The
most important festival which is celebrated in Punjab is Baisakhi, which marks
the arrival of the harvesting season. The word Baisakhi is derived from the month
of Vaisakha (April-May) in which the festival is celebrated. This festival is
celebrated on the 13th April every year, a time when the farmer returns home
with his bumper crop, the fruit of his whole year’s hard labour. The people of
Punjab attired
in their best clothes perform the Bhangra dance to express their
joy.
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The dancers and drummers challenge
each other to continue the dance. The scenes of sowing, harvesting,
winnowing and gathering of crops are expressed through zestful movements of
the body with the accompaniment of ballads. For the Sikhs, Baisakhi has a
special significance because on this day in 1699, their tenth guru, Guru
Gobind Singh organized the Order of the Khalsa. On this day he administered
amrit (nectar) to his first batch of five disciples making them Singhs, a
martial community. Fairs are organized at various places in Punjab, where
besides other recreational activities, wrestling bouts are also held. The
festival is celebrated with great fun at Talwandi Sabo, where Guru Gobind
Singh stayed for nine months and completed the recompilation of the Guru
Granth Sahib. Baisakhi is also celebrated with great fun in Haryana. It
marks the end of religious austerity of nine holy days of fasting. The
people take a bath in the nearby river, canal, tank or well and then go to
temples or gurudwaras and offer prayers, followed by song and dance
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