Nankana Sahib
Nankana Sahib is the capital of the district of the same name in the Punjab Province in Pakistan and an important pilgrimage site of the Sikhs .
location and size
Nankana Sahib is 65 km west of the provincial capital Lahore and 75 km east of Faisalabad and 187 m. ü. d. M. on the railway line from Sheikhupura to Shorkot . At the 2017 census, the population was 79 540. Since 2005, Nankana Sahib has been the capital of the three districts ( Tehsil ) of the same name.
Importance as a place of pilgrimage
Nankana Sahib, originally called Rai Bhoi Ki Talvandi, got its current name after the death of the founder of the Sikh religion, Nanak Dev , who was born here on April 14, 1469. The Gurdwara Janam Asthan shrine was built on the site of his birth as early as the 16th century . The current buildings were built by Ranjit Singh in the 19th century . Inside the extensive shrine complex there is, among other things, a large basin for ritual ablutions and an inner courtyard with a memorial commemorating the 260 victims of a massacre that was carried out on the grounds of the shrine on February 20, 1920 among supporters of various Sikhism . After Pakistan's independence in 1947, most of the Sihks left the country, so that today only a few residents of the city are followers of Sikhism. However, the shrine complex is freely accessible and is visited by many pilgrims from India on certain holidays. Another important and much-visited place of pilgrimage for the Sikhs in Punjab is the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur temple, located directly on the border with India, not far from the city of Narowal . It was built on the site where Guru Nanak Dev died on September 22, 1539.
Individual evidence
- ↑ https://www.politicpk.com/nankana-sahib-district-population-of-cities-towns-and-villages-2017-2018/
- ↑ Tim Blight: Pakistan Traveler , p. 100. Melbourne 2017
- ↑ PAKISTAN NANKANA SAHIB .
- ↑ Tony Halliday: Pakistan , p. 221. Munich 1996.