Gurudwara Shikar Ghat Sahib

This breath takingly beautiful Gurudwara is situated on the bank of River Godavari. The location of the Gurudwara is in itself reassuring and can give its visitors the peace of mind that they come looking for. Like most other Gurudwaras this is also made of white marble and stands stunningly attractive. This was the point where Guru Nanak killed a rabbit on one of his Shikar or hunting and hence the name Gurudwara Shikar Ghat Sahib.

History

The Gurudwara is situated in a scenic location with the river Godavari flowing by the side and a hill on which this Gurudwara stands. The elevated position of the Gurudwara enhances the scenic beauty and the backdrop of the greenery and woods add even more beauty to the Gurudwara itself. Thanks to the location, peace and tranquillity just seems to overflow in this place. That is one good reason why there are a lot of pilgrims who come over to this Gurudwara.

Guru Nanak had an assistant who was called Bhai Mulla. Mulla was the one who accompanied Guru Nanak on most of his spiritual travels. Once, just after Guru Nanak and Mulla returned from one of their long travels, Gur Nanak went looking for Mulla who avoided him. The Guru realised that Mulla was not interested in meeting him, because he feared that Guru Nanak might make him travel again to a far off place.

The minute the Guru realised this he went away without disturbing Mulla. However, as luck would have it , or as was destiny, Mulla passed away after a snake bite. The venom spread quickly and that was the end of him. Mulla had to go through many births and many forms of lower births and went through the cycle of birth and death until he was born as a rabbit in one of the births. He didnt realise that this was where he would achieve enlightenment.

The same time that Mulla was born as a rabbit, Guru Gobind had gone out hunting. Since he knew nothing about the past and no history about the rabbit, he aimed at it and shot an arrow it. That killed the rabbit and that is why this place is called Gurudwara Shikar Ghat Sahib, because this was the place where Guru Gobind Sikhar performed the shikar or hunting of the rabbit.

Though to the common man, it looks like a punishment for somebody who had accompanied the great Guru, in reality this is actually a blessing in disguise. To even have the boon of dying from the arrows of Guru Gobind Singh is considered to be a great blessing. In a way it was also because he ignored the call of Guru Nanak and did not realise the calling of the great leader and tried to hide from him.

The Gurudwara Shikar Ghat Sahib that we see today houses the central enclosure made completely in marble and that is where the Guru Granth Sahib sits. The position is raised and resembles a throne made of white marble. The walls on the four sides, the side walls and all other enclosures are all made in white marble giving the place a very aesthetic look. The roofs have glazed tiles in white colour and the maintenance and the upkeep of the Gurudwara is just exemplary.

The current day structure dates back to the late 1960s and the early 1970s when two great Sikh men Baba Jiwan Singh and Baba Dalip Singh went all out to build this Gurudwara. They had come for this purpose of construction in Maharashtra all the way from Punjab and they stayed through the whole erection process of the Gurudwara ShikarGhat Sahib. They were so concerned about the pilgrims who would come over their prayers that they also worked on the access roads to the Gurudwar.

How to Reach

• If you are flying in, you could either reach Hyderabad or Mumbai airport or then take the regular buses or taxis depending on your budget.
• Nanded railway station has timely trains running to Nanded from major cities of the country. The pilgrims can refer the timetables before they plan their trips so they can avoid any last minute surprises and also plan their budgets.
• The local transport is well organized with a lot of taxis plying all round the clock and this helps pilgrims who want to see a good number of Gurudwaras in less time.

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