Quick Facts Summary: A Sikh festival celebrating the birth of the founder of the faith Guru Nanak 2020 Date: 30th November Celebrated by: Sikhs, Nanakpanthis, parts of India (as a National Holiday) Linked Holidays: Gurpurab festivals, Vaisakhi (Sikhism) Background and Theological Significance Guru Nanak Gurpurab, also known as Guru Nanak Jayanti and Guru Nanak’s Prakash […]
Quick Facts Summary: a five-day ‘festival of lights’ celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists 2020 Date: 14th November (regional variations) and two days either side Celebrated by: Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Indians Linked Holidays: Tihar and Swanti (Nepalese variations of Diwali), Bandi Chhor Divas (Sikhism), Raksha Bandhan (Hinduism), Galungan (Balinese Hinduism), Kali Puja (Hinduism) […]
Quick Facts and Stats Summary: Hindu Chariot procession, specifically the procession of Lord Jaganath, his elder brother and younger sister, to Lord Jaganath’s birthplace and the temple of their Aunt in Puri in the Indian state of Odisha 2019 Date: July 4th, date varies Celebrated by: Hindus, Indians especially in the East of the subcontinent. […]
Quick Facts Summary: a Jain festival celebrating the birth of Mahavira 2020 Date: 6th April Celebrated by: Jains, Indians (as a National Holiday) Linked Holidays: Diwali (Jainism), Buddha Jayanti (Buddhism) Background and Theological Significance Jainism developed in the Dharmic theological tradition that originated and evolved in the Indian subcontinent over the course of thousands of […]
Quick Facts and Stats Summary: Hindu celebration of the Birth of Lord Ramachandra, the Seventh Avatar of Vishnu. 2020 Date: 2nd April Celebrated by: Hindus Linked Holidays: Maha-Shivaratri, Ratha Yatra, Kalashtami, Navaratri. Background and Theological Significance Central to Hindu theology is the concept of divinities returning again and again in different forms or Avatars. In […]
Quick Facts and Stats Summary: Hindu celebration of Spring, Love, and Forgiveness 2020 Date: March 9th – 10th Celebrated by: Hindus, Indians Linked Holidays: Diwali, Lohri, Easter Background and Theological Significance Holi is an ancient festival from the Indian subcontinent that traditionally marks the arrival of Spring and the end of Winter. The celebrations are […]
Quick Facts and Stats Summary: A Festival dedicated to the god Shiva. 2020 Date: 21st February Celebrated by: Hindus Linked Holidays: Ram Navami, Janmashtami, Raksha Bandhan. Background and Theological Significance Maha-Shivaratri, ‘The Great Night of Shiva’ is the most important night of the year for the worshippers of Shiva. The day before each month’s New […]
Quick Facts and Stats Summary: Winter Solstice Festival commemorating the deaths of forty Sikh Martyrs 2020 Date: 15th January Celebrated by: Sikhs Linked Holidays: Lohri, Winter Solstice Background and Theological Significance Maghi has its origins in the wars fought between the Sikh community, the Khalsa, and the Mughal Empire in the 1600s and 1700s. It […]
