What happens in a service in a gurdwara?

Answer 1

Sikhs will read the Guru Granth Sahib, and then bow down, and pay offerings to it in the Golak. They will then take their seat again and others will follow. All people of all religions are welcomed, but only Sikhs may worship the Guru Granth Sahib. After everybody has prayed to the Guru, they will be invited down into the Langar. The Langar is a free community kitchen which offers all people to sit down and eat with the Sikhs. They only serve vegetatious food, as all Sikhs are vegetarians.

Answer 2

In Sikhism, Guru ka Langar stands for community kitchen in or adjacent to a Gurdwara that is run in the name of Guru. Langar can also mean a free, vegetarian-only meal served in a gurudwara. The practice of langar was started by Guru Nanak Dev Ji to break the Caste System that was prevalent in India during the 13th and 14th centuries. Hence, both the kitchen and meal is open to all twice a day, throughout the year without any discrimination on the basis of religion, caste, colour, creed, age, gender or social status. Hence, in a langar, all people high or low, rich or poor, male or female, all sit in the same pangat(meaning row or line) to share and enjoy the food together. In an attempt to invite all and offend no one, the food in langar is always vegetarian. It usually consists of lentil soup, vegetables, rice and chappatis.

This practice of Langar is one of the Three Pillars of Sikhism and symbolizes the desire of Sikhs to eradicate hunger. The Sikhs are encouraged to donate ten percent (daswandh) of their wealth, time, or resources to a worthy cause, of which Langar Sewa is one. The practice of Langar Sewa is widely followed by Sikhs even in present times. A large number of Sikh families volunteer each week to provide and prepare the Langar. It may be noted that preparing langar is quite a task as there may be several hundred people to feed, and caterers are not allowed. Voluntary helpers (Sewadars) do all the preparation, the cooking and the washing-up.