Dharamshala (type of building)
A dharamshala, also written as dharmashala, is a public resthouse or shelter in the Indian subcontinent. It also refers to Sikh places of worship before the introduction of Gurdwaras. Just as sarai are for travellers and caravans, dharamshalas are built for religious travellers at pilgrimage sites. In Nepal there are dharamshalas especially built for pilgrims as well as dharamshalas for locals.
Etymology
Dharamshala is a word that is a compound of dharma and shālā. A loose translation into English would be 'spiritual dwelling' or, more loosely, 'sanctuary'. Rendering a precise literal translation into English is problematic due to the vast and conceptually rich semantic field of the word dharma, and the cultural aspect of India.In common Hindu usage, the word dharamshala refers to a shelter or rest house for spiritual pilgrims. Traditionally, such dharamshalas were commonly constructed near pilgrimage destinations to give visitors a place to sleep for the night.
Transcription and pronunciation
Due to a lack of uniform observance of transliteration and transcription conventions for Hindi, the name of the town has been transcribed into English variously as Dharamshala, Dharamsala and, less frequently, Dharmshala and Dharmsala. These four permutations result from two variables: the transcription of the word धर्म —particularly the second syllable —and that of the third syllable.A strict transliteration of धर्म as written would be 'dharma'. In the modern spoken Hindi of the region, however, there is a common metathesis in which the vowel and consonant sounds in the second syllable of certain words are transposed, which changes 'dharma' to 'dharam'. Thus, if the goal of the transcription is phonetic accord with modern spoken Hindi, then 'dharam' and 'dharm' are both legitimate options.
The most accurate phonetic transcription of the Hindi धर्मशाला into Roman script for common English usage is either 'Dharamshala' or, less commonly, 'Dharmshala', both of which render the sh sound of श in English as 'sh' to convey the correct native pronunciation, 'Dharamshala' or 'Dharmshala'. Nonetheless, the alternate spelling 'Dharamsala' continues to be used in some cases despite its inaccuracy, and all four spelling permutations can be found in the English language materials of the local and state governments, in publications, and on the Internet.
Regardless of spelling variations, however, it is that the correct native pronunciation is with the sh sound. Therefore, the spelling variant that is most common and most concordant with standards of transcription and native pronunciation is 'Dharamshala'. The official Indian English spelling is 'Dharamshala'.
It is both written and pronounced as Dharmaśālā in Nepali.
Community-specific dharamshala
Sometimes a dharmaśālā is built at religious pilgrimages for a specific community, caste, ethnic group, profession or persons from a specific region. The specified pilgrims are generally charged minimal or allowed free stay for a limited duration at a Dharamshala specifically built for them but other pilgrims may be charged higher amounts.Nepalese dharmashalas
In Nepal, dharmashalas can be found in every village and city. More often than not they have a social and cultural significance rather than a religious one. Usually there is a source of drinking water nearby. There are three different types of dharmashala: a pati, a sattal and a mandapa.Patis
Patis or palchas are the simplest of the three types. They consist of a platform made of stone and brick, with wooden floorboards. Wooden pillars support a sloping roof. The back of the pati is a brick wall. The other sides are usually open. Patis can be either free standing of connected to another building, like a house or a dhunge dhara. Patis can be rectangular, L-shaped, T-shaped, U-shaped, curved or circular. The rectangular shape and the L shape are the most common. Patis are the smallest of the dharmashalas but some can be up to 32 bays long. Patis are found within cities and villages, but also on the side of the road, often near a source of water.In Patan, fourteen patis house parts of the chariot used for the Rato Machindranath Jatra. Preparations for the festival begin with the construction of a 60-foot tall chariot at Pulchok at the western end of the city.
Sattals
Sattals have one or two extra, usually closed, storeys on top of a pati-like structure. The ground floor is mostly open on three sides. Sattals are resting places, not just for the day, but also for overnight stays. One example of such a building is Singha Sattal.Mandapas
Mandapas are square, freestanding buildings, much like patis, but they are open on all sides. The simplest mandapa is a platform with a roof, which rests on sixteen wooden pillars. Two of such mandapas can be found on either side of the entrance stairs of Manga Hiti in Patan. Mandapas can also have multiple storeys, like the Kasthamandap in Kathmandu and the Chyasilin Mandap in Bhaktapur.Chyasilin Mandap was built in the eighteenth century, but completely destroyed during the 1934 earthquake. Architects Götz Hagmüller and Niels Gutschow rebuilt it, using old paintings and early twentieth century photographs as a reference. With the help of locals who had survived the 1934 earthquake, they managed to locate eight of the original pillars and some other fragments of the old building. Dr. Walther Mann, an expert on earthquake proof architecture, created an internal framework of steel and concrete. Craftsmen from Bhaktapur and Patan recreated all the other parts. The work was completed in 1990. Thanks to the controversial choice to use contemporary technology to strengthen the structure, Chyasilin Mandap survived the 2015 earthquakes without damage.
