Women play dhol at a procession in Bistupur. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Jamshedpur, Oct. 19: The Sikh community today celebrated the 300th year of the formation of Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of the Sikhs and the eternal guru of the community.

The Central Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (CGPC) organised a nagar kirtan, a procession that started at Bistupur Gurdwara and culminated at Sakchi Gurdwara.

About 50,000 devotees participated in the procession.

“The Guru Granth Sahib is not only the holy book but also the last and the eternal guru after Guru Govind Singh. It was Guru Govind Singh, who instructed that no human being should serve as the next guru. Thus, the granth came into existence. The procession is meant to celebrate and pay respect to the holy book, which has guided the community for three centuries now,” said CGPC president Shailendra Singh.

Also known as Adi Granth, it was first compiled by the fifth guru of the Sikhs, Sri Arjan Dev, from hymns of the first five Sikh gurus and great saints from other religions.

Men in saffron turban women in saffron veils walked the 4km-long procession.

The students of all the gurdwara-run schools was also part of the celebrations.

“We enjoyed the rally. This is a very auspicious day for all the Sikhs all over the world. In the absence of a living guru we have the granth that is more a teacher to us,” said Simran Kaur, a devotee.

Deputy chief minister Sudhir Mahto, who was present at the procession today, said: “ The community has a history of serving the society, which has helped us keep our social fabric intact.”