By the CNN Wire Staff
(CNN) – Sikhism, the world’s fifth most popular religion, is a monotheistic faith that believes in equality and service to others, Sikh officials say.
“Everyone is the same,” says Raghunandan Johar, president of the Guru Nanak Mission of Atlanta. “There is no distinction, no caste system.”
Navdeep Singh, a policy adviser to the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, says Sikhs believe in freedom of religion, community service and inclusiveness.
At temples, or gurdwaras, where Sikhs hold services, everyone is welcome.
“You can come and be equal,” he says.
Doing good deeds is important for you to be with God after death, Johar says. Sikhs believe that if you don’t live a life full of good deeds you will be reborn and repeat the circle of life and death
There are 25 million Sikhs around the world, Singh says, about 700,000 of which live in the United States. Most Sikhs are in India.
Sikhs do not have a particular day of worship, he says, but due to the American work week, Sunday is a popular day for services. Johar says his gurdwara has formal services on Wednesdays and Fridays, in addition to Sundays.
At a typical gurdwara, the doors open up at 6 a.m. for prayers. A formal service includes the singing of hymns and a team of leaders who have studied the faith reciting from the Guru Granth Sahib, Sikhism’s holy scriptures. That book, more than 1,400 pages long, includes writings from Sikhism’s 10 gurus as well as writers from other religions.
It is an example of Sikhism inclusiveness, Johar says.
“There is not a single word of hate in it,” he adds.
At the end of the service, congregants pray for the “well-being of the world” then head to the langar, the community kitchen that serves meals for anyone who wants one.
“(Founder) Guru Nanick said that if you want to meet God, serve the poor people,” Johar says.
Gurdwaras around the world variously incorporate clinics, schools, guest quarters and community centers, which Sikhs say is a sign of the religion’s values of service and equality.
The first gurdwara in the United States was built 100 years ago in California, Singh says.
Most Sikh men don’t cut their hair and wear turbans and beards. Many American Sikh women dress like other Westerners or wear the salwar kameez, a traditional north Indian garment of a long shirt and loose-fitting pants.
Sikhism emerged more than 500 years ago in Punjab, in what is now India. It was founded by Guru Nanak, a non-practicing Hindu who was against rituals and praying to idols.
“He received a revelation,” Johar says.
Guru Nanick taught a message of love and that all religions were good.
“If you are Hindu, he said be a good Hindu,” Johar says. “If you are Muslim, be a good Muslim. If you are Christian, be a good Christian.”
Sikhs, he says, are taught two other important things in addition to serving others and serving God: Work hard and never beg.
CNN’s Jose G. Santos contributed to this story.
