The initiation by which a Sikh joins the Khalsa, drinking sweetened water stirred with a double edged sword, first given by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699.
Tagged: Commitment Initiation Khalsa Sikh
The practice
The Amrit ceremony is the initiation into the Khalsa, the order of committed Sikhs founded by Guru Gobind Singh at Anandpur in 1699. A Sikh who is ready to take the full discipline of the faith seeks amrit, the nectar of immortality, from five initiated Sikhs.
How it is kept
The five beloved ones prepare sweetened water in an iron bowl, stirring it with a double edged sword while reciting the Sikh scriptures. The candidate drinks from the bowl, is sprinkled with the water, takes the name Singh or Kaur, and accepts the five Ks, the articles of the Khalsa, including uncut hair and the kirpan.
What it means
The ceremony reverses the direction of grace: on its first day the Guru received amrit from the five he had initiated, and master and disciple bowed to each other. To take amrit is to enlist, to make the faith a uniform worn for life.