Nanakshahi calendar

The Nanakshahi (Punjabi: ਨਾਨਕਸ਼ਾਹੀ, nānakshāhī, Shahmukhi Punjabi:نانک شاہی) calendar is a tropical solar calendar that is used in Sikhism and is based on the 'Barah Maha' (Punjabi: ਬਾਰਹ ਮਾਹਾ). Barah Maha was composed by the Sikh Gurus and translates as the "Twelve Months". It is a poem reflecting the changes in nature which are conveyed in the twelve-month cycle of the Year.[1] The year begins with the month of Chet, with 1 Chet corresponding to 14 March. The first year of the Nanakshahi Calendar starts in 1469 CE: the year of the birth of Guru Nanak Dev.[2]

Guru Nanak Dev Ji

Etymology

The Nanakshahi Calendar is named after the founder of the Sikh religion, Guru Nanak Dev Ji.[3]

History

Sikhs have traditionally recognised two eras and luni-solar calendars: the Nanakshahi and Khalsa. Traditionally, both these calendars closely followed the Bikrami calendar with the Nanakshahi year beginning on Katak Pooranmashi (full moon) and the Khalsa year commencing with Vaisakhi.[4] The methods for calculating the beginning of the Khalsa era were based on the Bikrami calendar. The year length was also the same as the Bikrami solar year.[5] According to Steel (2000), (since the calendar was based on the Bikrami), the calendar has twelve lunar months that are determined by the lunar phase, but thirteen months in leap years which occur every 2–3 years in the Bikrami calendar to sync the lunar calendar with its solar counterpart.[6] Kay (2011) abbreviates the Khalsa Era as KE.[7]

References to the Nanakshahi Era have been made in historic documents.[8] Banda Singh Bahadur adopted the Nanakshahi calendar in 1710 C.E. after his victory in Sirhind (12 May 1710 C.E.)[9] according to which the year 1710 C.E. became Nanakshahi 241. However, Singh (2008) states the date of the victory as 14 May 1710 CE.[10] According to Dilgeer (1997), Banda "continued adopting the months and the days of the months according to the Bikrami calendar".[11] Banda Singh Bahadur also minted new coins also called Nanakshahi.[12] Herrli (1993) states that "Banda is supposed to have dated his coins according to his new calendar. Although Banda may have proclaimed this era, it cannot be traced in contemporary documents and does not seem to have been actually used for dating".[13]According to The Panjab Past and Present (1993), it is Gian Singh who "is the first to use Nanak Shahi Samvats along with those of Bikrami Samvats" in the Twarikh Guru Khalsa.[14] According to Singha (1996), Gian Singh was a Punjabi author born in 1822.[15] Gian Singh wrote the Twarikh Guru Khalsa in 1891.[16]

The revised Nanakshahi calendar was designed by Pal Singh Purewal to replace the Bikrami calendar.[17] The epoch of this calendar is the birth of the first Sikh Guru, Nanak Dev in 1469 and the Nanakshahi year commences on 1 Chet. New Year's Day falls annually on what is 14 March in the Gregorian Western calendar.[18] The start of each month is fixed.[19] According to Kapel (2006), the solar accuracy of the Nanakshahi calendar is linked to the Gregorian civil calendar.[20] This is because the Nanaskhahi calendar uses the tropical year[21] instead of using the sidereal year which is used in the Bikrami calendar or the old Nanakshahi and Khalsa calendars.

