What is Gurdwara?

All religions have temples where people can gather together to contemplate on God and pray. During the times of the early Gurus, Sikh places of worship were referred to as dharamsalas. They were a place where Sikhs could gather to hear the Guru speak or sing hymns. As the Sikh population continued to grow Guru Hargobind introduced the word Gurdwara. A Gurdwara is the place where Sikhs come together for congregational worship. The first Gurdwara in the world was built by Guru Nanak in 1521-2 at Kartarpur. There are thousands of Gurdwaras throughout Punjab and the rest of the world. The literal meaning of the Punjabi word Gurdwara is ‘the residence of the Guru’, or ‘the door that leads to the Guru’. In a modern Gurdwara, the Guru is not a person but the book of Sikh scriptures called the living Guru, Sri Guru Granth Sahib. It is the presence of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib that gives the Gurdwara its religious status, so any building containing the book is a Gurdwara. Although a Gurdwara may be called the residence of the Guru (meaning the residence of God), Sikhs believe that God is present everywhere. Before the time of Guru Arjan Dev, the place of Sikh religious activities was known as  Dharamsala, which means place of faith. Many of the Gurdwaras in Punjab have a pool (sarovar) for bathing in. In Sikhism one can bathe in these pools if they wish, but they should be pure inside in order to accomplish anything. For the water may clean you on the outside, but it cannot clean you on the inside if your heart is not pure.