Harinder Singh

Senior Fellow, Research & Policy

Harinder Singh is the Senior Fellow at the Sikh Research Institute. He holds a BS in Aerospace Engineering from Wichita State University, an MS in Engineering Management from the University of Kansas, and an MPhil from Punjab University in the linguistics of the Guru Granth Sahib. 

He co-founded the Sikh Research Institute and the Panjab Digital Library, envisioned the Kaur and Singh Academy, and organized the Free Akal Takht campaign.

He appears on radio and television programs and speaks at universities, parliaments, museums, conferences, and civic institutions. He has authored several books and numerous articles integrating the political and the spiritual. He consults on curriculums, exhibitions, and films and is featured in many documentaries on the Sikhs, the Panjab, and South Asian matters.

His current focus is on developing critical thinking for Sikh institutions via the State of the Panth report series and developing open-source decoding of Guru Granth Sahib in contemporary Panjabi and English for a global audience.

He has served on the National Conference on Community and Justice boards, The Fellowship of Activists to Embrace Humanity, The Nanakshahi Trust, among others. He looks for culturally-specific things to experience and a light roast pour-over coffee to sip during travels, reads and binge-watches to stay in touch with what the world is up to, and listens to sabads, poetry, Hir, jazz, and political rap.

Harinder Singh resides with his family in the United States.

Videos

Monday
,
10
November
2025

What is the Sikh perspective of other faiths/religions?

In Sikhi, connecting with the Divine is a personal journey. You may belong to a different faith or none at all, but what matters is how that inner connection shapes your public life through equality, dignity, and love for all.

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Monday
,
20
October
2025

What is the Sikh stance on idol worship?

Idol worship is practiced in many traditions around the world. In Sikhi, however, the Divine is infinite and cannot be confined to any shape or form.

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Monday
,
6
October
2025

Is the Amrit Ceremony essential for Sikhs?

In the Sikh tradition, the Amrit Ceremony is the initiation into the Khalsa, a path of full declaration to the Divine and service to humanity.

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Monday
,
29
September
2025

What is the purpose of the Gurduara?

A Gurduara is a Sikh place of both worship and learning, originally called Dharamsal, serving as a sanctuary rooted in principles of equality and care.

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Monday
,
15
September
2025

Why did most of the Gurus establish new cities?

The vision was far more about action. Guru Nanak saw that while many kings, sovereigns, and emperors spoke of equality, respect and dignity, their policies didn’t reflect those principles.

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Friday
,
12
September
2025

Witness to Truth & Martyrdom

Join Harinder Singh and Jasleen Kaur as they reflect on the life and legacy of Jaswant Singh Khalra, popular narratives around him, and the lesser-known facts about his work.

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Podcasts

Tuesday
,
9
June
2020

A Black Lives Matter Conversation — The Sikh Cast | SikhRI

The Sikh Cast is taking a close look at the Black Lives Matter Movement (BLM). The United States is in a moment of turmoil following the death of Minnesota resident George Floyd, leading to an outpouring of protests across the country. Manpreet Singh holds a spirited conversation with special guests Corey Winchester, Harinder Singh, SikhRI’s Senior Fellow on Research and Policy and, Asha Marie Kaur SikhRI’s Researcher on what the BLM movement means in education, policy and much more. Corey Winchester is a public educator in Evanston, Illinois with an MEd in Cultural and Educational Policy Studies. You can watch his TED talk on education and identity here: https://bit.ly/2MLToE8

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Friday
,
12
June
2020

Black Lives Matter & Sikhi: Harinder Singh – The Sikh Cast | SikhRI

The Sikh Cast Host has a one on one dialogue with Harinder Singh on how the Guru would deal with the Black Lives Matter Movement. They ask how can Sikhs around the world go beyond the protest and how do we explore it from the Sikhi lens.

