At Anandpur on Vaisakhi 1699, Guru Gobind Singh initiated five volunteers, the pañj pyāre, with amṛt stirred with a double-edged sword, and then asked them to initiate him. The Khālsā, “pure”, is bound to the five Ks, to a disciplined life, and to the defence of the weak. Initiates take the names Singh and Kaur.
Khālsā
The order of initiated Sikhs founded by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699, sworn to devotion and justice.
Also: Khalsa