Amritsar Dairy

The seeds of Amritsar were laid in 1577
when the fourth Sikh Guru Ram Das took notice of a water pool
in the area that had healing powers.
He instructed his son and descendant Guru Arjan Dev
to erect a temple at the spot,
which would be the hub of the Sikh religion.
Guru Arjan Dev laid the foundations of the city of Ramdaspur in 1588
and the temple complex was completed in 1601.
The Mughal emperor Akbar is said to have donated
the land around the temple after paying off the local Jat farmers.
Arjan Dev, who had compiled the Adi Granth
or holy text of the Sikhs,
placed it in the temple grounds,
which came to be known as the Harmandir (Temple of God).
–The Golden Temple complex, Amritsar–
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Amritsar has witnessed a bloody struggle for survival,
over the centuries.
This city was invariably faced with menaces
from both Muslim and Hindu rulers.
Guru Hargobind is said to have equipped the city and
he accepted only offerings of weapons from disciples.
They were used for defence of the temple town.
When Salim, the younger son of Akbar took over,
Arjan Dev was posed to adapt Islam as sacrament for his goodwill.
The Guru declined, and was tortured and killed by Salim,
who had then become the ruler - Emperor Jahangir.
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The turban is Guru’s gift to Sikhs. It is how they crown themselves
as the Singhs and Kaurs who sit on the throne
of commitment to their own higher consciousness.
For men and women alike, this projective identity conveys
royalty, grace, and uniqueness.
It is a signal to others that they live in the image of Infinity
and are dedicated to serving all.
The turban doesn’t represent anything except complete commitment.
When they choose to stand out by tying their turban,
they stand fearlessly as one single person
standing out from six billion people.
It is a most outstanding act.
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A Sikh (the word means ‘disciple’) is a person who follows
the teachings of the ten Sikh Gurus and the Guru Granth Sahib
(the eternal Guru in the form of Holy Scriptures).
The Sikh Gurus were prophets whom Sikhs believe were sent by God
to deliver his message and to lead people on the true path to God.
Sikhs treat the Gurus with the same respect
as they would treat the one almighty God.
The Golden Temple sits on a rectangular platform,
surrounded by a pool of water called the Amrit Sarovar
from which the City is named.

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The turban of a Sikh is his or her primary identifying feature.
It is a statement of belonging to the Guru,
and it is a statement of the inner commitment
of the one who wears it.
The uncut hair and the turban are
a declaration to live in accordance with,
and if necessary die in support of, the Teachings of the Sikh Gurus
and the Siri Guru Granth Sahib.
Regardless of the circumstances or
the type of employment or activity,
a Sikh keeps his or her form and identity as a Sikh.
Clothes are modest, and exemplary of the identity
and character of a soldier-saint.
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Every Sikh baptized as Khalsa vows to wear the Five “K’s”:
‘Kesh’, ‘Kangha’, ‘Katchera’, ‘Kara’ and ‘Kirpan’.
Kesh is the uncut hair and beard, as given by God,
to sustain him or her in higher consciousness;
and the turban is the crown of spirituality.
Kangha is a A wooden comb to properly groom the hair
as a symbol of cleanliness.
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Katchera is a specially made cotton wear
as a reminder of the commitment to purity.
Kara is a steel circle, worn on the wrist, signifying bondage
to Truth and freedom from every other entanglement.
Kirpan is the sword, with which the Khalsa is committed
to righteously defend the fine line of the Truth.
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The passage of terror – the only entrance to the Jallianwala Bagh,
the seat of one of the nastiest carnages
perpetrated by the British Raj.
People gathered to protest against the
‘Rowlatt Act’ were tried suppress
by the Governor of the Punjab Province - O’Dwyer.
He imposed a ban on public assemblies and
The ferocious Panjabis known for their valour,
in defiance of this order met in a rectangular piece of land,
called Jallianwala Bagh to mark the anniversary
of the birth of the ‘Khalsa panth’
General Dyer,
who was charged to enforce law and order in the region,
marched up to the ground with his troops
and jammed this narrow entrance and opened fire on the gathering
without any warning on thousands of
innocent men, women and children.
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Here it goes…..
The writings on the wall, the writings of the past,
the writings of the human rage over his fellow beings.
Here history try not to suffocate, the generations to come
with their inward act of submissive foolishness.
This wall speaks a lot…
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“Replica of life
created by life and form will go,
Leaving behind
an illusion of light and shade”
–Tagore–
(the Amar Jyothi at Jallianwala Bagh)
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Even today, the walls of the Jallianwala Bagh bear
the bullet holes where people were mercilessly butchered.
Some people even tried to escape the firing
by jumping into a well in the complex, but drowned and died.
The British tried to suppress this incident,
but it created a furore in the entire nation.
As a result, Mahatma Gandhi gave a call for Civil disobedience,
which escalated to a mass movement
and forced the British out of India.
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Around the 14th or 15th Century,
Punjabi wheat farmers danced and sang
songs about village life to help pass the time
while working in the fields.
With time, ’Bhangra’ became part of
harvest celebrations at Baisakhi festivals,
as the sight of their crops growing invigorated the farmers.
From there the dance quickly moved through
all divisions of class and education,
eventually becoming a part of weddings,
and other important occasions.
–A shop for music instruments,
a view from a narrow bylane of Amritsar town-
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In 1984 there was a bloody combat,
between the Indian administration
and Sikh combative groups in Amritsar.
Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, a militant Sikh leader
gave a call for separate nationhood,
which spread like wildfire throughout the state.
In June 1984, hounded by the army and police,
a heavily armed Bhindranwale
and his followers holed up in the Golden Temple complex.
An iron willed Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India
asked the army to roll tanks into the complex
and open fire on the militants.
A state of panic was followed and many were mowed down by bullets.
It is believed that the army, in a state of high adrenalin confusion
fired on the Akal Takht, the seat of Sikh religious authority.
Bhindranwale was killed,
and so were thousands of his men and soldiers.
Though the temple was rebuilt back to its original glory,
the scars in the minds of the wounded Sikh people remained.
As a result of this operation, the Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi,
who had ordered the army action,
was assassinated by her own bodyguards.
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