Festival of Gurupurab and The Teachings of Guru Nanak Devji

The Sikh faith is a monotheistic religion, meaning Sikhs worship one God. Guru Nanak taught that one must honor God by honoring others and the Earth, God’s creation. Nine more Gurus succeeded Guru Nanak, and continued to spread his teachings across the world. Guru Gobind Singh was the last Guru; he named the Sikh sacred text, the Guru Granth Sahib, to be the eternal Guru that would guide the Sikhs going forward.

Sikhs believe that one’s form on Earth is only a temporary vessel for the eternal soul. Thus, the death of the physical body is a natural part of the life cycle, while the soul remains. Sikhs believe in reincarnation, meaning death is not an end, but merely the progression of the soul on its journey toward God.

The Festival of Gurupurab

The festival of Gurupurab is regarded as an auspicious occasion because it is the birth anniversary of the first of the ten Sikh gurus, Guru Nanak Dev Ji. It is believed that his birth was a mark of divinity. The literal meaning of the word Gurupurab is ‘the day of Guru’. The festival is celebrated on the day of Kartik Poornima, which is the fifteenth lunar day in the month of Kartik according to the Hindu calendar, and usually falls in November by the Gregorian calendar.

This year, the Gurupurab will be celebrated on November 27th.

History of Guru Nanak Jayanti

Guru Nanak was born on April 15, 1469, at Rai Bhoi Ki Talwandi, near Lahore, which is in the Sekhpura district of modern-day Pakistan. A Gurudwara was built at his birthplace in the city now known as Nankana Sahib. It is located in the Punjab province of Pakistan. Guru Nanak is regarded as a spiritual teacher who founded Sikhism in the 15th century. He started writing the Guru Granth Sahib and completed 974 hymns.

Guru Nanak Jayanti celebrations

Celebration for Guru Nanak Jayanti starts in Gurudwaras two days prior to the day of Guru Nanak Jayanti. A 48-hour non-stop recitation of the Guru Granth Sahib, called Akhand Path, is held. A day before Guru Nanak’s birthday, a procession called Nagarkirtan is organized. The procession is led by five men, referred to as the Panj Pyare, holding the Sikh triangular flag, Nishan Sahib.

The holy Guru Granth Sahib is placed in a palanquin during the procession. People sing hymns in groups and play traditional musical instruments and also display Gatka (martial art skills). The joyful procession passes through streets decorated with flags and flowers.

To celebrate this important day, Sikhs take out Prabhat Pheris. They are early morning processions wherein people start gathering at the Gurudwara and then go around the locality singing hymns.

Teachings of Guru Nanak Dev Ji's

The teachings of Guru Nanak Dev Ji can be found in the sacred Sikh scripture Guru Granth Sahib -- a vast collection of verses recorded in Gurmukhi. Here we bring you some of the teachings by Guru Nanak that will change the way you look at life...

Submission to the Will of God

“Hukum Razayee Chalna, Nanak Lihkiya Naal”, accept the will of God or supreme almighty referred to as Waheguru. The lesson of life by Guru Nanak Dev Ji, says everything happens by the grace of God. Leave worry and stress, believe in God’s work, and live without any doubts or second thoughts. It is by the command of Waheguru that we are born and we die, without his command ".... even a leaf on the tree would not move" is a common saying in Punjabi.

Always remember, ‘why fear when Babaji is with you’. Have faith and believe everything will be right. Once you have a positive perspective, everything will be alright.

One Supreme Reality – Ek Onkar ੴ

Ek Onkar means, ‘God is One. Guru Nanak Dev Ji is known for his spiritual, social, and ideological beliefs. At a very young age, he started challenging societal laws and rules. When he formed Sikhism, he emphasized One God. The importance of the teachings of Guru Nanak Dev Ji is to believe in your good karma and ONE higher power.

No Discrimination

Guru Nanak Dev Ji believed in equality and brotherhood. He considered everyone is equal, regardless of rank, color, race, caste, religion, gender, or status. His two pupils, Bhai Bala and Bhai Mardana were addressed as ‘Bhai’, as his brothers and not by their race or castes. He also emphasized equal rights for women. The history of Sikhism has many stories, where men and women were shown as equals.

Guru Nanak Dev Ji did not preach out of the world spirituality, instead, he emphasized humanly possible and relatable life lessons.

Reject Five Sins ‘Panj Vikar’

Guru Nanak Dev Ji mentioned five evils residing in the human mind/body. He taught us to reject/shun these five evils or thieves as they weaken us and derelict us from our duties.

“Within this body dwells the five thieves: sexual desire, anger, greed, emotional attachment, and egotism.” Kam (Lust), Krodh (Anger), Lobh (greed), Moh (attachment), Ahankar (Ego).

Goodwill for all

Guru Nanak dev Ji passed the message of Universal brotherhood. He said that religion is not mere consistency of words but looks at all men and women equally. Universal brotherhood is a strong theme in Gurbani written by Guru Nanak Dev Ji. In the prayer, there is a line which is recited towards the end of daily Ardaas – “Nanak Naam Chardi Kala Tere Bhane Sarbat da bhala”, which can be translated as “Nanak asks for ‘Naam’ (name of God) with which comes well being, happiness and positive spirit and with your blessings, Lord may everyone in the world prosper and be in peace“. We request Him for the welfare of the whole of humanity and not just of our community or our family alone.

