The Technology of Langar

Welcome to the first post in my blog about the beautiful technology of Langar.

Langar is a free community meal served to nourish body, mind, and soul. During the late 1400's in India, a Spiritual King known as Guru Nanak began the practice of Langar among his followers, who came to be called "Sikhs," meaning seekers of truth. Contributing from the wealth with which they are blessed, Sikhs serve Langar or community meals that are open to all, without charge and without regard to anyone's religion, caste, colour, creed, age, gender, or social status. Everyone is welcomed in a spirit of utter inclusiveness and the oneness of all humankind. All sit equally together at Langar. No one is high or low and everyone is cherished, just as God cherishes everyone in all creation. Vegetarian food is prepared while singing or chanting mantras or prayers for the upliftment, peace, and prosperity of all people.

In addition to the ideals of equality and sharing, Langar promotes human virtues of acceptance, responsibility, generosity, and humility, and it improves our community quality of life. Through sitting together and listening to one another with open hearts, we actively educate ourselves to learn and better understand the views and beliefs and the needs of others. When we open ourselves to recognizing the needs of others and honestly share with others our own needs, we automatically create a spiritual bond that leads to solutions that meet everyone’s needs. Langar is based upon the concept of Guru Nanak's primal teaching of "Ek Ong Kaar" or there is One God that created the creation and the Creator and Creation are One. Humanity is a vast organism that flourishes when we recognize our interdependence and the common divinity within all. Certainly, any organism at war with itself will perish in self destruction. As Yogi Bhajan wrote on the back of his business card, "If you can't see God in all, you can't see God at all." Guru Nanak is often called the Guru for the Aquarian Age because he brought a new way to help guide us in this new age, an age in which we recognize that we are one in the spirit, the light of God lives in all hearts, in all religious, in all cultures.

Ultimately, practicing the technology of Langar will wipe out hunger and poverty throughout the earth. Wherever there are Sikh Gurdwaras (spiritual temples open to all people) Langar is served and no one goes hungry. At the Golden Temple of Amritsar in India, the home in the heart of Sikhs throughout the world, up to 10,000 people are served Langar each day. Sikh teachings encourage people to live their lives in service to others, not as beggars or in poverty; rather, Sikhs believe in creating abundance, peace, and prosperity for all people. Wherever Langar is served, lively and wonderful bazaars spring fourth in the nearby vicinity, which create the most festive and beautiful occasions in which prosperity flourishes. Through building networks of intercultural and interfaith dialogue with reciprocal cooperation, everyone reaps the rewards and benefits of greater shared resources and shared responsibility, and an elevated quality of life for all.

Please join us for Langar at Hacienda de Guru Ram Das in Espanola, New Mexico. Known as the Mother Ashram and the home of the Siri Singhasan e Khalsa Gurdwara, this beautiful, golden-domed temple follows the spiritual tradition of the Golden Temple in India. It is as a place where everyone of every religion—or no religion—can come to experience spiritual solace and peace. Next to the temple complex is the Langar hall where all are invited to share and enjoy community Langar. As Yogi Bhajan taught us, “gather in the company of the holy, chant God's name, and experience your beauty, bounty, and bliss; in dignity, divinity, and grace; and bring peace to all, light to all, and love to all.” Sat Nam.