Fortuitous or some divine-design, I can’t tell, but my rendezvous with the luminous ‘Harmandir Sahib’ or Golden Temple, as it is more popularly known, was nothing but a spiritual delight. In the serenity and positivity of the ‘Temple of God’ (a Sikh Gurudwara), I had an amazing experience in terms of the sheer beauty and peaceful atmosphere. All credit to my mother, who had insisted on us visiting the temple this vacation. As they say, mother knows best and here I was, having one of the most gratifying experiences of my life.
Having reached Amritsar city, there wasn’t anything much different but a usual busy town with the hustle-bustle of the surroundings. Soon after, we treated ourselves to a sumptuous Punjabi lunch at one of the famous restaurants, ‘Bhrawan Da Dhaba’, followed by a casual run through the town. Surely, our evening spent at the Golden Temple was the highlight of our one-day trip.
Just entering, I shot one glance at the magnificent frame of the world-renowned temple and I was simply lost in the mesmerising view of the marvellous built. The instant eye-catching part was most obviously the holy sanctorum made of gold, glistening under the night sky, right in the centre of the area. The golden upper floors of the Gurudwara looked picturesque and one could only marvel at its beaming beauty. Hundreds of people of different origins and religions were there to worship, all coming together at one place of religious grandeur. As we moved towards the main ‘Darbar’, only after procuring parshad (a sacred edible offering), me and my mother found ourselves at the very end of an elongated queue of devoted worshippers. I wondered at the plentiful crowd of people from world over present at the temple at a time and this alone speaks volumes about its popularity.
After quite a wait, I finally entered and wondered at the impeccably architectured interior of the Darbar and once in, I was enraptured seeing the exquisite carvings in gold, ornamenting the wall. I watched many a faith-bound devotees paying the holy offerings with their eyes closed in humble prayers and it was heart touching. Even though, honestly, despite of not having a very religious bent of mind, I bowed my head in earnest reverence to worship among all others. It was quite fulfilling to pray amidst such pacifistic surroundings and being connected to your God.
Next in our holy expedition was the 24X7 running Babaji’s Langar (holy food), which was also a very different scenario wherein I saw people doing community service with unparalleled devotion and selflessness. That in itself is a wonderfully organised arrangement, certainly not to give a miss. And now, this is really not where it boundaries; we headed on to sit and relax on the edge of the Sarovar (holy pond). It was pleasing to sit quietly on the edge of the soothing waters and capture a full view of the Golden Temple. Sitting easy, I simply adored the stunning appeal of the place, listened to the shabad (holy musical reciting) playing aloud and to my mother’s never-ending ancient spiritual tales. I could not have had a more soulful evening than in the bliss of the tranquil semblance of this holy place.