This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:
Sikhs bring a splash of colour and music to Leicester
by Tom Mack
More than 15,000 people were drawn to the city centre yesterday for one of the most colourful parades of the year.
The annual Vaisakhi procession saw people from Sikh temples all over the region parade through the centre of Leicester from the temple in Holy Bones, near St Nicolas Circle, to the temple in East Park Road, Evington.
Drums and religious songs reverberated through the streets as the crowds made there way along the three-mile route, with drinks and snacks to keep them going.
The procession was headed by a drummer on the back of a vehicle, followed by more than a dozen barefoot sweepers, clearing the streets with brooms ahead of the flag and sword bearers.
For Sikhs, Vaisakhi commemorates the founding in 1699 of the Sikh community, the Khalsa, and for Hindus marks the start of the New Year.
The first vehicle in the parade, with musicians and the scriptures known as the Guru Granth Sahib, was followed by dozens of school children. Behind them were more vehicles and thousands more people.
As the parade made its way through the city, more and more people joined in.
Gurjeet Kaur, 32, of the Narborough Road area of Leicester, who was there with her family, said: "We come every year and it's always a very happy event.
"People come from a long way away because this is the biggest event of the year for us and although there are others elsewhere in the UK, this is the best.
"There are thousands of people.
"We love coming to follow it through the city and sing traditional songs.
"There are snacks along the way to keep our energy up – lots of samosas and drinks."
Balbir Singh Ram, 40, of Braunstone Town, Leicester, was also there with his family.
He said: "I've done this every year since I was little and it's lovely on days like this when the sun's out.
"A lot of people join the parade as it moves along but a lot of other people, who aren't Sikhs, come and watch, so I think it's a good multi-cultural event as well.
"Leicester City Council and the police always make a big effort and they're to be applauded."
It was the first parade for three-year-old Gurnnoor Singh, of Belgrave.
His dad, Satinder, 42, said: "Last time he was in his pram so this is the first time he's walking and I'm sure he'll make it the whole way.
"It's a long way but we never feel tired because we're celebrating and so everyone's happy.
"It's a very nice event and it's lovely weather, too."
In the last four processions combined, more than £16,000 was collected for charities along the way.
This year the collection was in aid of Anthony Nolan, Leicester General Hospital's kidney unit, the Teenage Cancer Trust, the Sikh Organisation for Prisoner Welfare and the Sukrit Education Trust.
Leicester City councillor Inderjit Singh Gugnani, who represents Knighton ward, was among the organisers of the event.
He said: "The nicest thing about the day is when I see people from other communities opening their doors and being interested in what's happening."
This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:
It's wall-to-wall food as donations pour in
Food donations were delivered by the van-load as Leicester's Sikh community rallied together for a charity food drive.
More than 10,000 items, including canned goods, rice and pasta were collected on Saturday at the Guru Tegh Bahadur Gurdwara, in East Park Road, to coincide with a special day in the religion's calendar.
Vaisakhi celebrates Khalsa, the formation of the Sikh community in 1699. It is marked the world over by Sikh worshippers and is traditionally a time to help others.
Thousands of people took along bags of food to the charity event, as well as ordering items online and having them delivered to the venue by supermarket vans.
It was estimated that the total weight of the donations was about seven tons.
Amandeep Rai, of the Leicestershire Sikh Alliance, which organised the event, said: "It's been a constant stream of food, it's been amazing. We've had vans turning up with bags full of food – we've got at least 10,000 items, if not a lot more.
"We've had volunteers constantly sorting the food into piles, and the piles have just continued to grow."
Amandeep said one of the central beliefs of Khalsa was the principal of Seva, which means selfless service, and that was why the food drive had been organised.
The alliance will donate the collected food to a number of charities including FareShare Leicester, the British Red Cross and the Dawn Centre, a homeless shelter in Conduit Street, Leicester city centre.
Leicester South MP Jon Ashworth went along to show his support for the drive.
He said: "It's absolutely amazing – there's just wall-to-wall food. Tins of beans, rice, vegetables, pasta – anything you can think of, I'm so impressed.
"It's a tribute to the Leicester Sikh community which has really outdone itself."
Sikhs mark anniversary of 10th guru
People were invited to share a meal with Sikh worshippers to celebrate the anniversary of the 10th guru.
The celebration took place at Guru Tegh Bahadur, in East Park Road, Spinney Hills, Leicester, on Sunday.
Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th guru, was founder of the order of the Khalsa, a baptism which formalises a promise to fight injustice.
Members of the public were invited to share food in the gurdwara, which provides between 10,000 and 20,000 free meals a week.
Raj Singh Mann said: "Under the order of the Khalsa, Sikhs are given a kind of uniform, called the five ks, including shorts, a kind of dagger and a steel bracelet.
"From this point, you are duty bound to fight injustice and the reason the guru gave us this duty is because if you walk away from trouble when someone needs your help, people will see a Sikh walking away from trouble.
"That is why Sikh people often jump in to help when someone is in trouble."
The anniversary took place earlier this month, in accordance with the lunar calendar, but prayers were said on Sunday in line with the Gregorian calendar.
This email has been widely circulated today by
Leicestershire Sikh Alliance after the public vigil organised by Leicester Council of Faiths for victims of the shootings in the Oak Creek Gurdwara, Wisconsin.
