What is Sikh? Explaining the Sikh faith

OAK CREEK -- Since Sunday's shooting at the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, there have been a lot of questions about the Sikh faith -- a faith the average person isn't necessarily familiar with and a faith that's difficult to describe and explain.

The shooting left six dead and three critically wounded. 40-year-old gunman, Wade Michael Page was fatally shot by Oak Creek police.

Officials say Page entered the temple and opened fire, before "ambushing" one of the first responding officers to the scene. After refusing to obey officers' commands, Oak Creek police fatally shot Page.

Singh Balli is the head priest at the Sikh Temple in Menasha. He says the Sikh religion is one of peace.

"This is a very welcoming temple. This does not belong to Sikh, it belongs to everybody," Singh said.

Balli says because of their beliefs, Sikh men don't cut their beards or their hair and most cover their heads with turbans. Balli says that's a proud and distinguished part of the religion, but its often associated with negativity. Especially, he says, since 9-11.

"A lot of people comment me, when I open my beard up to go to the market, they say, 'here's bin Laden,'" Balli said.

UW-Green Bay Anthropology Professor Jill White says the Sikh religion is it's own faith, and is confused with other religions, such as Islam or Hinduism.

"It's tenets are a belief in one God, a real commitment to equality, equality for all people," White said.

According to the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund,  the Sikh religion was founded in South Asia more than 500 years ago. The organization says there are currently four temples within the state, with two to three-thousand followers statewide. Officials estimate there are 700,000 across the U.S, and more than 25 million followers worldwide.

The vast majority live in India.

While we still don't know the exact motive behind Sunday's senseless tragedy, White and Balli feel its still something, we can all learn from.

"I think events like this make it apparent to all of us how urgent it is for us to find out more about one another -- just to find out more about what our neighbors do believe, and how similar we actually are," White said.

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