What I imagine Shri Harimandir Sahib (Golden Temple) might have looked like before it was covered in gold and marble. Its humble origins are of mud and brick, surrounded only by a sacred pool (amritsar), trees and wildlife as it has yet to develop into a large urban community. These swans are the spiritually exalted gursikhs that swim in and drink from that abundant supply of amrit, which comes from the meditation of guru’s name.
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Keep an eye out for my painting of Guru Arjun Dev ji. It depicts the martyrdom of Guru Sahib in meditation being tortured on a hot plate with burning sand. I am in the process of painting the final touches.
lively
I think Harmandir Sahib was originally made of white marble Bhagat?
Dally
This temple-tower complex was built in 1400s http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vijay_Stambha and uses “Red Sandstone and Marble” and maybe brick. These materials were quite common at the time (for rich people anyway). And I think Harimandir Sahib would have been built similarly.
500 AD temple – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dashavatara_Temple,_Deogarh
There’s Jagganath temple built in 1600s but I can’t tell what that’s made out of.
Let me know if you find anything.
I don’t think sri harmandir sahib was white marble but red thin bicks but over time marble and gold was added.
Lovely picture
Thanks Val.
Indeed. It was Maharaja Ranjit Singh ji who rebuilt the temple and this time he added marble, like the Mughal buildings, and also gold plating.
To read my other notes about this piece and its history visit – https://www.sikhiart.com/for-sale/harimandir-sahib/
Hi Bhagat Ji, congratulations on this lovely depiction especially the way water is glistening. I am sure it’s not easy! What kind of paint did you use for this effect?
The glistening effect is created by putting lighter values over on top of dark values.
I painted a lot of water in my newest painting of Golden Temple in Moonlight as well. When I release the painting and the behind-the-scenes video, you will be able to see how I paint the water.