The amended Nanakshahi calendar was adopted in 1998[22] but implemented in 2003[23][24] by the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee to determine the dates for important Sikh events. The calendar was implemented during the SGPC presidency of Sikh scholar Prof. Kirpal Singh Badungar at Takhat Sri Damdama Sahib in the presence of Sikh leadership.[18] Nanakshahi Calendar recognizes the adoption event, of 1999 CE, in the Sikh history when SGPC released the first calendar with permanently fixed dates in the Tropical Calendar. Therefore, the calculations of this calendar do not regress back from 1999 CE into the Bikrami era, and accurately fixes for all time in the future.[25]

Features of the Nanakshahi calendar (2003)

Features of the Original Nanakshahi calendar (2003 Version):[26][27]

• Uses the accurate Tropical year (365 Days, 5 Hours, 48 Minutes, 45 Seconds) rather than the Sidereal year
• Called Nanakshahi after Guru Nanak (Founder of Sikhism)
• Year 1 is the Year of Guru Nanak's Birth (1469 CE). As an example, August 15, 2020 CE is Nanakshahi 552.
• Is Based on Gurbani[28] – Month Names are taken from Guru Granth Sahib[29]
• Contains 5 Months of 31 days followed by 7 Months of 30 days
• Leap year every 4 Years in which the last month (Phagun) has an extra day
• Approved by Akal Takht in 2003[30]

Months

No.	Name	Punjabi	Days	Gregorian Months	Season[31]
1	Chet	ਚੇਤ	31	14 March – 13 April	Basant (Spring)
2	Vaisakh	ਵੈਸਾਖ	31	14 April – 14 May	Basant (Spring)
3	Jeth	ਜੇਠ	31	15 May – 14 June	Garikham (Summer)
4	Harh	ਹਾੜ	31	15 June – 15 July	Garisham (Summer)
5	Sawan	ਸਾਵਣ	31	16 July – 15 August	Rut Baras (Rainy season)
6	Bhadon	ਭਾਦੋਂ	30	16 August – 14 September	Rut Baras (Rainy season)
7	Assu	ਅੱਸੂ	30	15 September – 14 October	Sard (Autumn)
8	Katak	ਕੱਤਕ	30	15 October – 13 November	Sard (Autumn)
9	Maghar	ਮੱਘਰ	30	14 November – 13 December	Sisiar (Winter)
10	Poh	ਪੋਹ	30	14 December – 12 January	Sisiar (Winter)
11	Magh	ਮਾਘ	30	13 January – 11 February	Himkar (late Winter/early Spring)
12	Phagun	ਫੱਗਣ	30/31	12 February – 13 March	Himkar (late Winter/early Spring)

Controversy

In 2010, the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee ("SGPC") modified the calendar so that the dates for the start of the months are movable so that they coincide with the Bikrami calendar and changed the dates for various Sikh festivals so they are based upon the lunar phase. This has created controversy with some bodies adopting the original 2003 version, also called the "Mool Nanakshahi Calendar"[32] and others, the 2010 version.[33] By 2014, the SGPC had scrapped the original Nanakshahi calendar from 2003 and reverted to the Bikrami calendar entirely, however it was still published under the name of Nanakshahi.[34] The Sikh bodies termed it a step taken under pressure from the RSS and Shiromani Akali Dal.[35] There is also some controversy about the acceptance of the calendar altogether among certain sectors of the Sikh world.[27]

SGPC president, Gobind Singh Longowal, on 13 March 2018 urged all Sikhs to follow the current (2010) Nanakshahi calendar.[36] The previous SGPC President before Longowal, Prof. Kirpal Singh Badungar, tried to appeal the Akal Takht to celebrate the birthday of Guru Gobind Singh on 23 Poh (5 January) as per the original Nanakshahi calendar, but the appeal was denied.[37] The PSGPC and a majority of the other gurdwara managements across the world are opposing the modified version of the calendar citing that the SGPC reverted to the Bikrami calendar. They argue that in the Bikrami calendar, dates of many gurpurbs coincide, thereby creating confusion among the Sikh Panth.[35]

