14. Guru Nanak at Haridwar

Hardwar is one of the Hindu pilgrimage places on the bank of river Ganges. It was a Baisakhi day and the pilgrims got up early in the morning and bathed in the river. As the sun came out, they started throwing water towards the sun. When Guru Nanak asked them as to what they were doing, one priest replied,"We are offering water to our dead ancestors in the region of Sun to quench their thirst." Upon this the Guru started throwing water towards the west. The pilgrims laughed and asked what he was doing. The Guru replied,"I am watering my fields in my village in the Punjab." The priest asked,"How can your water reach such a distance?" The Guru retorted,"How far your ancestors are from here?" One of them replied,"in the other world." The Guru stated,"If the water cannot reach my fields which are about four hundred miles away from here, how can your water reach your ancestors who are not even on this earth?" The crowd stood in dumb realization. The Guru preached against superstitions and false rituals, worship of gods and goddesses, penances and renunciation. He stressed that only One God, the Formless, was to be glorified. In this way he showed the path of truth and enlightenment. There is a Gurdwara called Nanakwara in Hardwar on the bank of the river Ganges where the Guru had stayed.