Amritsar

Because of its proximity to the Pakistani border—Lahore is only 64 km (40 mi) away—Amritsar has not seen the development and overwhelming sprawl of other North Indian towns. The city is an important commercial hub: much of the aromatic and relatively expensive Basmati rice that's now an international staple is exported by Amritsar dealers, and dried fruits and woolens from hill regions are handled by wholesalers here. The robust rural culture of Punjab's farmlands permeates the city, with tractors on the roads and peasants making their way through the market centers and through the famous Sikh temple.

The Golden Temple is perhaps the best reason to take a detour through Amritsar as you're leaving the mountains of Himachal Pradesh. Even if you think you've had enough of India's religious pageantry, you shouldn't miss this main pilgrimage site of the Sikh faith. An argument could be made that the Golden Temple, with its Moghul-style architecture and gleaming copper detail, is just as grand as the Taj Mahal without all the government rules, hefty admission fees, and hordes of foreign tourists clamoring for photographs. As a living lesson of the Sikh faith, which teaches a welcoming attitude toward all, the Golden Temple's pristine grounds and lush golden details attract Indian citizens year-round regardless of social status or religion. It's also a popular setting for Bollywood films.

The Sikh faith is a syncretic movement that was formed to combine Hinduism's bhakti (devotion to a personalized god) with Islam's monotheism and egalitarianism. Sikhism was founded by Guru Nanak around the turn of the 16th century, developing into a distinct new religion under the gurus who succeeded him. Amritsar (Pool of Nectar, in Punjabi and Sanskrit) takes its name from an ancient sacred pool that Nanak is said to have preferred for his meditation and teaching. In succeeding years, Sikhism gained increasing importance and Amritsar became its pilgrimage center. Gobind Singh, the tenth guru, consolidated the faith by establishing a distinctive appearance for his followers, most notably long hair kept in a turban for men, and braids for women. (Almost all Sikh men carry the last name of Singh, which literally means "tiger.") Upon his death in 1708, Singh's disciples announced his instruction that the Sikh faith would henceforth be centered on the teachings of the sacred book (now called the Guru Granth Sahib) rather than a human guru. To this day, life in the Golden Temple and all gurdwaras ("temple" or "door to the guru" in Punjabi) revolves around the Guru Granth Sahib. Before dawn, the book is taken out of a building called the Akal Takht and carried processionally across the huge, white marble compound—including a causeway over a square artificial pond—to Harmandir Sahib, the central temple whose gilded copper plating gives the complex its popular name. The temple's day ends late in the evening, when the book is brought back to its resting place.

During the time of the gurus, the Sikhs' development as a community often brought them into conflict with other forces in Moghul India. In 1761, as the Moghul empire declined, the temple was sacked by the Afghan raider Ahmad Shah Durrani. (It was rebuilt three years later.) In 1984 the Indian Army's Operation Bluestar brought tanks into the complex in a disastrous four-day firefight with heavily armed Sikh separatists who had virtually taken over the complex. India's Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated about five months later by two of her Sikh bodyguards, in what was widely believed to be retribution for the Army attack on the temple. Amazingly, the temple now shows few signs of this tragic event, or of the decade of separatist violence and state repression that plagued Punjab afterward.

All day long, while a select group of singers, or ragis, broadcast hymns throughout the complex, pilgrims from rustic Punjabi towns and villages—India's hugely productive breadbasket—make their way around it, some performing seva (voluntary service) by cleaning the marble or completing other tasks. The dignity that pilgrims invest in the Golden Temple, the grandeur of its design, and the hospitality extended to visitors transcend the turmoil of the past.

Pashmina Shawls

The wool for fine pashmina shawls is sourced from the pashm (Persian for wool) of herds of special hairy goats and yaks found in the upper altitudes of an area stretching from Kashmir to Outer Mongolia. In India, they've been woven into shawls for many centuries. Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh are ideal places to purchase a reasonably priced, beautiful shawl—the best are said to be fine enough to pass through a wedding ring. Shops in Kullu, Manali, Dharamshal, Leh, and Shimla sell shawls with different regional textures and patterns.