It goes without saying that India’s diversity
is like no other - in terms of landscape, languages, history, people and
culture. Every state in India boasts of something unique which distinguishes
itself from the others and thus is a marvel in its own way. With Covid curbing
mobility in terms of tourism for almost two years, tourists all around the
world yearned to get back to exploring and visiting new places. Steadily and
thankfully, now the doors of tourism have opened and is seen regaining
normalcy. When it comes to exploring diversity, there’s no better place on earth
than our very own India. Not having explored North India enough before and with
an objective to make good use of my holidays, we decided to visit Amritsar – a
city of great spiritual and historical significance.
From the ever-bustling Mumbai airport we landed
in Amritsar, at Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport. The airport
derives its name from Guru Ram Das, the fourth Sikh Guru and founder of
Amritsar – the holiest city of Sikhism. At the airport, I saw pictures of
attractions in Amritsar and I could not contain my excitement to explore the
city. The itinerary was already chalked out, it was only few hours before we
absorbed in the beauty of the city. The next morning, we headed out to visit
the holy Harmandir Sahib or the Golden Temple. Before visiting the Golden
Temple, we were greeted by the tall standing and proud-looking statue of
Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the Lion of Punjab. Saddled on his horse and with a
sword in his hand, Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s glory could still be felt in the
air. It seemed as though he still had his protective hand over Amritsar. Paying
our respects to the great king, we headed towards the temple.
Though Golden Temple is a Sikh place of
worship, it is open for all people, from all walks of life and faith. The sight
of the temple is one to behold and we felt the sangfroid and sanctity emanating
from the temple, even standing from a distance. As expected, the temple was
buzzing with numerous devotees – some taking a bath in the sacred pool near the
temple, while some waiting in the queue to enter the holy shrine. The temple
looks picturesque from all angles. This golden beauty shines and will continue
to shine and shower its blessings on all those who go to seek its blessings. We
enjoyed the kada prasad prepared in pure ghee which not only was a treat
to the taste buds but also seemed like a pure blessing from the divine presence.
The temple also houses a Sikh Museum which is an interesting insight into the
Sikh history. The museum exhibits paintings of Sikh Gurus, saints, warriors and
other prominent leaders who protected and fought for the honour of Sikhism. I
had not known much about Sikhism before but reading about those great
personalities made my heart swell with pride as well as wince in pain for the
hardships and torment that they had to go through to protect the good.
Having basked in the divinity of the temple, it
was time to revisit a sombre chapter in the Indian freedom struggle at
Jallianwala Bagh. We had read about Jalianwala Bagh massacre of 1919 in our
history textbooks but visiting the place where the carnage happened gave jitters.
We entered the Bagh through its narrow passage and imagined how difficult it
must have been for the innocent people to escape from death. Once we entered,
we saw the point, from where it was written, the bullets were endlessly fired
at a peaceful crowd protesting against the Rowlatt Act. Today Jallianwala Bagh
is a historic garden and a memorial is built for the wounded and the dead. The
Bagh also has a Martyrs’ Well in which people had jumped to save themselves
from the ongoing onslaught. It is said that around 120 bodies were recovered
from this well. There is also a wall which bears the bullet marks. There are
galleries inside the Bagh which unfold the events of that fateful day, recounts
the nightmarish experiences of those who survived and aftermath of this grisly
incident. The facts send chill down the spine and it was hard to fight tears at
this place where injustice and diabolism were beyond human imagination.
We further went to the Partition Museum to
learn about the significant years in Indian freedom struggle and partition. This
well-structured museum has a repository of materials and documents from various
periods of Indian freedom struggle to partition and post partition. It was
literally a walk down the historical lane as we navigated the events that led
to partition in the sequence that they took place. The pictures of overcrowded
trains as people rushed to go to the country of their choice, the refugee
crisis, the squalid conditions that they lived in and countless number of
people who lost their loved ones amidst this turmoil, certainly expressed more
than a thousand words of unimaginable pain and suffering that the people then
endured. The museum reverberated the proverb that there is light at the end of
the tunnel. As we reached the last section of the museum, we saw stories of
people who rose up from the wounds of partition like phoenix and led a
respectful life, the prominent examples of which were Milkha Singh i.e., the
flying Sikh and Mahashay Dharampal Gulati, MDH spices fame. We left the museum
on an optimistic note that though life can throw unexpected challenges and
tragedies, it is up to us to rise up again with sheer determination, patience
and courage to lead a better life ahead. Our history and our great forefathers have
passed on this grit and perseverance to us.
Amritsar is not only a cradle of Sikhism but it
also has Hindu temples. We visited Durgiana temple next, the architecture of
which is similar to Harmandir Sahib or the Golden Temple, with a sacred lake
surrounding the temple. The temple derives its name from Goddess Durga who is
worshipped here. The temple also has idols of Lord Vishnu, Goddess Lakshmi,
Lord Krishna and Radha, Hanuman, Parshurama and Ganesh. It was Janmashtami on
the day we visited, hence we saw some matkis to celebrate the playful
childhood of Lord Krishna. We paid our obeisance to these deities and again got
an opportunity to immerse in the serenity of divine presence. Since we were in
Punjab, we had to buy something authentic Punjabi as a fond memory of the
place. We went shopping for the traditional phulkari, the folk
embroidery of the Punjab. The exquisite and intricate designs were indicative
of excellent craftsmanship, the colours so fresh that it was difficult to
choose one or two dresses among a heap of dresses. We finally decided on some phulkaris
which captured our hearts and attention. To further complete the Punjabi look,
we could not miss out on buying juttis. We visited a jutti shop
which had a cornucopia of shoes of various designs and colours, again difficult
to choose one or two pairs from. Thus, we ended our first day in Amritsar
having sought blessings of the Sikh and Hindu deities, visited some chapters of
Indian history and of course, shopped to our heart’s content.
