SMU Sikh Students Association President Parminder Deo ties a turban around student Alli Schloeman. (Christopher Saul / The Daily Campus)

The Sikh Students Association hosted their annual Turban Day Thursday to promote the understanding and awareness of the ins and outs of the Sikh religion.

The association set up a tent in front of Dallas Hall and with blaring music in the background, wrapped the heads of the willing throughout the day.

“The biggest reason that we do [Sikh Turban Day] is awareness,” SMU student and SSA member Daljit Mavi said. “We want people to walk in our shoes for two hours.”

Mavi and his fellow SMU Sikhs greatest desire for the day’s events was to raise awareness about the differences between Sikhs and other groups.

“When you see a turban, you might see a Muslim, or call us a terrorist or something. We want to show that we are different from other people,” Mavi said.

The event, which was attended by at least 180 students toting a turban for the same event last year, was expected to have about the same amount of people in attendance this year.

The event was an eye opener for many, including Alli Schloeman.

“I’m actually from a really really small town where we don’t get a lot of other religious experiences,” Schloeman said.

“So when I saw this I saw it as a chance to learn something new about a religion I knew nothing about. So [Parminder Deo] told me about his religion and it was really really interesting.”

She was not alone. During the lunch rush, people began to group around the tent to see what the event was all about.

Those with a potent mix of courage and curiosity approached the tent and asked to have a turban tied.

The turban has a special significance for the Sikhs. The wearing of the turban originated from the teaching of the gurus, or teachers of the Sikhs, who began to mandate equality for all members of society.

In the time before wearing the turban was commonplace for the Sikhs, “only kings and queens were allowed to wear them in order to make all people equal, it was made so that all people would wear the turban,” according to Mavi.

Practically, the turban keeps Sikh’s hair, which they do not cut out of reverence to the god, neat and tidy, bringing a practical side to a religious symbol.