According to Ahaluwalia (2003), the Nanakshahi calendar goes against the use of lunar Bikrami dates by the Gurus themselves and is contradictory. It begins with the year of birth of Guru Nanak Dev, but the first date, 1 Chet, is when Guru Har Rai was installed the seventh Guru.[38] However, the first date of the Nanakshahi calendar (1 Chet) is based upon the Barah Maha of the Guru Granth Sahib, which has Chet as the first month.[39] Pal Singh Purewal, as reported in the Edmonton Journal (March 2018) has stated that his aims in formulating the Nanakshahi calendar were, "first and foremost, it should respect sacred holy scriptures. Second, it should discard the lunar calendar and use only a solar one. Third, all the dates should be fixed and not vary from year to year."[34] In reality however, state Haar and Kalsi (2009), the introduction of the Nanakshahi calendar has resulted in many festivals being "celebrated on two dates depending on the choice of the management of the local gurdwaras."[40]

Months (2010 version)

The start date of the months in the current Nanakshahi calendar are not fixed.[3]

No.	Name	Punjabi	Gregorian Months	Season[31]
1	Chet	ਚੇਤ	March – April	Basant (Spring)
2	Vaisakh	ਵੈਸਾਖ	April – May	Basant (Spring)
3	Jeth	ਜੇਠ	May – June	Garikham (Summer)
4	Harh	ਹਾੜ	June – July	Garisham (Summer)
5	Sawan	ਸਾਵਣ	July – August	Rut Baras (Rainy season)
6	Bhadon	ਭਾਦੋਂ	August – September	Rut Baras (Rainy season)
7	Assu	ਅੱਸੂ	September – October	Sard (Autumn)
8	Katak	ਕੱਤਕ	October – November	Sard (Autumn)
9	Maghar	ਮੱਘਰ	November – December	Sisiar (Winter)
10	Poh	ਪੋਹ	December – January	Sisiar (Winter)
11	Magh	ਮਾਘ	January – February	Himkar (late Winter/early Spring)
12	Phagun	ਫੱਗਣ	February – March	Himkar (late Winter/early Spring)

Festivals and events (2003 version)

Dates of observance of festivals as determined by reference to the 2003 version.

Festivals and events (Original Nanakshahi calendar)[41]	Nanakshahi date	Gregorian date
Guru Har Rai becomes the 7th Guru Nanakshahi New Year Commences	1 Chet	14 Mar
Guru Hargobind merges back to the Creator	6 Chet	19 Mar
The ordination of the Khalsa Birth of Guru Nanak (Vaisakhi Date)[42]	1 Vaisakh	14 Apr
Guru Angad merges back to the Creator Guru Amar Das becomes the 3rd Guru Guru Harkrishan merges back to the Creator Guru Tegh Bahadur becomes the 9th Guru	3 Vaisakh	16 Apr
Birth of Guru Angad, the 2nd Guru Birth of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the 9th Guru	5 Vaisakh	18 Apr
Birth of Guru Arjan, the 5th Guru	19 Vaisakh	2 May
Birth of Guru Amar Das, the 3rd Guru	9 Jeth	23 May
Guru Hargobind becomes the 6th Guru	28 Jeth	11 Jun
Guru Arjan, the 5th Guru, is martyred	2 Harh	16 Jun
Foundation Day of the Akaal Takht	18 Harh	16 Jun
Birth of Guru Hargobind, the 6th Guru	21 Harh	5 Jul
Miri-Piri is established by Guru Hargobind	6 Sawan	21 Jul
Birth of Guru Harkrishan, the 8th Guru	8 Sawan	23 Jul
The writing of the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh Scripture, is completed	15 Bhadon	30 Aug
Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh Scripture, is installed at the Golden Temple for the first time	17 Bhadon	1 Sep
Guru Amar Das merges back to the Creator Guru Ram Das becomes the 4th Guru Guru Ram Das merges back to the Creator Guru Arjan becomes the 5th Guru	2 Assu	16 Sep
Guru Angad becomes the 2nd Guru	4 Assu	18 Sep
Guru Nanak merges back to the Creator	8 Assu	22 Sep
Birth of Guru Ram Das, the 4th Guru	25 Assu	9 Oct
Guru Har Rai merges back to the Creator Guru Harkrishan becomes the 8th Guru The Guru Granth Sahib is declared as the Guru for all times to come by Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th and the last human Guru	6 Katak	20 Oct
Guru Gobind Singh merges back to the Creator	7 Katak	21 Oct
Guru Gobind Singh becomes the 10th Guru	11 Maghar	24 Nov
Guru Tegh Bahadur martyred in Delhi by Aurangzeb for defending the oppressed	11 Maghar	24 Nov
Ajit Singh, and Jujhar Singh, the two elder sons of Guru Gobind Singh, martyred in the battle of Chamkaur	8 Poh	21 Dec
Zorawar Singh, and Fateh Singh, the two younger sons of Guru Gobind Singh, executed in Sirhind	13 Poh	26 Dec
Birth of Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th Guru	23 Poh	5 Jan
Birth of Guru Har Rai, the 7th Guru	19 Magh	31 Jan

