The Panj Pyaraa and Khalsa Initiates Gather in the Presence Of the Guru Granth
To begin the initiation ceremony, an attendant carries the Guru Granth to a low, draped platform. The prayer of Ardas, is said. The attendant reads the hukam,a randomly selected verse of scripture.
Five men or women who are baptized Sikhs, and who have not committed any breach of faithprepare and administer the immortalizing nectar of Amrit They are called the panj pyara:
- All the panj pyara gather around the bowl kneeling in with the left knee upright, while squatting on the right heel.
- The panj pyaras grasp and hold the edge of an iron bowl with both hands.
- One of the panj pyaras pours clean water into a bowl, and adds crystallized sugar.
- Another of the pyaras holds onto the bowl with the left hand, and with the right hand, holds a double edged iron sword. He or she stirs the sugar in to the water while reciting the first of five Amrit banis, or ceremonial prayers:
- Japji Sahib
- Jap Sahib
- Tev Prashad Swayae
- Benti Choapi
- Anand Sahib
Initiates should have bathed and washed hair their hair. They should wear:
- A turban or headscarf.
- Clean clothing.
- Kachherra – Sikh undergarment.
- Kanga – Wooden comb.
- Kara – Iron, or steel, bangle.
- Kirpan – Short curved sword.
- No kind of hat.
- No ornament piercing the body.
- No token of any other faith.
At the conclusion of the ceremonial prayers every one stands. One of the panj pyara offers the prayer of Ardas
