The Gurudwara of Paonta Sahib, built in the memory of the tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, holds very high historic and religious importance among Sikhs.
The Gurdwara is house of the book Dassam Granth, written by Guru Gobind Singh Ji himself. Important places inside the Gurdwara are- Shri Talab Asthan, used for distributing salariesand Shri Dastar Asthan, used for organizing turban tying competition.
At the surroundings of the Gurdwara you will find museum displaying the Weapons used at those times and the pens of Guruji. Another important places is the Kavi Darbar where poetry competition is held.
A Palki made of pure Gold, donated by one of the devotees is the live example of the religious importance of this Gurdwara.
Attached to the Gurdwara is the historic temple dedicated to Goddess Yamuna. You can also find a part adjacent to the Gurdwara with statues of Goddess Yamuna and many more personalities like Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru and Y.S Parmar, the first chief minister of Himachal Pradesh.
Holla Mohalla is a masculine word contrary to Hindu festival Holi which is feminine.Hola Mohalla or simply Hola means "mock fight".Holla Mohalla is an annual Sikh festival which starts on the first day of the Lunar Month of Chet in Nanekshahi calender.It is also considered as the new year beginning according to Nanekshahi calender.Tenth Sikh Guru Shri Guru Gobind Singh ji has started Hola festival at Anandpur Sahib in 1701.So Anandpur Sahib is the main Gurudwara to celebrate Holla Mohalla.
Holla's celebrations lasts for three days .On the first day of the festival Guru Grenth Sahib ji is given holy bath with milk and water Through out the day Gurubani is sung in very melodious way and religious lectures are given to the people..Langer (community lunch) is served at the Lengar Hall.People participate in the kar seva and perform varioue duties like preparing food ,serving Langer,cleaning streets where Guru Grenth sahib ji is taken for Nager Kirtan.,arranging shoes and many more..People all over the world come and restore their faith in the Khalsa Panth.
In the evening culture activities like Kavi Derbar ,Poetry competitions ,Destar compititions,and many other interesting and knowledgeable activities held throughout the night.
The Nihang Sikh ,who were the part of Sikh Army are the main attraction of the Nager kirtan . They are dressed in dark blue attire and saffron girdles.They move in the front of the Nager Kirtan and show their sword skills,horse riding and martial skills.
View Paonta Sahib Holla Mohalla 2010 procession
