The Golden Temple in Amritsar is probably the most thought-provoking religious site that I’ve visited in India. Quite apart from it’s obvious architectural beauty, in terms of atmosphere it’s a dramatically different experience to visiting many other Indian religious sites.There’s an unhurried feel to the place that appealed to me, along with an openness that’s lacking in other Indian centres of worship. One of the central tenets of Sikhism is equality, so the temple is free and open to all. In addition to this, lodgings are available at no cost. A gigantic canteen serves up thousands of dhaal bhaat meals continually to pilgrims. Again, these are free, irrespective of your creed, nationality or sex. Unlike some Hindu temples, the purity of central areas of worship is not considered to be polluted by the presence of the lower-castes so the Harmandir, the holiest of holies for Sikhs, is open to everyone.
The keepers of the temple won’t badger a ‘suggested donation’ out of you as you wander around, and they won’t charge you hundreds of rupees to enter. The same can’t be said of the Kalighat Temple in Calcutta or the Taj Mahal. Consequently, I spent a lot more time here than I did at the two places previously mentioned, and I went back a few times to see what it was like at different times of the day.Â
Inside the temple you listen to the beautiful shabad kirtan music, you slowly follow the procession around the pool and you might dip a toe in the sin-absolving lake. The Amrit Sarovar (or Pool Of Immortality-Giving Nectar) surrounding the Harmandir is a great place to watch a huge cross-section of Sikh life go by and I spent hours sitting here soaking up the atmosphere.Â
I have no religion, I have no idea about the finer points of Sikhism and I’m about as cynical as you can get when it comes to matters of faith but I found the atmosphere of the Golden Temple really quite moving.
It’s a wonderfully peaceful place with a sense of true devotion that I find lacking in so many other places of worship.
