Each year, London celebrates Vaisakhi, the Sikh New Year festival, in Trafalgar Square. Previous events have been very popular, with around 30,000 people attending during the day.
Vaisakhi, the Sikh New Year, is the holiest day of the calendar for over 20m Sikhs worldwide. It is celebrated on 13 April (occasionally 14 April) each year. On this day in 1699, Sikhism was born as a collective faith. Guru Gobind Singh Ji, the 10th Master of the Sikhs, initiated the Sikhs as the Khalsa or the pure and sincere. He bound the Sikhs to a strict code of conduct and, with uncut hair, beard and
turban, gave the Sikhs a distinct identity.
The celebration of Vaisakhi takes the form of continuous reading of the Sikh Scripture, the Guru Granth Sahib Ji, over a period of three days. That is followed by the recitation of sacred hymns. The service ends with a final prayer for the good and well-being of the whole of humanity, and the serving of sacramental food.
The message of Vaisakhi has particular relevance today in multicultural and multi-faith Britain. Vaisakhi promotes friendship and mutual respect as the way forward. This is consistent with the command of Guru Gobind Singh Ji: “Consider the whole of humanity as one, we are all children of the one God.”
Vaisakhi on the Trafalgar Square is organised with support from the Mayor of London.
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