[16]: 121–126 "Khalsa", is derived from the Arabic word "Khalis" which means "to be pure, to be clear, to be free from, to be sincere, to be true, to be straight, to be solid".

[24] In a hukamnama of Guru Gobind Singh dated to 25 April 1699, he refers to a congregation of local Sikhs of Bhai Gurdas Bhagte Phaphre village as 'sangat sahlang', with the 'sahlang' term being a different designation from that of a Khalsa.

[25] The Khalsa Panth's formalization in 1699 essentially opened this restricted class of Sikhs as a possibility to attain for the wider congregation.

Guru Gobind Singh then mixed water and sugar into an iron bowl, stirring it with a double-edged sword while reciting Gurbani to prepare what he called Amrit ("nectar").

He then administered this to the Panj Pyare, accompanied by recitations from the Adi Granth, thus founding the khanda ki pahul (baptism ceremony) of a Khalsa – a warrior community.

[42][43] The Khalsa warrior community tradition started by Guru Gobind Singh has contributed to modern scholarly debate on pluralism within Sikhism.

[49] According to Owen and Sambhi, Guru Gobind Singh's significance to the Sikh tradition has been very important, as he institutionalized the Khalsa, resisted the ongoing persecution by the Mughal Empire, and continued "defense of Sikhism and Hinduism against the Muslim assault of Aurangzeb".

It also clearly states that it is not appropriate for Sikh women to cover their faces with any type of veil as practiced in the Indian, Islamic, or Judeo-Christian traditions.

[56][55] A Khalsa Sikh is expected to go above-and-beyond duties such as partaking in the langar service, seva, or fanning the chaur sahib (fly-whisk) in-congregation.

[55] A Khalsa Sikh is also expected to materialize their life as "benevolent exertion" that secures the most good with the most minimal intervention, realized through "collective action".

[59][57] Below is an excerpt of the Khalsa Mahima from the Sarbloh Granth:[60] ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ ਮੇਰੀ ਜਾਤ ਅਰ ਪਤ॥ ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ ਸੋ ਮਾ ਕੋ ਉਤਪਤ॥ ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ ਮੇਰੋ ਭਵਨ ਭੰਡਾਰਾ॥ ਖ਼ਾਲਸੇ ਕਰ ਮੇਰੋ ਸਤਿਕਾਰਾ॥ ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ ਮੇਰੋ ਸਵਜਨ ਪਰਵਾਰਾ॥ ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ ਮੇਰੋ ਕਰਤ ਉਧਾਰਾ॥ ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ ਮੇਰੋ ਪਿੰਡ ਪਰਾਨ॥ ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ ਮੇਰੀ ਜਾਨ ਕੀ ਜਾਨ॥ romanized: xālasā merī jāt ara pata.

- Sri Manglacharan Purana, pages 519–524, Khalsa Mero Rup Hai Khas[58] The famous contemporary Writer, Bhai Gurdas Singh (Not to be confused with Bhai Gurdas), notes in his book of compositions, or vāran: ਵਾਹਵਾਹਗੋਬਿੰਦਸਿੰਘਆਪੇਗੁਰੁਚੇਲਾ॥੧॥ vāha-vāha-gobinda-singh-āpe-guru-celā ||1|| Hail, hail (Guru) Gobind Singh; He, Himself, is the Master and Disciple too.

[61] A Khalsa is enjoined, to be honest, treat everyone as equal, meditate on God, maintain his fidelity, resist tyranny and religious persecution of oneself and others.

The Dal Khalsa fought against the Mughals and the Afghans, eventually resulting in the establishment of a number of small aristocratic republics called misls (autonomous confederacies) and later in the formation of the Sikh Empire.

It successfully defeated all its adversaries, including the Afghan tribals and army, Hill Chiefs, Misldars, Chinese, Tibeans and Gorkhas.

The devotee must arrive at the place of baptism, usually a Gurdwara, in the morning after bathing completely including having washed their hair and must be wearing the 5 articles of the Khalsa uniform.

Rehat-namas produced shortly after the Khalsa's inauguration are exclusively addressed to men, and communicate various notions surrounding women.

Although they do not explicitly negate a woman's place in the Khalsa, the exhortations and directives within them are interpreted by scholars such as W. H. McLeod and Doris Jakobsh as women being ancillaries to the initiated men, as opposed to having a formal role.

They mandate men to respect women in the same manner that is rendered to their mother, prohibit violence against them, cursing them, and engaging in extramarital affairs.

Men were to partake in righteous warfare and protect their families, whereas women were expected to be housewives raising their children and providing service for their husbands.

McLeod notes that while the tenor of the rahitnamas marked the milieu of the 18th century and into the time of Ranjit Singh, some progress had occurred in the mid nineteenth century; Joseph Davey Cunningham, in 1849, reported that some women had received initiation conducted through a single edged sword, as opposed to the customary double edged one.

[67][68][69] According to Jaspal Kaur Singh, the baptism of women and the bestowal of Kaur was incipient only during the colonial period, during which the Tat Khalsa sought to combat perceived threats to Sikhism, both from Christian missionaries and Arya Samaj proselytization, by removing "Hinduized" and "un-Sikh" cultural and religious practices from within their fold and introducing egalitarian practices to the fore of the religion.

[70] Gilbert Lewis, an anthropologist, wrote that the rigid delimitation between men and women in the praxis of the Khalsa stemmed from a need to enhance esotericism within their institution and create a tightly bonded brotherhood ready to deal with the harsh exigencies of war and defence.

Jacob Copeman, an anthropologist, described Singh's analysis as deliberately elusive, clearly presenting itself at the level of mythos, and based on the recovery of lost potentials.

[74] She further posits that as the military ethos of the Sikhs reached its apogee under the mandate of Guru Gobind Singh, women were concomitantly made to undertake more traditional roles.

She cites tales from the Dasam Granth and rahit-namas to support her hypothesis; women were often depicted as seducers and thus inhibited men from attaining the warrior-saint status that the Guru wanted to inculcate in his order.

[79] Sri Gur Sobha (18th century) by Senapati contains two sections (adhyays) on the controversies that arose, when Guru Gobind Singh's disciples in Delhi heard the news of his new order.

[80] Much of the controversy stated in Sri Gur Sobha revolves around bhaddar, the ritual shaving of the head after the death of a close relative, which was discouraged by Guru Gobind Singh.

[80] The expelled disciples convened a community gathering, at which two wealthy Khatris demanded that the Khalsa produce a written order from the Guru that a new mandatory code of conduct had been promulgated.

During Hola Mohalla, military exercises are performed alongside mock battles followed by kirtan and valor poetry competitions.