Reading celebrates Sikh festival Vaisakhi with parade

Cumberland Road was filled with colour as many walked out to the sound of the procession.

Organised by Siri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara, the procession started at the Gurdwara in Cumberland Road at 10.30am making its way to the Gurdwara in London Road.

Free vegetarian food was then served during the afternoon. 

Marking the birth of the Khalsa (the pure ones), Vaisakhi is the most important date in the Sikh calendar that falls on the 14th of April every year.

Vaisakhi is celebrated in all major cities and towns across Britain over the last 40 years.

For the past 11 years, the Sikh community from Reading and Wokingham celebrate this event with a Nagar Kirtan (religious procession) which is usually attended by up to 2,000 people.

This year Vaisakhi was celebrated on Sunday, May 5.

This year the Sikh community is proud to be raising funds for The Cowshed.

As mentioned on their website – “The Cowshed is a compassionate and community-driven charity dedicated to providing support to individuals of all backgrounds during times of personal crisis. Our mission is simple yet impactful: to offer good quality, cleaned, and ironed clothes and other essential items free of charge to those in need. We firmly believe that everyone deserves access to basic necessities, regardless of their circumstances.”

Vaisakhi was supported by Thames Valley Police, Reading Borough Council, Wokingham Council and Royal Berkshire Fire Brigade.

Vaisakhi celebration concluded with a Nagar Kirtan, which generally takes place a few weeks after April 15.

Nagar Kirtan is a Punjabi term which means "Neighbourhood Hymn singing. The word "Nagar" means "neighbourhood and "Kirtan" is a term describing singing of Shabads (divine hymns).

The term refers to the procession of Sikh Sangat (Congregation) through the town singing holy hymns and spreading the message about the oneness of all mankind and its obligation and duty to worship a single God.

Sikhs have been part of the Reading community for more than 50 years and are well-established within the mainstream of British life.

A spokesman for the Sri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara in Reading said: " As a distinct religious group we get mistaken for many other faiths due to ignorance, media misrepresentation and an absence of Sikh religious education.

"Sikhs believe that all major faiths point to the same Divine Being and every person has the right to practise their faith as long as they do so without offending and harming other faiths. Nagar Kirtan is a way of educating the wider community of our existence, our being part of the wider society within the UK and it also serves to bring all the Sikhs together in a neighbourhood to celebrate and share a very important date in our calendar."

Siri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara Reading established since 1973 in partnership with Ramgarhia Sabha Reading Gurdwara established since 1976.