What events bring the Sikh community together?
In Sikhism, there are many festivals known as Gurpurabs. These are holy days honouring the lives of the ten Gurus.
One of the most important is Guru Nanak Gurpurab, celebrating the birthday of the founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak. After the death of Guru Nanak, beliefs were passed down through a series of ten Gurus for some 200 years.
Watch Nirvair as she celebrates the Sikh festival of Guru Nanak Gurpurab with her friends, family and the local community.
My name's Nirvair Kaur, and I'm a Sikh. In a few days, we'll be celebrating a special day called Guru Nanak Gurpurab. This marks the birthday of the person who started our religion over five hundred years ago - Guru Nanak Dev Ji.
I'm getting ready to go to a holy building – the gurdwara – with my family to start the celebrations.
The first words of the Guru Granth Sahib Ji, were written by Guru Nanak Dev Ji. For two days leading up to his birthday, all 1430 pages are read out loud without any breaks by a team of readers. This is called an Akhand Path and we do it before all special events.
To celebrate Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s birthday, some gurdwaras have a procession called a Nagar Kirtan. The whole community comes out, some people dress in traditional clothes. There's drumming and singing, and the Guru Granth Sahib Ji is taken through the streets on a special float.
All Gurdwaras have a flag outside called a Nishan Sahib, it's changed at least once a year. We change ours three times, including today on Guru Nanak Gurpurab, and everyone gets involved.
One of Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s teachings was ‘sarbat da bhala’, which means ‘blessings for everyone’, so we've got all kinds of things going on to help people in our community, like practical advice and training for better health, as well as religious teaching.Everyone comes to the Gurdwara for a free lunch. The people behind the counter are volunteers and they're making vegetarian food so that everyone – whether they eat meat or not – can have the same. One of the most important things that Guru Nanak Dev Ji said is that everyone is equal, and sitting down to eat together is a great way to show that.I love Guru Nanak Gurpurab because friends and family get together to remember the man who started our religion. And it's great to share his message with everyone: we're all part of one community and we're all – Sikh and non-Sikh – equal.
How is Guru Nanak Gurpurab celebrated?
To celebrate Guru Nanak Gurpurab, the Sikh community gathers together to take part in a street procession called a nagar kirtan. The Guru Granth Sahib (the Sikh holy book) is carried through the streets on a specially decorated float, Sikhs join together to sing, dance and play musical instruments.
Sikh worship and festivals are followed by the langar. This is a free, vegetarian meal which takes place in the Gurdwara, the Sikh holy building. This meal is offered to everyone, regardless of their faith and is cooked and served by both men and women, with everyone sitting together on the floor to eat. The langar symbolises equality, which was one of the most important teachings of Guru Nanak.
Other Sikh festivals
Another important festival celebrated by the Sikh community is Bandi Chhor Divas , which means ‘liberation of prisoners day’. This marks the day when the sixth Guru, Guru Hargobind, was released from prison, along with fifty-two Hindu princes. Diwali means ‘festival of lights’, and the festival remembers when people lit lamps to welcome Guru Hargobind home. Today many Sikhs decorate their homes, work and public places with lights, and many communities come together to enjoy firework displays.
Sikh festivals in pictures
Image caption, Vaisakhi
Guru Gobind Singh was the last of the ten gurus of the Sikhs and the founder of the Khalsa (a special community of initiated Sikhs who take on the wearing of the 5Ks). Vaisakhi is the festival celebrated by Sikhs to remember the formation of the Khalsa, and celebrate the start of the Sikh New Year.
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