The Sikh Parade or Nagar Kirtan as it is called by the Sikh community is an annual festival that celebrates the Gur-Guddee(inauguration) of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji (Sikh Holy Scripture). Yuba City has one of the largest Nagar Kirtan in America. In 2019, KCRA3 stated that there was a gathering of “an estimated 100,000 Sikhs…It’s the largest gathering of Sikhs in the country..”
When the Sikh religion was established by Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the key principle that he focused on was Seva: serving those in need. The tenth and last living guru, Guru Gobind Singh Ji focused on protecting the weak, as a result of this he created the Khalsa Panth, which are Sikhs that protect the weak. He also chose to dissolve the practice of the living gurus by compiling their teachings into what is now known as the Sikh Holy Book, Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji.
The key principles found within the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji are:
Sikhs believe there is only one God.
God is without form.
Everyone has direct access to God.
Everyone is equal before God
A good life is lived as part of a Sangat (community) that lives honestly by caring for each other through acts of service known as Seva.
These are the teachings and principles that all Sikhs carry, practice, and live by, and this is why over 100,000 Sikhs come together in Yuba City, California on the first Sunday of November, each year. With these teachings and principles in mind, the attorney General and the Gurdwara committee have decided that the annual Sikh Parade will not be held this year due to COVID-19.
As a member of the Sikh community, I (Navkirn Kaur Nijjar) wanted to inform the students at Yuba College why this religious event is not taking place. We here at the Prospector had the pleasure of interviewing two well-respected figures in the community, Karm Bains and Jaswant Singh Bains. Karm Bains is the director of the Tierra Buena Gurdwara, and his uncle, Jaswant Singh Bains is the president of the Gurdwara.
Throughout the interview Karm Bains, continuously stated that the safety of the Sikh community and parade goers was the Gurdwara’s top priority. After all it is a core belief of the Sikh community to protect those around them, especially the health and wellbeing of others.
From all over the world, thousands and thousands of people attend the Sikh Parade annually, and many of them have various health conditions that can worsen if exposed to COVID-19. Therefore, the decision to cancel the event is to prevent COVID-19 from spreading and potentially endangering the lives of millions.
Since the Sikh Parade is not taking place in order to ensure everyone’s safety, this has created a few setbacks for both attendees and organizers. For example, some setbacks that might occur according to the President of the Gurdwara, Jaswant Singh Bains are “surrounding businesses lose money, less interaction with the world, and people are less educated on the Sikh faith.”
Overall, this festival is a time for the Sikh community to teach the world what Sikhi (the Sikh Religion) is about. It creates an opportunity for the Sikh community to not only create stronger ties to their roots, but it also allows the community to clarify any misconceptions others may have about the Sikh faith. In addition to this, the Nagar Kirtan also creates an opportunity to celebrate the Punjabi culture and heritage. There are various activities that can be found in the open market known as the Bazaar which is on the Gurdwara grounds, and is open for service during the Nagar Kirtan. In this way, this allows the community to celebrate a small piece of Punjabi culture and heritage, despite being thousands of miles away from Punjab.
Although the parade cannot take place this year due to COVID-19, the Sikh Community looks forward to a healthier world once this pandemic is over. The Sikh community prays for the wellbeing of the world during this difficult time.
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