Khalsa
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Khalsa which means 'Pure' is the name given by Guru Gobind Singh to all Sikhs who have been baptised or Initiation by taking Amrit in ceremony called Amrit Sanchar. The first time that this ceremony took place was on Baisakhi, which fell on 30 March 1699 at Anandpur Sahib in India. The Sikhs celebrated the 300th anniversary of the day in 1999 with thousands of religious gatherings all over the world.
Historically, the first male child of all families of Hindus in the Punjab was ordained as a Sikh. However, the majority of Sikhs are descended from those who voluntarily chose to follow the teachings of the Gurus later in life.
The Khalsa must carry the 5Ks – Five Kakkars – Kara steel bangle, Kesh –uncut hair, Kirpan – (Kirpa (act of kindness, Sanskrit) + Aan (self respect, Persian) sword (the length cannot be limited)), Kanga – small comb and Kacha – Shorts/Pants
All Sikhs were taught to treat all in the community as equals; no distinction was made of the different tiers of 'craftsmen' and professions.
External links
- SikhLionz.com (http://www.sikhlionz.com)
- Baisakhi1999.org (http://www.baisakhi1999.org/main.htm)
- bbc.co.uk (http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/sikhism/index.shtml)
- Anandpursahib.org (http://www.anandpursahib.org/)
- Wealth of Khalsa information (http://www.info-sikh.com)
- AllaboutSikhs.com (http://allaboutsikhs.com/way/baisakhi.htm)
- The Story of the Creation of the Khalsa (http://www.users.freenetname.co.uk/~sdhillon/other/khalsa.htm)