Relics require more care

I had not been to Anandpur Sahib for well over a decade. I wanted to make it during the tercentenary celebrations. Fearing that at my age I may not be able to see my way through the massive assemblage of the devotees, I postponed my visit. If the media reports were any guide, possibly one out of every 10 Sikhs living converged to the fountainhead of the Khalsa to pay obeisance.

Some 10 days back I could go to the sacred place in a small group. The newly built bifurcated road from Kiratpur Sahib onward was smooth and safe. The white exterior of the city we were approaching was imposing. The backdrop of the hills made the whole place idyllic.

As we entered the town, we came across several gurdwaras, not historic in any way , which possibly have been built by different denominations of the community. I do not know if these have come up according to some well-thought-of plan for this place of pilgrimage.

The whole city is painted white but a big structure with stone cladding and colour stands prominently near Takht Shri Keshgarh Sahib. I was told that this was a guest house for the VIP visitors. I felt perturbed at seeing this special facility for the elite, very next to the shrine of equality.

As we entered the sanctum sanctorum, kirtan of Gurbani was on which was really touching and soulful. Soon there followed a katha on Suraj Prakash, which was conducted in a light-hearted manner. If men of calibre are not available for this kind of preaching, it would be better to concentrate only on kirtan without any kind of discourses. In this context the Golden Temple, Amritsar, can be the model,even if the kirtan is not to be for an extended period.

The general maintenance and cleanliness left much to be desired. The visiting “sangat” would be more than happy to get blessed through “sewa” if someone volunteered to give the lead.

In the shrine weapons of Guru Gobind Singh are kept together at a central place in a casual way. These venerated relics are not meant to last a few centuries but many millennia. These will continue to be a source of inspiration for generations to come. Each one of these need to be placed separately, in showcases, may be socketed in the walls, with appropriate descriptions. The weapons require to be displayed in a tasteful manner, taking care of their security. These should be very occasionally handled for servicing, and that too only under expert supervision.

On our way back we stopped at the site of the Khalsa Heritage Centre. The model was on display, but no one could explain the essential features of the project. If a whole time knowledgeable attendant cannot be arranged, at least appropriate descriptions can be put up to highlight the plans for project. The inscription on a curved marble slab with water gliding over the slopes charmingly, put up at the time of the inauguration, is impressive. But it needs care to avoid mycelial growth and depositions, lest the sheen continues to be spoiled.

(Prof) Harkishan Singh
Chandigarh

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China should hit back

It is quite a surprise that China has just condemned the NATO missile attack on its embassy in Belgrade, especially when three persons were killed and more than a score injured. China should have shown more fury by reacting in a strong way and launching counter-attacks! By now, the world has well understood that the rod is the logic of the USA and mere utterances, however strongly worded, don't affect it at all. Needless to say that the poor Chinese reaction will be weighed as a sign of weakness by the USA, and it may draw its future strategies accordingly.

Another point to be noted is that the attacks on Yugoslavia are continuing despite Beijing's demand to halt the barbaric action immediately. That shows very little weightage the USA gives to Beijing. If China really has some self-respect, it must hit back. It must understand that charity in such matters doesn't pay. It must not act like a blind dog who doesn't bark at the moon under the pretext that it is unable to see the moon!

When injustice is done to someone, spontaneous reaction should come from that person or country irrespective of the strength of the assailant. I recall an incident when I was travelling in a bus and a group of boys began to pass objectionable remarks upon a young unmarried girl who was accompanied by her middle-aged father. The boys were carrying a weapon and no one dared to stop them. However, the girl's father reacted back and slapped one of the boys. Next moment, all the boys pounced on him. He alone fought valiantly and hit them wherever he could. This was enough to prick the conscience of other bus passengers who saved the girl's father and taught the boys a lesson.

Later, when I asked the girl's father why he had fought when he knew very well that he would lose, he replied that it was his duty to save his daughter from humiliation and he would have fought till his last breath. He said it was more important to react to injustice and fight than weighing who was stronger or who would win.

It is becoming evident that if China or the world at large does not stop the USA now, it may develop the habit of attacking any country on any superficial pretext.

JAGVIR GOYAL
Bathinda

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Gamma ray burst

Till a few days ago the heat wave had been on the rise except for relief for brief periods as compared to the previous years. India being on the Equator (a centrally drawn line around the globe with an equidistance from the North and South Poles) is basically hot from the climatic angle. Secondly, the world is getting hotter due to nuclear experiments conducted by various countries.

Apart from the above, a powerful explosion was observed in January, 1999 – which was a deep space eruption that released in just seconds a burst of energy equal to billions of years of light from thousands of suns. Researchers call it a gamma ray burst (GRB), that occurred nine billion light years from earth.

What caused this explosion is still a mystery. When enquired about this brightest burst in the universe, Mr S. George Djorgovski, a California Institute of Technology astronomer, stated: “The Truth is we don’t know”.

According to some experts, the intense heat wave was the outcome of this burst. It is indeed a splendid show. Truely speaking, more the scientists explore nature, the deeper it becomes. In fact, art is man’s nature and nature is God’s art.

V.P. RATTAN
Panchkula

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Crime and police

Ms Tavleen Singh in her article, “Jessica murder: another view” The (Tribune, May 8), has rightly focused the attention of the readers when she says that the police has been laying more emphasis on the minor issue of serving liquor in the restaurant without permit, and not highlighting the major lapses of the police.

If liquor was being served there and also at many other places, it is being done with the support of the police. Many of the senior police officers have been regular visitors to the restaurant. The need of the hour is to book all those who were meant to stop it.

Mr J.Ribeiro, a former Director-General of Police, Punjab, in his recently published book, “Bullet for Bullet,” has lamented that how the distillation and sale of liquor, gambling and flesh trade were openly going on in Bombay and Thane district when he took the charge of these areas as a senior police officer, with the connivance of the police. He had a hard time to curb this menace.

Major NARINDER SINGH JALLO (retd)
Kapurthala