New Sikh temple in Vancouver to host grand opening

If you’re going to Saturday’s grand opening of the new Sikh temple in northeast Vancouver, don’t expect to leave with an empty stomach. One of the golden rules of Sikhism is to share your earnings and selflessly serve others. Saturday’s celebration at Guru Ramdass Gurdwara Sahib naturally includes a community meal, known as langar.

People are invited to walk around, enjoy the festivities and break naan bread with the Sikh community. There will be music and readings from the Sikh scriptures at the newly finished temple. Also, the congregation will honor community members and government officials who helped in opening the temple, a process that’s taken nearly a decade.

Spokesman Pawneet Sethi expects the gathering to attract at least 1,000 people with Sikhs traveling from as far north as Vancouver, British Columbia, and as far south as Salem, Ore., to take part in the celebration.

At about 21,000 square feet, Guru Ramdass Gurdwara Sahib in Vancouver’s Landover-Sharmel neighborhood is the second largest gurdwara in Washington after Gurudwara Singh Sabha in Renton.

The congregation outgrew its facility at 3600 O St. in the Rose Village neighborhood. After purchasing the site of the shuttered Landover Athletic Club and nearly finishing remodeling the building, it burned in October 2012. Federal investigators determined the fire was not arson.