Hundreds gather for Sikh New Year in Selma
SELMA, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – As part of a worldwide celebration, the Sikh community gathered by the hundreds in Selma for the 30th annual Sikh Day Parade on Sunday.
The annual Vaisakhi parade is just one of thousands around the world as the festival, known as Nagar Kirtan, marks the birth of the Khalsa (The Pure) order by the 10th Guru of Sikhism on April 13, 1699.
“This is a huge deal for the Sikh-American community…Vaisakhi stands for equity, equality, humanity, human rights, and the birth of Khalsa and our community is super excited,” said volunteer Grudeep Shergill.
The parade, organized by the Sikh Center of the Pacific Coast, marked the beginning of the Sikh New Year. The parade pulled together the Sikh community not just from the Central Valley, but from other parts of California as well.
“That is what Sikhism is all about. It’s about community service and unity. And we love celebrating Guru Granth Sahib Ji, and we just love getting together and helping out,” said Shergill.
He adds the event is representative of the core values of Sikhism.
“So anybody can come to the Gurdwara. It doesn’t matter who you are, what race— it doesn’t matter. So if you’re hungry and you wanna learn about our community, you wanna share bread with us you are welcome. Everything you see here is complimentary… It’s all about giving back to the community,” Shergill said.
