Jamshedpur, Jan. 12: Sikh community in the city would spread the message of peace to mark the 352nd ‘prakash utsav’ (birth anniversary) of their tenth guru Guru Gobind Singh tomorrow. A religious procession would be taken out from Kitadih Gurudwara for the first time under the aegis of Central Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (CGPC), the apex body of Sikhs in the city. The procession would culminate at Sakchi Gurudwara in the evening.
Men, women and children of several Punjabi schools and members of religious organisations would participate in the procession. Officials of CGPC said apart from spreading message of their guru, they would also educate people against terror and would give the message of harmony and universal peace and brotherhood.
The school children would be carrying placards with messages against terrorism and war written on it. The performance of all the participating teams would be judged and felicitated at a religious congregation.
Almost all the 33 Gurudwaras in the district are being decked up for the occasion. They religious functions and host langar (mass kitchen) as a part of the celebrations.
In a meeting chaired by the Chief of CGPC Sardar Gurmukh Singh Mukhe it was unanimously decided that procession will leave at 11 am from Kitadih. The closing will be four o’clock in Sakchi Gurdwara.
At the meeting it was also decided to put a ban on the devotees on the way to perform fireworks.
Guru Gobind Singh was the last of the ten Gurus, the one who transformed the Sikh faith. In 1699 he created the Khalsa (Pure), a community of the faithful who wore visible symbols of their faith and trained as warriors. Today the Khalsa comprises all practising Sikhs.
He spent his childhood years studying Persian and Sanskrit, and was skilled in the art of war. His mission was to uphold right in every place and destroy sin and evil. In 1699 he chose the festival day of Vaisakhi as the occasion to transform the Sikhs into the Khalsa, a family of soldier saints.
He declared the Sikh holy book as his successor instead of a human being. The Guru Granth Sahib would thus be the Sikhs’ guide forever. Sikhs give it the same status and respect as a human Guru.