Gurdwara Likhansar Sahib is a historical Sikh shrine located in Talwandi Sabo in Bathinda District, Punjab, India. It is a square hall, including a domed sanctum within it, situated at the southeastern corner of the sarovar, the holy tank. The name Likhansar is derived from two words: Likhana, meaning writing, and Sar, meaning sarovar or holy pond. Therefore, Likhansar means “The Pond of Writing.”
According to Sikh tradition, in Talvandi Sabo (Damdama Sahib) under the supervision of Guru Gobind Singh, his scholars and calligraphers, Bhai Mani Singh and Baba Dip Singh, compiled the Dasam Granth and made four copies of the Guru Granth Sahib. As per Bhai Koer Singh’s account in Gurbilas Patshahi 10, there used to be a pool of water at the site during the days of Guru Gobind Singh. The Guru used to have reed-pens made here and then throw them into the pool. It was here that Bhai Mani Singh penned the Guru Granth Sahib dictated by Guru Gobind Singh using a kalam (a reed carved into a pen).
Once, Chaudhary Dal Singh, the local chief of Talvandi Sabo, who had converted to Sikhism long before, but now took Amrit Pahul, asked the Guru to explain why he ordered thousands of pens to be cut and thrown away. The Guru replied that thousands of Sikhs would study the holy texts in this place in the future, and then pens would come into use. The Guru considered it a seat of learning, and those who studied here would cast off their ignorance and rise to be authors, poets, and commentators.
Today, there is a Gurdwara named Likhansar at the spot where pilgrims bow before the Punjabi alphabet (Painti Gurmukhi). There used to be a sandpit in the Gurdwara where mothers made their young children put the first letter of the script while holding their hand. However, now there is marble all over the place.
