Golden Temple – Amritsar (INDIA)
By
Surdy
Sikhism
is a young religion founded by Guru (Lord) Nanak Dev in 1469. The Sikh religion has a following of over 20 million people world over and it is regarded as the fifth organized religion in the world.
Sikh religion is the essence of all virtues of other religions. Sikhs believe in oneness of God, gratitude to Him for all favors received. Honesty and truthful living, respect for women and service of humanity.
Sikhs had 10 Gurus (Lords) and the hymns and teachings of the Gurus and other Muslim and Hindu saints are enshrined in the Holy book (Guru Granth Sahib) which is their present Guru. The Sikh community is identifiable by their outer appearance as they support beard and turban. They preserve five Ks, i.e. Kes (unshorn hair) kangha (comb) Kirpan (sword) Kaccha (short breeches) and Kara (iron bangle worn on the right hand to stop the hand from all evil doings).
Sikh ‘Gurus’ spread message of God, wherever they went. Those places have become places of worship - known as “Gurudwaras” - i.e. House of God, the House where the ‘Guru’ dwells.
Guru Arjan Sahib the fifth Nanak is credited with creating a central place of worship for the Sikhs known as Sri Har Mandir Sahib or or Sri Darbar Sahib or Golden
Temple at Amritsar. He himself designed the architecture of the temple which is unique by itself unmatched by any religious building anywhere in India and perhaps any building in the entire world. Amongst all the Gurudwaras.. It is a living symbol of the spiritual and historical traditions of the Sikhs. It is considered as the Holiest of the Holy-Places for the Sikhs. What Jerusalem is to the Christians and Jews and Mecca to the Muslims so is Amritsar to the Sikhs. The Golden temple is built on a 67 ft square platform in the center of a tank. The temple itself is 40.5 ft square. It has a door each on East, West, North and South, thus creating a new faith – Sikhism. Every person irrespective of caste creed, color and sex could enter the Golden temple. The door panes are decorated with artistic carvings. .Its outer walls are covered with gold plated copper plates which are intricately carved with beautiful carvings. The architectural design of the Golden temple is so beautiful that when you visit it for the first time and every time thereafter you get peace within you. The lighting of the Golden temple during the night is a breathtaking sight giving you feeling of being in heaven. The building has been declared a heritage site by the United Nations. The United States Government has issued a postage stamp in its honor. It is often said that its architecture design of the Golden temple has created an independent Sikh school of architecture in the
history of art in India.
The spot where the Golden temple stands is said to have been hallowed earlier by Guru Nanak Dev who once meditated here by the side of the small pool in the forest. The present spot is believed to have been gifted by the Mughal Emperor of India Akbar the Great. Along the bank of the tank stands a fruit tree which is revered as a sacred tree. It is believed that a princess who believed in God brought her leprosy afflicted husband to the Golden Temple and left him by the side of the fruit tree on the bank of the tank. While she was inside the Golden Temple the husband took a dip in the tank and was cured of leprosy. The tree still stands and guarded all the time. Such is the power of Golden Temple. Millions of pilgrims visit the Golden Temple daily to pray and take a holy dip in this tank, considered a pool of immortality.
The building houses priceless treasures. There is a cloth canopy studded with jewels, a peacock studded with precious stones, a flywhisk made out of 1, 45,000 threads of sandalwood in the shape of fan made by a Muslim devotee in five years and seven months using 1120 lbs of sandalwood for it and Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s (Ruler of Punjab) personnel pearl Necklace and many more priceless treasures of art.
The atmosphere at the Golden temple is serene and full of tranquility. While at Golden temple one is transported in some other world where one finds oneself close to God with peace of mind and tranquility. Hymns are recited 24 hours in praise of the God. Every morning at about 0400 hrs the holy book Guru Granth Sahib is carried by the devotees in decorated gold plated canopy singing praise of the God all the way till it is placed at its designated place in the Golden Temple. It is sight to be seen nowhere else in the world.
The Sikhs throng in millions to pay their respects. During festival days not an inch of space is available, so much is the faith amongst Sikh population.
No wonder the Golden Temple is one of the rare places of worship in the world revered by one and all in India where each individual finds himself at peace. His/her wishes are fulfilled by the Lord. Life is incomplete without a visit to the Golden temple. No wonder it not less than any of the 7 wonders of the world