The Golden Temple

We were up early today and made our way to Amritsar via the Golden Temple.  The Golden Temple is the spiritual home of the Sikh religion and is a pilgrimage sight for all Sikhs that can travel.  Our hosts rented a bus for our convenience and off we went with our new family for the two hour drive.

Deborah and Another New Bodyguard

On the Bus to the Golden Temple

The Temple is located within the city of Amritsar but vehicles are not allowed to drive all the way to the entrance.  We parked the bus, purchased our head scarves, and hopped on rickshaws for the final 300 meters.  Stan and Doreen were in the front while Deborah and I hung off the back. 

The Ladies Were Ready

We checked our shoes and walked the remaining 100 meters in bare feet.  Some might be squeamish about walking barefoot in India so I won’t speak about the experience of using the washroom.  Fortunately almost everywhere we went involved dipping our feet in water.

Sikhs bathe in the pure waters of the Temple pond to cleanse their souls and to bring them good fortune.  We lingered by the side and took pictures.

We Were Quite the Curiosity to Many Especially Children

Once Inside the Gate - The Line Was Long to the Temple

The lineup for the actual Golden Temple was an approximate 2 to 3 hour wait.  Jinder's cousin Natha talked to a guy who talked to a guy and soon Jinder, Stan and I were sitting in an office in front of some kind of big official.  He didn’t waste a moment being friendly while Jinder pleaded our case (we had a 3:50 flight to Mumbai).  He questioned us about where we lived and then took an inordinate amount of think time before dismissing us with a wave of his hand.  Soon we were guided through a reverse process, entering through the exit.  Our guide led us past the long line of hot, patient, holy, waiting worshippers.  Guilt and worries of entitlement crossed our minds as we walked purposefully past the long line directly to the entrance.  When we crossed the threshold of the inner temple Stan and I both mistakenly stepped on the threshold.  Bad enough we bypassed the line but we stepped where everyone else touched his or her foreheads before entering.  Stan got a gentle slap from a nearby patron.

We finished the visit by sharing food in the dinning hall.  The Temple feeds thousands, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.  There is no reason anyone in the area should ever be hungry.  Every food preparer is a volunteer.  Everyone picks up a food tray, files in, and takes a seat on the floor, in long straight lines across the room.  Servers come along and ladle four different types of food onto your tray.  We promised ourselves we would not take part in eating due to the fact the trays are rinsed in local tap water but not to eat would have been disrespectful.

Volunteers Peeling Vegetables for the Meals

We finished dinner and rejoined at the bus.  It was a short ride to the airport and we made our good-byes.  There were promises to return and expressed hope for a chance to return the generosity.