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Sikhs
commemorate Guru Gobind's birth anniversary Amritsar/Patna:
Millions of Sikh devotees participated in the 342nd birth anniversary celebrations
of their tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh. In Patna, the birth place of Guru Gobind
Singh, processions were taken out on Friday ahead of the celebrations on Saturday.
Free langars (meals) are also arranged and prasad (holy food) distributed. "This
is the birth place of our tenth and last Sikh leader Guru, Gobind Singh. He was
the one who came with the concept of Khalsa (brotherhood). Today it is his 342
birth day," said Daljeet Singh, Chief Granthi (religious leader), Patna Sahib
Gurudwara. Guru Govind Singh, a warrior-martyr, a poet and a social reformer,
all rolled in one, was born at Patna Sahib in 1666. In Amritsar, the anniversary
will be observed on January 5, but hundreds of devotees took part in a procession
that went through the city's thoroughfares on Saturday. "Today, we have come here
to get blessings of our tenth guru. We are celebrating their birth anniversary
with pomp and show. Our whole family has participated in the nagarkirtan (religious
procession). People from all over the world have come to participate in nagarkirtan,
and to get blessings from Guru Gobind Singh," said Harjit Singh, a devotee. Guru
Gobind Singh moulded the Sikh religion into its present form with the formation
of the Khalsa. All members of the "Khalsa" sect have to possess the five K's -
"Kes" (long hair), "Kangha" (comb), "Kirpan" (dagger), "Kachha" (shorts) and "Kara"
(steel bracelet). The Guru's birth anniversary commemorates his brave deeds to
counter the Mughal might in the early part of 18th and the latter part of the
17th centuries.
- Jan 3, 2009
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