A gurdwara or gurudwara is a place of assembly and worship for Sikhs but its normal meaning is place of guru or "Home of guru". Sikhs also refer to gurdwaras as Gurdwara Sahib. People from all faiths and religions are welcomed in gurdwaras. Each gurdwara has a Darbar Sahib where the Guru Granth Sahib is placed on a takht in a prominent central position. Any congregant may recite, sing, and explain the verses from the Guru Granth Sahib, in the presence of the rest of the congregation.
The following outline is provides an overview of Sikhism, or Sikhi.
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee is an organization in India responsible for the management of gurdwaras, Sikh places of worship, in the states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh and the union territory of Chandigarh. SGPC also administers Darbar Sahib in Amritsar.
The Damdamī Ṭaksāl, Jatha Bhindra(n), or Sampardai Bhindra(n) is an orthodox Khalsa Sikh cultural and educational organization, based in India. They are known for their teachings of vidya as well as gurbanisanthiya. Its headquarters are located in the town of Mehta Chowk, approximately 40 km north of the city of Amritsar. It has been described as a seminary or “moving university” of the Sikh countryside.
The Nishan Sahib, also known as the Sikh flag, is used to represent the Sikh people worldwide. In 1936, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee ratified the Sikh Rehet Maryada, which states its colour as either basanti (xanthic) or surmai. It is a triangular flag with a Khanda in its centre, made of cotton or silk cloth, and has a tassel at its end.
The Akal Takht is one of five takhts of the Sikhs. It is located in the Darbar Sahib complex in Amritsar, Punjab, India. The Akal Takht was built by Guru Hargobind as a place of justice and consideration of temporal issues; the highest seat of earthly authority of the Khalsa and the place of the Jathedar, the highest spokesman of the Sikhs.
The Takht Sri Darbar Sahib Damdama Sahib, is one of the five takhts or Seat of Temporal Authority of Sikhism, located in Talwandi Sabo, near the city of Bathinda in Bathinda district of Punjab, India. At this place Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru, prepared the full version of the Sikh scriptures called Sri Guru Granth Sahib in 1705. The other four Takhts are the Akal Takht, Takht Sri Keshgarh Sahib, Takht Sri Patna Sahib and Takht Sri Hazur Sahib.
A Hukamnama, in modern-times, refers to a hymn from the Guru Granth Sahib which is given as an injunction, order, or edict to Sikhs. It also refers to edicts issued by the contemporary Takhts. In the historical sense, it was used to refer to an issued commandment, instruction, injunction, order, or edict given by one of the Gurus of Sikhism or their officiated followers and associates during their lives.
Gurdwara Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ghat, also known as Gurudwara Kangan Ghat, is a Sikh place of worship on the banks of the Ganges River approximately 650 m (710 yd) from Takht Sri Patna Sahib. In sikh historical sources, this is the place where Guru Gobind Singh threw his gold bangle (kangan) and passed on the knowledge of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji to Pandit Shiv Dutt, a devotee of Sri Ram Chandra.
Gurdwara Bal Lila Maini Sangat in a narrow lane close to Takht Sri Harmandir Sahib marks the house where King Fateh Chand Maini lived. His childless Queen had developed special fondness for the young Guru Gobind Singh, who, too, often came here to sit in the Queen's lap giving her immense delight and spiritual solace. She fed the Child Gobind and his playmates, at his demand, with boiled and salted gram. Even now boiled and salted gram is served as prasad in this Gurdwara, which, unlike the other shrines in Patna Sahib, is served by Nirmala Sikhs. A wood carving on the old front door is dated 28 August 1668, but the hall housing the sanctum and other blocks of rooms in the inner compound have been reconstructed during recent decades.
About three kilometers east of Takht Sri Harmandir Sahib is where Guru Tegh Bahadur first alighted in a garden (bagh) belonging to Nawabs Rahim Bakhsh and Karim Bakhsh, nobles of Patna, and where the sangat of Patna along with the young Guru Gobind Singh came out to receive him back from his four-year-long odyssey. A shrine commemorative of the first meeting of Tegh Bahadur and Gobind Singh was established here. Its present building was constructed during the 1970s and 1980s. An old well which is still in use and a dried stump of the Imli tree under which the sangat met Guru Tegh Bahadur still exists.
The Golden Temple (also known as the Harmandir Sahib, or the Darbār Sahib, is a gurdwara located in the city of Amritsar, Punjab, India. It is the pre-eminent spiritual site of Sikhism. It is one of the holiest sites in Sikhism, alongside the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Kartarpur, and Gurdwara Janam Asthan in Nankana Sahib.
Hazur Sahib, also known as Takht Sachkhand Sri Hazur Abchalnagar Sahib, is one of the five takhts in Sikhism. The gurdwara was built between 1832 and 1837 by Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1780–1839). It is located on the banks of the Godavari River at the city of Nanded in the state of Maharashtra, India.
A takht, or taḵẖat, literally means a throne or seat of authority and is a spiritual and temporal centre of Sikhism. There are five takhts, which are five gurudwaras that have a very special significance for the Sikh community. Three are located in Punjab whilst the remaining two are located outside of it.
Giani Gurbachan Singh is a Sikh preacher who served as the jathedar of the Akal Takht from 2008 to 2018.
The 350th Prakash Parv or birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh ji was celebrated in January 2017 in Patna, India. 2017 is the year of the 350th anniversary of the 10th Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. At the date of this anniversary, a number of events was organized on the occasion in Patna marking a grand celebration in their history.
The Jathedar of the Akal Takht is the head of the Akal Takht and head of the Sikhs worldwide. The jathedar has the de facto power as the supreme spokesperson of the Khalsa to summon, trial and sentence any person who identifies as a Sikh from the Akal Takht.
Partap Singh was a Sikh priest and Panjabi writer. He served as the first acting Jathedar of Akal Takht from 19 December 1937 to 1948 and 19th Jathedar of Akal Takht from 1952 to 15 February 1955.
Giani Raghbir Singh is a Sikh preacher who has been serving as the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee's appointed Jathedar of the Akal Takht since 2023. He served as the Jathedar of Takht Kesgarh Sahib from 2017 to 2023 and also served as one of the Panj Pyare at the Akal Takht from 1995 to 2014.
