Guru Nanak Jayanti

Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the founder of the Sikhism also known as first Nanak, was born in the month of Kartik (October/November), in the year 1469 AD. He was born in Tolevandi (around 30 miles away from Lahore) which is the present Shekhupura distict of Pakistan and is also known as Nanakana Sahib. The birthday of Guru Nanak Sahib falls on Kartik Puranmashi which is the full moon day of the Kartik month. His birthday is known as Guru Nanak Jayanti. The anniversaries of Sikh Guru's are known as Gurpurabs (festivals) and are celebrated with devotion and dedication. Every morning, for three weeks before any Gurupurab, there are processions through the streets of a town called Prabhat Pheris, these early-morning processions have Sikhs going around localities singing hymns. Those marching in the procession are offered sweets and tea by the faithful.

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.

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." .