Movable dates for Sikh Festivals in the 2003 and 2010 versions. (These change every year in line with the Lunar Phase)[43]

Year	Hola Mohalla	Bandi Chhor Divas	Birth of Guru Nanak Dev
2003	19 Mar	25 Oct	8 Nov
2004	7 Mar	12 Nov	26 Nov
2005	26 Mar	1 Nov	15 Nov
2006	15 Mar	21 Oct	5 Nov
2007	4 Mar	9 Nov	24 Nov
2008	22 Mar	28 Oct	13 Nov
2009	11 Mar	17 Oct	2 Nov
2010	1 Mar	5 Nov	21 Nov
2011	20 Mar	26 Oct	10 Nov
2012	9 Mar	13 Nov	28 Nov
2013	28 Mar	3 Nov	17 Nov
2014	17 Mar	23 Oct	6 Nov
2015	6 Mar	11 Nov	25 Nov
2016	24 Mar	30 Oct	14 Nov
2017	13 Mar	19 Oct	4 Nov
2018	2 Mar	7 Nov	23 Nov
2019	21 Mar	27 Oct	12 Nov
2020	10 Mar	14 Nov	30 Nov

See also

• Punjabi calendar
• Indian national calendar
• Hindu calendar
• Bengali calendar

References

1. W. H. McLeod (2009). The A to Z of Sikhism. Scarecrow Press.
2. Singh, Jagraj (2009). A complete guide to Sikhism. Unistar Books.
3. J. Gordon Melton, Martin Baumann (2010) Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices, 2nd Edition [6 volumes]. ABC-Clio
4. Singh, Harbans (1998) The Encyclopaedia of Sikhism: S-Z. Publications Bureau
5. Proceedings – Punjab History Conference, Volume 27, Part 1 (1996) Punjabi University
6. Steel, Duncan (2000) v. Wiley
7. Kay, Michael (2011) XSLT 2.0 and XPath 2.0 Programmer's Reference. John Wiley & Sons
8. Harjinder Singh Dilgeer, A. T. Kerr (1995) Akal Takht Sahib. Sikh Educational Trust in collaboration with the Sikh University Centre, Denmark
9. Gandhi, Surjit Singh (1999) Sikhs in the Eighteenth Century: Their Struggle for Survival and Supremacy. Singh Bros
10. Singh, Patwant (2008) Empire of the Sikhs: The Life and Times of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Peter Owen
11. Dilgeer, Harjinder Singh (1997) The Sikh Reference Book. Sikh Educational Trust for Sikh University Centre, Denmark
12. Dhillon, Harish (2013) First Raj of the Sikhs: The Life and Times of Banda Singh Bahadur. Hay House
13. Herrli, Hans (1993) The Coins of the SikhsIndian Coin Societ
14. The Panjab Past and Present, Volume 27, Issue 1. Department of Punjab Historical Studies, Punjabi University
15. Siṅgha, Sukhadiāla (1996) Historical analysis of Giani Gian Singh's writings.UICS
16. The Panjab Past and Present, Volume 32 (2001) Department of Punjab Historical Studies, Punjabi University
17. Chilana, Rajwant Singh (2006) International Bibliography of Sikh Studies. Springer Science & Business Media
18. "What is the Sikh Nanakshahi calendar". allaboutsikhs.com. Archived from the original on 10 May 2008. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
19. Abstracts of Sikh Studies, Volume 5 (2003) Institute of Sikh Studies
20. Kepel, Martin (2006) The Structure and Mathematics of the Principal Calendars of the Western World: Muslim, Gregorian, Jewish, and Other Systems. Edwin Mellen Press
21. Melton, J. Gordon (2011) Religious Celebrations: L-Z. ABC-Clio
22. Louis E. Fenech, W. H. McLeod (2014) Historical Dictionary of Sikhism. Rowman & Littlefield
23. Knut A. Jacobsen (2008) South Asian Religions on Display: Religious Processions in South Asia and in the Diaspora. Routledge
