Gurdwara Sahib Sukh Sagar, New Westminsterਗੁਰਦੁਆਰਾ ਸਾਹਿਬ ਸੁੱਖ ਸਾਗਰ, ਨਿਊ ਵੈਸਟਮਿਨਸਟਰ

Gurdwara Sahib Sukh Sagar is the Sikh temple at 347 Wood Street in Queensborough, New Westminster, British Columbia, run by the Khalsa Diwan Society New Westminster. It began in 1919 in the Boyne Street house of Bhai Bishan Singh, a Fraser sawmill worker who gave his home and land to the sangat, and the present Wood Street building opened in the winter of 1975. It is one of the entries in our guide to Gurdwaras in Canada.

What is Gurdwara Sahib Sukh Sagar?

Gurdwara Sahib Sukh Sagar is a gurdwara, a Sikh place of worship: the word means the doorway to the Guru, and the prayer hall centres on the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh scripture honoured as the eternal Guru, while the langar kitchen serves a free vegetarian meal to everyone who comes. Sukh Sagar means ocean of peace, and the name suits a temple that has served one neighbourhood for more than a century. The society that runs it began as the New Westminster branch of the Khalsa Diwan Society of Vancouver, the organisation behind the older Khalsa Diwan Society (Ross Street Gurdwara) in Vancouver and the Gur Sikh Temple in Abbotsford, and it has been independent since 1974. The City of New Westminster describes the gurdwara as an integral part of the city since 1919, a place for Sikhs to worship, for community members to gather and for the public to share a free nourishing meal.

How did a sawmill worker's house become a gurdwara?

It became a gurdwara because Bhai Bishan Singh turned his own house into one. The society's history records that in 1919 some of the Sikhs of New Westminster worked at the Fraser Saw Mills, and Bhai Bishan Singh, of village Tallewal in Punjab, was among them. He lived a bachelor's life at 344 Boyne Street, had installed the Guru Granth Sahib in his house, and held congregations there on Sundays, with Sikhs from the neighbourhood gathering for worship. On 4 March 1919 he bought the lot next to his house for 250 dollars and donated it to the Khalsa Diwan Society, Vancouver, the transfer registered on 19 August 1919 for a one dollar fee; later he donated his house as well. The history also keeps a story the community clearly cherished: before going into hospital, Bishan Singh entrusted his savings of 900 dollars to his friend Bhai Sunder Singh, asking that the money be spent on improving the gurdwara if he did not recover. He did recover, but Sunder Singh had already spent the 900 dollars on the building during his long absence, and Bishan Singh, on learning this, was happy and thanked his friend for carrying out his wish.

From Boyne Street to Wood Street

The old Boyne Street building was renovated three times, but as New Westminster's Sikh population grew it fell into poor condition and a new place of worship was needed. Two lots on Wood Street were bought, one for 1,500 dollars in 1964 and another for 3,400 dollars in 1970. Construction of the new gurdwara began in 1974, and when the society fell short of funds and approached a bank for a loan, it was discovered that the society had never been incorporated under the Societies Act, so the Khalsa Diwan Society, New Westminster was incorporated in 1974, the same year it became its own Sikh society separate from Vancouver. The present building was completed and opened for worship in the winter of 1975, the society also bought another house at 338 Boyne Street for 4,700 dollars, and the Wood Street building was later extended with an adjoining hall for religious services.

A century in Queensborough

In 2019 the gurdwara marked its centenary: the Khalsa Diwan Society New Westminster invited the whole community to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Gurdwara Sahib Sukh Sagar in Queensborough over four days, noting that the Sikh community itself has been in Queensborough for over 100 years. The New Westminster Museum followed with the exhibition An Ocean of Peace: 100 Years of Sikhs in New Westminster, which ran from January to May 2020 and was dedicated to the gurdwara's centenary. Today the society says its focus has always been the youth: it holds youth camps, seniors education and social events, classes in music and the Punjabi language, and outreach programmes for schools and community centres, alongside daily programmes for the sangat. Langar and seva, selfless service, remain the mainstay of the gurdwara, teaching humility and equality, and the doors stay open to all, whatever their beliefs.

How do you visit Gurdwara Sahib Sukh Sagar?

You visit at 347 Wood Street, New Westminster, BC V3M 5K6, in Queensborough; the gurdwara is open daily from 5:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., its phone number is 604 537 8300 and its site is sukhsagar.ca. Everyone is welcome, Sikh or not, and no booking or payment is needed. Cover your head, remove your shoes, wash your hands, sit in the prayer hall, and stay for langar, the free vegetarian meal open to all.