Oxygen Langars During COVID-19

Dadi**: Guddu beta, do you remember when that terrible COVID sickness was spreading everywhere a few years ago?

Guddu**: A little bit, Dadi. Everyone was wearing masks and staying home.

Dadi**: There was a time in 2021 when things got very, very bad in India. Hospitals ran out of beds. Oxygen cylinders - which sick people needed to breathe - were impossible to find. People were dying because there was no oxygen.

Guddu**: That's so scary, Dadi.

Dadi**: It was the darkest time. And then, when the government struggled and hospitals failed, guess who stepped up to help?

Guddu**: Who?

Dadi**: The gurdwaras - Sikh temples! They created something called "Oxygen Langars."

Guddu**: Langars? Like the free food kitchens?

Dadi**: Exactly! You know how gurdwaras have always fed anyone who comes hungry, regardless of their religion or caste? Well, during COVID, they started giving free oxygen to anyone who needed to breathe!

Guddu**: How did they get oxygen when everyone else couldn't find it?

Dadi**: The Sikh community used all their contacts. A man named Gurpreet Singh, whose father was a businessman, knew people in industries that used oxygen. They started collecting cylinders and setting up distribution stations.

Guddu**: Where did people go to get oxygen?

Dadi**: One of the main centers was at Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha in Indirapuram, near Delhi. They set up tents outside where about 80 people could receive oxygen at the same time. Day and night, volunteers helped patients breathe.

Guddu**: How many people did they help?

Dadi**: At the peak, they were helping over 700 patients every single day! Imagine - 700 people whose families were desperate, who couldn't find help anywhere else, coming to a gurdwara and finally being able to breathe.

Guddu**: Were they all Sikhs?

Dadi**: That's the beautiful part, beta. Most of them were NOT Sikhs. They were Hindus, Muslims, Christians - everyone. The gurdwara asked no questions about religion. They just asked, "Can you breathe? No? Sit here, we'll help you."

Guddu**: That's the real meaning of langar, isn't it?

Dadi**: The truest meaning! For hundreds of years, Sikh gurdwaras have fed the hungry without asking who they are. Now they were giving the breath of life without asking who you are. Same principle, same love.

Guddu**: Were there volunteers helping?

Dadi**: Over 100 volunteers worked around the clock - sleeping in shifts, risking their own health to help strangers. Some of them were just ordinary people who saw suffering and said, "I have to do something."

Guddu**: Dadi, where was the government during all this?

Dadi**: The government was struggling, beta. The situation was too big, too fast. But this story isn't about blaming anyone - it's about celebrating those who stepped up when stepping up was needed.

Guddu**: Did other places also have oxygen langars?

Dadi**: Yes! Gurdwaras across Delhi and other cities set up similar stations. The idea spread. Because when Sikhs see someone suffering, their faith teaches them to serve - no questions asked.

Guddu**: Is that what "seva" means?

Dadi**: Exactly - selfless service. Not for money, not for fame, not even for thanks. Just because it's the right thing to do. The Guru Granth Sahib teaches that serving others is serving God.

Guddu**: I want to do seva too, Dadi.

Dadi**: You already do, beta! When you help a friend, share your food, or comfort someone who is sad - that's seva. You don't need a pandemic to serve. Every day has opportunities.

Guddu**: But those people who helped during COVID were really brave. They could have gotten sick themselves.

Dadi**: Many volunteers did get sick. Some even died. But they knew the risks and served anyway. That is true heroism - not fighting with weapons, but fighting with love against suffering.

Guddu**: Thank you for telling me this story, Dadi.

Dadi**: Remember it always, beta. When the world seems dark, look for the helpers. And when you can, BE one of the helpers. Goodnight, my little seva-dar!

Guddu**: Goodnight, Dadi!