Baisakhi, also known as Vaisakhi, is the harvest festival of Punjab. It is observed by people of all faiths. Baisakhi has religious significance for the Sikhs in addition to marking the harvest season. Baisakhi is the start of the Sikh New Year. Baisakhi is also significant because it commemorates the founding of the Khalsa Panth community three hundred years ago by Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru. People across the country celebrate the Baisakhi festival with great joy, merriment, and zeal.
Baisakhi will fall on Thursday, April 14 this year. Baisakhi is widely celebrated in the northern states of Punjab and Haryana. The high point of Baisakhi celebrations is the performance of the traditional 'Bhangra' and 'Gidda' dance by men and women respectively.
Baisakhi celebrations are vibrant and colourful in the villages of Punjab and Haryana. The traditional 'Bhangra' and 'Gidda' dances performed by men and women respectively are the highlight of Baisakhi celebrations. Gurdwaras hold kirtans on Baisakhi, and Sikhs bathe in rivers or lakes before visiting religious shrines. The holy festival is also marked by community fairs and nagar kirtan processions.
Baisakhi is a significant festival because it marks the beginning of the new spring year as well as the formation of the Khalsa Panth in 1699 under the tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh. This holiday, also known as Vaisakha Sankranti, commemorates the Hindu Vikram Samvat calendar's Solar New Year. Vaisakhi is also the anniversary of Ranjit Singh's coronation as Maharaja of the Sikh Empire in 1801. Vaisakhi is also known as Poila Baisakh, Bihu, Vishu, and Puthandu in different parts of the country.
Baisakhi commemorates the formation of the Khalsa Panth in 1699 by the tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh. The Khalsa Panth was formed following the execution of the ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Teg Bahadur Singh, who refused to convert to Islam in defiance of Aurangzeb's orders. During the reign of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, the Khalsa Panth were Sikh warriors who fought for religious freedom.
Baisakhi is a joyous occasion celebrated throughout Punjab. This is Punjab's harvest festival. People are dressed in bright new clothes. In many parts of Punjab, fairs and melas are held. An annual Mela is held at Takht Keshgarh Sahib in Anandpur, with a large procession. Khalsa Panth was founded in Anandpur. Large crowds can be seen at Amritsar's Harmandir Sahib, also known as the Golden Temple. Special ceremonies are held in Talwandi, the location where Guru Gobind Singh finished recompiling the Granth Sahib. In Punjab, Vaisakhi coincides with the ripening of the Rabi harvest. Farmers in Punjab pray to God in thanksgiving for bountiful harvests and future prosperity. Aside from prayers, feasts, music, folk dances, and the traditional 'Bhangra' are some of the ways in which the state celebrates.
Baisakhi also marks the harvest of rabi crops, in addition to the formation of the Khalsa Panth. On this day, people remember the martyrs of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, which was carried out by Britishers in 1919 and resulted in the deaths of approximately 1,000 people.
