Paonta Sahib

Paonta Sahib stands on the west bank of the Yamuna in the plains of Sirmaur, on the border with Uttarakhand. The tenth Sikh Guru, Gobind Singh, settled here around 1685 and stayed for roughly four and a half years — longer than anywhere else in his life — writing part of the Dasam Granth and holding a court of poets, the Kavi Darbar. The gurudwara complex on the river has the Darbar Sahib, the Kavi Darbar Asthan, a small museum of arms and manuscripts, and gardens along the water. The Yamuna here is the traditional boundary between Himachal and the Doon.

1. It is about an hour from Dehradun and a similar drive from Nahan, the district headquarters.
2. Chandigarh is roughly 3–4 hours by road via Nahan.
3. Regular buses serve Paonta Sahib from Dehradun, Nahan and Shimla.

October to March, when the plains are cool. Summers are hot (often 40°C+); the monsoon raises the Yamuna.

• Cover your head, remove shoes and leave tobacco outside; langar is served through the day.
• The riverside terrace and Kavi Darbar hall are the main things to see beyond the main hall.
• It is a working pilgrimage town, busiest around Sikh festivals and Hola Mohalla.

Individual pages for these are added as they are reviewed.