Other Sikh Festivals
There are some other (around 40) festivals that are celebrated at a much smaller scale with some being centred in particular regions or towns that are not included in the above list. Thoses include Parkash Utsavs (Birth anniversaries of the other 8 Sikh gurus), Gurgadi Divas (passing of guruship), Jyotijot Divas (death anniversaries of other sikh gurus) among other. All Sikh festival include celebrating by gathering at Gurdwara, paying obeisance to the Guru Granth Sahib and listening to Gurbani, Kirtan and reciting Paath.
| Important Events | Nanakshahi Date | Common Era Calendar |
|---|---|---|
| ♦Birth of Guru Gobind Singh, the Tenth Sikh Guru | 7 Poh Sudi | 18 Jan |
| Birth of Guru Har Rai, the eighth Sikh Guru | 19 Magh | 31 Jan |
| Guru Har Rai becomes the seventh Guru of the Sikhs ♦Nanakshahi New Year commences ♦Hola Mohalla festival |
1 Chet | 14 Mar |
| Guru Hargobind, the sixth Sikh Guru, passes away | 6 Chet | 19 Mar |
| ♦The ordination of the Khalsa ♦Birth of Guru Nanak |
1 Vaisakh | 14 Apr |
| Guru Angad, the second Sikh Guru, passes away | 3 Vaisakh | 16 Apr |
| Guru Amar Das becomes the third Guru of the Sikhs | 3 Vaisakh | 16 Apr |
| Guru Harkrishan, the eighth Guru of the Sikhs, passes away | 3 Vaisakh | 16 Apr |
| Guru Tegh Bahadur becomes the Ninth Guru of the Sikhs | 3 Vaisakh | 16 Apr |
| Birth of Guru Angad, the second Sikh Guru | 5 Vaisakh | 18 Apr |
| Birth of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Sikh Guru of the Sikhs | 5 Vaisakh | 18 Apr |
| Birth of Guru Arjan, the fifth Sikh Guru | 19 Vaisakh | 2 May |
| Birth of Guru Amar Das, the third Sikh Guru | 9 Jeth | 23 May |
| Guru Hargobind becomes the sixth Guru of the Sikhs | 28 Jeth | 11 Jun |
| ♦Guru Arjan, the fifth Guru of the Sikhs, in martyred by Chandu Shah in Lahore | 2 Harh | 16 Jun |
| Birth of Guru Hargobind, the sixth Sikh Guru | 21 Harh | 5 Jul |
| Guru Hargobind Sahib | 6 Sawan | 21 Jul |
| Guru Harkrishan Sahib | 8 Sawan | 23 Jul |
| Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh Scripture, is installed at the Golden Temple for the first time | 17 Bhadon | 1 Sep |
| Guru Amar Das, the third Guru of the Sikhs, passes away | 2 Assu | 16 Sep |
| Guru Ram Das becomes the fourth Guru of the Sikhs | 2 Assu | 16 Sep |
| Guru Ram Das, the fourth Guru of the Sikhs, passes away | 2 Assu | 16 Sep |
| Guru Arjan becomes the fifth Guru of the Sikhs | 2 Assu | 16 Sep |
| Guru Angad becomes the second Guru of the Sikhs | 4 Assu | 18 Sep |
| Guru Nanak, the first Guru of the Sikhs, passes away | 8 Assu | 22 Sep |
| Birth of Guru Ram Das, the fourth Guru of the Sikhs | 25 Assu | 9 Oct |
| Guru Har Rai, the seventh Guru of the Sikhs, passes away | 6 Katak | 20 Oct |
| Guru Harkrishan becomes the eighth Guru of the Sikhs | 6 Katak | 20 Oct |
| ♦Sovereignty of the Sikh Scripture (Guru Granth Sahib) declared as the Guru for all times to come by Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth and the last Sikh Guru | 6 Katak | 20 Oct |
| Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, passes away | 7 Katak | 21 Oct |
| Guru Gobind Singh becomes the tenth Guru of the Sikhs | 11 Maghar | 24 Nov |
| ♦Guru Tegh Bahadur martyred in Delhi by Aurangzeb for defending the oppressed | 11 Maghar | 24 Nov |
| Ajit Singh, and Jujhar Singh,the two elder sons of Guru Gobind Singh, martyred in the battle of Chamkaur | 8 Poh | 21 Dec |
| Zorawar Singh, and Fateh Singh, the two younger sons of Guru Gobind Singh, executed in Sirhind | 13 Poh | 26 Dec |
However, there are quite a few other local fairs which are historically important to the Sikhs and attract crowds in hundreds of thousands and last two to three days. The most important of these are:
- The Martyrdom of both the younger Sahibzadas of Guru Gobind Singh at Fatehgarh Sahib.
- The Battle of Chamkaur and the Martyrdom of both elder Sahibzadas of Guru Gobind Singh.
- The Martyrdom of the forty followers("Forty Immortals") of Guru Gobind Singh who had previously deserted him, fought bravely against overwhelming Mughal army forces in Muktsar. Guru Gobind Singh blessed them as having achieved liberation. Mela Maghi commorates this event and an annual fair is held in Sri Muktsar Sahib town.
Read more about this topic: List Of Sikh Festivals
Famous quotes containing the word festivals:
“This is certainly not the place for a discourse about what festivals are for. Discussions on this theme were plentiful during that phase of preparation and on the whole were fruitless. My experience is that discussion is fruitless. What sets forth and demonstrates is the sight of events in action, is living through these events and understanding them.”
—Doris Lessing (b. 1919)