Particularism and Universalism: How Religious Sacred Spaces Create Moments of

Ecumenicalism

Dr. Leena Taneja, Associate Professor

This paper explores the sacred site of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, India, the most
famous Sikh gurudwara. It will be argued using analysis drawn from material culture and sacred
spaces (Mazumdar 2009, 2021, Soltes, 2016) that sacred architectures are formed through
ritual practices and ideologies that are deeply embedded in the form and structure of holy sites
such as the Golden Temple. Through religious performance which is performed by local
pilgrims’ and tourists from around the globe, a sacred place is created that embodies and
expresses moments of ecumenism and acceptance amongst the community. This paper will
examine not only the sacred architecture of Amritsar but more importantly the key practices of
Sikh faith which, though rooted in the late 15 th century, highlights ideas of social justice that
resonates today. In short, using this example, the paper hopes to shed light on how religious
places can create powerful opportunities for ecumenism by forging communities made up of
diverse groups of people who partake in the religious practices and stories that are a part of the
Golden Temple. These communities, I argue, link the elements of particularism and
universalism, and demonstrate how sacred places can be a nexus where these two can find
common ground.

Paper

Harmandir Sahib or the Golden Temple lies in the center of the walled city of Amritsar in

northwest India. It is the most sacred site in all of Sikhism, holding a singular exceptional

identity. Its sanctity is derived from its fundamental centrality in the tradition. It symbolizes the

‘guru’ or teacher in the concrete form of the guru granth sahib, a holy book, which is

worshipped and revered by Sikhs. It is both a place of worship and well established pilgrimage

site for Sikhs with historical links to its long lineage of gurus. For these reasons, Amritsar

occupies an important place in the Sikh religion.

This paper seeks to explore the sacred site of the Golden temple drawing on analysis

from material culture and sacred spaces. Sacred architectures are formed through ritual practices

and ideologies that are deeply embedded in the form and structure of holy sites such as the
Golden Temple. Through this paper, it will be shown how the construction of the site and how

practitioners interact with the space, embodies and expresses moments of both universalism and

particularism.

The religion of Sikhism emerged during the early sixteenth century CE. This tradition

developed in the Punjab region several centuries after a significant Islamic presence had been

established there through various Muslim conquests. Sikhism grew out of the encounter between

Hinduism and Islam within this area. Its name derives from the Punjabi word sikh , meaning

disciple. Its founder, the guru Nanak, was born a Hindu but also had frequent contact with local

Muslim society, and was educated in Arabic and Persian as well as Sanskrit. According to Sikh

tradition, at around the age of thirty Nanak had a profound religious experience and embarked on

a lengthy spiritual journey that took him throughout the Indian subcontinent, north into Central

Asia, and as far west as Mecca and Medina. After twenty years he returned to the Punjab and

established a community of disciples at Kartarpur (“City of God”) on the Ravi River. Guru

Nanak’s teachings retained Hindu beliefs concerning the law of karma and the goal of attaining

salvation from the cycle of rebirth, but at the same time insisted upon a radical monotheism

similar to that of Islam. Nanak also rejected the significance of the caste system. Instead, he

proposed that all believers had equal access to the means of salvation, which could be reached,

with the assistance of divine grace, through correct actions and meditation on the name of the

one God. Correct actions did not imply asceticism, but rather ethical conduct within worldly

social life. Although the egalitarian message of Sikhism attracted Hindu and Muslim followers

from both urban and rural backgrounds, it appealed most strongly to the working classes of the

Punjab. He encouraged a deep sense of community in which family life and devotion

were unified. A key institution Nanak established was the sangat or congregation which
encouraged participants to feel united in a spiritual fraternity. The gurudwara was the place of

worship, and the langar was the convention of communal dining in which disciples sat together

in status-free lines. Communal meals encourage a spirit of unity and aided in the development of

a unique Sikh identity, unconnected to caste. Nanak also established the role of the guru or

spiritual teacher as the central authority. After his death, he was succeeded by a long succession

of gurus or teachers ending with the 10 th guru, the Guru Govind Singh. After this the guru was

embodied in the Adi Granth, the eternal guru, which is a holy book revered by Sikhs. The Adi

Granth which is worshipped by Sikhs is a compilation of songs, sayings and instructions written

in Punjabi language. In so doing it rejected the Arabic and Sanskrit sacred languages of Islam

and Hinduism, and embraced the common-man’s language, The language solidified the Sikh’s

distinctive culture and identity and highlighted the values of inclusion and universality which lies

at the heart of this tradition.

The association of religious meaning with geographical space represents a crucial trait of

religious systems. Adherents understand sacred space in direct relation to their religion’s

concepts of the divine and the ultimate nature of reality. It comprises crucial points of contact

between human and supernatural domains, such as places of revelation or worship. The

meanings of sacred space include abstract notions of cosmology, but they also reflect

extraordinary places where the sacred is linked to physical reality. Through these meanings,

sacred space itself takes on a highly charged and compelling character for adherents, expressed

in a wide variety of religious obligations and worship practices.

