit to his mother Hardial Kaur and father Gurdarshan Singh Tatla for their dedication. He has two sisters, Jasvinder Kaur Mann and Kamaljit Kaur. He is married to Pawandeep and has two sons Sahib and Jugraj. Jasbir can speak five languages, that include English, Punjabi, Hindi, Sanskrit and Urdu. In addition to these Jasbir is also going to learn French, which he says will give him a greater chance for promotion.​
 

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Sardar Fauja Singh

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* Fauja Singh is an over 90 year old marathon runner.
* He holds a world record as a runner in his age bracket.
* In 2004 he was featured in an advertising campaign, 'Nothing Is Impossible', for sportswear manufacturer Adidas.
* While running marathon races in London, New York and Toronto, he raised money for various charities promoting Sikh culture around the world. He has also raised money for a charity dedicated to the care for premature babies.

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