Lotus Temple Fast facts

Lotus Temple Fast facts

• Location- New Delhi
• Completed – 13th November 1986
• Open to the public- 24^th December,1986
• Type- House of worship
• Known- Baha’i house of worship
• Architecture- expressionist
• Also known as- The first Bahi Temple in India.
• Timings- The timings of the Lotus Temple are as follows
• Winter- 09.00 am to 06.00 pm
• Summer- 09.00 am to 07.00 pm

Lotus temple is one of the largest places of worship and is an intrinsic architecture style that resonates neo expressionalism and also the thoughts and the beliefs of the Bahai religion. So much so that it is called the Taj Mahal of modern India. This place of worship is dedicated to the unity and the oneness of religions and mankind. Though the followers are a very small thread in the secular fabric of the nation there values and thought process is well grounded in the modern times. Imbibing a true spirit of service this temple also serves as center for relief to those in need, a source of sustenance to the depressed, a place for the homeless wayfarer and education to those who need it the most.

Before moving onto the details of this temple some words about the religion. There are distinctive features of the Bahai religion. First of all they are no clergymen who administer. The lay faithful themselves perform the various observances. The Bahai service consists of prayer and selected reading from Bahai scriptures. There is also reading of texts from other religious texts of faiths across the globe. Prayer and meditation and converting prayer into the acts of mercy is the essence of the religion.

The Lotus temple is one of the major six houses in the world the other five include Apia, Western Samosa, Sydney Australia, Kampala Uganda, Panama city, Panama, Frankfurt, Germany and Wilmette, USA.

Architecture of Lotus Temple- Remarkable and spectacular are the two adjectives that fittingly describe the architecture of Lotus Temple. This monument for prayer asserts that a spiritful vision can work wonders can and also works marvels and miracles. The temple a masterpiece of expressionalist architectural work can be visible furlongs away. The structure is designed in the form of half bloom lotus with 27 petals that is surrounded by lawns and nine pools. The 40 meter temple has a setting capacity of 1,300. The surface of the temple is made from white marble that was specially outsourced from Pentili hills in Greece. The same marble has been used for the construction of various other Bahai monuments. Fariborz Sahba is the architect who designed this monument. He was approached almost ten years before the completion of the monument and was overseer of the project. A major part of the construction of the land was burse of the entire life savings of Ardishír Rustampúr of Hyderabad.

Since the day it was opened to the public for veneration, scores of individuals have flocked to this temple of solace. A statistic suggests that the daily average footfall of the temple is close to 10,000. This place not only serves a place of worship but also a popular tourist. So much so that this building features in the list of most visited building around the globe.