I visited Harmandar Sahib last year. I went to Baba Deep Singh Guru Granth Sahib upstairs on Harmandar Sahib. This granth is hand written and very big. I came close to the bir, and the akhanda paathi was doing his job by waving his hand to communicate to me to move away. He did not know that I speak and read Panjabi. I told his 'STOP IT'. Then I sat down to read the akhanda paath for a few moments, but not enough for anyone to notice or complain about him.
The next day I visited Avtar Singh Makar, head of akhal takht over there to ask if I could do kirtan. He said never, women will never do it there. I told him that women gave birth to Guru Nanak and that they cook the roti, why do the men eat it? I told this that Badal Family and Takhsalis under Indian Government controls all of this. Makar Singh could not answer this. It was a very friendly conversation. Not meant to intimidate.
I also spoke to the secretary and got the same response. I handed over my Hebrew translation of Jap Ji Sahib to the secretary, don't remember his name, and he accepted my translation and put it on the shelf file saying, "I'll contract you when we review it." I doubt it they will.
My biography and this event is posted in Rozana Spokesman. It happened end of May 2009, but wasn't posted until June or July.
When I read akhada paath in the Fremont gurdwara, they are ashamed to put the speaker in front of me. There are sometimes 30 paaths in o ne room or ten. But when it is my turn for the speaker, they take it away immediately. Perhaps they are ashamed of my accent. When I visited England this summer, everyone was excited to hear my paath on the speaker. I even read the shlok mehela 9.
I am not boasting of me, but of the greatness of Guru Granth Sahib. When should Fremont worry about my gori accent? The sangat likes my accent, but someone in the management either does not care or is against my reading. When and IF I have duties, I am assigned hidden in the back room akhanda paath or given only late night duties.
