Gurdwara Panja Sahib

Gurdwara Panja Sahib at Hasan Abdal is one of the most revered Sikh shrines in Pakistan, and for most yatris it is the first major stop after arriving in Islamabad.

The shrine takes its name from the panja — the open handprint that Sikh tradition holds was left by Guru Nanak on a boulder here. Guru Nanak is said to have reached Hasan Abdal with Bhai Mardana in the summer of 1521, during the travels known as the udasis. In the account passed down through the sangat, a spring rose at the Guru's touch and the rock that was sent down towards him came to rest against his open palm, leaving the impression that pilgrims come to see today.

The boulder sits at the edge of a large sarovar fed by that spring, stocked with fish and enclosed by the white marble of the gurdwara complex. Pilgrims take a dip in the sarovar, pay respects at the panja itself, and sit for langar in the dining hall alongside sangat who have travelled from across the world.

Panja Sahib fills at Vaisakhi, when jathas arrive from India and the diaspora and the complex stays awake through the night with kirtan. It is quieter outside those weeks, and many yatris prefer it that way — there is time to sit by the water without moving on.

Hasan Abdal is about 50 km north-west of Islamabad on the Grand Trunk Road, so the visit is usually made as a day trip from the group's Islamabad or Rawalpindi hotel. Konnect Yatra groups travel together by coach with our own transport and security throughout.

What a visit involves

Groups usually arrive mid-morning, after the ninety-minute drive from Islamabad. Shoes come off at the entrance and there is a covered rack; heads must be covered, and cloth is available at the gate if you have not brought a rumal. You walk through the main darbar first, then out to the sarovar where the panja is set into the rock at the water's edge. Most yatris take a dip — steps lead down, and the water is cold year round. Langar runs through the day in the hall beside the complex.

Allow three to four hours. Groups arriving at Vaisakhi should expect considerably longer, and considerably more sangat.

Before you go

• The marble around the sarovar stays wet and is slippery; footwear for the walk in matters more than you would expect.
• Tobacco is prohibited anywhere in the complex, as at every gurdwara.
• Photography is generally accepted in the outer complex. Ask before photographing inside the darbar.
• The sarovar steps are steep. If anyone in your group needs a wheelchair, tell us when you book and we arrange it for the whole trip rather than the airport alone.

Getting there from your hotel

Hasan Abdal is about 50 km north-west of Islamabad on the Grand Trunk Road, an hour and a half each way depending on traffic. Konnect Yatra groups travel by private coach from the Islamabad or Rawalpindi hotel with our own staff and security. It is one of the few major sites reachable as a comfortable day trip from the capital, which is why it comes early, before the group moves south to Lahore.