According to Nanaksahi calendar, Baisakhi festival is the first day of Vaishakh month (April-May). It is popularly known as Vaisakhi. Gregorian calendar shows that Baisakhi comes on every year on April 13. It falls on April 14 once in 36 years.

Baisakhi indicates the beginning of the spring season and end of harvesting rabi crop for Indian farmers. This festival is celebrated with great joy in Punjab and Haryana. The farmers pray to the God for success in the coming year. Sikh people celebrate this day by waking up early and taking a dip in holy rivers. They dress up in Punjabi attires and does Bhangra dance to express the joy.

Significance

The sikh community celebrates Baisakhi as the birthday of their tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Songh and foundation of the Khalsa (Sikh brotherhood). It has great significance in Sikhism. They celebrate this day with great enthusiasm and joy.

This day has astrologically significant in many other ways too. It marks the sun’s entry into Mesh Rashi. So, it is sometimes called Mesha Sankranti. In Assam, people celebrate Baisakhi as ‘Rongali Bihu’ while in Bengal it is said ‘Naba Barsha’.