Lesson video

Hello, my name is Mrs. Afshan, and welcome to our lesson today.

Today we will be learning about an important figure from history, Guru Nanak.

Guru Nanak was the founder of the Sikhi religion, and his teachings are focused on equality, respect, and kindness towards others.

The title of today's lesson is Guru Nanak's Teachings on Equality and Acceptance from the unit six.

How does Guru Nanak Inspire Sikhs Today? Let's get started.

The outcome of today's lesson is, I can understand Guru Nanak's teachings on treating everyone equally and with respect.

Great, let's dive into teachings and see what we can learn from today's lesson that can help us all live better lives.

Now let's take a closer look at our keywords.

These keywords are connected to Guru Nanak's message of kindness and fairness.

The words are teachings, lessons, or things that help you learn.

Equality, having equal opportunities and rights.

The next word is respect, showing care and understanding for others.

And the last word is acceptance, welcoming and being okay with others as they are.

You can write these words along with their definitions to help you understand what they mean as we go through the lesson.

Have a go at writing them down.

Today our lesson has two cycles.

Let's first find out what did Guru Nanak teach? You ready? Let's dive in.

Let's meet Ranjit.

Ranjit is a British Sikh boy who lives with his family in Birmingham.

Ranjit has a Sikh worldview, and tries to follow the main ideas of the religion of Sikhi.

He loves attending his Gurmat class at the gurdwara where he learned about the teachings of Guru Nanak.

Let's find out a little bit about Gurmat class at the gurdwara from Ranjit.

Ranjit says, "I love learning new things at my Gurmat class at the gurdwara, where we learn about Sikh stories, prayers, and teachings.

I've learned about Guru Nanak's teachings, and it makes me feel happy because his ideas show me how to live a good and peaceful life." Let's find out what are teachings first.

What do you think? Great, I would love to hear your ideas.

Teachings are important lessons or advice that help someone understand how to live a better life.

They can come from family, friends, teachers, or special books.

Teachings help people know what is right and wrong, and how to be honest and helpful.

Time for a check for understanding, what are teachings? Is it opinions shared for debate, or lessons or advice, or instructions on how to complete a task? What do you think? That's correct, lessons or advice, well done.

Now let's find out a little bit about Guru Nanak.

Guru Nanak was a wise teacher who started the religion of Sikhi.

He travelled far and wide, sharing his lessons with everyone no matter who they were.

Guru Nanak finally settled in a village called Kartarpur in northern India.

A group of people wanted to learn more about what Guru Nanak was teaching.

They were called Sikhs, which means someone who wants to learn.

Guru Nanak taught them about God and how to live a good life.

Time for another check, what does the term Sikh mean? Is it, someone who wants to learn? Or a title given to a religious leader? Or is it a person who avoids learning? What do you think? That's correct.

Someone who wants to learn.

Well done, you got that right.

Guru Nanak's teachings are very important to Sikhs.

They help Sikhs grow closer to God and live in harmony with others.

Guru Nanak's main teachings are: everyone is equal.

Be kind and help others.

Be honest and work hard.

There is only one God.

And finally, remember to share with others.

Let's check if you got that.

Guru Nanak's teachings are very important to Sikhs.

True or false? That's correct, that is true.

Guru Nanak's teachings are very important to Sikhs.

And why are they so important? It's because they help Sikhs grow closer to God and live in harmony with others.

Great.

Now let's meet Mandeep.

This is Mandeep who is a British Sikh and follows Guru Nanak's teachings.

This is what Mandeep has to say.

"Guru Nanak's teachings are very important.

He taught Sikhs like me that we should always be honest, work hard, and share with others.

Most of all, he showed that everyone deserves respect and kindness." Time for our task, I hope you're ready.

Here we've got Laura and Izzy.

Laura says that Guru Nanak's teachings are very important to Sikhs, but Izzy is not sure what Guru Nanak's teachings are.

Can you help by listing the five main teachings of Guru Nanak? You can pause the video now and come back when you're ready with your answers.

Let's check our answers.

Can you help Izzy by listing the five main teachings of Guru Nanak? The five main teachings of Guru Nanak are, everyone is equal, be kind and help others.

I hope you've included, be honest and work hard.

And there is only one God.

Finally, share with others.

Great, if you've got them all listed in your answer.

Now we know about Guru Nanak and his teachings.

Now let's find out how do Sikhs interpret the Milk and Jasmine story.

Guru Nanak's teachings are very important for Sikhs, as they teach Sikhs how to live peacefully.

Guru Nanak believed in equality.

That means everyone is the same in value, and deserves to be treated with respect, no matter where they come from or what they have.

He also taught us about acceptance, which means we should be kind and open to everyone no matter how different they might seem.

Very important teachings indeed.

Time for another check.

What did Guru Nanak teach Sikhs about how we should treat others? Is the correct answer that we should treat everyone with equality, acceptance, and respect? Or that we should only be kind to people who are like us? Or is it that people who are different from us should be ignored? What do you think? That's correct.

