

We invite everyone to join us in celebrating the Sikh festival of Vaisakhi with a Nagar Kirtan procession and #SikhsInTheSquare event in Nottingham.

For Sikhs, Vaisakhi celebrates the formation of the Khalsa Panth in 1699 by their 10th Guru, Guru Gobind Singh Ji and is a time to celebrate their faith and identity. This year, Sikhs will also be celebrating the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the founder of Sikhism and so a large scale #SikhsInTheSquare event was organised to take place in Nottinghams Old Market Square.

In line with the Sikh principles, everyone is welcome and langar (free food) will be available to all.

During the month of April, in celebration of Vaisakhi, colourful processions called Nagar Kirtans take place around the world. In Nottingham, the Nagar Kirtan procession starts at 10am from Forest Recreation Ground (gather from 9:00am) and will end in the Old Market Square at 11:00am, followed by the #SikhsInTheSquare event where there will variety of family friendly activities till 4pm including:

Langar - Free vegetarian food for all

Childrens Corner - Arts and Crafts to entertain the youngsters

Turban Tying - Try having a turban tied or just see how it is done

Gatka - Sikh martial art sword fighting displays

Basics of Sikhi - Learn about the faith through discussions and talks

Meditation and Music

Sikhism is the world 5th largest religion and believes in One God. It preaches love, peace, equality and to stand up for truth and justice. The 3 core beliefs of Sikhi are to remember God, earn a honest living and to share what you have with others. It originated in the 15th century, in the Punjab region in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of the first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak Dev Jee.