24. Nesbitt, Eleanor (2016) Sikhism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press
25. Bodiwala, Community Contributor Suresh. "Sikh Religious Society Organizes Two -day Conference in Chicago to Implement Mool Nanakshahi Calendar". Naperville Sun. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
26. Abstracts of Sikh Studies, Volume 5 (2003) Institute of Sikh Studies
27. "Nanakshahi Calendar at BBC". BBC. 29 July 2003. Retrieved 9 May 2008.
28. Singh Purewal, Pal. "Gurbani And Nanakshahi Calendar" (PDF). www.purewal.biz. purewal.biz. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
29. "Bara Maha – SikhiWiki, free Sikh encyclopedia". www.sikhiwiki.org. sikhiwiki.org. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
30. Parkash, Chander (14 March 2003). "Nanakshahi calendar out". www.tribuneindia.com. The Tribune. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
31. Kohli, Surindar Singh (1992) A Conceptual Encyclopaedia of Guru Granth Sahib.Manohar Publishers & Distributors
32. Chicago Tribune (18 November 2017) Sikh Religious Society Organizes Two-day Conference in Chicago to Implement Mool Nanakshahi Calendar
33. Singh, Surjit( 6 March 2018) Hindustan Times) HT Explainer: Know about the controversial Nanakshahi calendar
34. Sikhs around world celebrate new year using Edmonton man's calendar (14 March 2018) Edmonton Journal by Juris Graney
35. Singh, Surjit (6 March 2018). "HT Explainer: Know about the controversial Nanakshahi calendar". Hindustan Times. HT Media. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
36. Tribune India (14.03.2018) SGPC: Follow Nanakshahi calendar
37. Singh, Surjit (13 November 2017). "Guru Gobind Singh's birth anniversary: Akal Takht rejects SGPC plea to extend parkash parv date". Hindustan Times. HT Media. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
38. Āhalūwālīā, Jasabīra Siṅgha (2003) Liberating Sikhism from 'the Sikhs': Sikhisim's [sic] Potential for World Civilization. Unistar books
39. Singh Purewal, Pal. "Reply to Mr. Gurcharanjit Singh Lamba's criticism of Nanakshahi Calendar first implemented in 1999 CE" (PDF). www.purewal.biz. purewal.biz. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
40. Haar, Kristen and Kalsi, Sewa Singh (2009) Sikhism. Infobase Publishing
41. Singh Purewal, Pal. "Gurpurbs (Fixed Dates)" (PDF). www.purewal.biz. purewal.biz. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
42. Singh Purewal, Pal. "Birth Date of Guru Nanak Sahib" (PDF). www.purewal.biz. purewal.biz. Retrieved 4 February 2018.
43. Singh Purewal, Pal. "Movable Dates of Gurpurbs (Change Every Year)" (PDF). www.purewal.biz. purewal.biz. Retrieved 13 March 2018.

External links

• Purewal.biz, the website of Mr. Pal Singh Purewal, the creator of the Nanakshahi Calendar, this site contains detailed articles about this calendar.
• Nanakshahi Calendar at BBC
• Nanakshahi.net A website to get the Nanakshahi Calendar info and get Sikh Holiday dates, based on an Open Source JavaScript Library.