The Golden Temple – Amritsar

A place of sublime tranquility, mystical charm and great beauty, the Golden Temple in the holy city of Amritsar is the biggest pilgrim center for the Sikhs. Located near the international border, the Golden Temple is actually known as ‘Harmandir Sahib.’ The literal meaning of the word ‘Harmandir Sahib’ is ‘The temple of God.’ It became famous as ‘Golden’ temple because it was constructed by white marble that was later covered by gold.

The temple land was donated by Akbar, the legendary Muslim Emperor to the daughter of 3^rd Guru Amar Das in 1574. Her husband, the 4^th Guru Ram Das carried out the excavation of the pond and Guru Arjun Dev later completed the construction in the year 1604.

The Golden Temple is situated in the middle of a sarovar or holy pond of water. Visitors to this temple bathe in the sacred pond to get absolved of their sins and listen to soothing hymns. The Holy Scripture – ‘Guru Granth Sahib’ is read every day here and many people can be spotted meditating around the sacred pond, completely lost in the hymns.

There are a total of 4 entrances to the Golden Temple. These 4 entrances symbolize that each person, regardless of the color, caste, status or belief system is welcome to the temple of God. The Akal Takht, governing body of the Sikhs is also located here. It is connected by a bridge to the Gurudwara where the Holy Scripture is kept once the hours are closed.

Every day, devotees serve sanctified food to all visitors, looking upon them as different forms of the Guru and the Lord. Although thousands of people visit the Golden Temple every day, no one has to come out without eating a respectful and sanctified food. Hundreds of devotees keep cleaning the entire complex with full dedication and spotting even a trace of dirt inside the temple is close to impossible even through thousands come and go every day.

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