To Speak the truth

Guru Nanak Dev Ji told in front of King Babar “You are not Babar but JABAR”. We should always speak the truth without any fear. According to Guru’s doctrine, the victory of truth is not dependent on ending or suppressing falsehood but on standing firmly by truth. That is why Guru Nanak Dev Ji exhorts that to stick to the truth and to remain on the side of truth when it is necessary is very essential –

Guru Nanak Ji says that no one can save anybody else. It is only Guru who guides us to safety and to be saved, one has to follow the right path of SEWA and SIMRAN told by him. Further, the Guru is not to be found in big palaces, he lives with the poor. Let us love the poor, God will bless us. If we recite Gurbani with love, we will find the Guru is speaking to us. We have been reminded of his observations many times in our life. When we barely make both ends meet, we are usually sincerely devoted to GURBANI and the Sikh way of life. But when we have excess money to spend on worldly pleasures we follow vices and ignore the real mission of human life. DHARAM is usually the first casualty when we become rich. About SEWA Gurbani explains: (Amid this world, do SEWA and you shall be given a place of honor in the Court of the Lord)

The three Principals

Nanak Dev Ji gave us three principals – Naam Japo. Kirat Karo, Vand Chako.

Naam Japo – Remember his name. Also called ‘Naam Simran’, this principle tells us to remember God’s name at all times. God is the supreme power, keeping him in mind helps us fighting fears and doubts.

Kirat Karo – Earn your livelihood with honesty. Guru Nanak Dev Ji emphasized truth and honesty. Be a God’s man, a follower of honesty, hard labor. Creating a better life for self and family only with hard work and dedication. Good Karma.

Vand Chako – ‘Vand’ share with others. Share with those who are in need. Sikhs are devotees of Guru Nanak Dev Ji and follow the principles of sharing with others. Share wealth, food, provide shelter, or any other way you can support the needy.

Importance of Guru

Guru Nanak Dev Ji lays great emphasis on having the importance of Guru in one’s life. He put forward the thought that salvation occurs not from pilgrimage or rites etc, but through heart, spirit, and soul. For this to happen continuous seeking of knowledge must take place which is dependent on one’s guru. Guru according to him is the voice of the god, the true source of knowledge and salvation.

Kraha Prasad

A blessing from Waheguruji

A taste of Faith

Karah Prasad is a gift from guru Sahib. It is a symbol of equality. It is prepared with the same proportion of Sugar, Ghee, and Flour. This is symbolic of equality. It is even distributed with equality. The sewadars never look at your faces. They just look at your hands and keep moving forward to the next hand.

Why Kraha Prasad is important:

Karha Prasad holds a very important value as it is made from three ingredients. These three ingredients are Flour(Atta), Ghee, and Sugar but these three ingredients are not in their original form. Like atta is made from wheat which is grown on the fields and then after cleaning and other processes it is grinded in the mills, in this way atta is made from wheat. The next ingredient is sugar, it is first grown as sugarcanes then from them its juice is been taken out in the mills, and then by setting a fixed temperature sugar grains are made. Then the last ingredient is ghee, ghee is made from milk, milk is been converted to curd then from curd to butter and then after putting butter on fire ghee is been extracted. So Guru Nanak Dev Ji tells people that when you will leave your identity, your ego everything aside, and then comes to the Gurudwara then you will attain peace.

It is distributed to everyone at the end of services which symbolizes the belief in equality and the oneness of humanity. It reminds everyone that all people are god’s creation.

Meaning of Langar

Langar is a Persian word meaning: an almshouse (A house built originally by a charitable person for poor people to live in). In Sikhs, this word has acquired the meaning of kitchen and Guru-Ka-Langar conveys the message that the kitchen is being 'run in the name of the Guru'. According to Mahan Kosh; Langar is defined as – a place where food is cooked. Langar originally meant such a place where food is prepared, but nowadays, this word is also used as a way to describe the food itself that is prepared in the kitchen.

The concept of Langar was inspired by the first Guru, Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s act of serving food to wandering holy men when given money by his father to strike a good bargain. Insisting that true profit is to be had in selfless service “Saccha Sauda”, Guru Nanak established the principle of langar. The practice of serving food to all was started at Kartarpur. Guru Angad Dev Ji, the second Guru, further extended the scope of the institution. Guru Ji helped with cooking and serving in the Langar at Khadoor Sahib. Guru Ji’s wife; Mata Khivi Ji, looked after the pilgrims and visitors with the utmost attention. Such was her dedication to work in the langar that it came to be known after her name as Mata Khivi Ji ka Langar.

Guru Amar Das Ji, the third Guru, formalized the institution of langar, the Guru’s free kitchen, uniting the Sikhs by establishing two key concepts: Pangat – One family - all of humanity, regardless of caste, color, or creed, sitting together cross-legged in lines, forming rows without discrimination or consideration of rank or position. Sangat – The ennobling influence of people, who aspire to truthful living, and congregate with the like-minded company to utter the name of one God in the presence of the Guru Granth Sahib Ji.

The Langar Hall

Every Gurdwara, no matter how humble, or how lavishly elegant, has a langar hall - an area set aside for the preparation and service of food that is either screened or detached from the place of worship.

Langar and Seva

The guru's free kitchen profits in feeding both the body and the spirit of the soul. Seva is the Sikh word for voluntary, selfless service, done without compensation. All expenses are covered completely by voluntary contributions from the members of the congregation. The Langar is run by sevadars 'volunteers doing selfless service’ and others who wish to help. It is a community kitchen and anybody can help in its running. This function of Sewa results in a ‘community feeling’ in peoples' minds as they drop their mask of ego. The feeling of "I" or "me" is forgotten as they perform this valuable service to humanity. The institution of Langar has served the community in many ways. It has ensured the participation of women and children in a task of service for mankind. Langar also teaches the etiquette of sitting and eating in a community situation, which has played a great part in upholding the virtue of sameness of all human beings; providing a welcome, secure and protected sanctuary. Everyone is welcome to share the Langar; no one is turned away. The food is normally served twice a day, every day of the year. Each week a family or several families volunteer to provide and prepare the Langar. All the preparation, the cooking, and the washing-up are done by Sewadars.