Akshardham Temple Delhi
Temples are one of the main attractions of India. If you are planning to visit India, you can roam around in the Temples. Akshardham Temple is an ancient temple in India.
Picture: collected
Temples are one of the main attractions of India. If you are planning to visit India, you can roam around in the Temples. Akshardham Temple is an ancient temple in India. The magnificent Akshardham Temple, built-in full Indian culture and architecture, is located in Delhi, India. The locals also call this Temple Delhi Akshardham or Swaminarayan Akshardham Temple. This Temple was built with the inspiration of Swami Maharaj, the Guru of Bochasannyasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sangstha.
When visiting Delhi, no tourist comes without seeing this temple. The whole Temple has been built by all the rituals of Vastu shastra and Panchatantra Shastra. After many years of work, the Temple was finally completed in 2005. The doors of the Temple are also opened for visitors, devotees, and tourists. Part of the Temple on the banks of the river Jamuna contains the history of Swami Narayan and India with precious stones.
In 1968, Narayan Sant Yogi Maharaj, the head of the BAPS Sangha expressed his first wish to build 'Akshardham'. He wanted to build this temple on the banks of the river Jamuna. And two or three members of the association will be in Delhi to oversee the Temple's construction. Yogi Maharaj died in 1971, just as the plan was about to be implemented. Then in 1982, Swami Maharaj, the next head of the BAPS Sangha, became a novice in fulfilling the dream of Yogi Maharaj.
As such, he wants land from the Delhi Development Authority to build a temple. The DDA said it would provide ground for temples in Ghaziabad, Gurgaon, and Faridabad. But Swami Maharaj remained steadfast in his resolve to build a temple on the banks of the Jamuna in Delhi as per Guruji's wishes. Finally, in April 2000, the Delhi Development Authority granted 60 acres and the Uttar Pradesh government 30,000 acres. Swamiji first erected the land for the Temple. Work on the Temple began in November of that year. The work was completed by 2005. Public access took place in November 2005. It took more or less five years to build the Temple.
Eight saints of the Sangh were entrusted with the task of building the Temple. Because they were present during the construction of another branch of 'Akshardham' located in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. So, the experience of building a temple was before them. Also, Pramukh Swami Maharaj himself sat down to discuss the matter with multiple architects. It is to be noted that the members started speculating about the commencement of stone carving work for the Temple from 1996-1998, but Swami Maharaj said that the work would start as soon as the land is acquired.
The first foundation stone of the Temple was laid in 2001. Eight saints requested the architects to build the Temple according to the Pancharatra Shastra. Accordingly, 'Akshardham' was built by the Indian architectural style of the eighth to twelfth centuries. Therefore, on this Temple, the carvings of many South India temples, including Angkor Bhat, Jodhpur, Jagannath Temple of Puri, Konark, Bhubaneswar temple of Odisha, can be seen.
'Akshardham' was built by the tireless work of seven thousand sculptors and three thousand volunteers. For this, about six thousand tons of pink stones were brought from Rajasthan. Most of the sculptors were local farmers and one and a half thousand tribal women. At first, some stones were cut by machine, but the rest of the carving's fine work was done by hand. Every night four thousand workers used to come in 100 lorries to build the Temple. Akshardham was inaugurated on November 8, 2005, in Swami Maharaj and the then President of India APJ Abdul Kalam. About 25,000 people, including the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Leader of the Opposition in the Indian Parliament LK Advani, were present.
This Temple is a combination of ancient and modern. It is the seat of knowledge, tradition, and experience. On July 13, 2010, a new sanctum sanctorum was established in the Temple. Prominent Swami Maharaj inaugurated. There is a statue of Swami Narayan on the throne. The fine work of gold around it. 'Akshardham' has been attracting public attention since the time of the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. Thousands of people, including about a hundred athletes, came to see 'Akshardham'. On November 14 of that year, the women members of the association organized a cultural program.
Not just for architecture, 'Akshardham' is one of the world's largest Hindu temples, featuring all the Hindu temples. On December 17, 2007, Michael Witty, the official world record holder of the Guinness World Records, arrived in Ahmedabad and handed over the certificate to Swami Maharaj. The certificate contains all the information about 'Akshardham'. Michael Witty said it took the agency about three months to find out the Temple's architectural details. In it, the customs and principles of traditional and modern Hinduism have found a place. So 'Akshardham' deserves this outstanding award.
The Temple's central part is about 141 feet high, 316 feet wide, and 356 feet long. The Temple has 234 pillars, nine huge domes, and 20,000 idols and architecture of Hindu gods and goddesses, saints, and acharyas. The entire temple is made of pink sandstone from Rajasthan and Italian Carrara marble. Steel or concrete was not used in the construction of the Temple. Elephant architecture has been made in many parts of the Temple, combining Hindu culture and India's history. Each elephant architecture weighs about 3,000 tons.
The Temple has an exhibition hall, theater, musical fountain, the garden of India. There is also a huge garden in the shape of a lotus flower known as Yogi Hriday Komal. Besides, Nilkant Abhishek, Narayan Sarobar, Premati Food Court, Arsh Center, etc. are part of this Temple.
There is no entrance fee to visit the Akshardham Temple. But you will need to book your tickets to enjoy the exhibitions and water shows. You can donate to Abhishek donation. All of their volunteers and staff's assistance is also free of charge. The Darshan time is 9:30 am to 8:00 pm, and the Arti time is 10:00 am and 6:00 pm.
How to Reach
Once you reach Delhi, you can choose any route you want. You can go there from Akshardham Metro Station. The Temple is near to the station.
If you are traveling from the airport, then you need to go to Akshardham Metro Station. Follow the instructions from the station to the Temple. It will take 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Google Map: click here
Writer: Samia Jahan
References: India Times, Wikipedia
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