The form and space of the golden temple likewise is a sacred space that is charged with

religious meaning; it exemplifies the core values of equality, inclusion and cooperation. Built in
1577 by Guru Ram Das, the structure was built near a clear pool of water which Sikh’s believe

has healing powers. In the Sikh tradition it is a site visited by Guru Nanak and hence holds a

central place for Sikhs. Scholars note that sacred places are often sacralized through their

connection to divine figures or events that sanctify and elevate a place out of its secular context.

The temple’s construction amplifies the importance given to equality and acceptance. It is built

on level with the water which people cross via a causeway illustrating how everyone comes to

god as equals. The temple has doors on each side to show that people can come from all corners

of the Earth. It is characteristic for everyone visiting the shrine to cover their heads with a small

scarf, even tourists and non-believers are given a small cloth before they enter the main shrine, at

once creating a uniform collective. Each individual is merged into a collective that walks silently

in unison around the shrine before entering the inner sanctum. This clockwise motion from afar

exemplifies how each person becomes part of a wider whole; religious, ethnic, gender and

physical differences are minimized in this collective motion. Difference is turned to sameness

as all who come toward god are one, according to Sikh teachings. The space invites a

confluence of particular and universal encouraging worshippers to connect, worship, pray, bow

and walk toward the central shrine. Singularity is subsumed into the whole. The many becomes

the one.

This can be rendered a theological explanation. Sikh believe in the oneness of divinity. The term

they use is Onkar. Nanak denounced duality and rejected the worship of icons, stressing instead

the importance of achieving liberation through the word alone. Where Guru, the book, was the

mediator between God and the people. The presence of the Guru granth Sahib, the holy text,

permeates the golden temple. It stands as the focal point, a meeting point, between the divine and
the human. The sacred and the secular, the particular and the universal. Elevated above a large

pedestal, the sacred text, is the highest point on the sacred shrine, encased in fabric and

embellishments. It’s a symbolic representation of the divine. Critics might argue that though

Sikhs reject the ritualization and worship of icons, the worship of the text borrows from Hindu

worship rituals. The worship of the holy book has become a substitute for the image.. The holy

book is ‘put to bed’ and ‘taken out’ at key times in the day. These rituals personify the book in

similar ways Hindu’s personify the images they worship in the temple. Hence, while Sikhs

argue that visual representations of divinity should be avoided in favor of elevating the formless

divinity found in sound, practices surrounding the guru granth sahib at the golden temple are

clearly shaped by Hindu devotional traditions.

The inner sanctum of the golden temple houses the guru Granth Sahib or Adi Granth

which is the living guru, the embodiment of the divine word. The sacred book is worshipped and

revered and is a collection of various scriptures denoting the non-sectarian nature of Sikh beliefs.

As a compilation of Hindu, Sikh and Islamic influences, it demonstrates the inclusive nature of

knowledge. What is also noteworthy with the Adi Granth, the particularity of the image is

rejected in Sikhism in place of the word or sacred sound which is transmitted to all regardless of

social, economic or religious affiliation. Sounds holds a profound place in the Sikh tradition

because it transcends the distinct image of the divine. It is believed the divine is embodied and

accessible most directly through sound. The divine is embodied in sound-vani-and not in form or

icons. This is a key feature of the theology in Sikhism. Liberation for Sikhs can be obtained

through immersion in the divine sound which does not discriminate against those who are

different. It is universally accessible to all who hear and chant. The nirguna or non-form of the
divine is a main tenet of Sikh theology which culminates in the central place given to hearing the

Adi Granth and worshipping the words of God in the form of a book.

Finally apart from the inviting architecture that greets both Sikhs and non-Sikhs alike, the

ritual practices performed at the Golden temple also underscore equality and religious

cooperation. In particular, one of the central practices first instituted by Guru Nanak, is the

langar or communal kitchen. After the prayers, individuals sit down to have langar (meal served

from the community kitchen) together that is made and served by the sangat. This communal

kitchen is the most direct way pilgrims illustrate equality and cooperation. The meals are cooked

and served to everyone regardless of differences. Men, women, children, old, young, Sikhs, non-

Sikhs are all brought together in this universal gathering to partake of nourishment. No payment

is required. Again, the particular becomes the universal with this simple display of service.

Service or Seva is carried out in a variety of ways. Seva to the community, society and the world

at large is a key way. Seva comes in many forms in Sikhism such as preparing and providing

food and shelter to pilgrims, maintaining the golden temple clean. In other ways it means looking

after one’s family, sustaining ties with the community. Since Sikhism is a transnational religion,

in America and Canada, seva has also translated to offerings services to the community such as

summer camps, immigration services, voting registration and other services specific to this

population. In this way, seva combines Nanak’s principle of maintaining strong social bonds. It

also amplifies the values of humility and empathy by encouraging self-lessness. In conclusion,

the sacred shrine of the golden temple invites us to think about universalism and particularism as

principles that converge and merge in this sacred space. As a holy site embedded with sacred

meaning, the sikh principles of cooperation, acceptance and inclusiveness are physically

represented in the structure of the temple. And finally, ritual practices such as langar and seva
are key religious practices in Sikhism further demonstrate how individualism is subsumed and

transformed into universalism highlighted how the golden temple is a nexus where both

principles come together in unique ways.