Baisakhi
It is one of the very popular harvest festivals which are celebrated by Hindus and Sikhs with equal fervor. Baisakhi is also called as the Vaishakhi. It is celebrated on the 13 th day of April according to the solar calendar. Baisakhi is the festival which is celebrated in north India , especially Punjab and Haryana. At this time, rabi crop is ready for harvesting and farmers enjoy this time in the form of this festival.
Importance of Baisakhi:
Baisakhi is religiously important for Sikh community as tenth Sikh guru, Guru Gobind Singh, laid the foundation of Panth Khalsa which is the order of the pure ones.
Baisakhi Celebrations:
Baisakhi is the festival which is associated with lots of fun, gaiety and merriment. Men, women and children wear fancy colorful cloths. They sing and dance in groups. Bhangra is the dance form performed by the men and women perform gidda dance in groups which is accompanied by the rhythmic gidda songs. Most of the events take place on the river banks.
As this is a religious festival for Sikh people, they wake early in the morning and some people like to take holy bath in the river. Special prayers meeting are taken in neighborhood gurudwaras. Kada Prasad (sweetened semolina) is given at the end of Baisakhi ardas. This is followed by the community feast or the “guru ka langar”.
Celebrations by Farmers:
For farmers, especially in Haryana and Punjab regions of North India , baisakhi is the time to harvest rabi crop. This marks New Year for them. Baisakhi is the day for farmers to thank God for good crop. Homes are decorated and garlands of marigold and mango leaves are hung on the doorways. To invoke blessings of family deities to have good times ahead, first ripe ears of rabi crop are collected and devoted to the God.
In most of the villages, Baisakhi melas (fairs) are held where there are number of stalls, games, rides, and folk dance and music events.
Other Festival on Baisakhi Day:
In other parts of India , Baisakhi day is celebrated with different names and different rituals. In Assam , Rongali Bihu, Naba Barsha in Bengal , Pooram Vishu in Kerala and Puthandu in Tamil Nadu are few festivals which coincide with Baisakhi.
