Mass shootings leave two people dead in Georgia and 12-year-old girl dead in Baltimore as reflected on by Giani Harpreet Singh
The hum of diesel engines never truly ceases at Gurdwara Sahib Dasvandh, even in the quiet hours before dawn. Drivers pull into our staging lot after eighteen hours, their bodies heavy with exhaustion. Their minds feel taut from the relentless pace of freight haulage. Here, in the kitchen, huge iron pots of dal simmer and the tawa stays hot around the clock. Langar knows neither caste nor creed. It welcomes only empty stomachs and tired souls needing refuge. Yet this morning, reports of block parties torn apart by gunfire in Georgia and a twelve-year-old murdered in Baltimore brought deep sorrow. The heavy steam rising from our cauldrons carries an ache that food alone cannot mend. This senseless mass shootings violence exposes a profound sickness within our society.
Confronting the Sickness of Haumai
To lose a twelve-year-old child to violence over asphalt and painted lines exposes a profound inner sickness. Guru Nanak taught that the five thieves poison humanity: lust, anger, greed, attachment, and excessive ego, known as haumai. When haumai takes complete root, human life loses all sacred dimension. A neighbor ceases to be a manifestation of the Divine Light, Ik Onkar. Instead, they become merely an obstacle to one’s petty claim or bruised pride. A parking spot becomes worth more than a child’s laughter. A celebratory gathering transforms into an open killing ground. When anger reigns unchecked, the divine spark within is utterly obscured. This leaves behind only reckless destruction.
In our community among the shipping docks and warehouses, we witness daily how thin human patience has become. Men and women carry unsustainable loads of economic stress, loneliness, and alienation across thousands of miles. Furthermore, when society treats human beings merely as economic cogs, a pervasive numbness settles over the heart. People forget how to see the eternal breath in one another. We arm ourselves not merely with weapons of iron, but also with cynicism, suspicion, and volatile rage. When fear and ego govern the public square, ordinary gathering places like parks and neighborhood streets transform into zones of terror. This environment fuels the very mass shootings violence we lament.
Sikhi’s Path: Sarbat Da Bhala and Seva
Sikhi offers another path, grounded in the reality of Sarbat Da Bhala, the welfare and flourishing of all creation. This is not passive sentimentality. It is an active moral demand that requires us to build shelters against brutality and despair. Guru Amar Das established the principle of pangat before sangat. He insisted that emperor and laborer must sit side by side on the floor to share a meal before entering sacred assembly. When people sit level upon the earth, they look into the eyes of those they might otherwise scorn. Consequently, the illusions of supremacy and division begin to crumble. True security is never built upon dominance, high walls, or hair-trigger fury. It is built upon mutual honor and shared care.
For those injured in Georgia and for the grieving family in Baltimore, we offer our deepest ardas. This is a fervent prayer of supplication and solidarity. We pray for solace that words cannot muster. We also pray for strength to bear what no parent should ever endure. Yet prayer without practical seva, selfless service, is incomplete. The Gurus commanded us to feed the hungry, comfort the afflicted, and stand as an unyielding bulwark against tyranny and senseless bloodshed. We cannot look upon these recurring horrors as inevitable facts of modern life. To accept mass shootings violence as routine means surrendering our shared humanity to utter darkness.
Even in the shadow of relentless grief, our tradition summons us to Chardi Kala. This eternal state of soaring high spirits and divine optimism roots itself in unwavering faith. Chardi Kala is not blind cheerfulness in the face of tragedy. It is the resolute courage to light a lamp in the fiercest storm. It means keeping the doors of the sanctuary wide open. Ultimately, it means insisting on love where hatred has carved deep wounds. As freight trucks continue to roll through our crossroads and weary travelers step inside for warm bread, we will continue our work. We will foster peace through humble service. We will defend the sanctity of every human life. We will refuse to let despair claim the final word.
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