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===The Forgotten Shrine of the Sikhs=== | ===The Forgotten Shrine of the Sikhs=== | ||
[[Image:800px- | [[Image:800px-DSC00109m.jpg|thumb|The stone slab with two carved feet marking the spot where Guru Nanak lay in meditation at the shrine]] | ||
Under a large papal tree he [the priest] pointed out a stone slab on which were carved two feet, laid with roses. “The Guru’s,” he said. “It is at this spot that Guru Nanak sat in meditation. In that little shrine behind you, are buried the ashes of a Nepali king.” | Under a large papal tree he [the priest] pointed out a stone slab on which were carved two feet, laid with roses. “The Guru’s,” he said. “It is at this spot that Guru Nanak sat in meditation. In that little shrine behind you, are buried the ashes of a Nepali king.” | ||
Revision as of 17:47, 20 June 2005
Guru Nanak in Nepal
The Forgotten Shrine of the Sikhs
Under a large papal tree he [the priest] pointed out a stone slab on which were carved two feet, laid with roses. “The Guru’s,” he said. “It is at this spot that Guru Nanak sat in meditation. In that little shrine behind you, are buried the ashes of a Nepali king.”
We sat together on mossy steps leading up to the shrine, a strong scent of jasmine in the air and two bulbuls pecking about the carved feet. And there he told me the story of the temple of the golden book and the shrine against which we sat. It seems a Malla king of the early sixteenth century – the priest did not know his name – suffered a disturbed mind. His brothers, alarmed by his behaviour, banished him to India. Roaming forlornly through the holy city of Benaras he came upon the saint Guru Nanak and begged him to cure his affliction. After many visits and much beseeching, the guru advised the king to return to his kingdom where his health would be restored.
Miraculously, the saint preceded the king to Kathmandu for there he was, meditating under a papal tree on a hill beside the river. The king visited him at once, begging the guru to return him to the palace. Guru Nanak refused to do so, saying that in this serene spot he had all he wanted. So the king had a temple built for his guru and a small shrine for himself where he often came to meditate. When the king died, some of his ashes were buried in the shrine according to his last wishes.
