UCSI students visit KL gurdwara

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 7 July 2015 | Asia Samachar |

Some 80 year-two students from a Kuala Lumpur-based university visited the Wadda Gurdwara Sahib Kampung Pandan, Kuala Lumpur, as part of the practical aspect of their ‘Religion in Malaysia’ subject.

The gurdwara was one of the stops for the students from UCSI University, who also visited a church, a Hindu temple, a mosque and a Buddhist temple.

The visit on July 4 was led by university lecturer Irwan Marlius who teaches the subject.

“Some of them had never seen a Sikh before. All of them, except for their lecturer, had never stepped into a gurdwara before,” gurdwara committee president Jasbir Singh tells Asia Samachar.

However, he said the students were very much at home, and those who were not fasting even eat the food prepared at the Guru-ka-Langgar.

A bulk of the students were from Malaysian, with a small number foreign students from China, Brunei, Indonesia, Nigeria and Iran.

“We want to have a feel of the various places of worship that they study in the elective subject. It helps them to connect with the theory they study in class,” said Irwan.

He said the visits were also meant to “break the stereotypes” that people have about each other, especially when it comes to matters concerning faith.

The visit to the gurdwara began with Jasbir giving them a briefing in the darbar sahib (prayer chamber). They were then shown a demonstration of the Sikh martial art gatka, conducted by two local youth.

Kampung Pandan naujawan (youth) representative Rupinder Kaur was also present to guide the students.

“Mr. Jasbir is truly one of the most friendliest persons on earth. The hospitality that we receieved truly made us feel that we were at home during the visit,” Irwan said in an email to Asia Samachar.