Sant Kirpal Singh Anniversary Celebrations 2023
As every year, Sant Kirpal Singh‘s birthday on February 6th is celebrated with a big programme. A travel group from eight different countries (incl. Slovenia, Canada and France) had come to participate.
The programme started on February 3rd at 10 am at the farm Sant Kirpal Singh had visited in 1973. There, the Guru Granth Sahib, the Holy Scripture of the Sikhs, is traditionally recited in its entirety for about two days.
Afterwards, a medical camp was opened at 11 am, providing free medical care to about 500 needy patients. The focus is on general medical check-ups, eye examinations with subsequent operations, laboratory tests and internal medicine examinations.
Parallel to this, the concreting work of the last section of the ceiling of the dining hall started (see last report). In the afternoon, workers from the west joined in and again, they transported the concrete in bowls to the roof in a very joyful atmosphere, hand in hand, until the early morning.
On February 5th at 10 am, the recitation of the Guru Granth Sahib was solemnly concluded. In the evening at 6 pm, the main programme started with hymns and lectures in the assembly hall.
The next morning, after a tour through Kirpal Sagar at 4 am, the new dining hall, provisionally lined with carpets and cloths, was inaugurated. The programme included shabads (hymns) and short speeches. At the end, chai and a small sweet dish were served to the approximately 400 people present.
From 11 a.m. onwards, the conference on the unity of man began with eight speakers from different Indian religious communities, including the Hindu Swami Nirmal Aarti Devaji, Muhammad Hameed Kausar from the Muslim Ahmadiyya Movement and Raj Brahma Kumari.
They lovingly appealed to the audience of about 2500-3000 for unity, tolerance, humanity, respect for old age and women empowerment.
Afterwards, tricycles, wheelchairs, sewing machines and blankets were distributed to people in need. The evening programme concluded the festivities with further speeches.
Progress in sustainable economy and in Kirpal Sagar Academy
The biogas plant has been refurbished to supply the common kitchen and the school mess more efficiently with gas.
The travel group visited the fields to see the growth of the fruit trees and mixed crops (see earlier report) and to participate in this year’s abundant Apple Ber harvest. The turmeric yield was also very good.
They also took part in the colourful farewell celebrations organised by the 11th class for the 12th class and, some days later, visited the kitchen of the Kirpal Sagar Academy with its chapati machine, that produces the impressive number of 700 flatbreads in 30 minutes.
During a tour of the school, the headmaster explained its IT concept in more detail: in addition to the smartboards in the classrooms, it also includes a feedback system. The students’ individual progress is registered and can be viewed by the students, teachers and parents. Pupils with learning difficulties receive appropriate remedial teaching. Later, a new music classroom with really good accoustics was inaugurated.
Renovation work
Naturally the guests from the West are always happy to help beautify Kirpal Sagar during their short stay. In the Sach Khand Bhawan, the room inside the Sarovar ship, the walls and ceiling were repainted, after which everything was cleaned and given a fresh shine. The church tower of the Symbols of Unity was scaffolded to resume the renovation and gilding.
Moreover, the grills at the Sarovar entrance are getting a new coat of gold paint. Some women from Kirpal Sagar have started crushing bricks for the ground fill in the Langar Hall. The gardeners are constantly at work and the flower beds are blossoming more and more.
