1 Vaisakh, solar calendar • April 13 or 14 (2027: April 14 · 2028: April 13)

Vaisakhi: harvest gold and the birthday of the Khalsa

Harvest gold and the birthday of the Khalsa

Vaisakhi falls on the first day of the solar month of Vaisakh, 13 or 14 April, and carries two meanings at once. For Sikhs it is the birthday of the Khalsa, founded by Guru Gobind Singh at Anandpur Sahib in 1699; for Punjab it is the harvest festival, when the winter wheat turns gold. In 2027 it falls on Wednesday 14 April, in 2028 on 13 April. The heart of the day is the gurdwara: kirtan from dawn, a fresh saffron cloth on the flagpole, and langar for everyone who sits down.

Countdown14 April 2027
When14 April 2027

The Sikh New Year and the birthday of the Khalsa, when Punjab's wheat turns gold

The day the Sun enters Aries (Mesha Sankranti). The Punjab and central holiday lists confirm it.

The legend

🌾

Vaisakhi is a harvest festival: by the first day of the month of Vaisakh, Punjab's wheat is ripe.

⚔️

On this day in 1699, at Anandpur Sahib, Guru Gobind Singh asks the gathering who is ready to give their head for their faith.

✋

At the third call Daya Ram steps forward, then four more. All five come back from the tent unharmed: the Panj Pyare, the five beloved ones.

🥣

The Guru stirs water in an iron bowl with a double-edged sword, adds sugar and recites hymns: the amrit of the Khalsa initiation is born.

🚩

Ever since, Vaisakhi is the Khalsa's birthday and the start of the Sikh year: hymns fill the gurdwaras, and the flag gets new cloth.

Meaning

Punjab

The harvest is in: villages and towns go to the fairs and dance bhangra to the dhol drum.

Haridwar

Hindus hold that the Ganga came down from heaven on this day, and Haridwar hosts one of the biggest Vaisakhi fairs.

Kerala

A day later comes Vishu: the morning opens on vishukkani, a lucky sight of flowers, grain and fruit.

Assam and Bengal

The same days bring their own new year: Bohag Bihu in Assam and Pohela Boishakh in Bengal.

Hindus

The day calls for a river bath and giving: hand fans, water pitchers and seasonal fruit.

Customs

🚩 Nishan Sahib

The saffron flag outside the gurdwara is lowered and dressed in new cloth.

🥣 Amrit Sanchar

Many gurdwaras hold the Khalsa initiation today, and at the end karah prasad is shared equally among all.

🥁 Nagar Kirtan

The Guru Granth Sahib is carried through the streets with hymns and music, while teams display gatka, the Sikh martial art.

Langar

The community kitchen feeds everyone who sits in the rows, of any faith; a hand in the kitchen is always welcome.

What people eat

🍯 Karah prasad

flour, ghee and sugar in equal measure, a sign of equality

Words of the festival

ਵਿਸਾਖੀ

Vaisakhi

the first day of Vaisakh, the solar new year

ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ

Khalsa

the order of initiated Sikhs, founded in 1699

ਪੰਜ ਪਿਆਰੇ

Panj Pyare

"the five beloved", the first to be initiated

ਨਿਸ਼ਾਨ ਸਾਹਿਬ

Nishan Sahib

the saffron flag over every gurdwara

ਭੰਗੜਾ

bhangra

Punjab's harvest dance to the dhol drum

How to greet

ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂ ਜੀ ਕਾ ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ, ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂ ਜੀ ਕੀ ਫ਼ਤਹਿ

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh!

"The Khalsa belongs to God, and victory belongs to God": the greeting Guru Gobind Singh introduced.

True or myth

Vaisakhi always falls on 13 or 14 April.

✅ True. It follows the solar calendar, so in this century its date barely moves.

Vaisakhi is a Sikh-only festival.

❌ Myth. Hindus keep it as the solar new year and a harvest festival, and it is older than Sikhism.

The equal parts in karah prasad are deliberate.

✅ True. Equal measures of flour, ghee and sugar stand for the equality of men and women.

Where to celebrate

Chandigarh

Around Chandigarh Vaisakhi belongs to the gurdwaras, with a fair on the side: Nada Sahib fills from the morning, and Anandpur Sahib, where the Khalsa was founded, is about 100 km away.

Delhi

In Delhi Vaisakhi is a gurdwara day: kirtan from dawn at Bangla Sahib and Sis Ganj Sahib, devotees at the sarovar, and langar kitchens serving everyone who sits down.

What happens on Vaisakhi

Gurdwaras fill from early morning with kirtan, the singing of hymns from the Guru Granth Sahib. Outside, the Nishan Sahib, the saffron flag that stands over every gurdwara, is lowered and dressed in new cloth. Many gurdwaras hold Amrit Sanchar, the initiation into the Khalsa, which ends with karah prasad, a sweet of flour, ghee and sugar in equal measure, shared equally among all.

Later a Nagar Kirtan carries the Guru Granth Sahib through the streets with hymns and music, while teams display gatka, the Sikh martial art. In the langar, the free community kitchen, everyone sits in rows on the floor and eats the same meal, whatever their faith.

In the Punjab countryside the harvest is in, and villages and towns go to the fairs and dance bhangra to the dhol drum. Hindus keep the day as the solar new year, with a river bath and gifts of hand fans, water pitchers and seasonal fruit, and Haridwar hosts one of the biggest Vaisakhi fairs. Around the same days much of India greets its own new year: Bohag Bihu in Assam, Pohela Boishakh in Bengal, Vishu in Kerala, Puthandu in Tamil Nadu.

