University for Life Conference
17 April 2021
hosted by Dr Jesvir Kaur Mahil
As educators, we know that the quality of questions being asked indicates the level of learning taking place. As researchers, we know that it can take many years to formulate a question that is worthy of our time and energy.
I began with the question “How do Sikh stories, symbols and values influence our leadership styles?”. With this question openly shared through my Public Engagement activities, I organised three panel discussions for the first Learn to Lead Conference on 17 April 2021. As expected, each panel responded quite distinctly to the stimulus questions and I noted around 30 further questions raised at each panel (listed below). Many questions are interesting but potentially a distraction. The purpose of the research question is to serve as an anchor, to avoid red herrings and wild goose chases that will not serve the purpose of the research which is to create spaces for improved learning, leadership and cultural capital.
Deepening our awareness of stories, symbols and values will be reflected not only in the questions we pose but also our aspirations, agendas and the choices we are inspired to make.
How do Sikh stories, symbols, and values influence our leadership styles?
Click on the video links, photos, or names below to see profiles of international panelists discussing the importance of stories, symbols, and values in leadership.
17 April 2021
Click on the image below to watch Discussion Panel 1
Questions raised in this discussion included:
- How do we align with the ‘invisible hand’ in shaping our destiny?
- How did Guru Amar Das Ji organise Sikh communities for cultural empowerment?
- How can films such as “The four Sahibzade’ transform our lives?
- What are the core values and messages in the story of the Four Sahibzade?
- Why is it important to remember our ancestral stories?
- What is the significance of the concept of ‘Miri Piri’?
- What is the difference between repetition, recital and understanding of the Gurbani?
- How deep is the impact of stories personally told to us by our parents and grandparents?
- How closely are the principles of nam japo, kirat kamao and bandh shako, expressed in the ideology of humanism?
10. How did Maharaja Dilip Singh’s identity change when his mother convinced him that he was not a Prince (as his Christian foster parents had brought him up to believe) but in fact a Maharaja in exile?
11. What is more important, rituals or values?
12. How can we remain in chardi kalaa?
13. How can we mitigate the impact of our overly sweet diet in the Sikh community?
14. How have Sikh stories been distorted to serve political agendas, especially post 1947?
15. What has been the impact on the Sikh community of deep traumas, for example 1947 & 1984?
16. How can we avoid self-righteously judging others to be inferior to us in terms of their behaviour?
17. What are the three core principles that Guru Nanak Ji advocated?
18. How can we educate the Western communities in which we find ourselves located, to cultivate mutual respect?
19. When we are speaking of Sikhi in English, what kinds of concepts get lost in translation (due to lack of equivalent
vocabulary)?
20. How do different cultures prioritise values such as ‘love your neighbour as yourself’?
21. Why are Sikh leaders mostly male even though the religion advocates gender equality?
22. What are the dangers of becoming too attached to roles, stories and archetypes?
23. How important is the outward appearance of Sikhs?
24. What is the impact of wearing symbols such as the kara, khanda and turbans?
25. What is the difference between the various JanamSakhis available to us?
26. How important is humour in our culture?
27. How can we attain mukti through our everyday practical activities?
28. How did British colonisation undermine the level of literacy in the Panjab?
29. How can we do sewa to nurture our souls as well as langar to nurture our bodies?
17 April 2021
Click on the image below to watch Discussion Panel 2
Questions raised in this discussion included:
- What are the ancestral stories we carry in our DNA?
- How can we create a stronger presence as Sikhs, in an international context?
- How may the concept of Miri Piri be misunderstood in a Western context?
- How could we be more effective in our political decision making?
- In what way is the concept of langar a political statement?
- What organisational, communication and leadership skills do Sikhs need to develop a greater level of maturity in?
- How does our level of education influence the way we deal with disagreements and conflict of interests?
- How different is the leadership style of the younger generation compared with the elders?
- Why are we much better at being generous, altruistic Good Neighbours than Rulers with the capacity to bring people together?10. How can we harness the power of our ‘ankh’ to do good?
- How can we avoid becoming polarised and synthesise a balanced concept of MiriPiri in our everyday lives?
- How did the Gurus make political statements through their behaviour, for example riding on horses and providing water for all?
- How did Bhagat Singh Shaheed attempt to fight for the independence and freedom of all colonised communities in India rather than just the Panjabi Sikhs?
- How do we undermine our own community?
