Budget: 3500R/$70; Spent: 1330R/$25.58
We woke up around 8am. Mala was to pick us up and take us sightseeing on our last day in Delhi. We got ready for 9am, but it turned out Mala wasn’t ready yet, so we decided to go over to Mintoo’s uncle and aunt’s for breakfast.... we were okay with that because that meant more homemade paranthas and masala chai... mmmm
Mala arrived before we got served breakfast, so we took our breakfast of the aloo paranthas with us on the road. First stop was the most famous and largest Gurdwara in Delhi known as Gurdwara Bangla Sahib. It was a very beautiful place. Very quiet, yet with many people. It was one of the most spiritual experiences I have ever had at a religious site. There was a huge body of water there that is supposed to contain holy water. People bathe themselves in it sometimes. It is also a requirement to take off shoes before entering. There is a little pool of water to wash your feet before entering the complex; probably not the most sanitary set up. It’s amazing that a country with so many sanitary problems has so many unsanitary customs. It’s just shocking many of the things people do out of tradition that probably end up making them sick, at least eventually.
Being with Mintoo and Mala so much the past few days has taught us a lot about the Sikh religion and I think we've both developed a deep respect for their customs and beliefs. Sikhism is quite interesting. They have both a rich history and a turbulent past, much of the occurrences of violence took place not even that long ago. In the 1960's there were mass killings of Sikhs and in 1984 there were anti-Sikh riots that took place that eventually broke out into a genocide of Sikhs.
While Sikhs only make up 1.9% of India's population, they maintain a strong and dignified presence in India. The majority of the army is made up of Sikhs and Sikhs are 10 times more likely to become a soldier than other Indians. The state of Punjab is also the wealthiest in India. It is the 2nd youngest religion in the world behind Baha'i. There is not a single country in the world that is predominantly Sikh. They have always been a minority. The largest concentration of Sikhs is also the same place it originated, in the region of India known as Punjab. Mintoo and his family speak Punjabi to each other. We have learned one word: sat sri acal (hello/goodbye). The best thing about Sikhism is that they encourage equality in all respects. This includes the acceptance of all religions. They welcome all people into their places of worship and in the Gurdwara Bangla Sahib they regularly perform "langar" (food for all) which is always served to people of all origins, the same (vegetarian) food, while sitting together on the same level of the floor. Mala taught us that "pure" Sikhs must follow the 5 K's which all stand for words in Punjabi. Essentially they must never cut their hair, always carry a comb, and a curved sword, a steel bracelet, and wear special kind of shorts. There's much more to it than that, but according to Mala, in today's world it is extremely difficult to follow all the rules set out for pure Sikhs. I admire the young Sikhs so much for maintaining their culture and religion in a world where dressing or looking different can be so difficult. It was all quite a learning experience and we really grew an appreciation for Sikhism. At the Gurdwara they gave us a thick glossy book that discusses the history and teachings of Sikhism for free.
After this, we checked out the largest church in Delhi. It wasn’t very impressive. We explained some of the Christian customs to Mala who seemed genuinely interested in learning about it. He had never heard the story of the last supper and was unfamiliar with the many famous paintings of it. So we also talked a bit about that. Pretty cool that we could show a mutual respect for each other's backgrounds. Not that we're devout Christians but that's the religion we grew up learning about. So sharing each other's knowledge in an open and friendly way was really nice. Mala even did the sign of the cross on his way out.
From here, we went to the Lotus Temple and learned about the Baha’i religion, which neither of us knew existed. It is a very beautiful temple and an interesting religion. It seems to accept the broad tenants of all the major world religions and claims to be accepting of all religions.
It was a neat and modern building, but not much to see inside: just chairs and beautiful architecture. They kindly ask all visitors to remain silent while in there. We all had a tough time doing that so we left a few minutes after entering.
From here we went to Hauz Khas Village, which is sort of the posh area of Delhi that also happens to contain some ancient ruins of a university or college. The ruins were amazing, although there was no security so there was some graffiti, but not a lot. Young people, locals and tourists alike, are everywhere just hanging out in the ruins and taking pictures.
After this, we came back home. I think we were all beat. Mala forgot that on Tuesdays there is a market on the street we are staying just off of, so we had a hilarious time trying to drive to our home without killing anyone. A trip down the road that should have taken us 2 minutes took us 10 minutes. People were all giving us the evil eye and yelling. One lady said in Hindi "they must be new". We all laughed. Poor Mala was driving us around all day and must have been exhausted.
Once we arrived back home, Mintoo, who had been feeling terrible all day long, decided that he wouldn’t be able to travel tonight by taxi to Agra. We had booked a taxi to take us during the night so we could arrive at Agra first thing in the morning. We cancelled and there was no fee. Mintoo went to the doctor and picked up medication. He stayed with his parents at his aunt and uncle’s house tonight.
Once Mintoo and his parents had left, we went out to buy some water and candy, then watched the second half of the Dark Knight Rises and then Love, Actually.
A busy day, but a good one.
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