Guru Nanak Jayanti, also known as Guru Nanak’s Prakash Utsav and Guru Nanak Dev Ji Jayanti
Guru Nanak Jayanti, also known as Guru Nanak’s Prakash Utsav and Guru Nanak Dev Ji Jayanti, celebrates the birth of the first Sikh guru, Guru Nanak and will be celebrated on November 30 this year. It is one of the most sacred festivals in Sikhism. In the Sikh faith, festivities revolve around the anniversaries of the 10 Sikh gurus. These gurus were responsible for shaping the beliefs of the Sikhs. Their birthdays, known as ‘Gurpurab’, are occasions for celebration and prayer among the community. Guru Nanak Jayanti is marked with prayer processions, hymns, free sweets, martial arts (‘Gatka’), as well as services to the community.
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The festival is celebrated on the day of Kartik Poornima, which is the fifteenth lunar day in the month of Kartik as per the Hindu calendar, and usually falls sometime in October or November as per the Gregorian calendar. Guru Nanak Jayanti celebrations are generally similar for all Sikhs — only the hymns are different. The celebrations usually commence with Prabhat Pheris. Prabhat Pheris are early morning processions that begin at the Gurudwaras and proceed around the localities singing hymns. Generally, two days before the birthday, Akhand Path (a forty-eight-hour non-stop reading of the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of the Sikhs) is held in the ‘Gurdwaras.