- How important is it for Sikhs to identify ethnically as ‘Sikhs’?
- What is the significance of the Panjabi farmer’s protest to Sikhs living internationally?
- Why are there so few female leaders such as Mata Sahib Devan (Mata Sahib Kaur)?
- What is the difference between an election and selection model for choosing our religious leaders?
- What can Gurdwaras do to be much more inclusive in meeting the needs and expectations of Sikhs living in Western countries?
- How prepared are the younger generation of Sikhs in stepping up to take leadership, especially during times of crisis such as the pandemic?
- How can the elder Sikhs train the younger generation to develop leadership skills?
- What reputational damage is caused by internal political stress and strife at gurdwaras?
- How important is it for leaders to be articulate in communication skills?
- What criteria do we need to consider, to celebrate best practice in Gurdwaras?
- What are the shared interpretations of Sikh symbols such as kara, kacha, kirpan, kesh and kanga?
- Why are creative careers less popular in the Sikh community?
- What are creative Sikhs doing to generate cultural capital and creative communities?
- What can Gurdwaras do to create structures to support creativity, leadership and empowerment of its local Sikh community?
- How different are the leadership styles of Sikhs established in the USA compared with those who are settled in the UK?
- How can we maximise inter-generational collaboration, for example older farmers being supported by younger Sikhs with social media skills, to identify and generate useful community projects?
- How can we support each other through mentoring and coaching in the spirit of sewa?
- How can we learn to listen to each other with maturity and humility?
- What is our long-term vision for our gurdwaras as a cultural legacy?
- How can we learn to adopt a mindset of resilience, creativity and growth through learning?
- How can you exert a positive influence on others through your daily activities?
17 April 2021
Click on the image below to watch Discussion Panel 3
Questions raised in this discussion included:
- How can we draw inspiration from the stories of our parents and grandparents who resiliently suffered great hardships settling in a foreign country?
- How do we express the principles of nam japo, kirat kamao and bandh shako in our behaviours?
- How important is symbology, for example the turban, in shaping our identity?
- What are the underlying messages in the Bandhi Chor story?
- How important is it to challenge the status quo, power dynamics and cultural hegemony?
- How important is it to work towards social justice through unconditional compassion for friend and foe following the example of Bhai Ghanaya Ji, integrated with courage?
- How can we avoid becoming polarised through kindness and compassion tempered with courage to speak truth to power?
- How appropriate is the portrayal of Sikhs as warriors rather than as ‘sant sepoy’ following the path of miri piri?
- What is the link between loss of identity, self-esteem and vulnerability to illnesses such as addictions?
- How are Sikhs healing from deep traumas such as the tragedies of 1947, 1984 and the current farmers’ crisis?
- How can our cultural stories be used to strengthen our identity, self-esteem and control over our lives?
- How useful is bhangra in nurturing our well-being, identity, and sense of belonging?
- What are the risks to mental health of a life that lacks balance with too many responsibilities for others and not enough self-care?
- What may be the underlying agendas behind portrayal of Sikhs as a martial race?
- How can we avoid being puppets to unknown masters?
- How can we free ourselves from the vicious power struggles of being oppressed and being oppressors?
- What do we need to recognise and acknowledge about our privileged position in social hierarchies?
- What is the relationship between pursuit of material comfort and our creative interests?
- How easy is it for us to feel a sense of belonging in city Gurdwaras where we are unknown as individuals?
- What are we giving up in trying to fit in to the spaces we find ourselves in?
- What is the impact on our emotional well-being of not knowing about our socio-cultural heritage, for example the histories of our Gurus?
- What is the difference between conforming, adapting and integrating with the local cultures?
- How important is to position ourselves as members of the Sikh community?
- Why do we focus on improving the quality of external rather than internal relationships?
- What are the rules of the game we are playing in an international context?
- What are the risks of becoming a ‘model minority’?
- What kind of representation do we need in power hierarchies, to meet our needs?
- What are the questions we are asking to enable learning to take place?
- How can we remain in alignment with our values, principles and good intentions without being attached to outcomes?
- How can we mitigate the adverse impact of power in distorting our values and good will intentions?
- How do we overcome the ingrained conditioning about behaving to look good to the community?
- How can we influence without having a seat at the table of powerful decision-making?
- What kind of leadership skills are required to avoid concrete ceilings in organisations?
- How important is it for Sikhs to be in positions of leadership?
- What are the leadership outcomes we are striving for as Sikhs?