Turban Tying

The Turban makes the Sikh, it is our uniform.

nwpwk pwku kir hdUir hdIsw swbq sUriq dsqwr isrw ]12]
naapaak paak kar hadhoor hadheesaa saabath soorath dhasathaar siraa ||12||
Purify what is impure, and let the Lord's Presence be your religious tradition. Let your total awareness be the turban on your head. ||12||

Guru Arjan Dev Ji , Raag Maaroo , Siri Guru Granth Sahib Ji Limb 1084

Once we have taken Amrit, giving our head to the Guru we agree to keep our hair.
Therefore we automatically have to start wearing a dastaar/turban to keep our hair clean, and in order.

The style doesnt really matter, aslong as it is of a good length. In the past, a rule of the thumb was that the turban should be long enough to cover the body if clothes were removed. So around 3/4 metres is a minimum.

Below are some links to turban tying videos.
Dumalla's are my favourite because they are the most practical. They are the hardest to remove, most least likely to fall off and are unique to the sikh faith in style and decoration. (I believe)
Du-Malla (Two Turbans)
"The moguls did not like Sikhs wearing turbans, as this was a sign of royalty etc. For this reason, they said only Muslims could wear turbans. In response to this, Guru Ji ordered Sikhs to wear two turbans just to show the Moguls they had no fear of them. For this reason, a tradition of two turbans were started. In this way, the orange bit would be a smaller turban that is worn underneath the one on top."

EktaOne.Com Turban Tying Guide

In the above link there is an oppurtunity to see two other types of Dastaar/Turban.
The Golh (Round) Turban

and the Nokh Turban (Samosa), commonly worn by most men in todays society.

There is also a link to the Patka, which is basically a one piece cloth used to cover the head. Commonly worn by small children and women.

Turbans should be worn by men and women, for we are equal afterall. Infact women wearing turbans, when asked why they wear one usually reply "It shows that I am equal to a man, in our society". Yet many of my sisters/mothers do not, it would really be nice to see more women wearing Guru Ji's Dastaar.

Another brilliant link to turban tying, can be found at:
Mata Bhaag Kaur.org a website created by some sisters in America/Canada. There is alot of information about the dastaar in audio form while the turban is being tied, well worth listening to.

mY gur imil auc dumwlVw ]
mai gur mil ouch dhumaalarraa ||
I met with the Guru, and I have tied a tall, plumed turban.

Guru Arjan Dev Ji , Siree Raag Siri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, Limb 74

Tying a dastaar is essential for us as Sikhs, one of the main reasons no one knows who are are is because we have no identity.

If we cut our hair, and call ourselves Sikhs - is there anyone on this earth who isnt Sikh?