The first question the guru asks and answers in the Guru Granth Sahib Ji is, "how does one become truth-full, how does one break the wall of filth?" the answer is by following the hukm - the will/law? And what is this hukm-law? It is the law of karma - whatever you put out into the universe will come back to you. And what is this hukm-will? It is also called the "wird" - the way. The way of God is grace. God loves us and the universe guides us to whole-ness, to holiness.

Certainly the law is not some sort of 2 + 2 formula. The two statements after this question and answer are that through the hukm came life, and that the hukm cannot be spoken. In other words, the hukm is not a set of fixed law, but the living law of karma and wird. There are eternal principles, like meeta = loving kindness, daya = compassion, prem = love, but not eternal laws. Hence, the way of the guru is fresh in every time, every place, every instance, every present/ce.

God's wird means the s/he is present in the universe. The light that is God lives in every heart and therefore, each being is a lamp in which the light of God is shining. We have the choice of cleaning our lives - polishing our lamps - to live in accord with the light, or of adding to the filth in a denial of light. If we clean up our act, we may be called mystics - people not interested in religious laws but in an inward journey to discovery of God in everyday life. But since the gurus told us that this is true for everyone, as Sikhs we honour everyone, every lamp of God. Therefore, we may need to fight for them, and in this we may need to use force. Therefore, the kirpan = sword of mercy (kirpa = mercy). Thus, we may need to use force in promotion of the equal status of women, protection of the poor, efforts for prisoners of conscience, working together with blind people and lepers, and other tasks which the gurus showed us in their everyday lives.

God lives within us as reflection in a mirror, fragrance in a flower, and fire within wood. Thus, the Sikh is a mystic revolutionary. The mysticism leads naturally to a revolutionary attitude. Many other mystics find that their search for God leads to rejection of the world and so many holy men have not married, or worked or struggled. Why the difference?

The wird. The gurus taught that God loves us. Whatever we have is a gift and our only choice is to reject it or to accept it gratefully. If we accept the gifts we become great-full. Our task as receivers of these gifts is to use them, to direct them. We are not scared since we are amazed that we are loved and that is the only reason we are here and we have everything. For sure we do not become lazy and take them for granted because that would be to become ungrateful. We are given gifts as beneficiaries of a trust. By directly them well we become trusted servants of God's powers - names.

On the other hand, people felt that they would only get from God if they gave something to God. Their ways of giving were through paths of sacrifice, especially animal sacrifice, mental exercises, love and devotion to God, and ritualistic good deeds, i.e. This is a special day or time so i must do such and such. They were trading with God. Controlling our gifts/energies, claiming them as "mine" and then bartering with God. It is the difference between directing energies and trading them on the basis of ownership. Since everything belongs to God, this is simply theft and one must be scared of the rightful owner. Hence one lives without fear, joyfully directing the generous gifts of the universe, the other lives in deep terror, angrily controlling whatever can be seized or exchanged with the universe.

Rather than loving God, one simply loves. Rather than grasping at knowledge, we open ourselves to learning. Rather than sacrificing animals, we sacrifice our own lower natures. Rather than earning brownie points for keeping up with the rituals, we do what is right in the here-and-now, whenever and wherever. Rather than blocking up energy and trading behind a fortress of self, we open ourselves to we open ourselves to the energy that flows from the universe, through us, back to the universe.

The rejection of these four ways are the four major breaches of the rule of the order of the Khalsa for which one would need to receive pahul (amrit) again and be re-admitted. Eating sacrificial meat (sacrifice), having sex before or outside marriage (love based groups tend to get involved in free sex), cutting hair (ritual good deed, rather than goodness arising from natural harmony), taking drugs to affect the mental state (rejection of thought-based, as you can recognise God's hand in your life in everyday moments). The universe steps in the give, save, sustain and guide your life - this is the wird. You need to realise that whatever you put out, you will receive - this is karma. Taken together, the hukm is the nature of the universe, the way of everlasting life.

Sikh derives from the Indo-European root meaning "to seek". A Sikh is anyone who seeks for "sat" - truth/reality. In this sense "Sikh" has also been used by the Buddha in the dhammapada. The term Sikh has implications. One is always seeking, always looking, there is no end to the truths that one finds, life is about chardi kalaa, rising spirits, as one trusts in the truth - sat - God to find more and more truths, adding truth to truth, light to light. This then is the offering to the universe to us, to add light or deny the light - be contrary, devilish, self-destructive, the self-killer and world- butcher. The bias of the universe is to light. With God is light, not darkness. Though we are responsible and capable for our choices, the universe reaches out to touch us, guide us, nudge us, raise us from danger back into the ways of light. We are not left alone, but always offered help. One such help is the guru - destroyer of darkness, ie bringing of light, enlightener, teacher.

For all journeys, for all seeking there are useful maps and methods. What we mean by Sikhs are those who are disciples of the gurus, from Guru Nanak to Guru Gobind Singh to Guru Granth Sahib Ji and Guru Khalsa Panth. We cannot be disciples if we think they lied to us or played games with us, so we must assume that when Guru Nanak said his teaching was for ordinary people living in families, he meant it. The gurus lived their truths to act as lamps, as demonstrations for us. Guru Nanak worked as a livestock farmer, trader, in accounts, and back to farming again. Guru Gobind Singh bowed before the Panj Piyaras to ask for pahul/amrit not as a game but as something real, something true, and again he obeyed Panj Piyaras to leave the Fort of Chamkaur in obedience to orders from a superior, not as a game to trick us. If we believe the gurus are tricksters or deceivers, we are in grave error. This then is the basis of a simple Sikhism - one based on the idea that the gurus have spoken plainly to humanity under God's orders, and have not spoken or lived any lie or trick.

Through prayer all people meet in spirit and in the heart. Therefore, the gurus made the gurdwaras open to all symbolised by the four doors of the Darbar Sahib (golden temple). Also, when people break bread together they are no longer strangers, thus the gurus made it a rule that all coming to the gurdwara must eat together, whether they pray or not. Thus, the langar is prepared so that anyone can eat it. Not only is it vegetarian, but garlic, etc. Is not used as it cannot be eaten by Jains. Moreover, the service in the gurdwara involves people of different traditions. There are hymns by Buddhist tantric saints like Kabir, Hindus likeJaidev and Muslims like Farid. Every Sikh service is an interfaith service. Moreover, the Gurmukhi script was developed by Guru A