Holla Mohalla festival (Photo:Reuters/Kamal Kishore)

Hola Mohalla or Hola Mahalla or simply Hola is a Sikh festival that takes place on the first of the lunar month of Chet which usually falls in March. This follows the Hindu festival of Holi; Hola is the masculine form of the feminine sounding Holi. The word "Mohalla" is derived from the Arabic root hal (alighting, descending) and is a Punjabi word that implies an organized procession in the form of an army column. But unlike Holi, when people playfully sprinkle color, dry or mixed in water, on each other, the Guru made Hola Mohalla an occasion for the Sikhs to demonstrate their martial skills in simulated battles. The River Chet is a river in Norfolk, England and a tributary of the River Yare. ...

Together the words "Hola Mohalla" stands for "mock fight". During this festivals, procession are organised in the form of army type columns accompanied by war-drums and standard-bearers and proceeding to a given spot or moving in state from one gurdwara to another. The custom originated in the time of Guru Gobind Singh who held first such mock fight event at Anandpur in February 1701. Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha, Southall, UK. A Gurdwara (Punjabi: , often incorrectly called a Gurudwara), meaning the doorway to God, is the Sikh place of worship and may be referred to as a Sikh Temple. ... Guru Gobind Singh (Punjabi: ) (Patna, Bihar, India, December 22, 1666 – October 7, 1708, Nanded, Maharashtra,India) was the tenth and last of the Ten Gurus of Sikhism and became Guru on November 11, 1675 following in the footsteps of his father Guru Teg Bahadur. ... Anandpur Sahib is a holy Sikh city and one of the five most holy places in Sikhism. ...

The foothills of the Shivaliks in Ropar district of Punjab's north-eastern region, especially around the historic townships of Anandpur Sahib and Kiratpur Sahib, have, since 1701 been playing host to Hola Mohalla. Recently, the Indian government accorded it the status of a national festival. The military exercise, which was personally supervised by the guru, was carried out on the bed of the River Charan Ganga with the famous Hindu temple of Mata Naina Devi in the Shivaliks as the backdrop. Rupnagar is a town in Punjab, India. ... Punjab, 1903 Punjab Province, 1909 The Punjab (meaning: Land of five Rivers; also Panjab, Gurmukhi: ਪੰਜਾਬ, Shahmukhi: پنجاب) is a region straddling the border between India and Pakistan. ... Anandpur Sahib is a holy Sikh city and one of the five most holy places in Sikhism. ...

This annual festival held at Anandpur Sahib in Punjab and now replicated at other Gurdwaras worldwide was started by the tenth Sikh Guru, as a gathering of Sikhs for military exercises and mock battles on the day following the festival of Holi at Anandpur Sahib. It reminds the people of valour and defence preparedness, concepts dear to the Tenth Guru who was at that time battling the Mughal empire and the hill kings. Anandpur Sahib is a holy Sikh city and one of the five most holy places in Sikhism. ... Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha, Southall, UK. A Gurdwara (Punjabi: , often incorrectly called a Gurudwara), meaning the doorway to God, is the Sikh place of worship and may be referred to as a Sikh Temple. ... Celebration of Holi Holi (Hindi: होली) or Phagwah (Bhojpuri) is an annual Hindu spring festival, predominantly celebrated in North India and Nepal. ... Anandpur Sahib is a holy Sikh city and one of the five most holy places in Sikhism. ... The Mughal Empire (alternative spelling Mogul, which is the origin of the word Mogul) of India was founded by Babur in 1526, when he defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the last of the Delhi Sultans at the First Battle of Panipat. ...

On this three-day grand festival, mock battles, exhibitions, display of weapons, etc are held followed by kirtan, music and poetry competitions. The participants perform daring feats, such as Gatka (mock encounters with real weapons), tent pegging, bareback horse-riding, standing erect on two speeding horses and various other feats of bravery. Kirtan originated in the Hindu tradition as loving songs sung to God. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

There are also a number of Darbars where Sri Guru Granth Sahib is present and kirtan and religious lectures take place. On the last day a long procession, led by Panj Pyaras, starts from Takhat Keshgarh Sahib, one of the five Sikh religious seats, and passes through various important Gurdwaras like Qila Anandgarh, Lohgarh Sahib, Mata Jitoji and terminates at the Takhat (Keshgarh). The Golden Temple The Golden Temple is also known as Harmandir Sahib or Hari Mandir by the Sikhs. ... Guru Granth Sahib (Granth is Punjabi for book, Sahib is Hindi meaning master, from Arabic, meaning companion, friend, owner, or master) or Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji or SGGS for short, is more than a holy book of the Sikhs. ... Kirtan originated in the Hindu tradition as loving songs sung to God. ... The word Takhat literally means seat of power or throne of authority and refers to one of the five bodies of authority for the Sikhs. ... Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha, Southall, UK. A Gurdwara (Punjabi: , often incorrectly called a Gurudwara), meaning the doorway to God, is the Sikh place of worship and may be referred to as a Sikh Temple. ...

For people visiting Anandpur Sahib, langars (voluntary community kitchens) are organized by the local people as a part of sewa (community service). Raw materials like wheat flour, rice, vegetables, milk and sugar are provided by the villagers living nearby. Women volunteer to cook and others take part in cleaning utensils and other manual tasks that need to be carried out. Traditional cuisine is served to the pilgrims who eat while sitting in rows on the ground. (Pangat) Anandpur Sahib is a holy Sikh city and one of the five most holy places in Sikhism. ... SEWA is the Self-Employed Womens Association of India, a trade union founded in 1972 after a split in the Textile Labour Association. ...

Warlike sports of the Nihangs

Gatka fighting during festivities

Originally known as Akalis, the Nihungs or Nihang Singhs are endearingly designated as Guru's Knights or the Guru's beloved. They still carry the military ambience and heroic style that was cultivated during the lifetime of Guru Gobind Singh. Nihangs constitute a distinctive order among the Sikhs and are readily recognized by their dark blue loose apparel and their ample, peaked turbans festooned with quoits, insignia of the Khalsa and rosaries, all made of steel. They are always armed, and are usually seen mounted heavily laden with weapons such as swords, daggers, spears, rifles, shotguns, and pistols. Image File history File links Gatka1. ... Image File history File links Gatka1. ...

The word Nihang can be traced back to Persian nihang (alligator, sword) or to Sanskrit nishanka (fearless, carefree). In the former sense, it seems to refer to the reckless courage members of this order displayed in battle. In Guru Gobind Singh's writing, Var Sri Bhagauti Ji 47, it is used for swordsmen warriors of the vanguard. Whatever may be the origin the word Nihang, it signifies the characteristic qualities of the clan- their freedom from fear of danger or death, readiness for action and non-attachment to worldly possessions. During the eighteenth century, one of the confederate armies of the Dal Khalsa, constituted of the Nishanvalia misl chief, Naina Singh, whose style of tightly tied tall turban with a dumala gained currency and those who adopted were called Akali Nihangs.

Links

Above article adapted from material from:

• Gateway to Sikhism
• www.sikhspectrum.com An Article by M S. Ahluwalia
• www.bbc.co.uk
• www.singhsabha.com
• www.iloveindia.com
• Festivals of India
• Hola Mahalla pictures