Day 4: Golden Temple

At the Chandigarh bus station I made a big mistake. I found out that the “Deluxe AC bus” is only 20 rupees more than the ordinary bus so I was lured into waiting an hour and a half for it instead of taking the ordinary bus that was ready to leave. Bad choice. The AC bus, surprise surprise, did not really have a working AC. At least in the ordinary bus I could have sat by an open window. It was like a sardine can. I sat at the last row smack in the middle and to my right was a couple each with a little girl on their lap. One of the little girls got motion sickness and started vomiting. It was so hot I passed out. Sounds like fun, right?

I woke up as we arrived in Amritsar. The first thing I see out of the bus window is a bunch of those Indian wrestlers climbing ropes suspended from a tree. There was a wrestling/body building school adjacent to the bus station. What a welcome sight. When I got off the bus I was so out of it that I totally went for the first rickshaw guy that tried to get me. I said “Golden Temple”, thinking I would just stay at a hotel near it. And this old guy says “20 rupees” I’m like what a steal! OK! I go ahead and get on the auto rickshaw then I’m told “no, no, this one” and the guy points at a regular rickshaw, you know a bicycle with a little chariot seat thing attached to it. I think that ride woke me right up. He ended up taking me to some hotel near the Golden Temple, not sure if he had a set up with the hotel to get a commission. But again I was so out of it I didn’t fight. “show me a room for one please”, and I get a room without a window for 1400, WHAT! “no, no, no, that’s too much, I’m only ready to pay 800” I said. The owner is a guy who seems like the son of someone who left him money and his idea of work is to dress up every morning and go sit at the front desk of this little makeshift hotel and look pretty. He shows me a room with a window for 1000, I said yes knowing that I‘m overpaying by a few hundred AGAIN, fine. It was borderline gross. But after that bus ride I just wanted to take off my bag, rest my head and take a shower. At least I had a TV and AC, what luxury.

The Golden Temple was probably the coolest thing I experienced in India so far. I went that night to see it all lit up and it was an interesting experience. First you have to cover your hair, men and women. So I bought a little triangular bandana thing to put on my head. Then you have to leave your shoes at a place outside the temple. Then you step into a pool of water, to clean your feet, before you enter the temple. There is chanting on loud speakers at all times. It was a very cool thing to see. On the perimeter there is a colonnade where people seemed to meditate, sleep or just lay down. The main shrine, with a second storey covered in actual gold, is in the center of a sacred pool. There is an area where devotees can plunge into the pool. I walked the perimeter, watching people.

The next morning I went back. Even better. Not to be cheesy but it really had a special energy. I think just seeing so many people so into one thing and being religious. Also I loved how Sikhs are so open to allowing anyone into the temple to wander around, similar to my experience at the Bahai temple in Delhi. It feels good to be allowed in. I spotted a few more tourists today, finally. for a minute I felt like I was the only one traveling there in May. Today I actually wanted to enter the main shrine, the golden part of the temple, the holiest site for Sikhism. One enters by crossing something called the Guru’s Bridge. It is split into two sides, entering and exiting. The entering side was packed and moving slow with fans installed above to cool pilgrims as they wait. This was very cool: here I am sandwiched between all those devotees who seem to really want to be there. There were also some Indian tourists who were checking it out. I look into the water below and there is a huge gold fish. Then another. People were holding bowls made of dried leafs of some kind. They allowed a few people in at a time, the line moved slowly. I’m almost there. The guards lift a rod wrapped in Orange fabric and I’m in. To the right and left are two stands with men serving some kind of edible brown thing. Looked like moist brown sugar. Those who had those bowls of would get them filled with this stuff.

The first level of temple, on the exterior, is of marble with inlaid images of plants and animals in the style of the Taj Mahal. The top is covered in Kilos of gold. As pilgrims enter they kneeled and touched the threshold and some even kissed it. It was crowded. I didn’t really know what to do, it was a bit overwhelming. The space itself is very colorful, gilded and full of ornaments to look at. Huge crystal chandelier hung down the middle. But below people are pushing to get closer to the performance taking place at the center of the temple. There is always someone there chanting, reading scripture, surrounded by a small audience. This must be the most wanted ticket in town. To the right of the entrance, in the corner of the shrine, is a group of women working. They are wrapping what looks like some kind of bread into little care packages. The bright orange fabric wraps around the bread and then given to pilgrims. There is so much detail to capture but not enough time as I am pushing my way to follow the route around the center of the shrine. Musical instruments resemble a combination of an organ and an accordion is being played. Pictures not allowed.

Around the outside is a little area where people reach into the pool surrounding the shrine to get a sip of its water. Keep going around and there are stairs leading to a second floor. The entire ceiling is gilded, covered in gold with panels of floral patterns. Pilgrims are sitting on the floor against the wall with little books of scripture rocking back and forth and reading, following the reading happening below along with the music. More stairs lead to yet another room with a reading. The entire temple area is dotted with these little rooms where a person is reading out of huge books of scripture around the clock. This was all very spiritual. I never thought I would say this.

Went back down stairs, crossed the bridge back and left the premise. Something about crossing a bridge into a little shrine makes the experience there otherworldly. I was only aware of that when I found myself returning to the perimeter, recognizable earthly. This was very cool, I just don’t know how else to describe it.

On my way back to collect my bag from the hotel I stopped by a little place to get some breakfast. I had a paratha, a bread stuffed with potato shavings, yummy. A few minutes later this tall British guy walks in, “do you have scrambled eggs?” (in a British accent of course), and the guy working responds “ no eggs allowed within blah blah kilometers from the Golden Temple..” “Oh, no eggs! but what do you have for breakfast..” he annoyed me, I don’t know if it was the accent or the fact that he looked like he didn’t shower in a month. More on this type coming soon.