During the past century many dharmashalas have been converted into shops, restaurants and other private spaces.
Sikh dharamsals
Origin
Sikhs believe that Guru Nanak was ordained directly by God to construct dharamsāls, as per the B.40 Janamsakhi:The above statement separates the institution of Sikh dharamsals from those of other faiths, ordaining it as an independent institution based upon Sikhism alone. The first centre was built in Kartarpur, on the banks of Ravi River in the Punjab region by the first Sikh guru, Guru Nanak Dev in the year 1521. It now lies in the Narowal District of west Punjab. During the time of Guru Nanak, Sikh places of worship were known as dharamsals where kirtan was conducted by the early Sikh congregation.The worship centres were built as a place where Sikhs could gather to hear the guru give spiritual discourse and sing religious hymns in the praise of Waheguru.
The institution of Gurdwara evolved out of Dharamsals.
Spread
Guru Nanak would arrange early Sikh followers into various sangat congregations or parishes and instructed them to erect a dharamsal dedicated to spreading their Guru's message and teachings in their local area.Bhai Gurdas states the following:Guru Nanak set-up an important dharamsal in the new-found Kartarpur after settling there. Other important dharamsals were located in Khadur, Goindwal, Ramdaspur, Tarn Taran, Kartarpur and Sri Hargobindpur, all of whom had been directly founded upon the instruction of a Sikh guru. When the Manji system and the later Masand systems of preachers and dioceses was set-up, they were directed to found a dharamsal in their dedicated area of missionary work. Passionate early Sikhs would found dharamsals at various places across the Indian subcontinent and in Afghanistan as a means of expressing their devotion to the faith. Udasis were commanded by Guru Hargobind and his successors to found dharamsals in the distant reaches of the subcontinent far from the nucleus of Sikh centrality and rejuvenate the abandoned, dilapidated, or struggling dharamsals which had been founded by Guru Nanak and his followers in faraway places, which struggled due to their extreme distance from the central Sikh authority located mainly in Punjab. Guru Tegh Bahadur founded new dharamsal centres during his missionary tours of the Malwa region of Punjab and in northeastern India. Dharamsals were also established on trade routes utilized by Sikh Khatri merchants, especially upon the routes between Chitagong-to-Kabul plus Agra-to-Burhampur.
Structure and operation
The dharamsals were simple constructions and modest buildings, usually just consisting of a single humble room to house the local devotees of a locality for prayers. This was especially true in the rural areas, villages, and small towns where most of the local Sikh congregations consisted of simple peasants with little means of wealth. They were not built upon a specific axis because Sikhs believe God in omnipresent and the entire Earth is divine and equally fitting as such. The Adi Granth was installed at dharamsals after its codification and introduction in 1604. The dharamsals likely did not contain intricate and ornate furniture, fittings, and other decorative accessories, unlike modern-day gurdwaras. Dharamsals incorporated a body of water for public bathing due to the importance placed upon isnan in Sikhism. Wherever natural sources of water were not readily available, a baoli, bucket well, or rahat would be implemented and installed in the courtyard of the structure or near a pool of water. The dharamsals incorporated a langar and lodge, especially the ones on important highways and trade routes, where persons could eat and stay without discriminated based upon their religious or caste-background. This facilitated the fast spread of Sikhism throughout the Punjab. Some dharamsals contained a hospital ward where the sick and injured could receive treatment. Other dharamsals incorporated carpentry workshops to construct beds and other needed furniture. The dharamsals often contained a school where one could learn Gurmukhi, Sikh music, and interpretation of Sikh scriptures. The dharamsals were known or named after the area they belonged to.Local Sikhs performed individual worship in their homes and communal worship at the dharamsals. Worship was performed at specific times and centred around the Adi Granth at the dharamsal. In the morning, the Japji Sahib prayer was performed at the dharamsal during the morning hours. Sodar, Aarti and Sohila prayers were performed in the evening hours at the dharamsal by the early Sikhs. Interfaith dialogues were also held within dharamsals.
In the courtyard of the dharamsal, diwans and jor melas would be undertaken. The assemblies in the courtyard were often utilized to discuss topics related to theology, warfare, government, and so-on. Sikh Panchayats ran their courts in the courtyard and passed judgements from there.