Maastarji · Crossword № 9

Hola Mohalla: The Sikh Festival of Martial Spirit

16 × 15 · 7 across · 6 down · medium · Ages 9-14
Name
Date
Time
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Across

  1. 2 The Takht at Anandpur Sahib where the grand Hola Mohalla procession begins, led by the Panj Pyare.
  2. 4 The devotional singing that runs alongside the martial displays at Hola Mohalla — body and spirit trained together.
  3. 8 A seat of Sikh authority — Anandpur Sahib is home to one of the five in the Sikh world, called Keshgarh Sahib.
  4. 9 The fort at Anandpur Sahib where Guru Gobind Singh Ji organised the very first Hola Mohalla gathering in 1701.
  5. 10 The city in Punjab where Guru Gobind Singh Ji held the first Hola Mohalla in 1701, and where hundreds of thousands still gather today.
  6. 12 The community of initiated Sikhs for whom Guru Gobind Singh Ji designed Hola Mohalla as a gathering of martial readiness and spiritual discipline.
  7. 13 The free community kitchen that operates at massive scale during Hola Mohalla — everyone sits in pangat and eats the same food.

Down

  1. 1 The steel quoits worn in the towering turbans of Nihang Singhs — traditional weapons as well as adornment.
  2. 3 The rows in which everyone sits together at the Langar, eating the same food — a sign of equality before Waheguru.
  3. 5 The 1699 festival when Guru Gobind Singh Ji founded the Khalsa — just two years before the first Hola Mohalla.
  4. 6 The traditional Sikh martial art performed at Hola Mohalla with real swords, spears, sticks, and shields.
  5. 7 The warrior order that has preserved Sikh martial traditions for over 300 years, wearing blue bana and towering turbans at Hola Mohalla.
  6. 11 The war drums that accompany Hola Mohalla processions, just as they did when Guru Gobind Singh Ji held the very first gathering.