AYODHYA

AYODHYA (26° 45`N, 82° 10`E), on the right bank of the River Saryu, also known as Ghaghara, is sacred to the Hindus as the birthplace of Lord Rama. This ancient town has Sikh shrines in memory of the First, the Ninth and the Tenth Gurus. All three are located within 50 metres of each other near Brahma`s Tap Sthan (Brahma Kund) on Saryu bank, and are collectively called Gurdwara Brahmakund. The memorial commemorating Guru Nanak`s visit at the beginning of the sixteenth century consists of only a Sikh flag on a platform constructed in 1972.

Guru Tegh Bahadur visited Ayodhya in 1670 while on his way back to the Punjab from the eastern parts. It is said that after offering obeisance at the then existing shrine of Guru Nanak he sat near by in meditation continuously for 48 hours. Before he left, the Brahman priest serving the shrine made a request for a keepsake, and the Guru left his wooden sandals with him. The pair is still kept in Gurdwara Guru Gobind Singh Ji. A platform was raised on the site in memory of Guru Tegh Bahadur`s visit.

A room was constructed over it by the Sikh troops of Faizabad cantonment in 1975.The Guru Granth Sahib is ushered in only on the occasion of the chain of 51 Akhand Paths held here commencing from Assu sudf 1 and concluding on Maghar sudf 5 to honour the martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur. Guru Gobind Singh passed through Ayodhya when, as a child, he was travelling from Patna to Anandpur. A platform was raised to commemorate the visit.

This, like the other two shrines, was looked after by Brahman priests till about the middle of the nineteenth century when Baba Gulab Singh, a Kashmiri Sikh, came and occupied the site. The present building was constructed in 1899. It commands a panoramic view of a landscape sprawling beyond the lazily flowing Saryu River. The central domed room, octagonal in shape and with a marble floor, is called Singhasan Sthan (Throne Room) Guru Gobind Singh Ji.

The Guru Granth Sahib is seated in a rectangular room in front of it. The relics preserved in the Singhasan Sthan include, in addition to the pair of sandals left by Guru Tegh Bahadur, an allsteel arrow, a katar (dagger), and a chakra (quoit). There are also two handwritten volumesa copy of the Guru Granth Sahib transcribed in 1838 Bk/AD 1781 and a copy of the Dasam Granth.

References :

1. Thakar Singh, Giani, Sri Gurduare Darshan. Amritsar, 1923
2. Tara Singh, Sri Gur Tirath Sangrahi. Amritsar, n.d