Why Hello Pakistan

Last weekend, I returned to Punjab – this time to Amritsar, the spiritual center of Sikhism.  Amritsar contains Sikhism’s holiest site: the 18th-century Golden Temple, one of the most beautiful buildings I’ve ever seen.  The temple sits in the middle of a lake, surrounded on all four sides by a wider complex with scholars (engrossed in study) on display behind large windows, holy paintings (including one of a Sikh who cut off his own head), and marching, sword-wielding Sikhs.  There were also a number of Sikh men stripping to their underwear and swimming in the lake.  In order to enter the complex, we had to wash our feet and cover our heads with bandannas.  My mind kept drawing parallels to Judaism's holiest site, the Western Wall in Jerusalem: both have requisite head-covering, both have a proliferation of beards.  But really it’s not at all the same.  Wielding swords, for instance, would probably be a non-starter at the Wall.

We also visited a Hindu pilgrimage site – the Mata Mandir Temple – which is said to grant fertility to Hindu women.  That might explain why many Hindu couples arrived with coconuts (a Hindu fertility symbol), as well as the numerous suggestively-posed statues in the complex.  This was the most decked-out temple I’ve ever seen.  Colored mirrors and jewels covered every inch, and you had to crawl through tunnels and pass through shallow water-ways in order to traverse the grounds.  At the end, a guru in flowing robes placed a garland of orange flowers around my neck.  I’m not sure that that signifies, but I’ll take it.

The highlight of the trip was the India-Pakistan border closing ceremony.  The only border crossing between the countries is about 35 kilometers from Amritsar, and they hold an elaborate event every night at sunset as they lower their flags and close the gate.  (The NY Times covered the event last week: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/03/peacocks-at-sunset/)  I took a taxi from Amritsar, followed by one of the most insanely crowded walks of my life, to end up about 15 meters from the Pakistani border.  The event was an over-the-top patriotic showcase on both sides.  The British guy next to me (we were in the separate foreigners’ section) compared it to a UK soccer match.  In front of us, people lined up to run back and forth with flags of India; women danced in the street as music blared; and border security forces, with fanned hats, performed choreographed high kicks that were quite impressive.  (Their kicks reminded me of the kicks of the evzones – presidential guards – in Greece.  I could watch those guys every day.)  The lowering of the flags was fairly quick, followed by a curt handshake and salute with Pakistani forces.  There was something moving about these countries acknowledging each other in this small way, even if certain members of both forces kept their hands on their guns the whole time.  

I took this video of the end of the event (blink and you'll miss the handshake at the beginning):  

Pictures: 1) Outside Mata Mandir Temple, 2) In front of the Pakistan border, 3) The Golden Temple