Adventures of a doodled mind

The society was designed for cowards; its strength scares us all. We were raised to believe in the existence of multiple divine beings that would haunt us if we chase our demons. Sacred locations have always intrigued atheists like me for my logically snobbish inquisitiveness have been catered to by learned devotees who at least serve me with some absurd yet delightful tales unlike the defensive curses by followers who refuse to see beyond their thwarting blinders. Although my disbelief is always frowned upon, I too try to seek peace in this chaotic world.
As I walked through the crammed streets of Amritsar, all the ethnic knowledge kicked in, I witnessed the people conducting themselves according to the ‘Sikh Rehni’ or Sikh way of life which includes sporting five articles of faith (5 K’s) – ‘Kesh’ (uncut long hair draped in a turban), ‘Kangha’ (small wooden comb), ‘Kada’ (steel or iron bracelet), ‘Kaccha’ (an undergarment) and ‘Kirpan’ (short dagger) that collectively exhibits the external identity of any Khalsa devotee’s commitment to the commandments by the tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh.
An overly kind Sikh soul offered to guide my way to The Golden Temple, this selfless gesture challenged my mind to figure out his hidden motives, but first I planned to dig out some interesting stories. A businessman by profession, like many others, spent a significant chunk of his days’ time in serving the Temple.
We stepped into the premises of the Golden Temple or the Harmandir Sahib after passing through numerous Dharamshalas and libraries. I instantly cringed at the sight of worshipers drinking a few drops from the puddle of holy water that was then used for cleaning their own feet, I knew just then that we had arrived.
The humid air filled with sounds of prayer chants blaring through the speakers, we walked down the stairs and with each step the marvelous dome of The Golden Temple revealed itself, staged on a lake of holy water, connected by a grand bridge, was it just the magnificent structure that I had barely seen, the kind people I had hardly met that felt so serene.