Guru Nanak taught Sikhs that they should treat everyone with equality, acceptance and respect.

You got that right, well done.

It's very important to treat everyone with equality, acceptance and respect.

Let's hear one of Guru Nanak's stories called The Milk and the Jasmine Flower.

Guru Nanak was travelling with his loyal friend Bhai Mardana who loved to play music.

After a long tiring journey, they finally reached the city of Multan.

Both of them had been on the road for many days and nights, and Bhai Mardana was feeling very hungry and tired.

He was eagerly looking forward to a delicious meal and a nice long rest.

At that time, Multan was well known for its many priests and holy men.

People came from far and wide to seek their advice, and in return they gave gifts of tools and money.

This made the priests very rich, but also a little bit greedy.

When they learned that Guru Nanak was coming to their city, they held a meeting.

"We don't want him here, they declared, "he'll ruin everything." To keep Guru Nanak away, they decided to send a messenger.

He carried a bowl of milk so full that there was hardly any room left.

The message for Guru Nanak was clear, we have enough priests and holy men already.

There isn't room for anyone else.

The messenger walked very slowly, making sure not to spill a drop of milk as he approached Guru Nanak.

When he reached him he said, "My masters, the priests, have sent you this milk.

Do you have a message for them?" Bhai Mardana looked at the milk longingly.

It looked so cool and refreshing, and he was really thirsty.

He hoped Guru Nanak would take the bowl, but instead of accepting it, Guru Nanak picked a beautiful jasmine flower from a nearby push and placed it gently in the bowl.

The flower floated on top and not a drop of milk spilled.

"Here's my message for your masters," Guru Nanak said, "tell them there is always room in the world for more goodness and kindness, just like there is room in this bowl for this tiny flower." Time for another check for understanding.

Guru Nanak said, "Tell them there is always room in the world for more and." Is it more room for wealth and power? Or anger and hate, or goodness and kindness? What do you think? That's correct.

Guru Nanak said, "Tell them there is always room in the world for more goodness and kindness." You got that right, well done.

Now let's go back to the next part of our story.

When the priests and holy men heard Guru Nanak's wise words, they felt ashamed of their rude behaviour.

They immediately apologised to him, and welcomed both Guru Nanak and Bhai Mardana warmly to Multan.

The story of The Milk and the Jasmine Flower teaches Sikhs that there is always room in the world for more goodness and kindness, and that it's their actions that can bring that into the world.

Through equality, acceptance, and respect, people make the world a better place for everyone.

A great lesson through the story of The Milk and the Jasmine Flower.

A quote from Guru Nanak, he said, "All are equal in the eyes of God." Guru Nanak taught us to treat everyone equally, just like the jasmine flowers add their fragrance to the milk, our actions can add more goodness to the world.

It is also important to accept people for who they are, no matter their background or beliefs, and make sure that everyone feels welcomed, valued, and included.

Let's check if you got that.

Many Sikhs believe that all are equal in the eyes of God.

Is that true or false? That's true, that is correct.

It's because this reflects a core belief in Sikhi, and is one of the main teachings of Guru Nanak.

Mandeep has been thinking about how the values of equality, acceptance and respect can change the world around him.

Here's what he says, "By practising equality, we show acceptance of all people, and by treating everyone with respect, we create a world where everyone feels valued and included." Time for our next task.

Here's Izzy, Izzy says, "Guru Nanak said that all are equal in the eyes of God." Write a short paragraph on how The Milk and the Jasmine Flower story reflects Guru Nanak's teachings about equality and acceptance for all people.

Remember to include the reason why Guru Nanak added a jasmine flower to the bowl of milk.

You can post the video now and come back when you're ready to check your answers with me.

Let's check our answers.

Our task was to write a short paragraph on how The Milk and the Jasmine Flower story reflects Guru Nanak's teachings about equality and acceptance for all people.

You might have included, in the story, even though the bowl was full of milk, Guru Nanak was able to add the jasmine flower and still add fragrance to the milk.

This shows that no matter how full or crowded the world may feel, goodness, equality and acceptance can still make the world better.

Guru Nanak taught that everyone deserves respect and kindness, just like the flower shared its beauty with all.

Well done.

Here's a quick review of what we've learned today.

We've learned about Guru Nanak who was a great teacher who shared important lessons on how to live a good life.

We've also learned about his teachings.

His teachings are about kindness, honesty, and equality.

And Guru Nanak taught about the importance of accepting people for who they are, no matter their background or beliefs, and making sure everyone feels valued and included.

Through the story of The Milk and the Jasmine Flower, Guru Nanak showed that no matter how full or crowded the world may seem, goodness, equality and acceptance can make the world better.

Fantastic, thank you for listening.

Let's make sure to remember Guru Nanak's lessons and practise equality and respect every day.

That is the end of our lesson today, and I hope to see you in our next lesson.

Bye.