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Apoorva Devanshi
Guest
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived in UAE for a two day visit inaugurated the BAPS mandir which is Abu Dhabi’s first Hindu temple. Speaking at the opening of the temple constructed by the Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), the Prime Minister expressed his sincere gratitude to Sheikh Mohammad Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emirates, for bringing the magnificent temple in Abu Dhabi to life. He said that Al Nahyan had won the hearts of not only Indians living in the gulf countries but also of 140 crore Indians.
The Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), a branch of the Vaishnavite Swaminarayan Sampradaya, constructed the temple.
Approximately 1,550 temples are part of the global network of BAPS. This network includes the Swaminarayan temple in London, Houston, Chicago and the Akshardham temple in New Delhi and Gandhinagar. Moreover, it runs 3,850 centers and 17,000 weekly assemblies worldwide.
The temple is not only the fulfillment of the dreams living in Abu Dhabi but it also reflects the shared universal human values and ethos of both UAE and India. According to PM Modi it represents the ideals of Vasudev Kutumbakam. For it is an ideal spiritual place that is not merely rooted in beliefs and traditions but is a confluence of different cultures and civilizations. The mandir is also expression by UAE, of their friendship and faith in India and Indian community.
The post PM Modi Inaugurates BAPS Temple in UAE! appeared first on The Jaipur Dialogues.
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BAPS-
The Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), a branch of the Vaishnavite Swaminarayan Sampradaya, constructed the temple.
Approximately 1,550 temples are part of the global network of BAPS. This network includes the Swaminarayan temple in London, Houston, Chicago and the Akshardham temple in New Delhi and Gandhinagar. Moreover, it runs 3,850 centers and 17,000 weekly assemblies worldwide.
Key Features –
- The Abu Dhabi temple is a conventional Hindu temple that has seven shikharas. It is constructed in the conventional Nagar style of architecture. The seven shikhara represents the seven emirates of the UAE. The front panel of the temple features images of Hindu spiritual leaders and avatars alongside stories of harmony from various cultures and universal values.
- The temple complex covers 13.5 acres out of a total of 27 acres. Around 13.5 acres of land designate parking, capable of accommodating approximately 1,400 cars and 50 buses. Additionally, The UAE President, Sheikh Al Nahyan, gave the 13.5 acres of land as a gift in 2019.
- The temple is 108 feet tall, 262 feet long, and 180 feet wide. They used pink sandstones from Rajasthan on the exterior façade and Italian marbles on the inside. The temple builders shipped more than 20,000 tonnes of marbles and stones in 700 containers for its construction, and they have spent more than 700 crores on its construction.
- The sprawling temple has a prayer hall which can hold upto 3000 people, a community center, an exhibition hall, a library, and a park.
- Eight idols, representing the eight pillars of Sanatana Dharma, mark the entrance to the temple. The temple then houses seven shrines, each dedicated to a different deity from North, East, West, or South India. In other words it houses Shri Rama, Shiv, Jagannath, Shri Krishna, Swaminarayan, Tirupati Balaji and Shri Ayappa.
- It has two central domes namely, the dome of Harmony and the dome of peace. These domes contain motifs of Earth, fire, air, and water which emphasises on human coexistence.
- The temple carvings depict stories from Ramayan. It also features stories from different civilisations like the Maya, Aztec, Egyptian and African ones.
- One of the key architectural features are the 96 bells and gaumukhs installed on the path leading to the temple. These bells are tribute to Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s 96 years of life. It also features a stone carving of swami Maharaj’s on the upper left corner of the temple.
- To reduce the carbon footprint, the concrete mix has replaced cement with fly ash. Furthermore, in order to provide pilgrims with comfortable walking conditions in the scorching heat, the construction incorporates Nano tiles.
- Then the temple contains around 150 sensors to monitor temperature, seismic activity , pressure and stress. No ferrous material has been used to prevent corrosion.
- The temple has a wide variety of pillars, including hexagonal and circular ones, but one particular pillar known as the “Pillar of pillars” has about 1,400 tiny pillars carved into it.
- The temple also contains some special features like a “Holy river” surrounding it. Water from Ganga and Yamuna was brought in for this. It also features a Varanasi like Ghat through which the artificial river passes and depicts river Sarasvati in form of a white light.
Significance-
The temple is not only the fulfillment of the dreams living in Abu Dhabi but it also reflects the shared universal human values and ethos of both UAE and India. According to PM Modi it represents the ideals of Vasudev Kutumbakam. For it is an ideal spiritual place that is not merely rooted in beliefs and traditions but is a confluence of different cultures and civilizations. The mandir is also expression by UAE, of their friendship and faith in India and Indian community.
The post PM Modi Inaugurates BAPS Temple in UAE! appeared first on The Jaipur Dialogues.
Continue reading...