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Town comes together for Sikh festival

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During the afternoon of April 14, a celebration of the Sikh festival Vaisakhi was held at Fifth Avenue Indian restaurant Mehtab.

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“It’s a great day, growing every year,” said owner Jag Thind of the annual affair at his restaurant.

“I love to see the people coming in and celebrating.”

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The group in attendance included members of council, a provincial election candidate, an academic expert, volunteer leaders, members of the Sikh community and other Cochrane residents eager to learn a little more about a rich culture.

Vaisakhi is many things to many people: A festival marking the birth of Sikh order, the founding of the Khalsa panth of warriors, a spring harvest festival and a solar new year.

“Hindus will celebrate it, Buddhists will celebrate it, Sikhs will celebrate it but for different reasons,” said Mount Royal University religious studies professor Dr. Michael Hawley.

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“For Sikhs, Vaisakhi is a really important turning point in the history of the religion.”

He continued, “Self-sacrifice and service: that is what a Sikh way of life is. It means putting other peoples interests ahead of their own. Sikhs are lifelong learners, and what they learn to do is get past their own ego.”

April is Sikh Heritage Month in Canada.

“Outside of India, Canada has the largest concentration of Sikhs in the world,” said Hawley, adding that the third-highest concentration within Canada is in Alberta.

“We’ve had Sikhs in this region of the country as early as 1903, before Alberta was Alberta. Sikhs helped to build this province.”

“Many times when we think about diversity, people think about differences between us,” said the UCP’s Peter Guthrie to those gathered at the event.

“Think about the similarities in our values. That value that we place on family, community and work ethic. I think that’s something that all of us share.”

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