Terms & Guidelines

SPN Forum Rules/Terms of Service

**Gurfateh Ji, SPN is a unique platform, where you can indulge in scholarly debates on virtually every issue. It is very important to understand and bear in mind that topics/posts/comments made by any member do not reflect upon the ideology of SikhPhilosophy.Net (Sikh Philosophy Network). If any particular message from a member is not removed then that does not mean that we support it. This means you have the equal opportunity of countering the argument in an authoritative manner. Religion and philosophy are general but unique for each person's understanding and progress. If you disagree, simply accept the differences and ask for information you may not know.

Please Discuss the Issues not the Personalities debating the Issues. Thank you. **

Guidelines for Comparative Studies:

Whilst SPN encourages positive interfaith dialogue and exercises in comparative religion, we do not accept direct or indirect attacks on the individuality of Sikhism. Any posts deemed to be doing so will be removed from the forum without notice.

The Guru Granth Sahib is the ultimate authority of the Sikhs. Any abuse or disrespect towards it in any form – directly or implied, will not be tolerated. Ridicule of the Sikh Religion, Sikh Scriptures, 5Ks or of the Khalsa will not be allowed and removed from forums without notice.

Comparative religious discussions can be educational, but ridiculing other faiths or excessive criticism of their beliefs is not constructive and it is not allowed on SPN. We need to be tolerant of our differences and accept people for what they are instead of being critical of their beliefs. All allegations must be backed up by verifiable references from neutral sources.

Critically Important: Sometimes, our zeal to defend the Sikh identity and Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji may lead us to forget that the Sikh Rehat Maryada commands us to respect other religions. When you criticize practices of other religions, or its prominent figures past and present, please weigh your words carefully. Comments and opinions that unjustly generalize or deliberately intend to hurt religious sentiments of followers of other faiths & philosophies, that are inaccurate and or cannot be supported by historical evidence, or that promote negative stereotypes, will be edited or deleted without notice. The major aim of SPN is bridging the gaps between the religions and Failure to comply may result in termination of your membership.

Proselytizing: Posts looking for converts to deras, sects, other faiths, religions, philosophies etc; and posts that preach their philosophies, promote their URLs etc; will be edited or deleted with or without notice.

Politics: SPN is primarily a philosophical forum. Messages affecting Sikhs in religious, cultural or other matters are welcome. Posts that push one-sided political agendas will be edited or deleted with or without notice. Forum Leaders reserve the right to disallow any other types of messages. Do not propagate the views or arguments of any non-member or suspended member. Repeated forwarding of controversial views on the same subject will be viewed as a serious breach of SPN Guidelines.

General Guidelines:

1. Respect:Treat all members with the kind of respect that you expect from them in return for yourself.

2. Unity in Diversity: Many members on SPN, come from various religious and cultural backgrounds and may have variable conflicting opinions. Religion and Philosophy are general but unique for each person's understanding and progress. If you disagree, simply accept the difference and ask for information you may not know. Unnecessary bragging, trash talk, childish arguments only take us away from the topic in hand. Please avoid them at any cost.

3. Blaming: Avoid blaming others. Seeing someone's fault is easier than your own fault.

4. Prudence: Respond to the topic in hand, not the persons, who posted it.

5. Negativity: Members found spreading negativity will be encouraged to leave the network.

6. Introspection: Try to find your own fault and purify your mind.

7. Karma: Always check your karma and its fruit from participating in this network.

8. Multiple Identities: No use using multiple identities. We can easily trace & monitor activities of such persons and deal with them appropriately.

9. Moderation: SPN Management reserves all the rights to delete or modify all the articles/discussions without asking for permissions from the authors/posters.

10. Comparative Study: Any member, who wants to explore relationship between Sikhism and other religions, please do that in a "Interfaith Dialogues" forum only.

11. Forum Etiquette: Do not use offensive or vulgar language. Behave like a grown up person.

12. Personal Attacks or Sect Bashing: Do not engage in personal attacks or sect bashing. HATE MESSAGES WILL BE REMOVED WITHOUT NOTICE.

13. Proof: All allegations undermining a person's or group's credibility must be backed-up by clearly verifiable references from neutral sources.

14. Plagiarism is STRICTLY FORBIDDEN: If you copy posts from others and pass them as if they're yours, you will be severely punished.

New Topic Posting Rules:

1. While quoting a Shabad from SGGS, it is mandatory to post the Ang (Page/Panna) number so that members can conduct their own research.

2. It is advised that while posting content from other websites, you may mention full url/web address of that website for cross reference in provided Reference Field. This is also to protect the intellectual property rights of the original author. e.g. Reference or Source: http://www.abcxyz.com/abcxyz.html

3. To remove any language barriers while contemplating, the official language of SPN is spoken English. The members at SPN include many readers, who have virtually no background on reading/understanding Gurumukhi or Punjabi language. Being a responsible member, avoid posting only Gurumukhi/Punjabi text in your posts.

4. By registering & sharing your works/writings on SPN, you agree that once you have posted, all your writings become part of the public domain and all rights to delete or remove these writings are then reserved with SPN administration. Any request to delete or remove your postings/writings at SPN will not be entertained after the lapse of 5 days from the date of posting of the post/writing. Please be informed accordingly