The story behind the day
Hola Mohalla is a Sikh festival of martial skill held at Anandpur Sahib in Punjab in March, the day after Holī. By Sikh tradition it was begun by Guru Gobind Singh as a gathering where the Khalsa could show its fighting skills in simulated battles, in place of the colour-throwing of the Hindu spring festival. Nihang Sikhs in traditional dress lead the procession, and large crowds still assemble. This calendar places it two days after the full moon of Phālguna, the day after Holī.[1–5]
Origins
The Encyclopaedia of Sikhism traces the custom to Guru Gobind Singh's day and says he held the first such march at Anandpur on the first day of the dark half of Chet, 1757 in the Bikrami calendar, which it equates with 22 February 1701. The SGPC gives the same Bikrami date and names the place as the site of the fort called Holgarh. A standard dictionary of world religions instead says that Guru Gobind Singh gave Holī a specifically Sikh character in 1680, so the sources differ on when the festival began.[2, 6–7]
What it marks
The festival marks the Guru's reshaping of an existing spring festival. Where Holī is a time for sprinkling coloured water and powder, Hola Mahalla gave the Sikhs an occasion to demonstrate martial skill in simulated battles. The SGPC calls a mahalla a kind of mock battle, played with swords, spears and lances by infantry, cavalry and armed Singhs, with a robe of honour for the winning group. It says the Guru wanted to make the Khalsa proficient in the art of war, and a reference work adds that he meant to turn people's energies to military exercises by way of organised athletic and literary contests.[3–4, 8–9]
How it came to be
Hola Mahalla grew into an annual tournament on open ground beside Holgarh Fort at Anandpur Sahib, across the stream called the Charan Gangā. It is reckoned by the lunar month, falling on the first of Chet, in March, whereas Baisakhi follows the solar calendar. Sikhs in large numbers still assemble at Anandpur, and the SGPC says that lakhs of the sangat reach Anandpur Sahib, Paonta Sahib and Hazur Sahib each year; at Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib it is celebrated with the community's grandeur.[6, 10–11]
How it is kept
The Nihangs, who in the words of one reference work are the most militant faction of Sikhism and regard themselves as heirs to the Khalsa army of Guru Gobind Singh, conduct mock battles at Hola Mohalla each March. A colourful procession winds through Anandpur with the Nihangs at its head, in their traditional dress. The SGPC describes a Nihang as a staunch Sikh who is invariably dressed in blue, traces the order to a son of Guru Gobind Singh, and places its headquarters at Damdama Sahib.[5, 12]
Sources
Each statement above was checked against published sources; the verdict says whether it stood as written, was corrected or was hedged.
- VerifiedEncyclopaedia of Sikhism, Holā Mahallā; SGPC, Khalse da Hola Mahalla; A.-P. S. Mandair, Sikhism, Encyclopedia of India, via Encyclopedia.com.
- VerifiedEncyclopaedia of Sikhism; sgpc.net.
- VerifiedEncyclopaedia of Sikhism; sgpc.net.
- VerifiedEncyclopaedia of Sikhism; sgpc.net; Mandair, via Encyclopedia.com.
- VerifiedEncyclopaedia of Sikhism; World Religions Reference Library, Sikhism.
- VerifiedEncyclopaedia of Sikhism; sgpc.net.
- VerifiedConcise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions; Encyclopaedia of Sikhism; sgpc.net.
- Verifiedsgpc.net; Sikhism, P. Singh, Gale, via Encyclopedia.com.
- VerifiedReiniche, Holī, Encyclopedia of Religion, via Encyclopedia.com; Encyclopaedia of Sikhism.
- VerifiedEncyclopaedia of Sikhism; Mandair, via Encyclopedia.com.
- VerifiedEncyclopaedia of Sikhism; sgpc.net.
- VerifiedWorld Religions Reference Library, Sikhism via Encyclopedia.com; SGPC, Nihang.