Sikh wedding invitations for your Anand Karaj

Many Sikh invitations open with Ik Onkar, or a line of thanks for Waheguru’s blessings, before anything else. Traditionally the bride’s parents invite guests to their daughter’s Anand Karaj, often naming the grandparents whose blessings the family seeks. The groom’s family may send its own invitation for its functions, and many couples now write in the names of both families together.

Elders’ names are commonly written with Sardar or S. and Sardarni. Keep the order your families are used to: printed cards from earlier family weddings are a good guide.

• The invocation, if your family uses one
• The hosts, then the couple’s names with their parents’ names
• Each function with its date, time, venue and map link
• The gurdwara’s name and the time to arrive for the milni or Anand Karaj
• Langar and reception details, and the date you need replies by

Names, order and which side hosts what differ between families and between Punjab, Delhi and families abroad. A common sequence looks like this:

• Roka: the families agree to the match, often at a small gathering.
• Kurmai or shagun: the engagement, usually with an ardas and gifts exchanged between the families.
• Chunni: the groom’s family places a chunni on the bride’s head, often with gifts of jewellery and clothes.
• Maiyan: vatna is applied to the bride and groom in their own homes in the days before the wedding.
• Mehndi and jaggo: an evening of henna, then a night when relatives carry a decorated pot lit with lamps through the lanes, singing boliyan.
• Milni: on the wedding morning, relatives from both sides greet and garland each other, often after an ardas.
• Anand Karaj: in the gurdwara, usually in the morning, the couple walk the four laavan around Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji while the hymns are sung.
• Langar after the ceremony, then the doli, and a reception in the evening or on another day.

The Anand Noor template follows this journey, from the maiyan and jaggo through the milni, the laavan and langar. The Phulkari template groups the days differently, with a Roka & Kurmai, a Sangeet & Jaago and a Reception & Langar evening.

Guests who have not been to an Anand Karaj before will thank you for a short note. Morning ceremonies often start promptly, so give the arrival time for the milni rather than only the start of the laavan. Each function has its own description and dress code, which is a natural place for these notes.

• Everyone covers their head inside the gurdwara. Many gurdwaras keep scarves at the entrance, but guests may prefer to bring their own.
• Shoes are left outside, and guests sit on the floor in the darbar hall.
• No alcohol or tobacco anywhere on the gurdwara premises.
• Clothes that cover the arms and legs are appreciated.

Send the invitation six to eight weeks ahead, and earlier for relatives travelling to Punjab from abroad. Many families still invite elders in person with a card or sweets, then send the link so everyone has the times and maps on their phone.

Guests reply for each function, and you see each family’s reply and headcount for the jaggo, the Anand Karaj and the reception separately. That makes the reception numbers easier to give your caterer. Personal links for each family are on paid plans; the free plan has one public link.