The Golden Temple is located in the sacred city of Amritsar and considered the
spiritual centre of Sikh religion. Also called Sri Harmandir Sahib, it was founded by the
fourth Guru of Sikhs, Guru Ram Das and completed by his successor Guru Arjan Dev
in the 14th century.
The temple architecture of Harmandir Sahib is a combination of Hindu and Muslim
styles that was built between 1588 and 1601. It is stands in the middle of a Sarovar
(tank) on a 67ft square platform,
impacting its tremendous architectural brilliance of its panelling and big dome
and small minarets which attracts the attention of numerous tourists around the world, as well as by people of all religions. The temple has four doors each one of
them on the East, West, North and South. Visited by the Sikh devotees from all parts of the
world due to be the holiest shrine for the people of Sikh religion.
History
The fifth Nanak, Guru Arjan Sahib conceived the idea of creating a central place
of worship for the Sikhs, he designed the architecture but the planning to excavate
the holy tank was chalked out by the third Nanak, Guru Amardas Sahib who was executed
by Guru Ramdas Sahib.
Earlier Guru Sahibs acquired the land for the site on payment or free of cost from
the landlords, Zamindars, of native villages. Simultaneously the construction work
on the tank (Sarovar) and the town settlement started in 1570. The work on both
projects finished in 1577AD.
Golden Temple - Amritsar
The actual structure dates back from the 18th century, constructed by Maharaja Ranjit
Singh. The dome is covered by about 100kgs of gold. The Granth Sahib, the holy book
treated as guru by the Sikhs, is stored on the temple.
The main structure of Golden Temple is a three-storied one. The front, which faces
the bridge, is decorated with repeated cusped arches and the roof of the first floor
is at the height of the 26 feet and 9 inches. Its architecture represents a unique
harmony between the Muslims and the Hindus way of construction work and this is
considered the best architectural specimens of the world.
The Darshani Deori is an arch stands at the shore end of the causeway. Its frame
is about 10ft. heigh, 8ft 6inches in breath. The door panes are decorated with artistic
style. The bridge is connected with the 13 feet wide 'Pardakshna' (circumambulatory
path). It runs round the main shrine and it leads to the 'Har ki Paure' (steps of
God). On the first floor of 'Har ki Paure', there is continuous reading of Guru
Granth Sahib.
The Akhand Path, an unbroken reading of the Guru Granth Sahib, is held on the first
floor of Darbar Sahib. The Sheesh Mahal is an impressive hall covered by mirrors
on the top floor.
After that a golden dome was added to the temple, it came to be called the Golden
Temple. Visitors can get easily reached to temple via the shopping area of Hall
Bazaar. Devotees wash their hands and feet, and cover their heads while entering
to the complex via Darshini Darwaza. They then do the 'parikrama' or the round of
the smaller homage sites surrounding of the temple.
The parikrama is a wide marbled passageway that encircles the sarovar. The devotees
pay obeisance in the 68 revered points located along it. They move in a clockwise
direction around the parikrama. The Dukh Bhanjani Ber Tree is one of the primary
stops, where people take a holy dip in the sarovar. Behind it, the langar hall symbolises
the breaking of all social barriers by making everyone eat together regardless of
caste and creed.
The Jubbi Tree has 450 years old and marks the place from where the first high priest
of the temple, Baba Buddhaja supervised the construction of the temple. The Ber
tree is another homage area to which the two Sikh warriors Sukha Singh and Mehtab
Singh tied their horses while slaying Massa Rangar for desecrating the inner sanctum
in 1740. Visitors can found the martyrdom of Baba Deep Singh who fought to the death
against the Afghan soldiers responsible for attacking the temple.