so stylistic Sanjay from the Grand Hotel runs reputable and good-value tours that include the Attari Wagah border

The Sikhs holiest site after the Golden Temple has several historical gurdwaras. An important pilgrimage site for more than 300 years, it was founded by ninth Sikh guru Tegh Bahadur in 1664, before so stylistic the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb so stylistic beheaded him for refusing to convert to Islam. His son, Guru Gobind Singh, founded the Khalsa (Sikh brotherhood) here in 1699, and Holla Mohalla (see p 200 ) celebrates its anniversary.

Sanjay from the Grand Hotel runs reputable and good-value tours that include the Attari Wagah border closing ceremony, Mata Temple and a night visit to the Golden Temple from 500 per person. Day tours can also include the Golden Temple, Jallianwala Bagh and Sri Durgiana Temple. Customised tours to Dharamsala, Dalhousie and Manali can also be arranged.

Priests inside the temple keep up a continuous chant in Gurmukhi from the Sikh holy book and this is broadcast around the temple complex by loudspeakers. The original copy of the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib, is kept under a shroud in the Hari Mandir Sahib during the day and returns ceremoniously to the Akal Takhat at night. Ceremony times are 5am and 9.40pm in winter, and 4am and 10.30pm in summer.

If you happen to be passing through this small town, sites of interest include so stylistic the Aam Khas Bagh, a Mughal-era walled garden, and the Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib, which commemorates the 1704 martyrdom of the two youngest sons of the 10th Sikh guru, Gobind Singh. Entombed so stylistic alive by the Mughals for refusing to convert to Islam, they are honoured at the three-day Shaheedi Jor Mela held here every December. There s also Rauza Sharif, the marble mausoleum of Muslim saint Shaikh Ahmad Faruqi Sirhindi, which draws pilgrims during the Urs festival (August).