Amritsar

Amritsar ("Pool of Nectar") has been a Sikh sacred center since 1574, when Guru Ram Das (the 4th Sikh Guru) settled there and enlarged an existing pond. His son Guru Arjan built the original Harmandir Sahib ("Golden Temple"), in which he installed the Sikh scripture in 1604. Even though Sikhs live throughout the world, and Sikh theology insists that the entire creation is holy, Amritsar still holds a special place in the community's heart.

One clear reason for this is the exquisite Harmandir Sahib, which I consider (with apologies to the Taj Majal) India's number one "must-see" site. In the past 30 years the global Sikh community has poured money into upgrading and rebuilding an already magnificent site. For example, the ornately painted Darshani Deori (ceremonial gateway) in the photo carousel was until recently a simple white building with gold trim.

Many upgrades bear donor plaques. Such donations have always conferred significant community status, but I believe that Sikh theological ideas provide an equally strong motive for beautification. For Sikhs the experience of beauty is a pathway to the Divine, and so they strive to make this place as beautiful as possible. What's harder to convey in photos is its feel --an unusual combination of stunning beauty, intense piety and overwhelming serenity.

Sikhs take their history seriously, as the Harmandir Sahib complex clearly shows. Certain places are associated with gurus and other historical figures, including the 6-sided Tharra Sahib shrine marking the birthplace of the 9th Guru, Tegh Bahadur. it has also been marked by strife. In 1763 Afghan invaders blew up the Harmandir Sahib with gunpowder, filled the sacred pool with rocks and rubble, and sprinkled the ground with cow's blood in an attempt to defile it. Undeterred, the Sikhs re-excavated the pool and rebuilt the structure within a year. More recent conflict came in 1984 during Operation Blue Star.

Every Sikh gurudwara has both a prayer hall and a community kitchen (langar). The latter serves anyone who comes in the door with no questions asked, as a way to affirm each person's human dignity. The Amritsar langar serves between 40 to 60 thousand meals every day, and more on festival days--with the food donated, cooked, and served by volunteers in the spirit of seva (service to humanity). It's more than food, it's a blessing.