Mark Cagnon

And Guru Nanak was the founder of Sikhism and its most honored teacher. He was born in 1469 in a tiny little village known as Talwandi. It's now a part of Pakistan. And even as a baby, people knew that there was something, I guess, different or unique about him.

And Guru Nanak was the founder of Sikhism and its most honored teacher. He was born in 1469 in a tiny little village known as Talwandi. It's now a part of Pakistan. And even as a baby, people knew that there was something, I guess, different or unique about him.

And again, this goes back to a sort of like sick, you know, ethos or the mythology, you could say, that there's a legend that he even had a like an adult like laugh as an infant, like he was already on some type of... you know, a more mature, enlightened path. So from the start, Nanak was not the same as other people.

And again, this goes back to a sort of like sick, you know, ethos or the mythology, you could say, that there's a legend that he even had a like an adult like laugh as an infant, like he was already on some type of... you know, a more mature, enlightened path. So from the start, Nanak was not the same as other people.

While many other kids of the region, you know, might be, you know, doing kid stuff, playing games, or, you know, maybe even the upper level were, you know, studious and thoughtful and chasing, you know, religious rituals and trying to be, you know, sort of, you know, like having status within their own faith. Nanak was different.

While many other kids of the region, you know, might be, you know, doing kid stuff, playing games, or, you know, maybe even the upper level were, you know, studious and thoughtful and chasing, you know, religious rituals and trying to be, you know, sort of, you know, like having status within their own faith. Nanak was different.

He was interested in sitting under trees and sort of asking big questions like, Why are we here? Why are we fighting over religion? If God is real, why do we treat other people so badly? Why does evil exist? All of these kinds of questions. And so even as a kid, Guru Nanak wasn't impressed by these empty rules.

He was interested in sitting under trees and sort of asking big questions like, Why are we here? Why are we fighting over religion? If God is real, why do we treat other people so badly? Why does evil exist? All of these kinds of questions. And so even as a kid, Guru Nanak wasn't impressed by these empty rules.

He even was questioning the caste system, which at the time was very much cemented into the society that they were living in. And he didn't buy into these religious divisions or he didn't think that the truth needed to be locked inside some type of strict ritual structure or a title or a hierarchy.

He even was questioning the caste system, which at the time was very much cemented into the society that they were living in. And he didn't buy into these religious divisions or he didn't think that the truth needed to be locked inside some type of strict ritual structure or a title or a hierarchy.

He was much more, I guess you could describe it in modern terms, spiritual, but not so much into the structured, strict dogma and the labels that go along with that. And then something wild happened in his life. Guru Nanak was working as a storekeeper in the granary of Dalot Khan Lodi. And this was the local governor of Sultan Par Lodi. This is now in present-day Punjab.

He was much more, I guess you could describe it in modern terms, spiritual, but not so much into the structured, strict dogma and the labels that go along with that. And then something wild happened in his life. Guru Nanak was working as a storekeeper in the granary of Dalot Khan Lodi. And this was the local governor of Sultan Par Lodi. This is now in present-day Punjab.

And there was a moment that changed everything. One morning, while taking a bath in a nearby river, Nanak vanished. And for three days, he was gone. And people feared that maybe he had drowned, maybe something worse had happened to him, but he returned. And when he returned, he was calm and filled with purpose and just seemed like he was radiating this wisdom. And his first words were this,

And there was a moment that changed everything. One morning, while taking a bath in a nearby river, Nanak vanished. And for three days, he was gone. And people feared that maybe he had drowned, maybe something worse had happened to him, but he returned. And when he returned, he was calm and filled with purpose and just seemed like he was radiating this wisdom. And his first words were this,

There is no Hindu. There is no Muslim. In other words, there are no labels. There is only one God. And under that God, we are all equal, which, as you can imagine, in that time and in that place, that was a very controversial thing to say. Alrighty, don't skip forward, guys, because I am on the road. World's fastest ad read coming at you.

There is no Hindu. There is no Muslim. In other words, there are no labels. There is only one God. And under that God, we are all equal, which, as you can imagine, in that time and in that place, that was a very controversial thing to say. Alrighty, don't skip forward, guys, because I am on the road. World's fastest ad read coming at you.

I'm going to be in Hoboken, Indianapolis, Buffalo, Raleigh, Poughkeepsie, Portland, Oregon, Fort Worth, Texas, Austin, Texas, Stanford, Philly, Levittown, Chandler, Arizona, San Diego. I'm also going to be adding Toronto, Montreal, as well as Washington, D.C., and a bunch of other dates. You can get all that at themarkagnon.com.

I'm going to be in Hoboken, Indianapolis, Buffalo, Raleigh, Poughkeepsie, Portland, Oregon, Fort Worth, Texas, Austin, Texas, Stanford, Philly, Levittown, Chandler, Arizona, San Diego. I'm also going to be adding Toronto, Montreal, as well as Washington, D.C., and a bunch of other dates. You can get all that at themarkagnon.com.

Dates are in the description, also in probably the comments of this episode. Go see me on the road. Come hang out. I'll be hanging out. With everyone after the show, come shake my hand, call me an idiot. Whatever you want to do, I will be there. Additionally, I will be doing my one hour of stand-up comedy. I'm very proud of this hour.

Dates are in the description, also in probably the comments of this episode. Go see me on the road. Come hang out. I'll be hanging out. With everyone after the show, come shake my hand, call me an idiot. Whatever you want to do, I will be there. Additionally, I will be doing my one hour of stand-up comedy. I'm very proud of this hour.