Bandi Chhor Divasਬੰਦੀ ਛੋੜ ਦਿਵਸ

Bandi Chhor Divas is the Sikh festival of lights, kept on the same day as Diwali. It honours the release of Guru Hargobind Ji, the sixth Sikh Guru, from Gwalior Fort in 1619, together with 52 captive princes whom he refused to leave behind. Gurdwaras mark the day with lamps, kirtan and fireworks, and the night glows brightest at the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar.

The story of 1619

Guru Hargobind Ji succeeded his father, Guru Arjan Dev Ji, in 1606, at just eleven years old, wearing two swords, miri and piri, the symbols of temporal and spiritual authority. The young Guru’s growing influence alarmed the Mughal emperor Jahangir, who had him imprisoned in Gwalior Fort. The Guru remained a political prisoner for years while thousands of devotees gathered outside the fort, waiting for his release. Pressure mounted on Jahangir from his own court and the people, and he eventually ordered the Guru’s release, but only the Guru’s.

Sikh tradition dates the Guru’s release to 1619, but historians note that the details vary between accounts. Some place his internment as early as 1609, with release in 1611 or 1612, while the Persian Dabistan-i-Mazahib suggests he was held in Gwalior between 1617 and 1619 and kept under watch even after his release. The reasons given for his imprisonment vary too, from an unpaid fine imposed on Guru Arjan to reports that the Guru was building an army at Amritsar. What Sikh memory holds fast through every version is the release itself, and the fifty-two who walked out with him.

Why 52 princes walked free

Guru Hargobind Ji refused to leave the fort without the 52 princes imprisoned alongside him. When Jahangir set the condition that only those who could hold onto the Guru’s cloak might walk free, the Guru had a special cloak made with 52 long tassels, one for each prince. Each prince held a tassel, and all 52 walked out to freedom with him. The preserved robe, known as the bavanja kalian vala chola, is kept in a glass case at Gurdwara Sri Chola Sahib in Ghudani Kalan, Punjab. The Guru reached Amritsar on the day of Diwali, and the city lit thousands of lamps to welcome him, the first Deepmala, a tradition that continues to this day.

Sikh accounts describe the freed prisoners as 52 Rajput rajas of the hill chieftainships, held by Jahangir for months. A gurdwara, Gurdwara Data Bandi Chhor Sahib, now stands at the place of the Guru’s internment inside Gwalior Fort, so pilgrims can stand where the story began.

How Bandi Chhor Divas is celebrated

On Bandi Chhor Divas, gurdwaras around the world are illuminated and filled with the sound of kirtan. Congregations hold Akhand Paath, the continuous reading of Guru Granth Sahib Ji, followed by Nagar Kirtan processions through the streets, Ardas, and the distribution of Karah Prasad. Langar, the free community kitchen, serves everyone who comes, with special sweet dishes added for the occasion. Homes are cleaned and decorated with oil lamps and candles, and families gather to share the festival meal.

Deepmala at the Harmandir Sahib

The heart of the celebration is the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar. The entire complex, the golden temple, the causeway, and the perimeter of the sacred Sarovar, is lined with thousands of earthen lamps in a display known as Deepmala. As darkness falls, a fireworks display lights up the sky above the temple, and continuous kirtan fills the night. The Punjabi saying “Dal roti ghar di, Diwali Amritsar di”, home-cooked food and the Diwali of Amritsar are beyond compare, captures how dear this night is to Sikhs everywhere.

Bandi Chhor Divas and Diwali

Though it shares its date with the Hindu festival of Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas marks a distinctly Sikh story, one of freedom, justice, and compassion. In 2003, Sikh religious leaders formally adopted the name Bandi Chhor Divas in the Nanakshahi calendar, underlining the faith’s own reason for the celebration. It remains one of three Sikh observances still set by the traditional Bikrami lunar calendar, falling on the new-moon night of the month of Kartik. Like Vaisakhi and Gurpurab, it stands among the most important days in the Sikh year.

The two festivals have shared the calendar for a long time. From the time of Guru Amar Das, Sikhs and Hindus gathered at the Guru’s seat on Diwali, Vaisakhi and other festivals. When the SGPC, led by Prof. Kirpal Singh Badungar, adopted the name Bandi Chhor Divas in 2003, part of the aim was to mark the Sikh celebration’s independence from the Hindu one, giving the Panth its own name for its own story.

When is Bandi Chhor Divas celebrated?

Bandi Chhor Divas falls on Amavasya, the new-moon night, of the lunar month of Kartik, the same day as Diwali. In 2025 it was observed on 21 October; in 2026 it falls on 8 November.

What does “Bandi Chhor Divas” mean?

The name means “Day of Liberation” or “Prisoner Release Day”, honouring the Guru’s release from Gwalior Fort and his insistence that every imprisoned prince walk free with him.