Guru Nanak Jayanti will be celebrated 21 Nov by the Sikh community all over the world. Guru Nanak Jayanti is one of the most important festivals in the Sikh calendar. The celebrations are especially colorful in Punjab and Haryana and it is also celebrated in other parts of India as well. Guru Nanak Dev was the first Sikh Guru and the founder of Sikh religion. His birthday is celebrated as Guru Nanak Jayanti. Guru Nanak Jayanti is also known as Guru Purab. Guru Nanak was born on ” Kartik Poornima” ( full moon day in the month of Kartik ) October/November. Guru Nanak Dev was born at Nankana Sahab near Lahore in Pakistan in 1469. Guru Nanak is the first Guru in Sikh faith. Guru Nanak was born in a middle class family. From his childhood he had great qualities. He had great learning skills. He was keen to learn Vedas and Sanskrit. He also studied Persian and Arabic as he got association with the Muslims when his father worked for a Muslim landlord. Thus he became learned in Hinduism and Islam. There are so many miraculous incident took place in Guru Nanak Dev’s childhood and young age. He believed in Oneness and Supremacy of God. Guru Nanak Ji was a great saint, poet and a preacher of peace, love and truth.
Holy book of Sikhs known as ‘ Guru Granth Sahib ’ written by Guru Nanak Dev which is revered as scripture by all his followers. Through this holy book he has spread divine message for his devotees.
There are 3 important principles that every Sikh is supposed to follow:-
- Meditation on the Holy Name is the sublime method to connect oneself to the Supreme Lord and chant the name of holy God.
- Every Sikh should earn honestly and work hard. There is no place for laziness in spiritual discipline. One should adopt the lifestyle of simple living and high thinking and always think of winning the approval of God.
- Charity is an important feature of Sikhism. One should be compassionate to the needy and have a sharing tendency. One should also be equal to all without bias of religions, caste, creed and nationalities.
Guru Nanak Jayanti is celebrated with great devotion and dedication. The day starts with morning procession from Gurudwara. Three day study of Guru Granth Sahib is done by the authorities of the temple. The works and life of Sri Guru Nanak Dev are glorified. Sikhs take this day as the day to commit to Sikhism more intensely.People decorates their houses and special prayers are held in Gurudwaras*. The prayers also include the recital of ‘Akhand Paath’. In Akhand Paath’ is read continuously from beginning to end for three days. On the main day the holy book ‘Guru Granth Sahib’ is decorated and carried in a palanquin (Palki) in a procession. The procession also includes five armed guards or ‘Panj Pyaras (Five Beloved Ones) . The Sikh flag known as the Nishan Sahib is carried in this procession too . Grand feast is organized in Gurudwaras, where people eat free of cost. The feast is known as ‘ Guru ka Langar ’ in which people do ‘seva’ or service. The service is offered in form of food preparation, serving food, serving water etc. The procession ends in Gurudwara where community devotees have lunch.
There are large numbers of Sikh family living in Udaipur, so Guru Nanak Jayanti celebration is being held in Udaipur too. There are 5 Guru Dwaras is Udaipur. They are fully decorated and Akhand Paath is being read over there too. All these five Gurudwaras will also be organizing Langer for udaipies …..So Enjoy !!!!!!!
JO Bole So Nihal …… Sat Sri Akal !!!!!!!!
A post by Monika Jain