Next morning, it was time to visit another era in
history. We started our day with Gobindgarh fort. The fort was opened to the
public from 2017 and was occupied by the army before. Maharaja Ranjit Singh
renamed the fort to Gobindgarh fort in 19th century after the tenth
Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh. The fort is a well-maintained sprawling space with
number of attractions and cannons inside it. We made our way to the first
attraction, a 7D show based on the life of Maharaja Ranjit Singh or Sher-e-Punjab.
The show takes us back to 19th century and shows glimpses of the
great king’s bravery since his childhood. Having learnt something new in
history, we headed towards our next stop – the warfare museum. This museum has
replicas of weapons and attires of warfare. We saw some life-like statues
donned in these attires, carrying the weapons. From ancient Indian warfare to
guns and rifles, we saw how weapons and hence concept of defence evolved. There
were some distinct weapons from various Indian states, which also included
weapons used by Shivaji Maharaj and Marathas to slay their enemies. Thus, the
stories of bravery reach far and wide. The sheer intelligence with which these
weapons were built makes us proud of the excellent vision that our forefathers
had, in absence of any modern technology. We went to Toshakhana or coin museum
next, which houses many old and rare coins. It was also the place where the
coveted Kohinoor diamond was stored. Today we see a replica of Kohinoor there. We
also visited a Pagdi museum which has life-like statues again, sporting
the various types of pagdi, another interesting fact that I did not know
of before. We often tap our feet, sing along and dance on Punjabi songs. The
origin of this dancing spirit comes undisputedly from Bhangra, the
traditional Punjabi folk dance. We also enjoyed an energetic Bhangra
performance by men and women clad in traditional Punjabi costumes. Bhangra
beats made a non-dancer like me tap her feet and revel in with the enthusiastic
spirit.
It was then time to go back to the times of
Ramayana by visiting the Ram Tirath temple next, sage Valmiki’s ashram. It is
believed that Sita took shelter in his ashram after she was abandoned by her
husband Lord Rama. Inside the temple complex, we see Sage Valmiki’s idol
writing Ramayana. The temple is guarded by a tall idol of Lord Hanuman, who had
dug a water tank in Ram Tirath. The Hanuman statue at Ram Tirath is one of the
tallest statues in the country. It was a refreshing experience to see some
episodes of Ramayana in this beautiful structure.
It was time to visit the last and the most
talked about attraction of Amritsar – the Attari border. My excitement peaked
as we reached closer to our last stop. We reached the border well before in
advance to catch the best seats possible to get the best possible view. The
lowering of the flags’ ceremony at the India-Pakistan border was the most
spectacular event that I ever witnessed. The atmosphere was filled with
patriotism with Indians and Pakistanis cheering for their respective countries
on both sides of the border. It was an experience like no other, where we saw
the fathers and flags of both the nations opposite each other, held up high in
their glorious form, divided by a border. A daily military practice followed by
the Border Security Force of India and Pakistan Rangers, the ceremony symbolises
the rivalry, brotherhood and co-operation between the two countries. Before the
ceremony could start at 6 pm, the gathering crowd was already filled with a
spirit of patriotism and we all chanted ‘Vande Mataram’ and ‘Bharat
Mata ki Jai’ for countless number of rounds. We sang along the patriotic
songs that were being played. People danced to the songs, holding Indian
tricolour proudly in their hands. I had never witnessed so much energy and
action before. We also saw some international tourists who had come to witness
this remarkable ceremony. In the half an hour ceremony that lasted, with
dance-like manoeuvers and legs raised high by forces of both the nations, the
crowd cheered endlessly in support of our beloved nation. The ceremony ended
with both the flags lowered and respectfully folded, followed by closing of the
gate that separates the two countries. We felt great about the fact that we got
an opportunity to see this highly exuberant ceremony in India’s 75th
year of independence.
Before we could officially say goodbye to this
city which made us fall in its love in only one day, we decided to catch one
last glimpse of the Golden Temple as the day proceeded into darkness. The
longing to see the temple once again was unchanged. We reached the premises of
the temple and there it was, the glittering holy golden structure that had
captured our hearts the day before. The temple reflected its golden light into
the water around it, thus creating a stunning view which still remains
imprinted on my mind. It made me say, “All that glitters is Golden Temple!”. We
also considered ourselves fortunate for when we reached the temple in the
evening, it was time for their daily prayer, which I assumed to be similar to maha
aartis in Hindu temples. Though I could not understand the exact words of
the prayers, it sounded very soothing and sacred to my ears. I could only chant
“Waheguru Ji ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji ki Fateh”, having heard of it
before. The prayers brought aplomb and calmness to the mind. We finally took
leave from this charming temple, carrying our admiration and new found respect
for Sikhism and its teachings. When in Punjab, eat like Punjabis do. We wanted
to explore the delicacies of Punjab as it was our last night in Amritsar. We
went to the famous Brothers’ Dhaba where we enjoyed lip-smacking butter naan
and paneer. Generously cooked in desi ghee, every bite was a heavenly treat to
the taste buds. The memory of that dinner still makes my mouth water! Thus, our
short but eventful two-day trip in Amritsar came to an end. Having explored
this magnificent city in North India, Amritsar now holds special place in my
heart which walked me through various time periods of history and mythology.
The memories of this trip will be cherished in many more years to come.
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