Akal Takht

The Takht Sri Darbar Sahib Akal Takht (ਅਕਾਲ ਤਖ਼ਤ, ) literally means The Seat (Throne) of the Timeless One or Seat (Throne) of God is in Amritsar, Punjab is one of the five seats of temporal religious authority of the Sikhs. Akal means The Timeless One - another term for God. Takht means 'seat' or 'throne' in Persian. Akal Takht is located in the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar. The Akal Takht was initially built by the sixth Guru of Sikhs, Guru Har Gobind as a symbol for political sovereignty of Sikhs. It stood as symbol of political and military resistance against the Mughal Empire in the 17th and 18th century. In 18 century Ahmed Shah Abdali led series of attacks on the Akal Takht and Harmandar Sahib . On June 4, 1984, the Indian Army heavily damaged the Akal Takht building as part of a controversial military operation known as Operation Bluestar.

The Jathedar of the Akal Takht along with other four Jathedars of the other four holy Takhts are the temporary physical supreme religious authority of Sikhs. The current Jathedar of the Akal Takht is Gyani Gurbachan Singh.

See also

• Harmandir Sahib, Amritsar

External links

• Takht Sri Darbar Sahib Akal Takht