India travel seminar: Spirit of the Sikhs

  1. India travel seminar begins
  2. India travel seminar: Religious and cultural diversities
  3. India travel seminar: Deep care & kindness
  4. India travel seminar: A dream fulfilled
  5. India travel seminar: Spirit of the Sikhs
  6. India travel seminar: Observing faith formation practices
  7. India travel seminar: Andhara Christian Theological College
  8. India travel seminar: Holy ground
  9. India travel seminar: Leaving our shoes at the door
  10. India travel seminar: Joyful unpredictability
  11. India travel seminar: Same but different

BY ERIN BURT

We spent a morning at the Golden Temple and Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar. I arrived with anticipation about the beauty of this site with no idea how moved I would be. While pictures do not do the temple justice, it is not just the beauty of structure that i missed. It is the spirit of the Sikhs who come to worship that cannot be captured, though I will try. 

Golden Temple

We arrived early in the morning to find people already lined up to worship. When entering one of the four archways into the temple, one arrives with their head covered and feet bare to walk through a shallow pool of water in order to prepare for worship. Following the steps down into temple represents the humbling process of leaving the ego and social status behind. All are welcome at the temple. Here one is able to walk in without interference. You can hear music and chanting playing all throughout and worshippers sing quietly along. The first English translation of the lyrics I observed were quite telling. “No obstacles block the path of one who prays before God.” Given the history of violence against the Sikhs, especially after the 1919 massacre in Amritsar, their continued openness to all visitors is remarkable.

Statue outside of Jallianwala Bagh commemorating the massacre of Punjabi people in 1919.

The temple stands in the center surrounded by an expansive pool of water where one can dip their feet and cleanse their body. Visitors receive a communion that serves as an offering to God. Standing in bare feet on the cold marble ground, I could not hold back my tears. I could feel what Christians would call the Holy Spirit moving all about this place. 

Women entering the water surrounding the temple

The value for life and devotion to God seems to permeate this sacred space. Plants grow on all of the rooftops. Old trees are shrines where people also provide offerings. Our hosts explained that one of the primary tenets of their faith is service. The temple serves a free meal to 40,000 daily. Anyone is able to come and receive food 24/7. Much work goes into feeding the multitude. Men and women are hard at work cooking and serving. 

Preparation of food for visitors.

While observing the temple from across the water, my classmate, Colleen, posed a beautiful question to one of our hosts. “What would you want me to know about your religion?” He responded, “We believe that first, we are all human. Then we are Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, and so on.” With regret, I knew nothing of the Sikh tradition until today and still know very little. But what I can tell you is how they made me feel — welcomed in every way.  They opened their hearts and their place of worship. With origins in Amritsar, the Golden Temple is both the city center and religious center. It is not just the temple that glows, it is the believers and the way the temple serves as a site for them to live out their faith.

headscarves

Erin Burt is a Master of Divinity student at Union Presbyterian Seminary.