Te Puke Sikh parade brings its colour to town

The five Nishanchis, with flags, ahead of the five Panj Piare at the last Te Puke Sikh Parade in 2019.

Sharing is a significant element of the Sikh faith.

It is also a significant part of this weekend's Sikh parade in Te Puke.

Postponed for the past two years, the parade takes place on Saturday, leaving the Sikh temple on No 3 Rd and making its way to the town centre via Atuaroa Ave and Jellicoe St.

Bay of Plenty Sikh Association secretary Lehmber Singh says the parade follows the tradition of Nagar Kirtan - the Sikh custom of processional singing of holy hymns through a community. Nagar means neighbourhood and kirtan describes the singing of devotional hymns.

He says the parade is an acknowledgement of faith rather than a celebration.

"We are dedicated to our religion and that means also bringing the message to other communities who don't know much about the Sikh religion and what it stands for, who we are and what our mission is," he said.

The Sikh religion is based on three main principles - the first is to work hard in your life, the second is always remember God and the third, share your food, joy and success.

"That's what we want to tell the community - to pass on the messages."

Sharing food - both at the temple and on the parade route - is part of the third principle.

Lehmber says the Sikh community has had a presence in Te Puke for 30 years and while the people who deal with and are familiar with the community are aware of the principles, some parts of the wider community aren't.

"Sometimes they mix us up with other communities. We are peaceful people who live peacefully and let other people live peacefully," he said.

The parade will be led by saffron-robed Panj Piare (the five beloved of the guru) who are followed by the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy Sikh scripture, which is placed on the main float.

"The scriptures are from almighty God's mouth - in Punjabi it is called Gurbani - which means the holy word from our guru's mouth."

Lehmber says he hopes the parade will be a fixture in the local calendar of events on the last week of September, after winter kiwifruit pruning.

"In India, it is a fixed date, but here we have to look at the availability of people."

The parade will leave the temple at 11am and after a pause in the town centre, return to the temple where everyone is welcome to share food and prayer.

Local business owners, Mohdeep Sodhi (Pizza Hut), Sukh Sapra (Te Puke Cafe and Kebab), Jason Dhesi (Indo Spice) and Parminder Singh (Veseys, Thai Star and Joy Sushi) are all behind the parade, saying the event both acknowledges and motivates the community to understand and embrace their culture.