Parminder Narula
If you go to Leh by air you would reach there in one hour from Delhi but if you go by road it would take 4 days as the route is treacherous and full of twists and turns. When the door of the aircraft opens after the aircraft comes to a halt and you step out of it you do not feel the warmth of atmosphere outside but a thorny chill. The cold wave crosses your bones through and through unlike other cold places. You will find everyone covering themselves in jackets before they board the buses to take you to the airport terminal. Immediately on reaching there you cannot just go out for a stroll and start sightseeing but have to seriously acclimatise yourself for 6 days (when you plan a stay of more than a week) or else you will fall sick. The tourists adopt a minimum rest of 3 days to be on the safer side for short visits. If you come by road this problem does not occur as the time spent on the route takes care of it.
Aerial View Ladakh
Leh is a high altitude area having 11000 feet plus elevation which is cold from Oct to April and excessively cold (below minus 15 degree Celsius) from Nov to Feb. Weather from May to Oct is excellent so it is heaven then.
There are lot of hotels , army and civil guest rooms as dignitaries keep coming quiet often during the summer season to enjoy the paid holiday in the form of official duties. The most famous Hotel is the the ‘Yaktail’. They provide you everything but there is scarcity of water which has to be used judiciously. There is no problem of transportation as lot of Tata Sumos, Safari, Alto, Tavera and mostly Scorpio vehicles ply on the roads having package deals to show you all important places in and around Leh.
The sikh Temple Gurudwara Shri Paththar Sahib is among the nearby places which just requires about half a day of visit . It would be better if you plan to spend Sunday afternoon here as you get a delicious Langar (Free Kitchen) on this day when all the service category lot visit here being a holiday.
This Historic Temple falls on the way while going from Leh to Kargil at about 25 Kms from Leh which is manned by the units of Indian Army and hence is nicely maintained both from caretaking and food point of view. In addition the transporters passing through that route halt here and donate rations contributing to the free kitchen(Langar).
It is said from the available records held at the place that the first Guru of Sikhs, ‘Shri Guru Nanak Dev ji’ had visited this place in 16th century and the history goes on as follows :-
Guru Nanak Dev ji during his second journey (1515-1518 AD) in 1517 AD had reached here after giving his preachings in ‘Sumer’ mountains while passing from Nepal, Sikkim and Tibet via the ‘Yarkand’ route. There lived an evil demon on the hill just opposite to the place where the Gurudwara is now located. The demon used to harass the locals a lot and would eat them away after killing them. Guru Nanak on hearing this from the people reached here and established himself near the river by taking an Asan (Sitting position with crossed legs while praying as followed in Indian culture) at the foothill. Seeing this the locals took a sigh of relief but the demon did not like this and planned to kill the Guru. One day while the Guru was busy praying almighty while in meditation, the demon taking advantage of the situation pushed a heavy stone towards him from up the hill so that the Guru would be crushed to death but as it is said ‘One who is protected by the lord cannot be harmed by anyone'(Jaako rakhey saayiyaa maar sakey na koye) a miracle happened in which as the big stone touched the Guru it became like a wax in which the rear part of the Guru’s body got embedded into it and his meditation remained undisturbed. Assuming that the Guru died, the demon happily came down from the hill near the stone and was astonished to see the Guru hail hearty and live. Seeing this he got annoyed and kicked the stone with his right foot which also got embedded into the stone. Then did the demon realise that due to his stupidity he tried to kill a devotee of God and fell at the Guru’s feet to pardon him. The Guru opened his eyes and adviced him to devote his remaining life in service of mankind for only then he will be well wished. The demon took his advice and followed it after which he started living a happy life. After sometime the Guru went to Kashmir from this place via Kargil.
The history of the origin of this place in hindi script is also displayed for everyone to know the history of this place.
History of Paththar Sahib in Hindi
The area around the Gurudwara gives a feeling that we are standing in a desert with barren mountains in the background where the horizon meets the ground . One can feel gushes of strong winds if you stand in open. The chill is strong enough to pass through your bones making you feel that it is not Delhi ki sardi (Extreme cold of Delhi) but something much more than that. The area has enough place to park the vehicles and most of which is occupied by the military vehicles on Sundays as most of the army personnel come here from nearby units regularly which also serves a place for a good get together.
The demon hill is high enough to warm your knees (about 100 m high)since you have to climb number of steps to reach there huffing and puffing . The oxygen content is low in the air making the breathing difficult but you finally feel great after reaching the top. It was from here that the demon pushed a large boulder towards the Guru meditating below.
View from the demon hill
People come here and take some rest, snap some photos and then start back. It is extremely chilly cold here due to the strong winds blowing. You can have a look at the top view of the area down below.
View from the Demon Hill
In one of the barrack the huge stone which melted like a wax with Guru’s body impression is still there exhibiting his natural stance of sitting.
Impression of the Guru on the Stone
A small impression of the demon’s foot can also be seen in it. The other barrack is for the kitchen and a dining hall where hundreds can dine in at one time sitting on the coir mats during the special occasions or on Sundays. There is also a STD booth in the Gurudwara campus with a guest room to rest should you require to stay there for a night.
The main entrance leads to the place where the Holy Granth is placed; the place where everyone kneels down and bows as followed in Sikh culture.
The holy Granth at Entrance
A small Gurudwara extension where one more Holy Granth has been kept is located on a small hillock about 20 m high adjacent to the main Gurudwara.
The landscape provides excellent vision of the mountains located far off all around as if some painting is hung in the sky. All along the road from Leh to this place, river Indus runs parallel to the road. The greenery can be noticed only along the riverbanks in summers and the rest of the area always remains barren where long stretches of the empty ground can be seen for stretches together. The inhabitation is also very less as hardly one odd hut can be noticed on the way. Small villages in the form of Hamlets are located at far off remote areas from the road into the valleys where water is available for survival. Every village has a Buddhist Temple called ‘Gompa’. There is no tea stall, motel or a Dhaba (roadside small hotels) on the way so administratively you have to be self sufficient. Since the distance from Leh is not much one can easily reach there in a TATA Sumo with in half an hour, spend sometime and easily come back by afternoon after having Langar ( Free lunch) which is served daily.
There is another interesting place, ‘The Magnetic Hill’ quiet close by to the Gurudwara slightly ahead of it which is famous for the fact that the law of Gravitation fails here since your vehicle climbs up a particular stretch of uphill slope in neutral with the engines switched off as there is a magnetic hill which pulls up your vehicle.
The Magnetic Hill Road
Besides this a beautiful place ‘Nimu’ is visible from here which is lush green as is situated on the river bank visible from between the two hills but about 20 kms ahead.
If Guru Nanak Dev Ji visited it by foot you can definitely visit this place using the modern transport system of today as is a place worth visiting which will imprint good lifetime memories in your mind.
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