That act triggered a wave of revenge killings in Delhi followed by terrorism

That act triggered a wave of revenge killings in Delhi followed by terrorism and heavy-handed counter- insurgency measures right across the Punjab.The Golden Temple at Amritsar is one of the most beautiful, evocative places on Earth. It is also, like Jerusalem, a place where recent violence raises all manner of sensitivities. When I saw it, there was still scaffolding around the Akal Takht The bricks and marble inlay may have been repaired by now. But other buildings, including the Akal Takht and temple library, received a real hammering before the Sikh extremists holed up there were either killed or finally surrendered. The army had been under strict instructions not to fire on the Golden Temple itself. It was hard to imagine that this tranquil place had, not so long ago, reverberated to the sound of machine-gun fire, that Indira Gandhi could have ordered the Indian Army and its tanks into this sacred compound, or that the marble pavement I was now crossing had become a killing ground.That was Operation Blue Star in June 1984. I skirted around the marble-clad parikrama that surrounds the lake as pilgrims descended the steps to take their ritual dip in its waters.

Temple guardians looked on, leaning on their laces, as I stopped to read some of the hundreds of memorials to soldiers fallen on the field of battle and other martyrs to the Sikh cause. Nearly 80 years have passed since then, but as an Englishman I still felt the weight of collective guilt when I saw bullet holes in the walls and the well down which innocent people threw themselves to escape the relentless fusillades.Back inside the Sikh Gurdwara, the gentle singing that came floating across the lake helped to restore a sense of calm. Nowadays it is a memorial garden to the 379 civilians who died there in 1919 when Brigadier-General Dyer ordered his troops to fire and continue firing on an unarmed crowd in order, in his own words, to produce a “necessary and widespread moral effect”. Then the sun rose clear of the buildings to the east, and the temple roof sent golden darts of light in all directions. It was easy to see why Mark Tully considers this the most beautiful building in the world.A very different sensation awaited me just a stone’s throw outside the temple precincts. For a few moments they turned flamingo pink, as though suffused with blood, while the Golden Temple glowed like the ember of fire about to reignite. From the time of Guru Nana in the 15th century until their 10th and last guru, Gobind Singh, they followed charismatic and sometimes warlike religious leaders.

But since the early 18th century, the hymns and sayings of previous gurus contained in the Granth Sahib have superseded the tradition of living gurus. Somewhere back there I too had been touched by the feeling of brotherhood among Sikhs, and understood something of what they mean by the Khalsa.The dawn was breaking, casting dull beams on all the white wedding-cake structures that surround the sacred tank. They stood unmoving, some of them leaning against pillars, their eyes glistening with contained emotion I slipped out quietly and walked back over the causeway. The book, and the continuous reading and singing of its hymns, form the centre of Sikh worship.The professional singers began on a new text, to the rhythmic accompaniment of tablas and a simple harmonium. Their singing had verve, but it never went too far beyond the bounds of harmony.

I couldn’t understand the words, but the impact on the pilgrims around me was almost tangible. There was a rare sense of equality and community.The Granth Sahib had been placed on a dais. Layer after layer of cloth was being unfolded so that the faithful could gaze upon the holy book For the Sikhs are very much a “people of the book”. The crush of pilgrims would have been unbearable if there had been any rushing and shoving, for the interior is surprisingly small.