New York, April 7
The stench of smoke lingered for weeks after the Sikh Cultural Society was gutted by fire on March 8 — an early morning blaze that destroyed the first Sikh gurdwara on the USA’s East Coast, home to a congregation of thousands.
Half of the two-storey building that housed the gurdwara collapsed, leaving a gaping hole in the ground and debris all around.
In the other half, where the roof caved in, one of the most extensive library collections documenting Sikh culture was decimated. Some of those books among the 15,000 to 20,000 there were virtually irreplaceable.
At least two years of construction and up to $ 10 m will be needed before the congregation can return to a new gurdwara. But the leadership of the cultural society is determined to rebuild — and philosophical about the task ahead.
“It’s part of the Sikh religion, you have to move on,” said Joginder Singh Malhi, who ran educational programmes at the gurdwara. “Change is always there.”
Since the fire, calls of support have come in from around the country and abroad; donations are also being sent by the people who worshipped at the gurdwara through the years, including one from a man who travelled down from Albany to give $ 1,000.
One important set of books was saved from the destruction — the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy work of the Sikh faith, that was the centre of the gurdwara.
Having the centre of the gurdwara safe and whole has inspired the community to look ahead toward rebuilding. “That has given us the strength to get the job done,” Harpreet Singh Toor, Chairman of the society, said. “For us, that’s the ultimate.”
AP
