Humanity before religion
The beginning of this year saw a Sikh - Rajwinder Singh being persecuted for his “turban”, being called a terrorist and wrongly accused of sexual harassment.The issue had taken an ugly turn when scores of people joined in this on social media and threatened Rajwinder with dire consequences.
In stark contrast was a recent incident in Auckland where the “turban” became the reason that Harman Singh became an overnight hero.
Harman Singh, a young Sikh who did not hesitate to break religious protocol by removing his turban to help an injured child bleeding profusely after an accident in Auckland on last week, has earned worldwide praise.
Singh, 22, did not think twice before removing his turban to help the five-year-old who was hit by a car on way to school.
"I wasn't thinking about the turban. I was thinking about the accident and I just thought, 'He needs something on his head because he's bleeding.' That's my job; to help," New Zealand Herald quoted him.
Gagan Dhillon was on his way to work when the accident happened. He too stopped to help.
"Being a Sikh myself, I know what type of respect the turban has. People just don't take it off - people die over it. I saw him (Singh) with no head covering and thought, 'That's strange'. But then I saw one hand was underneath the boy's head supporting it and his siropao (turban) was stopping the bleeding," he said.
Although removing the turban is rare, Singh said the religious rules did not restrict such an action in an emergency, stuff.co.nz reported.
Dhillon posted a photo of Singh and other people helping the injured child on Facebook and it has gone viral since then.
Harman Singh woke up on Sunday (17 May) to hundreds of messages from around the world praising his humanity. "A picture of the 22-year-old Singh who broke religious protocol by removing his turban to cradle a boy hit by a car has turned him into an instant hero," the New Zealand Herald reported.
The boy was going to school with his sister when the accident happened. The accident happened outside his house in Takanini, South Auckland, on Friday (15 May) morning.
Singh has since received hundreds of Facebook herograms from the US, Europe and India, he said. His story has been shared many thousands of times on social media.
Singh, 22, from India, is in Auckland studying a business course. His act was considered hugely significant because it breaks strict religious protocol.
He was overwhelmed at the number of messages of support from around the globe. "Total strangers are asking to be friends on Facebook and thousands of people have said 'Well done'. I was only doing what I had to and trying to be a decent member of the community."
Singh did not know the injured boy. He recently visited the boy, Daejon Pahia, 5, and his family at Starship Children's Hospital. They presented Singh with a bouquet of flowers and a thank you card.
Daejon was recovering well and police have launched an investigation into the accident.
This incident is the perfect example of 'humanity is the biggest religion of all’. Every religion teaches us to choose humanity over it. No skin colour or race or country of birth defines your humanism.
When the Indian Weekender had interviewed the community about the Rajwinder Singh incident, the biggest message that came out of it was that the larger New Zealand community needs to be educated about the religious beliefs of Sikhism. We hope that this incident will help change perceptions and also bring peoples attention to the noble and magnanimous teachings of Sikhism.
We salute Harman Singh for his timely and compassionate actions.
The beginning of this year saw a Sikh - Rajwinder Singh being persecuted for his “turban”, being called a terrorist and wrongly accused of sexual harassment.The issue had taken an ugly turn when scores of people joined in this on social media and threatened Rajwinder with dire consequences.
In...
The beginning of this year saw a Sikh - Rajwinder Singh being persecuted for his “turban”, being called a terrorist and wrongly accused of sexual harassment.The issue had taken an ugly turn when scores of people joined in this on social media and threatened Rajwinder with dire consequences.
In stark contrast was a recent incident in Auckland where the “turban” became the reason that Harman Singh became an overnight hero.
Harman Singh, a young Sikh who did not hesitate to break religious protocol by removing his turban to help an injured child bleeding profusely after an accident in Auckland on last week, has earned worldwide praise.
Singh, 22, did not think twice before removing his turban to help the five-year-old who was hit by a car on way to school.
"I wasn't thinking about the turban. I was thinking about the accident and I just thought, 'He needs something on his head because he's bleeding.' That's my job; to help," New Zealand Herald quoted him.
Gagan Dhillon was on his way to work when the accident happened. He too stopped to help.
"Being a Sikh myself, I know what type of respect the turban has. People just don't take it off - people die over it. I saw him (Singh) with no head covering and thought, 'That's strange'. But then I saw one hand was underneath the boy's head supporting it and his siropao (turban) was stopping the bleeding," he said.
Although removing the turban is rare, Singh said the religious rules did not restrict such an action in an emergency, stuff.co.nz reported.
Dhillon posted a photo of Singh and other people helping the injured child on Facebook and it has gone viral since then.
Harman Singh woke up on Sunday (17 May) to hundreds of messages from around the world praising his humanity. "A picture of the 22-year-old Singh who broke religious protocol by removing his turban to cradle a boy hit by a car has turned him into an instant hero," the New Zealand Herald reported.
The boy was going to school with his sister when the accident happened. The accident happened outside his house in Takanini, South Auckland, on Friday (15 May) morning.
Singh has since received hundreds of Facebook herograms from the US, Europe and India, he said. His story has been shared many thousands of times on social media.
Singh, 22, from India, is in Auckland studying a business course. His act was considered hugely significant because it breaks strict religious protocol.
He was overwhelmed at the number of messages of support from around the globe. "Total strangers are asking to be friends on Facebook and thousands of people have said 'Well done'. I was only doing what I had to and trying to be a decent member of the community."
Singh did not know the injured boy. He recently visited the boy, Daejon Pahia, 5, and his family at Starship Children's Hospital. They presented Singh with a bouquet of flowers and a thank you card.
Daejon was recovering well and police have launched an investigation into the accident.
This incident is the perfect example of 'humanity is the biggest religion of all’. Every religion teaches us to choose humanity over it. No skin colour or race or country of birth defines your humanism.
When the Indian Weekender had interviewed the community about the Rajwinder Singh incident, the biggest message that came out of it was that the larger New Zealand community needs to be educated about the religious beliefs of Sikhism. We hope that this incident will help change perceptions and also bring peoples attention to the noble and magnanimous teachings of Sikhism.
We salute Harman Singh for his timely and compassionate actions.
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