Hola Mohalla 2023

Hola Mohalla is a Sikh festival of martial skill, discipline and community, established by Guru Gobind Singh around the turn of the eighteenth century at Anandpur Sahib.

Hola Mohalla is a Sikh festival of martial skill, discipline and community, established by Guru Gobind Singh around the turn of the eighteenth century at Anandpur Sahib. Coming immediately after Holi, it redirected festive energy toward organised demonstrations of readiness, horsemanship, weapons practice and collective courage. Traditional Nihang groups remain especially visible in displays of gatka, riding and other martial arts, while the gathering also includes kirtan, poetry, religious discourse and vast community kitchens. The martial character is not separate from spiritual life: Sikh teaching links strength with responsibility to protect others and resist injustice rather than dominate the weak. At Anandpur Sahib the event draws large congregations and processions. Hola Mohalla thus brings together saintly devotion and soldierly discipline, celebrating physical skill, fearlessness, service and solidarity within the community.

Sikh tradition connects the festival's establishment in 1701 with Guru Gobind Singh's efforts to prepare the community for disciplined defence. The demonstrations of horsemanship and mock combat should be understood alongside the Guru's spiritual teaching, the Khalsa's commitments and the practice of seva. They are not permission for aggression against others. The historic gathering at Anandpur Sahib includes recitation from Guru Granth Sahib, kirtan and communal meals.

Hola Mohalla is linked to the spring Holi period but is a distinct Sikh observance. Large processions, especially those of Nihang Sikhs, may include traditional arms and martial exercises conducted within organized settings. Its main day is the first day of the month of Chet, the day after Holi. Three days at Kiratpur Sahib come first, and the three days at Anandpur Sahib end on the main day. The SGPC and the gurdwaras announce each year's programme.

Sikh celebration of courage, disciplined martial training, kirtan, community service and the duty to defend people against injustice.

Three days at Anandpur Sahib, with the Nihangs riding, gatka, tent-pegging and poetry, ending in a procession behind the Granth. Langar runs the whole time. Colour is played too, but it is not what the day is for.

The principal multi-day gathering is at Anandpur Sahib in Punjab; other Sikh communities may hold smaller observances. Confirm each year's dates and programme with local gurdwaras and Sikh authorities.