Where to spend Vaisakhi

Any gurdwara keeps the day and welcomes visitors. These are the places where it is biggest.

Amritsar, the Golden Temple

One of the temple’s fullest days. Pilgrims bathe in the sarovar (sacred pool) from before dawn, the queue to the sanctum stretches across the causeway, kirtan runs all day, and the langar serves festival jalebi, laddu and kheer. After the evening prayer, Rehras Sahib, oil lamps are lit and fireworks rise over the pool. Jallianwala Bagh, a few minutes’ walk away, marks the anniversary of the 1919 massacre every 13 April (open 06:30–19:00 from April to September, free). Stay in the old city within walking distance; the SGPC’s pilgrim lodges beside the complex are booked through the SGPC.

Anandpur Sahib and Talwandi Sabo

The two biggest Vaisakhi gatherings in Punjab. Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib at Anandpur Sahib, where the Khalsa was founded, holds a three-day programme with an akhand path (unbroken reading of the scripture) ending on Vaisakhi, and a Nagar Kirtan; Takht Sri Damdama Sahib at Talwandi Sabo holds a three-day fair. Anandpur Sahib is a small town with its own station, about 100 km from Chandigarh: book a room there early.

Chandigarh

Gurdwara Nada Sahib in Panchkula, about 8 km from the railway station, and Gurdwara Amb Sahib in Mohali fill for the day. Kalagram’s Vaisakhi Utsav brings Punjabi folk music and dance in the evenings (12–13 April in 2026, free), and Haryana Tourism holds a Baisakhi fair at Yadavindra Gardens, Pinjore.

Delhi

A gurdwara day: kirtan from dawn at Bangla Sahib near Connaught Place, with its sarovar and one of the city’s biggest langar kitchens, and at Sis Ganj Sahib on Chandni Chowk. In 2026 the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee held Amrit Sanchar at Rakab Ganj Sahib, next to Parliament House. No booking needed.

✅ Gurdwara etiquette

Gurdwaras are open to everyone, and the rules are simple.

  • Cover your head — Everyone, men and women. Scarves are usually available at the entrance.
  • Shoes off — Leave shoes at the shoe counters before you enter.
  • Langar — Sit in a row on the floor and take the meal as it is served. A hand in the kitchen is always welcome.
  • Photos — At the Golden Temple phone photos are allowed, video recording is not. Watch the Nagar Kirtan from the side and ask before photographing people. Amrit Sanchar is a ceremony for those taking amrit, not a spectacle.
  • Come early — At the Golden Temple, where ordinary days bring 1–1.25 lakh visitors and big occasions roughly double that, the sarovar and the queue fill before dawn. Sleep nearby the night before.

The story of 1699

On Vaisakhi in 1699 Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, gathered the community at Anandpur Sahib in the Shivalik foothills and asked who was ready to give his head for the faith. By Sikh tradition, at the third call Daya Ram stepped forward, then four more. All five came back from the Guru’s tent unharmed: the Panj Pyare, the five beloved ones, the first to be initiated. The Guru stirred water in an iron bowl with a double-edged sword, added sugar and recited hymns, and so the amrit of the Khalsa initiation was born.

The greeting he introduced is still heard everywhere on the day: “Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh”, the Khalsa belongs to God, and victory belongs to God. In Amritsar the day carries a second memory: on Vaisakhi in 1919 troops fired on the crowd at Jallianwala Bagh, and the memorial garden near the temple is quiet even on the busiest day.

❓ FAQ

When is Vaisakhi in 2027?

On Wednesday 14 April 2027. It follows the solar calendar, so it always falls on 13 or 14 April: 14 April in 2026, 13 April in 2028.

What is Vaisakhi and why is it celebrated?

It is the birthday of the Khalsa, founded by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699, and the harvest festival of Punjab. Hindus also keep it as the solar new year.

Is Vaisakhi the Sikh New Year?

In a sense. Traditionally the Khalsa year begins on Vaisakhi, and the Punjabi solar calendar starts on 1 Vaisakh. The Nanakshahi calendar, however, begins its year on 1 Chet, 14 March, so “the Khalsa’s birthday” is the more precise name.

What do people eat on Vaisakhi?

Whatever the langar serves: at the Golden Temple, festival jalebi, laddu and kheer alongside the usual meal. Karah prasad, flour, ghee and sugar in equal parts, is shared after prayers and the Amrit Sanchar.

How do you greet someone on Vaisakhi?

“Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh” is the Sikh greeting; a simple “Happy Vaisakhi” is understood everywhere.

Sources (11)
  1. Central government holiday list 2027 (DoPT, via CSIR)
  2. SGPC: Nanakshahi calendar
  3. Vaisakhi Mela, Punjab Tourism
  4. Nanakshahi calendar
  5. SGPC sarai (pilgrim lodges)
  6. Sri Keshgarh Sahib, Rupnagar district
  7. Nada Sahib, Panchkula district
  8. Baisakhi Mela, Haryana Tourism
  9. Golden Temple photo rules, The Tribune
  10. Golden Temple footfall, The Tribune
  11. Nation pays tribute to Jallianwala Bagh martyrs, AIR
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