Sikhism
The Sikh religion was founded by Guru Nanak, who was born in 1469 to bring together the best of Hinduism and Islam. Sikhs believe in our God who could not be represented by stone idols. Its basic tenets are pilgrimages to rivers, although Sikhs still make pilgrimages to holy sites.
They worship at temples known as gurdwaras, babtise their children (when they are old enough to understand the religion) in a ceremony known as pahul and cremate their dead. The Holy book of Sikhs is the Granth Sahib, which contains the work of the 10 Sikh Gurus together with Hindu and Muslim Sufi writings. The holy book teaches the lessons of equality and brotherhood.
Baba Guru Nanak Ji
Baba Nanak raised the first gurdwara in his life time which he called the Dharamsala- the place of righteousness. At a later stage Dharamshala become the gurdwara. A gurdwara is more like a “dargah” than a mosque. Like the Sufis, the Sikhs became an integral part of the Sikh religious life. Every gurdwara is obliged to provide food and shelter for all who ask for it, irrespective of their caste or creed.
Hasan Abdal & Gurudwara Panja Sahib
Hasan Abdal is 48 km from Rawalpindi. It is a beautiful, quiet place and a convenient halting point on G.T. Road enroute to Peshawar or Abbottabad.
 This town has a particular association with Mughals and Sikhs. It was mentioned by Emperor Jehangir in his memoirs and frequently visited by successive Mughal Kings, on their way to Kashmir. It remained a holy place for various religious groups through the ages. It has a Sikh Gurdwara (temple) known as Panja Sahib having a scared rock with the hand print of their religious leader, Guru Nanak. Twice a year, Sikh pilgrims visit this Gurdwara from all over the world.
On the nearby hill, at an altitude of 714 meters, there is a meditation chamber related to a 15th century Muslim Saint, Baba Wali Qandhari, popularly known as Baba Hasan Abdal. The saint stayed in Hasan Abdal from c.1406 - 1416 AD but died and buried in village Baba Wali near Qandhar (Afghanistan). The devotees and visitors climb over the steps leading to the hill, for offerings and to have a panoramic view of Hasan Abdal.
Just opposite the eastern gate of Gurudwara Panja Sahib, there is a small mosque and ‘chilla gah’ (meditation cell) of Baba Wali Qandhari. Behind the mosque is a fresh water pond with big Mahasheer fish. Adjacent to the pond is a building called Maqbara Hakeeman. Two Royal Hakeem (doctor) brothers namely, Abual Fateh Gilani (died 1589 AD) and Hamam Gilani (died 1595 AD) are buried here on the orders of the Mughal emperor Akbar. Both, the fish pond and the tomb, were built by Khawaja Shamsuddin Khawafi, Akbar’s minister, between 1581 - 1583 AD. A paved path leads from the fish pond to a small, walled garden. The garden has two graves, one in the centre and the other in a corner. The central grave is wrongly attributed to a so-called Mughal Princess, Lala Rukh. However, it is not known that who is buried here.
Gurudwara Janamasthan:
The most important of the Sikhs historic gurdwara are in Nankana Sahib (Sheikhupura) district where the founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak Ji, (1469-1539 AD) was born at a village known as Talwandi Rai Bhoe. It belonged to Bhatti; a Rajput chieftain who become a friend and admirer of Baba Nanak. Nanak Ji was a strict monotheist believing in the eve and only God who could not be represented by stone idols. He, like the Muslims, rejected the Hindu caste System and preached the equality and brotherhood of man.
Dera Sahib:
The fifth guru of the Sikhs, Guru Arjun Ji was incarcerated here pending his trial. Guru Arjun was the real founder of the Sikh Church. He compiled the holy scripture, the Guru Granth Sahib, which is an anthology of mystic writings of the Gurus, Hindu Bhaktas and Muslim Sufis, notably Shaikh Baba Farid of Pakpattan Sharif. Guru Arjun Ji also built the Harimandir (the present day Golden Temple) at Amritsar. He had the foundation stone of the temple laid by Sufi Saint Hazarat Mian Meer Sahib of Lahore. Guru Arjun Ji was placed under arrest by Dewan Chandu Lal. One morning when allowed to bath in the Ravi which sun along side the jail, he disappeared in the stream. This was in 1606. He became the first and the most important martyr of the Sikhs. Later under Guru Gobind Singh Ji the Sikhs achieved great success and glory.
Land of the Pure:
For the Sikhs a pilgrimage to Pakistan is both spiritual and historical, a journey to seek and discover one's beginnings. It is in Pakistan that Nankana Sahib, the oldest and the most revered of all Sikh gurdwaras it to be found. It is the museum at Lahore that one of the oldest manuscripts of Guru Garanth Sahib is placed. It is in Pakistan where Guru Nanak Ji was born and it is here, on the banks of the ageless river Ravi near Narowal, where his spirit rests in eternal place. There are other equally compelling reasons to come. The shrines of all the famous Punjabi poets, from Baba Farid to Khawaja Ghulam Farid are located in Pakistan.
A land with over 200 historical gurdwara's and numerous examples testifying to the glory of the Sikh past, is surely the place that must reach out and touch every Sikh's heart.
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