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Tuesday
,
30
June
2020

Raj Karega Khalsa: The Khalsa & The Rule (ft. Harinder Singh) - The Sikh Cast | SikhRI

This episode of The Sikh Cast is from a live webinar recorded on June 29th, 2020. It features Senior Fellow Harinder Singh and The Sikh Cast host Manpreet Jassal, together they discuss the controversial sikh motto "Raj Karega Khalsa." They get into its usage from the 1700's to a modern context, discussing the how and the what of its meaning.

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Friday
,
21
August
2020

The Sikhs and The Panjab

73 years ago, two nation-states were carved by the British mapmaking: Hindustan and Pakistan. The historical Sikh Homeland in The Panjab was divided by the Radcliffe line. In now truncated Indian Panjab, a proportion of the Sikhs led many campaigns to fight for economic, political, state, human, and religious rights. What’s next to secure the Sikh aspirations and the Panjab’s autonomy?

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,

The Sikhs and The Panjab

73 years ago, two nation-states were carved by the British mapmaking: Hindustan and Pakistan. The historical Sikh Homeland in The Panjab was divided by the Radcliffe line. In now truncated Indian Panjab, a proportion of the Sikhs led many campaigns to fight for economic, political, state, human, and religious rights. What’s next to secure the Sikh aspirations and the Panjab’s autonomy?

watch now ⟶
,

Miri-Piri: The Political-Spiritual Paradigm

The principle of Miri-Piri is often encapsulated with the two crossed swords in today's Sikh consciousness, one representing the political spirit of the Sikhs and the other representing the spiritual.

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Articles

Tuesday
,
17
June
2025

Most Wealthy & Unfathomable Father

Father’s Day reflection spanning earthly and Divine fathers—blending emotion, ritual, and the unseen presence of the 1 in a world of distractions.

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Tuesday
,
31
December
2024

Ghallugharas & Raj

This essay explores the origin of Ghallughara. Why were they orchestrated, and who enacted them? How are they intrinsically linked to the Raj?

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Friday
,
15
November
2024

Gur Purab: Celebrating the 1’s Greatness of Guru Nanak Sahib

This essay attempts to answer a few questions related to Guru Nanak Sahib’s birth anniversary from primary and secondary sources, as well as the early traditions and the evolving culture to date. What does Purab mean?

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Wednesday
,
21
August
2024

Caste & Race

This report aims to understand and explore caste and race within a Sikh worldview, the complexities of their intertwined developments, and the varied responses to practices and structures of casteism and racism from dominant and marginalized groups.

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Tuesday
,
25
April
2023

Women & Gender in Sikhi

Women’s issues and the issues of gender as it applies to all gender identities are being grappled with globally. These issues have existed throughout history, and as time goes on, they change shape.

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Wednesday
,
29
March
2023

Pain, Rulers & Love

At all times, especially amid chaos, crisis, and warfare, the ten founder Guru Sahibs — Guru Nanak to Guru Gobind Singh — reminded the seekers and the Sikhs to invoke the living remembrance of the 1 for calm and clarity.

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Presenting at Upcoming Events

Sat
,
Apr 18

Guru Gobind Singh Sahib: Life, Vision & Wisdom

Tsai Auditorium S010, CGIS South Building

Join author Harinder Singh for a talk on Guru Gobind Singh Sahib: Life, Vision & Wisdom, exploring the idea of sovereignty that shaped the life and legacy of Guru Gobind Singh Sahib.

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Sat
,
Mar 28

Guru Gobind Singh Sahib: Life, Vision & Wisdom

Copper Indian Cuisine

Join author Harinder Singh for a conversation on Guru Gobind Singh Sahib: Life, Vision & Wisdom.

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Sun
,
Apr 5

Guru Gobind Singh Sahib: Life, Vision & Wisdom

BMO Great Hall, VanDusen Botanical Garden Visitor Centre

This gathering invites seekers, thinkers, and readers to consider how the Guru’s sovereign spirit calls us to stand for universal justice and human dignity.

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