Today, readers of the Punjabi Tribune read an article titled “Lasani Sakhiat Giani Gurdit Singh” by Harmit Singh Atwal.
The readers of Daily Ajit read a tribute, captioned “Giani Gurdit Singh Nu Cheate Kardian” by Dr Tejinder Pal Kaur.
Today is my father’s 87th birth anniversary. We remember him still—his work, his personality and his deeds have, indeed, left a lasting impact on the fabric of Punjab and in the collective consciousness of Punjabis.
I hope that you like the changes that my friends Rajiv, Cheena and Sandeep have done to the website to make it more contemporary and attractive.
Sikh Chic, the Canadian website has published HS Gill’s article, which is also a fitting tribute to Giani Gurdit Singh ji.
In the evening, at 7.30 pm IST, Doordarshan Jalandhar is telecasting a half-an-hour documentary on him. I will update you once I have seen it.
I really don’t have much more to add, other than that his heritage is cherished and alive, even after his is no longer with us physically.
There is always a debate about whether translations can really capture the spirit of the original. For me, this debate was settled when I read the lucid translations of Plato’s dialogues by B. Jowett, who was Regius Professor of Greek in the University of Oxford. I can still recite some of the passages that I read in college, and there is not way that I could have read the original in Greek. Please click here to read more.
February 24 is the birth anniversary of Giani Gurdit Singh ji, my father. His books assured him literary immortality, his conduct and deeds have left such a deep impact on many lives that his memory is still very much with us. Please click here to read more
Rabinder Singh Bhamra is one of the pillars of the Sikh community in New York. A much-respected businessman, he has a deep interest in Sikh thought and spirituality. Please click here to read Rabinder Singh Bhamra’s moving tribute to Giani ji:
Prof Harjit Singh Gill, Professor Emeritus, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, has written about Giani Gurdit Singh ji. Prof Gill is a linguist of international standing and had interacted with Giani ji for a considerable period of time.
Please click here to read more about what Prof Gill writes about the man, his contribution and the impact that he left on the people around him.
Dr Jaspal Singh, Vice-Chancellor, Punjabi University, Patiala, knew about Giani Gurdit Singh’s work long before he met Giani ji at New Delhi where Giani ji lived in the early 1980s. Dr Jaspal Singh wrote a message for the book Giani Gurdit Singh: 1923-2007. Please click here to read more.
The Governor of Tamil Nadu, Mr Surjit Singh Barnala, had a long association with Giani Gurdit Singh ji. Such a modest and cultured man is he that he himself called Sardarni Inderjit Kaur and said: “Sardarni Sahiba, this is Surjit Singh.” No aides, no PAs or Secretaries. The message reveals as much about its author as it does to the person it is dedicated to. Please click here to read it.
February 24, 2008, was the 85th Giani Gurdit Singh ji. What better way to mark it than to get together and celebrate his life and achievements. Well, we did precisely that at the Punjab Kala Bhavan in Chandigarh.
Sardar Tarlochan Singh, an old friend and associate of Giani ji released a book on him in which over 40 scholars have written articles about Giani Gurdit Singh and his world.
Padam Bhushan Prof B N Goswamy, spoke on Giani Gurdit Singh and the impress that he left on the minds of those who met him.
Prof Rajpal Singh, Secretary General, Punjab Arts Council conduced the function. He also read aloud some passages from the Mera Bachpan chapter of Mera Pind, and Mrs Poonam Singh, Editor Preetlari read from the chapter Mera Pind da Muh Mattha.
Giani Gurdit Singh ji left us a year ago. On Thursday, January 17, 2008, the house that he build and where he lived the last many years of his life, was filled with the holy gurbani as members of the Akhand Kirtani Jatha recited shabads.
Those who were close to him had gathered to remember him. We were all there—my mother Sardarni Inderjit Kaur, my brother Ravinder and our families. This was essentially a private family function that had not been notified publicly, but then with Papa, things were informal.
Mera Pind, the classic by Giani Gurdit Singh ji has been reprinted because of popular and sustained demand for this book that has been in continuous print from 1961.
The new, eighth, edition is 480 pages and has been typeset again. It is now in a bigger type face and even the original graphics made by Ishwar Chitarkar, have been made bolder and better.
The cover illustration is by the artist R M Singh, who has been designing all the covers of Giani Gurdit Singh ji’s books for many years now. The background of a mud-covered house is taken from a photograph, shot by Roopinder Singh, of a house in Mithewal, the village that is Mera Pind.
The book has been printed on superior, imported paper and is available in both, soft cover and hardbound editions.
