Harmandir Sahib (The Golden Temple)

 Day View

 Night View



Location

The Golden Temple is situated in Amritsar, located in Northern Punjab, India, which is close to the border of Pakistan. It is the central gurdwara, or worship place, for all Sikhs in the world.

History

Harmandir, means "Temple of God" and it also is referred to as Darbar (meaning "court") Sahib (meaning" Lord")respectfully. Darbar Harmandir Sahib is informally known as the Golden Temple because the temple is constructed with white marble overlaid with gold leaf and stands in the center of a sarovar, or pool of fresh, clear, reflective water which is fed by the River Ravi, and said by some to originate from the Ganges River. Pilgrims bathe and perform ablution in the sacred waters of the tank which is known for its healing properties. Visitors gather inside the gurdwara to worship, listen to hymns, and hear the holy scripture of the Guru Granth Sahib read. The golden gurdwara has four entrances, one on each side, which are a symbolic welcome to all persons regardless of caste, class, color, or creed. A bridge extends from the gurdwara to the Akal Takhat, the governing body of religious authority for Sikhs. The Guru Granth is kept in the Akal Takhat after hours.

Visitors

The Golden Temple is open to all as the four entrances are the indicator of symbol of welcome to all people regardless of caste, class, colour, or creed. For any tourist that need English speaking guide, they are available at the information centre near clock tower, the information centre also have many free publication. Entering pattern for visitors to the Golden Temple are they must remove their shoes and cover their head (except the one who already had their turban on) before entering the precincts. Smoking is prohibited, photography is allow only in the Prakarma , the marble pathway that cover the sacred pool. 

                                                              Prakarma (the marble pathway)

The clock tower

Entrances

Direction

The most convenient way to travel to the golden temple for the tourist is to rent a car a chauffeur. This is because Amritsar have many small road section which is extremely confusing, and also it is extremely difficult to drive. Moreover, the public transportation such as bus is very cloudy, there  is a free bus service from the train station to the golden temple. You can also get there by train, Amritsar railway station is well connected to major cities in India through daily train, then you have to continued your journey with  either free bus service or an auto-rickshaw from the train station to the temple should cost around Rs 20, while a cycle-rickshaw will run about Rs 30.

Auto rickshaw

Road condition

                                                                 Surrounding

The Golden Temple is encircled by a ring road and surrounded by bazaars along narrow alleys. At the present, the markets have an ancient environment, where trading is done across from the central Asia up to the farthest part of India. The smells of Katra Kathian indicates its wares before reaching the shops selling papads, warian (crispies made from pulses) murabbas (Indian jams), pickles and ampapad (dried mango candies).There are several  rows of shops on each street selling particular goods. There are four main bazaar, which are Guru Bazaar for  gold jewellery shops, the Bazaar Kesarian sell steel and brass utensils, The Mishri Bazaar is the place to buy dry fruits, and Katra Mohan Singh offers a colourful kaleidoscope of bridal glass bangles.

Souvenir Market 

References 
Amritsar. (n.d.) The golden temple Amritsar. Amritsar. Retrieved from http://www.amritsar.com/harmandirsahib.shtml
Khalsa, S. (n.d.). History of the Golden Temple. About.com. Retrieved from  http://sikhism.about.com/od/history/a/Golden_Temple.htm

sar. (n.d.) The golden temple Amritsar. Amritsar. Retrieved from http://www.amritsar.com/harmandirsahib.shtml

Harmandir. (n.d.) Harmandir Sahib. Wikipedia. Retrieved fromhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmandir_Sahib