Today, Sikhs are celebrating Guru Purab, the birth of Guru Nanak Dev Ji – founder of the Sikh religion.
Who was Guru Nanak?
Guru Nanak was born near Lahore in modern-day Pakistan in 1469. He received a vision to preach about God; as a result, he taught that there is only one God and one unified humanity. The roots of some of his ideas can be traced to both Hinduism and Islam.
Learn more about Guru Nanak on the BBC Religion site.
How are Sikhs celebrating?
Sikhs celebrate Guru Nanak’s birthday today, if you’re going by the lunar calendar. The celebration is one of the gurpurbs, or festivals associated with the life of the Sikh gurus.
Two days ago, Sikhs began a continuous reading of the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh scripture, which was to be finished by the start of the festival. Today, Sikhs take the scripture out in a procession, decorating the guru. The gurdwaras, or places where Sikhs gather, are also decorated for Guru Nanak’s birthday. Sikhs may also eat special holy food (called prasad) today and light lamps.
Check out this video from Sify about Guru Purab.
Learn more about Sikhism on ReligionTranscends.com.
Created by ReligionTranscends.com, 2009