THE GOLDEN TEMPLE TRUMPS THE TAJ

August 7, 2017 / TRAVEL

The Taj Mahal – the serene structure that sits at the top of every traveler’s bucket list.

THE TAJ MAHAL

I first visited the Taj in 1976 during a swing through India on our first around-the-world jaunt. I’ve since been back on three other occasions, most recently about 10 years ago. The Taj is undeniably beautiful. It’s unfortunate that it has the bad luck to be located in Agra, a city that competes favorably with Jaipur, Fez, and Luxor as the most unpleasant place on earth to be a traveler.

I showed up on the Taj Express from New Delhi Railway Station. The train was met by two types of buses – the luxury bus for western tourists, and the ordinary bus for Indians. I chose the second option and it may have insulated me a bit from the hoards of peddlers, touts, con men, and pimps that besieged the tourist bus at the other end.

In any case, I made in into the Taj without much difficulty and basically enjoyed the experience. On subsequent visits, I learned to arrive early (right at opening time) and to just keep walking. Don’t even look at the motley array of people who line the access roads and are willing to do anything to get a hand in your pocket. Once you’re inside the grounds of the Taj, you’re safe to enjoy the place in relative peace if not solitude. The undesirables are kept outside.

One new thing I learned on my last visit, was to try to get to the opposite bank of the Yamuna River behind the Taj in the late afternoon. If you’re lucky, you’ll get a beautiful view of the Taj, complete with reflection, and even the occasional boatman poling down the river. We were even treated to a sunset and we had it all to ourselves.

TAJ REFLECTION

TAJ SUNSET

A few months before my most recent trip to India, I got to talking with a Sikh patient of mine. She couldn’t believe that I had been to India seven times and had not yet visited the Golden Temple in Amritsar. She claimed that it was every bit as beautiful as the Taj Mahal and I was soon to be in a position to confirm her claim.

Amritsar, a large city in Punjab State and the home of the Sikh Religion, can be reached from Delhi in a few hours by train. When we arrived at Amritsar Station, I immediately noticed, to my delight, that the station was populated by the most extraordinary collection of “Sadhus” (Indian Holy Men) that I had ever seen – easily outstripping Varanasi, Pushkar, and even Kathmandu. The entire station was bathed in orange and yellow with garish turbans and head wraps scattered around like Easter eggs. My wife and I spent more than an hour walking around the station taking photographs. The people, mainly men, seemed to have a healthy attitude about being photographed. Why would you dress up in orange robes and Technicolor turbans if you didn’t want to be noticed?

AMRITSAR STATION

We took a taxi to our hotel and rested up for a couple hours (we had recently flown in from San Francisco via Singapore). We had dinner in the hotel, and I’ll say without equivocation that it was the best Indian food I’ve ever had. I believe that most of the “North Indian” cuisine available in the West is based on Punjabi recipes.

We went to the Golden Temple the following morning. I had read that the tangle of streets in the Old City surrounding the Temple were grubby and chaotic. I found them to be quite the opposite. They were teeming with the most interesting cast of characters I had ever walked among. And there was none of the tension and edginess one finds in most Indian cities.

AMRITSAR STREET SCENE

I was welcomed into the Golden Temple by a Sikh doorman with a trident. I removed my shoes, donned a head covering which was free at the entrance, and strode into the grounds of this beautiful and moving monument. I’d have to call the scene surrealistic with music, chanting, bathing and an altogether charming collection of pilgrims.

THE GOLDEN TEMPLE

It was one of the few times in my life when I actually felt welcome as a Westerner at an Asian religious site (the other occasion was at Borobudur on Java in 1979). We walked slowly around the temple with the other pilgrims. We observed the ritual bathing in the “Pool of Nectar”, a large tank upon which the Golden Temple appears to float. And, on more than one occasion, we were asked to pose for photographs with friendly Sikh Tourists.