langar

BHUP SINGH, SARDAR, remembered as Raja Bhup Singh in local lore, was the chief of the Sikh principality of Ropar, during the earlier half of the nineteenth century. Little is known about his life except that in 1808-09 he, along with Deva Singh, was in possession of Ropar and its adjacent districts including Khizrabad and Mianpur, a tract covering 115 villages with an estimated annual revenue of Rs 53,000. He was probably a grandson of Sardar Hari Singh of Dallevalia misi, who, according to Lepel.

DIKKH, village 12 km to the north of Maur Kalan (30° 4`N, 75° 14`E) in Bathinda district of the Punjab, is sacred to Guru Tegh Bahadur, who visited it during his travels in these parts. According to Sakhi Pothi, an humble Sikh entreated the Guru to come and put up in his house. The Guru accepted his invitation. He blessed his host who had served him with complete devotion. The Sikh, who was childless, had four sons thereafter.A memorial platform raised in honour of the Guru, about 200 metres west of the village, was later buried under sand; but, as memory of the Guru`s visit survived, it was uncovered again and a singleroom gurdwara established on the site in 1917.

GOLAK or GURU KI GOLAK (the Guru`s own till). Golak (Sanskrit golak; Persian gholak) means, in Punjabi, a till, cash box or any other container used for keeping money especially one used for receiving contributions for charitable purposes. It is a time honoured Indian custom to carry an offering when going to make obeisance to one`s deity. In gurdwdrus, i.e. Sikh places of worship, a receptacle, golak, is usually kept in front of the sanctum into which the devotees drop their cash offerings. Besides, the Sikhs are enjoined to keep apart for communal sharing one-tenth of their earnings.

GONDPUR, village 22 km south of Hoshiarpur (31°32`N, 75°55`E), in the Punjab, claims a historical shrine, Gurdwara Tahli Sahib, dedicated to Guru Hargobind, who came here from Pur Hi ran on his way to Kiratpur and stayed in a grove of tdhfi trees. A platform was raised on the site amid the grove as a memorial which came to be called Guru kian Tahlian. The platform was later replaced by a gurudwara. The present building, constructed in 1930, is a rectangular hall, with a sanctum at the northern end. A square room with a lotus dome above it tops the sanctum. In the adjoining compound are the Guru ka Langar and rooms for the grantht.

Explore Guru Ka Langar, the community kitchen integral to Sikh tradition, fostering equality and unity through shared meals at gurdwaras.