Time : Any time of the year.
Significance : The Pilgrimage Centre.
The Golden Temple, also known as the Hari Mandir Sahib is a living symbol of the spiritual and historical traditions of the Sikhs. Golden Temple, on account of its scenic beauty and golden coating for English speaking world, has been a source of inspiration to the Sikh community ever since its foundation. It is evident from the Sikh chronicles that the Gurus exhorted their followers to accept all Sikh centers as places of pilgrimage. As Sri Hari Mandir Sahib was the first prime holy shrine, it became, as the center of inspiration and action and the most significant achievement of the Gurus, the chief place of pilgrimage for the Sikhs. The Sikhs all over the world, daily wish to pay visit to Sri Amritsar and to pay obeisance at Sri Harmandir Sahib in their Ardas.
Guru Arjan Sahib, the Vth Guru, conceived the idea of creating a central place of worship for the Sikhs and he himself designed the architecture of Sri Harmandir Sahib. Earlier the planning to excavate the holy tank (Amritsar or Amrit Sarovar ) was chalked out by Guru Amardas Sahib, the Third Nanak, but it was executed by Guru Ramdas Sahib under the supervision of Baba Budha ji. The land for the site was acquired by the earlier Guru Sahibs on payment or free of cost from the Zamindars (landlords) of native villages. The plan to establish a town settlement was also made. Therefore, the construction work on the Sarovar(the tank) and the town started simultaneously in 1570. The work on both projects completed in 1577 A.D.
Guru Arjan Sahib got its foundation laid by a muslim saint Hazrat Mian Mir ji of Lahore on 1st of Magh, 1644 Bikrmi Samvat(December,1588). The construction work was directly supervised by Guru Arjan Sahib himself and he was assisted by the prominent Sikh personalities like Baba Budha ji, Bhai Gurdas ji, Bhai Sahlo ji and many other devoted Sikhs.
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