Harmandar Sahib Art Heritage Preservation

Golden Temple or Sri Harmandar Saheb Ji is a sacred site visited by thousands of people every day, but not many go to the first floor. Even among those who go to first floor, not many take the parikrama at the first floor. Following picture is an incomplete model of the first floor parikrama. The walls that are white in this model are actually all covered with wall paintings  (as one can see in one of the walls).

You will find beautiful sikh art all around and it would seem impossible to capture it in a photograph, even if you try hard.

This art work was mainly created by Bhai Atma Singh. We are trying to document our experience while working at such a sacred and powerful place, but this might take months to finalize.

We were engaged in preservation of these paintings for last couple of years and faced all kinds of challenges even before the work could be formally put on paper. There was some holy force that guided through most of the rough times.

Saving the paintings had a greater purpose that was beyond the paintings themselves.. Hope i would be able to share that purpose (may be more than one) in my life time, through my writing.

One purpose that i can share right now, in this blog, is “the realization and knowledge of the method of bringing one’s ego down on ground”. It cannot be described and directed to others, but was there for all those working in the team to feel and understand, only if they could allow their natural evolution happen, without resisting…. I myself could understand the details much after the work was completed on the first floor and my visits had become much less frequent. There was a reason to this delayed realization/learning. The reason was that the realization required some space to fit in, the time characterized by peace and desire to understand!!