The above photo of Darbar Sahib (Sikhism’s holiest shrine, also known as Harmandir Sahib or the Golden Temple) comes from photographer Ratul Upadhyay who describes this image thus:

A Work of Art is not a living thing, that walks or runs. But the making of a life, that which gives you a reaction, certainly is. To some it is the wonder of man’s fingers, to some it is the wonder of the mind, to some it is the wonder of technique, and to some it is how real it is. To some, how Transcendent it is. For me the framework in the picture above is a work of art.

Gleaming with those beautiful reflections in the water, a gold structure standing tall, filling the void between that starry blue sky and those moire of waves dipped in vibrant yellows, it was a sight to behold. And fortunately enough I got some of the shots right at night for a change. This one was well focused, details were okay and the colors which are kind of becoming my forte over the time came out well too. The prestigiously divine structure in the frame above is The Golden Temple, and was clicked at Amritsar, India.

Perhaps a coincidence, but the posting of this photo of Sikhism’s holiest shrine this week is timely.

This week, Sikhs around the world will be commemorating the 28th anniversary of Operation Blue Star, the 10-day invasion of this sacred spot by the Indian army that left destruction, ruin and death in its wake on the pretense of flushing out a few accused Sikh militants. Ironically, instead of achieving its supposed objective, Operation Blue Star precipitated a militant backlash by Sikhs against the Indian state that lasted almost 15 years and cost thousands of lives. The event and its repercussions have left a permanent mark on the Sikh psyche. I wrote about Operation Blue Star around this time last year.

The National Sikh Youth Federation in the United Kingdom has begun a daily recounting of the events that occurred during the fateful ten days in June 1984 on their website http://www.nsyf.org.uk (they can also be followed on Twitter and Facebook). You can read more about this project at The Langar Hall.