Gurdwara Thara Sahibਗੁਰਦੁਆਰਾ ਥਾੜਾ ਸਾਹਿਬ

History & the Multan sakhi

According to Bhai Gurdas Ji's Vars (Var 1, Pauri 44-45), Guru Nanak Dev Ji travelled from Kartarpur via Achal Batala to Multan, the ancient city that was a great centre of Muslim piety. As the Guru arrived, the pirs of Multan sent him a bowl brimming with milk - a gesture meaning the city was already full of religious teachers and had no room for another.

Guru Nanak laid a jasmine flower upon the milk, showing he would make room for himself without displacing anyone. Bhai Gurdas writes that the Guru mingled there 'as do the waters of the Ganges and the sea.' The Miharban Janam Sakhi records that many people of Multan came to hear him, among them a descendant of the famous saint Bahauddin Zakariya.

The thara & setting

Thara Sahib is not a separate gurdwara building. The memorial is a seat (thara) in the corridor of the mazar (tomb) of the Sufi saint Shah Shams Sabzwari on Shah Shams Road - the tall, tiled tomb visible just past Daulat Gate Chowk in Multan. Guru Nanak is said to have stayed outside the city here and held discussions with the mystics and learned men of the area.

During the rule of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Prakash of Guru Granth Sahib Ji took place here. Under British rule it was discontinued in 1850. The corridor still stands as a monument of the Jagat Guru's arrival in Multan.

Religious significance

Thara Sahib is a symbol of Sufi-Sikh dialogue and mutual respect. The milk-glass sakhi teaches that spiritual quality matters more than quantity - that, like a single petal perfuming a whole bowl of milk, one person's goodness can fill the world, and there is always room for holiness.

Visiting / pilgrim info

The thara sits in the corridor of Shah Shams Sabzwari's tomb on Shah Shams Road, just past Daulat Gate Chowk in Multan. The best months to visit are November to February; the saint's urs in early June draws huge crowds in Multan's extreme summer heat. Visitors often combine it with Multan's other historic shrines. See all gurdwaras in Pakistan for more pilgrimage sites.

Where exactly is Thara Sahib?

In the corridor of the tomb of Shah Shams Sabzwari on Shah Shams Road in Multan, Punjab, Pakistan, just past Daulat Gate Chowk.

What is the milk-glass story?

The pirs of Multan sent Guru Nanak a bowl brimming with milk to say the city was full of holy men; he floated a jasmine flower on it to show he would make room without displacing anyone.

Is there a separate gurdwara building?

No. The memorial is a thara (seat) in the corridor of the Sufi saint's tomb; no separate gurdwara stands there.

When did Prakash stop here?

Prakash took place during Maharaja Ranjit Singh's rule and was discontinued in 1850 under British rule.