GurPurabs mark the culmination of Prabhat Pheris, the early morning procession that start from the gurdwaras (Sikh temples) and then go around localities singing 'shabads' (hymns). The celebrations also include the three-day Akhand path, during which the holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib is read continuously, from beginning to end without a break. On the day of the festival, the Granth Sahib is also carried in a procession on a float, decorated with flowers, throughout a village or city. Five armed guards, who represent the Panj Pyares, head the procession carrying Nishan Sahibs (the Sikh flag). Local bands playing religious music form a special part of the procession.
Free sweets and langar or community lunches are also offered to everyone irrespective of religious faith. Men, women, and children, participate in this karseva as service to the community, cook food and distribute it in the 'Guru ka Langar', with the traditional 'Karah Prasad'.
Sikhs also visit gurdwaras where special programs are arranged and kirtans (religious songs) are sung. Houses and gurdwaras are lit up to add to the festivities. Guru Nanak Dev's life served as a beacon light for his age. He was a great seer, saint and mystic. He was a prolific poet and a unique singer of God's laudation. A prophet of peace, love, truth and renaissance, he was centuries ahead of his times. His universal message is as fresh and true even today as it was in the past and Sikhs all over the world, practice what Guru Nanak Dev preached, to reaffirm their beliefs in the teachings of their founder.
Legend:
The son of a Kshatriya (warrior) family, he studied Hinduism and Islam.
He got married but then he abandoned his family and became an ascetic.
Wandering for many years he came under the influence of both Hindus and
Muslims (especially Sufi). The Muslim teacher Kabir (died in 1398) made a
deep impression on Guru Nanak. He began preaching, "There is no Hindu,
there is no Mussulman." .
The Sikhs:
Guru Nanak was succeeded by nine other Gurus. Guru Arjun (1563-1606) the
fifth Guru, compiled the "Granth Sahib" (Noble Book) and the tenth Guru,
Govind Singh, gave it its final form. The two books are also known as "Adi
Granth" (Initial Book), and "Dasam Granth" (Book of the Tenth Guru).
The Sikh temple is called "Gurudwara" (Gum's Gate). A copy of the Granth
is kept in every Gurudwara. After the Tenth Guru, the Granth is worshipped
as the mystic personality of the Gurus.
The main shrine of the Sikhs is the Golden Temple of Amritsar, in Punjab,
where Sikhism has a real hold. The Temple foundations were Laid by the
Fourth Guru, Guru Ram Das (1534-1581).
In 1699 Guru Govind Singh introduced the Initiation Rite, drinking sugared
water ("amrt"), and abolished caste distinctions. Sikhs were to be
distinguished by their name, always with the suffix Singh (lion), and by
the five K's: unshorn hair and beard ("kes"), comb in the hair ("kangh"),
steel bangle on the right wrist ("kara"), short drawers ("kacch") and
steel dagger ("kirpan").
Guru Govind Singh was also responsible for giving the Sikh Religion a
marked military character. The soldier-saint became the ideal of the
Khalsa or Sikh fraternity. "When all other means have failed, it is
righteous to draw the sword", was one of the basic principles of Guru
Govind Singh.
Adi Granth
The Adi Granth teaches: "There is one God, Eternal Truth is His Name;
Maker of all things, fearing nothing
and at enmity with nothing; Timeless is His Image; Not begotten, being
of His own being; By the grace of the Guru made known to men. As he was in
the beginning, the Truth; So throughout the ages He ever has been, the
Truth; So even now he is the Truth Immanent; So for ever and ever, He
shall be Truth Eternal."These words express the basic belief of Sikhs.
Idolatry is forbidden. True worship consists in singing God's praises and
in meditating on His Name. To realise Him speculation is useless, and so
are also all pilgrimages, and ascetical practices like fasting and
celibacy.
God is the Supreme Guru, "Satnam, Wah Guru" (The True Name, The Wondrous
Teacher). The Ten Gurus are reverenced because God spoke through them.
Nanak had no other Guru but God. His followers, however, reach God through
Guru Nanak and the other nine. When the line ended, the God-given "Word of
the Gum", remained embodied in the Granth and the temporal function of the
Guru was bestowed on the Khalsa.