Members of Leicester Council of Faiths who
attended the vigil appear to agree that the Council of Faiths did itself more good in the eyes of those present - City Councillors, local media - and especially the Sikh community of Leicester and Leicestershire - in 25 minutes last Sunday evening than it had in the
whole of the last 25 years. This spilled over into social media, with a lot of traffic on Twitter and coverage on Facebook in particular.
Since this was an event illumined by open demonstrations of friendship, support and sympathy across the boundaries of culture, language, nationality and race, it's appropriate to see it (and its ramifications for our city's communities) in the light of this quotation from Bahá'u'lláh's Hidden Words that came to my mind while I was there: "words are the property of all alike, whereas such deeds as these belong only to Our loved ones". Actions speak louder than words.
And that links so aptly with the invocation that opens the message below. This may be translated into English as, "The Khalsa belongs to God, all victory is the victory of God."
Vaheguru
Ji Ka Khalsa Vaheguru Ji Ki Fateh
With
hundreds of people in attendance, including all faith leaders, the
vigil for the victims of the Wisconsin Gurdwara massacre was a resounding
success. In these dark hours, it was amazing for all communities to come
together and start the healing process as one universal
Leicester community.
A big
thank you to Cllr Manjula Sood and Leicester Council of Faiths
for arranging this event. And an even bigger thank you to Cllr
Inderjeet Gugnani who was the unsung hero and hidden architect
for the whole event.
Also it
was great to hear Jon Ashworth MP's speech. "Tonight
we are all Sikhs", was very touching. Nice one
Jon! This massacre was the largest attack on the Sikh community
within the western hemisphere for over half a century. Is it therefore
right that only one MP from the City and County bothered to show? In one
word, "diabolical!".
Pictures
attached courtesy of Punjab2000
PukaarNews UK, online
news channel
JonAshworth MP's speech,
Leicester South
A few
words from Surinderpal Rai, General Secretary GTBG
A few
words from Amandeep Rai, Public Relations Officer LSA
A few
words from George M Ballentyne, Equality & Diversity Officer
LCOF
A few words
from Sharnjeet Kaur
Thanks
Amandeep Rai (Public Relations Officer for LSA)
Thousands of Sikhs on streets of Leicester for Vaisakhi
Thousands of worshippers took to the streets to celebrate one of the most important holidays in the Sikh calendar.
The festival of Vaisakhi brought a splash of colour to the city as dozens of brightly-coloured floats filled with singers and drummers led a procession.
The parade started at Guru Nanak Gurdwara, in Holy Bones, at noon.Thousands of people – many in orange turbans, scarves and robes – followed the procession, and handed out sweets and treats to onlookers.
For 10-year-old Ruben Benning it was a chance to spend time with friends and family.
The youngster, from Bushby, said: "Mostly I like it because I get to see lots of my friends along the way. It is a lot of fun.
"Also, the free food is really good."
Mum Ami, 41, said: "It is such a lovely, peaceful celebration and a chance to share our religion with each other and the rest of the city – one of the best in the world when it comes to celebrating and accepting other cultures.
"It makes me so happy when I see people from other cultures walking with us."
For Sikhs, Vaisakhi commemorates the founding in 1699 of the Sikh community, the Khalsa.
It is also observed by Hindus, who celebrate it as a harvest festival.
Hardeep Kaur, took part with her mother Amarjit, 52, and sons Dylan, eight, and Aaron, five.
Mrs Kaur, 33, from Evington, Leicester, said: "It is really important for me to bring my boys along to learn about their roots. If they do not get involved now, they won't when they are older.
"It is nice to walk around our city, too."
Dylan only had one thing on his mind. "I love the food," he said.
"That's my favourite part. It keeps me going on the long walk."
For De Montfort University students Mani Dhillon and Serina Devi, the festival was a chance to feel at home.
Serina, 19, said: "We like to come along to think about our families.
"The food does remind you of what you are missing from home, though."
Mani, 20, said: "It is also a chance to show we are proud of our values and beliefs."
The procession took several hours to reach Guru Tegh Bahadur Gurdwara, in East Park Road, Highfields.
There, many worshippers spent the rest of the day eating, celebrating and praying.
Red letter day on Sikh calendar
Thousands are expected to take part in a procession to mark the Sikh festival of Vaisakhi tomorrow.
It will start at the Guru Nanak Gurdwara in Holy Bones, Leicester, at 11.30am.
A route through the city centre will end at the Guru Teg Bahadur Gurdwara, in East Park Road, at about 2.30pm.
Vaisakhi celebrates harvest time in India and also marks the creation of the Khalsa, the Sikh baptism ceremony.
It is one of the most important dates in the Sikh calendar and about 15,000 people are expected to take part in the celebrations in Leicester.
Police are warning motorists to expect delays.
Inspector Jason Ross said: "Vaisakhi is the most important date for the Sikh community worldwide. We hope everyone who participates in this year's event, or watches the procession enjoys the celebrations.
"If motorists find themselves caught up in traffic, we would ask that they be patient until the procession ends."
Traffic diversions will be in place and officers will be patrolling to ensure a steady flow of traffic.
Organisers have encouraged participants to park near East Park Road and have arranged a shuttle bus to take them to Great Central Street.
Temporary no-waiting restrictions will be in place along the route of the procession but will be lifted afterwards.
