Simran Jeet Singh

Dr. Simran Jeet Singh is Executive Director for the Aspen Institute’s Religion & Society Program and the author of The Light We Give: How Sikh Wisdom Can Transform Your Life (Penguin / Riverhead), which debuts in 2022 and is now available for pre-order (https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/623324/the-light-we-give-by-simran-jeet-singh/).

All Stories by Simran Jeet Singh

Let’s take enforced social distancing for what it is: A life intervention

By Simran Jeet Singh — March 20, 2020
(RNS) — If you asked me a week ago how my life aligned with my priorities, I would have responded with a small shrug, saying that I tried to keep these things aligned and felt like I was doing a pretty good job.

Why I joined Elizabeth Warren’s interfaith advisory council

By Simran Jeet Singh — February 27, 2020
(RNS) — My involvement began, ironically, with my decision not to publicly flame the senator online for the initial composition of her council, as others did, noting in particular the lack of Muslims or Catholics.

Expanded travel ban gives world’s democracies more cover for anti-Muslim measures

By Simran Jeet Singh — January 28, 2020
(RNS) — Trump's Muslim ban is part of an alarming trend of ostensibly democratic nation-states targeting Muslims.

Mandeep Rai’s book on business collects the spiritual wisdom of 101 countries

By Simran Jeet Singh — January 23, 2020
(RNS) — As banker, broadcast journalist and now a consultant to business startups, Mandeep Rai found universal values that synced with her Sikh faith.

Behind the tensions between Muslims and Sikhs in Punjab

By Simran Jeet Singh — January 3, 2020
(RNS) — A Muslim mob surrounded the Gurdwara Janam Asthan, marking the birthplace of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhi. 

Evangelism and religious supremacy

By Simran Jeet Singh — December 19, 2019
(RNS) — Historically, the 'gift' of salvation has been weaponized time and time again to justify intervention and conquest.

How colonialism still colors our ideas about who gets to teach religion

By Simran Jeet Singh — November 26, 2019
(RNS) — If I were a white scholar, would anyone question the appropriateness of my teaching Buddhism?

Before we can rein in hate crime, we have to admit the size of the problem

By Simran Jeet Singh — November 18, 2019
(RNS) — A system of hate crime reporting that doesn't include Heather Heyer's death in Charlottesville or a murder of a Sikh in Tulsa won't lead to real solutions.

Comedian Hari Kondabolu on punching up and kicking down

By Simran Jeet Singh — November 5, 2019
(RNS) — Hari Kondabolu might be the only comic in the world with a Netflix special and a graduate degree in human rights.

Comedian Hari Kondabolu on punching up and kicking down

By Simran Jeet Singh — November 5, 2019
(RNS) — Hari Kondabolu might be the only comic in the world with a Netflix special and a graduate degree in human rights.

Comedian Hari Kondabolu on punching up and kicking down

By Simran Jeet Singh — November 5, 2019
(RNS) — Hari Kondabolu might be the only comic in the world with a Netflix special and a graduate degree in human rights.

Congresswoman Ilhan Omar on her journey, her resilience and her hopes for our future

By Simran Jeet Singh — October 28, 2019
(RNS) — 'The decaying of the soul often leads to decaying of societies, of countries, of nations, of the world.'

More than 1 billion people celebrate on Diwali. What does it mean to them?

By Simran Jeet Singh — October 18, 2019
(RNS) — In the various stories that make Diwali a holy day for so many, we have models of what true righteousness looks like. They are sharp rejoinders of what we should be doing and how we should be living.

A pat-down at the airport passes the shame of racial profiling to my 3-year-old

By Simran Jeet Singh — October 9, 2019
(RNS) — Racial profiling takes a toll on our deepest and most sacred relationships, reason enough to end this damaging and painful practice.

Jagmeet Singh’s civility is praiseworthy, but even nice racism is still racism

By Simran Jeet Singh — October 4, 2019
(RNS) — Celebrating the kind way in which a man told a Canadian politician he should remove his turban misses the point entirely. 
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