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Belief: Sikhs in contemporary Australia

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Two men in turbans conduct Sikh sermon
Belief: Sikhs in contemporary Australia

SUBJECTS:  History

YEARS:  9–10


Did you know that Sikhs in Australia belong to the fifth most popular religion in the world?

Sikhism began in the Punjab region of India and today has over 30 million followers.

Find out more about the life and beliefs of people of this faith through the eyes of a Sikh.

Watch a 'langar', a community meal, in process at his gurdwara (temple) in Melbourne, Victoria and see the service of others (sewa) being practised there.


Things to think about

  1. 1.How much do you know about the Sikh religion and the principles that Sikhs live by? Is there a gurdwara (Sikh temple) anywhere near your home?
  2. 2.What evidence do you see in the clip that the Sikhs are an 'inclusive' community (a community that welcomes a range of people)? What do Sikhs appear to value most, and how can you tell? Why would the interviewee Ali and his parents prefer that he not marry outside the faith? What does this suggest about Sikh community values?
  3. 3.Ali mentions the way Sikhs are sometimes viewed by other Australians. What does this tell you about the broader Australian society that Sikhs are a part of? In what ways do you think Ali identifies as Australian? In what ways does he identify as 'Sikh'?
  4. 4.Search ABC Education for other clips related to Sikhs and Sikhism. View and compare them with this clip. Then discuss the extent to which Sikhs in all of these clips appear to have influenced and been influenced by the broader Australian community.



Date of broadcast: 4 Dec 2001


Copyright

Metadata © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia Ltd 2012 (except where otherwise indicated). Digital content © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). Video © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). All images copyright their respective owners. Text © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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